San Antonio Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs are one of the more confusing teams to analyze in terms of how they’d match up with the Jazz. On one hand, Utah is 3-0 against San Antonio this year, which is a surprising and impressive accomplishment in and of itself, even with all the injuries and instability they’ve faced this year. Not only that, but prior to the Spurs’ recent two consecutive wins, they had lost 11 of 14 games and looked absolutely out of sorts as they plummeted down the standings.
If the Spurs were going to play like that for the remainder of the season, it’s probable that they wouldn’t even make the playoffs, let alone put up a first round fight against the Jazz.
But this is San Antonio we’re talking about, and counting them out in any fashion feels simply foolish. They appeared to right the ship somewhat in a big win over New Orleans on Thursday and especially if they can get Kawhi Leonard back who has been supposedly nearing a return for some time (although that’s been arguably the most confusing story line in the NBA this season), they could quickly become formidable once again.
The Jazz and Spurs face off in what once again could be a pivotal battle on Friday, March 23, and if Leonard is in action for that game, it could be a nice measuring stick to see if a Utah and San Antonio battle would be a good matchup for the Jazz or not. Then again, it may not be all that indicative as Leonard will certainly still be rusty if he does play, and the Jazz will be playing on the second night of a back-to-back.
In short, the Spurs scare me a little bit just because a Gregg Popovich squad with so much playoff experience is one that should never be overlooked. Despite any regular season struggles, this is a team that knows how to win and they could very well further prove that in a playoff series against the Jazz even after losing the regular season series. Throw a potentially healthy Kawhi Leonard into the mix and they become all the more daunting.
Then again, some have noted that the Spurs look more vulnerable this year than they have for several years, and I would agree with that sentiment. Sure, they could undergo a big turnaround, but they’re quickly running out of time to do that. If San Antonio ends up looking not that different from the team Utah has defeated three times this season, this could actually be a great matchup for the Jazz as they hit them with a little bit of their own medicine – depth, great ball movement, and the ultimate team-first approach.
So I guess you could say I’m pretty undecided about whether or not I like this matchup and it will probably require seeing how the rest of the season plays out before I can make up my mind. A lot could change between now and April 11, but based on where things stand now, there’s actually a decent chance that these two teams could be first round foes.
They’re currently tied in the standings in seventh and eighth place with Utah only being ahead by merit of tiebreaker. If they both close out the season well, a 4-5 matchup is entirely in play, or if one excels while the other does pretty well, the 3-6 matchup could be a possibility as well.
I would prefer the Jazz to play the Spurs over some of the teams that I have yet to cover (more on that in a bit), but due simply to their reputation, coach and the possible return of Kawhi Leonard, they’re certainly the least favorable opponent that I’ve touched on thus far.