Grading the Jazz at midseason

Deron Williams >> B+. It is difficult to be too hard on Williams performance so far. Only recently has he appeared to be at full strength. The last four games he has averaged 26 points and 12 assists. He is the heart and soul of the Jazz and he will have a monster 2nd half.

Carlos Boozer >> Incomplete. Boozer put up good numbers but has only played 12 games so far this season. Unless he is a beast when he comes back, I don't think he will opt out of his contract after all.

Memo Okur >> B. He is scoring 3 more points a game and getting an extra rebound a game more from last season. He has really been good in the first half over the past few games.

Paul Millsap >> A. Millsap has been the MVP of the Jazz thus far. He has almost doubled his numbers from last year while only playing 10 more minutes a game. He will definitely be the top priority for the Jazz in the offseason. The Jazz want and need him to stay.

Andrei Kirilenko >> B+. He cooled off after a hot start to the season. I'd like to see him cut down on his 3-pointer attempts. He is only 11-46 from beyond the arc this season. Hornacek, what have you done to him??

Ronnie Brewer >> B-. His numbers are very similar to last seasons except his FG% is down from 56% to 48% this season. His biggest problem is his consistency.

CJ Miles >> B-. He can score, but not much else. He really needs more consistency, and needs to work on his overall game if he wants to keep his starting spot.

Kyle Korver >> C+. He has been struggling a bit this season due to his wrist injury. Hopefully he will be able to shoot a little better the rest of the season because for a 3 point specialist he hasn't been amazing (38%).

Brevin Knight >> B. He has been a solid backup for Deron. His minutes keep getting reduced as Williams gets to full strength so he will likely only play 10-15 minutes a game from here on out.

Matt Harpring >> C-. He has been recovering from a bad ankle infection. The Jazz have really missed his old production from the bench, but hopefully he will improve for the second half of the season.

Ronnie Price >> B. Nobody has been jerked around as much as Ronnie has this season. He has started a lot and not played in most the games he has appeared in. But he has admirably dealt with his uncertain role.

Morris Almond >> D. He hasn't done much this season, appearing in only 21 games, mainly in garbage time. He quickly lost his 2nd quarter minutes he was getting due to being unproductive. If his shot is not falling he is worthless on the floor. Maybe the Jazz were right in not picking up his option for next season.

Kosta Koufos >> A-. This guy has been better than anybody thought he would be this season. He's played 13 minutes a game and played in 35 games already. That is a rarity for a rookie in Jerry Sloan's system. The last rookie who got that much playing time and praise from Sloan as a rookie? Jerry Sloan. He could be the defensive center we have needed.

Jarron Collins >> D. He has only played in 7 games the whole season while recovering from a golf cart injury.

Kyrylo Fesenko >> C+. Hasn't earned much playing time but he did have a couple of very impressive games that showed flashes of his potential, especially his game fs Yao Ming and the Rockets.

Millsap to return

Steve Luhm of the Salt Lake Tribune is reporting that Paul Millsap participated in practice and will be ready to go tomorrow night in the game at the Lakers. He will have to wear a brace but he doesn't think it will bother him too much. Jarron Collins will also be available for the game tomorrow. Needless to say if the Jazz beat the Lakers at the Staples Center it will be the biggest win of the season so far, and having Millsap back will be a huge help. Surely Boozer isn't milking his injury and he doesn't want to have surgery but perhaps he could get some tips from Millsap on staying healthy, playing through pain, and returning quickly from an injury.

One other note, Millsap actually extended his double-double streak to 16 games while he was injured. It stopped at 15 games but the NBA figured out that he actually got 10 rebounds in his last game, not 9 like had been recorded, so he is up to 16 games. John Stockton has the record for most consecutive double-doubles at 18 games. Millsap's streak is also the longest since Kevin Garnett's streak in 2006. Millsap is a huge part of this team, maybe even it's MVP so far. He has scored more points than anybody else for the Jazz this season.

Injured Jazz = Dangerous Team

There are two things that don't end for the Jazz: their injuries and their depth. With Boozer, Okur, Millsap, and Collins all unavailable to play due to injuries things were looking pretty grim for the Jazz. But it looks like the Jazz might have another Millsap-like rookie: Kosta Koufos. The guy shot 8-11 on the night to end up with 18 points, 8 rebounds, and a couple steals, assists, and blocks in 29 minutes. Remember, this guy is just 19. Perhaps he will end up being the best Ohio State center drafted in the past couple years (#1 overal pick Greg Oden being the other.) He looks great even as a 19 year old. And Kirilenko filled in admirably at power forward. D-Will even had 4 steals, which is a great number for him. Really, everyone came out to play and it was an extremely pleasing game to watch. The Jazz are a fun team to watch most nights, and it is especially fun to watch young players like Fesenko, Koufos, Miles, and Brewer play key roles in a victory. I am definitely ready to get Millsap, Boozer, and Okur back, but it is fun to watch some other players step up and to see the Jazz win despite being so thin.

