Utah Jazz

The New Orleans Pelicans visit the Utah Jazz on Tuesday. We continue our NBA odds series with a Pelicans-Jazz prediction and pick.

He returned to the floor in their loss to Minnesota on Friday when he scored 17 points and dished out six assists. He’s coming off four consecutive 20-point games and most recently shot 4-6 from three in their loss to the Trail Blazers. He’s shot an eye-popping 53% from the field and 41% from beyond the arc (on 6.4 attempts per game). His recent stretch and previous success against the Pelicans are worth keeping in mind before making a Pelicans-Jazz prediction. The Pelicans are playing better than anyone in the league right now. Defensively, the Pelicans come in eighth in points allowed and third in defensive rating. Utah is an average team on the glass where they rank 15th in both rebound differential and rebound rate. The Jazz are 16-13 against the spread while 52% of their games have gone over. The Pelicans are 15-11 against the spread while 54% of their games have gone over. They struggle on defense, however, ranking just 22nd in points allowed and 24th in defensive rating. Over their last seven games, seven Pelicans have averaged at least 10 PPG (with Larry Nance’s 9.7 PPG just missing the cut). They rank third in scoring and fifth in offensive rating.

Leading 83-71, Malik Beasley knocked down a mid-range jumper to start the run. Rookie Walker Kessler started consecutive transition opportunities by blocking a ...

[Utah Jazz](http://utahjazz.com/) and New Orleans Pelicans game is being televised on AT&T SportsNet and can be heard on [ 97.5 The KSL Sports Zone](https://kslsports.com/stream/). The former number-one overall pick is averaging 25.0 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 4.0 assists while shooting 60 percent from the floor. Markkanen and Conley, the Jazz two most important players, haven’t shared the floor for the last 11 games. — Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) Utah Jazz Standings Utah Jazz Scoreboard Utah Jazz Team Leaders Utah Jazz vs. [RELATED: Markkanen Returns As Jazz Host Pelicans In Two Game Series](https://kslsports.com/496535/markkanen-returns-as-jazz-host-red-hot-pelicans/) [UTAH JAZZ](https://kslsports.com/category/jazz/) — Ben Anderson (@BensHoops) OUT – Johnny Juzang (G League – Two-Way)

Let's check in on where the Jazz would be picking in the draft if the season ended today.

Lastly, at 23rd on The Athletic’s board is Jett Howard, son of NBA All-Star Juwan Howard. 13th on the board is Dillon Mitchell, the super athletic 6’7” wing from Texas. This is a doomsday scenario for the Jett is listed at 6’7” and his game is really centered around his shooting ability. He’s a very skilled big with a good handle and a decent three-point shot. [Utah Jazz](https://www.slcdunk.com) do own an exorbitant amount of first-round picks for the next several years, including 3 in this year’s highly anticipated draft.

SALT LAKE CITY — This week, the NBA's hottest team flew to Utah to play a pair of games in the Mountain West snow. When the New Orleans Pelicans arrived in ...

The Jazz made six 3-pointers in the quarter. New Orleans, which lost its home opener to Utah in October, is 0-2 against the Jazz this season. Nickeil Alexander-Walker, whom the Pelicans drafted 17th in 2019, was a thorn in New Orleans’ side. Alexander-Walker came off the bench to score 19 points. New Orleans mustered 45 points in the first half, and it trailed by seven at the break. The Pelicans converted 4 of 27 3-point shots, while the Jazz went 15 of 47 from behind the arc.

The Pelicans secured a 129-124 overtime victory against the Phoenix Suns Sunday to cover as 3.5-point home favorites. New Orleans is on a 7-game win streak. The ...

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Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen (23) shoots under pressure from New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson (1) in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, Dec. 13, 2022.

