Coming in on the second night of a back-to-back, the Utah Jazz will have their work cut out for them against a Cleveland Cavaliers team that is exceptional on their home court.
In an interesting tidbit that I mentioned earlier in my piece previewing this week’s slate of games, I mentioned that while LeBron James has struggled in Salt Lake City, failing to win there since the 2010-2011 season, the Utah Jazz have also been unable to beat James on the road since defeating him in Miami during that exact same season.
Therefore, tonight’s contest will decide whether those two streaks continue as a tie or whether Utah finally breaks the trend by earning a rare road win over The King.
It certainly won’t be easy for the Jazz given that not only are the Cavs the best team in the Eastern Conference and an incredible 27-7 on their home court, but Utah is also coming into the game on the second night of a back-to-back after defeating Detroit last night. Luckily, it was a quite comfortable win that likely didn’t take too much out of the Jazz, but Gordon Hayward, Rudy Gobert and George Hill did all log over 30 minutes apiece so fatigue could still play a factor.
Nevertheless, as evidenced by Utah’s impressive victory over Cleveland the last time these two squads met as well as recent statement wins over the Rockets and Clippers, the Jazz are showing more and more that they’re not afraid of anybody and that they’re beginning to garner confidence that they can compete with and defeat any team in the league.
Great defensive game and win to start the road trip, now off to Cleveland. #takefnnote #ontothenextone
— Rudy Gobert (@rudygobert27) March 16, 2017
With that being the case, we could very well be in for a thriller tonight as Utah will look to further prove themselves as a force to be reckoned with by knocking off the East’s best while also tightening their grip on the fourth seed in the West.
The Jazz were granted some cushion in the standings as the Clippers surprisingly fell at home to the Milwaukee Bucks last night, but rather than view that as now making a loss affordable, Utah should see it as an opportunity to distance themselves from LA for good.
That will clearly be a tall task against the defending NBA Champs especially coming into the game without any rest, but the Jazz have been playing exceptionally well of late having won nine of their last 12 while the Cavs have lost four of six. Therefore, if Utah can keep up their recent hot play and particularly hone in on the following key areas, they may have a shot to pull off the upset and move to 2-0 on their current road trip.