Suns Set Sights on League-Leading Jazz

The NBA’s top two teams collide in Phoenix as the Suns (35-14 SU, 32-17 ATS) shoot for their seventh straight win when they host the Jazz (38-12, 31-18-1). Utah has won 15 of the last 18 meetings, but Phoenix has claimed the last two — including an 11-point win in Salt Lake City earlier this season.

Sportsbook Odds Analysis

The Suns are home underdogs for just the fourth time this season, going 1-2 SU and ATS in that role so far. Each of those games went OVER the total and Phoenix is 6-0 to the OVER in its last six home games when catching points.

Utah News & Notes

Three-pointers have been a huge key to the Jazz’s success this year, but they were their undoing Monday in Dallas. Utah missed 32 of its 44 attempts from behind the arc while the Mavs were a sizzling 23-for-49 from deep en route to a 111-103 upset that snapped the Jazz’s nine-game winning streak.

Donovan Mitchell hit just five of his 21 shots from the field while Royce O’Neal was 0-for-8, all on three-point attempts. “The biggest thing is not to overreact,” Mitchell told the Salt Lake Tribune. “Sometimes (shots) are not going to go in. There’s going to be nights like this.”

Of course, there haven’t been many nights like that this season for the Jazz, who have made the most three-pointers in the NBA and are shooting the second-best percentage from deep. However, Utah might have trouble bouncing back against a Phoenix defense that has held opponents to 34.7 percent on three-point attempts, the fourth-best mark in the NBA.

Phoenix News & Notes

The Suns have already won more games this year (35) than they did all of last year (34), but this week could give them a sense of where they really stand in the West. After tonight’s clash with the league-leading Jazz, Phoenix will travel to Los Angeles to visit the third-place Clippers.

“It’s the (other) two top teams in the West that I’m sure we’ll see down the line at some point,” Devin Booker told Arizona Central. “We’re going to be locked in. We’re going to be ready. It’s exciting.”

Maybe the Suns were looking ahead to this back-to-back when they took the floor Monday in Houston. Phoenix trailed the woeful Rockets midway through the fourth quarter before Booker scored 10 points in 71 seconds to give the Suns a seven-point lead. Phoenix held on for a 133-130 victory, thanks to Booker’s 36 points and a 27-point, 11-rebound performance by Deandre Ayton.

The Suns have thrived in step-up spots recently under head coach Monty Williams, covering 12 of their last 13 games against opponents with a winning percentage of .600 or higher. Phoenix is also 14-3 ATS in its last 17 following an ATS loss, 9-2 ATS in its last 11 as an underdog and 23-9 ATS in its last 32 home games.

Betting Pick: Suns +2

Phoenix has been a cash cow for bettors when playing at home and the Suns’ perimeter defense matches up well against the Jazz.