The J-Notes
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Utah Jazz Weeks 17 and 18 Outlook: Can Jazz enter ASB on a high note?

By Jared Woodcox

SALT LAKE CITY, UT - JANUARY 23: The Utah Jazz celebrates during the game against the Denver Nuggets on January 23, 2019 at Vivint Smart Home Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah. 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 2019 NBAE (Photo by Melissa Majchrzak/NBAE via Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY, UT - JANUARY 23: The Utah Jazz celebrates during the game against the Denver Nuggets on January 23, 2019 at Vivint Smart Home Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah. 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 2019 NBAE (Photo by Melissa Majchrzak/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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SALT LAKE CITY, UT – DECEMBER 25: Derrick Favors #15 and Donovan Mitchell #45 of the Utah Jazz high-five after a game against the Portland Trail Blazers on December 25, 2018 at vivint.SmartHome Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah. 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 Melissa Majchrzak/NBAE via Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY, UT – DECEMBER 25: Derrick Favors #15 and Donovan Mitchell #45 of the Utah Jazz high-five after a game against the Portland Trail Blazers on December 25, 2018 at vivint.SmartHome Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah. 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 Melissa Majchrzak/NBAE via Getty Images) /

The Utah Jazz play just three games in the final two weeks before the All-Star break. Can they use those contests to bounce back from a poor Week 16?

The Utah Jazz didn’t exactly have the most riveting performances in Week 16 as they went just 1-2 which included two blowout losses to current Western Conference playoff teams. Utah looked unfocused and out of sync against both the Portland Trail Blazers and Houston Rockets a week ago. To be honest, they also looked that way against the Atlanta Hawks in the game in between, but thanks to a stellar performance from Rudy Gobert, they managed to get the win.

Still, Utah went just 1-2 to drop their season record to 30-24. I correctly predicted the win over Atlanta and the loss to Houston, so I went an only slightly better 2-1 to improve to just above the Jazz at 31-23.

It’s entirely plausible that the impending trade deadline has them feeling out of sorts as several reports seem to indicate that the Jazz may very well be shaking things up and making some major moves by this Thursday. As such, we could see a different team between Wednesday’s contest against Phoenix and Saturday’s against San Antonio.

And due to the fact that the Jazz have just three games left between now and the All-Star break, with two in Week 17 and a mere single game in Week 18, I’ll go ahead and roll both weeks into one preview. After hosting the Suns and Spurs, the Jazz will close out their pre-All-Star break season with a daunting meeting at Oracle Arena against the Golden State Warriors.

The Jazz certainly haven’t looked sharp of late and a trade may very well dramatically alter the makeup of the roster. But regardless of what happens in the coming days, these three contests leading up to the break will be crucial for Utah to get their mojo back and return to their winning ways, particularly against playoff-caliber teams. Let’s dive into each one and see how they’re likely to fare.

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