Utah Jazz Blog – Page 55 – NBA Blog

Bobcats may want Jerry Sloan to be next coach

We’re hearing that the Bobcats may take a look at Jerry Sloan to replace Paul Silas.

The former Utah Jazz coach would be a tremendous, out-of-the-box choice and the first indication that Jordan is committed to turning his seven-win team around.

The obvious connection between Jordan and Sloan is that they both have their numbers hanging from the rafters in Chicago’s United Center. Beyond that, Jordan has great admiration for the coach he twice defeated in the Finals, at the end of his second three-peat.

Sloan might be tempted to return to the sidelines, if the situation and money are right. But what about taking over a team low on talent and embarking on a long rebuilding campaign, while working for an owner who doesn’t have deep pockets, doesn’t like to spend money on players and has been looking to sell half the team for close to a year?

— Reported by Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News

Parker helps Spurs take 3-0 lead over Jazz

Through nearly 40 minutes, the Utah Jazz made Tony Parker look average.

He had 11 points on 5-of-12 shooting, and the San Antonio Spurs were clinging to a five-point lead.

Parker the MVP candidate then took over.

”They threw a lot of guys at me, so I needed to be more patient and then in the fourth quarter I was more aggressive,” said Parker, who hit all five field goals and went 6 of 6 from the line in the final period to finish with 27 points.

His effort fueled a 102-90 victory Saturday night that gave the Spurs a 3-0 lead in the first-round Western Conference playoff series…

”He’s a handful and he’s very physical,” Parker said about Favors, who had 15 points, 11 rebounds and two blocks in his most extensive action of the series. ”He goes to the boards hard.” …

Harris, after scoring just 12 points in the first two games combined, had 12 in the first quarter and finished with 21.

Al Jefferson also rebounded from two sub-par games and finished with 21 points and 11 rebounds on 10-of-18 shooting…

While Favors was 3 of 7 shooting in the fourth, Utah’s other budding star struggled down the stretch.

Burks was just 1 of 6 in the fourth quarter and finished with 11 points.

— Reported by Lynn DeBruin of the Associated Press

Jazz embarrassed after Game 2 beatdown

One word crossed Al Jefferson’s lips in a muted tone when he was asked to describe what had just happened to him and the Utah Jazz on the AT&T Center court.

“Embarrassing.”

The night was inexplicable for Paul Millsap — the worst he’d ever been part of during his NBA career. “Tough” was the description Gordon Hayward uttered a few times. Devin Harris admitted it was “a little demoralizing.”

Game 2 was SOOOOO BAD for the Jazz, even Spurs coach Gregg Popovich kind of came to their defense.

The Jazz were hounded, hammered and humiliated by San Antonio — and that was just the first half. When the final buzzer finally blared its merciful sound, the Jazz were on the extremely short end of a 114-83 rout Wednesday night.

The Spurs — after beating the Jazz by an average of 23 points in their first two playoff games — will take a 2-0 series lead into Utah for Game 3 on Saturday night.

“We had a good night. They had a poor night,” Popovich, the 2012 NBA coach of the year, said. “This was just a matter of them having a bad, bad night. … It happens to all of us.”

— Reported by Jody Genessy of the Deseret News

Spurs wreck Jazz 114-83 to take 2-0 lead

Tony Parker scored 18 points and Kawhi Leonard added 17 as the Spurs raced to a 114-83 blowout victory over Utah Wednesday night at the AT&T Center.

The victory gave the Spurs a 2-0 lead in the best-of-7 series. Game 3 will be played in Salt Lake City on Saturday night.

It was the third largest victory in the Spurs’ playoff history and the largest since a 122-88 victory over Sacramento on April 22, 2006.

The Spurs shot 57 percent from the field and had a balanced scoring attack featuring seven players in double figures.

It stretched the Spurs’ consecutive winning streak to a season-best 12 games, including the last 10 games in the regular season.

Josh Howard and Al Jefferson scored 10 points apiece to lead Utah, which shot 34 percent from the field.

Wednesday’s victory punctuated a big night for Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, who was presented the Red Auerbach Trophy as the NBA’s Coach of the Year in ceremonies with Tim Duncan and David Robinson on the court shortly before tip-off.

The Spurs blew the game open with a run of 20 consecutive points late in the first half. During the run, Utah missed 12 straight shots and committed three turnovers in the drought that stretched for nearly seven minutes.

— Reported by Tim Griffin of the San Antonio Express-News Blog

Tony Parker scores 28, Spurs beat Jazz in Game 1

Tony Parker scored 28 points and added eight assists to lead the Spurs to a 106-91 victory over Utah Sunday afternoon in Game 1 of the NBA playoffs at the AT&T Center.

The victory snapped a six-game losing streak of Game 1 losses in the Spurs’ most recent playoff series. And coming into Sunday’s game, the Spurs had won only two of their 10 most recent playoff games.

But a big effort by the Big Three help lead them to the victory. Tim Duncan added 17 points and 11 rebounds and Manu Ginobili added seven points in the victory.

The Spurs are 12-0 this season when Ginobili, Duncan and Parker combine for at least 50 points this season.

