2/2 Utah vs. Houston
7:00 pm MT – AT&T SportsNet/League Pass
Opponent record: 29-20
Season series: Jazz lead 2-1
The Utah Jazz and Houston Rockets will tip-off on Groundhog Day which is quite appropriate. Between last year’s playoffs and three contests already this season, it feels like we’ve seen a lot of the Rockets of late. Much like in the series against the Blazers, Utah dominated the first two meetings, but fell short in the most recent contest, this time due to a catastrophic second quarter.
The Jazz played well in that second half, though, and showed some encouraging signs of being able to compete with Houston. Now, with Clint Capela still on the mend, Rudy Gobert should thrive in the contest and Utah may very well be able to take care of business on their home court. Fortunately for Utah, this will be a back-to-back for both teams, with Houston coming in after a tough road game in Denver the night before while it’s a home back-to-back for the Jazz.
Then again, with Chris Paul back in action after a lengthy absence due to injury, the Jazz will probably have their hands full.
In short, this is a contest I could truly see going either way. With how magnificently Harden has played of late, it’s hard to see the Jazz figuring out a way to slow him down, especially if Dante Exum, who’s been a sturdy defender against Harden in games past, remains down for the count.
If the Rockets are road-weary and struggle without Capela to tangle with Gobert, then the Jazz could very well come out on top. But if Harden continues to dominate and Paul is in a groove by this point, they’ll likely knot up the season series.
Unfortunately, I’m leaning towards the latter taking place this time around. That tandem of Harden and Paul have caused all kinds of problems for the Jazz in recent contests, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see that occur yet again.
My Prediction: Rockets Win
Final Score: Houston 103, Utah 96
So I’ve got the Jazz at 2-1 in what will be a critical week. If they prove me wrong and go 3-0, beating both Portland and Houston who are above them in the standings, it would be incredible for their positioning moving forward. Let’s hope my trend from a week ago keeps up and the Jazz continue to do much better than I’m expecting.