Patrick Kinahan: Jazz need to make strong push toward playoffs


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SALT LAKE CITY — Residing in sixth place, with 25 games remaining, the Jazz are gearing up to climb the Western Conference standings ahead of the NBA playoffs.

In the jumbled standings, the Jazz are only percentage points off the San Antonio Spurs and a mere two games away from falling behind the playoff line. At the same time, they are also only two games from climbing into the fourth spot.

Suffice it to say, the final two months will provide enough twists and turns to entertain even the casual fan.

For much of the first several weeks of the season, as the Jazz hovered around .500, a difficult schedule often was considered the reason behind the team’s inconsistency. But as with any schedule every year, it was only a matter of time before the slate of games turned soft.

That time is now or never, if the Jazz want to earn the best possible playoff seeding.

The Jazz are at that point in the season in which it is winning time. No more excuses or reasons, whichever is your preference, until the season ends in the middle of April.

Coming out of the All-Star break, the Jazz have 14 games remaining against teams that are either below .500 or would not qualify for the playoffs based on their current record. Only four games are against teams ranked in the top four of either conference.

Even more to the point, the schedule is dotted with games of horrible teams (Phoenix three times, New Orleans twice, New York, Chicago and Atlanta). They also play 13 games at home, where they have gone 18-10.

If the Jazz manage to clean up on the bad teams, at the worst they should finish 15-10. The guess here is they win 18 of their final 25 games.

Not that it will be easy.

The Jazz went into the break struggling to regain the form that saw them go on a six-game winning streak and take nine out of 10 over the final three weeks of January. But beginning with a 27-point loss at Portland, one of two that came by the same margin, the Jazz were 3-3 before starting the 12-day break.

In the tightly-bunched Western Conference, the playoff contenders not named the Golden State Warriors will continue to fluctuate in the standings almost on a nightly basis. Aside from the two-time defending champions, who look like a lock to finish with the conference’s best record, the other playoff hopefuls possibly could move up or down in the standings.

Five games behind the Oklahoma City Thunder, who are in third place, the Jazz’s ceiling for seeding probably is the fourth spot. Portland, which has split four games with the Jazz this season, have a one-game lead over the Houston Rockets for fourth place.

But the truth is, playoff seeding won’t be the measure of success for the Jazz this season. Playoff success is the metric upon which the success will be determined.

Having won a playoff series in each of the last two seasons, the Jazz will need to advance to the second round again to keep pace. Anything less, barring unforeseen circumstances such as a major injury, would be considered a disappointment.

Not that it will be easy. The Western Conference is loaded this year, meaning the Jazz could be better than last season and still not be good enough to get out of the first round.

There is some argument the Jazz should position themselves to gain a more advantageous opening series. But that line of thinking would be a waste of time, knowing playing well in the postseason is the only way for the Jazz to advance again this postseason.


![Patrick Kinahan](http://img.ksl.com/slc/2634/263499/26349940\.jpg?filter=ksl/65x65)
About the Author: Patrick Kinahan \---------------------------------

Patrick is a radio host for 97.5/1280 The Zone and the Zone Sports Network. He, along with David James, are on the air Monday-Friday from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m.

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Patrick is a radio host for 97.5/1280 The Zone and the Zone Sports Network. He, along with David James, are on the air Monday-Friday from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m.

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