Game thread: Utah Jazz have further chance to assert themselves in battle against Bucks

The Utah Jazz will have a further opportunity to prove themselves as an elite squad when they go up against the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday.

Unsurprisingly, it’s been a roller coaster start to the season for the Utah Jazz. There have been flashes of brilliance, to be sure, but also moments of ugly play.

As the new-look team grows more and more accustomed to one another, the disjointed performances are sure to correct themselves.  This squad has all the tools to be elite and it’s far more likely than not that they’ll find their stride sooner rather than later.

Fortunately, the Jazz’s most recent bout was an example of solid play and their ability to match up against the elite in the NBA. They are coming off a hard-fought victory over the Philadelphia 76ers, one of the best teams in the East. The way the Jazz took care of business in that contest – by fixing a former weakness and out-rebounding a team that is dominant on the boards – was absolutely impressive to see.

But the Jazz will soon be in for another measuring stick game against a top Eastern Conference team on Friday as they’ll go up against the Milwaukee Bucks. The Bucks were the top seed in the East a year ago and, although they’ve had some ups and downs themselves so far this season including a closer-than-expected bout against the Kawhi Leonard-less LA Clippers in their last contest, they’re still looking like one of the NBA’s best.

And considering they boast the reigning MVP in Giannis Antetokounmpo as well as a squad full of prolific shooters and skilled performers on both ends of the floor, they’ll most certainly present a difficult challenge for the Jazz.

So far the Bucks are leading the league in field goal percentage at 47.7 percent as well as in points per game (122.3) and offensive rating (112.3). They’ve been absolutely prolific on that end, so the staunch Jazz defense (currently second in the league in defensive rating) will have its work cut out for it.

Milwaukee is no slouch on defense either as they have size, length and athleticism, all of which help them be a tough out on that end of the floor. They’re currently ninth in the NBA in defensive rating at 102.9, which is a solid mark. Considering that the Jazz’s offense has been clunky at times and has gone through droughts in others, the Bucks’ D may very well turn out to be problematic as well.

But if the Jazz can match their effort from Wednesday and earn yet another win over an elite NBA team, it will go a long way in further solidifying their case for also deserving to be mentioned among the league’s best. The Jazz have high aspirations this season and, quite frankly, they have looked a tier below the absolute uppermost echelon thus far.

After beating the Sixers, though, and if they can add an early Bucks win to that as well, it could very well change that perception right away.

Game Data

Broadcast Info

Tip-off: 7 PM MT on November 8 from Vivint Smart Home Arena in Salt Lake City, UT
TV: AT&T SportsNet
Radio: The Zone Sports Network (97.5 FM & 1280 AM Salt Lake City)

Projected Starting Lineups

Injuries

There was rampant speculation earlier in the week that Dante Exum could be back for this contest, but that was proven to be false as he remains on the injury report while he continues to rehab from a knee injury. The Jazz are clearly being cautious with Exum and want to make sure he’s 100 percent and able to hit the ground running before he returns.

His return still feels imminent, though. And fortunately for both he and the Jazz, following the game against the Bucks, Utah has a seven-game stretch of very winnable games wherein ideally they’ll be able to work Dante back into a groove.

The Jazz will also continue to be without Ed Davis for the foreseeable future as he recovers from a fibula fracture while backup point guard Emmanuel Mudiay also remains sidelined with hamstring tightness. The Bucks, meanwhile, come into the bout essentially unscathed on the injury front.

Prediction

Courtesy of The Action Network, the Jazz are slight underdogs in this one by a narrow margin of 1.5 points. Honestly, that small of a discrepancy pretty much means it’s a toss-up and I would echo that sentiment.

This will certainly be a close-fought game and slowing down Giannis will be no small task for the Jazz. However, overall the Jazz match up well against the Bucks, and although the big lineup of Giannis and Brook Lopez could be seen as worrisome, after seeing how well Bojan Bogdanovic performed against Al Horford on Wednesday, I’m liking the Jazz’s chances of holding this new pair in check as well.

It will likely be a tight contest, but ultimately I’m going against The Action Network’s projection and pinning the Jazz as winners 111-107.

Discussion

#MILatUTA is the Twitter hashtag for the game; feel free to follow our in-game tweets @TheJNotes or the comment thread below will be right here and rolling throughout the contest. Go Jazz!