Utah Jazz eye quick jump up standings with upcoming visit to Staples Center

Monday’s win over Detroit moved the Utah Jazz into eighth in the West. And a win Wednesday over the Clippers could move them up yet another spot in the standings.

After a turbulent start to the 2018-19 season, the Utah Jazz are finally beginning to look much more like the squad many thought they would be heading into the year. A four-game winning streak has put them at 24-21 on the year, good for sole possession of eighth place in the Western Conference.

The Jazz earned that 24th victory with an impressive performance against the Detroit Pistons on Monday evening. Despite playing in their third game in four nights, the Jazz found a way to overcome a slow start and several roadblocks to topple the Pistons. Detroit jumped out to a 12-point lead in the second quarter and Utah’s frequent turnovers kept them in the game for nearly the entire contest.

However, the Jazz used a 47-35 second half to put the Pistons away for good. Donovan Mitchell was once again instrumental in the victory as he came away with 28 points on 42.9 percent shooting from both the field and the arc. Rudy Gobert was a monster against Andre Drummond, finishing with 18 points and a whopping 25 rebounds, a career-high for the Stifle Tower.

Lastly, Joe Ingles finished with a run-of-the-mill 13 points, but his huge three late in the game served as the dagger for the Utah victory. His sweet J led to a blown kiss and trash-talking to some unfortunate heckling Pistons fans in the crowd, an iconic moment from Joe.

Though Blake Griffin was the leading scorer for Detroit with 19 points, he didn’t have the greatest game. Several key mistakes down the stretch as well as an over-reliance on the three-ball (he went 3-of-11) were quite damaging to his squad.

It certainly wasn’t a pretty win, but a W is a W nonetheless. And Utah’s win moved them up the standings back into the playoff mix where they’ll hope to remain for the remainder of the season. But obviously, this squad has higher aspirations than just an eighth-seed finish, so they’ll look to climb up the standings as quickly as possible.

It’s been brought up several times that the Jazz face a much easier schedule in the latter half of the season, and we could very well continue to see them take advantage of that fact. If they do so, they’re in an excellent spot to make a large leap up the standings. Though they’re only in eighth place, they’re also just two games back of fourth place, which is currently held by the Houston Rockets who will be without prolific big man Clint Capela for the next few weeks.

And it’s quite possible that the Jazz could begin their rapid ascent as early as Wednesday when they head to Los Angeles to take on the sixth-seeded LA Clippers. The Clippers got off to an incredible start which had even the most die-hard Clipper fans shocked. However, they’ve since come back down to earth in a big way. They’re just 5-5 in their last 10, have lost three straight and have only defeated one Western Conference playoff team since the start of December.

That all bodes quite well for the visiting Jazz, who will look to defeat a team ahead of them in the standings. Not only that, but since the Jazz are just a game behind the Clippers, they would leapfrog them in the standings if they defeat them on Wednesday and move into seventh place. If the Jazz win and the San Antonio Spurs lose to the Dallas Mavericks, the Spurs and Jazz would have the same record, though San Antonio would remain ahead due to tiebreakers.

However, moving up that extra spot from eighth to seventh and closing in on the other squads above them would be a great step in the right direction, especially with yet another four-game home stand looming. The Jazz can taste a surge up the Western Conference Standings; it’s important they continue their rise and hot streak by taking care of the Clippers on Wednesday.

Doing so won’t be easy, despite the Clippers’ recent struggles. They’ve become one of the most well-balanced teams in the league with Tobias Harris playing at an All-Star level, Danilo Gallinari converting at an extremely efficient clip and unforeseen guys such as Montrezl Harrell and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander stepping up big time.

With the eighth best offensive rating in the league, this is a team that can catch fire and will punish the Jazz if they’re caught unaware. Fortunately, the Clippers also happen to be just 22nd in the league in defensive rating, meaning it’s entirely possible that the Jazz offense will thrive as well.

Last of all, as Quin Snyder proved in the playoffs two years ago, he knows how to match up quite well against LA coach Doc Rivers and may very well use that to his advantage this time around.

The Jazz have played some of their best basketball of the season of late in spite of their injuries. They appear to be figuring things out and are poised to make a big jump if they can topple the Clippers and continue this hot streak. With so many motivating factors, I’m expecting them to continue to come up big and earn a statement road victory at the Staples Center on Wednesday.

It won’t be easy, but if this Jazz squad has truly turned a corner, this is a contest in which they’ll come out focused and will themselves to a crucial victory.

My Prediction: Jazz 113, Clippers 110