Jazz–Nuggets rivalry

The Jazz–Nuggets rivalry is a National Basketball Association (NBA) rivalry between the Utah Jazz and the Denver Nuggets. The rivalry dates back to the 1976–77 NBA season, when the Nuggets joined the NBA as a result of the ABA–NBA merger. The rivalry is notable in that it features the only two NBA teams based in the Rocky Mountains.

Season-by-season results

1970–1976: Denver–Utah ABA rivalry Prior to joining the NBA, the Denver Nuggets were an ABA franchise from 1967–1976, and joining them in the league was the Utah Stars, a franchise that started as the Anaheim Amigos then renamed themselves the Los Angeles Stars, before moving to Utah in 1970. In the ABA, the two franchises formed a rivalry due to their proximity. The Nuggets won ABA championships in 1970 and 1975, while the Stars won in 1971. The two teams played each other in the 1974 ABA playoffs, a series the Nuggets won in six games.

The Nuggets and Nets had applied to join the NBA in 1975, but were forced to stay in the ABA by a court order. In 1976–77, the Nuggets officially moved to the NBA.

With the Stars, Salt Lake City had proven it could support big-time professional basketball. With this in mind, in 1976 the owners of the Spirits of St. Louis announced that they were moving the team to Utah for the 1976–1977 ABA season, to play as the Utah Rockies. However, this was undone when the ABA–NBA merger closed in June 1976 and the Spirits and the Kentucky Colonels were the only two teams left out of the merged league. (The Virginia Squires were folded shortly after the end of the regular season due to their inability to make good on a required league assessment, though there was no chance of them being part of a merger deal in any event.)

Professional basketball returned to Salt Lake City when the New Orleans Jazz of the National Basketball Association (NBA) relocated there in 1979.

1984: First playoff meeting By 1984, the Nuggets were eighth season in the NBA and the Jazz were in their fourth season in Utah. That season, the two franchises met in their first playoff match-up in the First Round of the Western Conference. With two of the best offenses in the league, the series was a high-scoring affair. The Jazz won Game 1 despite a furious Nuggets' comeback attempt in the fourth quarter in Utah. Game 2 saw Denver tie the series, with three 30-plus-point games from Dan Issel (33 pts), Kiki VanDeWeghe (32), and Alex English (31). Denver carried the momentum over and won a close Game 3. Utah's Adrian Dantley scored 39 points, as the Jazz saved off elimination with a 32 point fourth quarter to move the series back to Utah for the decisive Game 5. Utah won Game 5, 127-111, never trailing after a 41 point first quarter. Utah's Rickey Green played all but four minutes and hauled 16 rebounds and had 29 points. Dantley added 30 points and also had 12 rebounds.

Utah would lose in the next round to the Phoenix Suns, ending their first playoff season.

1985: Second playoff meeting In 1984-85, both franchises won their first round match-up. Utah upset the Houston Rockets in five games and Denver defeated the San Antonio Spurs in five games, as well. While their 1984 match-up was a back-and-forth affair, 1985 was a Nuggets rout, as they won the series, 4 games to 1. The highlight of the series was a Game 2 overtime when by Denver and a 40-point performance from Alex English in Game 5. On the plus side for Utah was the debut of future all-time NBA assist leader John Stockton, who the Jazz took 16th overall pick in the 1984 NBA Draft.

1994: Third playoff meeting In 1993-94, the Nuggets played around .500 in winning percentage all season long; the team got off to a 9–8 start to the regular season, before losing five straight games, but then posting a five-game winning streak afterwards in December, as they held a 22–25 record at the All-Star break. They won five of their final seven games of the season, and finished in fourth place in the Midwest Division with a 42–40 record, earning the eighth seed in the Western Conference, and qualifying for the NBA playoffs for the first time since the 1989–90 season. In the Western Conference First Round of the 1994 NBA playoffs, the Nuggets faced off against the top–seeded, and Pacific Division champion Seattle SuperSonics, who were led by the All-Star trio of Shawn Kemp, Gary Payton and Detlef Schrempf. The SuperSonics took a 2–0 series lead, but the Nuggets managed to win the next two games at home, including a Game 4 win at the McNichols Sports Arena in overtime, 94–85 to tie the series at 2–2. The Nuggets won Game 5 over the SuperSonics on the road in overtime, 98–94 at the Seattle Center Coliseum to win in a hard-fought five-game series, and became the first 8th-seeded team to beat a #1 seed; an on-court camera featured Mutombo, in jubilation on his back holding the ball after the buzzer.

