Jazz at Hornets
THE STORY: It used to be a show when the Utah Jazz and New Orleans Hornets faced off simply because it meant another battle by the two All-Star point guards drafted back-to-back in Deron Williams and Chris Paul. New Orleans' Paul always seemed to get more accolades, but Utah's Williams seemed to have the upper hand when they met head-to-head. Now that Williams has moved along to New Jersey, Paul vs. Devin Harris just doesn’t have the same sort of spark to it. New Orleans will be looking to solidify its playoff position when it hosts Utah on Monday.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, FS-Utah, CST
ABOUT THE HORNETS (46-34): New Orleans is hoping to avoid the No. 7 seed and a first-round date with the Los Angeles Lakers at all costs. After not looking particularly impressive in four losses to the Lakers this season, the Hornets have to believe they have a better chance at advancing to the Western Conference semifinals if they end up facing division rivals San Antonio or Dallas. New Orleans lost to Memphis (46-34) while jockeying for position on Sunday. The 111-89 setback dropped the Hornets into a tie with the Grizzlies for seventh, one game behind the sixth-place Portland (47-33). Paul was held scoreless on 0-of-6 shooting for the first time in his career against Memphis, but finished with 10 assists.
ABOUT THE JAZZ (37-43): Assured of its second losing season since the 1982-83 season and first since the 2004-05 campaign, Utah is in the unfamiliar position of playing out the string. There are a lot of new things about this Jazz team, mainly the absences of longtime coach Jerry Sloan and former franchise player Williams. Utah has tried to develop a new identity lately with toughness on the inside, surrounding center Al Jefferson with rookie big man Derrick Favors and veteran Paul Millsap. That hasn’t resulted in many wins as the Jazz dropped their last two, and 10 of the last 11. The latest setback was a 111-102 decision at San Antonio on Saturday. Jefferson collected 23 points and eight rebounds, and Favors added a career-high 17 points, but the defense could not contain the Spurs, allowing them to shoot 57.7 percent from the floor.
WHO’S HOT/WHO’S NOT: Marco Belinelli led New Orleans with 18 points on Sunday, snapping a three-game streak of single-digit scoring outputs. Favors is averaging 13 points over his last three games for the Jazz while C.J. Miles has struggled from the floor, shooting 9-of-37 (24 percent) over the last four.
KEY STATISTIC: One of Utah’s biggest problems this season has been the erosion of a normally stout defense. The road performance has been of particular concern as the team is surrendering an average of 102.9 points away from Salt Lake City.
SEASON SERIES: The Jazz took the first meeting 105-87 on Nov. 24, but the Hornets have won the last two. The latest was 121-117 in overtime at Salt Lake City on March 24 in which New Orleans put seven players in double figures, led by 29 points from David West, and 24 and 12 assists from Paul.
KEY INJURIES: UTAH: G Raja Bell (foot); C Francisco Elson (knee); F Andrei Kirilenko (knee); C Kyrylo Fesenko (thumb); G Ronnie Price (calf); C Mehmet Okur (back). NEW ORLEANS: F David West (knee).
LAST WORD: “We’ve got to finish the season with our head up high, have some pride in ourselves,” Jefferson said. “You know, we’re not just gonna go out here and lay down. We’re gonna play, play hard.”