"When the season started, the excitement and the hope was that this time we would get back to the playoffs — get back to being a Jazz team that's expected to win a good number of games in the regular season," he said. "So, I think if you go back to Oct. 2 or 3 or whatever, and you say, 'Look, if you guys win a division and you win 50 games and you'll be the fourth seed, will you take that right now and just skip to the end?' I guarantee you we would have said, 'Sure, we'll take it."'

So they do.

Yet reality suggests what Utah squandered is meaningful indeed.

Not since 1996 — one year before their two runs to the NBA Finals — have the Jazz won a postseason series without having owned home-court advantage.

The last five times they've started a series on the road — dating to '96 — the Jazz have lost.

Moreover, the home-edge team has won 15 of the 16 opening Western Conference playoff series played since the NBA expanded first-round meetings to a best-of-seven format in 2003.

"You can beat yourself up with that," said Jazz coach Jerry Sloan, who will be coaching his 159th NBA playoff game Saturday — and seeking his 79th postseason victory.

"The most important thing, I try to tell guys, is, 'Forget what happened yesterday, because nobody cares."' he added. "The thing you have to be worried about today is, 'Am I ready?"'

Are they?

Even Sloan, whose club jumped to a 12-1 start to open his 19th season in charge of the Jazz, seems to wonder.

It wasn't long ago, after all, that he said what he chiefly wants to see is "if we can put ourselves back together to be a little more competitive, like we were at one time."

He is not alone in wondering if they can.

"The Jazz had a great start to the season but really started sliding a bit after the All-Star break," ESPN.com NBA writer Chad Ford said during a recent online chat. "Injuries have played a role, but the truth is, with a healthy Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady, the Rockets just have more firepower . ... I say Rockets in 6."

In fact, 5-of-5 other ESPN.com analysts and writers surveyed by the Web site favored the Rockets.

Four others also had the series going six games, and one, Chris Broussard, said a full seven games, but all agreed Houston was the safe choice.

"The pick here would have been Houston even if the Rockets didn't have home-court advantage, because this is a better team than the one that extended Dallas to seven games in the first round of the (2005) playoffs," ESPN.com's Marc Stein wrote. "Yet once they snatched home court from the Jazz — and once Utah lost any semblance of rim protection without the ailing Andrei Kirilenko and started sliding at the finish — Houston's status as the favorite was cemented.