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Jonathan Chen
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Posted by
Jonathan Chen
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Thunder vs Jazz. Experienced all stars vs young rising stars. Who will come out victorious in the most exciting playoff series this year? Russell Westbrook and the OKC thunder will look to advance past the first round for the first time since Kevin Durant left for Golden State. Meanwhile, Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert will try to make it two second round appearances in a row for the Utah Jazz. Out of all the series, the casual NBA fans should have their eyes fixated on this one because of its potential competitiveness, excitement and drama.
After losing their star player Gordon Hayward and starting point guard George Hill in free agency, things looked bleak for the Utah Jazz. They had some good NBA players in Rudy Gobert and Joe Ingles, but no real star. They traded away Trey Lyles and the 24th pick for the 13th pick in the draft, where they drafted future perennial all star Donovan Mitchell. They also acquired Ricky Rubio in exchange for a first round pick. While these acquisitions were good ones, they slipped under the radar. Fast forward to January and the Jazz were slumping. But then Rudy Gobert returned on January 19th and their whole season turned around. In the last 38 games of the season the Jazz went a ridiculous 30-8. Led by Mitchell on offense and Gobert anchoring one of the best defenses in the league, the Jazz shot up the Western Conference standings. They might have been the hottest team in the NBA if it weren't for the crazy 16-game win streak the 76ers went on.
After losing their star player Gordon Hayward and starting point guard George Hill in free agency, things looked bleak for the Utah Jazz. They had some good NBA players in Rudy Gobert and Joe Ingles, but no real star. They traded away Trey Lyles and the 24th pick for the 13th pick in the draft, where they drafted future perennial all star Donovan Mitchell. They also acquired Ricky Rubio in exchange for a first round pick. While these acquisitions were good ones, they slipped under the radar. Fast forward to January and the Jazz were slumping. But then Rudy Gobert returned on January 19th and their whole season turned around. In the last 38 games of the season the Jazz went a ridiculous 30-8. Led by Mitchell on offense and Gobert anchoring one of the best defenses in the league, the Jazz shot up the Western Conference standings. They might have been the hottest team in the NBA if it weren't for the crazy 16-game win streak the 76ers went on.
For the Thunder, the season has been a frustrating one. Despite all the inconsistencies in their play, they still managed to secure the 4th seed in the West and home court advantage in the first round. While Westbrook has once again averaged a triple double over a season, the rest of the team has not been great night in and night out (this includes Westbrook). Also, their defensive stalwart Andre Roberson went down with a gruesome knee injury earlier in the year and has sidelined ever since. However, OKC has still been a great defensive team as they rank 9th in the league in defensive efficiency.
Although the Jazz are the much hotter team and have been playing better basketball lately, there is just too much talent on the Thunder to bet against them. Westbrook was the MVP last year, George is one of the best two way players in the league, Melo can still stretch the floor out and Adams is a handful on the boards.
I have the Thunder winning in a competitive 7 games.
Although the Jazz are the much hotter team and have been playing better basketball lately, there is just too much talent on the Thunder to bet against them. Westbrook was the MVP last year, George is one of the best two way players in the league, Melo can still stretch the floor out and Adams is a handful on the boards.
I have the Thunder winning in a competitive 7 games.
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