Season at a Glance

AK-- Has been the MVP of the Jazz this season. It would be a shame if he didn't make the all-star team and win 6th man of the year award if he keeps this up. Moving AK to 6th man duties was pure genius. I wish Williams knew how to play with Kirilenko better. But anytime Williams is not on the floor, Kirilenko better be there. His shooting is improved as well. This is the old AK that we grew to love so much and I love watching him again. When he is on like this, he is one of the most exciting players to watch and perhaps one of the top 5 overall, best well-rounded players in the league.

Boozer-- The guy has been great on offense and rebounding. He still can be abused on defense but he is trying more this year. He would have even better numbers if D-Will was playing. He feeds off Williams more than anybody. Hopefully Boozer won't miss time from his injury last night.

Brewer-- Still inconsistent although he is improving. Has some amazing hands, he can rack up the steals fast! His outside shot is much better and can hit the 3 now. His defense and now his more improved offense game is taking playing time away from Korver.

Millsap-- Defense, rebounds, and scoring is great. I really don't see how they could afford to not resign him this offseason.

Brevin-- The Jazz have to be thankful that he is on the team. He is a great defender and a much better point guard than Price.

CJ Miles-- At the beginning of the season it looked like he wasn't going to start for much longer. But the last few games he has exploded, leading the Jazz in scoring 2 games in a row. He will take away Korver's and Harpring's minutes. I am glad we resigned him, and it will be fun to see his improvement in the next 4 years.

Price-- He would be better if his FG% was better. He was great last night, playing the whole 2nd half.

Korver-- One of the most disappointing players this season. His wrist is hurt and isn't shooting as well. His defense leaves much to be desired and he is losing playing time fast to Brewer and Miles.

K2 (Kousta Koufos)-- This guy looks like he was a steal. He plays the best inside defense on the whole team already. He has a good shot as well. Look for him to get a few minutes a night and he should be one of the top 3 Jazz centers of all-time when it is all said and done.

D-Will-- He came back too early, but I can't blame him. The one problem with Deron is that he can't co-exist with Kirilenko on the floor. With Williams gone, it is clear that Kirilenko is easily the Jazz 2nd best player and best player when Deron is out.

Memo-- He hasn't played much due to a bad back and his dad's illness. We need him to be back to full strength soon.

Collins-- Hasn't played much, I don't know why he is on the team.

Harpring-- I really don't think he will get much playing time this season. He is too banged up. When he is healthy he is an excellent player but CJ and Brewer are starting to play really good and his minutes are being eaten up.

Almond-- I am confused. Sloan all of a sudden likes the guy and praises him and starts giving him a few minutes a night. Why did they decide to not exercise their option for him on next season?

Fess-- Likely headed to the D-League.

Jazz vs Suns notes

-The Jazz remain unbeaten at home despite not having Memo Okur and Deron Williams.
-The Jazz are 31-1 at home in 2008. That is just unbelievable. Does anybody question that the Jazz #1 priority is to obtain the #1 seed and home-court advantage throughout the playoffs?
-CJ Miles was a beast, scoring 15 in the 1st and 21 overall.
-Millsap and AK combined to block Shaq on three straight plays.
-The Jazz played hard and with a lot of energy tonight.
-Jarron Collins got his first start of the year.
-AK, Korver, Millsap, and Knight were huge off the bench.
-Koufos only played 5 minutes but had some nice defensive moves.
-Jazz were +19 with Knight on the floor.
-Will Okur and Williams finally be on the floor on Wednesday? Okur has a strained back and Williams still hasn't recovered from a preseason ankle sprain.
-It was a good knight for the Jazz and they picked up a much needed victory.

About that game tonight...

Memo Okur had to leave to Turkey for a family emergency. He might be gone the whole road trip. Jarron Collins is still injured, and Kyrylo Fesenko had to go to Canada to resolve visa issues (although I heard he might try to come back so he won't miss this opportunity to play.) That leaves the Jazz very thin in the middle. They have Koufus, Boozer, Millsap, and Kirilenko to try and fill the 2 big spots. Harpring is also probably still out.

But here is the good news: Deron Williams is a game-time decision. But this time the game-time decision means it is 90% likely that he will start and play tonight. That would be huge! I hope he isn't coming back too early but I'm guessing the Jazz won't let him do that. So I was thinking that without Williams, Okur, Collins, Fesenko, and Harpring, the Jazz would be lucky to win a game on this road trip. But if Williams comes back, even at 85%, I like our chances better. The best center we face on this trip is the Cavs' Z Illgaskus. Go Jazz!

