Utah Jazz at Philadelphia 76ers: Keys to keep momentum rolling
Prediction – Jazz 97, 76ers 94
I’ll be the first to admit that I have a tendency to get too psyched about the highs and too down about the lows, and perhaps that’s exactly what I’m doing here. After all, it was less than 14 days ago that the Sixers unleashed an embarrassing beat-down on the Utah Jazz. Nevertheless, I really liked how the Jazz looked on Saturday and so, against my better judgement, I’m going to go out on a limb and pin them as narrow winners tonight.
Utah is coming off their biggest road win in over 30 years, whereas the 76ers are coming off a soul-crushing blown lead to the Golden State Warriors. Sure, maybe that means they come in pissed off and ready to destroy the visiting Jazz, but I have a feeling Utah’s confidence may be higher than Philly’s determination based on their most recent contest.
Episode 21 puts #TankNote to bed, looks at some surprising teams around the league and previews Utah's Week 6! https://t.co/phnu6bazcU
— Three-Point Threat Podcast (@3PThreatPodcast) November 20, 2017
Not only that, but although there’s certainly a decent chance that the win over the Magic was little more than a fluke, I’m leaning towards the hope that rather than being a lucky win, it was instead a signal that Quin Snyder and Co. are starting to figure things out and putting the pieces together of how this team can be effective and win games.
Next: Utah Jazz-76ers key matchup: Derrick Favors takes on Joel Embiid
If such is the case and Utah truly is looking to turn over a new leaf and shake off their recent losing streak, then as long as they can thrive in the key areas I described, they should have a great chance to arise victorious to close out the road trip.
From here, they’ll enjoy a nice three-game home stand that could help them get their record back on track, so setting the tone by ending the road trip on a high note would be an excellent step forward.