Will the Utah Jazz begin their 2022 NBA Playoffs run with a bang?
The No. 5 seed Utah Jazz and No. 4 seed Dallas Mavericks, who will square off in Texas on Saturday in Game 1 of their best-of-seven first-round playoff series, split their relatively heated regular-season series with two wins apiece.
One of the Mavs’ losses to the Jazz coincided with their three-time All-Star forward, Luka Doncic, being out of action. And that will again be the case, at least in this first postseason bout, as Doncic recovers from a strained left calf (his status for Game 2 remains up in the air).
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With that oh-so-significant injury in mind, one might argue that the pressure is now on a primarily healthy Utah bunch to steal homecourt advantage in the series right out of the gates.
Utah Jazz vs Dallas Mavericks Game 1 Odds
WynnBet has Utah as a 5.0-point favorite. The over/under sits at 209.5 points.
Utah Jazz Starting Lineup Today
Utah will likely go with its usual starting lineup of Mike Conley, Donovan Mitchell, Royce O’Neale, Bojan Bogdanovic, and Rudy Gobert.
Utah Jazz Injury Report
Only two players appear on the Jazz injury report. Both are reserves: Udoka Azubuike (“OUT” due to right ankle surgery) and Trent Forrest (“OUT” due to a left midfoot sprain).
Utah Jazz vs Dallas Mavericks Game 1 Prediction
Given the “OUT” tag on Luka Doncic, it’s safe to say the Jazz should boast noticeably more firepower than the Mavs. After all, Dallas went 9-8 when Doncic was not in the lineup this season, including the 120-116 loss to Utah on Christmas Day.
Sure, the Mavs enter the postseason with wins in seven of their past eight games. However, Doncic was healthy throughout that stretch before suffering his injury in the third quarter of the squad’s regular-season finale.
Meanwhile, the Jazz faltered down the stretch with seven losses across their final 11 regular-season outings. Injuries were hardly the primary culprit for their struggles; no, Utah suffered fourth-quarter collapses galore that seemed to stem from confidence issues.
But the Jazz players have been adamant that they are in the process of flipping the switch. Assuming they don’t take anything for granted against the Doncic-less Mavericks, the flip to said switch should come in the form of a feel-good Game 1 road victory.
Prediction: Jazz 111, Mavericks 101
Make your pick now on WynnBET.
Utah Jazz vs Dallas Mavericks Game 1 TV Channel
Game 1 between the Jazz and Mavericks will air on ESPN at 11:00 a.m. MT.
Utah Jazz Next Game
Game 2, also in Dallas, tips off at 6:30 p.m. MT Monday.
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