Utah Jazz (Chris Nicoll-USA TODAY Sports)
The Utah Jazz must finally be deserving of a gift from the basketball gods.
No matter how it all plays out for the Utah Jazz and the other remaining active playoff teams, the league will see a relatively unusual battle for all the marbles this go-round. Consider that of the eight franchises that comprise this year’s conference semifinals, none have made it to the NBA Finals since 2003.
Yes, that almost seems statistically impossible. Nevertheless, that is indeed the case.
And another observation — perhaps either encouraging or discouraging to Jazz fans, depending on their individual personalities — is the fact that the Jazzmen are most overdue among the bunch when it comes to hoisting the 2022 Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy.