Wizards (46-29) at Jazz (46-29)
March 31, 2017 at 9:00 PM Vivint Smart Home Arena | Salt Lake City, UT TV: CSN Mid-Atlantic Radio: 1500 AM
Last time they met was..
February 17, 2017 - Verizon Center, DC: Jazz 102, Wizards 92
What to watch:
It's that time again, the tail end of a 5-game road trip, where the fluster of travel and the wear of tear of multiple
games on minimal nights reach their peak. Only sheer endurance, like the type they showed in the first road trip, can will the Wizards through the final two games of this trip. Resilience, also like the type showed in the first road trip, can will them to success. How much of each the Wizards will have tonight is a question to ponder as tip off in Salt Lake City looms.
The 46-29 Wizards come to Utah in pursuit of solidifying their position in the Eastern Conference playoff tree and, while they're at it, try to reach 50 wins for the first time in four decades. A few things have been boding well for the team lately, and one Johnathan Hildred Wall, team point guard, is undoubtedly one of them. Wall by every means is having the greatest season of his career anyway, but on this particular road stint he's been extraordinary.
Some facts:
Wall has been an absolute savage on this road trip. He dominated Kyrie and Lebron in Cleveland. He single-handedly owned the Lakers in the final 7 minutes of the 4th quarter, stamping the Wizards comeback in LA. Against the Clippers, he scored 41 points to go with 8 assists, 7 rebounds and 3 steals. I’ll let the defense explain to you why the Wizards lost that game.
Tonight, John Wall lucks out with the absence of George Hill, who has been a gem for Utah this season but is a scratch due to an ailing groin.
Hill's team, the Jazz, also have a record of 46-29, which is good for 4th in the West, but just one game better than the 5th-seeded Clippers. The Jazz are enjoying one of their better seasons in recent time thanks to their two most valuable assets: their scoring leader in Gordon Wayward and their ball-stopping big in Rudy Gobert.
Key Matchup:
Dignity vs. Rudy Gobert.
Rudy Gobert is a rude player. And I mean that in the most complimentary manner. Why is he rude? For anyone who has played a competitive game of basketball knows that there’s few things, if any, more demoralizing than getting your shot blocked. The more emphasis on the block and the more closer to the rim the block happens, the more sadness there is for the shooter. Blocks happen to be Rudy Gobert’s expertise, and they are devastating and almost impossible to evade. Watch how he plucked the Pelicans for six of them, notably the ones against Anthony Davis:
The Wizards' dignity is on the line against this rude shot-blocker, and they better prepare for it because based on his league-leading 2.6 blocks per game, it's clear he behaves like this all the time.
X-Factor:
How about a little defense?
You may have noticed my passive mentioning of the Wizards’ bad defense in the first segment, and I’m here to expand on that a bit. Check out the shooting percentage of the last four teams the Wizards played:
Nets: 52.4%
Cavs: 49.4% Lakers: 50.6%
Clippers: 56.6%
Yes, I acknowledge the Wizards won 3 of those 4 games, but the Wizards managing to score more points than they allowed to their opponents in no way eliminates the concern that they can't defend their man into a tough shot. This is a problem.
What’s most alarming about the Wizards defense, especially as it pertains to them being in the midst of a long road trip, is their general lack of movement. It is absolutely abominable how lackadaisical the Wizards have been looking on a ton of these defensive possessions. It’s not about the guys missing rotations, or closing out too slow (it is ultimately), but it’s an outright negligence to fully care about stopping their opponents. Even going through the motions have seemed half-ass. Where there is a speed race the Wizards are merely jogging. Step up, put a little more ass into it, and, please, just care.