Jazz Seek Break From Skid in Cup Opener Against Mavericks

The Utah Jazz aim to end their six-game losing streak as they face the Dallas Mavericks on Friday night for an NBA Group Stage game. The Jazz are coming off a difficult overtime loss to New Orleans and will play without key players Jaren Jackson Jr., Jusuf Nurkic, Trey Alexander, Harrison Ingram, and Tarik Biberovic due to injuries. Keyonte George led Utah with 39 points in that recent defeat but the team shot poorly from beyond the arc.

The Mavericks enter as a stronger opponent at 4-4 on their season while the Jazz sit at 1-7. Dallas is riding hot for Cooper Flagg, who averages over 24 points per game alongside Kyrie Irving's contributions of nearly 23 points nightly. The team recently defeated San Antonio in overtime but has lost two consecutive games since then.

Both squads have faced similar struggles with cold shooting spells and defensive issues leading into this matchup.