For the first time since March 11, there will be NBA basketball again. It has been about four and a half months since Utah Jazz’ Rudy Goebert tested positive for COVID-19, and fittingly, it will be the Utah Jazz taking part in the NBA’s restart from Walt Disney World inside of the “NBA bubble.” Tipoff for this one is scheduled for 6:30 pm ET.
On Thursday, the Utah Jazz (41-23) will be taking on the New Orleans Pelicans (28-36). For the Jazz, they come into this one as the fourth seed in the Western Conference, one game ahead of the Oklahoma City Thunder and a game and a half behind the Denver Nuggets. The Jazz will be looking to make a push in the condensed seeding portion of the regular season to try to improve their stock heading into the postseason.
Taking The Pelicans Despite Laying 2.5
While I think the Jazz can still be a very formidable team, I feel like they are going to miss Bojan Bogdanovic. For a team that was already known for their defense more than their offense, losing that production could be a backbreaker for their long-term outlook for the postseason.
When you take the loss of Bogdanovic coupled with the high-flying young Pelicans team that has a little more to play for at this point, I really like New Orleans in this one. Even though they are the “home team,” there is no homecourt advantage in the bubble. Still, I like the Pelicans to win and cover the 2.5 points in this one.