For now, the good news is that they are healthy and got a really impressive win against the hottest team in the league. The Jazz have a lot of young players behind those guys that they are trying to develop and bring along and turn into great players, but it’s just not enough. I think the Jazz’s ceiling when all their players are healthy is really, really high and that they are a difficult matchup for almost anyone. The margin for error and talent in order for this team to be successful is much smaller than some other teams in the league. But the good news for the Pelicans is that they will get a shot at revenge on Thursday night when the teams meet again. With the return of Mike Conley, Lauri Markkanen and Jordan Clarkson, the Jazz just looked like a different team than they have recently.

Because the Jazz are one of the best offensive teams in the league, they were able to run away with the victory Tuesday.

I tried to take some of the stuff I knew that he liked to do in the second half. “They live in transition, and they live on basically getting the ball on the rim and rebounding the miss and getting putbacks. The irony of the Jazz trading away [Rudy Gobert](https://theathletic.com/nba/player/rudy-gobert-HoB7w4Z5ROZnzHO4/) in the offseason is they might have traded for a guy who shares some of the same characteristics Gobert showed as a young player a decade ago. The Jazz know every night isn’t going to look like it did Tuesday defensively. Normally, the Jazz are one of the worst teams in the league in defensive transition, so a missed shot for Utah on the offensive end usually turns into a fast-break layup. But they are one of the worst defensive rebounding teams in the league, so normally they would surrender a second and third shot on many possessions. Because the Jazz are one of the better teams in the league in half-court defense, they force misses. What the Jazz accomplished Tuesday night was proving to themselves that they can do it defensively. And they happened to do it against the team with the best record in the Western Conference. They ran the Pelicans off the 3-point line and at the same time made their presence felt defensively at the rim. The Jazz held the Pelicans to 4-of-27 shooting from 3-point range. For the vast majority of the season, something has always been missing, whether it be a lack of getting back in transition, a lack of rebounding, a lack of rim protection or a lack of containing the basketball off the dribble.

After missing three games with an illness, Utah's Lauri Markkanen showed little rust in scoring 19 points, and Nickeil Alexander-Walker also scored 19 and had a ...

.. The Jazz are 12-6 when Markkanen and Mike Conley are in the starting lineup together. ... Utah matched its third-quarter season high with 39 points and held the Pelicans to 15 second-quarter points, the fewest the Jazz have allowed in that period this season. ''To have six guys in double figures and 31 assists shows that we played together on the offensive end,'' Utah coach Will Hardy said. ... The Pelicans forced 22 turnovers but gave up 26 points on 17 of their own giveaways. Williamson is scoring a league-high 22 points per game in the paint but played just 11 minutes in the first half because of foul trouble. The Jazz scored the final eight points of the third quarter, capped by Jordan Clarkson's 3-pointer at the buzzer to make it 91-71. ''We got to step on the court and step on the floor and understand that teams are gonna come after us, just like we go after teams,'' New Orleans coach Willie Green said. New Orleans finished 4 of 27 from beyond the arc and shot 39.8% overall. That's our best defensive game for the season as a team.'' Walker Kessler was one key to the disruption with 11 points, a career-high 16 rebounds and three blocked shots. We are more worried about Zion killing us in the paint than we are about them shooting well from 3,'' Kessler said. Only one of those wins came on the road, where New Orleans is 6-6.

Utah Jazz owner Ryan Smith, center, head coach Will Hardy, forward Simone Fontecchio (16) and fans celebrate after the team's win over the Golden State Warriors ...

With the Jazz having just rebranded, there’s still a whole lot out there with the previous color scheme, as well as the new one. Birthdays are a common time to do this, but they can also be done for other special occasions. A cornhole game set? Some of the more notable ones include current team broadcaster Thurl Bailey, Andrei Kirilenko, Carlos Boozer, Georges Niang and Jared Butler. A cellphone case? Do take care to ensure that you are purchasing from a legitimate site, however.

Jazz Blowout Pelicans, 121-100: Four Takeaways · Nickeil Alexander-Walker is a Permanent Fixture in the Rotation · Jarred Vanderbilt has Best Game in a Jazz ...

