Al Jefferson, the Utah Jazz’ leading scorer this season at 17.7 points per game, fared better this season against the San Antonio Spurs than he did the Oklahoma City Thunder. If the Jazz are able to grab the eighth seed in the Western Conference playoffs, they would meet either the Thunder or the Spurs. (NBA.com photo)
The Utah Jazz have just two games left in the season and trail the Los Angeles Lakers by a game in the race for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference.
Those two games are both on the road—Monday, April 15, at the Minnesota Timberwolves and Wednesday, April 17, at the Memphis Grizzlies.
That’s not good news for the Jazz, who own the worst road record of any of the remaining Western Conference playoff contenders at 12-27.
So the question could be: Are the Jazz just good enough to get swept in Round 1 of the 2012-13 playoffs … provided they even get there?
The good news for Utah is that one of those 12 wins away from the EnergySolutions Arena was at Minnesota on Feb. 13, a 97-93 victory. The Jazz lost their first game at Memphis this season, a 103-94 loss on Nov. 5.
But the better news for the Jazz—and equally devastating news for the Lakers—is that superstar Kobe Bryant will not be available for Los Angeles’ final two games of the season. Bryant suffered a probable torn left Achilles tendon in the Lakers’ 118-116 victory over the Golden State Warriors at the Staples Center on Friday, April 12.
The Lakers have their final two games at home—Sunday, April 14, against the San Antonio Spurs and Wednesday, April 17, when the Houston Rockets come to town.
Utah does hold the tiebreaker advantage over Los Angeles, taking two of three from the Lakers this season.
If the Jazz do make the playoffs, where would that leave them? They would be locked into the eighth seed—they trail seventh-place Houston by 2.5 games, so moving up is not an option.
That would mean a first-round matchup with either the Oklahoma City Thunder or the Spurs.
A first-round loss against either opponent would be likely.
The Jazz finished 1-3 against the Thunder this season. They lost both games in Oklahoma City in lopsided fashion—106-94 on Nov. 30 and 110-87 on March 13. Utah split the two meetings in Salt Lake City, beating the Thunder 109-94 on Feb. 12 and taking a 90-80 defeat on April 9.
Against San Antonio, the Jazz were 1-2. Predictably, Utah won the one meeting at home 99-96 on Dec. 12 and lost both of the road tilts, 110-100 on Nov. 3 and 104-97 in overtime on March 22.
Against Oklahoma City, the Jazz shot just 41.2 percent from the floor and only 31.7 percent from 3-point range while being outrebounded 41.8-39 per game. Oklahoma City, on the other hand, shot 49.8 percent and 41.2 percent from distance.
Here are the individual totals for the Jazz and Thunder in their head-to-head matchups:
| Utah | G | MIN | FG-FGA | Pct | 3FG-3FA | Pct | FT-FTA | Pct | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS | AVG |
| Al Jefferson | 4 | 129 | 29-66 | .439 | 0-1 | .000 | 4-5 | .800 | 36 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 62 | 15.5 |
| Paul Millsap | 4 | 112 | 18-41 | .439 | 0-1 | .000 | 10-14 | .714 | 29 | 11 | 9 | 2 | 12 | 46 | 11.5 |
| Gordon Hayward | 3 | 91 | 18-48 | .375 | 4-19 | .211 | 10-12 | .833 | 10 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 50 | 16.7 |
| Mo Williams | 3 | 90 | 13-34 | .382 | 4-12 | .333 | 7-7 | 1.000 | 4 | 15 | 4 | 0 | 12 | 37 | 12.3 |
