Utah Jazz vs. Portland Trail Blazers: Keys to the Game

The Utah Jazz will look to enter the All-Star break on as much of a high note as possible as they attempt to end their three-game losing streak tonight against the Portland Trail Blazers.

After losing three straight games in highly disappointing fashion, the Utah Jazz will look to salvage this final stretch before the All-Star break by earning a win against the Portland Trail Blazers in tonight’s contest.

In my opinion, Portland has been one of the most disappointing teams in the league this season as they exhibited sky-high potential last year by advancing to the second round of the playoffs when many thought they wouldn’t even qualify for the postseason, but have under-performed this year and currently find themselves outside of the playoff mix.

Nevertheless, despite their struggles which have included losing four of their last five, they’re still a dangerous team that has proven capable of beating even the best in the league. In fact, they did just that when they downed the Jazz in the first game of the season.

So the Jazz will have to be at their best and certainly much better than they’ve been of late if they hope to have any chance against the Blazers. This game packs extra significance given that a Utah loss tomorrow coupled with a Memphis win over the Pelicans would drop the Jazz one more spot in the standings to sixth in the Western Conference.

Therefore, if the Jazz hope to enter the break on a high note and keep their hopes of home court advantage in the playoffs burning bright, they’ll need to take care of business in the following key areas and find a way to get back in their groove against the Trail Blazers.