Utah has overall been a bottom-10 team on defense this year, but the Jazz may have turned out their best performance on Tuesday night. In Markkanen's three-game absence, the Jazz only averaged 33 bench points a game compared to the 60 they put up against the Pelicans. NAW and Malik Beasley had been inserted into the starting lineup when Mike Conley and Lauri Markkanen were on the shelf. Vanderbilt had a season-high in points (18) and rebounds (14) while shooting 8-for-9 from the field. Just finishing around the rim and even on the offensive glass," he said, "just getting put backs up and stuff like that. “We came out with that approach and got a win.”

Having Mike Conley back in the starting lineup had a huge impact too. Conley was slinging it from the start and ended the game with 7 points and 6 assists. The ...

Going 7/10 from the field and 4/6 from three, NAW scored 19 points with 6 assists and 3 rebounds. His near triple was dominant and was a major part of both the offense and defense. Conley was slinging it from the start and ended the game with 7 points and 6 assists. Jarred Vanderbilt had his best game of the season with 18 points, 14 rebounds, and 6 assists. His impact can be seen more in his +23 for the game. In his return to the lineup after illness, Lauri Markkanen had a big impact again with 19 points and 11 rebounds.

The Pelicans roster a number of young and talented players, none more hyped than phenom Zion Williamson. The Pelicans also entered this game with extreme ...

Eventually, it looked like the Jazz were working on practice drills and the Pelicans had no answers for Utah's onslaught of execution. Based on McCollum's lead and his team's effort, the Pelicans are headed nowhere. McCollum was traded to the Pelicans by the Blazers last season, and NBA All-Star Damian Lillard was not there to bail him out of poor play as he often did in Portland. Whatever their pre-game ritual was before the Pelicans game, the Jazz should duplicate it each and every night. The Pelicans were led by Zion Williamson's 26 points, nine boards, five assists, and two steals, yet he registered a game rating of -15. Game-time anticipation was elevated as the Pelicans entered the contest as the top-seeded team in the Western Conference.

Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen didn't miss a beat, scoring eight points in five minutes as he returned from a three game absence.

[Utah Jazz](http://utahjazz.com/) and New Orleans Pelicans game is being televised on AT&T SportsNet and can be heard on [ 97.5 The KSL Sports Zone](https://kslsports.com/stream/). Markkanen and Conley, the Jazz two most important players, haven’t shared the floor for the last 11 games. The former number-one overall pick is averaging 25.0 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 4.0 assists while shooting 60 percent from the floor. Utah Jazz Standings [RELATED: Markkanen Returns As Jazz Host Pelicans In Two Game Series](https://kslsports.com/496535/markkanen-returns-as-jazz-host-red-hot-pelicans/) Utah Jazz Scoreboard — Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) [UTAH JAZZ](https://kslsports.com/category/jazz/) Utah Jazz vs. [New Orleans](https://www.nba.com/pelicans) owns the best record in the West at 18-8, and the third-best record in the NBA overall. The Jazz (15-14) host the New Orleans Pelicans (18-8) in the first of two straight between these teams at Vivint Arena. [RELATED: ‘Full Go’ For Mike Conley Tonight Against New Orleans Pelicans](https://kslsports.com/496547/full-go-for-mike-conley-tonight-against-new-orleans-pelicans/)

Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson used every inch and more of his 6'4 frame to evade the defense to score his fourth point of the night.