The 1993-94 Jazz played competitive basketball with a 22–8 start to the regular season, but then lost five of their next six games, and held a 31–18 record at the All-Star break. At mid-season, the team traded Jeff Malone to the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for All-Star guard Jeff Hornacek. With the addition of Hornacek, the Jazz posted a ten-game winning streak between February and March, and won nine of their final eleven games, finishing in third place in the Midwest Division with a 53–29 record, and earning the fifth seed in the Western Conference; the team made their eleventh consecutive trip to the NBA playoffs. Karl Malone averaged 25.2 points, 11.5 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game, and joined the list in all-time points scored topping the 19,000 point mark, while John Stockton, a rookie in 1985, blossomed into an All-Star level point guard, averaging 15.1 points, 12.6 assists and 2.4 steals per game; both players were named to the All-NBA First Team. In the Western Conference First Round of the 1994 NBA playoffs, the Jazz faced off against the 4th–seeded San Antonio Spurs, who were led by the trio of All-Star center David Robinson, Dale Ellis, and rebound-specialist Dennis Rodman. The Jazz lost Game 1 on the road, 106–89 at the Alamodome, but managed to win the next three games over the Spurs, including a Game 4 home win at the Delta Center, 95–90 to win the series in four games.

In the Western Conference Semifinals, the Nuggets and Jazz for the first time since 1985. The Nuggets lost the first three games to the Jazz, but despite the threat of elimination, the team then managed to win the next three games, including a Game 6 win over the Jazz at home, 94–91 at the McNichols Sports Arena to even the series. However, the Nuggets lost Game 7 to the Jazz on the road, 91–81 at the Delta Center, thus losing in a hard-fought seven-game series. The Jazz would lose to the eventual champion Houston Rockets in the Western Conference Finals in five games the next round.

The Jazz would later go to the NBA Finals in 1997 and 1998, but lost to the Chicago Bulls each time.

2020: Fourth playoff meeting

Arguably the most memorable playoff meeting between the two franchises occurred in 2020, despite none of the games being played at each other's home venue. The season was suspended by the league officials following the games of March 11 after it was reported that Jazz center Rudy Gobert tested positive for COVID-19. When the league resumed, the Jazz and Nuggets were two of the 22 teams invited to the NBA Bubble on June 4. This meant every game would be played at a bio-secure bubble at Walt Disney World and the playoffs would start in August rather than the customary mid-April start.

Prior to the stop in play, both teams looked like NBA Final contenders. The Jazz, in their fourth year of playoff contention, were led by All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell and center Rudy Gobert, both of whom were originally drafted by the Nuggets before being immediately traded. Nikola Jokić and a breakout season from point guard Jamal Murray saw the Nuggets secure a playoff berth for their second consecutive season.

The Jazz raced off to a 3–1 lead; this included a Game 1 overtime when for the Nuggets. Had the Jazz won this game, they could have swept the series. In Game 4, Murray and Mitchell each had 50 and 51 points, respectively. This would be the first playoff game in NBA history in which two players scored 50 points. The Nuggets won Game 5 and Game 6, the latter which was another shootout between Murray (50 points) and Mitchell (44 points). Unlike the rest of the series, Game 7 was a defensive battle. Denver became the 12th team in NBA history to come back from a 3–1 deficit. Nikola Jokić scored the go-ahead hook shot with 27.8 seconds remaining in regulation. Mike Conley Jr.'s potential series-winning three-pointer at the buzzer rimmed out. In the next round, the Nuggets fell down 3–1, as well, before rallying to defeat the Los Angeles Clippers in seven. They lost to the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals. Three years later, the Nuggets won the NBA Finals, the first time either the Jazz or Nuggets won an NBA championship.

Season-by-season results

| Tie | | style=";" | Jazz, | style=";" | Nuggets, | style=";" | Nuggets | On February 10, 1982, at Denver, Jazz beat the Nuggets 151–148, their most points scored in a game against the Nuggets.On March 16, 1982, at Denver, Nuggets beat the Jazz 154–138, their most points scored in a game against the Jazz.On April 10, 1982, at Utah, Jazz beat the Nuggets 151–136, tied for their most points scored in a game against the Nuggets.

Jazz–Nuggets rivalry

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