2013 Fall camp/Pre-Season!

[Xiao Yao You]

Play Ball!

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[QUOTE]Jazz go twice Tuesday

The Jazz were scheduled to practice twice on Tuesday

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[QUOTE]But Trey Burke, being new here and trying to be helpful, offered clarification as training camp opened this week as he tried to answer a question about the need to be patient in his development as the next point guard to follow the path carved by a certain No. 12.

"I think that

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"(Burks) worked his tail off this summer. I thought he made some good strides last year, especially having to put him in the point-guard role some and he started for us at times at the point.

"He's a 2-man naturally, but he's a basketball player," Corbin said. "He's been willing to work this summer, he's worked on his body, his conditioning is up and his IQ basketball-wise has increased, so we're really looking forward to him having a good year."

Over his first two years in the league, there were nights when Burks would find himself buried on the end of Utah's bench and he would barely see the floor. He played sporadically at times and seemed unsure of what his role was.

Then there were those nights when he'd come out and, given an opportunity to display his quickness and athleticism, he'd step into the spotlight and shine brightly.

There were nights like last March in San Antonio, when he scored 14 points in 22 minutes against the Spurs, or that night last season at Milwaukee, when he played a career-high 36 minutes and responded by putting up 19 points, 4 assists, 3 rebounds and 2 steals.

Corbin said Burks' biggest improvement may be the mental side of his game.

"Confidence, positive confidence," the Jazz coach said. "You come out of college and you have a chip on your shoulder. He certainly had a chip on his shoulder because he had a lot to prove. He still has a lot to prove to himself and to everybody in this league.

"But he knows better now what he's getting ready to face. And he's working smarter at getting himself ready on both ends of the floor. His body has gotten better from the standpoint of how he can move and use his hands on the defensive end and get over screens and get small at times and stay wide and big at times on smaller guys. His knowledge of the different things he can use that he has against different opponents is increasing.

"I think, along with his physical play, I think the mental aspect of thinking the game

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[QUOTE]Insider

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"I feel a little bit more comfortable knowing that I got my first practice under my belt, and I'm just ready to move forward from here," he said at the Zions Bank Basketball Center on Tuesday afternoon.

"There was a lot of uncertainty, really, not really knowing what to expect coming into training camp," the Michigan product said. "But once I got comfortable with the staff and got comfortable with my new teammates, they're making it easy for me out there, helping me through my mistakes and, more importantly, they're teaching me."

Head coach Tyrone Corbin recognizes the learning curve that lies ahead of Burke and other young players. He and his coaching staff have taken the time to offer advice to help him adjust to his new surroundings

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[QUOTE]POSTING CHANGES: A new group of big men moving into primary roles has led to some changes in the Jazz offense.

"Derrick (Favors) and Enes (Kanter) are very capable low-post guys. They

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EXPANDING ROLES: Entering his fourth season in the NBA, swingman Gordon Hayward is working to increase his repertoire on offense.

"Definitely try to add a mid-range part to my game," he said. "A lot of it last year was either the 3-point line or layups and finishes like that, so I'm working on finishes at the mid-range."

Hayward added that moving to the post is another item in his bag of tricks.

"I'm trying to find different places that I can score and be effective," he said. "When I have a smaller guy (defending me), I'll definitely go into the post and take advantage of that."

The Jazz coaching staff is also expecting the returning starter to be more of an instigator.

"I've been asked to be more of a playmaker," Hayward said. "I expect the ball to be in my hands a little bit more, and to go find guys in situations and spots where they can be successful."

nice!

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[QUOTE]UPDATE ON MARVIN: Veteran guard Marvin Williams continues on his road to recovery from offseason surgery to repair a sore right heel and Achilles tendon.

With an anticipated recovery time of at least six months, Williams is not expected to return to the floor until December.

"It

[mrpibb]

Hey, Xiao. Do you watch/listen to the Locked On Jazz podcast?

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I follow his site. I haven't listened to the podcasts. I probably should. I like what he has to say rather I agree with it all or not.

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For six years the question was whether the Celtics would win the championship. Now Danny Ainge finds himself overseeing a far less promising environment. All of the big names who played for or coached the championship team of 2007-08 are now in Los Angeles or Miami or Brooklyn or (in the case of Rajon Rondo) on indefinite leave. Instead of trying to win, should they now be trying to lose? "As I walk around town, more than anything else there are those that say, 'Hey, don't win too many games,"' said Ainge, the Celtics' president of basketball operations. "There are so many fans that want us to play for the draft." Ainge's measured response is that they should be more careful what they wish for. "That's harder than people recognize," said Ainge of losing as a strategy. "It's a really easy thing to conceptualize, and an easy thing to talk about and philosophize about. But it's a hard thing to live through -- for fans, for coaches, for owners, for sponsors, for our TV partners." SI.com

"If Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was out there to change your franchise forever, or Tim Duncan was going to change your franchise for 15 years? That might be a different story," said Ainge. "I don't see that player out there." SI.com

Thought this was interesting. Not as high on Wiggins as others apparently. Going to be a long season. Buckle up! :yaohappy:

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[QUOTE]O

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[QUOTE]Feb. 19, 2004

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2000: DeShawn Stevenson (23), Kaniel Dickens (50)


Good fit for the system not for Jerry.


2001: Raul Lopez (24), Jarron Collins (53)

Too bad Raul's knees weren't up to the pounding of the NBA. He was a great fit. Too bad Jerry loved Collins.


2002: Ryan Humphries (19), Jamal Sampson (47). Note: Humphries traded to Orlando for Curtis Borchard

Curtis another one who's body wasn't built for the pounding of the NBA.


2003: Sasha Pavlovic (19), Mo Williams (47)

Could have been one of his better drafts if they'd stayed around for more than a season. Wouldn't have gotten Deron if they'd kept Mo.


2004: Kris Humphries (14), Kirk Snyder (16), Pavel Podkolzin (21). Note: Podkolzin traded to Dallas for future first-round pick

A couple more non-Jerry guys. Too bad Snyder was crazy. He could have been a good fit.


2005: Deron Williams (3), C.J. Miles (34), Robert Whaley (51)

Poor CJ. Never could live up to Sloan and the fans expectations. Should have been Paul!


2006: Ronnie Brewer (14), Dee Brown (46), Paul Millsap (47)

Brewer and Paul! A couple great fits.


2007: Morris Almond (25), Herbert Hill (55). Note: Hill traded to Philadelphia for Kyrylo Fesenko.

Splitter was available and they already had Brewer and CJ. :rolleyes: Fesenko :roll:


2008: Kosta Koufos (23), Ante Tomic (44), Tadija Dragicevic (53)

Loved Kosta. Still not sure why he fell out of favor? Ante next season finally?


2009: Eric Maynor (20), Goran Suton (50)

Oklahoma thanks you for the gift!


2010: Gordon Hayward (9), Jeremy Evans (55)

2011: Enes Kanter (3), Alex Burks (12)


Along with 2006 these look like his best drafts other than getting Deron. 2011 especially looks like it could end up being special.


2012: Kevin Murphy (47)

Looks like he got better at drafting over the years. Sloan certainly wasn't easy to draft for.

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[QUOTE]STARTING POINT GUARD

Candidates: Trey Burke, John Lucas III

My friends Andy Larsen, Austin Horton, and Daniel Tate did a nice job dissecting this particular topic on last week

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[QUOTE]If the NBA season started today, it

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[QUOTE]Marvin Williams continues rehabilitation after undergoing surgery on his right heel and Achilles tendon.

There is no time frame for his return, but he said, "I don

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“I think it’s what’s best for me. I ended up at a place where there’s a great opportunity for a lot of playing time,” Rush said. “I’m happy where I’m at right now.”

Two other California transplants he still calls teammates — Richard Jefferson and Andris Biedrins — are probably even happier with their new situations.

News that they’d been dealt to Utah was anything but a vacation spoiler.

“I really like it here,” Biedrins said. “I like the weather. … I really like the snow.”

For Biedrins and Jefferson, the change of scenery sure beats the career fog they were experiencing in the Bay Area.

Last season, the 7-foot Biedrins scored a grand total of 24 points and averaged only 9.3 minutes in 53 appearances for the on-the-rise Warriors. He hasn’t scored more than 5.0 points per game since his double-double season of 2008-09 (11.9 ppg, 11.2 rpg).

“The last couple of years were bad for me and I didn’t play a lot. It’s been great that I’m here,” Biedrins said. “It’s a new chapter in my life. I will do anything what it takes, just to regain myself and be who I was."

Wouldn't that be great!


The recent drop-off has been even more considerable for Jefferson. The 6-7 small forward only averaged 3.1 points after tallying no less than a nine-points-per-game average in his previous 11 NBA seasons. The 33-year-old averaged a career-high 22.6 points for New Jersey in 2007-08.

On Monday, Jefferson joked that the rough season came about because he was forced to wear No. 44 instead of his preferred No. 24 (which he now sports in Paul Millsap’s absence).

More accurately, Jefferson pointed out that he entered training camp injured in 2012. When his health returned, up-and-comer Harrison Barnes had secured the lion’s share of minutes at their position, forcing the former prolific scorer to take on a mentoring role for playoff-bound Golden State.

“Last year,” Jefferson said, “was a tough year. … I received my first DNP (did not play) in 12 years.”

Be interesting to see if he has anything left. Should be a good vet to have around the locker room anyway.


Rush suffered a season-ending knee injury in the second game of the 2012-13 campaign. He’s still rehabbing after having ACL surgery in January and hasn’t been able to fully participate in training camp. It’s not clear when he’ll be able to go at full speed, but it’s likely he’ll split a chunk of minutes with Alec Burks at the shooting guard spot.

“He’s a great shooter and he’s a great competitor,” Jefferson said of Rush. “He’s a very good defender, but again it’s going to be awhile before he’s himself.”

It might take awhile for Biedrins and Jefferson to establish their roles on a team that is admittedly in a youth movement.

“They seem to relish the moment,” Corbin said of the traded Warriors. “They all come in with their positive attitude about working to earn a spot with this team and to be effective for us in whatever role that is for them here.”

Biedrins is young enough (27 years old) that he still has time to re-establish himself as a presence in the paint despite the tailspin he’s been in the past few years. Rush has proved to be a reliable 3-point shooter and defender. And Jefferson is hoping his improved health and fresh start will push him back into NBA relevance.

Even if they don’t provide any substantial contributions on the court, the three players’ contracts are helping the Jazz. With all of its likely starters on rookie contracts and the bigger salaries of Al Jefferson, Mo Williams and Paul Millsap in the past, Utah needed to increase its financial output to meet minimum requirements for the payroll. That certainly happened. Jefferson is the highest-paid Jazz player this year with an $11 million salary, while Biedrins is set to bring in $9 million and Rush $4 million. Trading for three guys in the last year of their contracts also gives the Jazz flexibility in the 2014 offseason to structure extensions, sign different free agents and/or broker more deals in an effort to make the franchise a “championship contender,” to use the front office’s oft-repeated optimistic phrase.

The ex-Warriors and Jazz coaching staff, however, are hoping to make themselves much more useful than just being contract pawns in this rebuilding chess game.

Corbin sounds like he’s more than willing to give them that chance, too. He credited Richard Jefferson for coming to camp in great shape, going hard in drills and “being the true pro that he is.”

“I’m just looking to contribute in any way,” Jefferson said. “Hopefully, it’s on the court. If not, it’s going to be mentoring some guys, whether it’s Gordon (Hayward), whether it’s Alec, whoever it is. I just want to contribute.”

Same goes for Biedrins, whom Corbin said “has been great” early on in training sessions and in unofficial workouts leading up to camp.

Both incoming veterans are very complimentary of the younger guys in their positions, and they believe they can be productive players with consistent minutes.

“Whatever coach will give me opportunity, I’ll do my best and give my 100 percent. If it’s going to be 10 minutes or five or 15, I’ll accept any role he has for me,” Biedrins said. “I still need to work a lot to get my confidence back, but it’s a good start. It’s a fresh start. It’s been great.”

Imagine how excited he’ll be when the snow arrives for good.

Just don’t mention that part about Utah winters to Rush. Especially if he’s in Hawaii.

EMAIL: jody@desnews.com

TWITTER: DJJazzyJody

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[QUOTE]SALT LAKE CITY

[El Kabong]

Grantland preview of the Jazz

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EXg56rY-v6E&feature=c4-overview&list=UUwLr_DYKR8aS0k4r8bB5I5Q

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[QUOTE]And while their games are completely different, the Jazz could have an occasional challenge in defining their roles on the floor. Who is truly the center, and who is the power forward?

