Utah Jazz at Portland Trail Blazers Betting Preview/Prop Picks

It’s the final game of the season for the Utah Jazz and Portland Trail Blazers. The Jazz, fresh off of a loss to the Phoenix Suns, will look to end the season with a bang. If they can get a win here, they can secure their No.5 spot as they head into the playoffs.

However, if they lose this game, they could fall back to the No.6 position. We don’t expect any Jazz players to be rested tonight.

The Portland Trail Blazers will likely leave all of their starters in as well. Portland is on a ten-game losing streak and has already been eliminated from the playoffs. Had it not been for this atrocious losing streak, they could’ve earned a spot.

Unfortunately for them, they’re 27-54, and all they have to look forward to is closing the season with a win. The question is, can they?

Utah Jazz: How important is this game for the Jazz?

In their game against the Phoenix Suns, they didn’t rest any players. However, that game had a lot more stakes involved than this one does. If they lose this game to the Trail Blazers, it won’t hurt them too much in terms of positioning.

The last thing the Jazz need is an injury to Rudy Gobert before the start of the postseason. Gobert averages 14.7 rebounds per game for Utah.

As an offense, the Jazz rank seventh in the NBA in points per game with 113.64. Their also one of the most efficient shooting teams from the field. The best part about the Jazz is that their defense matches their offense, ranking 10th in the NBA.

On average, the Jazz allow just 107.91 points per game. The Trail Blazers have their work cut out for them if they want to win tonight.

Portland Trail Blazers: Can they snap the 10-game losing skid?

Even with zero playoff implications on the line, this game is important for the Trail Blazers. No team would want to end their season on a loss, especially on an 11-game losing streak.

The question now is whether or not they can pull off a win over the Jazz. Obviously, the player they need to stop the most is Rudy Gobert. Unfortunately, their interior defense is pretty awful. 

As a defense, the Trail Blazers rank 28th in the NBA, allowing 115.16 points per game. A defense this bad is going to have trouble stopping Rudy Gobert. Another problem is that their offense is among the worst in the NBA as well.

On average, the Trail Blazers score just 106.56 points per game, ranking 26th overall. Portland is a 17.5-point underdog in tonight’s game.

Utah Jazz at Portland Trail Blazers Betting Pick

Some would think that since the spread is so large, they should take the Portland Trail Blazers. However, taking a look at the previous game between these two will tell you otherwise.

The last time these two played was in early March, and the Jazz was at home. Utah was favored by 19.5-points and won the game with ease 123-85. We expect a similar outcome in this game.

The Jazz isn’t a great team against the spread, but they beat the Trail Blazers with ease. In their last six games against Portland, they’re 5-1 ATS. In fact, when they played Portland in December, they won by 15 points.

Look for the Jazz to get another big win over Portland tonight and for the total to go under 224.

DunkelIndex Free Pick: Utah Jazz -17.5, UNDER

Prop Pick

Portland (-110) UNDER 102.5 Points

Portland is averaging 106.6 points per game on offense, which ranks No. 26 in the league, while shooting 44.3 percent from the field, which also ranks No. 26. That scoring average has decreased to 88.7 points per game over the Trail Blazers' last three game. Scores have gone UNDER in eight of Portland's last 11 home games.

With Dunkel predicting a Utah victory by the score of 121-97, take the Blazers (-110) to finish UNDER their Vegas team total of 102.5 points against the Jazz.

Royce O’Neale (-125) UNDER 6.5 Points

O’Neale is averaging 7.4 points per game, which ranks No. 8 on the Jazz. That average decreases to 7.0 points per game versus Western Conference opponents and 4.0 points per game in his last 10 games overall.

With Dunkel predicting the game total to stay UNDER the Vegas line, take O’Neale (-125) to finish UNDER 6.5 points against the Blazers.

See all of today's NBA picks.