Step One, complete

It wasn't pretty, but the Jazz beat Houston last night, 105-96.

Houston started the game shooting 1-8, and the Jazz weren't doing that much better. It appeared the teams were on their way to a classic 74-82 game from 1998, heyday of the Knicks and Pistons grab-them-if-you-can't-stop-them defense.

In fact, it never seemed that either team really got on track, but at halftime, the Jazz somehow had 56 points. Some of that probably had to do with the balanced scoring Utah got. Six players scored in double figures, and Millsap had nine points.

The Jazz also shot three for 16 from the 3-point line.

Oh, and they ended up holding their seventh-straight opponent to 100 points or lower.

So a win's a win. And now, with a victory in San Antonio tomorrow night (Step Two), the Jazz can secure the three seed in the playoffs and earn homecourt advantage in the first round, which would most likely be against the Spurs.

Oh, and Utah hasn't won in San Antonio since Feb. 28, 1999. That was so long ago NBA.com doesn't have a record of the game.

In 1999? John and Karl were still going strong.

Olden Polynice started 79 games.

Adam Keefe was Sloan's garbage guy.

Howard Eisley was the backup point guard.

Not one of the players on that roster is on the Jazz today.

Deron Williams is 0-6 in his career in San Antonio. Boozer has never won there, even when he was playing for the Cavs. Suffice it to say there's a bit of a mental block for these guys when it comes to winning in Alamo City.

Now, the Spurs aren't getting any younger (Duncan 10 seasons, Brent Barry 12 seasons, Bowen 11, Finley 12, Horry 15, Damon Stoudamire 12, Kurt Thomas 12, Jacque Vaughn 10). San Antonio also has to deal with Sixth Man of the Year Manu Ginobili's groin injury, which kept him from playing against the Kings last night. If he's out tomorrow, that gives the Jazz a big advantage.

The Spurs are not invincible.

Winning on Wednesday, even against an injured and possibly resting Spurs team, will give the Jazz a solid boost going into the playoffs. I like the idea of breaking the losing streak on the last day of the season.

It's a tough road to the Finals in the West, but I think the Jazz can get there. Ronnie Brewer and Paul Millsap are playing very well, and with the addition of Kyle Korver, this team is a lot better than the 2007 playoffs version.

Not to mention how Derek Fisher's move to L.A. was addition by subtraction.

This Jazz team is deep. Deron will dominate in the postseason again. Booz and Okur will score, and if they can play defense like they did against Houston last season in the first round, good things will happen.

I can't wait.

Props for Deron

From NBA.com:

Deron Williams has scored 1,523 points, handed out 851 assists and shot .509 from the field this season. He has joined Magic Johnson (1986-87 and 1988-89) and Kevin Johnson (1988-89) as the only players in league history to score 1,500 points, hand out 800 assists and shoot 50 percent from the field in a single season.

That's some pretty elite company.

Now beat Houston and San Antonio this week, Deron.

Miami fans should be feeling pretty good

Sure, Miami is sitting at 14-66, good for last place in the entire NBA.

Sure, the Heat are only two years removed from winning their first-ever NBA championship.

Sure, Wade is hurt (again), and Shaq bolted for the Suns.

But you should be feeling pretty good about yourselves, Miami fans.

You've got a great chance to have the #1 pick in the NBA draft this summer. Dwayne will be back next fall, and Shawn Marion is a solid player. I'm optimistic about a team with Wade, Marion, and someone like Derrick Rose. Especially one playing in the Eastern Conference.

Your salary cap situation is not bad (like the Knicks); you've got $53 million worth of contracts on the books for 2008-2009, which leaves you with room to shop for a free agent or two.

I'd wait around a few months before jumping off a Miami high-rise or switching my allegiance to another team if I were you. Show some patience. It'll pay off.

The Western Conference is ridiculous

The Jazz have two regular-season games left and could end up seeded anywhere from 2 to 4 (and no lower because of their NW Division Title) in the playoffs. San Antonio could end up anywhere from 2 to 6, and Houston could take the number 1 seed, or fall to the 6 seed.

Amazing.

Now, things are so close in the West that it's feasible that Utah, Houston, San Antonio and Phoenix all finish with identical 55-27 records. How does the NBA work that out as far as seedings go?

Determining Ties for Playoff Position

MORE THAN TWO TEAMS TIED

1. If applicable, division champions must be determined first.

2. Better winning percentage in all games among the tied teams.

3. Better winning percentage against teams in own division (only if all tied teams are in same division).

4. Better winning percentage against teams in own conference.

5. Better winning percentage against teams eligible for playoffs in own conference (including team that finished the regular season tied for a playoff position).

6. Best point differential between offense and defense.

Note: If a multiple team tie is reduced to a two-team tie at any point using the above criteria, the two-team tie will be resolved in accordance with the existing two-team tie procedure.

