The Utah Jazz will play again on Friday night in Salt Lake City when they host the Phoenix Suns, but it’s hard to predict what will happen on the Delta Center court.
If NBA games could give fans whiplash, many Jazz supporters might be in neck braces after last week’s games. Utah followed a tough 27-point loss at Oklahoma City on Tuesday with an unexpected 141-99 win at Portland on Friday.
However, things turned around quickly on Sunday in Sacramento, where the Jazz gave up 141 points while only scoring 97. “Yeah,” Jazz coach Will Hardy said after the loss in Sacramento, “we got our butts kicked.”
Utah will have a short stop at home against the Suns, coming off a rough stretch where they lost six of seven games and 10 of 12. After this game, the Jazz will go on a five-game road trip from Dec. 16-26, traveling to Los Angeles to face the Clippers, then to Detroit, Brooklyn, Cleveland, and back to Portland.
For Utah to be competitive during this tough stretch, they will need to improve on both offense and defense. In the loss to Sacramento, the Kings shot 22 of 44 from three-point range, while Utah made only 38.8% of its shots overall.
The result wasn’t good.
“That’s the way the NBA can feel now,” Hardy said. “Games can feel crazy when teams get hot shooting the ball from kind of everywhere.”
Although neither Lauri Markkanen nor Kyle Filipowski made a big impact in the loss, both players returned for the Jazz, which could help during this upcoming road trip.
Keyonte George had a strong performance against the Kings, scoring 25 points on 8-of-14 shooting, along with six assists and four steals. Johnny Juzang scored a season-high 22 points in the win at Portland.
“We are in this space of guys being in and out, and it’s tough for young players to find continuity,” Hardy said. “I think for any team to find a level and sustain we do need to have continuity.”
The Suns are finishing up a four-game road trip, with their second visit to Utah this season. Phoenix won 120-112 on Nov. 12.
Phoenix has had a rough time on this trip, losing to New Orleans, Miami, and Orlando, and they are closer to the bottom of the Western Conference standings than the top.
Getting Kevin Durant back from a left ankle injury, which could happen as soon as Friday, would be a big boost. The Suns are 8-2 this season when Durant plays alongside Devin Booker and Bradley Beal, but just 1-9 when Durant is out.
Durant, who has missed the last three games and 12 games this season, is Phoenix’s leading scorer with 25.8 points per game, followed by Booker with 24.9 points and Beal with 17.8.
“You try to put importance on every segment of the season,” Suns center Mason Plumlee said. “Just being fully healthy, having everybody, it’d be nice to get rolling and string some wins together. Those stretches can be meaningful. It does bring out a sense of identity if you’re able to put some wins together.”
