“We Can Do Better” | Thriving Utah Takes On New-Look New Orleans | Utah Jazz

Two of the hottest teams in the Western Conference go head-to-head on Friday night in a matchup that neither wants to lose due to the upcoming postseason.

Utah, winners of three straight, need the victory to keep pace with third-seeded Memphis and keep the distance between themselves and fifth-seeded Dallas for homecourt advantage in the opening round. 

New Orleans, also winners of three straight, might need the victory more than the Jazz if they’re even making the postseason. Currently, they sit in 10th place, the final play-in spot, but are just a game ahead of 11th-seeded Portland and a game behind ninth-seeded Los Angeles Lakers. 

8-1 in February pic.twitter.com/LB0ugiFGQn

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) February 28, 2022

Interestingly enough, these two teams have both turned things around recently — Utah through the return of its two all-stars Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert, and New Orleans through the addition of CJ McCollum at the trade deadline. 

For the Jazz, they’re the hottest team in the NBA, going 9-1 in their last 10 games that resulted in head coach Quin Snyder being named the Western Conference Coach of the Month for February. 

After a disastrous January in which they went 4-12, many people had written them off as a true title contender. But after a dominant February, the Jazz are right where they belong among the league’s elite and looking like a legitimate postseason threat. 

When determining what changed so drastically from month to month, the answer is simple: health. 

For the first time since mid-December, the Jazz were finally healthy and it’s paid massive dividends. Mitchell is playing at an all-NBA level, Gobert is clearly the defensive player of the year, Jordan Clarkson looks like another sixth man of the year candidate, and the rest of the team understands their roles. 

| This is the fourth time in Snyder’s career that he has won Coach of the Month honors, most recently named in January and February of the 2021 season.https://t.co/3Ihgic61xW

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) March 3, 2022

But one player who’s now looking healthy for a playoff push is former all-star point guard Mike Conley. 

After telling media on Wednesday that the team will begin to up his minutes and allow him to play select back-to-backs to be postseason-ready, Conley went out and put on a show against Houston.

Over the final 30 seconds of regulation and five minutes of overtime, Conley scored 12 of Utah’s 18 points as he nearly singlehandedly saved the Jazz from what would’ve been a disastrous loss.

After hitting what appeared to be the game-winning bucket — a three-pointer from the corner — overtime was where Conley came up clutch again. He scored Utah’s final nine points, including a personal 7-0 run.

He finished the night with 15 points, eight assists, four rebounds, and four steals, a masterful performance from someone who dominated a game despite taking 10 shots.

“Shots weren’t falling for me personally. … But I had a couple really good looks late in moments I’m accustomed to performing in,” Conley said postgame.

| “It was a game we can absorb and learn from. … There’s not a lot of magic to what happened, but there’s things we know are going to happen to us, and we need to be able to handle them.”https://t.co/peTTvGdg2i

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) March 3, 2022

New Orleans looks like a different team since the addition of McCollum, who is thriving in the lead role. His ability to score from beyond the arc and facilitate has also positively affected Brandon Ingram and Jonas Valanciunas, both of whom have seen a significant uptick in production. 

What was your favorite win in February?#ByTheNumbers | @Qualtrics pic.twitter.com/i1xtn6eiWQ

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) February 28, 2022

STATS
Utah (39-22, 17-12 away / No. 4 Western Conference)
Offense
*114.1 Points Per Game (No. 2 in NBA)
*116.2 Offensive Rating (No. 1 in NBA)

Defense
*107.4 Points Per Game (No. 9 in NBA)
*109.5 Defensive Rating (No. 12 in NBA)

*Donovan Mitchell: 26.1 points / 5.3 assists / 4.1 rebounds / 1.7 steals
*Rudy Gobert: 15.9 points / 14.9 rebounds / 2.3 blocks / 71.0% shooting 
*Bojan Bogdanovic: 17.7 points / 4.3 rebounds / 37.6% 3P-shooting
*Jordan Clarkson: 15.5 points / 3.3 rebounds / 26.3 minutes

New Orleans (26-36, 14-17 home / No. 10 Western Conference)
Offense
*107.1 Points Per Game (No. 24 in NBA)
*109.4 Offensive Rating (No. 21 in NBA)

Defense
*109.0 Points Per Game (No. 14 in NBA)
*110.9 Defensive Rating (No. 18 in NBA)

*CJ McCollum: 26.6 points / 6.0 assists / 5.9 rebounds / 41.7% 3P-shooting
*Brandon Ingram: 22.4 points / 5.6 rebounds / 5.5 assists /
*Jonas Valanciunas: 18.0 points / 11.6 rebounds / 38.3% 3P-shooting

MATCHUP TO WATCH
*Donovan Mitchell vs. CJ McCollum
— An argument can be made that ever since the start of February, Mitchell and McCollum have been the top two shooting guards in the Western Conference. Mitchell has been dominant by averaging 28.8 points, 5.9 assists, 4.7 rebounds on 44.9% shooting from beyond the arc while McCollum has scored 30 points or more in four of his eight games with the Pelicans. Simply put, whichever star guard rises to the occasion, that’s whose team will have the best chance at extending their winning streak.

INJURY REPORT
Utah
QUESTIONABLE — Jared Butler (right ankle sprain)

Houston
OUT — Kira Lewis Jr. (right knee ACL/MCL sprain)
OUT — Larry Nance Jr. (right knee arthroscopy)
OUT — Zion Williamson (right foot fracture)

BROADCAST INFORMATION
Time: 6:00 p.m. MST
Location: Smoothie King Center / New Orleans, LA
TV: AT&T SportsNet
Radio: 1280 The Zone