Utah Jazz Week 10 Outlook: Perplexing Jazz face tough slate

LOS ANGELES, CA – NOVEMBER 23: The Utah Jazz huddle up before the game against the Los Angeles Lakers on November 23, 2018 at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, California. 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 2018 NBAE (Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images)

The Utah Jazz face a rough travel schedule and four daunting opponents in what could very well be an ugly Week 10 for them.

It’s almost starting to appear as if the Utah Jazz may be allergic to a .500 record. Once again in Week Nine, they missed an absolutely excellent opportunity to even up their wins and losses, instead falling short in discouraging fashion to the Orlando Magic in Mexico City, dropping back to two games below .500 at 14-16.

Plenty of excuses can be made about the rigorous trip south of the border, the high elevation of Arena Ciudad de Mexico and several other things in between. But that doesn’t change the fact that Utah lost a game on Saturday that they should have won. Instead, they laid an absolute egg, shooting a measly 31.5 percent from the field.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t the only loss of the week either, as Utah was easily dispatched by the Oklahoma City Thunder to start out Week Nine. The only reprieve from painful losses was a blowout win over the Miami Heat. Sure, the Heat are not much of a force to be reckoned with, but it’s still absolutely perplexing how the Jazz can show out one game and dominate their foe, then complete fail to make a basket in the next. Those roller coaster performances have been a theme all season long.

Can the Jazz start 2019 above .500?
Via @jaredwoodcox https://t.co/515CboAUlG
— The J-Notes (@TheJNotes) December 14, 2018

With those marks, Utah went 1-2 on the week. I correctly predicted the loss to OKC and the win over Miami, but whiffed on the Orlando game, so I only went a slightly better 2-1, putting me back at .500 for the year but keeping the Jazz just beneath.

Unfortunately, missing out on the chance to get to .500 in Mexico City may really come back to bite the Jazz, as things are set to get a lot harder before they ease up. Week 10 will be a gauntlet of a stretch as we approach the end of the calendar year.

The Jazz face a four-game slate this week which begins in Houston on Monday. This follows straight after the tough flight to and from Mexico City, so don’t be surprised to see the Jazz on tired legs. Next, on Wednesday, they’ll head to Salt Lake for another odd single home game which will likely feel like just another travel stop along their way. They’ll face off in that contest against the Golden State Warriors, which obviously will be a massive challenge.

Then to conclude the week, the Jazz will head up to Portland, a place they’ve always struggled, on Friday, then turn around to face the Thunder on the second night of a back-to-back in Salt Lake City on Saturday. Between heavy travel and tough opponents, this could be a rough week for a Jazz team that continues to struggle mightily. Here’s a deeper look at what you can expect for the tenth week of NBA action.