Utah is a bizarre team. They have talent, but this is a tanking team. Lauri Markkanen has taken a step back from his All-Star level of play, but this team has talent between him, John Collins, Collin Sexton, Jordan Clarkson, and Walker Kessler. They’re incredibly young on the bench which hurts them. The young guys have generally been underwhelming this year, too. Cody Williams hasn’t lived up to his shooting prowess at Colorado so far, Isaiah Collier hasn’t done much, Kyle Filipowski has had moments, but Keyonte George has been solid in a starting role in year two.
It’s a difficult team to judge because the players are generally uninterested in winning, and they know it. They play hard, but you can tell that the win doesn’t matter to this organization.
They match up well with Portland, though. If George and Sexton push the pace tonight, they’ll blow by Simons and Sharpe. They shouldn’t have too much trouble doing that, either. If Portland opts to toss Camara at either, that could be a problem, but they’ll reserve him for Markkanen most likely.
Overall, you can’t count on either one of these teams to show up for this game. If the Jazz showed us anything last time, they can still win games.
It’s mainly if their jump shot is going down. Although it’s been improving since the beginning of the year, it’s still unreliable. Lucky for Utah, Portland is one of the worst jump-shooting teams in the league. So, if either team has its jumpers landing tonight, it might turn into another blowout.
The Jazz should be able to take this game. They have the talent, and Portland has been a mess lately. I see Utah losing only if Portland shoots out of their mind from three or the Jazz sit players. They are in a race with Portland for draft position, so tonight could be a significant loss for Utah. It will be a weird game regardless, but likely not too interesting. Utah will probably takes this game handily again.
Portland has struggled with cohesion and lacks a clear identity. Ideally, the team would focus on a young, rebuilding strategy, giving significant playing time to players under 23. Instead, it continues to rely heavily on veterans. A trade that may shift some of these veterans appears imminent, but for now, the roster feels disjointed.
The young guys have been playing side roles but have sucked. Sharpe has fallen off big time. His three point shot has disappeared as he’s not relegated to the corner in offense. Scoot looks terrible, with his shot just never manifesting and making dumb mistakes on both ends of the floor.
So this team has fallen back to the vets like Anfernee Simons and Jerami Grant. It’s a weird dynamic in Portland with no end in sight. Hopefully, we will see some veteran players move on to help contending teams, and Portland can commit hard to the tank. Otherwise, they will end up with the seventh pick in the draft again and remain mediocre.
Enough about the roster; how do they match up against the Jazz? Well, you’d think with some size and youth to keep up with the pace of Utah. You’d think. If the last matchup is anything to go by, the Jazz run circles on Portland. They have better shooters, a strong rim protector in Kessler, and a better star player in Lauri. This will probably end up in another blowout unless Utah sabotages itself. They may do that to maintain their record and help their draft odds, but it feels like Portland will someone still end up losing.
There is no confidence left in this team. Although they’ve won a few games here and there, everyone knows what this team is: a tanking team chasing losses.
Keyonte George Questionable
John Collins Questionable
Robert Williams III Questionable
Dalano Banton Questionable
Spread: +3 UTA (-112) / -3 POR (-108)
Total Points: 225.5
Moneyline: UTA (+124) / POR (-148)
Deni Avdija Over 12.5 Points (-110)
Tourmani Camara Over 5.5 Rebounds (+110)
Walker Kessler 25+ Combined Points + Rebounds (+125)
Collin Sexton Under 5.5 Assists (-135)