Utah Jazz vs Memphis Grizzlies
PREVIEW: The Utah Jazz and Memphis Grizzlies lock horns in an intraconference regular-season game at the FedEx Forum on Friday, with tipoff at 7 p.m. EST. Utah sits in 13th position in the West with an 18-38 record, while Memphis holds 11th with a 20-33 record. Both teams arrive battered by injuries, though the Grizzlies maintain a slight lifeline to postseason contention.
Memphis still has an outside chance to secure a play-in berth, as they are 5.5 games behind the 10th-place Portland Trail Blazers. The matchup shapes up as a clash of contrasting offensive styles. Memphis ranks third in post-up shot frequency and seventh in tempo, while Utah ranks third in tempo and seventh in attacking-the-rim attempts. Defensively, both squads show significant vulnerabilities that could lead to a high-scoring affair. Utah allows the most three-point attempts in the league at 45.3 percent and ranks dead last in defending shots at the rim, while Memphis struggles with three-point defense at 21st and defensive rebounding at 24th.