Ranking the Jazz Players 1-15 and a couple random notes

1. Deron Williams
2. Carlos Boozer
3. Andrei Kirilenko
4. Memo Okur
5. Kyle Korver
6. Ronnie Brewer
7. Paul Millsap
8. Matt Harpring
9. Ronnie Price
10. Brevin Knight
11. CJ Miles
12. Kosta Koufus
13. Morris Almond
14. Jarron Collins
15. Kyrylo Fesenko

Yet to come:
16. Ante Tomic
17. Tadija Dragicevic

Note on depth/Bench: The depth of this team is ridiculous. I'm trying to be totally fair to all NBA teams when I say I can't think of another team with that kind of depth. Look at the bench players: Andrei Kirilenko, Kyle Korver, Paul Millsap, Matt Harpring, and even Ronnie Price and Brevin Knight. That 2nd team definitely wouldn't be the worst starting 5 in the league. If the starters can keep the games close, then the 2nd unit of the Jazz will crush opponents leading to several Jazz blowout victories.

Note on CJ: CJ Miles is arguably the worst player on the Jazz, yet he will start at SF. My guess is that the Jazz are trying to get Miles to have the same kind of season that Brewer had last year. Brewer was a seldom used, young player with loads of talent, who never did much when he played. But when he was stuck with Williams, Boozer, and Okur he exploded and became a marvelous player. Hopefully Miles will improve likewise by getting the bulk of his playing time with Williams, Boozer, and Okur. He should get lots of open looks if teams double-team the Jazz. Hey, if it worked for Brewer, then why not for Miles, who is just as (if not more) young and athletic.


Injury Note: Jazz announced that Williams will not play in the season opener tomorrow night.

The Beatles learn to play Jazz

Andrei Kirilenko - Baby You're a Rich Man - Has any NBA player been payed so much to be the 6th man?

Morris Almond - Any Time at All - He'd be happy to get any NBA minutes after leading the D-League in scoring last year.

Kyrylo Fesenko - Back in the U.S.S.R. - Will he go to play in Ukraine again if he can't improve?

Jerry Sloan - In My Life - Will he ever win Coach of the Year in my lifetime?

Carlos Boozer - Can't Buy Me Love - Will he spurn the Jazz like he did the Cavs next offseason?

Ronnie Brewer - Carry that Weight - He put on 15 lbs. of muscle but will that slow him down?

Matt Harpring - Dr. Robert - Harpring's health could cause this to be his last season.

Jarron Collins - The End - Hopefully has come to his last season as mediocre backup center.

Kyle Korver - Fixing a Hole - Fixes a huge hole of 3 point specialist the Jazz have had.

Deron Williams - Getting Better - How much better can this guy get?

Memo Okur - I'm So Tired - Memo won't be saying this anymore after getting in the best shape of his career.

Paul Millsap - Here, There, and Everywhere - Millsap seems to be everywhere the ball is.

Ronnie Price - With a Little Help From My Friends - Hopefully he can lead the Jazz to victory with some help in Deron Williams absence.

Brevin Knight - Hello, Goodbye - This guy only has one year on a contract, could be a short stay with the Jazz.

CJ Miles - Twist and Shout - He's got to be happy he's in the starting lineup.

Kousta Koufos - Please Mr. Postman - This guy supposedly has extremely good manners, something Jerry Sloan likes.

Stockton and Malone

The Jazz have two big holes: they don't have a defensive stopper in the middle and they don't have a great back-up point guard. Ronnie Price is alright but Deron Williams is having to play way too many minutes. The Jazz have as good of a shot as anybody at winning a championship this year, especially if they obtain home-court advantage in the Western Conference Playoffs.


It is a shame that Malone and Stockton didn't win a title. You know they only retired a few years ago. If Michael Jordan made a comeback (twice) why can't Stockton and Malone. I guarantee Malone would still be the most fit player in the NBA. Stockton probably still plays some games and he kept himself in excellent condition as well. I think the problem is that you can't add players at this point of the year if they want to play in the playoffs so of course this wouldn't work. But imagine Stockton coming in to spell Deron Williams for 10-15 minutes a game. Malone could easily provide 20-30 minutes, and could even play most the game if Memo or Boozer got in early foul trouble. He would shut down players in the inside. Plus Malone could tutor Boozer and teach him how to defend and Stockton could teach Williams all the little aspects of the game that can be so important. You cut Hart and Collins, add Malone and Stockton and you get a championship ring for everyone. I'd add Hornacek to the list but he said he couldn't make it down the court more than twice with his terrible knees. This would all be fun to watch but of course it will never happen.