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SACRAMENTO -- Not quite there, but close.
In the mix? For sure. Getting there? It looks like it could happen.
Playoffs? Yes, we’re talking about playoffs. With the Jazz suddenly streaking in the right direction, having won four straight, including victories over the Pacific Division-leading Lakers and the Northwest Division-leading Thunder, the Jazz are looking poised to make a push for the postseason.
Currently, the Jazz are ninth in the Western Conference at 24-22, just a half game behind No. 8 seed Houston. However, due to the logjam of teams vying for the playoffs, the Jazz are just 2 ½ games behind the Memphis Grizzlies for the No. 4 seed.
Second-year swingman Gordon Hayward said that once you start a streak, you’ve got to keep it going.
“Any time you get a streak of games where you’re winning, you build off that and you carry it over to the next game,” Hayward said to the Deseret News. ”We need to continue this; were almost there, were still not there yet in the playoffs so we need to keep this up.”
The Jazz are peaking at a critical time and are doing it regardless of who is — or who is not on the floor. During the streak, key contributors Al Jefferson, Raja Bell and Earl Watson have all missed time.
Different Jazz players have stepped up in different ways. Whether it’s the pesky defense of C.J. Miles and Hayward holding the NBA’s top two scorers well below their season averages, or rookies Alec Burks and Enes Kanter putting up big numbers in a big road win against the Lakers, this deep and talented team is finding ways to win.
“Everybody’s believing and trusting in each other,” Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin said to the Deseret News. “They trust in what we’re trying to get done, and they’re holding each other accountable. They’re communicating and that’s what we’re going to need. It’s all positive stuff to make us better.”
The Jazz face a Sacramento team tonight that is also on a hot streak. The Kings have won three straight. Their most recent victory was a 119-110 win over the Grizzlies in Sacramento. The Kings also picked up wins over the struggling Minnesota Timberwolves and the Boston Celtics. Both wins came in convincing fashion with the Kings beating the Wolves by 16 points and the Celtics by 25.
Marcus Thornton has averaged 30.3 points per game during Sacramento’s winning streak. Kings coach Keith Smart challenged his team’s leading scorer to be a better defender. As a result, Thornton has 12 steals in his last three games.
"We let him know, 'You don't have deflections, you don't have steals because you're not where you're supposed to be,'" Smart said to the Sacrament Bee’s Kings’ Blog. "You can only get steals and deflections if you know where you're supposed to be."
Kings rookie Jimmer Fredette's up and down year hasn't changed with the winning streak. In those three wins, Fredette averaged 12 minutes, three points, two assists and one turnover. But after playing 20 minutes and recording six points and four assists against Minnesota, Fredette played just 5:38 against the Grizzlies with zeros across the board.
The Jazz and Kings have played twice this season with the Jazz winning 96-93 in Salt Lake City on Jan 28th, while the Kings beat the Jazz in Sacramento on Feb. 28th 103-96.
The game takes place at 8 p.m. at Power Balance Pavilion in Sacramento and will be televised on Root Sports.
Jarrod is a freelance writer who writes Jazz previews for KSL.com. You can follow Jarrod Hiatt on Twitter at @jarrodhiatt.
