The Washington Wizards will play their third of four straight West Coast games on Friday night, knowing they鈥檝e been eliminated from playoff contention.
A on Thursday night ensured the Wizards another season locked out of the playoffs. That means the main focus of Washington鈥檚 trip to Salt Lake City to take on the Utah Jazz (9 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Washington) will be for the players to show their worth as the team prepares to enter an important offseason. Meanwhile, Utah is still in a tight playoff race in the Western Conference.
Here鈥檚 everything you need to know about the game:
Wizards at Jazz
Friday, March 29, at 9 p.m. EDT
How to watch: NBC Sports Washington,
What to watch for
- 惭颈苍耻迟别蝉:听With the Wizards no longer vying for a spot in the postseason, it will be interesting to see how Scott Brooks manages the minutes of his players down the stretch. NBC Sports Washington鈥檚 Chase Hughes while younger players such as Troy Brown Jr. may get some more playing time.
- Evaluating for the future:聽The Wizards now have an opportunity to use the last six games as a way to prepare for next season. As Hughes wrote, to see which could potentially contribute in 2019-2020.
- Playing spoiler:聽Besides playing for the future, Washington can also make it a little harder for the Jazz to gain home court advantage for the playoffs. Utah is currently the five seed, but with seven games remaining they sit just two games behind the Rockets and Trail Blazers and only a half-game ahead of the Clippers. Friday鈥檚 result could greatly affect where Utah ends up in the standings.
Video you must see
Last time these teams met
Utah defeated Washington, 116-95, on March 18. A balanced attack from Utah, including 19 points from Donovan Mitchell and 14 points and 14 rebounds from Rudy Gobert, helped lead to the rout.
Stat to know
25-12: The home record for the Jazz this year. That number doesn鈥檛 bode well for a Wizards team that is just 9-29 on the road.
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