Coach Tyrone Corbin avoids the issue by eschewing labels, saying Friday that he sees "two bigs for now."

It

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Fans wanting to get a glimpse of the new-look Jazz will have their opportunity Saturday at EnergySolutions Arena. The team will hold its annual scrimmage at 4 p.m. Attending the scrimmage is free. Players will be interviewed on the floor before they play.

The Jazz roster currently includes 20 players, which is the league maximum. Per NBA rules, it must be reduced to 15 by opening night, Oct. 30 against Oklahoma City.

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[QUOTE]The Utah Jazz forward stepped on the scales Friday morning and got excited when he saw a much bigger number than the previous time he

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Friday marked the final day of two-a-day workouts for the Jazz, who've had seven practices since camp began Tuesday.

No new injuries reported!

[QUOTE]Corbin still isn

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http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/jazz/56963750-87/kanter-jazz-dance-team.html.csp

G definitely looking bigger. Showing off his guns in the picture. Might be able to play him at some stretch 4!

[QUOTE]There

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The new-look Utah Jazz are counting on a breakout season by Gordon Hayward.

So far, so good.

According to coach Tyrone Corbin, Hayward has gotten off to good start during the first three days of training camp.

"His maturity, his body, his mental state," Corbin said Thursday morning. "

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Rookie point guard Trey Burke insists he

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The Jazz have 20 players on the roster, meaning there is a battle raging among the newcomers to impress the coaching staff. Corbin declined to single out any individuals, but said the players new to the Jazz

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Kanter showed that he has plenty of basketball moves after the action began. Utah

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the Utah Jazz showed off their new players and returning guys with new roles at Saturday

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The Jazz will take Sunday off before resuming practice Monday ahead of Tuesday

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Bill Oram: I'm curious to see what happens with Ian Clark. Jazz guard was brought in to make team, but hasn't been overwhelming in first week. Sounds like he may just be pressing a little bit. Which is understandable for an undrafted rookie trying to make an impression. However, I don't think there is much risk the Vegas SL MVP gets cut. He would have to be lousy to get waived. He hasn't been that. Twitter @tribjazz

D-League if he doesn't earn a spot in the rotation just like any of their other young guys as far as I'm concerned and I think Lindsey will use it unlike O'Conner did. He has guaranteed money. He won't get cut.

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[QUOTE] Trey Burke

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The Jazz had seven practices, including three two-a-days, and a scrimmage in a five-day period before getting Sunday off. Utah will practice again Monday ahead of Tuesday's exhibition opener at home against Golden State.

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[QUOTE]Part-time coach Karl Malone

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One possibly undervalued quality about the consensus national college player of the year? Vocal leadership.

The Jazz are without a clear cut emotional leader, and it

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The scrimmage marked the end of the training camp portion of the NBA preseason. The Jazz were off Sunday and will resume practice Monday before hosting Golden State in Tuesday

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The Marcin Gortat Goodbye Party Raffle: The Suns' veteran center is the most likely player who will be dealt before the trade deadline, though there will be interest in big-salaried players in the final year of their deals like Boston's Kris Humphries ($12 million), Utah's Richard Jefferson ($11 million) and Dallas' Shawn Marion ($9.3 million).

NBA.com

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[QUOTE]When the Utah Jazz acquired Rudy Gobert on draft night, they saw an unpolished young center who might help them down the road.

After the Jazz

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First-round draft pick Trey Burke is "looking forward to getting the season started," beginning with the exhibition opener against the Warriors.

A key to the Jazz

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[QUOTE]The Jazz allowed 98.1 points per game last season, tying for 13th in the NBA with Atlanta, Minnesota and New Orleans. Of those four teams, only the Hawks reached the playoffs.

According to Corbin, improved defense is a primary goal this season.

"It has to be a priority for us, the way we finished last year," he said. "Although we won 43 games, we didn

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[QUOTE] It

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[QUOTE]Burke has apparently looked good in practice, but he

[HarryCallahan]

Jefferson isn't to happy about leaving the Castro for Mormon city...

http://static.everyjoe.com/files/2010/08/richard-jefferson-gay.jpg

[El Kabong]

I thought he'd be happy. Plenty of fresh white meat available in Utah.

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Rusty Simmons: Andris Biedrins seems really happy in Utah. "Of course, it's no secret that things weren't going my way. It's nice to have a fresh start." Twitter @Rusty_SFChron


Didn't play much and Gobert and Evans looked good.

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Posted on October 8, 2013 by David Locke
EMPTYING THE NOGGIN

Big Question of the night is how much was the Warriors 33% shooting because of pre-season, fatigue (3 games in 4 nights) or because of the new Jazz focus on defense.

I think it is probably mostly the first two, that is how both Thurl Bailey and Ron Boone felt during the broadcast but you saw good rotations and you saw lots of rim protection. Some of the pick and roll defense still needs work.

Still got to be better without Al no?

[QUOTE]Favors rebounding was awesome. 14 rebounds, 12 on the defensive end in just 26 minutes

Trey Burke played a nice game. His line tonight is what we should expect most nights

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[QUOTE]1. The Jazz

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Favors is much farther behind, as he played in 252 more minutes in his third season as he did as a rookie. Because his second season was a lockout shortened year he essentially played Kyrylo Fesenko type minutes. He's never gotten close to playing 2,000 minutes before. (Which, btw, is not on him, it's on the coaches or the general manager.

Some of it's on him. He's had problems with fouls regardless.


The Jazz got rid of a guy who scored 30 ppg four times in five years to make room for a guy going into his second year before when they moved Adrian Dantley for Karl Malone's benefit. But they decided to keep Al Jefferson around (a never ever all-star vs. the HOFer Dantley is) in order to retard Favors' growth?)

They didn't move AD for Karl. They moved him for Frank Layden.


That all looks to change this season as both players, now into their fourth year and on the precipice of getting significant raises, will finally have the ball in their hands, and be on the court at the same time.

Let's not mince words here, Hayward as a shooting guard is a much better defender than Randy Foye is. And Derrick Favors as a center is a much better defender than Al Jefferson could ever dream to be. If Gordon is at the three he has to contend with some pretty heavy duty guys but still doesn't back down. Against power forwards Favors will have to contend with more and more face up guys who will draw him out of the paint. Regardless, on defense these two deserved to be on the court more. They will be on the court more this season. And both will help one another out.

So much so that the game plan for the other team will most likely end up being "run a pick and roll with the guys Favors and Hayward AREN'T defending" and try to take them out of the play area as much as possible.

I really believe in their defense, and I think that their length and mobility will cause fits for other teams. Even better is that Hayward doesn't gamble (unlike, say, a guy who got the media to rebrand gambling as hustle like DeMarre Carroll did)

All I know is that they generally looked a lot better with Demarre on the floor.


, and Favors can defend shots without leaving his feet. In a season where we need them to stay out of foul trouble it's good that they can play grounded, fundamentally sound defense.

If there is a problem with these two it appears to be on offense, and that's really only because Favors isn't a one on one scorer just yet and does pick up offensive fouls. Really though? I'm not worried at all because this year we expect our players to be able to counter attack more because of defensive stops (remember what those are Utah Jazz fans?) -- and Hayward is good enough to get the board and run the break, and I'm sure a guy like Favors has learned to trail really well by now. (Karl Malone's voice seems hoarse and it's only October)

These two guys are going to lead our team, and help one another. We saw how John Stockton and Karl Malone worked so well together as a 1 and a 4. Right now? Right now we have a chance to see the evolution of the game as our best players are a wing and a defensive big. Two or three, four or five, it almost doesn't matter anymore -- just as long as they get out on the floor together this year.

Surprise_favors

N.B. Over their three year career, these two cats have played a grand total of 2,017 minutes together. Which means they're at a first year level, going into their fourth. They need to be together more. Good things will happen.

Hayward + Favors Career on the floor together Averages
Season G Min PTS REB AST STL BLK +/- MPG PPG RPG AST SPG BPG
2010 2011 Reg 20 273 518 236 115 39 40 -52 13.7 25.9 11.8 5.8 2.0 2.0
2011 2012 Reg 58 664 1365 685 290 93 87 39 11.4 23.5 11.8 5.0 1.6 1.5
2011 2012 Play 4 70 141 67 21 8 11 -12 17.5 35.3 16.8 5.3 2.0 2.8
2012 2013 Reg 67 1010 2046 938 482 183 148 33 15.1 30.5 14.0 7.2 2.7 2.2
Total 149 2017 4070 1926 908 323 286 8 13.5 27.3 12.9 6.1 2.2 1.9
I do think that them being on the court together for about 13.5 mpg is a little too low. Don't you?

Only because Jefferson sucked so bad.

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[QUOTE]"We want to see Alec coming off the bench right now

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"I try not to think about [the summer league performance] anymore," Burke said afterward. "That was one phase, my first real taste of the NBA. Now I

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Corbin said he still might tinker with his starting lineup and rotations. He wanted to put the 33-year-old Jefferson, entering his 13th season, into the opening lineup to steady the younger starters.

"He

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Kanter hadn

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[QUOTE]One area in which they can be consistent is rebounding. Led by Favors

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There was Jeremy Evans playing like he deserved to be there. There was the entire team doing a thing called defense. There was Gordon Hayward ripping the ball out of Klay Thompson's hands, AK-style. There was the bench, the terrible bench as we've all been told, playing pretty well. There was Favors playing like the Captain of the Defense. There was a starting lineup that figured out how to get out of a funk all by itself. There was Trey Burke looking like The Trey Burke, NCAA Player of the Year. There was Kanter. There was Burks. There was Richard Jefferson. There wasJohn Lucas, III. There was Gobert. There was Biedrins.

I feel kinda bad now for making fun of the RJeff start. He played decently, and that block was Boss. And Beans ... what a move for the score.

But to me, one thing stands out above all else. It was late 2nd quarter or early 3rd, the Jazz missed a shot and were getting back on defense. There was Favors, shouting out to Kanter where he needed to go. And Kanter wasn't moving. I don't know if he didn't hear, or didn't understand, or what. But he wasn't moving.

And so Favors put both hands on Kanter's back and shoved him to the spot he needed to be.

* * *

Folks ... this changes everything.

We're used to seeing a Captain of the Offense. It's called a Point Guard, and we've had some really terrific ones. Now we have a Captain of the Defense, and he's a Power Forward/Center.

More than anything else, it was obvious to me how much the team really has been working to defend well. It's not just lip service. It's not just the catch phrase of the training camp. They were doing it like they cared, like there was a plan, and like they were working together.

Sure, it'll take more than one pre-season game to know whether the plan will consistently work, to know whether the players will consistently dedicate themselves to it, to know how much more work and tweaks it will need. And there was likely some fatigue factor for Golden State.

But for the first time I can remember ... and possibly the first time since Frank Layden sat in the coach's chair ... the entire team seems to have made a commitment to defend like it matters.


Frank Layden? :facepalm


Random Stats that made me happy:

Favors and Jeremy combining for 27 rebounds.
Hayward and Burks combining for 12 assists.
Jeremy Evans shooting 6-11 and hitting dunks, layups, and jumpers.
Kanter and Favors getting only 2 fouls apiece
8 blocked shots by the team; 3 by Favors.
7 rebounds by Hayward
* * *

It's a long way from winning the first pre-season game to conquering the universe. But whatever. For a night, it felt like the universe was there to be had.

Did it matter?

Of course it did. Had they lost, had they played poorly, we would have had to mutter: "I'm not worried" over and over. And you know what, maybe we'll be in that spot on Friday.

But what fun to just enjoy and celebrate. NBA basketball is back. The Jazz feel reborn. And our guys win a game by dominating defensively.

The Quintet

I'm bringing back the Jazz Quintet to my post game recaps. For those of you who are newer, these are five guys who I feel best represented what was good about the team. It was a great idea until one day I was irritated with some players and deliberately included only three. Amar got mad, because it totally messed up his spreadsheet of Quintet mentions.

Well, here's my Quintet for Pre-Season Game 1:

Preseason1quintet_medium

Derrick ... for Captaining the Defense
Jeremy ... for showing that you belong on the court
Ty ... for making defense more than just word-of-the-week
Alec ... for willingly leading the bench
Andris ... for that awesome score

[Xiao Yao You]

Aaron Falk: Corbin said he's in "no rush" to cut down his 20-man roster at this point in the preseason. Twitter @tribjazz

McGuire

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[QUOTE]Forward Dominic McGuire holds one distinction among the 20 players participating in the Utah Jazz

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[QUOTE]The Jazz have focused on defense in training camp and only allowed 78 points against Golden State on Tuesday.

