Two of the more-overlooked Western powers headline Friday's NBA action when the Utah Jazz head to New Orleans to face the Hornets, who are 4-point favorites on WagerWeb.com.
The Jazz lead the Northwest Division by 2.5 games, while the Hornets sit a game back in the Southwest Division. New Orleans, however, enters Friday one spot ahead (No. 3) of Utah in the West overall standings.
Utah needs to show it can win on the road at a good team - the Jazz have lost three of their past four on the road and have the worst road record (12-18) among the NBA's top 14 teams.
Utah has lost at bad teams Minnesota, the Los Angeles Clippers and Sacramento in the past few weeks and allows 104.6 points per game on the road this season, nearly 10 more than it yields at home.
However, the Jazz have owned the Hornets this season, winning in two blowouts in Salt Lake City - 99-71 on Nov. 23 and 110-88 on Feb. 4.
Turnovers were one big reason for those losses - in the first meeting against the Jazz, New Orleans turned the ball over 18 times, and in the second meeting it committed 19 turnovers. The Hornets average 12.5 per game.
And in both games, Hornets point guard and MVP candidate Chris Paul had sub-par games against Deron Williams, who was picked one spot above Paul in the 2005 draft (No. 3 and No. 4, respectively).In the first meeting, Paul had 15 points (six below his average) and six assists (five below his average), and Williams had 12 points and seven assists. In the second meeting, Paul was plagued by foul trouble and had just six points (shooting 3-for-11) and six assists. Williams had 29 points (making 11-of-13 shots) and 11 assists. The Jazz made a franchise-record 14 3-pointers in 22 attempts.
New Orleans is only 1-7 in Paul's career against Utah and Williams, the league's two best young point guards. Williams ranks fourth at 9.7 assists a game and is averaging 19.2 points a game. Paul ranks second with 10.8 assists, is averaging 20.8 points and leads the NBA with 2.7 steals a game.
"From a physical talent standpoint, they're both on par with the best point guards who have ever played,” ESPN analyst Greg Anthony says. "I always think of Magic Johnson as an exception because he was a different animal from everybody else.
Both teams are coming off impressive wins - Utah over Detroit and New Orleans over Phoenix, which ended the Hornets' three-game losing streak.
During New Orleans' three-game slide, Paul averaged just 7.7 assists, more than three fewer than his season average of 10.8. The Hornets are 29-8 this season when he has at least 10 assists.
ATS | Utah | New Orleans |
| Record: | 37-21-0 (.638) | 38-18-0 (.679) |
| As Favorite: | 31-13-0 (.705) | 28-11-0 (.718) |
| As Underdog: | 6-8-0 (.429) | 10-7-0 (.588) |
| At Home: | 25-3-0 (.893) | 19-10-0 (.655) |
| On Road: | 12-18-0 (.400) | 19-8-0 (.704) |
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