No one has to remind you of the soul-crushing events that occurred less than 48 hours ago. The invocation of Ty Jerome’s name is enough to set fire to South Temple Street. Of course, one loss has near-no significance in the grand scheme of an 82-game season.
Utah will have a fresh set of feet along with a home crowd to cheer them on. Lost in a crowd of overreactions, people seem to forget the peak of the Jazz in the small three-game sample Jaren Jackson Jr. played when they were actively trying to sabotage
games — oh yeah, we have Darryn Peterson now.
New Orleans, on the other hand, played slightly better in their season opener, finishing in a close 123-120 loss to the Indiana Pacers; of course, it was Haliburton who nailed the game-icing shot. They’ve got a fire lit under them that will certainly not make things any easier for the bounce-back hopeful Jazz, despite being low-ranked in the power rankings.
Injury Report
Don’t underestimate these lowly Pels
The most prevalent concern shown in Game One was the lack of assertion in the restricted area. Memphis held a 55-38 rebound advantage, which included a 15-5 advantage on offensive rebounds. The Grizzlies scored 17 points on these second-chance opportunities.
The struggle with containing downhill players will probably continue tonight.
Despite the Pelicans finishing near the bottom of the barrel last season — completely unintentionally, I may add — their crashing of the glass on the offensive end stood out as a major bright spot. Five Pelicans averaged over 5 rebounds per game, and the immediate impact of rookie Derik Queen anchoring the boards could prove to be a major threat to the Jazz’s weaknesses carried into 2026-27.
What they do struggle with, however, is the extremely poor spacing around a rim-reliant star. They didn’t have a consistent stretch big, and the offense relied too much on Zion or Dejounte Murray to score isolated buckets rather than on a cohesive team-first approach.
It does seem that these habits are going to die under newly appointed head coach Jamahl Mosley. Zion Williamson attempted four triples. He made 50% of them. I have not been that shocked at a three-point party since Walker Kessler decided he could simply start hitting them.
Staying cool and collective
But do you know what really grinds my gears? It’s the calendar year of 2026, and the turnover bug still haunts the Utah Jazz. Taking care of the ball is the ultimate key to this matchup. Both teams yielded matching 18-turnover games on opening night, fuelling heavy fastbreak runs for their opponents.
Keyonte George handles the majority of the creation, but there really isn’t much to go off of other than that. Darryn Peterson scored a quiet 9 points in his debut, but there’s no doubt in mind that the Jazz will look to truly unlock him against New Orleans’ tough POA defender Herb Jones.
Without the steady hands of the injured Jusuf Nurkić to act as a high-post hub, it will likely become a recurring story of the young backcourt guards finding themselves trapped.
Whichever team successfully tightens their passing windows and controls the pace will have a massive advantage.
Nevertheless, don’t worry about the critics. Don’t worry about what the box score says. Don’t worry about Jazz ‘fans’ themselves. No one can stop you from enjoying competitive Jazz basketball again.
Utah Jazz vs. New Orleans Pelicans—How to Watch:
Who: Utah Jazz vs. New Orleans Pelicans
Where: Delta Center, Salt Lake City, Utah
When: 7:30pm Mountain Daylight Time
How to Watch: KJZZ, Jazz+ (in market) or NBA League Pass (out of market)