The Warriors shot 32 percent and failed to score more than 21 points in any quarter. Significantly, the Jazz didn

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[QUOTE]That familiar doubt crept back into his mind.

Utah Jazz forward Jeremy Evans had the ball in his hands midway through the second quarter of Tuesday night

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SALT LAKE CITY

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POINT MADE: Scott Machado played 3 1/2 minutes Tuesday, but that doesn

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POWER PLAY: Power forward Dominic McGuire, an NBA journeyman who's played for seven teams in six years, saw more action than any of the guys in camp with nonguaranteed contracts. He had four points and four rebounds in 17 minutes.

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]Posted on October 9, 2013 by David Locke

Today Kirk Goldsberry did an interesting piece at Grantland. The premise was to figure out who is the best shooter in the NBA, using a metric better than field goal %. The thesis was De Andre Jordan has a better FG% than LeBron, but it is because of the lack of variance in his shot selection.

Goldsberry plotted every shot of every player and compared what their projected points scored should be compared to the league average based on shot location.

Inspired by Goldsberry work today I built a similar chart on last year

[Xiao Yao You]

the sweet spin move Andris Biedrins did to get around Andrew Bogut from the free-throw line en route to a highlight hoop.

[Xiao Yao You]

Posted on October 9, 2013 by David Locke

The Jazz had a strong defensive night last night holding the Warriors to 33. 6% shooting. The Warriors hit their season average nearly 40% from 3 but it was near the rim where the Jazz defense took effect.

The Warriors played their starters, who were playing their third game in 4 nights in the pre-season, mostly for the 1st and 3rd quarters against the Jazz starters. The Jazz did two things very well defensively, they rebounding and they protected the rim.

That should be one thing they are better at this year is protecting the rim.

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BACK-UP POINT GUARD

Candidates: John Lucas III, Alec Burks. To a much lesser extent: Ian Clark, Scott Machado

This spot has some intrigue to me. Lucas has said all the right things since signing on the dotted line, and it appears that he is eager to serve in the mentor role for Burke. He is not the purest of point guards, but has experience that should suit him fine in Utah. Against the Warriors, Lucas was often the best player on the court. His shot selection was excellent and his hustle and enthusiasm, contagious. It was telling that the Jazz brass sent Burks to Spokane to work with Stockton, as well. He played minutes as the back-up last season, and while he had his moments, his performance was largely unspectacular. That said, the talent is there to be another ball handler and facilitator and he could get some extra PT here. A tandem of Burks and Lucas could be exciting and disruptive on defense. An interesting guy to watch during pre-season will be Ian Clark and whether he can play spot point guard minutes as needed. Machado has a good chance of making the team, but if so, will most likely anchor the bench.

Prediction: John Lucas III

Hayward, Burks and Burke should have the ball. Lucas is a 3rd stringer.

[QUOTE]BACK-UP SHOOTING GUARD

Candidates: Alec Burks, Brandon Rush. Outside chance: Ian Clark

Tuesday evening, Burks came off the pine. That said, at least for now, I

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[QUOTE]The Mailman is serious about delivering his knowledge to the Utah Jazz big men

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Karl Malone just wrapped up the first week of an NBA training camp as a coach. He's coaching the young big men for the Utah Jazz and trying to instill in them the same desire and skills that helped Karl climb to second on the NBA's all-time scoring list. While he is here with them, his focus is second to none. Putting these young raw talents through workouts before and after practice.

"The first day it was tough and trying," Malone said. "I think our big guys don't know the severity of what is in front of them and how serious this is. I wasn't a happy camper. Then

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It was only preseason, sure, but Burke left his veteran backup, John Lucas III, impressed.

"He let the game come to him," Lucas said. "When I saw that, I was like,

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Three nights after taking on Steph Curry, Burke can

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Tonight the Jazz will see two of the seven free agents they let wander elsewhere this past offseason. Point guards Mo Williams and Earl Watson are Lillard

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Friday's preseason game

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"It

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Corbin managed to get 15 of his 18 healthy players into the Jazz

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the Jazz received solid production from Favors and Kanter in their win over Golden State.

Favors finished with 10 points and 14 rebounds in 25 minutes. Kanter, who is coming off shoulder surgery, had 10 points and four rebounds in 20 minutes in his first game since April.

Favors finished with 10 points and 14 rebounds in 25 minutes. Kanter, who is coming off shoulder surgery, had 10 points and four rebounds in 20 minutes in his first game since April.

"I feel better," Kanter said. "My shoulder feels better.

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Richard Jefferson arrived in Salt Lake City to finish out what was once deemed an impressive career.

He announced his retirement?

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After starting the Utah Jazz

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[QUOTE]Jefferson was injured going into camp last season, but he

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Corbin said he may employ a similar strategy Saturday with John Lucas III, giving the 30-year-old point guard an off night after he played Friday in Boise.

"We got so many guys," Corbin said. "I can get some other guys some time on the floor. I know what those guys [Jefferson and Lucas] are doing or what they will do."

boram@sltrib.com

Twitter: @bill_oram

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[QUOTE]"I know everybody wants these expectations on me, just early on," Burke said. "I

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[QUOTE]Posted on October 11, 2013 by David Locke

EMPTYING THE NOGGIN

Great setting tonight in Boise. Nothing ever runs as smoothly when we leave NBA arenas but it is great to have people who wouldn

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The biggest loss here in the big picture is the loss of Jeff Hornacek.
Millsap!


Hornacek pulled double duty as an assistant coach and as a "on his own time" player development coach. He has worked specifically with helping players fix their shots or put themselves into rhythm to be effective on offense off the ball. His list of students is long, going from DeShawn Stevenson and Andrei Kirilenko to sharp shooters like Kyle Korver and Randy Foye (both had career years under Jeff). Most importantly for Jazz fans, Jeff has become integral to the development of Gordon Hayward and Alec Burks. After all, they weren't getting better from all the playing time they were getting in games, it was Hornacek's work put in beyond practices and shoot arounds that made the difference for them. He even helped Derrick Favors on his free throws. And he's gone, and in the hearts of Jazz fans no adequate replacement has been found.

I love Jeff but who knows what they've got exactly. Lowe has been a head coach in the league a couple times. Sanders played in the league. Corbin was a heck of a player for a long time.


On the players side of things, last season alone these players averaged starting in 64.4 games and playing 25.4 mpg for Head Coach. Tyrone Corbin. If you add up the playing time numbers for some of his favorites over the last few years you see a significant removal of experience and potential on court playing time that could have gone to some of the younger players who are actually sill on the roster today. I'm not the head coach, but I know that if I was then Favors wouldn't have made the Rookie / Soph game just because Tiago Splitter was injured, and our guy was an injury replacement. I probably would have looked forward a little bit more than Tyrone did.

Is it all on Ty? Obviously things have changed with Lindsey running the show.


1. What significant Moves were made during the off-season?

The Jazz made a number of good-faith moves this off-season in order to show the fanbase that they are serious. GM Dennis Lindsey was hyperactive on draft night as the Jazz made three trades: the first for Michigan Wolverines superstar Trey Burke; the second for the French combine wonder Gobert; and the last for Brazilian pass first lead guard Raul Neto (not listed above because he's not playing in the NBA this year). In addition to that, the front office bolstered the good Karma with the fans by bringing in two Hall of Famers back to the franchise in Sloan and Malone. Sloan's role is not as defined as we'd want

What does that mean? We want him as the head coach again? Sounds like he's a huge part of the whole thought process who cares how it is defined?


, but Mychal and Amar found out about Sloan way back last May at the NBA Draft Combine. Malone's work with two raw, former #3 picks is the more overt addition

and others


, and it appears to be paying dividends already. Kanter and Favors are both running the floor better, and learning some of the tricks of the trade. The Jumbotron upgrades were long overdue, fans are happy.

More: All of SB Nation's NBA previews to date
Fans are going to be even more happy with the more they see from Burke as the season goes on. The Jazz sent Trey Burke (and Alec Burks) to study under John Stockton for a bit this off-season as well, and if you watched the first pre-season game you could see some signature Stockton in the off the break, off the dribble, one handed passes that resulted in Gordon Hayward and Jeremy Evans finishes.

Nice! The patented Stockton pass!


He's my pick for Rookie of the year.

Still isn't shooting good.


And that's coming from the position of someone who abjectly focused a few months of his life on all the struggles he will have making the transition from the NCAA to the NBA.

2. What are the team's biggest strengths?

At the end of this season when national observers look at this team, and look beyond the presumption of a weak bench, they will see a team that really defended well. This Jazz team is going to buck the trend over the last few seasons of getting progressively worse on defense with each successive year. Instead of anchoring our paint with a disinterested post scorer and a tweener this Jazz team has four guys who could average a block a game or more in Favors, Kanter, Gobert, and Biedrins. Five, if you add in human Saturn V rocket Jeremy Evans (12'7 max reach!) if he ever gets on the floor. Many shots will be contested inside, some will be blocked, but the majority will be changed -- and thus the Jazz will finally get some stops.

Can they play smaller though? The league has gotten smaller. Have to be able to match-up.


It's impossible to think of a team as a defensive minded club without solid team defense against perimeter opponents. The Jazz suffered greatly in previous seasons when trying to stop pick and rolls with Jefferson and Mo Williams or Devin Harris. This year we expect to see a more mobile set of bigs showing and slowing the depredations of those Russell Westbrook / Tony Parker types. Our wings appear more defensive minded as well, with "hustle" guys gone, and actual three and D prototypes brought back in with Richard Jefferson and Brandon Rush now in the fold. They'll work well with Gordon Hayward (criminally under-estimated on defense) and Marvin Williams in forming a core of athletic wings who all had distance on their shot, and defense on their minds.

All big question marks there outside G.


Ultimately the main point of attack will always been against point guards. Rookie Trey Burke isn't going to make anyone think he's Rajon Rondo; but Corbin will be forced to use combo guard Alec Burks (6'6, crazy wingspan) against the bigger or quicker points. He isn't as amazing on defense as you'd want from a 'stopper', and I don't think Burks is a stopper, but he's a game changer for sure -- doing everything from getting to the line, making ultra-acrobatic finishes, hitting shot clock beating threes, and to executing game saving chase down blocks on the road (think Tayshaun Prince vs Reggie Miller -- but against opposing point guards like Ricky Rubio).

Burks, Hayward, Rush/Williams/Jefferson, Favors, and Kanter/Gobert aren't going to scare a lot of teams on paper -- but their cumulative length and non-aversion to defense will greatly improve the Jazz defensive rating as a team. The team can capitalize on this if they slow down the pace like those Mike Fratello Cleveland Cavaliers did in the Terrell Brandon days. But we'll see what this team does on the court. Fans like a faster pace. But thankfully we fans don't run this team.

The most overt strength this season will be the Jazz' youthful vigor and athleticism. No more shackled to the bench, and none of them having had any serious injuries, this youth brigade will excite with their enthusiasm on the court and frantic activity. Trey is 20, Rudy is 21, Enes is 21, Ian is 22, Alec is 22, Derrick is 22, Gordon is 23, Jeremy is 25 -- and if these players get the majority of the minutes then this team automatically becomes a League Pass Must Watch team in a hurry. Even if they are a grind it out, defense first team like those late 90s Cavs or current era Grizzlies they'll still be worth watching because of the activity.

Why with all that youth and athleticism why would you slow it down? Play D and push the ball. Got to think that's where they will have a chance of competing.


And that youth and activity leads to probably the least obvious strength this team may have. This team have just have the audacity and naivete to beat teams they have no right to be in games against. The last few seasons when our franchise started and promoted browbeaten veterans no other team wanted, career losers, we were out of a lot of games before halftime. These guys, supported by vets like Rush, Williams, Jefferson and Lucas III, could stay in a lot of games they should stay in based upon inexperience and youthful vigor.

Depth has been the key to them being competitive the last couple years with their 2nd unit outplaying most teams. Now you're expecting Lucas, Marvin and Jefferson to do this?

[Xiao Yao You]

We've seen it time and time again, like when the Toronto Raptors beat the Chicago Bulls back on December 8th, 1996. That Bulls team would win 69 regular season games and the NBA title, but on that night guys like Damon Stoudamire, Walt Williams, Sharone Wright, Popeye Jones, and Doug Christie gave it their all. Sometimes being too young to know better can get you a win.

This seasons' Jazz team will most likely finish with more wins that the '96 Raptors (Jazzfans hope), yet may still end up losing a lot of games this season. But they'll go down fighting with defense and activity. They'll give an effort. That was something sorely missing at times during the last few seasons.

