The Utah Jazz have not won on the road in more than two months, but they have a reasonable opportunity to break that skid Sunday against the injury-riddled Philadelphia 76ers.
Utah carries an 11-game road losing streak into this matchup, including the first two games of its current five-game trip. The Jazz dropped a 125-122 decision to the Washington Wizards on Wednesday before falling to the Toronto Raptors 118-109 on Friday.
Things do not get easier from here, as the team travels to Boston and Memphis before heading home. First, though, the Jazz will square off with a Philadelphia team that is missing several key players on a nightly basis.
In Thursday’s 123-105 road defeat against the Boston Celtics, the Sixers were missing their entire “Big Three.” Joel Embiid (knee) is out for the season, while Tyrese Maxey (back) and Paul George (groin) also sat out as the team lost for the 12th time in 13 games.
Following the game, Philadelphia coach Nick Nurse took a strong stance against shutting down players who are relatively healthy, even as the team unofficially turns its attention to improving its position in the NBA draft lottery.
“We want them to play if they’re able to play, right?,” Nurse said. “For me, the medical people tell me if they’re good. … I just take my directions from them.”
George and Maxey will again sit out against Utah.
The Jazz certainly can relate to what the Sixers are going through. Lauri Markkanen (back), John Collins (back) and Jordan Clarkson (foot) were among the Utah players who sat out in the defeat to Toronto. All three will also miss Sunday’s game.
“(Fans) know we’re going through rebuilding seasons, but I do think that our players are playing the games in a way that our fans still enjoy watching,” Utah coach Will Hardy said. “Our young players play really hard and we’re imperfect, and some nights are sloppy and ugly and all those things, but I do think the competitive spirit, the energy of the youth of these guys is something that our fans enjoy watching.”
Jazz fans are enjoying the continued development of Walker Kessler, who racked up 18 points and set career highs of 25 rebounds and eight blocks against the Raptors. Fellow young players Keyonte George (17 points) and Kyle Filipowski (17) made key contributions as well.
“For our team, it’s been a point of pride that I don’t care who’s on the court, I want our fans to know that our team is going to play with a ton of passion and joy,” Hardy said.
That has not exactly been the mantra of the 2024-25 Sixers, who have been booed at home throughout the season. Of course, the Jazz were expected to be a lottery team this year, while the Sixers began the season hoping to contend for a championship.
However, there have been many games throughout the season where Philadelphia coach Nick Nurse has seen lethargy on the court – including Thursday’s loss to Boston.
“I just didn’t think we were moving great, just in general,” Nurse said. “Up the floor with speed, back with speed, pace on offense, rotations on defense.”
One positive of late for the Sixers has been the play of Kelly Oubre Jr., who scored 27 points against Boston. Oubre enters this one looking for his fifth consecutive 20-point performance.
