Jazz Open Lighter Stretch Against Rockets
Mar 2, 2022, 1:39 PM
Bojan Bogdanovic #44 of the Utah Jazz shoots under Garrison Mathews #25 of the Houston Rockets during the first half of a game at Vivint Smart Home Arena on January 19, 2022 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Alex Goodlett/Getty Images)
(Photo by Alex Goodlett/Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah Jazz will face the Houston Rockets to open a seven-game stretch that features six games against teams outside of the Western Conference playoff race.
Outside of the Dallas Mavericks who the Jazz will play to close their current five-game road trip, the schedule doesn’t feature any teams currently in the top eight of the standings.
After this stretch, however, the Jazz will face one of the toughest schedules to close the season.
Jazz Begin Lighter Stretch
The Jazz faced a tough gauntlet in the Dallas Mavericks and Phoenix Suns in their first two games back from the All-Star break, but see the schedule will lighten up considerably over the next seven games.
Over the next two weeks, the Jazz will face the Rockets, New Orleans Pelicans, Oklahoma City Thunder, Portland Trail Blazers, San Antonio Spurs, and Sacramento Kings in six of their next seven matchups, before finishing the season facing with 10 out 15 games against playoff-bound opponents.
With the trade deadline behind them, we take a big picture look at the @UtahJazz.
Where are they today, can they afford to keep this group together, and what does the next generation look like?
This is the Utah Jazz State of the Union. #TakeNote https://t.co/k0dnRwEXrK pic.twitter.com/VlK8DUrE8y
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) March 1, 2022
The Jazz currently own the fourth-best record in the West, 3.5 games back of the Memphis Grizzlies, 4.0 games back of the Golden State Warriors, and 2.0 games ahead of the Mavericks.
After the All-Star break, the Jazz had the fifth toughest remaining schedule of any team in the NBA, but that number has dropped to 17th after beating the Mavericks and Suns.
Rockets Among League’s Worst
The Rockets have the third-worst record in the NBA and have been the worst team in the league over the last 15 games.
Houston is just 1-14 in their last 15 outings and hasn’t won a game since February 2.
Back at it tomorrow pic.twitter.com/DgGcdOEDrq
— Houston Rockets (@HoustonRockets) March 2, 2022
Worse yet, for the most part, their games haven’t been close. During their recent stretch, the Rockets have the fourth-worst offense in the NBA and the worst defense overall.
During their 10-game losing streak, the Rockets are being outscored by an average of 16.0 points per game.
Broadcast
The Jazz and Rockets will tip-off at 6 pm MT and can be heard on The Zone Sports Network. The game will be televised on AT&T SportsNet and FuboTV.