3. What are the team's biggest weaknesses?

Inexperience. The head coach is inexperienced. The projected starting point guard is inexperienced (just check out this info on rookie PG led teams). The top duo of Favors and Hayward have played less than 2,000 on the court together in their three years in Utah. The starting frontcourt has previously averaged 21.4 mpg and 14.4 mpg for their careers. This team isn't marketable. This team will be led by young guys who, according to the league perception, weren't good enough to play big minutes early in their careers (vs. the idea that a guy like DeMarcus Cousins is worth a billion dollars on the open market). There are going to be some calls that go against us this year, but that's not the big weakness.

The big weakness is this doom and gloom perception of inexperience. The team is projected to be really bad this year, almost purely as a product of this inexperience. If the players and coaches start reading all of this it could negatively affect their play, or, you know, help motivate them. After all, our roster is almost exclusively made up of people with chips on their shoulder at this point. But that, in itself, could be a problem. Especially when you mix having a chip on your shoulder with a very volatile group of known troublemakers in contract years.

Clearly Andris Biedrins is the Latvian Dennis Rodman, right? Oh. He's not? He's some external threat of some sort though, right? Okay, so personalities shouldn't be a problem this season at all.

Well, aside from some vets coming off of down or injury plagued seasons last year, and our back up point guard being kind of a chucker, there are no serious, damaging weaknesses this season beyond inexperience.



No weaknesses? No proven go to guys. No proven starters outside G who has played some of his best ball coming off the bench. No proven depth.


Tyrone Corbin will get better. Trey Burke will get better. Sure, guys like Favors and Gobert can get in foul trouble. Sure, Hayward doesn't have the most consistent shot in the world from day to day. And yea, sure, Kanter has only played 1952 total regular season minutes. But these are all problems of inexperience. We'll screw up some plays. We'll get unforced turnovers sometimes. Someone may, at the wrong time, take the wrong shot.

But these are problems that will all go away with more on court experience, and time together as a team. (Is there a reason for this massive experience deficit? Maybe, but we're not finger pointing here today)

4. What are the goals for this team?

Head Coach Corbin has put it out in the most clear terms: "Get better [and/or] be better."

I don't think wins are every something an honorable franchise tries to avoid, but this season the evaluation of this Jazz team -- at least internally -- will be an evaluation that does not immediately regard wins and losses. This should take the pressure off of Ty first and foremost as he should be then more free to a) accept young players making mistakes on the court and not pulling them, and b) being more liberated in trying different things on the court. When the pressure to win games was on the last few seasons (because, clearly, when you lose a Hall of Fame head coach in Jerry Sloan, and trade away your All-NBA point guard in Deron Williams, you know your franchise is in "win now" mode), Corbin couldn't do a) or b) at all, the margin of victory or loss was just too slim. Which sucked for him, of course, because he was forced into trying things out during the season down the homestretch that he had previously not tried at all before. (Like the "Big Lineup" of Millsap / Favors / Jefferson, or the "Small Lineup" or Burks / Foye / Hayward)

This season should be different as the main goal of this team isn't going to be about trying to squeak into the playoffs for a cut of that playoff money and two televised home games. The main goal is to improve.

And in this league you improve mostly by making mistakes, making adjustments, and then slowly moving towards on-court comfort and eventual mastery. We Jazz fans all remember Kobe Bryant shooting air-ball three pointers in the playoffs against the Jazz, and the eventual sweep of his Lakers. But Kobe stayed on the floor, kept shooting those shots, and eventually got better. Perhaps way better than we ever imagined. This is that season for our guys. We have to get on the floor, and we have to take those shots regardless of success.

All the "good teams" that build through the draft do this. They have one or two down years led by their accumulated youth, but then surge ahead. We all know no top tier free agent is going to take his talents to Salt Lake, so it's obvious the youth movement has to happen now or never. And that's really what is going to happen if you listen to all the interviews the brainstrust give to local media.

My individuals goals would be 2,000 minutes each for our F5 (Future Five): Burke, Burks, Hayward, Favors, and Kanter. And plenty of no-risk in game and between game adjustments for Tyrone Corbin. I can't guess how many minutes need to go where beyond the necessary building blocks we've already drafted.

That's not even 30 minutes a guy. The goal is to lose and get one of the studs at the top of the next draft plain and simple regardless of how they want to say otherwise. No way Lucas is in the rotation otherwise. Could be ugly if they actually win some games!


The jury is still out on if minutes help development, but the jury is made out of joe sixpack and not learning theorists and organizational psychologists. For the educated it's obvious. But this is sports and the majority opinion likes to parrot the fables of hired propagandists. Regardless of if minutes advance development -- this season our young players should get minutes.

They should get the opportunities to lead a team either to success or failure. Many times high lottery picks are able to play well, and suffer early, on their way to greater career success. If our players can do that this year we'll be in good hands. If we play them, and success does not seem possible, and improvements are not happening -- then we've identified more things about our team. And that's the second goal.

The Jazz need to find out who they are. It's a mystery if you are on the bench, or pile up DNP-CDs.

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Lindsey will use the D-League unlike O'Conner I'd guess. The young guys will be down there if they aren't in the rotation and they are healthy enough.


But if you run tests you can challenges your opinions through observation. This Jazz team is focused on improving, and identifying.

Wins will come and go, but it's the outlook of looking beyond this season that is long overdue

5. What is the biggest obstacle?

The last few seasons it appeared that the team did not have a unified direction. We are being told the head coach was pressured into a win-now situation (perhaps with the hope that he would fail and become a fall guy),

Why would they hire him to fail?

but we saw the head coach specifically doing things that didn't help him win games (promote players who did not play defense, consistently making the team play from behind for

he majority of the games). Furthermore, we are led to believe that the team was interested in developing young talent -- which is hard to believe then one-and-done mercenary veterans would join the team, start, get minutes, then leave the franchise. These minutes also left the franchise, instead of being invested in developing these young prospects. You would be hard pressed to find a team out there in 'win now mode' that did so many non-winning things; and hard pressed to find a team interested in developing youth that went out of their way to keep lottery picks on the bench, watching games instead of playing in them.

They were playing. They were in the rotation of a playoff contender. Lottery picks on crappy teams play a lot of minutes as we'll see this year Utah.


The casual observer is able to understand that "win now" and "prospect development" are opposite goals. Additionally, the astute observer is able to view the Jazz critically and see that they did not succeed in winning now, nor did they help themselves with prospect development. They tried to do two different things, and failed at both. And they did that three seasons in a row. ("Fool me once, shame on you . . . . fool me twice . . . uh . . . ")

Everyone but Favors has showed dramatic improvement and the Jazz were winning as much as you could hope for a team that didn't have any stars.


Many Jazz fans are putting their eggs in the Dennis Lindsey basket right now. We hope that the indecisiveness and inactivity the last few years were a product of tortoise-like Kevin O'Connor. The largest obstacle to this season would be a "fourth time is the charm" idea of trying to win now and develop talent. We hope for a unified sense or purpose and unified direction for the team this year.

It can all be derailed easily if one party puts their individuals goals ahead of the needs of the franchise. Tyrone Corbin's contract runs out at the end of the year, and he may feel like winning now will help his resume more than following directions to play rookies more now. A few veterans on the squad (by few I mean: Jefferson, Williams, Lucas III, Biedrins, Rush) are in contract years as well -- and for the most part, at least two of those guys think they are starter quality in the NBA still. Previously, Corbin would side with the veterans and play them the minutes. They may not stay with the franchise, but they would help him get wins now. They helped each other. This season is about Corbin falling into a long term relationship with the youth. If that marriage doesn't last, then this team could end up repeating the mistakes of previous seasons.

And Jazz fans will have a bad time.

Possible Record:

I'm totally going out on a limb here and re-stating that the Jazz will win 30 +/- 5 games this year. My confidence in the youth is high. But you can have good players who play well, and still lose the game. After all, we saw the opposite last year. In science the opposite should also be just as likely. And I think we see that this year. We may lose a lot of close games. Hayward and Kanter and Favors could just be filling it -- but end up having to rely on a Richard Jefferson game winner (or loser) because he's left open.

Closing games will be one of the toughest things for them I'd imagine. Probably lose a lot of games down the stretch.


I've tried to look at the teams THIS team could be like, from the Sidney Lowe Vancouver Grizzlies, to the Glen Robinson Milwaukee Bucks. We hope we can be like those '04 Utah Jazz that almost made the playoffs. I just don't know. I do know that this team is going to be fun to watch, and will give me a lot of hope for the future.

POSITIVITY!

BUT THE FUTURE IS NOW!

It's going to be a fun season, a season we can cheer for. A season of a unified direction, exciting young players, and a coach willing to try new things. If we win, we'll be there cheering. If we lose, we'll be there at the games cheering too, and I'll be at the draft. Ideally, it's win-win. Practically, it's win later. No matter what you call it, I call it Utah Jazz basketball. And after a summer of watching baseball, I'm ready for another year of hoops.

GO JAZZ GO!

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]How to Replicate a Miracle

If the Jazz want to prove the experts wrong and have a Cinderella campaign, they have a model to follow right in their own history. Having covered the surprise squad of Kirilenko and Harpring myself, here are some things the Jazz need to do in order to repeat some auspicious history.

First thing is defense. That Jazz team had the 19th ranked offense in the NBA that year, but stayed in games because of its above-average defensive numbers. That

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Burke broken right index finger. Wiggins!

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[QUOTE]Posted on October 13, 2013 by David Locke
Tonight the Jazz rookie Trey Burke fractured the index finger on his right (shooting) hand.

Not all fractured fingers are the same but from a search here are the other NBA fractured finger injuries and the time table. We will know more specifically on Monday about Trey Burke

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[QUOTE]1. Trey Burke

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Jazz Could Revisit Interest In Marquis Teague

Oct 13, 2013 1:12 AM EDT

The Utah Jazz have shown trade interest in Marquis Teague and could revisit discussions with the Chicago Bulls depending on the timetable of Trey Burke.

Burke suffered a fracture in his right index finger on Saturday.

The Bulls currently have Derrick Rose and Kirk Hinrich at point guard, as well as training camp invite Mike James.

Teague averaged 2.1 points in 48 games last season.

Via Marc Stein/ESPN

Interesting. Could be an upgrade on Machado. Do the Bulls want to get rid of him with Rose and Hinrich's injury history and James age? They are always looking to cut salary so they might. Could get a good deal possibly.

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Veteran point guard John Lucas III has been one of the preseason

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[QUOTE]John Lucas III is captain of the ship.

With rookie Trey Burke sidelined for an estimated 3-6 weeks after fracturing his right index finger, Lucas is easily the most accomplished point guard left standing in the Jazz

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[QUOTE]Burke

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Steve Luhm: Can't imagine Jazz adding a player who will soon require a contract extension, regardless whether Trey Burke is out 3 weeks or 3 months. Twitter @sluhm

I assume he means Teague? If they got Teague cheap they wouldn't have to pick up his option for next year. Could make sense if they like him. Step up on Machado based on where he was drafted anyway. Only 21.

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The Utah Jazz announced today that the team has waived center/forward Dwayne Jones II. Following the move, the Jazz roster now stands at 19 players. Jones II (6-11, 250, Saint Joseph’s) appeared in one preseason game for Utah. NBA.com


The non-point guards in camp's chances just lessened.

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[QUOTE]Jazz veterans Marvin Williams and Brandon Rush continue to recover from injuries, but neither is close to returning.

Williams underwent surgery June 4 to repair his right heel and Achilles tendon.

When he was with Golden State, Rush tore his ACL and MCL in a game on Nov. 2. He underwent surgery in January.

According to Corbin, Rush is scheduled to be re-evaluated on Oct. 26. Williams

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In their press release, the Jazz did not indicate whether or not pins were inserted into his fractured finger, something that could delay his return.

[El Kabong]

http://basketball.realgm.com/wiretap/230236/Jamaal-Tinsley-Receiving-Interest-From-Jazz


The Utah Jazz are expressing a level of interest in Jamaal Tinsley.

“He’s a guy who knows our system,” Tyrone Corbin said.

Tinsley played with the Jazz last season.

The Jazz lost Trey Burke on Saturday to a fractured index finger.

Via Bill Oram/The Salt Lake Tribune
Shouldn't have let him leave in the first place.

[Xiao Yao You]

http://basketball.realgm.com/wiretap/230236/Jamaal-Tinsley-Receiving-Interest-From-Jazz


Shouldn't have let him leave in the first place.

