Big night tonight

Even though the Jazz don't play this is a big night for them, here's the important games on tap...

Lakers @ Pacers
Timberwolves @ Rockets
Bulls @ Warriors

and one that could have an indirect impatct..

Memphis @ Denver

The Lakers are going to lose to the Pacers. The Rockets and Warriors will probably get wins but I wouldn't rule out an upset in either of those games. Memphis @ Denver is important because Utah plays Memphis tomorrow, and nothing softens up a visiting squad like a knock down drag out brawl in the mile high city the night before, no matter who wins, we gotta hope that one is close, overtime would be the optimal.

By saying that am I admitting that we need help from the schedule and perhaps the hand of god to beat Memphis? Yes, yes I am. Am I ashamed of that? A little, but my fan is greater than my shame.

Yes, its true. The Jazz appear to need lots of help if they are going to make the playoffs. One could say "they control their own destiny", but they have been playing so poorly it would take a miracle for them to go better than 0.500 from here on out. They need the Lakers, Houston, GSW and Dallas to also suck, so they can suck themselves into the 8th spot. I'm conflicted on the prospects. On the one hand the young guys get playoff ball experience if they make it, on the other, they get humiliated and embarrassed by OKC/Spurs for 5 games on national TV, giving everyone besides us unhappy fans a reason to say, "The Jazz just kinda suck this year...but boy, that Kanter kid looks promising."

MTJazz wrote:

Yes, its true. The Jazz appear to need lots of help if they are going to make the playoffs. One could say "they control their own destiny", but they have been playing so poorly it would take a miracle for them to go better than 0.500 from here on out. They need the Lakers, Houston, GSW and Dallas to also suck, so they can suck themselves into the 8th spot. I'm conflicted on the prospects. On the one hand the young guys get playoff ball experience if they make it, on the other, they get humiliated and embarrassed by OKC/Spurs for 5 games on national TV, giving everyone besides us unhappy fans a reason to say, "The Jazz just kinda suck this year...but boy, that Kanter kid looks promising."

I know I'm going to sound like crazy stupid homer optimist right now, so if that isn't your thing feel free to move along.

This is a best case scenario no doubt, but I can imagine the Jazz suprising everybody, and starting with a win tomorrow winning 8 of thier next 10 games.

Right now I really feel like these next two home games are going to make or break the rest of the Jazz season. The last road trip was devastating to this teams phsyche, and they really haven't been able to recover. Now they have 3 days off to get it together, followed by two home games against playoff contenders that are ripe for the taking. Memphis will be on the second night of a high altitude back to back, and New York is massively banged up and deserves a serious beat down for the way they humiliated the Jazz in New York.

If the Jazz can play better and win these two (very winable) games they get their confidence back and head into the Texas 3 step thinking they are a playoff team that can win when it matters and they use that to (finally) win on the road. If they don't win them both then they don't get that confidence, they go into Texas and get massacred, and they come out on the other side a broken team with almost no hope of making the playoffs.

They could possibly back into the 8th spot as a broken shell, especially if Kobe decides that he's going to be a hero and play at 80% capacity. The Lakers schedule isn't much easier than ours and they really haven't been playing that much better, they are just winning more. But who really want's to see that?

But if they actually start winning, playing up to the potential we have seen in spurts all season, they are still not totally out of reach of the 7th or even 6th spot. And lets be honest, could there be anything sweeter in this world than making the Warriors play the Thunder or Spurs in the first round AND knocking the Lakers out of the playoffs? For this team that has to be best we can hope for, and I'll be damned if I'm not still hoping...

Lakers, Dallas and Houston all won tonight. Memphis lost to Denver, who now have won 10 in a row and the hottest team in the league not named the Heat. Dallas now 2.5 games back of the Jazz and closing. I'll buy Mags whatever he is drinking if the Jazz rip of an 8-2 run starting tomorrow night. Not. Going. To. Happen. Its all going to come down to the Texas 3-step, coming soon to a theater near you.

MTJazz wrote:

Lakers, Dallas and Houston all won tonight. Memphis lost to Denver, who now have won 10 in a row and the hottest team in the league not named the Heat. Dallas now 2.5 games back of the Jazz and closing. I'll buy Mags whatever he is drinking if the Jazz rip of an 8-2 run starting tomorrow night. Not. Going. To. Happen. Its all going to come down to the Texas 3-step, coming soon to a theater near you.

Like I said, I don't think you have to wait for the road trip, if the Jazz don't beat a tired Memphis team and a beat up Knicks team at home you can call the mortician because the only thing left will be the finger pointing and crying.

Massive win for the Lakers, didn't think there was any way they would pull that game off. It's been that kind of run for the Jazz though, all three of those winners last night needed fairly big second half comebacks to get the win.

