The Utah Jazz are in the midst of what should be their toughest stretch of games all season. They've faced off with the Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers already and will face the Milwaukee Bucks tonight in the last of three-straight games on the road against the East's very best teams. They'll then have one more game against the Denver Nuggets on Wednesday where they'll round out four straight games against four of the top teams in both conferences.
It's a murder's row stretch of games that the Jazz have to split down the middle just to prove they can hang with the best the league has to offer. They got dog-walked by the Celtics in the first game and then beat the 76ers soundly, but did so against a squad that was missing their best player; Joel Embiid.
Now the Bucks are hosting the Jazz, and once again, the Jazz need a win, and once again it looks like they caught a break. The Bucks will be without Damian Lillard, who is out of the game for personal reasons. Not only that, but the Bucks are struggling, losing three of their last four games. All the while the Jazz are 10-4 in their last 14, and more specifically have won four of their last five.
The Jazz may have lost to the Celtics but have beaten the 76ers, Miami Heat, and Dallas Mavericks during this current stretch. So while the Bucks may be without Lillard, a win over them would still be huge for the Jazz. And it's about time the proverbial ball started bouncing their way. After starting the first quarter of the season with a rash of injuries and poor chemistry, it's about time the Jazz started seeing other teams struggle a bit.
A win over the Bucks tonight would be massive, and it'd recontextualize everything the Jazz are playing for this season. They're just a game back from the Los Angeles Lakers for the final Play-in Spot, and just three games under .500. This is a team on the rise and is finally catching some much-deserved breaks at the best time possible.