Wednesday’s Showdown Could Be Biggest of Year for Utah Jazz

The Utah Jazz have faced important games all year long, but perhaps none has been as big as Wednesday’s showdown against the Houston Rockets.

The Western Conference playoff race appears to be headed towards an absolutely thrilling conclusion. With just 1.5 games separating the sixth through ninth seeds, to say the stretch run could come down to the wire is a complete understatement. While three of these teams will advance to the playoffs, one unfortunate squad will be sent home packing.

However, while one might expect the playoff spots to be awarded to the teams that exhibit the most dominant play over the final games, the way the last few weeks have gone, it might be more a matter of which team chokes the most rather than which teams perform the best.

More from Jazz News

• With the FIBA World Cup over for Simone Fontecchio, it’s clear he deserves minutes for the Utah Jazz
• Best, Worst and Most likely scenarios for the Utah Jazz this season
• Hoops Hype downplays the significance of the Utah Jazz’s valuable assets
• 3 Utah Jazz players who have the most to gain or lose this season
• Former Utah Jazz forward Rudy Gay is a free agent still and it shouldn’t surprise anyone

With exception of the Utah Jazz, who have won five of their last six contests, the other three teams have been rather inconsistent of late and certainly haven’t played as well as they showed during stretches earlier in the year. Dallas has taken a severe 180-degree turn for the worst and the Blazers haven’t been nearly as hot as they were shortly following the All-Star break.

Thus with so much at stake and each single game being so meaningful, the Jazz have a critical opportunity on Wednesday night as they take on the Houston Rockets in the Toyota Center. The Jazz currently trail the Rockets by just half a game and a victory on Wednesday would even the season series at 2-2.

Winning that game could potentially put the Jazz ahead of the Rockets (depending on the result of Houston’s match-up on Tuesday against Oklahoma City) or it could send Utah back down the standings which they have worked so hard to claw their way up.

Looking ahead at that match-up and comparing both teams’ recent play, it’s pretty much impossible to accurately predict the winner, especially considering that there are several positives and negatives about the upcoming match-up for the Jazz.

First, the positives. Fortunately for the Jazz, they will go into Wednesday’s game with two days of rest after their game on Sunday against Milwaukee. Meanwhile, Houston will face the Jazz on the second night of a back-to-back after playing on the road against OKC the night before. Hopefully the well-rested Jazz team will be ready to take advantage of a fatigued Rockets squad.

Also, the Jazz certainly have been playing solid basketball lately. Yes, they slipped up in Chicago largely due to a rough shooting night from both Rodney Hood and the recently returned Gordon Hayward who had missed time with a foot injury, but other than that Utah has put together a nice stretch that included a thrilling victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers.

That nice stretch has included solid play from Shelvin Mack who looks more and more comfortable calling the shots at the point for the Jazz. Also, the Jazz have been receiving key contributions from bench players such as Joe Ingles and Trey Lyles. With point guard and bench play being a devastating weakness all season, both will have to continue to be on point for the Jazz to be able to defeat the Houston Rockets and gain critical ground in the playoff race.

However, there are also a few concerns facing the Jazz in the match-up against Houston. First of all, playing on the road has been a struggle for Utah all year. The Jazz are just 12-23 on the road this season, the fifth worst in the Western Conference. The Rockets haven’t played overwhelmingly well at home, posting just a 19-15 record, but the Jazz have been hard pressed to beat anyone on the road, so a contest against the playoff contending Rockets could be a challenge.

The next big issue for the Jazz has to do with struggling to match up against the Rockets, particularly against James Harden who has only improved with each game against Utah. In the first he put up 30 points, then 33 and 42 in the following games. Without a reliable stopper at the shooting guard or small forward position, the Jazz will have to hope that a balanced defensive effort from the team as a whole will be enough to slow down Harden.

Rudy Gobert and Derrick Favors will also have their hands full against Dwight Howard who is fully capable of causing damage in the paint and on the boards.

Thus, with so many different factors affecting this game, it truly makes it hard to determine who will come out on top. Nevertheless, whether the Jazz make or miss the playoffs will likely be directly connected to the outcome of this game. Sure, a loss won’t instantly doom them as any of the teams ahead of them could limp down the stretch and plummet in the standings, but the way the Jazz perform in a game of such importance like this one will be very telling about their drive and desire to make the playoffs.

Next: Report: Alec Burks May Not Return to Utah Jazz This Season

Also, a win over Houston would likely give the Jazz a one game lead and a critical advantage in the standings, allowing them to control their own destiny in regards to qualifying for the playoffs. For all these reasons, Wednesday’s game will surely show the heart of the Jazz and prove whether they are one step closer to being a deserving NBA playoff team or one step closer to going home early once again.

All stats courtesy of NBA.com/stats