Jazz Have Fifth-Toughest Remaining Schedule

SALT LAKE CITY – It’s not been the smoothest regular season so far for the Utah Jazz, and it’s only going to get tougher with their remaining schedule.

According to the website Tankathon, the Jazz have the fifth-toughest remaining schedule over the final 24 games of the regular season.

After finishing with the best record in the regular season last year, the Jazz have struggled with injuries, COVID-19, and inconsistency en route to a 36-22 record and the fourth-seed in the West.

Your morning look at the NBA standings for Feb. 18: pic.twitter.com/ullelZ6Wkb

— USA TODAY NBA (@usatodaynba) February 18, 2022

The average winning percentage of the Jazz’s final 24 opponents is .517, trailing only the New York Knicks, Los Angeles Lakers, Chicago Bulls, and Milwaukee Bucks for the toughest schedules left in the NBA.

The Jazz will get no time to find their bearings when they return from the All-Star break when they’ll host the fifth-seeded Dallas Mavericks on Friday night, before traveling to Phoenix to face the Suns who own the league’s best record in a Sunday matinee.

In total, the Jazz will face teams ranked in the top eight of the Western Conference nine times, and teams ranked in the top eight of the Eastern Conference four times.

The @UtahJazz have one week off before they return to action.

These are the reasons for hope and pessimism entering the second half of the season. #TakeNote https://t.co/cL6OARzsnF

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) February 18, 2022

The Jazz’s most common opponent will be the Maverics which could serve as a preview for the opening round of the playoffs in April. The two teams open the second half of the season against one another on Friday in Utah before playing twice in Dallas in March.

Over the final 24 games of the season, the Jazz will face the teams ranked in the bottom five of the Eastern and Western Conference seven times.

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