Utah Jazz at Dallas Mavericks key matchup: Rudy Gobert vs. DeAndre Jordan
Rudy Gobert and the Utah Jazz are rolling into Dallas winners of their last three games and looking to ensure a season-series win over DeAndre Jordan and the Mavericks.
Just 14 games into the regular season, the Utah Jazz and Dallas Mavericks will have already faced off three times. Rudy Gobert has been utterly dominant in each of the first two matchups; owning the restricted area at both ends of the floor, pinning defenders and dunking frequently at one end, and building a wall around the rim at the other. Gobert has come away with seven blocks against the Mavs so far this season.
The Mavericks, like the Jazz, are coming into tonight’s game winners of three of their last four games, albeit against some very lackluster competition. No road win in the NBA comes easily, so the Jazz are going to have to put their best foot forward to improve their impressive road record.
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Rudy Gobert enters tonight’s game averaging 16.3 points on 72 percent from the field, to go along with 13.5 rebounds and 2.4 blocks.
Meanwhile, DeAndre Jordan is averaging 11.2 points on 62 percent from the field with 13.7 rebounds and 1.3 blocks. The biggest story for Jordan this season has been his incredible jump in free throw percentage. In his first 10 years in the NBA, Jordan shot a woeful 44.6 percent from the line and has made an astounding leap to 81.3 percent this season.
Jordan is commonly regarded among NBA fans as a dominant defensive presence. This couldn’t be further from the truth. So far this season, the Mavericks have a defensive rating of 110.2 with Jordan in the lineup which would make them the 6th worst defense in the NBA. They are better defensively without Jordan on the court, just as the Clippers were last season.
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Nonetheless, the battle between Rudy Gobert and DeAndre Jordan should be an intriguing one, especially as the game is likely to become a bit chippy given that these teams have already met twice this season. Hopefully Rudy Gobert can have another dominant showing and lead the Jazz to their fourth consecutive win.
Statistics courtesy of NBA.com.