New York Knicks at Utah Jazz Preview: How, Who to Watch As Knicks Seek Right Tune

The New York Knicks open a five-game road trip on Wednesday night against the Utah Jazz.

The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear.

The New York Knicks can more or less follow the advice of Buddy the Elf on Wednesday night, as they tip off a five-game road trip against the Utah Jazz in Salt Lake City. This trip is tied for the Knicks' longest of the season and will also work its way through Phoenix, both Los Angeles teams, and Brooklyn before a Christmas doubleheader with the Milwaukee Bucks awaits.

New York took advantage of a brief return to Madison Square Garden on Monday night, taking down the Toronto Raptors in a 136-130 shootout despite missing primary contributors like Mitchell Robinson and Immanuel Quickley. Robinson will continue to sit out for at least the next two months while Quickley is listed as questionable due to knee inflammation.

Utah is fully enduring the throes of a rebuild, having dropped three in a row and nine of its past dozen. Each of the Jazz's last three defeats has come by double figures, the last one being a 134-120 final against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday.

This will be the first of two meetings between the Knicks and Jazz this season, with a rematch scheduled for Jan. 30 at MSG. New York swept last year's couple, it's first in the series since 2017-18.

What: New York Knicks (13-9) @ Utah Jazz (7-16)

Where: Delta Center, Salt Lake City, UT

When/Watch: Wednesday, 9 p.m. ET, MSG

Who's Favored: NYK -6

Keep An Eye On: Jericho Sims

With Robinson out, the Knicks made the curious decision to place Sims, often buried in the deeper portions of the rotation on healthy days, into the starting five. Though Sims' ultimate contributions are probably going to be made elsewhere ... head coach Tom Thibodeau has an apparent devotion to using Robinson and Isaiah Hartenstein as his exclusive big men ... Sims has taken advantage of his opportunities when offered, pulling in seven rebounds a game in 22 career starts. Of note, Sims has averaged 9.7 rebounds in three showings against Utah, his most against any team. He notably pulled in a career-best eight offensive in last year's visit, a 118-111 New York victory.

Salt Laker to Watch: Collin Sexton

Utah is dealing with a packed injury report as Jordan Clarkson has already been ruled out while John Collins, Walker Kessler, and Lauri Markkanen are all questionable. The Jazz's muted affairs at least give Sexton a chance to regain his professional footing. Sexton, one of the primary yields of the Donovan Mitchell trade, has come off the Jazz's bench but he's beginning to find his stride: in four December games, Sexton is averaging 16.3 points on 50 percent from the field and is coming off a 20-point game in relief in Monday's loss to the Thunder.

They Said It

"Our whole bench unit, I'm very, very pleased with the way they're playing. You need everybody. We've got to get everyone playing well together to bring the best out of each other and if we do that, we'll have a good chance to win."-Thibodeau after the benched scored 49 points in Monday's win over Toronto (h/t Brian Mahoney, Associated Press)

Go Fourth! Knicks Mute Jazz in Final Frame

Prediction

The Knicks' defensive lapses are concerning but this is another game where, if they're not able to handle business even without Robinson, they have bigger issues to worry about, especially with bigger challenges ahead. As long as they're not caught looking ahead, they should be able to prevail against a reeling young Jazz band.

Knicks 124, Jazz 112