Utah Jazz: 3 teams the Jazz should want to play come playoff time
By Jordan Foote
As the home stretch of the NBA regular season is finally here, which teams make the most sense for the Utah Jazz to square off against?
Believe it or not, we’re already roughly three-quarters of the way through the 2019-20 NBA regular season. Coaches are gearing up for playoff runs and their players are fine-tuning their games as rotations become more concise. The Utah Jazz are no different.
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Through 61 games, Quin Snyder’s bunch is 39-22. Despite a frustratingly inconsistent regular season (something that has plagued the Jazz for years), Utah is currently the No. 5 seed in the Western Conference. Seeds as high as No. 2 and as low as No. 7 are still well within reach, though.
Regardless of where this year’s team finishes in the regular season standings, it would be nice to see veterans like Joe Ingles and Mike Conley find their grooves. Ingles has only played well as a starter this season and Conley, one of the most highly-regarded acquisitions in franchise history, hasn’t played anywhere near what the Jazz and their fans hoped for.
Third-year star Donovan Mitchell and longtime defensive anchor Rudy Gobert, both first-time All-Stars this season, have done their best to keep things afloat while their supporting cast finds its footing. Bojan Bogdanovic and Jordan Clarkson have more than proven their worth to the team as key supporting pieces.
With that said, once the playoffs roll around, who should the Jazz want to match up against? Most would agree that both of the LA teams should be off the table. The Houston Rockets have been playing some terrific basketball lately and always seem to be a thorn in Utah’s side. Let’s rank three other teams — the best options — in order of least ideal to most ideal.