Throughout the NBA Season, there is always one team that catches fire. This year's team, no doubt, is the Utah Jazz.
Since late December, no team has been hotter in the NBA than the Utah Jazz, who, despite their recent 134-129 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder, have been winners of the last 12 out of their 15 games. Also, the Jazz have recently reeled off a six-game winning streak that featured wins against some of the best teams in the league such as the Sixers, Nuggets, and Bucks.
They are currently the ninth seed in the Western Conference with a 22-21 and are peaking at the right time just before the NBA All-Star break, as they look to keep the hot streak rolling past the All-Star game.
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NBA Utah Jazz: Keys to Success
A credit to the Jazz's recent dominance has been the play of their two stars Collin Sexton and Lauri Markkenan. Much of their recent offensive success has been from the impressive play by their shooting guard Collin Sexton.
Sexton is currently averaging 18.7 points per game. However, his numbers over the past 20 games averaged out to 22.4 points, 2.5 rebounds, and 4.4 assists on 53/43/89 shooting splits.
Sexton has stepped up as the Jazz's second-best player this season. And, for the most part, has played at an all-star level this season, providing the team with an offensive pitch.
All-Star Lauri Markkanen has also been strong this season following a career year. Logging another monster season, averaging 24.1 points along with 8.8 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game.
Along with Markkanhan and Sexton, the Jazz have found the right role players to support their two stars. Keyonte George, Jordan Clarkson, and Walker Kessler all have been pivotal for the Jazz in this stretch.
NBA Utah Jazz: Future Potential on the Rise
The Jazz started the season slow before their recent streak, looking like they would likely miss the playoffs for the second time following the Rudy Gobert-Donovan Mitchell era.
Now, they find themselves in the thick of the NBA Play-In mix, with a little over 40 games left in the season.
Despite their recent success, Utah Jazz head coach Will Hardy hopes the team remains sharp and continues to improve.
"The guys are playing great, and I never want to take that away from them," Jazz head coach Will Hardy said, per The Desert News. "But I want them to want more for themselves. I want them to recognize that we can still get better and that there are moments where we can really improve."
"My concern at the moment is that we're on a winning streak, and that is great, but this is the time when you start to have some slippage creep in that gets covered up by winning," Hardy added.
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