Utah Jazz go for four straight vs. Wiz: Preview and live comment stream

The road-trippin’ Utah Jazz need to take care of business against Bradley Beal, Jabari Parker and the Washington Wizards.

We’ve officially hit the homestretch of the 2018-19 season. With just 13 games left to play on their regular season schedule, the Utah Jazz will tip-off their last extended road trip of the year — a four-game tour of the lottery-bound East — on Monday night against the Washington Wizards.

The Jazz haven’t dropped a game to the Wiz since 2016, and former All-Star point-man John Wall is out of commission for the next 12 months, but they still need to put their best foot forward and take care of business.

With Utah in a virtual tie with the eighth-place LA Clippers, while simultaneously being within just two games of the fourth-place Portland Trail Blazers, it’s imperative that the Jazz beat the teams they’re supposed to.

Offensively, Donovan Mitchell and company should be able to shred the Wiz, who surrender the third-most paint points (51.6 per) and have the third-worst 3-point defense (opponents shoot 37 percent from deep) in the NBA.

But at three and a half games behind the No. 8 Miami Heat, the Wizards are technically still in a playoff race. And they also have the firepower requisite to cause Utah some problems on the other side of the ball.

First and foremost, Bradley Beal is having the best year of his seven-year career. He’s putting up 26 points, six assists and five boards per game and boasts an effective field goal percentage just under 55.

He’s dropped 40 in back-to-back games, and knocked down a combined 16 triples along the way.

Although Beal can score from virtually anywhere on the court, and he has a real penchant for firing above-the-break triples, the Jazz D would be well-served to keep him out of the paint. 27 percent of his shot attempts come within three feet of the hoop, where he finishes at a 70 percent clip — a really nice clip for a 6-foot-5 guard.

For comparison, Jazz center Rudy Gobert, who is about to break Dwight Howard‘s record for dunks in a season — converts on 73 percent of his shots in the same zone.

As ever, the perimeter D needs to be on-point, but the Stifle Tower must also make his presence known down low.

While the Wizards have been up and down, playing .500 ball since the trade deadline, their offense has actually reached a higher level. Since February 7, Washington boasts the league’s fourth-best offense, scoring nearly 114 points per 100 possessions.

Beal has been the most impactful player offensively over that stretch, but he actually hasn’t been the Wizards’ most positive contributor in terms of net rating. That honor goes to Jabari Parker, whose 4.8 net positive leads the team (although Beal’s on/off net swing is better).

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Simply put, Parker has been the picture of scoring efficiency since he replaced Otto Porter in our nation’s capital. In 16 games with Washington, he’s averaging 19 points and 10 boards per 36 minutes and is scoring the rock at a 56-percent clip from the floor.

Their efforts notwithstanding, the Jazz should get the W here. I, for one, wouldn’t be surprised if we have a shoot-out on our hands, but I’ll still take the good guys.

PREDICTION: Utah Jazz 115, Washington Wizards 109

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