| Randy Foye | 4 | 106 | 13-34 | .382 | 10-24 | .417 | 3-3 | 1.000 | 8 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 39 | 9.8 |
| Derrick Favors | 4 | 85 | 11-25 | .440 | 0-0 | — | 7-9 | .778 | 16 | 3 | 0 | 12 | 5 | 29 | 7.3 |
| Marvin Williams | 2 | 46 | 2-9 | .222 | 0-4 | .000 | 2-2 | 1.000 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 3.0 |
| Enes Kanter | 3 | 53 | 11-19 | .579 | 0-0 | — | 10-10 | 1.000 | 17 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 32 | 10.7 |
| Alec Burks | 3 | 52 | 9-24 | .375 | 3-8 | .375 | 2-4 | .500 | 9 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 23 | 7.7 |
| DeMarre Carroll | 4 | 89 | 6-20 | .300 | 3-7 | .429 | 5-6 | .833 | 11 | 5 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 20 | 5.0 |
| Jamaal Tinsley | 3 | 41 | 2-5 | .400 | 2-4 | .500 | 0-0 | — | 4 | 11 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 2.0 |
| Jeremy Evans | 2 | 7 | 1-2 | .500 | 0-0 | — | 1-3 | .333 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1.5 |
| Earl Watson | 3 | 54 | 6-10 | .600 | 0-2 | .000 | 5-6 | .833 | 6 | 19 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 17 | 5.7 |
| Kevin Murphy | 2 | 5 | 0-1 | .000 | 0-0 | — | 0-0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 |
| Oklahoma City | G | MIN | FG-FGA | Pct | 3FG-3FA | Pct | FT-FTA | Pct | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS | AVG |
| Kevin Durant | 4 | 145 | 32-52 | .615 | 5-9 | .556 | 33-37 | .892 | 32 | 17 | 7 | 7 | 17 | 102 | 25.5 |
| Russell Westbrook | 4 | 136 | 28-64 | .438 | 7-14 | .500 | 26-35 | .743 | 28 | 24 | 11 | 1 | 21 | 89 | 22.3 |
| Kevin Martin | 4 | 102 | 17-39 | .436 | 3-14 | .214 | 8-9 | .889 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 45 | 11.3 |
| Serge Ibaka | 4 | 116 | 23-39 | .590 | 0-1 | .000 | 2-2 | 1.000 | 21 | 0 | 3 | 20 | 8 | 48 | 12.0 |
| Thabo Sefolosha | 4 | 103 | 9-20 | .450 | 5-13 | .385 | 2-2 | 1.000 | 16 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 25 | 5.8 |
| Nick Collison | 4 | 76 | 6-14 | .429 | 0-0 | — | 4-6 | .667 | 16 | 8 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 16 | 4.0 |
| Reggie Jackson | 3 | 55 | 11-20 | .550 | 2-5 | .400 | 4-4 | 1.000 | 12 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 28 | 9.3 |
| Kendrick Perkins | 4 | 115 | 9-19 | .474 | 0-0 | — | 0-2 | .000 | 14 | 7 | 2 | 5 | 10 | 18 | 4.5 |
| Derek Fisher | 2 | 30 | 5-9 | .556 | 3-5 | .600 | 0-0 | — | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 13 | 6.5 |
| *Eric Maynor | 1 | 9 | 0-1 | .000 | 0-0 | — | 0-0 | — | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 |
| Jeremy Lamb | DID NOT PLAY AGAINST UTAH | ||||||||||||||
| Hasheem Thabeet | 4 | 47 | 1-7 | .143 | 0-0 | — | 1-2 | .500 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 0.8 |
| Perry Jones | 3 | 11 | 3-5 | .600 | 0-0 | — | 2-2 | 1.000 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 2.7 |
| Daniel Orton | 1 | 5 | 0-0 | — | 0-0 | — | 1-4 | .250 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1.0 |
| DeAndre Liggins | 1 | 5 | 0-1 | .000 | 0-0 | — | 0-2 | .000 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 |
| Ronnie Brewer | 1 | 5 | 2-3 | .667 | 0-0 | — | 0-0 | — | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4.0 |
| *-Maynor traded to Portland Trail Blazers Feb. 21. |
In the three games against San Antonio, Utah shot 46.5 percent and 42.9 from 3-point range compared to 48.1 percent and 44.5 percent, respectively, for the Spurs. San Antonio also had the rebounding advantage in this matchup, averaging 44 boards a game to just 40 for the Jazz.