The Spurs are 27-6 in NBA playoff series where they won the first game.

New acquisitions Stephen Jackson accounted for 14 points and Boris Diaw scored nine for the Spurs, who claimed their 11th straight victory this season.

Paul Millsap led Utah with 20 points and nine rebounds and Al Jefferson added 16 points and nine rebounds.

The victory came despite an injury to Tiago Splitter, who sustained a sprained left wrist in the second quarter and did not return. Splitter finished with four points and a rebound in seven minutes.

— Reported by Tim Griffin of the San Antonio Express-News (Blog)

After season-long struggle, Utah Jazz secure spot in playoffs

Moments before a confetti blizzard filled EnergySolutions Arena and prior to Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap embracing each other at midcourt after the buzzer, the raucous and postseason-hungry crowd of 19,911 chanted “Playoffs! Playoffs! Playoffs!”

It was a simple but oh-so-satisfying chant that aptly summed up the night for the Utah Jazz.

The playoff drought — longer for some members of the Jazz than others — is over.

After a postseason off, the Jazz will be back in the NBA’s Big Dance once again after eliminating the Phoenix Suns in a tense and thrilling 100-88 victory Tuesday night at EnergySolutions Arena.

“You know, it’s a credit to these guys,” Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin said.

And from these guys, Corbin was referring to everybody from his coaching staff that helped him build a bridge from Hall of Fame coach Jerry Sloan’s era to his own, to the 15 Jazz players who helped the franchise secure its 25th playoff berth in 29 years.

— Reported by Jody Genessy of the Deseret News

Earl Watson suffers knee injury

The following is a medical update on Utah Jazz guard Earl Watson:

Watson injured his right knee during the second quarter of the Jazz’s April 8 game at San Antonio. Watson was examined by Jazz team orthopedist Dr. Lyle Mason the following day and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) tests revealed a torn medial meniscus within Watson’s right knee. Watson underwent arthroscopic knee surgery on April 17 in New York City performed by Dr. David Altchek, during which his meniscus was repaired. Watson will miss the remainder of the Jazz season, but should be fully recovered in time for the 2012-13 season.

In this, his 11th NBA season and second with the Jazz, Watson (6-1, 199, UCLA) appeared in 50 games (two starts) and averaged 3.0 points, 2.4 rebounds and 4.3 assists in 20.7 minutes per game. He has not appeared in a game since injuring the knee April 8.

LeBron James and Al Jefferson named Players of Week

The Miami Heat’s LeBron James and the Utah Jazz’s Al Jefferson today were named the Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week, respectively, for games played Monday, April 16, through Sunday, April 22.

James helped Miami to a 4-1 week, averaging 31.0 points on 58 percent shooting, while grabbing 7.5 rebounds and dishing out 5.5 assists per game. He did not play in Miami’s only loss of the week, an 86-84 defeat against Washington. He scored at least 25 points in all four games he appeared in, including two 30-point performances. On April 16, he scored Miami’s final 17 points in the final 4:47 at New Jersey in a 101-98 win. The 17 consecutive points tied the Miami record for most consecutive points to end a Heat victory.

Jefferson registered three double-doubles to help Utah to a 3-0 week, as the Jazz competes for a playoff spot. He averaged 20.0 points and paced the league in rebounding with 15.3 boards per game. On April 16, he led the Jazz with 28 points and tied a career high with 26 rebounds to elevate the Jazz to 123-121 triple-overtime victory over the Mavericks.

Other nominees for the Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week were Denver’s Ty Lawson, L.A. Clippers’ Chris Paul, New York’s Carmelo Anthony, San Antonio’s Manu Ginobili, and Washington’s Kevin Seraphin and John Wall.

Delonte West fined $25,000 for giving `Wet Willy` to Gordon Hayward

Dallas Mavericks guard Delonte West has been fined $25,000 for a physical taunt by poking Gordon Hayward of the Utah Jazz in the ear, it was announced today by Stu Jackson, NBA Executive Vice President Basketball Operations.

The incident occurred with 3:40 remaining in the second quarter of Utah’s 123-121 win over Dallas at EnergySolutions Arena on April 16.

You can read about the initial incident and see a video clip here. And also see more on Hayward’s reaction here.

Gordon Hayward wanted to fight Delonte West after finger in ear incident

Utah Jazz swingman Gordon Hayward said he initially felt like ripping Delonte West’s finger off and fighting him after he jabbed it into Hayward’s right ear during the second quarter of Monday night’s triple-overtime win against Dallas.

”I wanted to fight right there, but you can’t do that,” Hayward said before Tuesday’s practice. ”It wouldn’t have been the smart idea. I’d risk getting a technical foul, getting suspended for the season, whatever. There’s more important things than fighting someone out on the court. The more important thing was getting the win and we were able to do that.”

Hayward acknowledged Tuesday that many of his teammates might have reacted differently.

But Hayward, who raised both arms and walked away, said he ”got the last laugh” as the Jazz prevailed 123-121 to keep their slim playoff hopes alive with four games remaining.

— Reported by Lynn DeBruin of the Associated Press