Assuming Utah wins at home against Houston tonight and at San Antonio on Wednesday, here's how it shakes out:

Utah would be 7-3 against the other three teams with the same record.

Phoenix would be 6-5.

Houston 5-6.

San Antonio would finish at an unimpressive 4-8.

That would make Utah the #3 seed, Phoenix the #4 seed, Houston the #5 seed, and San Antonio the #6 seed.

Which would mean Utah plays San Antonio in the first round. I wouldn't be too happy about that, though for that to happen, the Jazz would have to have beaten the Spurs in San Antonio for the first time in forever.

It's a weird situation where the Jazz have to beat the Spurs in San Antonio to be forced into a situation where they'd need to beat the Spurs in San Antonio.

No matter what happens over these next few days, the Western Conference playoffs are going to be amazing. I don't see any series (even first round matchups) going less than six games. The Spurs look vulnerable with Manu injured and Duncan not getting any younger. Phoenix L.A. are pretty intimidating, but they each have weaknesses the Jazz can exploit.

TNT's "40 Games in 40 Nights," you own me.

Deron's clutch, but it doesn't matter

The Jazz lost to the Mavs 97-94 tonight. In general, I'm not that disturbed by the loss, as in my opinion, the Jazz will be best off in the four seed for the playoffs.

The Jazz played uninspired ball most of the night, but still had a shot with 11 seconds left. Utah was down three, and Deron hit a 3-pointer while being defended pretty well.

Wahoo! Barring some miracle, the game will at least go into overtime!

Dallas had no timeouts. The Mavs knew this. The Jazz, apparently did not.

With five seconds on the clock, the Mavericks inbounded the ball and Jason Terry took off downcourt.

On the other hand, the Jazz were happy with Deron's impressive display of clutch-ness and stood around. Especially Boozer, who was assigned to defend Dirk Nowitzki.

Long story shot, Dirk hit a WIDE-OPEN 3-pointer with two seconds left.

Game over, Jazz lose.

It's been a while since I've seen such an egregious display of weak-sauce defense. The Jazz showed a major lack of mental toughness.

If they do that in the playoffs, there's no way we see Utah get past the first round.

Jazz looking okay

For better or for worse, Chris Paul and Deron Williams will be compared for the rest of eternity.

Ever since the Jazz took Paul over Deron in the 2005 draft, when Paul was widely considered the better of the two, Deron's had to prove Utah didn't make a huge mistake.

In their first two seasons, neither had much of an edge. Deron broke out a bit later, but he was on the bench most of his first season, unlike Paul, who was starting almost from day one.

Last year, Deron led his team to the Western Conference Finals, while Paul sat at home. Deron's dominance in the playoffs persuaded many that he had gained an advantage over Paul. However, this year, Paul's been absolutely brilliant this season, leading New Orleans to the best record in the West, while averaging 21 points, 12 assists, and almost three steals a game.

Deron's doing well, averaging 19, 10 and a steal a game, while shooting better than Paul, 51% to 49%. But the Jazz are losing to bad teams and have only the 5th best record in the West, which means he doesn't get MVP talk like Paul does. And rightly so.

But head-to-head, Deron is looking very good against CP3.

Tonight's game against the Hornets in New Orleans was big. I was concerned that the Jazz would drop another one on the road.

But once again, Deron's Jazz got the best of Paul's Hornets. Neither Deron nor Paul shot well, as each shot 2-11 from the field for an impressive four points apiece. Deron, however, dished out 16 assists, while Paul recorded 9.

It was an ugly, low-scoring affair, but as a Jazz fan, I'll take the 77-66 win.

Deron is now 8-2 against Paul in his career.

For the first time in Jazz history, Utah held two consecutive opponents under 70 points, and did it on the road. The Jazz beat San Antonio last Saturday, 90-64.

General consensus is that if the Jazz want homecourt advantage in the playoffs, they need to perform very well over the last six games of the season, starting with the San Antonio game. So far, so good.

The Jazz play @Dallas, Denver, Houston, and @San Antonio again to round out the 82-game season. Normally, this schedule would be cause for concern, but this version of the Jazz I'm not too worried. These guys love dropping games against the Knicks, Heat, and Timberwolves of the world.

The most frustrating thing is that if Utah had just beated the above (horrible) teams, they'd be sitting in first place in the West with 60 wins.

Seriously, what team does that? Who plays poorly against poor teams and great against great teams?

But in the long run, I'd rather have the Jazz play to the level of their competition. That means they'll show up against the Rockets, Suns, or Lakers of the league in the playoffs. And that means another impressive run in May and (maybe) into June.

Orbit Gum commercials are awesome

This one's my favorite.

"What the french toast?"