Utah Jazz notes: Huge help in the playoff race, Trey Burke goes full AI
By Ryan Aston
The Utah Jazz were aided in their playoff pursuits by two big-time losses on Monday. Also — former Jazzman Trey Burke has a career night.
In the Western Conference playoff race, every win or loss has the potential to change the landscape. Such was the case when the Utah Jazz fumbled a game against the lowly Atlanta Hawks last week. However, two teams in the mix with the Jazz just returned the favor in what was a great night (for Utah).
Namely, the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Denver Nuggets.
If you thought losing to the Hawks was bad, the T-Wolves just dropped a game to the 20-54 Memphis Grizzlies at the Target Center. The same Grizzlies who recently lost to the Charlotte Hornets by 61 points.
After trailing by a possession or two for much of the game, Minnesota appeared to have taken charge during the third quarter. Enter Wayne Selden.
The second-year guard scored 14 points in the final carom, hitting three 3-pointers in the process, while the Grizzlies put the clamps down defensively. The result was a 23-11 fourth quarter for Memphis and, ultimately, an eight-point loss for Minnesota.
Now, the Wolves (42-33) are one game behind the Jazz (42-22) in the loss column. On a night they didn’t play, Donovan Mitchell & Co. leap-frogged them in the standings, landing in the No. 7 spot in the West. The Jazz will play the Wolves in Minneapolis on April 1.
Elsewhere, the Nuggets were outclassed on the road by Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers. Denver didn’t trail for the entirety of the first half, leading by as many as 10 along the way. However, the Sixers outscored them 72-45 in the second half to lock-down a 19-point win.
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The No. 1 overall pick from the 2017 NBA Draft, Markelle Fultz, made his long-awaited return in the game. Playing as Ben Simmons‘ back-up, Fultz scored 10 points, dished out eight assists and grabbed four rebounds.
With the loss, the Nuggets are now two full games behind the Jazz at ninth in the West.
Burke goes off
When former Jazz point guard Trey Burke was called up from the G-League by the New York Knicks, some joked that he now resembled Hall of Famer Allen Iverson. Burke’s size, tattoos and cornrows definitely warrant the comparison.
On Monday night, he played like AI, too.
In an overtime loss to the Charlotte Hornets, Burke dropped 42 points on 19-of-31 shooting and added 12 assists for good measure. In his 41 minutes on the floor, the Knicks had an offensive rating over 126.
Say what you will about his exit from Utah, there’s no denying that Burke’s comeback has been one of the league’s best stories this season. Since joining the team in January, he’s averaging 12.2 points in just 19 minutes per game. He’s also shooting over 52 percent from the field and 38 percent from 3-point range.