In the great news category, the Warriors lost again. Seem's likely that they will fall behind Houston and LA at this point, and that is great news for our summer plans.

Mags, you didn't take into account the All-Star caliber contribution the Lakers were going to get from Steve Blake. (OF COURSE!)

He scores a few more points and he's got a Lebron game there.

Trollificus wrote:

Mags, you didn't take into account the All-Star caliber contribution the Lakers were going to get from Steve Blake. (OF COURSE!)

He scores a few more points and he's got a Lebron game there.

Ya, and lets not forget Meta WP and 'Twan J both shooting over 50% from both the field and the 3pt line on their way to a combined 36 points and 14 rebounds. Last time Meta and 'Twan both shot over 50% on the same night? never.

TheMagnus wrote:

Like I said, I don't think you have to wait for the road trip, if the Jazz don't beat a tired Memphis team and a beat up Knicks team at home you can call the mortician because the only thing left will be the finger pointing and crying.

Massive win for the Lakers, didn't think there was any way they would pull that game off. It's been that kind of run for the Jazz though, all three of those winners last night needed fairly big second half comebacks to get the win.

In the great news category, the Warriors lost again. Seem's likely that they will fall behind Houston and LA at this point, and that is great news for our summer plans.

I don't know about Memphis being a gimme, they have the third best road record in the league (19-12), in a dogfight with Clips and Denver for the third seed and out to establish their badassness after losing to the Nuggies. In other words, a really good road team highly motivated to take down a reeling bubble team. But we can hope. As for NY, I agree that should show up in the win column if they have a speck of pride remaining. GSW stumbling is an intriguing backdoor way in for the Jazz but what makes you so sure they will plummet past the Jazz?

MTJazz wrote:

TheMagnus wrote:

Like I said, I don't think you have to wait for the road trip, if the Jazz don't beat a tired Memphis team and a beat up Knicks team at home you can call the mortician because the only thing left will be the finger pointing and crying.

Massive win for the Lakers, didn't think there was any way they would pull that game off. It's been that kind of run for the Jazz though, all three of those winners last night needed fairly big second half comebacks to get the win.

In the great news category, the Warriors lost again. Seem's likely that they will fall behind Houston and LA at this point, and that is great news for our summer plans.

I don't know about Memphis being a gimme, they have the third best road record in the league (19-12), in a dogfight with Clips and Denver for the third seed and out to establish their badassness after losing to the Nuggies. In other words, a really good road team highly motivated to take down a reeling bubble team. But we can hope. As for NY, I agree that should show up in the win column if they have a speck of pride remaining. GSW stumbling is an intriguing backdoor way in for the Jazz but what makes you so sure they will plummet past the Jazz?

Ok, lets clear up the misunderstanding first.

I never said Memphis was a gimme, I just said they were tired. This will be their 3rd game in 4 days and Conely, Gasol, and Randolph all played a tough 40 minutes at altitude last night where they actually seemed to run out of gas a bit in the 4th quarter. That combined with the fact that this is a home game means that it is a winnable game, and I think for the Jazz it is a must win. But they have to play better than they have been or they will most definitely lose, because even a tired Memphis is a really really good team.

I also just said that GS looks like they will fall behind the Lakers and Rockets, not that the Jazz would catch them. They (like the Jazz) are not playing very good ball right now, they have been at home for 7 straight games and they went 4-3, losing by double digits at home to the very same Bucks and Bulls teams that the Jazz took down to the wire on the road. 3 of their 4 wins were against Toronto, Sacramento, and Detroit. Prior to that they went 0-4 on their 4 game eastern conference road trip. Now they hit the road for a 3 game road trip that includes a Texas two step (Rockets and Spurs) and a stop in Nola. The only reason they aren't in as bad a shape as the Jazz right now is that their schedule has been and will continue to be much easier. So ya, that is another possible way for the Jazz to back in, and it also makes the 6th spot that much closer in terms of games, but don't overlook the possibility that if the Jazz don't get it together now then the Mavs might overtake them and take the "backing in" option off the table. Aside from all of that, the reason their fall is great news is of course because of the draft pick. Their recent slide threatens to drop them not only behind Houston and LA in the standings, but also Chicago Atlanta and Boston, only 1 game stands between those 6 teams. Even if they hang on to the 8th playoff spot, a couple more losses for the Warriors could mean the difference between that pick being # 21 and # 16, and that is a pretty big deal.

Rooting for the Warriors to lose has overtaken rooting for the Lakers to lose as my #2 priority (#1 is the Jazz winning) for the rest of this season. After what those spineless cowards did last year karma demands that they pay for it by tanking, this time REALLY unintentionally, their way out of a good playoff spot AND a decent draft pick.

Well that was a solid first step.

Next up the Knicks, who will also be on the second night of a back to back and will likely come into Utah having not won a game since they blew out the Jazz in New York.