Utah Jazz vs Portland Trail Blazers 3/9/22 NBA Picks, Predictions, Odds

The Portland Trail Blazers travel to the Vivint Arena to take on the Utah Jazz on Wednesday night.

The Portland Trail Blazers have been in a real slump as they’ve lost 11 of their last 15 games overall and they will be eager to snap a five-game slide after getting routed by the Timberwolves in a 124-81 road loss on Monday. Brandon Williams led the team with 27 points, eight rebounds and four steals, Keon Johnson added 14 points on three of 14 shooting off the bench while Trendon Watford chipped in with 11 points, seven rebounds and three assists. As a team, the Trail Blazers shot a horrendous 27 percent from the field and seven of 28 from the 3-point line as they struggled to find their offense and managed just 34 points in the first half to fall behind by 27 points at halftime and things only got worse in the fourth quarter where the Timberwolves’ bench finished with a flurry.

Meanwhile, the Utah Jazz have been in great form as they’ve won 10 of their past 13 games overall and they will be eager to bounce back after coming up short against the surging Mavericks in a 111-103 road loss on Monday. Bojan Bogdanovic led the team with 21 points on seven of 11 shooting, Jordan Clarkson added 19 points off the bench while Donovan Mitchell chipped in with 17 points and nine assists. As a team, the Jazz shot just 43 percent from the field and 12 of 31 from the 3-point line as they struggled to contain the Mavericks’ Luka Doncic in the first half and trailed by as many as 20 points in this one before pouring in 35 points in the fourth quarter to make it interesting in the final minutes. The Jazz needed more from their backcourt as Donovan Mitchell shot just five of 19 from the field and two of nine from the 3-point line, while Mike Conley scored just three points on one of seven shooting.

Looking at the betting trends, the Trail Blazers are 2-6 ATS in their last eight road games, 7-18-1 ATS in their last 26 games against a team with a winning record and 0-5 ATS in their last five games overall. The Jazz are 5-1 ATS in their last six home games, 0-4 ATS in their last four games against a team with a losing record and 0-4 ATS in their last four games overall.

Head to head, the under is 4-1 in the last five meetings overall and the Trail Blazers are 1-4 ATS in the last five meetings overall.

The Trail Blazers are still shorthanded as they are missing Damian Lillard, Justise Winslow, Eric Bledsoe and Nassir Little while Anfernee Simons is listed as questionable, while the Jazz are coming into this one without a single player on the injury report. It’s the classic tale of two teams headed in opposite directions and you just can’t make much of an argument for the Trail Blazers who have been ice-cold lately. The Jazz will be kicking themselves after Monday’s loss to the Mavericks and I think they make up for it with a big win here. The line is quite hefty, but I think the Jazz bounce back in fine fashion at home.