Utah Jazz at Los Angeles Lakers Preview: Jazz must show some urgency

The Utah Jazz will be in for a challenge on Friday night as they face a Los Angeles Lakers team that’s well-equipped to take advantage of their weaknesses.

If only the Utah Jazz could play the Boston Celtics every game this season. Surprisingly, the Jazz are 2-0 against what’s been an similarly dysfunctional squad (maybe there’s a Gordon Hayward curse), but beyond that, they haven’t looked that great at all against any other opponent. Their subpar play of late has seen them lose four of their last five games (the lone win was in Boston) and fall to a forgettable record of 8-10.

Thus, that is the stage that’s set for their day-after-Thanksgiving bout against the new-look Showtime Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers have had their fair share of ups and downs this season, but nonetheless are off to a considerably better start than the Jazz at 10-7, good for seventh in the West. Of course, they’re blessed by the presence of arguably the best basketball player to ever play the game in LeBron James, and will likely go only as far as he can take them.

And while the Jazz have had success against James in Salt Lake City, they’ve struggled to find a way to beat him on the road. In fact, the last time they did so was over eight years ago in Miami, in a thrilling overtime contest on November 9, 2010. The Jazz eked out a two-point victory thanks to a gargantuan effort by Paul Millsap and Deron Williams.

So, yeah, it’s been a minute. However, considering that the Lakers don’t exactly boast the strongest of defenses (though in fairness, they’ve been about as equally lackluster as the Jazz), ideally Utah will be able to get their offense going. If their defense can do enough to also hold LeBron James, who’s playing as always at an MVP level putting up nearly 29 points per game, then Utah may have a shot at winning.

However, despite common opinion, while stopping LeBron will go a long way in defeating the Lakers, he really isn’t the only player the Jazz will have to watch out for. He may not have the most daunting supporting cast, but James excels at getting his teammates involved and he has several comrades that are off to a great start this year.

Principal among them is former University of Utah Ute Kyle Kuzma, who’s putting up 14.7 points per game on 47.5 percent shooting from the field. His 3-point touch is lacking consistency so far this year, but he’s still having a nice follow-up to his breakout rookie season. Meanwhile, Brandon Ingram is a player who can’t be overlooked and JaVale McGee has been shockingly sensational in a Lakers uniform.

Considering how badly the Utah Jazz were just abused in the paint by the likes of Willie Cauley-Stein and the rest of the Sacramento Kings, halting McGee and Co. will need to be an area of emphasis. The Jazz perimeter defense has also been putrid of late as wings are beating them badly to the rim, then usually scoring at will with Gobert being asked to do far too much.

Utah’s defense may be anchored by Gobert, but it starts with a full team effort and commitment. If the perimeter defenders don’t do a better job of holding their individual foes in check, it won’t matter how good Rudy is, he simply won’t be able to keep up. What the Lakers lack in shooting, they make up for in athleticism as they have several players that are quick and able to get to the cup with ease. Utah’s wing players will absolutely have to step it up.

That said, I also believe that Gobert has been somewhat complacent up to this point in the season. Hopefully a thrilling matchup in the bright lights of Los Angeles against a LeBron James-led Lakers squad will help light a fire under him and his Jazz teammates that will lead them to victory.

Heading into the season, I believed that a deep and hard-nosed Jazz team would have no problem against a Lakers team with a shoddy supporting cast despite the addition of LeBron James. The Jazz were built to give trouble to teams centered around one key player, and could overwhelm them with their team-first approach.

Unfortunately, due to Utah’s recent overwhelming struggles, I’m feeling less than confident about their chances on Friday evening. Especially considering how poor their defense has been, they have no one that can stop LeBron. The Lakers love to run and get out in transition (they’re currently second in the league in fast break points and eighth in points off turnovers), which has been an absolute Achilles’ heel for Utah. The Kings caught the Jazz napping in transition countless times, and I’m thinking we’ll see a similar result this time around in LA.

And those transition opportunities aren’t just starting on turnovers, but simply on missed shots as well. And given Utah’s pathetic shooting percentages this season, particularly from deep where they’re at just 32.7 percent – 27th in the league while hoisting the 13th most attempts – they’re allowing teams ample opportunities to defensive rebound, push the tempo up the floor and score easily.

And doing as much is exactly where the Lakers thrive. 20.9 of their points per game come in fast break situations. That’s a scary consideration for what’s been a lumbering Jazz defense this year.

Considering how poorly the Jazz have played of late and how well-suited the Lakers’ style is to take advantage of what the Jazz have been failing to execute on, I’m expecting a less than pretty sight tonight. I have a feeling that Utah’s losing streak on the road against LeBron will continue as this team keeps attempting to ‘figure things out’ on what’s been a disappointing 2018-19 campaign thus far.

Prediction: Lakers 120, Jazz 103

Perhaps the Jazz will surprise us and get back to their winning ways following the Thanksgiving festivities. But they’ve shown absolutely no signal of such up to this point. Sure, their schedule has been tough so far, but that’s no excuse for their lack of effort or execution. We keep hearing them talk about changing their ways and playing better in their post-game interviews, but we have yet to see those words translate into action.

There’s no time like the present, so ideally that big talk will finally come into effect in this upcoming bout. The Jazz and Lakers tip-off at 8:30 PM MT from the Staples Center.