Shorthanded Jazz carry ten-game skid into Houston Cup game

The Utah Jazz go to Houston for an NBA Cup group game having lost their last ten and missing three of their most important players. Lauri Markkanen (wrist), Jaren Jackson Jr. (knee) and Jusuf Nurkic (foot) are all listed as out for a team that is 1-11 and 15th in the Western Conference.

Houston is the opposite story. The Rockets are 9-3, third in the West, and have won seven of their last ten. Alperen Sengun is averaging 21.1 points, 9.4 rebounds and 7.9 assists, Kevin Durant leads the team with 20.9 points a game, and Houston allows 106.5 points, fourth-fewest in the league. Up front, Steven Adams is out with a calf injury and Clint Capela has an ankle problem.

The Cup raises the stakes. Both sides lost their West Group A openers to Dallas, and with only four group games each and point differential among the tiebreakers, Houston has little room to slip before its group trip to Denver.

Utah's losses have not all been routs. The Jazz are 0-6 in games decided by ten points or more, so five of their defeats came by single digits. Keyonte George is averaging 20.4 points and 6.5 assists, and No. 2 pick Darryn Peterson has averaged 17.1 points over the last ten games. The market prices Houston at 92%.

Is an 8% chance about right for a shorthanded Utah, or is the market underrating a team that has stayed close in five of its losses?