SUMMARY:  Utah Jazz followed near perfection v. the Warriors with a dominating performance against an inferior opponent.

• The Jazz blew out another opponent tonight.  Phoenix is not good.  However, if they play from ahead they can give you trouble.  The Jazz eliminated that early and ran away to a mammoth win.   The final was 129-97.  The Jazz lead by as many as 41 at one point.

• The Jazz got the three point shot falling again on the offense as they hit on 15 of 29 from three point range. The Jazz season has swung so much based on if they are making the three point shot or not and recently it is falling.

• Defensively, Ricky Rubio undid Devon Booker who was playing the point guard. Ricky never let him get comfortable.  Rubio’s hands were active and pestering Booker who is not a comfortable ball handler.  He finished 7 of 24 shooting, but most noticeably was 1 for 6 in the 2^nd quarter when the game got away.

• Rudy Gobert’s impact defensively in the middle should never be underestimated. Again tonight the opponent wasn’t able to make shots they are used to because they are altered by Gobert.  TJ Warren in particular likes to work in the mid range and he had no chance with Gobert hovering around, he was 2 for 5 and had been averaging 22 points a game.

• Donovan Mitchell did it again. Tonight it was 40 points for the 2^nd time in his NBA career.  Remarkably, tonight he did it on just 19 shot attempts.  He hit 7 three pointers tonight and I believe all of them were catch and shoot.  Donovan is shooting 42% on catch and shoot but 29% on off the bounce three.  Tonight, I don’t believe he took and off the bounce three point shot.

• Ricky Rubio had another strong night. He was on his way to another double double and maybe a triple double if he hadn’t got into foul trouble.  He finished with 14 points, 6 rebounds and 9 assists.   He made his first two layups of the night and that opened up his game.  He has a great burst to the basket and if he can start finishing regularly it will make a huge difference.  When he finishes well, then his search dribble has more punch.

• Rubio worked well with Rudy tonight. They have changed some of the angles and it is giving Rubio a better window to pass into and Rudy an easier route to catch the pass.

• Joe Johnson continues to get better and better on the offensive side of the ball as the season progresses.

• I love how Royce O’Neale and Alec Burks are building off each other. They are very similar players.  Both are drivers, both can handle, both a really good rebounders, both are average three point shooter,  both can be physical defenders.

• Derrick Favors continues to play very well. He was a force on the boards tonight.

• The Suns are a poor team and their defense was porous. Give the Jazz credit for staying engaged, taking advantage and never letting the Suns get into the game

• 4 in a row