Home Court Advantage
The final praise Utah received from the GMs was to be recognized as having one of the best home court advantages. The Jazz used to be known for having the toughest home court in the league, but with the team’s recent struggles, it hasn’t quite lived up to that expectation of late.
Nevertheless, considering that a team that hasn’t made the playoffs in years still came in at the fifth-best home court in the GM Survey is pretty impressive and is a tribute to the intensity and loyalty of Jazz fans. The Jazz received 5 percent of the votes in this category.
Of course Golden State ran away with this one, pulling in 58.3 percent of the vote. This should come as no surprise given how few teams have won a game at Oracle Arena over the past two years. The Jazz were also topped by the Denver Nuggets (16.7 percent), Oklahoma City Thunder (10 percent), and San Antonio Spurs (6.7 percent).
It’s interesting to note that four of the top six teams receiving votes are in the Northwest Division with Portland receiving 3.3 percent of the votes (Minnesota was the only team absent). This shows just how tough of a division the Jazz are in and how crucial it is that they defend their own home court.
Denver was likely present due to having the highest altitude of any NBA team, but the Jazz aren’t far behind. With a revamped team and heightened expectations, hopefully Vivint Arena can provide the crushing home court advantage that the Delta Center and Energy Solutions Arena once did in the glory days of old.
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So while it’s certainly true that the Jazz have a lot to prove and that the GM survey is based on pure speculation, it’s still very exciting to see the oft ignored and overlooked Jazz receiving some true recognition from some of the league’s most knowledgeable minds.
And though the added expectations can definitely bring about more pressure, with one look at this survey, Utah should take pride in seeing their team mentioned time and time again. Then by harnessing that confidence, there’s no reason why the Jazz can’t reach these and even greater heights.
All stats courtesy of NBA.com