[Utah Jazz](http://utahjazz.com/) and New Orleans Pelicans game is being televised on AT&T SportsNet and can be heard on [ 97.5 The KSL Sports Zone](https://kslsports.com/stream/). The former number-one overall pick is averaging 25.0 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 4.0 assists while shooting 60 percent from the floor. Markkanen and Conley, the Jazz two most important players, haven’t shared the floor for the last 11 games. [RELATED: Markkanen Returns As Jazz Host Pelicans In Two Game Series](https://kslsports.com/496535/markkanen-returns-as-jazz-host-red-hot-pelicans/) It can also be streamed on [ DirecTV Stream](https://www.directv.com/stream/?source=ECAT2500000E3100P&wtExtndSource=fubo+tv&gclsrc=aw.ds&&gclid=CjwKCAjwkaSaBhA4EiwALBgQaL7GpmGEyfOGu4565CzuolOx-P2XaCuxgwhLQFnBvfB8-OkmrtFG0RoCJ2sQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds) and [ FuboTV](https://www.fubo.tv/welcome). — Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) [New Orleans](https://www.nba.com/pelicans) owns the best record in the West at 18-8, and the third-best record in the NBA overall. [UTAH JAZZ](https://kslsports.com/category/jazz/) OUT – Micah Potter (G League – Two-Way) OUT – Johnny Juzang (G League – Two-Way) — NBA (@NBA) The Jazz (15-14) host the New Orleans Pelicans (18-8) in the first of two straight between these teams at Vivint Arena.

The Utah Jazz Holiday Playhouse Project — presented by First Colony Mortgage — took its next step forward by gifting three outdoor playhouses to fa...

“First Colony Mortgage has always admired Ryan and Ashley Smith and the Jazz organization for its charitable efforts,” said Corey Shelley, owner of First Colony Mortgage. “Utah’s focus on community is so strong, and our organization is excited to be a part of this project and grateful for our partners.” The Utah Jazz Holiday Playhouse Project — presented by First Colony Mortgage — took its next step forward by gifting three outdoor playhouses to families from Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Intermountain Area.

Although Sexton was absent, Lauri Markkanen, Jordan Clarkson, and Mike Conley returned to the lineup, and Utah was able to conjure up that Salt City Magic that ...

Part of the magic of this Jazz season thus far has been this team's production and the chemistry it has established despite not having a bonafide superstar player on the roster. "Guarding in the NBA is hard," Hardy said. I think tonight when we go back and watch the film, we probably weren’t perfect in our game-plan execution, but our level of activity was much higher than it’s been recently.” The Jazz had a defensive renaissance of sorts, foiling Zion Williamson — despite his 26 points — and the Pelicans. And then I think we went through a period where, whether it’s the guys over-focusing on the game plan, or whatever the case may be, I just felt as a team we got a little bit rigid on the defensive end. Although Sexton was absent, Lauri Markkanen, Jordan Clarkson, and Mike Conley returned to the lineup, and Utah was able to conjure up that Salt City Magic that dominated the headlines for the first month of the season, vanquishing an opponent who entered the game as the No.

Can the (18-9) New Orleans Pelicans go on the road and take down the (16-14) Utah Jazz on Thursday night?

The Jazz are also allowing the 21st most points per game and they are giving the 19th highest shooting percentage from the floor. The Jazz are scoring the second most points per game and the have the eighth highest shooting percentage. This is the 21st least amount of points given up per game and the 19th-lowest shooting percentage surrendered from the field. Lauri Markkanen continues to lead the way on the offensive end, as he is scoring 22.1 points per game on 52.7% shooting from the field. This is the second most points scored per contest and the eighth-highest team shooting percentage. On offense, they are scoring 117 points per game and they are shooting 48.5% from the field. On offense, they are scoring 117.4 points per game and they have shot 47.7% from the field. This is the ninth least amount of points given up per game and the eighth-lowest shooting percentage allowed. They have to crash the defensive glass if they want to keep the Jazz from scoring second-chance points. Zion Williamson continues to lead the way on the offensive end, as he is scoring 25 points per game on 62% shooting from the floor. This is the fifth most points scored per game and the sixth-highest team shooting percentage. The New Orleans Pelicans are coming into this one after falling to the Jazz.

The Jazz have +110 odds to pick up the win, while the Pelicans are listed at -120 to claim victory.