Jazz, Bucks Primed for a Defensive Struggle in Utah

The Utah Jazz are the top defensive team in the NBA through the Sportsbook two weeks of the season – but they’ll face one of their biggest foils Friday night as Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks invade Salt Lake City. Antetokounmpo eviscerated the Jazz last season, averaging 36.5 points and 12 rebounds as the teams split a pair of highly competitive meetings.

Sportsbook Odds Analysis

The Bucks opened as a 2-point favorite, but the line quickly shifted in favor of the Jazz and has settled in at EVEN. The total opened at 216, a considerable dip from the 223 and 223.5 posted for the two games between the teams last season.

Milwaukee News & Notes

Any conversation about the Bucks starts with Giannis, who has been his usual dominant self as he looks to lead Milwaukee to the NBA Finals. The Greek sensation is averaging 29 points, 14.3 rebounds and 7.6 assists while shooting better than 59 percent from the field. The Bucks are 4-0 SU when he has scored 30-plus points this season and 2-2 when he hasn’t.

But while the Bucks have to be pleased with their league-leading 122.2 points per game scoring average, they know they have some work to do in other areas. Milwaukee is allowing 112 points per contest (20th in the NBA as of Thursday) and has struggled from the free-throw line in the early going, posting the second-worst success rate in the league (70.2 percent).

Utah News & Notes

In a game oddsmakers tab as too close to call, it’s the little things that can ultimately decide the outcome – and the Jazz are in great position based on several factors. Not only has Utah won all four home games by an average margin of 13.3 points (fourth-best in the NBA), its +2.1 turnover margin per game ranks inside the top five league-wide.

And while Giannis certainly got his last year, it’s notable that he needed 56 shot attempts to get to 73 points in the two-game series with the Jazz, who held him to a mortal .545 true shooting percentage. Opposing teams are shooting just 41.1 percent from the field and 32.5 percent from three-point range at Vivint Smart Home Arena through Utah’s first four home contests.

Betting Pick: UNDER

The Jazz know how to keep teams under wraps at home, while this one sets up nicely for the Bucks to get their defensive house in order thanks to Utah’s 29th-ranked pace rating. We like the UNDER.