The Hive Sports

by Alma Bean

Feature Image by Megan Nielsen of Deseret News.

The Utah Jazz (5-11) will look to stand their ground at home in a quick rematch against the New Orleans Pelicans (9-8).

What to Look For

With this being their second matchup between each other in the last three days, I expect major adjustments to be made including lineups. Both Jordan Clarkson and Zion Williamson were out in the previous matchup and are both great individual players for their respective teams. With Clarkson back in Utah’s lineup, don’t be surprised if you see the ball in his hands more and more perimeter shots to not only be taken, but made. Williamson on the other hand will be a menace for Utah as he will use his large stature to force his way into the paint and assert his dominance.

Even with both of these offense juggernauts returning to the court this could also mean turnovers may become more apparent in this matchup. Clarkson averaging 3.3 turnovers per game and Williamson with 2.8 per game, these teams may struggle keeping the ball in their control. In their previous matchup on Saturday, Utah had a total of 23 turnovers to New Orleans’ 13, adding Clarkson to the mix may look a little scary to that stat. If Will Hardy sticks to his word on playing guys that play hard and pass, this will make that game even more interesting than Saturday.

Key of the Game

Ball movement. Even with 23 turnovers, the ball movement from Utah was astronomically better than it has been this season. Keyonte George is starting to get comfortable in his role as the main point guard and starting to get flashy with his passing. This did lead to multiple turnovers but not necessarily seen as bad passing decisions. Alongside with Kris Dunn being able to bring support on the court and morally for George, the game looked to come easy to their starting unit. Though the numbers may not correlate to any major positive movements as a team, but the starting unit passed the eye test and may need to be considered for consistent minutes.

Injury Report

New Orleans – CJ McCollum (chest) Out, Trey Murphy III (knee) Out, Matt Ryan (calf) Out

Utah – Josh Christopher (G League) Out, Johnny Juzang (G League) Out, Lauri Markkanen (hamstring) Out, Micah Potter (G League) Out

Where to Watch

Tip-off will be at 7:00 p.m. MST on KJZZ and Jazz+ with a special alternate broadcast to celebrate 70’s night with Truck Robinson and Aaron James also on Jazz+.