The J-Notes
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Utah Jazz Week Twenty Outlook, Predictions

By Jared Woodcox

Mar 5, 2017; Sacramento, CA, USA; Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert (27) celebrates with teammates after the win against the Sacramento Kings during the overtime period at Golden 1 Center. The Utah Jazz defeated the Sacramento Kings 110-109 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 5, 2017; Sacramento, CA, USA; Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert (27) celebrates with teammates after the win against the Sacramento Kings during the overtime period at Golden 1 Center. The Utah Jazz defeated the Sacramento Kings 110-109 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports /
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Feb 28, 2017; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Utah Jazz guard George Hill (3) drives to the basket in front of Oklahoma City Thunder center Enes Kanter (11) during the fourth quarter at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 28, 2017; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Utah Jazz guard George Hill (3) drives to the basket in front of Oklahoma City Thunder center Enes Kanter (11) during the fourth quarter at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports /

3/11 Utah at Oklahoma City

1:00 pm MT – Root Sports/League Pass

Opponent record: 35-28

Season series: Thunder lead 2-1

After logging an absolutely incredible win over the Oklahoma City Thunder in these two teams’ first meeting of the season, Russell Westbrook and Co. have become quite a challenge for the Jazz. After losing the last two contests in heartbreaking fashion by two and three points, respectively, it has suddenly appeared that the Thunder have Utah’s number.

What’s worse is the fact that Utah hasn’t won a game in Oklahoma City since October 31, 2010, making that 11 straight losses on the road against the Thunder.

However, it is vital that the Jazz earn this win to have any hope of winning a tiebreaker over a team that could very well end up right next to them in the standings. There’s no question in my mind that the moves that OKC made at the trade deadline helped improve them and with MVP candidate Russell Westbrook capable of doing amazing things on any given night, this is certainly a team that could get hot and rise up the standings at any moment.

https://twitter.com/utahjazz/status/836953172488962048

Oddly enough, however, after coming out of the All-Star break red hot by winning three straight games including the victory over the Jazz, OKC has suddenly hit a bit of a slide, losing three straight games to non-playoff teams in the Blazers, Suns and Mavericks.

If there’s one thing OKC’s insistent reliance on Westbrook has done to them this season, it’s given them the ability to beat the best of the best, but also falter and lose to less than daunting foes.

Thus, hopefully the Jazz can catch the Thunder in a downswing and force Westbrook into an off night to earn the win. Westbrook has absolutely destroyed the Jazz in the past two contests as Utah struggles to find the best set of defenders to put in front of him.

The good news for the Jazz is that they will be coming into this game off of two full days of rest. Hopefully that will allow them to come out rejuvenated and ready to go against their most daunting divisional foe.

Unfortunately, I can’t say that I’m confident of that being the case. The Jazz have struggled against playoff-caliber teams and have had an especially hard time finding a way to win in Oklahoma City. The Jazz simply haven’t been able to keep up with Westbrook and barring a rare off night from the Thunder star, I’m going to pin OKC as winners in heartbreaking fashion once again.

My Prediction: Thunder Win

Final Score: Oklahoma City 105, Utah 101

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As I stated at the beginning of this piece, I could just as easily see the Jazz going 0-3 this week as I could 3-0. I’m hopeful that they’ll be able to log a much-needed confidence building win over New Orleans tonight to help set the tone for the rest of the week, but then the next two are truly up in the air.

Though I’ve pinned the Jazz to go 2-1, including defeating Houston and losing to OKC, I honestly wouldn’t be surprised to see those two games reversed. Houston is playing extremely well right now and is better than a lot of people give them credit for, even though I like how Utah matches up against them.

The Thunder, meanwhile, have fallen into a cold streak, and it took them an unbelievable 12-of-12 start from the three-point line to beat the Jazz by a narrow three points last game. The chances of that happening again are pretty slim and could therefore indicate that the Jazz get it done this time around.

Yet, regardless of how it plays out, it’s crucial for the Jazz to at least escape from this week with a winning record. With the Clippers looming just 1.5 games behind Utah for that fourth seed and given that LA will play two lottery teams this week before starting off Week 21 with a showdown in Salt Lake City, Utah needs to build up as much space as possible by grinding out wins in this upcoming slate of games.

All stats courtesy of NBA.com

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