Utah took the latter part of the series following Blake Griffin’s injury, but missed Rudy Gobert for much of this series. Denver Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic drives against Utah Jazz’s Rudy Gobert during the first quarter of Game 5 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series, Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2020, in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. 2017-18 Utah Jazz Schedule and Results. “And it’s good for the fans that they get another game or two of this.”Nuggets fans are particularly grateful for an extension.Jazz fans will have to hope history — the good kind of history — repeats itself for them to enjoy this series being stretched out.Start your day with the top stories you missed while you were sleeping. They won Games 1, 4, 5, and 7 in this series. Utah Jazz’s Royce O’Neale brings the ball up during the third quarter against the Denver Nuggets in Game 5 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series, Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2020, in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. Copyright © .NBA Media Ventures, LLC. As usual, Utah Jazz pick the hard way in the playoffs
Sign up for the That should give them the advantage to win one of the next two games even if Mitchell doesn’t return to 50-point land.Though it would have been fun for the Jazz to defy their franchise proclivity and quickly close out a series so their fans didn’t have to sweat it out, talented teams like the Nuggets are not exactly inclined to leave the playoffs and/or bubble so soon.But I’ll have to agree with what former NBA coach and current TNT color analyst Stan Van Gundy said near the end of Game 5 while talking of the amazing back-and-forth, mano-a-mano battle we’ve witnessed between Mitchell and Murray.“This has been a fabulous series,” Van Gundy said.
And though Utah has won 24 playoff series overall (of the 52 series they’ve been in prior to this one), it’s suffered at least two losses 15 times.It’s understandable that the Jazz and their fans are frustrated after a 15-point second-half lead evaporated and Jamal Murray continued to shoot the ball like a poor man’s Donovan Mitchell in this loss, but there are reasons to be positive.For one thing, this series shifts back to Virtual Utah for Game 6, and you just can’t say enough about the 300 fans the Jazz put on the screen.For another, the Jazz have never lost a playoff series after taking a 3-1 lead. QUIZ: Two Truths and a Lie: Utah Jazz Edition. Denver Nuggets’ Paul Millsap shoots against the Utah Jazz during the first quarter of Game 5 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series, Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2020, in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. Denver Nuggets’ Paul Millsap, right, is defended by Utah Jazz’s Joe Ingles during the first quarter of Game 5 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series, Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2020, in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. Donovan Mitchell #45 of the Utah Jazz dribbles the ball during the first halfof Game 5 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series, Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2020, in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. Torrey Craig, left, of the Denver Nuggets drives to the basket against the Utah Jazz in of Game 5 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series, Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2020, in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. Additionally, Rudy Gobert’s interior defense proved to be disruptive to Golden State’s cut-heavy offense. Gobert isn’t at full health following his Game 1 knee injury, and his play of late reflects that. Next Season. Utah Jazz’s Rudy Gobert dunks gainst the Denver Nuggets during the first quarter of Game 5 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series, Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2020, in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. New, 3 comments. Golden State will play the Jazz in the second round with visions of another championship as the goal.The Jazz will do everything in their power to prevent that from happening. SALT LAKE CITY — This column was supposed to be a fun one for Utah Jazz fans to read, which would have been a rarity considering what point of the series their team was in.Through most of the three quarters of Game 5 against the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday in Orlando, it looked like the Jazz were going to wrap up their most-efficient and most-dominant series victories in a long, long time. Rudy Gobert, right, of the Utah Jazz drives the ball against Nikola Jokic, left, of the Denver Nuggets during the first half of Game 5 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series, Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2020, in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. Utah Jazz 2016-2017 Schedule and Results All the scores of the games played by the Jazz in the NBA 2016-17 Regular Season and the 2017 Playoffs, with teams, results, winning and losing streaks, partial and final records and evolution of the playoff series.