I've been a huge Tinsley supporter since they first brought him to camp 2 years ago and with Sloan's offense he is a great fit but if the ball is going to be in Hayward and Burks hands someone that can shoot and defend probably makes more sense. Ty has talked about the game changing and pg's not necessarily being pass first anymore. Tinsley definitely still belongs in the league though.

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"We still have a lot of work to do," coach Tyrone Corbin said Monday. "Our effort the other night against the Clippers ... wasn

[El Kabong]

I've been a huge Tinsley supporter since they first brought him to camp 2 years ago and with Sloan's offense he is a great fit but if the ball is going to be in Hayward and Burks hands someone that can shoot and defend probably makes more sense. Ty has talked about the game changing and pg's not necessarily being pass first anymore. Tinsley definitely still belongs in the league though.
I still like him as a backup. I think with the young bigs sometimes you need a pass first guy who'll get them the ball in the right spots.

[Xiao Yao You]

This game may be very typical of a lot of Jazz games early in the year. Strong effort but inexperienced mistakes and an lack of experience late in the game.

Lots of things to like tonight. Gordon Hayward had the ball in his hands for lots of the playmaking without Trey Burke on the floor.

The way it should be.

[QUOTE]He did a very nice job and made some mistakes. Gordon used to get to pick his spots for shots and tonight he often has to take the shot whatever it might be and he hit just 5 of 16 but he got to the line 14 times and was able to score 20 points on 14 free throws. His points per scoring opportunity tonight was 22 scoring opportunities and 20 points. He needs to be above 1. League average is 1.05
Advanced Stats notes

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[QUOTE] In three starts coming into Wednesday

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[QUOTE]Lester Hudson was a late invitation to the Jazz

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[QUOTE]Four of the Jazz

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[QUOTE]1. Kanter

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[QUOTE]Hayward, who looks like he

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The Jazz desperately need Derrick Favors to be productive this season.

He will be. I just wouldn't count on it from the offensive end.

[QUOTE]He delivered in the second half against Portland on Wednesday night.

Favors finished with 10 points, 17 rebounds and two blocked shots during the Trail Blazers

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[QUOTE]Jazz guards John Lucas III and Lester Hudson chatted about playing against each other during their pro ball days in China.

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]Rookies Rudy Gobert and Ian Clark didn

[Xiao Yao You]

Add Jeremy Evans to the growing list of Jazz players with nagging injuries. The 6-9 forward missed Thursday

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]There was something different about Enes Kanter.

He snarled. His easy, joking manner was absent. The silly postgame grin was Audi Five-Thou. The goofiness was gone, too, most of it. He was pug-lipped and long-faced. He was as serious as a county two-lane head-on. He was exactly what the Jazz hope he will be after a loss this season, and maybe even after a win. He was dissatisfied and

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]Jazz guard Alec Burks missed 12 of his 13 field-goal attempts against Portland.

Corbin didn

[Xiao Yao You]

This season the Utah jazz are asking Gordon Hayward to be the primary ball handler and go to guy. Last night

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Marvin Williams is #7.

If Marvin is the Jazz's 7th best player that tells you all you need to know about the Jazz's prospect for the season.

[QUOTE]If you believed the summer 2012 rhetoric about Marvin Williams (and let

[Xiao Yao You]

It wasn't until the first couple preseason games that he finally showcased the player he was at Michigan.

He did?


Only time will tell how much of an impact this injury will have on Burke's development and that of the Jazz. He will wear a hard cast on his finger for the next three weeks, at which point he will be reevaluated.

How many wins and losses is this injury really going to affect? Probably not as many as one might think.

The fact that they obviously aren't looking to win I'm sure it won't matter much.


Especially if he's only out for as little as four weeks. The preseason will last for nearly two weeks longer until the regular season begins anyway. The Jazz might just have to rely on players like Gordon Hayward and Alec Burks to help distribute the ball.

Should be relying on them anyhow.

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]The Jazz need innovation in their half-court sets. Even with three or four-deep at the point guard position sans Burke

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]Adrian Wojnarowski dropped one of his classic news bombs Friday evening, reporting that the Jazz have come to an agreement on an extension with Derrick Favors. The extension is reported to be for 4 years and $49 million, with incentives that could raise the total above the $50 million level. The deal keeps Favors in Utah until 2018.

The big money extension is in line with others signed this summer amongst talented big men. Sacramento PF DeMarcus Cousins

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]He'd love to pattern his game after what he saw out of Dwight Howard when the big man was a mainstay for the Orlando Magic. But not, as he laughed with the media, the disgruntled Howard that fans saw struggle last season as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers.

"Coming out there, being aggressive from the jump ball ... imitate how Dwight was in Orlando

[Xiao Yao You]

Forward Jeremy Evans missed Friday's practice with a strain of his right rotator cuff. He will travel with the team but is doubtful for Sunday's preseason game at Oklahoma City. Guard Lester Hudson, battling a sprained left ankle, also sat out Friday's practice and will be a game-time decision Sunday. Rookie center Rudy Gobert also missed Friday's practice so he could go see a doctor about his sore left shoulder.

injuries piling up

[Xiao Yao You]

"He understands that we may grow him into [that role]," Corbin said. "I don

[Xiao Yao You]

The Utah Jazz have signed Derrick Favors to a multi-year contract extension. The 6-foot-10 forward-center averaged career highs with 9.4 points, 7.1 rebounds and 1.69 blocks in 77 games and eight starts last season. He had nine double-doubles. Bradenton.com

Steve Luhm: GM Dennis Lindsey on getting Favors' extension done: "We had a willing and motivated partner in Derrick and [his agent]." Twitter @sluhm

Steve Luhm: Derrick Favors thanks Miller family for his $49M extension. Thanks everybody else, too, including media. Clearly he is deliriously happy. Twitter @sluhm

[Xiao Yao You]

Aaron Falk: Jazz general manager Dennis Lindsey says talks are ongoing with Gordon Hayward, but wouldn't comment beyond that. Twitter @tribjazz

Aaron Falk: Derrick Favors called his new deal "a big relief." He didn't want any doubt in the back of his mind during the season. Twitter @tribjazz

[Xiao Yao You]

"Sometimes players can be mistaken and think that a contract allotment like this gives them freedom," Jazz general manager Dennis Lindsey said. "As you guys all know, this comes with huge expectations."

Considering he hasn't really improved I'd be worried about this!

[QUOTE]Favors averaged 14.6 points and 11 rebounds per 36 minutes last season. In his eight starts, he averaged 10.1 points, 10.0 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 2.25 blocks in 27.3 minutes.

While Favors

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]Corbin has been pleased with his defense so far, but wants to see an improvement on the offense this week.

[Xiao Yao You]

Posted on October 20, 2013 by David Locke

EMPTYING THE NOGGIN

[QUOTE]Jazz played a much defensive game then they did the last few times out. In practice the other day they drilled rotations and more rotations and it was noticeably better in today

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]The True Cost of Signing Jamaal Tinsley. There have been rumblings that the Jazz are kicking the tires on re-signing Jamaal Tinsley:

Jamaal Tinsley's agent confirmed there's mutual interest between the point guard and Jazz, but added, "There's nothing going on right now."

[Xiao Yao You]

Does Ian Clark's $200k Guarantee Make Him a Roster Lock? This summer after a stellar summer league performance, the Jazz inked Ian Clark to a two year minimum salary contract which reportedly contains a $200,000 guarantee for 2013-14. This sunk cost has many fans, including myself, speculating that this will likely lead to Clark making the final roster cuts. The logic being that since the team has already invested that $200,000, why not keep him around and make him earn it?

While the Jazz never release contract details, we can speculate on a few things and make some assumptions on how long Clark might be around. First off, due to the 2-year duration of the contract, we know that Clark did not agree to a standard training camp contract which requires an "Exhibit 9 - One-Season, Non-Guaranteed Training Camp Contract". It is also reasonable to speculate that Clark's reported $200,000 guarantee is for "Lack of Skill" (in addition to other guarantees like injury, death). This means that even if Clark is underperforming, the Jazz cannot simply waive him and avoid the $200,000 guaranteed obligation.

Accordingly, with a 172 day league calendar in 2013-14, Clark essentially earns $2,850 ($490,180/172=$2,849.88) for each day he is on the Jazz roster. This means the Jazz have essentially guaranteed his contract for the first 70 days of the season ($200,000/$2,850=70), or until January 6, 2014. Coincidentally enough, the leaguewide date when all NBA contracts guarantee for the remainder of the season is January 10, 2014, which date requires teams to waive any such players it wishes to not guarantee for the remainder of the season by January 7, 2014. Coincidence? I don't think so.

In sum Clark's summer league play bought him a roster spot until January 7th, at which time the Jazz can either choose to waive him without spending another penny, or guarantee the remainder of his rookie salary.

At this point it looks like he'll be cut come January.

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]Andre Miller a Jazzman? Yesterday Yahoo! NBA reporter Mark Spears joined ESPN 700's Bill Riley to discuss NBA and Jazz basketball. I was unable to catch that interview myself, but this little nugget came across my timeline:

.@SpearsNBAYahoo really likes the idea of bringing Andre Miller to Utah. Says Denver would gladly take on some expiring contracts from Utah

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]Ice packs on both knees protruded from under Richard Jefferson

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]The gang

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]Jazz guard Lester Hudson missed a day of practice earlier this week with an ankle sprain but saw some significant minutes against the Thunder.

He played almost 13 minutes and scored four points as he continues his bid to make the Utah roster.

Hudson said his ankle injury, though, is no longer an issue. His biggest concern was missing a day of practice, which he feared could set him back.

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]

[El Kabong]

Classic Biendrins. 1 rebound and 6 fouls.

[Xiao Yao You]

Yeah hope he made them count!

[Xiao Yao You]

Jody Genessy: Jazz forward Richard Jefferson laughed when asked if it's hard to stay positive and optimistic during rough offensive times: "Not a chance."

Twitter @DJJazzyJody

[Xiao Yao You]

The Utah Jazz continue to express interest in free agent Jamaal Tinsley, per sources. Trey Burke's injury opened the door for him to return.

Twitter @AlexKennedyNBA

[Xiao Yao You]

Posted on October 23, 2013 by David Locke

EMPTYING THE NOGGIN

Jazz were +2 tonight with players that will be on the roster when the season starts.

But the Lakers suck too!


In the first quarter the starters (Lucas, Jefferson, Hayward, Favors and Kanter) lead 11-7 in 6:00 of action. Strong they would have only allowed 14 points in the first quarter at that pace. Then in the 2nd quarter (Lucas, Jefferson,Hayward,Burks and Kanter or Favors) played for 3:00 minutes and were outscored 8-7. Then to start the third quarter the starters played 6:40 and were outscored 13-12. Again a pretty good though not great defensive stretch. Overall the group outscored the Lakers 30-26.

Favors is going to be the leading rebounder in the NBA or top 3 behind Dwight Howard and Love. But he is going to be in the elite rebounders in the NBA..
Per 36 minutes? He's going to have to prove he can stay on the floor first.


My highlight of the night was two great passes from Favors to Burks.
Burks played a much more patient game tonight. However, every time he goes away from the pick he is breaking the offense and playing 1 on 1 with no outlet inside of the offense. These plays are very rarely developing into anything productive for the offense. According to Zach Lowe Burks goes away from the pick at a higher rate than any guard in the NBA.

Got to think he's improved on that since he was a rookie though.


I have always admired the Jazz organization for giving every player that comes to camp a fair shot at showing their skills. If you come to camp and work the Jazz always give players an opportunity to play and show their skills to the entire league. Tonight the Jazz did the same, unfortunately for some of those players their flaws showed more brightly than their strengths.

Kanter needs to reassert himself on the glass.

Hayward did not make an outside shot tonight. He is not getting looks on the right side of the floor where he is most successful. No one else on the team can create and distribute. This is going to make it tough on Gordon to get looks he can bury.

See you tomorrow.

Posted in Emptying the Noggin

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]Jody Genessy: Former Laker Brian Cook after scoring 18 for Jazz: "I

[crisoner]

Props!!!

Best fan ever right here!

[Random_Guy]

Good job keep it up man

[El Kabong]

http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/jazz/57036569-87/jazz-utah-deal-guard.html.csp

Tinsley signed. Good to see, he might actually be able to keep the offense moving when he's in.

[Xiao Yao You]

Wonder if it's guaranteed for the year? Machado looked pretty good today. Can't shoot.

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]A guy who was momentarily left behind after shootaround in the morning started things off for the Jazz.