Individual stats from their three meetings are below:
| Utah | G | MIN | FG-FGA | Pct | 3FG-3FA | Pct | FT-FTA | Pct | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS | AVG |
| Al Jefferson | 3 | 112 | 27-57 | .474 | 0-0 | — | 1-1 | 1.000 | 25 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 55 | 18.3 |
| Paul Millsap | 3 | 101 | 20-38 | .526 | 2-3 | .667 | 10-14 | .714 | 28 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 52 | 17.3 |
| Gordon Hayward | 3 | 99 | 14-35 | .400 | 6-13 | .462 | 5-5 | 1.000 | 16 | 13 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 39 | 13.0 |
| Mo Williams | 3 | 112 | 21-39 | .538 | 5-10 | .500 | 13-16 | .813 | 4 | 21 | 5 | 0 | 7 | 60 | 20.0 |
| Randy Foye | 3 | 85 | 11-23 | .478 | 5-12 | .417 | 1-2 | .500 | 3 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 28 | 9.3 |
| Derrick Favors | 3 | 54 | 8-15 | .533 | 0-0 | — | 2-5 | .400 | 12 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 6 | 18 | 6.0 |
| Marvin Williams | 3 | 78 | 9-23 | .391 | 1-7 | .143 | 0-0 | — | 15 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 19 | 6.3 |
| Enes Kanter | 3 | 35 | 3-10 | .300 | 0-0 | — | 3-4 | .750 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 9 | 3.0 |
| Alec Burks | 1 | 22 | 6-9 | .667 | 2-3 | .667 | 0-0 | — | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 14 | 14.0 |
| DeMarre Carroll | 2 | 22 | 0-3 | .000 | 0-0 | — | 0-2 | .000 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 |
| Jamaal Tinsley | 1 | 9 | 1-3 | .333 | 0-0 | — | 0-0 | — | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2.0 |
| Jeremy Evans | DID NOT PLAY AGAINST SAN ANTONIO | ||||||||||||||
| Earl Watson | 1 | 16 | 0-2 | .000 | 0-1 | .000 | 0-0 | — | 3 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 |
| Kevin Murphy | DID NOT PLAY AGAINST SAN ANTONIO | ||||||||||||||
| San Antonio | G | MIN | FG-FGA | Pct | 3FG-3FA | Pct | FT-FTA | Pct | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS | AVG |
| Tony Parker | 3 | 105 | 25-51 | .490 | 1-1 | 1.000 | 17-21 | .810 | 6 | 22 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 68 | 22.7 |
| Tim Duncan | 3 | 102 | 19-44 | .432 | 0-1 | .000 | 22-28 | .786 | 48 | 7 | 3 | 11 | 4 | 60 | 20.0 |
| Kawhi Leonard | 2 | 75 | 14-19 | .737 | 4-5 | .800 | 2-2 | 1.000 | 13 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 34 | 17.0 |
| Manu Ginobili | 3 | 71 | 8-22 | .364 | 3-10 | .300 | 2-2 | 1.000 | 12 | 8 | 4 | 1 | 10 | 21 | 7.0 |
| Danny Green | 3 | 97 | 19-28 | .679 | 8-13 | .615 | 2-2 | 1.000 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 48 | 16.0 |
| Tiago Splitter | 3 | 72 | 9-24 | .375 | 0-0 | — | 2-6 | .333 | 21 | 6 | 2 | 6 | 7 | 20 | 6.7 |
| Gary Neal | 2 | 46 | 5-13 | .385 | 2-7 | .286 | 4-4 | 1.000 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 16 | 8.0 |
| *Stephen Jackson | 2 | 23 | 1-6 | .167 | 0-4 | .000 | 0-0 | — | 3 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1.0 |
| Boris Diaw | 3 | 69 | 8-15 | .533 | 1-4 | .250 | 0-0 | — | 4 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 17 | 5.7 |
| DeJuan Blair | 2 | 17 | 1-5 | .200 | 0-0 | — | 0-0 | — | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 1.0 |
| Patrick Mills | 1 | 6 | 3-3 | 1.000 | 2-2 | 1.000 | 0-0 | — | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 8.0 |
| Cory Joseph | 2 | 8 | 1-4 | .250 | 0-1 | .000 | 0-0 | — | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1.0 |
| Matt Bonner | 3 | 35 | 4-5 | .800 | 2-2 | 1.000 | 0-0 | — | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 3.3 |
| Nando De Colo | 3 | 18 | 1-6 | .167 | 0-2 | .000 | 0-0 | — | 2 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0.7 |
| Aron Baynes | DID NOT PLAY AGAINST UTAH | ||||||||||||||
| *Jackson was released on April 12. |
One important note: Backup center Enes Kanter played in all seven games against the Thunder and Spurs, but is out for the season after having surgery on his left shoulder, The Salt Lake Tribune reported Tuesday, April 9.
Suffering a sweep at the hands of either of these teams is very possible for Utah, but given the Jazz’ 30-11 record at home, I wouldn’t call it likely.
It’s not out of the question for the team to win one of the two games at home, a Game 3 or a Game 4, but (a) I don’t see Utah winning more than one game against either opponent and (b) either series would go five games, maximum.