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Jazz, Clippers meet in LA for Game 1 on Saturday
By: Zach Cohen - StatFox
Published: 4/13/2017  at  5:09:00 PM
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UTAH JAZZ (51-31)

at LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS (51-31)

Tip-off: Saturday, 10:30 p.m. ET
Line: Los Angeles -5.5, Total: 200.0

The Jazz will be looking to steal a road victory in Game 1 against the Clippers on Saturday.

Utah and Los Angeles were neck and neck towards the end of the regular season, but the Clippers ended up emerging as the fourth seed in the Western Conference. That turned out to be very big, as it gives them home court advantage in this series. Los Angeles didn’t drop a single game against Utah at Staples Center this season, and the Clippers also happen to be 4-1 when facing the Jazz in LA over the past three seasons. The Clippers’ success against them wasn’t limited to only home games, though. They also took one of two in Salt Lake City this season as well. One thing that bodes well for the Jazz in this game is the fact that they were 2-0 ATS when coming off of two straight wins by six points or less this season. They are, however, facing a Clippers team that was 3-0 ATS after four straight games where they made 50% of their shots or better during the regular season. Los Angeles is the only team dealing with a noteworthy injury in this series, though. SG Austin Rivers (Hamstring) is banged up for Los Angeles, and it is not known when exactly he’ll be back.

The Jazz got where they are right now by playing spectacular defense, as Utah was third in the league in defensive efficiency this season. The team surrendered just 102.7 points per 100 possessions on the year and will need to really lock in against the Clippers in this series. The guy that anchors their defense is C Rudy Gobert (14.0 PPG, 12.8 RPG, 2.6 BPG), who averaged 13.8 PPG, 11.8 RPG and 1.5 BPG against the Clippers this season. Gobert is going to need to be the best center on the floor in this series or the Jazz could be heading home early. He is, however, going up against Jordan, who plays a very similar brand of basketball. Outside of Gobert, SF Gordon Hayward (21.9 PPG, 5.4 RPG, 3.5 APG, 1.0 SPG) is the most important player for the Jazz. Hayward is one of the more well rounded players in the league, but he averaged just 15.7 PPG on 38.1% shooting from the field against the Clippers this season. He’ll need to find his stroke early in the series, so Game 1 is crucial for him. Another guy that needs to be mentioned is PG George Hill (16.9 PPG, 4.2 APG, 3.4 RPG, 1.0 SPG). Hill isn’t a household name, but he is a very solid two-way player and will need to hold his own against Paul in this series.

While the Jazz were a great defensive team this season, the Clippers thrived on the offensive end of the floor. Los Angeles scored 110.3 points per 100 possessions on the season, which gave them the fourth best offensive efficiency in basketball this year. It won’t be easy for the Clippers to score that easily against the Jazz, but they will feel confident as long as PG Chris Paul (18.1 PPG, 9.2 APG, 5.0 RPG, 2.0 SPG) is healthy. Paul didn’t play that well against the Jazz this season, but he should find a new gear in the playoffs. He is a lot quicker than George Hill, so he should be in attack mode early in this series. It wouldn’t be surprising if he put up some big numbers on Saturday. When Paul does look to pass, his favorite targets are PF Blake Griffin (21.6 PPG, 8.1 RPG, 4.9 APG), C DeAndre Jordan (12.7 PPG, 13.8 RPG, 1.7 BPG) and SG JJ Redick (15.0 PPG). Griffin is one of the more versatile forwards in the NBA and should present some real problems for Utah in this series. Jordan, meanwhile, is a rim protector that can also finish on the other end of the floor. And lastly, Redick is a sniper from long range. He wasn’t very good against the Jazz this season, but he is capable of getting hot any time.


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