Utah Jazz: Juiced-up Jazz face Mavericks

DALLAS — They secured a playoff berth Sunday.

They clinched the NBA's Northwest Division championship Tuesday.

They have won four straight games and seven of their last eight, including not only Friday's victory over the defending league-champion San Antonio Spurs, but also Tuesday's on the road against the Western Conference-leading New Orleans Hornets.

With four games remaining in their regular season, including tonight's contest against the apparently postseason-bound Dallas Mavericks, even coach Jerry Sloan has to be giddy over the effort of late from his juiced-up Jazz.

Right?

Not so fast, pulp pucker.

"I don't know if it was us as much as the other team," Sloan said Wednesday when asked about the quality of play his 52-26 club has exhibited at the start of a closing stretch with six games against five quality conference opponents, including two meetings with the Spurs.

"You look at the game (Tuesday) night, they (the Hornets) had won eight or nine, 10, 11 games in a row at home (actually 11), and I think sometimes there's kind of a point that they kind of slack off a little," he added.

"And then the game (Friday night) we had with San Antonio, we played pretty well, I thought, in the first half, and had a pretty good third quarter. But then things kind of fell apart, so I don't think you put a lot of credibility in (it) other than winning the ballgame."

Asked by way of follow-up if he'd be satisfied should the Jazz at least continue their current level of play, Sloan scoffed further.

"I think that's what they get paid for," he said. "I don't think that's asking too much — (for them to) play hard every night.

"I think, for the most part, we have a right to expect that."

Sloan obviously is seeking to squeeze every ounce he can get out of his Jazz as they fight for homecourt advantage in the first round of the upcoming playoffs, and he even has his point guard buying into the notion that they're nowhere close to peaking.

"I hope not," Deron Williams said when asked if he thought Utah was at the top of its game.

"I think we're playing great the last couple games," he added, "but we still have some tough games ahead of us."