Utah Jazz

After a tough start to the season, the Orlando Magic team has been showing good play lately and has already won 6 of their last 10 games. The good results of the past couple of weeks have allowed this team to temporarily return to the 8th place in the Eastern Conference standings (12-14). Meanwhile, the Utah Jazz team has a positive win/loss ratio and is currently ranked 6th in the Western Conference standings, but they are not playing as confidently as many experts expected before the season. Of course, it is still an early stage of the season and with new players joining, it takes time to gel. In any case, the Utah Jazz team remains one of the most promising teams in the league, which can be boldly called the dark horse of the Western Conference.

Orlando Magic

After three consecutive losses (101-110 against the Milwaukee Bucks, 87-96 against the Los Angeles Lakers, 107-130 against the Houston Rockets), the Magic bounced back on the road with a 130-119 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans. Jonathan Isaac recorded a double-double with 21 points and 10 rebounds, while Montenegrin Nikola Vučevič added 20 points and 9 rebounds. Interestingly, four Magic bench players scored in double figures, and for the Pelicans, it was their 12th consecutive loss.

A large part of the Orlando Magic's recent success has been thanks to Frenchman Evan Fournier. After a sluggish start to the season, Fournier has found good form and started to take more initiative. With the team's nominal leader Nikola Vučevič temporarily out due to injury, it was Evan Fournier who took on the leadership role, averaging 23.6 points per game in the 8 games played in December, with an impressive 50.8% shooting from the 3-point line. Last season, he shot just 34% from three, but this season he is shooting at a 44% clip, which is an impressive improvement in a short period of time.

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It is also worth mentioning that Magic player Markelle Fultz, who was written off after his first two seasons, is “recovering.” It seems that the third-year player, regaining his confidence, has found a career stop where he gets playing minutes and shows good results. In December, he is averaging 11.9 points and 6.1 assists.

Orlando Magic Leaders:

Evan Fournier – 20 pts., 2.8 reb. and 3.2 ast. per game. This is the kind of statistics the Frenchman, who is playing the best season of his career in the NBA, is putting up this season. Although the number of minutes played has not changed compared to previous seasons, Fournier has become much more productive during his playing time, improved his accuracy, and overall, has become a more important player for the team.

Nikola Vučevič – 17.3 pts., 11.4 reb. and 3.4 ast. Although Vučevič has had injury problems this season, his statistics remain stable, and he is one of the most important Magic players who can play both with his back to the basket and shoot well from a distance.

Jonathan Isaac – 13 pts., 7.3 reb. and 2.7 blocks per game. Although this player is not a top star, he plays his minutes excellently. The well-progressing player, drafted by the Magic in the 2017 draft, has improved both his shooting and defense, so the results he is showing are not surprising. If he continues to progress at this rate, Isaac is poised to become a leader for the Magic.

The Utah Jazz won their last game 114-106 on Friday night against the visiting Golden State. Although they were trailing by 13 points at one point, the Utah Jazz managed to come back and secure the victory. The biggest contributors to the win were Bojan Bogdanović, who scored 32 points, and Donovan Mitchell, who added 28. Rudy Gobert scored 15 points and grabbed 15 rebounds, and the entire Utah Jazz team impressively shot from the three-point line: 16 out of 38 shots were successful.

Due to an injury to Mike Conley, who joined during the offseason, Donovan Mitchell spent most of the game at the point guard position for a while. However, Conley is expected to return to the court in tonight's game, so Mitchell will return to his preferred shooting guard position, and Mike Conley will take on the point guard role. Although the addition of the former Memphis Grizzlies leader and Bojan Bogdanović to the Utah Jazz team this offseason was seen as a step that could help the Jazz reach at least the Western Conference finals, the point guard has struggled a bit at the start of the season. Bogdanović has integrated well into the team, but Conley, in the 21 games played, is shooting just 36% from the field, which is one of the worst personal results of his career. In any case, the Jazz offense is much more effective with Conley on the court, as his excellent court vision and game reading are indispensable.

Utah Jazz Leaders:

Donovan Mitchell – 25 pts., 4.7 reb. and 3.7 ast. Mitchell consistently puts up his numbers, but the start of the season was not very easy for him due to changes in the team. Nevertheless, he is the undisputed leader of the team, from whom good performances can be expected every night.

Bojan Bogdanović – 20.8 pts., 4.4 reb. and 2 ast. This solid statistic is being put up by the forward who joined the Jazz this offseason. It was hard to imagine that in just a couple of months, the Croatian would become one of the most important players on a strong Western Conference team, averaging more than 20 points per game. Bogdanović looks impressive, and if Mike Conley also finds his rhythm during the season, this Utah Jazz team will be dangerous for any opponent in the playoffs.

Rudy Gobert – 14.7 pts., 13.7 reb., 1.8 blk. The long-time Jazz big man has already earned a name in the league and is considered one of the best defensive centers. He fits well into the team as he practically does not demand the ball on offense but collects solid statistics through his efforts and good rebounding.

Prediction

The Orlando Magic had won 5 out of 6 games, but then followed 3 consecutive losses. This team can certainly play a few good games, but that winning streak can be somewhat misleading, as all 5 wins were against some of the weakest teams in the league: 2 wins against the Cleveland Cavaliers, Washington Wizards, Phoenix Suns, and Golden State Warriors. Meanwhile, the Utah Jazz have lost only 3 times at home this season, and with the main point guard Mike Conley returning to the court, the clear favorites here are the Utah Jazz players.