Utah Jazz Week 15 Outlook: Can win streak live on vs. stiff competition?

The Utah Jazz have been rolling lately with six straight victories, but they’re in for a much tougher slate of foes in Week 15 of NBA action.

It’s been smooth sailing for the Utah Jazz of late as they put together a perfect Week 14 to string together a total of six consecutive victories. That recent hot streak has them at seventh place in the Western Conference with a game lead over both the eighth-place LA Clippers and ninth-place Los Angeles Lakers and just two games out of a prestigious top-3 spot in the West.

The Jazz now sit at 26-21 on the year, which is far better than they were a year ago. I correctly predicted them to win all three games last week, so I likewise went 3-0 and advanced my season projections record to 28-19.

Admittedly, though, while the six-game win streak has been great, it has come against quite lackluster competition. And even then, not all the games were that convincing. The Jazz were down big to the Orlando Magic two weeks ago before storming back, and both bouts against the Detroit Pistons and Chicago Bulls were entirely too close for comfort.

Therefore, with much heightened competition ahead in Week 15, the Jazz will have their work cut out for them if they hope to keep their steak alive and continue to stay in the playoff mix. Fortunately, three of this week’s four games are at home, so hopefully that will prove beneficial.

Utah starts the week on Monday at home against the Portland Trail Blazers who have had some ups and downs this season but have done enough to find themselves at fourth in the West. Then on Wednesday, they’ll host the Denver Nuggets who, until Golden State’s recent surge, have been atop the West for most of the season and appear every bit a legitimate powerhouse.

Lastly, the Jazz will close the week out by playing the Minnesota Timberwolves twice in a row. First at home on Friday, then in Minnesota on Sunday. The T-Wolves have gone through quite a bit of inner turmoil this season, but are still nipping at the heels of the playoff hopefuls.

With such formidable squads looming, the Jazz will have to play even better than they have during their recent surge if they hope to come out on top this week, especially in the first two contests against both Portland and Denver. Let’s begin with those as we break down the entire Week 15 slate.