Mike Conley: Now Is ‘Perfect Time’ To Return

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – With just two games remaining in the regular season, Mike Conley appears set to return to the court for the Utah Jazz.

The guard was listed as questionable Thursday ahead of the Jazz’s game against the Thunder and went through shootaround Friday in Oklahoma City, and has been updated to probable.

Conley has missed the last nine games for the Jazz since reaggravating a previous hamstring injury on April 26 against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

“I think the best thing for me as far as where my hamstring is and how I feel at this moment, I feel like it’s a perfect time for me to get some time to run up down the court and get acclimated with the team again,” Conley said.

Mike Conley has been upgraded to questionable for the @utahjazz ahead of tomorrow's game against the @okcthunder. #takenote https://t.co/2ochCXusgS

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) May 13, 2021

The Jazz have a one-game lead over the Phoenix Suns for the top seed in the Western Conference and can clinch home-court advantage throughout the postseason with any combination of two Jazz wins of Suns losses.

Rather than sit the final two games and allow for additional rest for his hamstring, Conley said it was important to get back on the floor before the playoffs.

“There’s no better way of getting yourself back into a rhythm and back into the game shape than playing games,” the All-Star said. “You can’t really mimic that in practice.”

Conley said he expects to be on a minutes restriction when he does return to the floor for the Jazz.

Not Worried About Donovan Mitchell’s Reacclimation

While Conley seems set to return over the final days of the regular season, the Jazz have already ruled All-Star teammate Donovan Mitchell out until the playoffs at the earliest.

Mitchell suffered a severe right ankle sprain on April 16 against the Indiana Pacers and will have missed 16 games in total by the season’s end.

Donovan Mitchell will miss the remainder of the regular season for the @utahjazz with the ankle injury that has held him out since April 16. #TakeNote https://t.co/z0AWyJKczW

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) May 12, 2021

Despite his absence, Conley didn’t seem concerned about the difficulty of reworking Mitchell into the lineup.

“With a guy like Donovan who literally is watching basketball every second of the day, every single game, studying film, he’s a guy that we all know what he does when he comes on the court and how he’s going to help the team.”

Mitchell hasn’t been traveling with the Jazz but has sat courtside at home games along with Conley, serving as an extra set of eyes for the team’s coaching staff, helping younger teammates who have had to take bigger roles on the floor.

“You just see little nuances in their game, ways they can help our team, and ways that they can just be effective in their roles,” Conley said.

“It’s just a bunch of bunch observations from two guys who love the game and know it very well.”

The Jazz and Thunder tip-off at 6 pm MT in Oklahoma City before traveling to complete the regular season on Sunday against the Sacramento Kings.