NBA Gameday: Jazz Without Four Starters Against Warriors

The Warriors will be facing two foes Thursday night in Salt Lake City.

The first is the NBA schedule-maker, who blessed the Warriors with a seven-day, five-game road trip that begins with a back-to-back, and the second is the Utah Jazz, who likely were resting in their beds when the Warriors arrived from Los Angeles around 3 a.m.

The Warriors (19-3) will get a bit of a break, as Utah (14-9) will be without five players, four of which usually are starters.

The Warriors have won 15 of 16 games, including a 115-98 shellacking of the Clippers on Wednesday night.

Utah has won three straight and seven of its last eight.

BETTING LINE

Warriors by 9

LAST 10

Warriors: 9-1. Jazz: 7-3.

INJURY REPORT

Warriors: No injuries listed.

Jazz: G Alec Burks (L ankle rehabilitation), F Derrick Favors (L knee contusion), G George Hill (L big toe sprain), G Rodney Hood (R hamstring strain), F Gordon Hayward (finger) are all out.

SERIES HISTORY

The Warriors swept four games last season, have won five in a row and 11 of the last 12 meetings.

THREE THINGS TO WATCH

1) The tempo game -- Utah allows an NBA-low 95.5 points per game, a statistic reflective of its ability to defend but also that it plays at the slowest pace in the league. Can the Warriors push it and play high-speed hoops, at altitude, on the second night of a back-to-back set?

2) Rest Stop? -- Warriors coach Steve Kerr has indicated a likelihood he will rest selected players at certain points of the five-game road trip. This is his first natural opportunity, so there is a reasonable chance one or two veterans will sit.

3) Steph bounces back -- Stephen Curry failed to make a 3-pointer Wednesday against the Clippers, only the third time in 250 games he has goose-egged from deep. The last time it happened, he came out the next game and drilled 13 triples to set an NBA record.

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