The Brooklyn Nets are in town to face the Utah Jazz, who are fresh off a four-game losing streak. The good news is the Nets are on a seven-game skid of their own. In fact, since the New Year, the Nets have the worst record in the league, while the Jazz have the second-worst record since Jan. 1.

Sameer Kumar of the Brooklyn Nets on SI said it best, "To put it simply, both teams are in a tanking battle, and a large portion of either fanbase doesn't want to see their team win this game."

According to Tankathon, which is largely based on percentages, the Brooklyn Nets hold the fourth overall pick, and the Utah Jazz have the sixth overall pick.

The Brooklyn Nets are one of five NBA teams at the bottom of the standings with 12 wins this season, while the Utah Jazz have 15 victories.

The Nets are led by scorer Michael Porter Jr., who has been on a tear all season as the No. 1 option. Acquired from Denver this summer, Porter was a valuable contributor there, but never fully had the chance to show what he is capable of.

During the seven-game losing streak, Porter is averaging nearly 25 points per game on nearly 20 shots per game.

The Brooklyn Nets fell short in Denver last night despite a season-high 38 points from Porter. He spent the first seven seasons of his career with the Nuggets after being selected 14th overall in the 2018 NBA draft and eventually won a championship with them in 2023.

Jamal Murray scored nine points in the final 2:26 to lead Denver to a 107-103 victory, spoiling Brooklyn’s comeback effort on the road.

Injury Report

Utah will be without its best player, Lauri Markkanen, who is resting. Starting center Jusuf Nurkic, who recorded three consecutive triple-doubles last week, is also out due to illness, along with Kevin Love. Cody Williams remains questionable.

Nurkic became the first Jazz player in franchise history to record three consecutive triple-doubles. With just four more in a Jazz uniform, Nurkic would tie Pete Maravich for the franchise record with seven career triple-doubles.

Markkanen recently missed seven games due to illness. He returned for Utah’s last two matchups, a 115-103 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday and a 140-124 loss to the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday.

With all the injuries, the Jazz are expected to rely on Keyonte George, Ace Bailey and Brice Sensabaugh, who have combined to average 54.3 points per game over the past week.

For the Nets, Michael Porter Jr. is out for personal reasons, and Noah Clowney and Ziaire Williams are out with injuries.

Brooklyn was without rookie Egor Demin in Denver, but should have him back tonight, much to BYU fans’ delight.

Demin was a fan favorite in Provo last year.

The Jazz and Nets will tip off at 7:30 PM MT at the Delta Center.