There’s not a lot of good teams left for the Jazz as the last 20 games approach.
SALT LAKE CITY — OK, Utah, go ahead.
Freak out.
Your basketball team is headed for the playoffs, there’s little doubt about that. Saturday the Jazz clipped the best team in the Eastern Conference, 115-111, by lasting longer than it takes to say Giannis Antetokounmpo. They trailed Milwaukee by 17 with 9:39 left to play, after leading by 13 with 3:44 left in the half.
Milwaukee’s “Greek Freak” was his usual self, or better: 43 points, 14 rebounds, eight assists. Donovan Mitchell answered with 46 points and six assists.
But the difference was Derrick Favors. His was the real freak show: 23 points on 10-of-12 shooting, three blocked shots and 18 rebounds. He made up for a rare off night by Rudy Gobert, who spent the game staggering backward as Antetokounmpo rushed the rim. Usually Gobert rejects his share of shots. This time, most of the blocking was done in one crazy flurry by Milwaukee’s Brook Lopez, who stuffed six shots in the first quarter — three in a 30-second span.
That only seemed to rile up the Jazz, who went from a 13-2 deficit to a 13-point lead.
Although the Jazz aren’t a postseason guarantee, they would have to try to miss. Of their 20 remaining games, just four involve teams currently in playoff contention: Oklahoma City, Brooklyn, Denver and the Clippers.
