The Utah Jazz finished the 2014-15 season with 19 wins in 29 games, and missed the playoffs. This year, they won’t have to post that record to get into the playoffs. The NBA should start to get ready for Utah.
The Utah Jazz have been on the opposite end of the praise from around the league at the last few All-Star breaks. Gordon Hayward — for the second year in a row — didn’t make the All-Star team and this year it was an even more glaring omission because Utah has been winning, and Hayward has put up career numbers across the board. In spite of the second omission of Hayward’s presence in the midseason classic, when it hits February the Jazz buckle up and make winning a routine.
Last season the Jazz made a strong second half push, going 19-10 after the All-Star break. After failing to reach one of their goals, many people were disappointed with the outcome but it only made this team more hungry to make the postseason.
This season the Jazz have had a roller coaster ride trying to stay in the postseason race. Due to the fact they’ve suffered injuries to different key players on their team including Derrick Favors, Alec Burks, Dante Exum and Rudy Gobert, they’ve been in and out of the playoff picture for most of the year. However, if you look at February, the Jazz have been back to their usual ways.
Utah took note of the reason for their success last year and kept their smothering defense. Even with the injuries and a world of turmoil this season, this team managed to stay even-keel and finished with a .500 record of 26-26 before the All-Star break. More importantly, they’ve won enough games to have the 8th spot in the Western Conference.
Something has to be in the air or in the water in Utah when February rolls around because this team is ready again to make a playoff push, and this time their hard work and grinding might pay off.
It’s Winning Time
7-1.
That was the record that Utah put up right before the All-Star break, with their only loss coming to the New Orleans Pelicans in a 100-96 heartbreak. The biggest difference between this team and last year’s roster is that this year Utah has been in the playoff race.
The beauty of the Jazz getting hot in the second half of the season is that they can start to plan around what position they ultimately want to fall at during the playoffs. As of today, the Jazz are the eighth best team in the Western Conference right behind their division rival, the Portland Trail Blazers. Nevertheless, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Utah were to fly up to the No. 5 spot before the season is over.
Currently, the Memphis Grizzlies have the fifth spot within the grasp of their claws but they’ll be forced to unclench their hands and let go of that playoff spot because of injuries. When Memphis found out that their All-NBA center Marc Gasol could miss the rest of the year with a foot injury, it put a huge dent in their playoff hopes. Additionally, trading away Courtney Lee and getting Chris Andersen to replace Gasol isn’t that big of a concern to opposing franchises.
The Grizzlies aren’t going to find a capable center to match Gasol’s production and that’s where Utah should be ready to take advantage and pounce. Those injuries played a factor early for Utah and no one was crying about their situation. Now it’s time to kill the wounded animal known as the Grizzlies.
Derrick Favors was 11-for-15 shooting on his way to 29 pointshttps://t.co/QQwDvT3nxT
— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) February 11, 2016
Furthermore, Utah will have to continue to step up their play because if they don’t then they’ll have to once again watch the playoffs from the sidelines because the Houston Rockets and Portland Trail Blazers aren’t going to let up.
They say that history repeats itself. If history serves us right then Utah will have one of the better records in the second half of the NBA season and easily cruise into the playoffs.