The J-Notes
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Utah Jazz Week Seven Outlook: Are the Jazz in for a change of fortune?

By Jared Woodcox

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - NOVEMBER 19: Donovan Mitchell #45 and Ricky Rubio #3 of the Utah Jazz talk in the game against the Indiana Pacers at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on November 19, 2018 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN - NOVEMBER 19: Donovan Mitchell #45 and Ricky Rubio #3 of the Utah Jazz talk in the game against the Indiana Pacers at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on November 19, 2018 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /
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INDIANAPOLIS, IN – NOVEMBER 19: Rudy Gobert #27 of the Utah Jazz shoots the ball against the Indiana Pacers at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on November 19, 2018 in Indianapolis, Indiana. 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. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN – NOVEMBER 19: Rudy Gobert #27 of the Utah Jazz shoots the ball against the Indiana Pacers at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on November 19, 2018 in Indianapolis, Indiana. 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. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /

The Utah Jazz will face four Eastern Conference foes in Week Seven as they continue a road-heavy start to the 2018-19 season.

Well, Week Six didn’t exactly go as planned. Not only did the Utah Jazz lose to the Victor Oladipo-less Indiana Pacers, the Sacramento Kings and the Los Angeles Lakers, but they also lost Donovan Mitchell to injury in the third game of the slate. Fortunately, even in his absence, the Jazz managed to earn a victory over the Kings on Sunday night, but they still went just 1-3 on the week. Certainly not ideal.

I had optimism that the Jazz would beat the Pacers sans their best player and defeat the Kings both times, so I was off on those two contests but right about the lone win. I also happened to correctly pick the Lakers loss. Therefore, while the Jazz fell to 9-11 on the year, I managed to remain at .500 by moving to 10-10.

Utah’s win against Sacramento was vital as it served as an important confidence builder, proved they can win without Donovan and also will hopefully set an encouraging tone for the remainder of the season. Unfortunately, things won’t get much easier for the Jazz as this week will see them once again have a brief single-game stop at home before heading back on the road for three straight road contests.

That lone home game on Monday will be a rematch against the Indiana Pacers, who will likely be without Oladipo once again. Also, Myles Turner and Domantas Sabonis have both been banged up in recent contests, so the Jazz should have an excellent opportunity to take revenge and get a much-needed home victory over a wounded Pacers team. Indy toppled Utah without Oladipo last time around, though, and is still a solid squad in the East so the Jazz can’t get complacent.

Then, the Jazz will visit the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday, the Charlotte Hornets on Friday and the Miami Heat on Sunday. None of those opponents are overly daunting, but as the Jazz continue to travel from place to place with no home stands in between, each figures to be a challenging affair. Not only that, but we’ve seen Utah struggle with teams of all different talent levels so far this year, so none of those teams should be overlooked.

With that stage set, let’s take a closer look at each of the four opponents Utah will face in Week Seven of the 2018-19 season.

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