SALT LAKE CITY — Thus far, the NBA's schedule maker has not been kind to the Utah Jazz.
So unkind, in fact, that he's probably not on their Christmas card list.
In fact, some folks would say he's been downright brutal, with Utah playing 10 of its first 14 regular-season contests on the road.
Well, that out-of-whack, home-and-away scenario is about to get a whole lot better for the Jazz who, beginning with Saturday's game against the New Orleans Pelicans, will play four straight and six of their next seven games at Vivint Arena.
In fact, Utah stays home for nine of its next 12 and 11 of its upcoming 14 games — a great opportunity to improve upon a 7-7 season slate that thus far includes a 5-5 road record and a 2-2 mark at home.
"We've only been home for about two days at a time," Utah coach Quin Snyder said, "so it's almost like our home games have almost been typically road games because we're in and out, and that's the way they've felt. This is gonna be another situation for us. Hopefully, we'll play better at home.
"When you travel, guys get tired as much as anything, and you get a little banged up. When you're at home and you get a chance to sleep in your own bed and you don't lose 4-6 hours of travel every day. That's time that you can take better care of yourself."
Jazz power forward Derrick Favors was certainly looking forward to spending a lot more time in the Beehive State during the next five weeks.
"Yeah, I'm excited," he said. "I get to stay home with my daughters and spend some time with them, spend some time at home in my house and just chill. We've been on the road a lot lately and I'm going to take advantage of this time."
Favors said all that "glamorous" travel time's definitely not what it's cracked up to be.
"You're on the plane a lot, you go from hotel to hotel in different cities, and right back on the plane, so it kinda takes a little bit out of you," he said. "So you get a good home stretch where you're at home, get to chill in your own house and your own bed and be with your family, it kinda rejuvenates you a little bit."
Gordon Hayward agreed.
"It'll be nice to play in front of our fans," he said. "I think we're looking forward to it. It's been awhile. It’s going to be good to play at home and I can’t wait for that because we have been on the road so much. For the record that we have, I feel like we have learned a lot and gained a lot of experiences. We need to play well at home and do it for the fans."
TRIMMING UP THE EYEBROW: Utah coach Quin Snyder was asked Friday about the challenge posed by New Orleans big man Anthony Davis, the 6-foot-10 forward/center with the famous unibrow. Davis is averaging 23.5 points and 10.8 rebounds a game this season and presents a matchup nightmare for most teams.
"There's a lot to think about because he's such a multi-dimensional player," Snyder said of Davis. "He's another one of those guys that you could throw him in the same category as LeBron (James) and Chris Paul and the top players at their positions in the league. There's so many things he can do; he can shoot it, he can post (up), he defends and makes plays. No matter what you do, there's no way you're gonna be able to completely stop a guy that's that good."
Hayward knows the Jazz will have their hands full with Davis.
"He's long, he's athletic, he can shoot, he can dribble, he plays hard, he's a good defender," Hayward said. "He's a really good player."
LEARN AS YOU GO: Hayward, who poured in a season-high 33 points in Wednesday night's 102-91 road win over the Los Angeles Clippers, said that victory could prove pivotal in the Jazz team's growth and improvement.
"Making sure that we learn from that game and try to build on that game," he said. "I think it was a big confidence-booster for us, a win like that against those guys is a big plus.
"We defended, we shared the basketball, and we made the plays that we had to down the stretch, too. We closed it out, we made the right plays."
INJURY REPORT: The Jazz could be short-handed on the guard line Saturday.
Point guard Trey Burke did not practice Friday due to back spasms. Shooting guard Rodney Hood also didn't participate in Friday's practice despite back spasms of his own.
Both are listed as "questionable" for Saturday's game against the Pelicans.
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