Utah Jazz vs Miami Heat: Prediction and combined starting 5 featuring Donovan Mitchell and Jimmy Butler

The red-hot Utah Jazz will look to continue their dominance on February 26th, when they visit the Miami Heat's AmericanAirlines Arena. The Utah Jazz have the best record in the entire NBA at 26-6 and are coming off two consecutive wins, including a blowout over the LA Lakers.

On the other hand, the Miami Heat continue their recovery and have a 15-17 record, which is good enough for eighth in the Eastern Conference standings.

This will be the second matchup between the Utah Jazz and the Miami Heat in the current campaign. Back on February 13th, the Jazz took a 112-94 win over Miami at the Vivint Smart Home Arena.

Utah Jazz vs Miami Heat Prediction - February 26th, 2021

While the matchup is interesting and the Miami Heat might have more star power on their side with Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo, the Utah Jazz should come out on top.

Miami have certainly played well recently after a dismal start to the 2020-21 NBA season. Injuries were harsh on Erik Spoelstra's team in the early stages, but Jimmy Butler has been available recently and he is a game-changer.

The Miami Heat are 8-11 against Eastern Conference teams, but have a 7-6 record against the West so far. On the other hand, the Utah Jazz are on a roll and their defense (second-best in Defensive Rating), should be able to handle Miami's offense (ranked 25th in the NBA), though it should be a close matchup.

The Utah Jazz should come out on top and snap the Miami Heat's four-game winning streak. A win for Utah would improve their record on the road to 12-4, while Miami would fall to 8-8 at home.

Utah Jazz vs Miami Heat: Combined starting 5

Mike Conley has been terrific as the point guard of the 2020-21 Utah Jazz and his name came up in may discussions regarding the 2021 All-Star game snubs. The left-handed guard is putting up 16 points, six assists, and four rebounds per game in the 2020-21 NBA season.

Donovan Mitchell is the driving force of the Utah Jazz and he definitely earns a place in the backcourt of this combined lineup. Mitchell is averaging 24 points, five rebounds and five assists per game, playing 33 minutes in each. While Conley missed the first matchup of the season against Miami, Mitchell scored 26 points in Utah's victory.

Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo and Rudy Gobert complete the frontcourt on this combined starting five. Butler and Adebayo are easily the best players on the Miami Heat roster, and many could argue the pair deserved All-Star consideration.

Butler is averaging 19.5 points, 7.7 rebounds and 7.8 assists per game and has made 43% of his field goals and 87% of his free throws. Meanwhile, Adebayo is having a career year and is averaging 19.6 rebounds, 9.6 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game with a 57% split from the field and 84% from the FT line.

Gobert was selected to his second All-Star game and he is the frontrunner for the NBA Defensive Player of the Year award. He is averaging 14 points and 13 rebounds per game, and leads the NBA in Defensive Rating (100.2) and Defensive Win Shares.

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