Good thing the bus returned a moment after it became evident the Jazz

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]Marvin Williams

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]Both Derrick Favors and Gordon Hayward received votes for players most likely to have a breakout season. Favors tied Indiana

[Xiao Yao You]

[quote]General manager Dennis Lindsey said Favors represents the future of post defenders.

"The way the NBA is going, the bigs have to be mobile enough to cover in pick and roll, but they have to be big enough to deny a spot and hopefully have enough length and lift to block a shot," Lindsey said. "Does that describe who we have? I think it does."

And where Favors

[Xiao Yao You]

The Jazz are carrying 19 players right now but will have to cut that down to at least 15 before the end of the month. Cook made it all the way to Oct. 31 last year with the Wizards before being waived.

"I'm just trying to stay even keeled right now and show that I can still play at 32," he said.

It's a little unusual for the Jazz to still be carrying so many players at this point in the preseason. But the Jazz are dealing with injuries and are still working to figure out a young team.

Coach Ty Corbin said there are positions still up for grabs.

"As a player, if I'm still in a place I always think there's time to impress or hurt what I've built up," he said Wednesday morning at shootaround. "So guys have to stay focused on playing and playing effectively for us because we do have spots."

Cook, who had previously had a preseason high of 5 points, said the extra minutes he got Wednesday helped him find a rhythm and not worry about missing shots. He fired up nine 3-pointers, hitting three of them over 20 minutes last night.

The Jazz have used big men with range in the past and Cook sees a fit in Utah.

"This is a great offense for that," he said. "They runt he splits on the offensive end and we've got good guards that take a lot of attention away.

[Xiao Yao You]

"He

[Xiao Yao You]

Burke, the Jazz

[Xiao Yao You]

Posted on October 24, 2013 by David Locke

EMPTYING THE NOGGIN

[QUOTE]Strong performance from the Jazz tonight. No surprise this team didn

[Xiao Yao You]

All seven guys have had occasions of very good play, but no one has come out to set themselves apart from the competition. In past years, when fringe guys have stuck, they made the overwhelming case to stay (think Wesley Matthews). Given the injuries to Burke, Brandon Rush and Marvin Williams, there seems to be a need for another point guard, a swingman, and a big. Harris and Holiday will most likely be given their walking papers soon. Chances are Clark will nab that swingman spot.

A swingman that can't playe the 3. I'd think McGuire or Holiday will make it at least until Marvin is back.


So that leaves McGuire and Cook dueling for the big vacancy

McGuire is a big? He's a big guard yes.


and Hudson and Machado for the third PG role.

Now Tinsley apparently.

[QUOTE]If Utah was to go solely off who is here, the case could be made for each of them.

Another avenue could be to watch the waiver wire to see who becomes available. There are some intriguing names that have been jettisoned: center Fab Melo; forwards Brandon Davies, Renaldo Balkman, Devin Ebanks, James Johnson, Corey Maggette, Jarvis Varnado, and Marcus Cousin; and guards Myck Kabongo and Darius Johnson-Odom. Others will be turned loose soon. Perhaps some of these guys may be better fits for Utah. Davies, a former Brigham Young University forward, was someone the Jazz liked during Draft workouts. Johnson is a former first-rounder who was linked to Utah in some September rumors. Kabongo was rated very high a year ago, but ended up going undrafted. He has potential as a nice back-up PG in the NBA.

The Jazz have also been connected to Chicago Bulls guard Marquis Teague and last year

[Xiao Yao You]

http://www.ksl.com/?sid=27353287&nid=304&title=it-is-time-to-talk-about-jimmer-again


Jimmer Fredette played at BYU and now plays for the Sacramento Kings. In his first two seasons he hasn't played a lot and there have been multiple rumors about a return to the state where he made his name.

Once again, the stars have aligned with supply and demand such that this requires at least a discussion. The injury to Trey Burke creates the need, and the Kings' surplus at guard is the supply.

ESPN Insider's Joe Kaiser talked about Fredette's value and called the Jazz “the perfect trade partner.”

Ticket Sales

The Jazz want to sell tickets. Jimmer's addition wouldn't be the biggest splash ever, but it would give some fans incentive to buy. When the Jazz played the Kings the last two years fans packed EnergySolutions Arena. The first Jimmer game sold out at 19,911. The next two games had 18,000 and more than 17,000.

The Kings were terrible.

In the Oklahoma City Thunder's two trips to Salt Lake the Jazz drew just over 19,000 and more than 18,000. Even Deron Williams coming back with a good Brooklyn Nets team only sold 18,500 seats or so.

The Jazz wouldn't sell 18,000 every game just because of the "Jimmer effect," but an extra 500 to 1,000 per game to see the local icon isn't out of the realm of possibility. That could be a lot of money over the course of 41 games.
The Jazz wouldn't sell 18,000 every game just because of the “Jimmer effect,” but an extra 500 to 1,000 per game to see the local icon isn't out of the realm of possibility. That could be a lot of money over the course of 41 games.

Not to mention, there would also be a lot of jerseys sold. The Fredette jerseys were all over at Kings games, and new jerseys with the local fans would create a lot of sales.

Of course, if the Jazz bring Fredette in, it would be about his play, not just his name.

His role

Exactly how Fredette would be used is a big question for the fans. Fredette won't be the starting point guard with Burke as the future at the position.

His role wouldn't be what he did at BYU, but what the NBA requires of him — scoring. Put Fredette in the second unit with Alec Burks and let them score.

Burks would be the go-to player in the second unit, but Fredette could add scoring to a unit that lacks scorers. Even last year, the second unit had Derrick Favors, Enes Kanter and occasionally Gordon Hayward and they had a hard time scoring.

Burks and Fredette are playing back-ups. Burks can handle the ball and let Fredette shoot when teams collapse defensively, or just let Fredette go and prove whether he can still do his Jimmer thing.

Kaiser wrote, “Fredette would not only be a big box office draw in Utah, where he took the nation by storm at BYU, he'd also have the opportunity to play a huge role on a Jazz team that is currently very thin at both guard spots, especially while Trey Burke is out with the broken finger.”

Is Fredette better than John Lucas III or Lester Husdon?

Should the Jazz trade for Jimmer Fredette?
1. Yes already
2. No, he'll never play
3. Seriously, stop asking!
4. Jimmer who?
In a preseason game against the Suns last week Jimmer had 23 points on 9-of-15 shooting going 5-of-7 from 3-point range.

Fredette would have to prove that he can become consistent, not great.
Could possibly start Burks if you had Jimmer. I think he could be better than Lucas and Hudson for sure. He's got 6th man written all over him. He could make a lot of sense.


His defensive issues

It's no secret Fredette can't play defense. He could be one of the worst defenders in the league, but he isn't guarding the top players.

Maybe Brandon Rush, Marvin Williams and Rudy Gobert play with Fredette and Burks to stop the bleeding on defense a little. Williams is an underrated defender and Gobert's length is amazing.

Rush is a good defender and Burks has the athletic tools to stop any backup. Can the Jazz hide Fredette to make it worthwhile?

Maybe a change of venue could help his defense. Chances are he will still be a liability, even if he improves a lot.

There is no quick fix or way to make Fredette look like a good defender. It is about the risk and reward.

The mania

The other big issue is the “Tim Tebow effect.” Will the crowd overreact because Jimmer is back, both with cheers and boos? Tebow, the religious NFL quarterback, was so polarizing that the only way the Denver Broncos could get rid of him without a riot was to acquire one of the greatest of all time in Peyton Manning. Of course, it wasn't the only reason the Broncos got Manning.

While this is the same reason tickets would be sold, it can't influence playing time and needs to keep the team together. The reason it could work is that the crowd is already getting what they want with the “Core 4.”

Will fans clamor for Fredette to get playing time when Burke, Burks, Hayward, Favors and Kanter are in play? Most of last season the fans were hoping for those guys to play.

Fredette would still be the odd-man-out. When the game is on the line he would be on the bench, but he'd be getting a lot more playing time than the Kings are giving him. If he gets to play meaningful minutes, but doesn't take away from the time those five get, it will appease all fans.

Why do the Jazz trade for Jimmer?

First off they need another body until Burke gets healthy. Fredette can play two positions, but his defensive problems exist at both. The Jazz need his greatest asset at either position.

He will sell tickets and jerseys, which the Jazz front office would love. He won't add much to the win total, so if the Jazz are trying to get a high draft pick he won't detract from those goals.

This season is about evaluating players for the Jazz, and Fredette could be evaluated just like the rest. He is in the last year of his contract (there is a team option next year), and so he won't hurt the team's coveted cap flexibility.

Maybe Fredette becomes the next Steve Kerr. That name doesn't sound to glamorous, but Kerr was a specialist who hit shots for championship teams.

Why not?

Well, it still depends on how much it costs. If the Kings wanted a first-round pick for Fredette, which seems like a Kings thing to do, the Jazz should laugh and walk away. If the Jazz can throw a future second-round pick to the Kings and maybe a player to make dollars work, it is very cheap for a lottery pick from two years ago.

He is in the last year of his deal so the Jazz could just wait for him to hit free agency and scoop him up.

Fredette is bound to bring some sort of circus. When he played in Utah fans would cheer and boo every time he would touch the ball.

There could be no upside as well. If the Jazz believe he is what his numbers show, there is no reason to bring him over. His player efficiency rating is less than average.

All in, it seems like a low-risk gamble that could help a team with a healing point guard. Kaiser said it pretty well with this, “It's safe to say, though, that many NBA enthusiasts would enjoy seeing what Fredette could do in extended minutes a lot more than receiving DNP-CDs at the end of the Kings' bench.”

Really, it would be fun to see, if Fredette can become Jimmer in Utah, again.

[aj1987]

:applause: :applause:

[El Kabong]

I'm sure the Kings would be more than willing to trade Jimmer, but they'd probably try and make the Jazz take back John Salmons or Jason Thompson in return for a Williams or Jefferson expirer.

[Xiao Yao You]

I'm sure the Kings would be more than willing to trade Jimmer, but they'd probably try and make the Jazz take back John Salmons or Jason Thompson in return for a Williams or Jefferson expirer.

Jazz would probably take Patterson, Isiah, and/or Vasquez who are expirers. Unless others have a team option or partial guarantee or something I doubt the Jazz would want to take anyone else. All those guys fit under the cap space without sending anyone in return. Looks like they still have 17 guys in camp so they might want to do something just to create roster space and cap room which the Jazz have to spare still. The Kings do need a SF too.

[Xiao Yao You]

Point guard John Lucas III admitted it wasn

[Xiao Yao You]

LATE DUCK: Rudy Gobert had his best pro game against the Clippers, blocking five shots and snagging 12 rebounds. Of course, the 7-foot-1 center also had one of his shots blocked and, well, there was a play in which he graciously got out of Blake Griffin

[Xiao Yao You]

Tinsley's addition will up the player total to 14 with guaranteed deals and 20 overall, but it's unlikely any cuts will be made until the team returns to Utah after tonight's game.

Is guaranteed.

[Xiao Yao You]

Another vote for Jimmer.

http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/jazz/57038628-87/jazz-fredette-jimmer-guard.html.csp

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]Corbin said he ideally would like to rotate 10 or so players at the start of the season to keep his starters fresh. But without much depth on his bench, Corbin may be forced to play his starters heavy minutes.

"How do we get through that without killing the guys, playing them 35 to 40 minutes every night?" he said. "We

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]So far this preseason, Favors has committed 4.6 fouls per 36 minutes, just a lick under last season

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]Hayward

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]Burke struggled to hit the broad side of a barn in his brief 66 preseason minutes. There are some valid concerns here, both about the types of shots as well as what it says about his adjustment to NBA-level size and speed. But I

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]I

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]Rotations. Specifically, a growing faction of Jazz fans is convinced that every minute a veteran plays is a wasted opportunity. But here

[Xiao Yao You]

The Utah Jazz, with less than a week to go before the league deadline, remain in talks with swingman Gordon Hayward on a contract extension, according to sources close to the process. ESPN.com

Sources told ESPN.com that Hayward remains likely to land an extension before the deadline, with negotiations expected to pick up in pace this weekend after the team returns from a weeklong road trip in Southern California. ESPN.com

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]Wolves big man Chris Johnson didn

[Xiao Yao You]

Marc Stein: Too late to change my ROY pick -- and Oladipo will have a great shot at it obviously -- but raves for Dennis Schroeder are already piling up Twitter @ESPNSteinLine

[Xiao Yao You]

Jamaal Tinsley to shore up the guard line, that hadn’t happened by game time.

Could make sense to wait and see what else is out there with cuts being made.


