The Chicago Bulls will get a chance to avenge a loss that looks worse as the NBA season progresses when they visit Salt Lake City to play the Utah Jazz on Monday night.
The Bulls (28-39) suffered a 135-126 setback to the Jazz in early November. That was the first win of the season for Utah (15-53), which lost its first six games of the campaign before pulling off that rare victory. The Jazz now own the worst record in the NBA.
The Jazz stumble into this matchup at home, having lost nine consecutive games and on the second night of a back-to-back that started Sunday in Minnesota. Utah lost that one 128-102, thanks to a 41-point effort from Anthony Edwards.
Yet again, Utah played shorthanded, as Jordan Clarkson, John Collins and Keyonte George all sat out versus the Timberwolves.
Collin Sexton had 22 points, Lauri Markkanen added 16, Walker Kessler totaled 15 points and 19 rebounds, and rookie Isaiah Collier contributed 11 points, six rebounds and six assists in the loss.
“Every night is going to be a little different,” Jazz coach Will Hardy said. “It helps build the team mentality that not everything is about me. We’re going to do what’s best for the team.”
Monday’s game against Chicago kicks off a six-game homestand for Utah, but that hasn’t provided much of an advantage this season as the Jazz have focused on developing young players. Utah has an 8-25 mark at the Delta Center.
While the Jazz battle the likes of the Washington Wizards, Charlotte Hornets and New Orleans Pelicans for chance at the top picks of the 2025 NBA Draft, the Bulls have positioned themselves for the postseason.
Chicago had won four in a row before slipping up against Houston on Saturday, 117-114, to begin a six-game Western Conference trip.
Coby White led the Bulls with 23 points against the Rockets, with Tre Jones totaling 19 points and six assists.
“I think our guys are lining up and competing,” Chicago coach Billy Donovan said. “They’re really trying to play physical, so I’ve been really pleased with a pretty significant jump in that area from earlier in the year to where we are now.”
George had a huge outing versus the Bulls in the teams’ first meeting in November, compiling 33 points and nine assists. Collins added 28 points and 13 rebounds, Sexton had 24 points and Kessler notched a double-double of 12 points and 16 rebounds.
Those four have played well for the Jazz this season; the team just hasn’t seen them together enough times to make a positive dent in the standings for a variety of reasons.
White led the Bulls with 28 points, Ayo Dosunmu had 25 and Nikola Vucevic scored 23.
The Bulls, who have a comfortable 4 1/2-game lead over the Toronto Raptors for the final play-in spot, continue their road journey in Phoenix, Sacramento, Los Angeles (Lakers) and Denver this week.
Utah hosts Washington in an important draft-lottery positioning game Wednesday followed by home games against four playoff-bound teams: the Boston Celtics, Cleveland Cavaliers, Memphis Grizzlies and Houston Rockets.
