The Memphis Grizzlies travel to Salt Lake City to play the Utah Jazz at Vivint Smart Home Arena on Saturday.

The Grizzlies (6-15) come into this matchup losing eight of their last nine games and it's hard to imagine things getting any better with Ja Morant injured. The star point guard has been majestic in his rookie season but he's expected to be out for a few weeks because of a back issue. While losing him on the court stinks, it also hurts his development. What's interesting about this team is that they've taken a full 180 in terms of the style of play. After playing slow-paced defensive ball throughout the last decade, this team now ranks 27th in total defense and sixth in pace. That happens with young players though and it definitely benefits athletes like Brandon Clarke and Jaren Jackson Jr.

The Jazz (12-10) had some seriously high hopes coming into the season but recent production is certainly not encouraging. While losing five of their last six games is worrisome, the nature of those defeats is what's truly disturbing. Utah has actually lost each of the last four by 19 points or more and it's truly embarrassing how bad this team is playing on both ends of the floor right now. While all five of those losses did come against elite teams, it's distressing nonetheless. The thing they need to figure out is their offense, with the Jazz currently ranked 24th in points scored and 27th in assists. To put it simply, that's unacceptable from a title contender.

These teams have already played twice this season, splitting the two meetings in close matchups. With that said, Memphis won the four-game season series last year, 3-1