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What to Expect in Jazz's Season-Opener Against Grizzlies
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- What to Expect in Jazz's Season-Opener Against Grizzlies
(Rob Gray-Imagn Images)
The Utah Jazz will finally get their first real test of the season on Wednesday night when they open the regular season on the road against the Memphis Grizzlies. One game carries no more weight in the standings than any of the other 81 contests Utah will play, but this one certainly feels different for a team entering the year with significantly higher expectations. After an offseason built around taking a substantial step forward, the opener represents Utah's first opportunity to show that this version of the Jazz is legitimately capable of competing for a playoff spot.
On paper, this is a favorable way for Utah to begin the season. Memphis is not expected to be among the better teams in the Western Conference, while the Jazz enter the year believing they have enough talent to make meaningful noise in the postseason race. If everything goes according to plan, Utah should be able to leave Memphis with a relatively comfortable victory and begin the year 1-0.
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Of course, season openers are rarely that simple.
Training camp and preseason basketball can only prepare a team so much for the rhythm and intensity of the regular season. Players are still learning how to operate together, rotations are being finalized and teams are often considerably less polished in October than they will be a month or two later. Utah has several new pieces to incorporate, and that alone creates some uncertainty entering the opener.
That makes this an important first look at how quickly everything can come together.
The biggest individual storyline will be Darrin Peterson making his NBA regular-season debut. Utah has enormous expectations for its rookie guard, and Wednesday will offer the first meaningful glimpse of what he can provide against NBA competition when the results actually count. Peterson has the talent to become one of the faces of the franchise, but the regular season will present an entirely different challenge than anything he experienced during preseason.
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On the other side, Memphis has its own rookie centerpiece in Jaren Jackson. The two were among the premier prospects in a loaded draft class and will naturally be compared throughout their careers. They play different positions and will not necessarily spend the entire night matched up directly against each other, but their competitiveness and long-term importance to their respective franchises make this one of the most compelling subplots of the opener.
There will be plenty of time to evaluate both rookies over the course of the season. Wednesday is simply the first chapter.
For Utah as a team, though, the expectations are more immediate. The Jazz believe they are ready to make a meaningful jump, and teams with playoff aspirations need to consistently beat opponents they are expected to handle. Memphis may have young talent capable of making this competitive, but Utah enters the matchup as the more established and more ambitious team.
A win would not prove the Jazz are suddenly a Western Conference contender. But a convincing performance would be an encouraging first step and an opportunity to establish from opening night that this season could look very different from the last.
