The J-Notes
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Utah Jazz vs Oklahoma City Thunder: Who has the upper hand at each position?

By Tyler Thorpe

SALT LAKE CITY, UT - DECEMBER 23: Paul George #13 of the Oklahoma City Thunder and Donovan Mitchell #45 of the Utah Jazz hug after the game on December 23, 2017 at vivint.SmartHome Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Melissa Majchrzak/NBAE via Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY, UT - DECEMBER 23: Paul George #13 of the Oklahoma City Thunder and Donovan Mitchell #45 of the Utah Jazz hug after the game on December 23, 2017 at vivint.SmartHome Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Melissa Majchrzak/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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SALT LAKE CITY, UT – DECEMBER 23: Paul George #13 of the Oklahoma City Thunder and Donovan Mitchell #45 of the Utah Jazz hug after the game on December 23, 2017 at vivint.SmartHome Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Melissa Majchrzak/NBAE via Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY, UT – DECEMBER 23: Paul George #13 of the Oklahoma City Thunder and Donovan Mitchell #45 of the Utah Jazz hug after the game on December 23, 2017 at vivint.SmartHome Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Melissa Majchrzak/NBAE via Getty Images) /

The Utah Jazz and Oklahoma City Thunder will begin their first-round playoff series on Sunday afternoon. At what positions do the Jazz have the upper hand over the star-studded Thunder squad heading into the playoffs?

Between the fourth-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder and the fifth-seeded Utah Jazz, Oklahoma City easily boasts the more star-studded lineup, including the series’ best player in Russell Westbrook. The Jazz, however, have distinct advantages in a number of crucial areas heading into their first-round date with the Thunder.

With Game 1 just two days away, how does each team’s starting lineup, bench unit and coaching staff matchup? The results might surprise you.

For this comparison, we will look at each team’s expected starting unit as well as both teams’ bench performance over the entire 2017-2018 regular season. While the players listed may not necessarily play head-to-head the entire series, it will give us a good idea of where both teams stack up.

Let’s get right to it…

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