A timeout for some Jazz

I can't believe I haven't already commented on this. The Utah Jazz are currently on a 9 game winning streak! They haven't lost since early January. When their streak began, they were in 11th place in the west and the playoffs were a serious question, maybe even in doubt. They are now solidly in third place in the west, one game out of second!

As I've watched bits and pieces of games, and studied box scores, there are a few things that stand out:

First, assists. The Jazz lead the league in assists per game. They average right around 27 assists every single game they play! That's incredible. Most games a team only makes about 35-40 shots, so for a team to assist on 27 of those shots is the epitome of team basketball. It's hard to beat a team that shares the ball that much.

Second, Andrei Kirilenko is playing like the all-star he was in the early 2000s. The guy is everywhere. His defense is back. He's scoring nearly 20 points a game during their streak. He's getting steals and blocks. Before the Clippers game last night he was shooting 82% from the field over the last eight games!! 82%!! Are you kidding me!? So, despite his best attempts to look like Lloyd from Dumb and Dumber, he's playing some incredible basketball.

Third, team defense. The Jazz are actually playing some pretty good team defense lately. I even saw Boozer block a shot the other day! If the Jazz could play solid defense consistently, they could beat anybody, except maybe the Timberwolves. :)

The Jazz have a chance tonight to make it 10 straight by beating the Lakers. This would also help them in the western conference playoff race. GO JAZZ!!!