OT: Jazz 0-8 vs top 9 WC teams on the road

[Boob-No-More]

So we're going to to blame the Blazers losing on the Jazz being an awful road team

I thought you were refering to the Utah's loss to Atlanta - not the Blazers loss to the Mavs. I saw loss and Atlanta in your response and incorrectly concluded you were talking about the Jazz.

Still, I think Utah's lack of success on the road, aainst even mediocre teams, as illustrated in my previous post, does not boade well for their chances of winning the NW division title - especially given the large number of road games they have left against good teams.

Do you disagree? Or do you think, given the remaining schedules of Utah, Portland and Denver, that Utah can hold onto their slim lead and win the division?

BNM

 

[J_Ray]

I thought you were refering to the Utah's loss to Atlanta - not the Blazers loss to the Mavs. I saw loss and Atlanta in your response and incorrectly concluded you were talking about the Jazz.

Still, I think Utah's lack of success on the road, against even mediocre teams, as illustrated in my previous post, does not boade well for their chances of winning the NW division title - especially given the large number of road games they have left against good teams.

Do you disagree? Or do you think, given the remaining schedules of Utah, Portland and Denver, that Utah can hold onto their slim lead and win the division?

BNM

I have confidence in Utah down the stretch with their team finally getting healthy, while Denver is taking a nose dive with word Karl is losing his team yet again, & Portland is starting to get beat-up health wise. This is the time of the year Utah starts to show up to play in recent history too. To tell truth though, it doesn't really matter for Utah as long as they don't end up in the 7th or 8th seed because they play much better during the playoffs with at least a days rest in between games.

 

[KingSpeed]

I think you left out that at least Boozer,AK, or Deron didn't play in those games, and the injury bug was in full affect....they also weren't playing as crisp offensively as they are now.

Crisp? LOL!!!!

 

[Deebag]

Now now, the only Blazer's road win against a top 9 WC team was a crazy comeback from a Paul-less Hornets team so I wouldn't exactly be ragging on them for being so bad on the road when we're not exactly great either.

 

[MrJayremmie]

Please don't call out Utah for being bad for WCF Playoff teams on the road if you are a PDX fan.

 

[BengalDuck]

Not to mention... how would you like to be held to your word from older posts based on your irrationality after losses?

 

[andalusian]

With all due-respect - Utah is a veteran team with one of the best point-guards in th league and 2 all-stars on the roster. Their trouble away from home are a bigger concern than Portland's is. You would expect a young team to be better at home - but Utah is more experienced and their talent, while nowhere near as deep - is a lot closer to peak-form.

 

[BlazerBeliever]

It seems wierd to me that you hear more talk about Utah's problems on the road than ours. We are only one game better than them because of the Chris Paul injury. If he doesn't go down we lose that game by 20 plus. I am excited to see the game tonight because we are playing very good right now. What we really need to do is beat Houston or San Antonio on this trip. If not I see this trip as a complete failure.

 

[Masbee]

It seems wierd to me that you hear more talk about Utah's problems on the road than ours.

Which team is older?

Which team has more experience?

Which team has been to the Western Conference Finals?

Utah's road woes are a much bigger deal than Portland's.

Utah is a now-team in their prime. With contract problems looming, they will have to let a key player walk. Boozer, Milsap or Okur. Thus, they will have to work hard just to maintain. Forget high hopes for improving the roster.

Portland is a team on the rise, that can keep any player they like. No one needs to be dumped right now for money reasons. They can potentially upgrade this summer with the flexibility they have. Dominated by young players it is of little current concern that they can't win on the road this season.

 

[Boob-No-More]

Utah's road woes are a much bigger deal than Portland's.

Most definitely.

While it looks like Portland is currently only 2.5 games better than Utah on the road (16 - 20 vs. 14 - 23), that doesn't tell the whole story. Portland has five road victories over teams that would be in the play-offs today (ORL, MIA, DET, CHI, NOH). Utah has two (PHI, DET). And those two Utah victories are ancient history (Nov-11), Dec-19).

Given the difficulty of their remaining road schedule, Utah could very well end up 14 - 27 on the road. The Blazers should win at least 3 of their remaining 5 road games, which would put them at 19 - 22 on the road.

And, as a young team, this is one area where the Blazers should continue to improve. The Blazers have a realistic shot at being 6 games better on the road this season than last. Utah, on the other hand is moving in the opposite direction. Two years ago, they were 20-21 on the road, last year they were 17-24 and this year, unless they finally beat a top team on the road, they'll be 14-27 - another three game drop from last season (which wasn't all that great to begin with).

BNM