Jazz look to keep rolling at skidding Warriors
Having won narrow decisions over two NBA heavyweights, the Utah Jazz move on to face a former champ when they visit the Golden State Warriors on Monday night. The teams enter the game on opposite ends of the emotional scale, with the Jazz coming off thrilling wins over Philadelphia and Milwaukee, whereas the Warriors were suffering tight losses at Minnesota and Oklahoma City. The Jazz have had more than their fair share of success against the Warriors' juggernaut the last three seasons, winning five of the last eight matchups, including a split of four games at Golden State. But Utah will take the court having lost three of four on the road this season, and in a bit of a defensive slump. The Jazz have allowed 100 or more points in each of their last four games after beginning the season by holding their first five opponents to 96 or fewer. The Jazz might not recognize this edition of the Warriors, but Utah has made some changes itself. Among the newcomers is Bojan Bogdanovic, who stunned Milwaukee with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer in Friday's 103-100 home win. Jazz coach Quin Snyder wasn't at all surprised to see the ball go through the hoop. "The whole team knew that Bojan wanted the ball," Snyder told reporters afterward. "If you have players who aren't afraid of the moment, who can make reads and make decisions and want the ball, that's the best thing in the world." Golden State employs one such newcomer as well in D'Angelo Russell, who scorched Minnesota for a career-best 52 points in an overtime loss Friday night. Unfazed by the loss or the marathon effort, Russell came right back to pour in 30 points on Saturday against Oklahoma City, becoming the first Warrior since Stephen Curry in February of 2016 to follow up a 50-point effort with a 30-pointer. Warriors coach Steve Kerr spent part of his postgame Saturday warning that his team's 2-8 start hasn't already turned the season into a fight for individual glory. "We're a young team that is learning," he told reporters. "But I'm not happy with where we are, nor should our players be. We should not just accept our fate. We shouldn't feel sorry for ourselves and say, 'Well, we have all these injuries.' Or, 'We're playing two-way guys' and 'going for the lottery' and all this (stuff). We should win some games." When last seen at home, the Warriors were beating Portland for their first triumph at their new Chase Center after four season-opening losses. As the Warriors await the return of defensive ace Draymond Green, who is expected back soon from ligament damage in his left index finger, they'll find themselves on Monday matched up with one of the NBA's most efficient 3-point shooting teams. Led by Bogdanovic (45.5 percent) and Donovan Mitchell (42.9), the Jazz rank among the NBA's best in 3-point field-goal percentage at 37.6 percent. The Warriors, meanwhile, have allowed opponents to shoot 38.1 percent on threes, a big reason why they've allowed 114 or more points in nine of their 10 games. --Field Level Media |