The Jazz were doomed to fail in the NBA Cup; three out of their four games were 20+ point losses. However, gracious Adam Silver was in his early Christmas spirit by rewarding the Jazz (8-15) with a consolation prize of two matchups, tonight’s being against the injury-riddled Memphis Grizzlies (11-13). Utah was swept 4-0 in their season series against this team last season, continuing a 5-game streak for Memphis.

People became irate, and the streets were filled with protests when the Jazz jumped to an 8-13 record in spite of the fans’ complaints. Though since then, they’ve simmered down after two blowout losses against New York and OKC. The recent trend also brought us maybe the most dramatic Will Hardy meltdown in his tenure:

The Jazz need to avoid the dreaded drought in the first quarter, where they essentially give the entire game up in the first two minutes, and the offense completely vanishes. New York jumped to a 23-0 start, and OKC led 13-1. They can’t afford that type of run for a third consecutive game, or that’s just throwing away learning experiences for your young guys. If the starters aren’t clicking, Hardy should look for someone like Collier or Clayton Jr. to stabilize the offense and keep the ball moving

But what comes down, must therefore come up (is how the saying should really go). Walter Clayton Jr. has found his rhythm after switching back and forth between G League games and riding the bench. In his last three games, he’s averaged 14.7 points, 5.3 assists and 2 three-pointers made on 57-43-71 shooting splits. Though he’s had an awkward first date with his jumpshot as a rookie, getting it to finally pop is the key to early success and vastly separates him from someone like Collier. In fact, per 100 possessions, he averages 19.4 potential assists compared to Keyonte’s 18.3.

“Walt has been a score-first guard for most of his life,” Hardy said. “So it’s hard, when you’re a young guard, and you come in, and you’re trying to walk this line of, ‘Oh, I’ve got to get the other guys involved, and I got to pass to (Lauri Markkanen) when he’s open, and I’ve got to do all these things, but my identity is, I come off ball screens, I look at the basket, and I’m open, I shoot.’”. The Jazz need more table setters to decrease the absurd amount of turnovers they’re putting up, and Clayton Jr. spaces the floor enough that he’s playable next to Keyonte or Collier. Setting himself up in a situation like that tonight would be ideal — Memphis forces a median of 14.6 turnovers that ranks 17th in the league.

Memphis, on the other hand, has had an up-and-down start to their season due to their lingering injuries and lack of offensive firepower. They went 3-7 in their last ten games without Ja Morant, who’s now listed as questionable. The silver lining for them is that they’ve been surviving off the defensive core of Jaren Jackson Jr, Zach Edey (listed out tonight) and Jaylen Wells. As a group, they rank 14th in the league for defense, but they’ve been 6th in the last two weeks. They’re currently giving up 44.4 points in the paint per game, the 5th least in the NBA. Under new coach Tuomas Isalo, they’ve gone 14-0 against sub .500 teams.

But now with Ja likely returning and Edey out, it’s hard to speculate how this group will look against the Jazz tonight. Of course, that’s detrimental for Utah, who give up 51.6 points in the paint, 19th in the league. Though Lauri and Filipowski could have more leniency tonight when attacking the rim, considering they’re missing a prevalent paint protector, and Memphis gives up 19.0 PITP during Edey’s on-and-off tenure.

Another interesting aspect is the free-throw line — teams are attempting 21.0 free throws vs. Memphis, which is listed as the second-least in the league. Utah attempts the 5th most in the NBA, 27.3. With Keyonte George (6.9 attempts per game) and Lauri Markkanen (6.8 attempts per game) leading the way, they rely heavily on charity-stripe shots to generate offense. The key to tonight for both teams is getting hot early and maintaining a fast, aggressive pace. They shoot around a similar volume of three-point attempts (Utah 41.0%, Memphis 38.7%), meaning whoever can find their rhythm early is very well on track to be the victor tonight.

OUT – Georges Niang (left foot, fourth metatarsal stress reaction), Walker Kessler (left shoulder surgery)

QUESTIONABLE – Ja Morant (right calf strain)

OUT – Brandon Clarke (right knee surgery recovery), Zach Edey (left ankle stress reaction), Ty Jerome (right calf strain), John Konchar (left thumb UCL tear), Scotty Pippen Jr. (left great toe surgery recovery), Javon Small (left turf toe)

Who: Utah Jazz at Memphis Grizzlies

When: December 12th, 6:00PM Mountain Time

Where: FedExForum, Memphis

Radio: 97.5/1280 The Zone