Friday’s loss made it seven consecutive preseason defeats, following an opening-night win. After manhandling Golden State, 101-78 on Oct. 8, they went on to lose like priests at a craps table. Portland, the Clippers and Lakers each beat them twice and Oklahoma City beat them once.

Does that mean anything?

“Not necessarily,” said coach Tyron Corbin, adding that in the preseason “you want to get a feeling for who you are, but it’s not really indication of what kind a season you’ll have, good or bad.”

Corbin is right. Preseason results make for spotty forecasting. There have been years when the Jazz reeked in the preseason, yet went on to great seasons. Other times they were nearly flawless in October but ineffectual the rest of the year.

The Jazz went 1-7 in 1990 but ended up winning 54 games and reaching the conference semifinals. In 2003 they were 7-1 in exhibition, only to miss the playoffs. In the Jazz’s two greatest seasons, 1996-97 and 1997-98, they only went 4-4 and 5-3.

Moral to the story: Preseason is like a sore throat — it could be a big deal or it might not.

I don't think there is much doubt that they will suck badly! That's the plan.


One indication they are still a few tomatoes short of a salad is that they’ve pinned big hopes on injured rookie Trey Burke. He’s talented, but the next Deron Williams?

Right now he’s not even the next Mo Williams.

Doubt he'll be anywhere as good as Deron.


There’s some talent, but not enough to contend.

Kanter would disagree.

“I mean, this room has enough talent to beat every team on every court,” Kanter said as he sat at his locker at the Honda Center. “I’m talking about Jeremy (Evans), Alec (Burks), Gordon (Hayward), Derrick (Favors), Trey Burke … This is my third year and we have enough talent to beat every team.”

Like the confidence anyway!


Is signing Favors and Hayward to extensions a wise move? Andrei Kirilenko’s big contract was a problem near the end of his Utah sojourn. But in this case, the Jazz don’t have much choice; they can’t build around their mascot. Surely other teams would prosper with them if the Jazz didn’t.

Time will tell. They have a choice. If you have to overpay them than you are better off letting them go to another team.


Hayward looked like he was worth a bundle in the first half, filling up the box score the way, well, Kirilenko once did. But he’s far more adept offensively than AK-47 ever was.


He's certainly a more polished offensive player.


their dismal preseason record doesn’t seem to overly concern Jazz fans or the media.

Because everyone knows they are tanking and sadly most people think that's the thing to do these days.

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]When Feb. 21 came and the NBA

[Xiao Yao You]

A misleading shooting performance at the Orlando Pro Summer League was quickly overshadowed by solid performances in the first two preseason games. However, the question remains of how he is using the time off the floor and whether he will be prepared to step back into a key role.

He looked better but was still inefficient shooting the ball.

[Xiao Yao You]

The mental part of the game is sometimes a concern, but some within the organization believe Kanter is a future All-Star.

mental part is a concern?

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]At his best, he

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]Evans is rail-thin, so he

[Xiao Yao You]

The Jazz organization is pleased that he has been as independent as he

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]The Jazz want to get stops so they can get out and run, and score in transition.

The team

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]The question, of course, is whether Hayward is ready for what the Jazz will ask of him. Can he become Utah

[Xiao Yao You]

there will be intermittent reinforcement, nights when Enes Kanter and Derrick Favors are dominating opponents inside, when Gordon Hayward is filling the stat sheet and when Trey Burke and Alec Burks are looking like All-Star guards.

Yes when they are playing the other shitty teams in the league.

More frequently, hopes will arise when Andrew Wiggins is doing big things for Kansas and every Jazz fan memorizes the precise odds of winning the draft lottery.

[QUOTE]there

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]Tonight

[Xiao Yao You]

Steve Kyler: In case you missed it last night @David Aldridge reporting that Wizards won't be keeping Kendall Marshall, Malcom Lee or Shannon Brown Twitter @stevekylerNBA

Another reason to wait on Tinsley. Not sure Marshall is the best fit though. Shannon Brown could be but it sounds like he is going back to Lakers.

[Xiao Yao You]

Jazz Sign Tinsley, Waive Cook, Holiday, Hudson, Machado, McGuire
Oct 26, 2013 1:18 PM EDT

The Utah Jazz have signed Jamaal Tinsley and waived Brian Cook, Justin Holiday, Lester Hudson, Scott Machado and Dominic McGuire, the team announced on Saturday.

Tinsley had been widely reported as receiving interest from the Jazz.

Cook, Holiday, Hudson, Machado and McGuire all were under training camp deals.

Harris made the team? Not the one I would have expected.

[Xiao Yao You]

http://www.ksl.com/?sid=27399561&nid=304&title=jazz-sign-jamaal-tinsley-cut-five-others

Says Harris made it. I assume he can play some 3 is why? I thought of him as an undersized 4 but if he can play both forward positions it makes him more versatile than Cook, Mcguire or Holiday because they need help at both spots with the injuries. Though they've been calling McGuire a 4 too. He's got the height but I thought of him as more of a wing. He's been hurt though which could have hurt his chances. Evans must not be expected back yet?

Harris can play. I saw him a bit with the Rockets. He was like Charlie Hayes light. I'd guess this could change once(if?) they get healthy. Clark is only guaranteed until January too. So they've still got a bit of flexibility.

[El Kabong]

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/nba--jazz--gordon-hayward-far-apart-in-extension-talks-202627935.html

Hayward and the Jazz sound like they can't agree on a reasonable deal. Still a few more days to go though. Did mention that the current deal wasn't over $50 million though.

[Xiao Yao You]

Yes I saw that.

[Xiao Yao You]

[QUOTE]"We

[Xiao Yao You]

Each of the five guys the Utah Jazz cut Saturday had their moments during the preseason.

That made Tyrone Corbin

[Xiao Yao You]

Rumors have his deal worth slightly more than Favors, potentially topping the $50 million mark. Nothing has been agreed to yet, but in his perfect world Hayward would emulate former Jazz greats John Stockton, Mark Eaton and Darrell Griffith by playing his entire career, not just the next several years, in Utah.

[Xiao Yao You]

Top Of The List

Top Offensive Player: Gordon Hayward. There will be plenty of shots to go around in Utah this season, and it

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http://www.cbssports.com/nba/eye-on-basketball/24137461/eob-nba-division-previews-northwest-division

Dead Meat: Utah Jazz. It's going to be a rough season in Utah. The front office finally pulled the plug on the Al Jefferson-Paul Millsap frontcourt, relieving the log jam that's held up Derrick Favors and Enes Kanter's development. The Jazz are going with a youth movement type of thing and while there are nice pieces in place -- like Gordon Hayward and Alec Burks -- their bench is atrocious and they don't currently have a point guard because of Trey Burke's injury.

It will be a struggle for Utah to win 30, unless Favors and Kanter are better than expected and Hayward shows he can be a featured player. And even still, that probably only means 35.

Division ROY: Trey Burke. The Northwest has unfortunately already been bitten by the injury bug with both Burke and Portland's C.J. McCollum set to miss the beginning of the season.

But Burke will have the most significant role and was a trendy pick by a lot of people to win the actual Rookie of the Year, before he was injured. He's not going to miss that much of the season and assuming he can get his feet under him, he could have a pretty nice season.

1. Oklahoma City Thunder 56-26

2. Minnesota Timberwolves 44-38

3. Portland Trail Blazers 43-39

4. Denver Nuggets 39-43

5. Utah Jazz 27-55

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Hot Seat

Tyrone Corbin, Utah Jazz

Among the projected cellar-dwellers who seem intent on pursuing the developing/rebuilding route, Utah is unique in that it hasn

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http://www.nba.com/reportcard/offseason/2013/jazz

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UTAH JAZZ

Best-case: The offseason departure of Utah

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22 Utah Jazz

Utah Jazz (43-39)

The Jazz have finally cleared up their long-standing frontcourt logjam. With Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap gone, Derrick Favors and Enes Kanter go from prospects to starters. Gordon Hayward becomes the focal point of the offense and Alec Burks gets a chance to show what he can do. With the potential to start five lottery picks (when Trey Burke is healthy), the Jazz are going to find out what their future looks like quickly.

They shouldn't be ahead of Toronto. Maybe if they switched conferences.

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5

Utah Jazz

2012-13 Record: 43-39

Top Addition: Trey Burke | Biggest Loss: Al Jefferson

Loss of Jefferson was the best thing that happened!

[QUOTE]Whether you want to call it

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2012-13 Record: 43-39

Notable Additions: C Andris Biedrins, G Trey Burke, C Rudy Gobert, F Richard Jefferson, G John Lucas III, G Brandon Rush

Notable Losses: F DeMarre Carroll, C Al Jefferson, F Paul Millsap, G Randy Foye, G Earl Watson, G Mo Williams

Coach: Tyrone Corbin (fourth season with Jazz)

AN OPPOSING TEAM'S SCOUT ANALYZES THE JAZZ

This team is emphasizing development of its young players after the free-agent departures of veteran starters Al Jefferson, Paul Millsap, Mo Williams and Randy Foye. The Jazz will follow their game plan of building a team for sustained success, which they've always been known for, rather than trying to make quick fixes.

That approach will make for a trying season: They have two cornerstone big men in Derrick Favors and Enes Kanter, but they are pretty thin in other places. The likelihood is that they add another high lottery pick in next year's deep draft, and maybe they fill another spot and begin ascending again.

They did a tremendous job handling the transition from the Deron Williams/Carlos Boozer era in collecting young assets but also having some veteran pieces around them so those young players were not forced to play before they were ready. With Jefferson, Millsap and youngsters Favors and Kanter in the frontcourt, they could not play all of them big minutes. And even with the veteran guys, they weren't quite good enough to be a playoff team last season. So it makes sense that they would give the young guys more of an opportunity after slowly bringing them along the past few seasons.

DOLLINGER: Jazz No. 22 in preseason Power Rankings

Sometimes it seemed like Favors was overthinking when he was playing, that he was moving at a slower speed than everyone else. The skill level always looked like it was there. He just needed to go through the maturation process. Last year, he really turned the corner.

He did?


Whereas Favors is going to be a little more offensive-minded, Kanter is going to be the interior presence. There's no question in my mind that Kanter averages double-figure rebounds this year and potentially ranks in the top 10. He's big, he's strong and he's getting stronger.

You have them mixed up?


Favors and Kanter have had the good fortune of being able to develop at their own pace. Both will be better for it and the organization will be better for it.

Gordon Hayward really took a step forward last year. He showed the ability to put some pressure on a defense, making shots but also showing that he's more than just a jump shooter. There's no question he's their best wing player.

He's their best player period. He had already shown he was more than a jump shooter. The shooting part has been one of the questions about him.


The Jazz will have to rely on Favors and Hayward to be their go-to scorers. It would not be surprising if Hayward leads this team in scoring. He has work to do defensively, but he'll stick his nose in there and make an effort.

Kanter should be their go to guy with Burks and hopefully Burke eventually as secondary options along with G. Favors sure looked good against the Clippers too!


GOLLIVER: Northwest Division preview

The backcourt is the Achilles' heel. To thrust any rookie into the position of quarterback is tough, especially when he doesn't have much behind him. But once he returns from his broken finger, Trey Burke is going to get significant minutes no matter the situation. In the meantime, John Lucas III, a score-first point guard and career backup, is set to start in Burke's place.

Hasn't been a rotation player much.


Whether Alec Burks is ready for an increased role in the backcourt in his third season remains to be seen. In an ideal world Burks wouldn't start, but he's got some length and versatility, and he looks capable of making shots.

Don't think there's much doubt he's ready for more.


They're going to need someone to play minutes off the bench. The eldest statesman is Richard Jefferson, and no one knows if he has anything left in the tank. Andris Biedrins' confidence is completely shot. Marvin Williams [heel] and Brandon Rush [knee] are both coming off major surgeries.

And Marvin sucked!


Tyrone Corbin was in a difficult position replacing Jerry Sloan, but he's made as smooth a transition as possible over the last two seasons. The transition era on the court is another difficult spot for Corbin. This organization is staring at a lean season because the talent is so green, and when you lose a lot of games, the coach often gets blamed.

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Steve Luhm: One thing that likely slowed Jazz-Hayward extension talks: No way Utah anticipated Pacers' Paul George to get a $90M deal.

Twitter @sluhm

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[QUOTE]HOW IS THE INJURY SITUATION HEADING INTO THE SEASON?

A:

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THE PROGRESS OF ROOKIE CENTER RUDY GOBERT?

