12/21 Utah at Porland
8:00 pm MT – AT&T SportsNet/NBA TV
Opponent record: 16-13
Season series: Tied 0-0
The Portland Trail Blazers have slid quite a bit since an early quick start and it’s seen them fall to eighth place in the Western Conference with a 16-13 record. However, they quickly reminded the NBA world that they’re still a force to be reckoned with when they toppled the league-leading Toronto Raptors on Friday in statement fashion.
The Blazers seem to be the team that is perennially counted out yet still finds a way to come through, as they’ve proved several times in recent seasons as they’ve overcome doubters to qualify for the playoffs. As such, they definitely shouldn’t be counted out, especially by a Jazz team that’s had far more issues than Portland even during their recent slump.
Not only that, but the Jazz have only won one game in Portland in their last six tries, meaning that the Moda Center has been far from kind to them in recent bouts. Considering that this will come on the tail of yet another quick travel turnaround and will be in the hostile environment that is Moda Center, I’m feeling less than optimistic about Utah’s chances.
Both Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum are known Jazz killers, and even Jusuf Nurkic has had a knack for giving Rudy Gobert some issues, so I’m picking the Blazers to defend home court and come away with the win quite comfortably.
My Prediction: Blazers Win
Final Score: Portland 115, Utah 109