Utah Jazz vs. Minnesota: Keys to getting a playoff altering win

As the regular season is drawing to a close for the Utah Jazz, they find themselves in a heated race for the final spots in the Western Conference Playoffs. They’ll look to earn a massive victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday.

As the final two weeks of the season are upon us, every game seems to hold weight in the current Western Conference Playoff race. Die-hard fans everywhere have their eyes glued to their phones as they track the outcomes of multiple playoff altering games that seem to be taking place nightly.

At the end of the day, though, you only have to worry about your own team and the hope that they will take care of business. The Utah Jazz will have a chance to do that on Sunday, as they will be taking on the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Minnesota currently has a 44-33 record, and is the 5th seed in the West. They are only 6-4 over their last 10 games, though, and ever since Jimmy Butler went down with a knee injury, they have not been the same team. Butler has not played since injuring his knee against the Houston Rockets on February 23rd. Up to that date, they were safely in the 3-seed, and had the 5th best record in the NBA.

Since the injury, they have gone 8-7, have a net rating of just 0.8, and their Defensive Rating has dropped a point, and is bottom 10 in the league.

With all that said, this team is still extremely talented, and Utah will be playing on the road in Minnesota. I expect this game to have a playoff atmosphere, with both teams playing with a recognition of its magnitude in regards to playoff seeding. Here are three things that the Jazz can focus on if they are going to even up the series matchup with the Timberwolves at two games apiece!