UTAH – Utah are quickly becoming a problem that NBA play-off contenders cannot solve.
The Jazz notched two straight victories against some of the league’s top teams heading into Tuesday night’s game (Wednesday morning, Singapore time) against the Boston Celtics in Salt Lake City.
They earned wins over the Detroit Pistons and the San Antonio Spurs in back-to-back days over the weekend to snap a four-game losing streak.
Against the Spurs, Utah played one of their best games of the season. They clinched a 127-114 victory behind 29 points from Lauri Markkanen and 28 points from Keyonte George.
Utah have lost numerous close games this season, but the team are starting to finish stronger and nab unexpected wins.
“We’ve seen this a bunch of times this year where we’re in close games and our team is not afraid,” Utah coach Will Hardy told the Deseret News.
“They don’t look scattered, they’re very connected, and they’re stepping up and making a lot of big plays... so I’m so proud of our group, and I want our guys and our fans to enjoy.”
Utah are 6-6 in December. Four of those wins have come against likely NBA play-off teams.
Improvement and development from younger players has driven success.
George is a legit candidate to be named the NBA’s Most Improved Player in his third season in the league. Brice Sensabaugh and Isaiah Collier have turned into key contributors off the bench. Rookies Ace Bailey and Walter Clayton, Jr. have both shown lots of potential in their debut seasons.
Clayton, who had one of his best games to date against the Spurs, finishing with 17 points, five assists, and zero turnovers, believes the Jazz have turned a corner after compiling the league’s worst record last season.
“I think guys are just tired of losing,” he said in an interview with KJZZ TV.
Meanwhile, Boston have also made progress in December, recovering from a sluggish start and looking like a true play-off contender. The Celtics are 8-3 since the start of the month and have claimed four road victories in that stretch.
A 114-108 loss at Portland on Sunday, however, snapped a four-game winning streak.
Despite getting 37 points from Jaylen Brown – his ninth straight game with 30 or more points to tie the franchise record by Larry Bird (1985) – Boston could not catch back up after falling behind the Trail Blazers in the third quarter.
For Brown, the loss shows that the Celtics still have more ground to cover in order to reach their full potential this season.
“Obviously, tonight kind of p–s me off with how we executed down the stretch, but it’s an opportunity for growth,” Brown told NBC Sports Boston after the game.
The Celtics will be looking for redemption against Utah after falling at home 105-103 to the Jazz on Nov 3.
Boston went 11 of 51 from 3-point range against their opponents so that would be a key factor that they will be looking to improve on.
Meanwhile in NBA action on Monday, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 39 points to lead the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 140-129 home victory over the Atlanta Hawks.
The Thunder outscored the Hawks 70-36 in the paint.
Gilgeous-Alexander was 15 of 24 from the field and had six assists, six rebounds and a pair of steals.
Elsewhere, Stephen Curry scored 27 points and the Golden State Warriors recovered from a slow start for a 120-107 victory over the Brooklyn Nets in New York.
Jarrett Allen amassed 27 points and 10 rebounds and helped key a decisive fourth-quarter run as the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers emerged with a 113-101 win over the Spurs. AFP, REUTERS
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