Corbin:

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[QUOTE]Utah's biggest offseason need was a point guard and rookie Trey Burke, currently sidelined after finger surgery, has the poise to run the offense and the perimeter game to keep defenses honest ... The Jazz were tied for eighth in the NBA in three-point shooting percentage (.366) and with the arrival of Burke, there is no reason why that figure can

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Jody Genessy: Jazz GM Dennis Lindsey said organization will exercise team options on Enes Kanter and Alec Burks for their fourth years.

Twitter @DJJazzyJody

no brainer

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Jody Genessy: Jazz GM Dennis Lindsey said organization will exercise team options on Enes Kanter and Alec Burks for their fourth years.

Twitter @DJJazzyJody

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Jody Genessy: Jazz GM Dennis Lindsey said Derrick Favors' agent's first question wasn't about money. It was: "Can you keep the young core together?"

Twitter @DJJazzyJody

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Wallace Prather, the man Lindsey described as being a

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[QUOTE]During the preseason, Favors averaged only 26.5 minutes, 8.3 defensive rebounds, 9.4 points and 1.4 blocks per game. According to my tabulation, if his stats are adjusted to 36 minutes a game, he would average 11.2 defensive rebounds, 12.8 points and 1.9 blocks.

Malone averaged 37.2 minutes per game during his career. Reduced that figure to the 36-minute measurement and Malone would have averaged 7.5 defensive rebounds, 24.2 points and 0.8 blocks.

The defensive rebounding stat is the most interesting, rather than a combined rebounding stat because Favors is a defensive minded player first. If Favors is truly a better defensive rebounder than Malone (he owns the all-time rebound record at 11,406 rebound) and if Favors sticks it out for 19 years, it is conceivable that Favors could break Malone

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For nearly 30 minutes before Monday

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[QUOTE]Some mixed news on the injury front came out of Monday

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[QUOTE]Rush, who is rehabbing from knee surgery, and Williams, who is working his way back after having surgery on his Achilles, both played in three-on-three games during practice over the weekend, coach Ty Corbin said, their most serious activity so far this year.

"He was feeling pretty good, so we

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[QUOTE]Mike Harris is still with the Jazz after seeing every other roster hopeful with a non-guaranteed contract cut, and Corbin doesn

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Center Andris Biedrins suffered what the Jazz are calling a moderate left ankle sprain late in Monday

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[QUOTE]Outlining the team

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Recent reports have varied greatly on how far apart the two sides are when it comes to reaching a deal. If no agreement can be reached, Hayward will be free to test the market next summer, and the Jazz risk the possibility of having to either match an offer sheet or allow the 23-year-old Hayward to leave.

Hayward, meanwhile, risks walking away from a guaranteed, sizable raise.

"It

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Derrick Favors sat on the podium at the Zions Bank Center just 14 days older than Karl Malone when he made his debut for the Jazz as the new cornerstone for the Utah Jazz.

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if he

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if you believe that Rush finally cracked the code after Indiana and that his 2011-12 season represents his true level as a player, there

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Gordon Hayward:

F: For Hayward to fail his play would have to drop significantly. Basically he would have to regress to his play at the start of last year. Shooting less than 35 percent from the 3-point range and seeing his assist-to-turnover rate go back up would fail him.

D: Hayward has to at least become the team leader to get a passing grade. A minimum of four assists a game gets him a passing grade. He would also need to flirt with 40 percent shooting from beyond the arc.

C: The non-scoring numbers go here. He would need to have five assists and five rebounds to go along with double-digits scoring to earn this grade.

B: Here is the stat line: 16 points, six rebounds and six assists. That is a great year for the young man who becomes the go-to player for the team.

A: There is no other way to have a top season, but by making the All-Star team. As a wing in the West it would take probably 18 points on top of the six rebounds and assists. ESPN has talked about him as a nominee for Most Improved Player and that is the kind of year he would have to have.

It would take the Jazz winning for him to make it and that would be a tanking fail.

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[QUOTE]Derrick Favors:

F: "F" is for fouling out for Favors. Alliteration aside, if he leads the league in fouls

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[QUOTE]Trey Burke:

F: Burke failing would be him not playing. He would have to fall out of the starting lineup. As long as he plays he will at least pass this season.

D: He just needs to play 60 games. His finger injury will hold him out, but if he can come back only missing 22 games, which would be just into December, he would be able to show what he can do.

C: He needs to get 20 double-doubles for this average grade. It would be a good year for a Jazz point guard in his first year. Points are hard to come by, and if he can get 10 points and 10 assists in 20 games, it will be a pretty good year.

B: Averaging seven assists per game would earn him this grade. Seven assists for would be a really good year for him, and would put him in the top 15 in the league.

A: If he has five games where he makes a play for the win he would receive this mark. Burke made his name in the NCAA Tournament by hitting big shots. He can lock down the point guard position for years, if he can show off his ability to close games.

A+: Burke has the rare opportunity for an A+ with a Rookie of the Year award. He already has some buzz about him and he could get the award. It won't take much

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E[QUOTE]nes Kanter:

F: With less than 10 points per game he will be tagged with this grade. The Jazz will rely on Kanter to score, and if he can't score reliably, the season will be a failure.

D: To earn this grade he would need to score more than 10 points per game. Kanter is still young, and he needs to gain some confidence, if he is a player for the future.

C: On top of the points he will need to become some sort of defensive presence to net this grade. This will be hard to quantify, but he needs to support Favors. Part of this is staying out of foul of trouble, which was something he struggled with in the preseason.

B: Kanter learned a lot from Al Jefferson last season, but he needs to learn how to avoid gaining Jefferson's ball-control style. Jefferson was a black hole when he got the ball and Kanter needs to become a good passer. Shooting a high percentage while getting assists

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Who will be the best player on the Jazz at the end of the season?
1. Gordon Hayward
2. Derrick Favors
3. Enes Kanter
4. Alec Burks
5. Trey Burke
6. Richard Jefferson
7. Rudy Gobert
8. Other

Hayward

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Alec Burks:

F: Burks' failure would come from missing shots. He needs to score points. If he can't make a shot, then he can't succeed. Shooting in the low 30-percent range from behind the arc and scoring under 10 points is simply a failure.

D: Scoring 12 points per game would net him this grade. If he does nothing more than score more than 12 points per game on a fairly consistent basis, then he will have an OK season. He has the ball a lot with the second unit and should easily score 12.

C: Four rebounds and four assists would merit this grade. The second unit has nothing on it. Burks needs to get more than just points. He talks about being aggressive and needs to do it without scoring.

B: Being consistently near his average would earn him this mark. Burks averaged seven points per game last season, but it was two points one night then 12 the next or four points then 15. Whatever his average is next year, he just needs to keep the night-to-night total close to it.

A: Averaging 18 points per game would get him the top grade. Again, the team needs someone to score. He is a scorer and a fantastic season would be 18 points per game and being the guy when he is on the court.

He will score points. I think the big thing is being able to do his thing within the offense.

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[QUOTE]Richard Jefferson:

F: Don't be Raja Bell. Jefferson isn't expected to do much, but he can avoid a failing grade just by keeping the locker room together. If he pouts and complains, he fails.

D: Enjoy his role. If the preseason is any showcase, he will start most games and sit most finishes. He wants to show off his skills for another year or two, but his greatest job is to let the young players improve and close.

C: Jefferson earns this grade by shooting his shot. He is one of the best 3-point shooters in the league over the last few years. In the two years prior to his injury he shot 42 percent and 44 percent, respectively. If he shoots better than 40 percent, he will have a good year.

B: Staying healthy and rebounding will earn him this grade. He has normally been a very durable player, but last two years he has missed too much time. He doesn't need to do much, but getting a handful of rebounds per game

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Rudy Gobert:

F: The 7-foot-2 rookie from France can only fail if he doesn't play. As the other rookie this year, getting on the court is a success for him.

D: For this grade he would need to play 15 minutes per game. Last year Kanter got around 15 minutes per game, and if Gobert does nothing more than take up space for 15 minutes, he will have a passing season.

C: Don't foul out. This is more than just getting six fouls per night. He needs to get into good habits and keep his fouls PER-36 low. Favors couldn't do that, but Gobert might be able to learn during his rookie year.

B: Six rebounds per game would net him this grade. Assuming he gets those minutes; the giant doesn't need to do much to get rebounds. Six rebounds is actually a pretty good number, but he got six rebounds in 15 minutes in the preseason.

A: Three blocks per game would land this grade. That is a lot of blocks, and only one player averaged that last year, but Gobert has that skill set to blow people away. This would be nothing short of a phenomenal season, but that is how players earn A's.

I think it's ok if he gets his minutes in the D-league and if he gets fouls if he he's only playing a few minutes a game in the NBA.

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Pass/Fail:

Jeremy Evans: When Evans plays he produces. If he can play more than 60 games it will show that he is improving. He could become an asset off the bench.

Needs to prove he can be a rotation player. Already know he is a good end of the bench energy guy.


Ian Clark: He won't play much, but if he can shoot better than 35 percent from 3-point range, he will have a shot to remain with the Jazz long-term.

He's probably gone in a couple months if he doesn't impress.


Brandon Rush: He brings a lot to the table, but his greatest asset is his shooting. If he gets shoots 40 percent from beyond the arc, the trade will be a success.

Keeping Marvin off the floor would be success.


Marvin Williams: Williams isn't suited for the Jefferson sit-and-shoot offense. Williams can slash and get to the rim. He won't have a ton of chances, but when he gets them they will be easy. He will need to convert and shot 45 percent from the field.

If he can show enough for them to unload him he will be successful.


Andris Biedrins: Don't foul out. There isn't much expected from Biedrins this year. As long as he can stay in the games when he gets his chance to spell the starters, he'll be OK.

If he can show anything at the offensive end again he will be a huge success.


Jamaal Tinsley: Average 18 minutes per game. Tinsley is going to have to spell Burke during tough stretches. If he can do what he did last year, it will all be good for the man known as "Mel Mel the Abuser."

I like him but ideally he's a 3rd pg at this stage and on this team unfortunately they have another 3rd pg in Lucas(maybe Clark too).


John Lucas III: Averaging four assists per game would earn him a passing grade. The Jazz brought Lucas in to backup and teach Burke how to play. Lucas is a shooter, but he is still the point guard and needs to dish the ball in order to be successful.

Hitting open shots and playing d is more important for him.


Mike Harris: Harris was somewhat of a surprise in making the team, and playing in 10 games with a lot of youth needing playing time would help Harris.

Give them quality minutes when he gets the call which could happen in game 1 with only 4 bigs available.

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[QUOTE]Team overall:

F: For this grade the Jazz would need to finish somewhere in the middle. If the Jazz win 35-40 games and land somewhere in the area of 10-13 in the draft, this season is just a failure.

D: Losing the lottery. If the Jazz don't win a lot of games and fail to grab a top-five pick in the lottery, it will be hard to paint this in a pretty light. There are good players in the draft from 6-10, but not superstars.

C: Just making the playoffs. If the Jazz just make the playoffs as an eight-seed with 40-43 wins, it will be a good season, but fans won't be happy.

B: Winning the games they should win, which isn't a lot. The Jazz are not a great team on paper, but if they can win the games they should win, then it will give hope for the future and give the Jazz a shot at a star in the draft.

A: The extremes would need to happen to earn this grade. The Jazz need to either win a lot of games

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[QUOTE]Approximately seven years ago, Enes Kanter picked up a basketball for the first time. Getting drafted into the NBA after such a short time playing competitively is an accomplishment the native of Turkey doesn

[Out_In_Utah]

Finally the games are about to start :rockon:

I love you all!

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Hopefully they'll make it competitive anyway.

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The Jazz will likely only have 10 healthy bodies available for action in tonight's season opener. Marvin Williams (Achilles) and Brandon Rush (knee) have returned to practice but aren't able to participate in full scrimmages yet.

"I

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[QUOTE]Rush, who said he envisions a sixth-man role with his new team when he's back, looks forward to growing with this inexperienced squad. "We're still striving to make it to the playoffs. We know it

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[QUOTE]who is going to be the point guard for the Utah Jazz when they open their season at EnergySolutions Arena Wednesday night against Oklahoma City?

Coach Tyrone Corbin didn

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Last year he dealt with the waning days of the Jefferson-Millsap era, knowing neither would be with the team this season.

he knew?

[QUOTE]Now he is directing the growth period as the Jazz rebuild with young players.

On one hand, it

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[QUOTE]Temporary starter John Lucas III, signed in the offseason to be now-injured Burke

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Harris will likely be a part of the rotation.

Either him or Gobert have to be probably both. Thabeet vs Gobert would be an interesting match-up but Adams might be playing ahead of Thabeet it sounds like.

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[QUOTE]Lindsey, the Jazz