The J-Notes
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Utah Jazz: Four reasons to feel encouraged about Utah’s chances against Houston

By Jared Woodcox

SALT LAKE CITY, UT - FEBRUARY 2: on February 2, 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 Chris Elise/NBAE via Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY, UT - FEBRUARY 2: on February 2, 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 Chris Elise/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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HOUSTON, TX – DECEMBER 17: Chris Paul #3 of the Houston Rockets drives to the basket defended by Ricky Rubio #3 of the Utah Jazz in the second half at Toyota Center on December 17, 2018 in Houston, Texas. 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. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)
HOUSTON, TX – DECEMBER 17: Chris Paul #3 of the Houston Rockets drives to the basket defended by Ricky Rubio #3 of the Utah Jazz in the second half at Toyota Center on December 17, 2018 in Houston, Texas. 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. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images) /

This is not the same Houston team from a year ago

Make no mistake about it, with James Harden playing at an MVP level and a healthy Chris Paul, this Houston Rockets team is dang good. If it weren’t for an injury-riddled start to the season, they likely would have finished at least in the second seed or perhaps even stolen the top seed from the Golden State Warriors like a year ago. However, no matter how you look at it, there’s really no debate that they’ve regressed from the dominant powerhouse they were in 2017-18.

A big piece of that starts on defense where the Rockets no longer have a pair of specialists on that end in Trevor Ariza and Luc Mbah a Moute. Ariza in particular gave Mitchell fits a season ago. And his absence could be dramatically felt. Instead, the Rockets will be relying on the likes of Eric Gordon, Iman Shumpert, Austin Rivers and Danuel House to contain Donovan. There’s certainly some talent and defensive aptitude in that group. But their shortcomings are prevalent as well.

Houston’s drop in defense was clear all throughout the season, as they went from a defensive rating of 105.6 in 2017-18 to 110.1 this year. Sure, they were much better on that front post-All-Star break this season, but they still don’t have the clamps they did a year ago.

Furthermore, Chris Paul had one of his most disappointing seasons to date as he recorded his lowest ever scoring output (15.6 points per game), a career-low field goal percentage (41.9 percent) and his worst three-point percentage (35.8 percent) since the 2012-13 season. Sure, he could wake up in a big way in the playoffs and he’ll benefit from the added rest between games, but Father Time certainly seems to be catching up to him.

In looking at these aspects, the Jazz may very well be able to better thrive on offense with Houston having fewer defensive weapons. And on offense, Houston may not be as deadly as they once were. Sure, James Harden is a walking bucket in and of himself, but it takes a team to thrive. And shutting down his teammates may be more plausible than otherwise expected.

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