Jazz Center Rudy Gobert Set To Return Against Rockets

SALT LAKE CITY – Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert will return from a calf injury and play against the Houston Rockets on Valentine’s Day.

The Jazz are slated to host the Rockets at Vivint Arena on Monday, February 14.

Gobert lasted played for Utah on January 23 in a two-point loss to the Golden State Warriors. The All-Star center left the contest earlier after suffering a calf strain.

The injury has prevented him from playing the last nine Jazz games. During the stretch, Utah posted a 5-4 record. After the loss to the Warriors, the Jazz fell in four consecutive games. Since the five-game losing streak, Utah has won five straight contests.

Rudy Gobert is officially BACK tonight for the @utahjazz.

— Ben Anderson (@BensHoops) February 15, 2022

Jazz Improving Without Gobert

Though Gobert will return from injury tonight, there’s been significant growth from the team on the defensive end in his latest absence.

During the three-time Defensive Player of the Year’s initial stint on the bench between January 5-16, the Jazz owned a defensive rating of 119.7, a number that would rank dead last in the NBA spread over a full season.

But in the team’s last nine games without Gobert, that number has climbed to 110.0, good for ninth-best in the NBA over the stretch.

The @utahjazz will look to finish their homestand with a perfect 6-0 sweep when they host the @HoustonRockets tonight.

And, they may be getting help along the way. #TakeNote https://t.co/rgq4l5MNn0

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) February 14, 2022

During the team’s recent five-game homestand, the defensive rating has climbed to 103.1, good for third in the league, and the Jazz are undefeated in the stretch.

With a win, the Jazz will sweep their six-game homestand before traveling to Los Angeles to face the Lakers on Wednesday in their final contest before the All-Star break.

Rockets Look For Jazz Road Sweep

The Rockets stunned the Jazz in mid-January with a 116-111 victory in Salt Lake City.

The Jazz were without Donovan Mitchell who had suffered a concussion in the previous game and allowed Houston’s shooters to go largely unchallenged as the Rockets knocked down 22-45 three-point attempts in the game.

Reserve guard Garrison Mathews scored 23 points off the bench including knocking down 5-9 threes in the victory.

However, the Rockets have struggled since beating the Jazz on the road. Houston is just 1-8 in their last nine games and has been outscored by an average of 13.3 points per.

Broadcast

The Jazz and Rockets will tip-off at 7 pm MT and can be heard on The Zone Sports Network. The game will be televised on AT&T SportsNet and FuboTV.