Who: Phoenix Suns (40-33) vs. Utah Jazz (21-53)
When: 7:00pm Arizona Time
Where: Mortgage Matchup Center, Phoenix, Arizona
Watch: Arizona’s Family 3TV, Arizona’s Family Sports, NBA TV
Listen: ESPN 620 / S: KSUN
This will be the third and final meeting between the Suns and Jazz this year. The season series stands at 1-1 after an October in which they met twice.
The Suns come into this one as winners of just one of their last seven games. It is worth noting, however, that half of those six losses came in one-possession
games.
It could be worse for Phoenix. The Utah Jazz come into tonight’s game as the winners of just three of their last nineteen, including a loss to Jokic and the Nuggets last night.
Probable Starters
Now, if you are like me, you see this Utah Jazz starting lineup and are a bit confused. Ace Bailey is playing center? Didn’t he get drafted as a wing? Well, my friends, the Utah Jazz are once again committing to the most horrendous of tanks. They are rolling out nothing but guards and wings in their starting lineup, so I just listed them from 1-5 based on height. Ace Bailey is the tallest of these five at 6’9”.
Injury Report
Suns
- Grayson Allen – QUESTIONABLE (Knee)
- Haywood Highsmith – OUT (Knee)
- Dillon Brooks – OUT (Hand)
- Mark Williams – OUT (Foot)
- Amir Coffey – OUT (Ankle)
Jazz
- Isaiah Collier – OUT (Hamstring)
- Keyonte George – OUT (Hamstring)
- Jaren Jackson Jr. – OUT (Knee)
- Walker Kessler – OUT (Shoulder)
- Lauri Markkanen – OUT (Hip)
- Jusuf Nurkic – OUT (Nose)
What to Watch For
This shouldn’t be close. The Jazz are coming off the second night of a back-to-back and the Suns have mostly done well in taking care of business this season against poor teams. The Suns will be bigger and have both the rest and talent advantage.
I am hoping for a big lead early and some extended run for Maluach, Fleming, and Dunn throughout the game. With the season winding down towards the playoffs and the Valley Suns season conclusion, we are quickly approaching a point where these guys are going to get their minutes slashed. The only one that I think Coach Ott may keep in his playoff rotation is Fleming, as he seems to be the one of the three that Ott trusts the most.
Key to a Suns Win
While tonight shouldn’t be close, it has the potential to be a trap game. The Jazz have beaten good teams this year, such as Detroit and San Antonio. Utah is surprisingly 9th in the NBA in points scored. Of course, that number is boosted by the first two-thirds of the season when their players were actually playing. As a counterpoint, even with their best players playing for most of the year, the Jazz have given up more points than any other team in the NBA this season.
The Jazz are young and small tonight. If the Suns can crash the glass with effort, this should be an obvious win.
Prediction
I think the Suns will get out to a big lead early tonight, and I think Oso Ighodaro will have a big game. He is coming off of a battle with Jokic in which he put up 15 points and 6 rebounds on good efficiency. After matching up against the Joker, playing against anyone else has to feel like bowling with guardrails.
Suns 125, Jazz 105
