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The Utah Jazz and Golden State Warriors begin their Western Conference semifinal series Tuesday in Oakland. Here is a breakdown of how the teams match up in their best-of-seven series.

Coaching

Quin Snyder was wonderful in the first round. He made all the right adjustments. He out-coached his counterpart Doc Rivers for most of the series. He proved quite capable under the pressure of playoff basketball. The Jazz have an advantage here. But unlike the Clippers series, the Warriors have so much talent that Utah's coaching advantage only will go so far because eventually talent takes over. Steve Kerr is definitely capable. His adjustment in the NBA Finals two years ago of going small and benching Andrew Bogut for Iguodala enabled the Warriors to beat the Cleveland Cavaliers and win an NBA title. This Warriors team is better than that Warriors team, so Kerr just can roll the ball out and let them play. Another question is how much do we see Kerr? He missed a portion of Golden State's first-round win over the Portland Trail Blazers due to health issues. If he can't go, Mike Brown fills in, and he's not as good as Kerr.

Advantage • Jazz

Benches

This is the closest matchup of all. The Jazz bench features Joe Johnson, Derrick Favors and Rodney Hood. All three are good enough to be full-time NBA starters, and all three played a significant role in getting the Jazz to their current position. The Warriors weren't projected as a deep team before the season. But Golden State coach Steve Kerr has done a wonderful job of building depth. He has Andre Iguodala, one of the best sixth men and defenders in basketball. But he's developed rookie Pat McCaw into a solid contributor. Javale McGee has turned around his career as an athletic presence in the middle. David West, Matt Barnes and Shaun Livingston are solid veterans who know how to play. Ian Clark, the former Jazz guard, is a sniper, who is usually good for a big shot or two. In the end, Utah's bench is probably slightly better, but it isn't nearly the gap initially projected at the beginning of the season.

Advantage • Jazz

Power forward

Boris Diaw as a starter is window-dressing for the Jazz. He seldom plays more than 25 minutes and often gives way to Joe Johnson in closing situations. But the Jazz often run offense through Diaw when he's on the floor. Coach Quin Snyder knows his minutes will be limited, so he uses him as much as possible when he's in the game. Diaw is a veteran, a great passer and often hits cutting teammates in stride for layups. Draymond Green is the ultimate role player. He's such a great role player that he's a star. He's one of the three best defensive players in basketball, someone who can guard anyone from point guards to centers. He's a terrific rebounder, passer, ballhandler, trash-talker — you name it. Diaw's job will be to keep Green occupied as much as possible. As good a defender as he is, the irony is you have to make Green defend. He's great on the ball. He'll absolutely wreck your entire offense if he's allowed to roam and help his teammates. So Diaw has to be aggressive when in the game.

Advantage • Warriors

Small forward

Kevin Durant vs. Gordon Hayward

Gordon Hayward is coming off a terrific first-round series in which he validated his all-star status. Take out the game where Hayward had food poisoning and scored three points, and he averaged 27.2 points, 8.2 rebounds and 3.3 assists in six games against Los Angeles. He shot 47.3 percent from the field, 45 percent from 3-point range and made 95 percent of his free throws. He now will have to be better. Kevin Durant is the second best basketball player in the NBA, trailing only LeBron James. He's someone who has given Hayward problems in the past with his superior length. Hayward will need to elevate his game even more against Durant and the Warriors. His defense will be needed more against the Warriors as well.

Advantage • Warriors

Shooting guard

Joe Ingles served as the glue for the Jazz against the Clippers. Yes, he struggled with his shot for most of the seven games against Los Angeles. But he shut down Clippers shooter JJ Redick for seven games. He harassed him, hounded him, ran through and over screens. He challenged his jumpers and frustrated him. Ingles took Redick out of the series, which ended in a Utah win. But Klay Thompson is a different beast than Redick. As good a shooter as Redick is, Thompson is better with a quicker release. The 6-foot-7 Thompson is bigger than Redick (6-4) and better off the dribble. He's one of the best shooting guards in basketball. Ingles needs to play the same defense. It likely won't yield the same results, but a little success is better than nothing.

Advantage • Warriors

Point guard

George Hill proved his worth to the Jazz in their first-round series win over the Los Angeles Clippers. He scored. He ran Utah's offense efficiently. He defended well. He showed up in clutch moments and actually outplayed Chris Paul in Game 7. He'll need to be at least as good against Stephen Curry. As good as Paul is, Curry may be better. He's a more explosive scorer with unlimited range and the ability to make heat-check shots. Curry isn't as good a defender as Paul, but he doesn't need to be for this Warriors team. Hill's been really good in the postseason, but Curry — as good as Paul is — represents a different beast.

Advantage • Warriors

Center

This is Utah's one advantage, and Rudy Gobert has to dominate this matchup for the Jazz to have any chance at an upset in this series. He also has to play well enough to erase other matchup disadvantages on the floor. Gobert is a game-changer defensively, but he's also been a game-changer offensively lately. Like Draymond Green, Gobert is one of the three best defensive players in basketball. He's a great rebounder, shot blocker and an almost automatic finisher close to the basket. Gobert had a peer in Clippers center DeAndre Jordan, which occupied him for most of that series. He has no peer in this series. ZaZa Pachulia is a savvy veteran, an effective screener and often frustrates opponents with questionable tactics. But he's nowhere near Gobert. So it's incumbent on Gobert to be dominant in this series and someone the Warriors have no answer for. If he can't do that, the Jazz are in real trouble.

Advantage • Jazz

Tony Jones' series prediction

The Jazz will be competitive, but being competitive and actually winning games are mutually exclusive. The Jazz are a very good team. The Warriors are historically great and start four potential hall of famers. That's a ridiculous hill for Utah to climb.

Prediction • Warriors in five games