The J-Notes
Fansided

Ranking the 3 remaining In-Season Tournament teams the Utah Jazz have to face during Group Play

By Chad Porto

PHOENIX, ARIZONA - OCTOBER 28: Eric Gordon #23 of the Phoenix Suns puts up a shot ahead of John Collins #20 of the Utah Jazz during the NBA game against the Utah Jazz at Footprint Center on October 28, 2023 in Phoenix, Arizona. The Suns defeated the Jazz 126-104. 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 Christian Petersen/Getty ImagJohn Collins #20 of the Utah Jazz
PHOENIX, ARIZONA - OCTOBER 28: Eric Gordon #23 of the Phoenix Suns puts up a shot ahead of John Collins #20 of the Utah Jazz during the NBA game against the Utah Jazz at Footprint Center on October 28, 2023 in Phoenix, Arizona. The Suns defeated the Jazz 126-104. 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 Christian Petersen/Getty ImagJohn Collins #20 of the Utah Jazz /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
1 of 3
Next

The Utah Jazz have a shot at winning the In-Season Tournament’s Group Play but they have to go through these three teams first.

The Utah Jazz are just 3-7 but they have a very big opportunity ahead of them. The In-Season Tournament is raging on, and while it’s nothing more than a gimmick, this part of the schedule seems to have come up right when the Jazz need it the most. The In-Season Tournament is forcing the Jazz to take on the Memphis Grizzlies, Phoenix Suns, Portland Trail Blazer, and Los Angeles Lakers in essentially back-to-back-to-back-to-back games.

And luckily for the Jazz, all four teams are .500 or worse on the season. The Jazz already knocked off the Grizzlies to move their season record to 3-7, but 1-0 in Group Play. Now the Jazz have three more opponents to go through over the next four games, and three of those games will count towards the Group Play section of the tournament. But who among the teams are the most daunting to topple?

We’re ranking all three from worse to first.

3. Phoenix Suns

The Phoenix Suns are 4-6 on the season and an utter mess. Despite years of proving the exact opposite, teams perpetually think that throwing two or three high-profile players together will result in a championship. It rarely does, in fact, and yet teams keep doing it. The Suns gave up a lot of great players to get Kevin Durant, which is fine. Durant is dropping 30 a night on solid efficiency and Devin Booker, when healthy, is right there with them.

But they gave up a lot of depth and mobility by trading for Bradley Beal, who has only played three games and is shooting terribly. He’s only shooting 39% from the floor and 33% from three. Not to mention that Booker has missed all but two games this season.

Durant has had to play a lot of games with either just one of his big-name colleagues or neither. And that trend may persist in back-to-back games against the Jazz. Only one of which is for the In-Season Tournament.

The Suns have the least impressive depth of the three squads the Jazz have to face and maybe the easiest of the four teams they face due to that fact.

Home/Jazz News