Utah Jazz Schedule Breakdown and Record Predictions for February
As the NBA season moves past the halfway point, the young Utah Jazz finally appear to be turning a corner under new head coach Quin Snyder.
The 6-9 record they posted in January matched what they did in December, but other indicators are pointing to progress and a successful February.
January was their best month of the season for points (101.5), rebounds (41.5), assists (22) and blocks (five) per game, and they scored surprising upsets over the Chicago Bulls and Golden State Warriors.
If they continue the slight upswing into February, they could secure their first winning month of the season.
February 1-7
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Most Notable Matchup: Sacramento Kings
In the first week of February, the Jazz will welcome back the infamous Tyrone Corbin, who went 112-146 in three-and-a-half seasons as Utah's head coach and was often the scapegoat for a 25-57 season in 2013-14.
When the Jazz announced Corbin wouldn't be back for this season, general manager Dennis Lindsey said, via The Associated Press (h/t ESPN.com): "I think Ty is...going to be a better coach or is potentially going to be a better head coach for his experience, and it wouldn't surprise me at all to see him land on his feet to be a head coach and to do very well going forward."
Lo and behold, Corbin is indeed a head coach again, but he's not doing very well.
Since the surprise firing of Michael Malone on December 15, the Sacramento Kings are 6-18 under Corbin, with a net rating of minus-6.7. For evidence of how bad things have gotten, check out a sampling of article headlines from various Kings blogs:
| Blog | Headline |
| Cowbell Kingdom | The Sacramento Kings Have a Turnover Epidemic |
| Sactown Royalty | Even DeMarcus Cousins Is Regressing Under Tyrone Corbin |
| A Royal Pain | Ty Corbin has Destroyed the Sacramento Kings |
Meanwhile, the Jazz are 11-14, with a net rating of minus-0.5 over the same span. The teams are heading in opposite directions, and Corbin revenge game or not, this is one the Jazz should win at home.
The rest of the week will be tough. Utah has already dropped the first two against the Portland Trail Blazers and Memphis Grizzlies and face a third Western Conference playoff team before the Kings.
That'll be against the Phoenix Suns, whose three-guard monster of Eric Bledsoe, Goran Dragic and Isaiah Thomas will be a nightmare for Trey Burke and Dante Exum.
Predictions: @ Portland (February 3, L); vs. Memphis (February 4, L); @ Phoenix (February 6, L); vs. Sacramento (February 7, W)
Record: 1-3
February 8-14
2 of 5Most Notable Matchup: Dallas Mavericks
Utah has played a lot of good teams close this season, but the Dallas Mavericks have blasted the Jazz twice. In their meetings against the Mavs, the Jazz are down 41 points in the aggregate.
Those games came in the first two weeks of the season, though, and both teams are playing differently now. For Dallas, the offense has taken a huge step back since the acquisition of Rajon Rondo. Prior to the deal, the Mavs' offensive rating was a league-best 113.6 points per 100 possessions. Since then, it's just 105.8.
Utah should be able to play the Mavericks closer this time around, but a win in Dallas is still a long shot. Holding the home team to less than 100 points would at least be a moral victory.
The only other game of the week will be against the New Orleans Pelicans, who are ahead of the Jazz in the standings but have a habit of playing down to their competition. Fresh off a tough week, the Jazz should start this road trip off with enough hunger to snag that win.
Predictions: @ New Orleans (February 9, W); @ Dallas (February 11, L)
Record: 1-1
February 15-21
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Thanks to the All-Star break, the Jazz will only have one game in the third week of February, against division rival Portland.
Utah showed it can play with the Blazers earlier in the month, losing a 103-102 matchup in which Gordon Hayward scored 27 points, grabbed five boards and dished out five assists.
Making it even more impressive, that first meeting was in Portland, where the Blazers are notoriously difficult to beat. In Utah, a win should be well within reach, especially if Rudy Gobert is able to have a similar impact on LaMarcus Aldridge.
While Gobert was defending Aldridge one-on-one in the third quarter, ESPN's Kevin Pelton tweeted, "LaMarcus Aldridge has shot 4-9 with Rudy Gobert on the floor, including 0-4 in the 3rd quarter. 3-4 shooting with Gobert on bench."
Predictions: vs. Portland (February 20, W)
Record: 1-0
February 22-28
4 of 5Most Notable Matchup: Los Angeles Lakers
Other than the San Antonio Spurs, Utah's last week of February is packed with matchups against teams that are beatable.
Perhaps the easiest will be against the Los Angeles Lakers, who recently trotted out a starting lineup of Jordan Clarkson, Wayne Ellington, Ryan Kelly, Tarik Black and Robert Sacre.
Jazz fans, tormented by dominant Lakers teams for years, are giddy to see lineups like that. The Salt City Hoops Show, on ESPN 700 in Salt Lake City, plays a segment entitled "LOLakers" every week in celebration of L.A.'s train wreck 2014-15.
A win over this franchise, no matter what kind of record both teams have, is cause for happiness among Utah's faithful.
Other than that, the Jazz will see a Denver Nuggets team that's 1-9 in its last 10 and the Milwaukee Bucks, whom they beat on the road in January.
Predictions: vs. San Antonio (February 23, L); vs. Los Angeles (February 25, W); @ Denver (February 27, W); vs. Milwaukee (February 28, W)
Record: 3-1
Final February W-L Prediction: 6-5
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In the Western Conference, every month is a bear, but February looks to have just enough winnable games for the Jazz to go 6-5.
Anything less wouldn't be surprising, but the team's current trajectory is heading up:
| Offensive Rating | Defensive Rating | Net Rating | |
| November | 103.0 | 107.2 | minus-4.2 |
| December | 104.3 | 107.1 | minus-2.8 |
| January | 101.0 | 102.1 | minus-1.1 |
Being able to play .500 or near-.500 basketball after the All-Star break might have looked like a pipe dream before this season started, but the last couple of months (and perhaps the next couple) suggest the Jazz are ahead of schedule.
Unless otherwise noted, all stats and salary figures are courtesy of NBA.com and Basketball-Reference.com and are current as of Feb. 5, 2015.
Andy Bailey covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him @AndrewDBailey.
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