Looking at the Nuggets' schedule remaining, I doubt they hold the #1 seed
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Looking at the Nuggets' schedule remaining, I doubt they hold the #1 seed
Keefe
Well-Known Member
They have the fifth worst record in the league. The Hawks are legit?
Alfalfa
Well-Known Member
Whatever.
Jazz can and probably will take anyone in that bracket I set up. In that bracket it is very likely that the Jazz reach the WCFs.
Sandman822
Well-Known Member
Jazz are probable winners against Spurs or Clips but they're not going to play those teams, it'll be Portland and then Denver and I don't think they're the favourite in either series. Portland in particular have been an awful matchup for the Jazz all season long and unlike NOLA in last years playoffs the Jazz don't have a truly elite perimeter defender to throw at Lillard and/or McCollum so I don't imagine them disappearing the way they did last year.
David Stern
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We kicked the **** out of Portland twice, they kicked the **** out of us once, and there was one close game we lost. That's not really an awful matchup.
Sandman822
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We kicked the **** out of them twice when the Jazz had Exum performing well off the bench and flat out making things happen when no one else could for stretches, since he's gone down we lost the close one at home and then got destroyed in Portland. He's the ideal foil for Lillard/McCollum (long guard with size/speed), and he was also providing fantastic dribble penetration at will at a time when Mitchell wasn't quite firing on all cylinders and the starting lineup was often giving up big leads just for the bench to bang a few threes and bring it back with Exum running the show.
Royce can be the guy but then Snyder has to run Mitchell at point more which in a 7 game series is not something I expect Quin to do often enough for Royce's impact to be felt unless Neto/Rubio get hurt, and the Jazz still lack someone who can get into the paint whenever they want on the offensive end outside of Mitchell which makes gameplanning for the Jazz easier. This Jazz team has shown time and time again against the great teams in the West that when you remove Gobert/Favors scoring options and force Mitchell into being a jumpshooter that they have almost zero ability to get easy baskets unless Mitchell is hot and in the two wins against the Blazers it was Exum who was providing the relief the Jazz needed and getting Favors/Gobert involved when the starting unit couldn't at the start of games.
A series with Portland will come down to how well we defend Lillard and defend the Lillard/Nurkic pick and roll. Nothing else really matters. When Dame goes for 40+ on decent efficiency, they're tough to beat. Portland is almost as dependent on Lillard as the Rockets are on Harden.
The key for the Jazz is Rubio and Crowder making enough shots as outlets. Problem is, they're streaky at best.
The key for the Jazz is Rubio and Crowder making enough shots as outlets. Problem is, they're streaky at best.
Sandman822
Well-Known Member
I would be very careful downplaying the importance of CJ McCollum. Not sure if it was intentional to leave him out or not but post ASB he's going for 23/4/4 on 48.8/45.8/82.4 shooting splits, I think that does matter.
Lillard/Nurkic PnR is absolutely dangerous but McCollum is another outlet for Portland when that PnR isn't producing, which is something the Jazz don't have if anything Mitchell related isn't producing unless Rick Curry shows up.
fishonjazz
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We also have owned them over the last couple of years.
Portland also seems to underperform in the playoffs. They just are not built for a slower grind kind of physical game that the playoffs seem to usually have.
I would love to get portland in round 1. Rather play them than GSW, Denver, OKC, or Houston.
David Stern
Well-Known Member
Can you imagine Quin game planning against Kanter and Hood in a playoff series? Kinda gets me excited.
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Sandman822
Well-Known Member
They've only really had one bad performance in the playoffs and that was last year vs AD/Jrue/Playoff Rondo. Year prior they got swept by the Warriors, year before that they lost in the 2nd round to the Warriors after beating the Clips in 6, year before that they lost to a good Grizzlies team in 6 in the 1st and the year before that was their famous Rockets series win where Lillard hit the series clinching buzzer beater. There's probably some truth to them not being built for a playoff run as they always lose to the elite teams, but in a series against the Jazz they have the best player, they have a 2nd perimeter threat that can play at an all star level which the Jazz don't have, and Nurk is playable in a series against the Jazz vs teams like the Warriors or Rockets where he's unplayable which is a big deal. Maybe if the Jazz had a few more signature wins against some of the best teams in the league I'd be more confident but I don't have much confidence in the Jazz winning a series against the Blazers this year.
This is actually a good point though, Stotts playing Kanter against Favors/Gobert would be a significant advantage for the Jazz.
LifeOnaPlate
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Boston sucks. Spurs get another easy W tonight it seems.
firegirl
Well-Known Member
They keep taking out playoff contenders, so yes, I'd say so.
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vegas
Well-Known Member
I was thinking this would give them a bit of Carmelo effect.
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Jazzta
Guest
And the Clippers took a predictable win against the Knicks.
