With the NBA past its midseason point, the battle for draft picks will only get more intense with each passing game. The rebuilding teams are bound to sell off assets and tank the rest of the way, but prior to next week’s trade deadline, two franchises looking to secure better positioning in the Draft Lottery have the chance to duel tonight. This evening, the Brooklyn Nets head to Salt Lake City and face off against the Utah Jazz.
Here’s a Nets vs. Jazz prediction and pick on DraftKings Sportsbook for tonight’s game.
Nets vs. Jazz prediction, preview
Brooklyn Nets
In terms of winning percentage, the Nets possess the third-worst record in the NBA at 12-34 on the campaign. That’s not remotely surprising for a team in the early stages of a rebuild which just drafted five players in the first round this past summer, so the focus instead sits on growth and development for young talent.
There are very few positives surrounding this Brooklyn squad. The group is 26th in NETRTG at -7.3 and plays at the fourth-slowest pace in the league. These Nets do give up 114.7 PPG, 12th in the NBA, but they’re 26th in DEFRTG and don’t exactly have a quality unit on that end. They also average the fewest PPG of any team with 107.7, posting 25.3 assists a night (20th) with the 25th-ranked AST/TO ratio. The Nets shoot 44.3% from the field (29th) and 34.5% from three (24th), too. Brooklyn also pulls down 49.6 rebounds per contest (29th), lacking standout talent on the boards.
The Nets will be severely undermanned tonight, missing leading scorer Michael Porter Jr. (personal), who produces 25.6 PPG and 7.3 rebounds. That leaves Cam Thomas to carry the offense on increased shot volume, a role he’s posted numbers in before although he’s down to 15.9 PPG this season. Big man Nic Claxton averages 12.4 PPG with 7.5 rebounds, while rookie guard Egor Demin is the only other available player scoring in the double-digits (10.4 PPG). With key role players like Noah Clowney and Ziaire Williams also ruled out, other talents will need to step up tonight.
Utah Jazz
The record for the Jazz doesn’t look much better than tonight’s opponent, sitting 15-33 at 13th in the Western Conference. While this franchise continues to run the treadmill of a youth movement, there are a few more things to feel positive about in Salt Lake City than in Brooklyn.
Utah’s NETRTG sits dead last in the NBA at -8.7, but don’t be too dissuaded by that. The team ranks third in pace and 17th in OFFRTG, averaging 118.8 PPG (sixth). The Jazz shoot 46.8% from the field (18th) and 35.1% from three (18th), so they’re largely average in terms of efficiency. However, they get to the line at an elite rate with the fifth-most FTA per contest, and their 30.4 assists per game fall second in the league with the 10th-ranked AST/TO ratio. While Utah falls 16th in rebounding with 52.6 per outing, the defensive struggles of this roster are quite notable. The Jazz allow 127.8 PPG, the most of any NBA franchise this season, and opponents have the highest eFG% against them as well.
The Jazz won’t have their own leading scorer with Lauri Markkanen out due to rest, but they do clearly have the best available player in this game. Keyonte George posts 24.1 points and 6.6 assists per contest as he emerges as an exciting foundational piece of this roster. Brice Sensabaugh averages 12.0 PPG at the forward spot and No. 5 pick Ace Bailey produces 11.3 PPG as he continues to adjust to the professional game. Kyle Filipowski will also likely start at center with Jusuf Nurkic out, giving the second-year big a chance at significant playing time after averaging 9.3 points and 6.1 rebounds on the campaign. Isaiah Collier also continues to create offense for others off the bench with 9.2 points and a team-high 6.7 assists per night.
Nets vs. Jazz pick, best bet
DraftKings Sportsbook lists the Jazz as 3.5-point home favorites tonight with -155 odds on the Moneyline. The Nets are +130 ML underdogs with the game total set at 226.5 points. Betting splits show 72% of straight wagers on Utah to win with a 50/50 split on the total.
This won’t be the prettiest game on tonight’s NBA calendar… in fact, it’ll likely be far from it. Key veterans like Porter Jr., Markkanen, Nurkic and more are all sitting out as the trade deadline approaches, and there may be some very sloppy play from both sides as young players duke it out. However, it’s an opportunity for growth, which is the goal for essentially all parties involved. Plus, whoever loses probably won’t be too mad about it when the Draft Lottery eventually rolls around anyways.
While still quite young, the Jazz do have more talent in their rotation tonight. George is the only player averaging at least 20 PPG and has solidified a spot as one of the NBA’s brighter up-and-comers, and while he’s scored just 19 points in back-to-back games, he exploded for 30 and 43 points back on January 19 and 20. With the highest upside of anyone in this contest, he should take advantage of a porous Nets defense and post quite the stat line. That already gives his team an advantage, but look at the scoring efficiency as well as the advanced numbers for each roster. Utah has plenty of offensive talent and pushes the tempo, generally running an attack that can put up points on even the league’s better teams. Conversely, Brooklyn struggles to produce on that side of the ball even when Porter Jr. is active, so looking elsewhere for contributors in a rotation missing three of its top-six scorers may be a difficult proposition.
Expect ugly basketball, but the Jazz should handle business tonight as they prove why they’re further along in the rebuilding process than their counterparts.
Top pick: UTA Jazz -4.5 (+101)
