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[QUOTE]Millsap is averaging 5.0 PPG, 2.1 RPG, 1.0 APG, 1.0 SPG and 0.7 BPG in 21.1 MPG. He has been crashing the boards, has showed some deft passing and is active defensively. His shooting has been rough, though. Millsap has hit just 12 of 40 shots (30.0 percent). While he
[QUOTE]In last week
[QUOTE]3. Elliot Williams solidifies his spot with the Jazz?
With only five days remaining until the end of his final 10-day contract, Elliot Williams only has a limited number of chances to showcase himself before Utah decides whether or not to keep him for the rest of the season. And in Wednesday
[QUOTE]Tonight Cleveland didn
[QUOTE] the Jazz are a team mixing and matching seemingly by the game. They are one of the more injured teams in the league, one dealing with different maladies with frequency.[/QUOTE]
Hard to feel sorry for them at all when they went into the season with the roster they had. The roster overall is better with Ingles, Millsap and Williams though Burks can't be replaced obviously.
[QUOTE]"It does become a bit more difficult as the season wears on because you don't have continuity," Utah forward Gordon Hayward said. "When that stuff happens, it's challenging, but the one thing that it does is give everyone the chance to step up."
The injuries have been both chronic and well-chronicled. Alec Burks is gone for the season with a shoulder injury. Rookie swingman Rodney Hood is out for a month with a bum foot. Reserve guard Patrick Christopher, dreshly signed out of the D-League, dislocated his knee and tore a ligament in his first career start. Enes Kanter was out a week with an ankle injury. And, on Thursday night, Derrick Favors missed the 101-99 win over the Milwaukee Bucks with a family emergency. On varying evenings, the Jazz have played as few as eight guys in the rotation.
In their place are two NBA developmental 10-day contract signings, Elijah Millsap and Elliot Williams. Joe Ingles has started the last few weeks at shooting guard, and he was without a team coming out of the preseason.
It's made for a challenging first year for Snyder. The Jazz entered the schedule wanting to play their core five together, develop chemistry, see what works and what doesn't, and get ready to make a run at the playoffs next season.[/QUOTE]
Should have been going for the playoff spot this year. The core 5 had already played together last year.
[QUOTE]And while that still can happen, Utah will enter next year with its franchise group having to catch up on lost time, even if only slightly so.
"It gives us the chance to put guys into spots they normally wouldn't be in," Snyder said. "I think we have to see the injuries for what they are. We have to take stock and then make adjustments. We have guys who are filling roles, and you can get growth like that."
Specifically, Snyder is speaking of Rudy Gobert, who has emerged out of nowhere as one of the best defensive big men in the league. Also, on Thursday night, Snyder made a major lineup change, promoting Dante Exum to starting point guard and bringing Trey Burke off the bench.[/QUOTE]
It's not out of nowhere. He defended and rebounded last year. His offensive game keep him on the floor now.
[QUOTE]Because of the injuries, Snyder said he made the move out of necessity. His second unit was anemic in losses against the San Antonio Spurs and the Cleveland Cavaliers. Having Burke with the reserves against the Bucks proved to be a stabilizer. Burke
[QUOTE]the world team will play against the U.S. team, putting Burke and Gobert potentially on opposing teams.[/QUOTE]
Hard to imagine Burke being one of the best sophs. :wtf:
[QUOTE]"It's a good idea," Gobert said. "Especially this year. The international team has a lot of talent, a lot of guys who can play. So it will be interesting."[/QUOTE]
It's a good idea if the international players have enough guards to play. Lots of bigs internationally. othe rpositions are a lot thinnner.
[QUOTE]Between the rookies and sophomores, the Jazz have four guys who can potentially make the game: Gobert, Burke, Dante Exum and Joe Ingles. All have played significant roles this season.[/QUOTE]
Gobert I'd think is the only one. Trey shouldn't make it just because he gets minutes.
[QUOTE]Gobert and Burke seem to be good bets to make it, as both have put up good numbers. Exum is one of the glamour draft picks of a ballyhooed rookie class, and his ascent into a starting role on Thursday could propel him into the mix over the next few weeks. Ingles seems like the one who could have the most difficult time making the team.[/QUOTE]
good numbers? :rolleyes:
[QUOTE]"I think this is definitely a good idea," Exum said. "It's exciting. The international scene is way bigger than it used to be, and it's a good idea by the NBA to get all of the talent in one game."
Playing well
The past two games have showed a side of Enes Kanter that the Jazz want to see consistently. The fourth-year forward out of Turkey scored 24 points and grabbed 17 rebounds in Wednesday's loss to Cleveland. In Thursday's first half against Milwaukee, Kanter scored 12 points and grabbed 12 rebounds.
Kanter finished with 23 points. He scored in the paint at will, was a factor on the backboard on both ends and was a positive force throughout.
"I don't like losing, so whatever I score, it doesn't matter if we don't win," Kanter said on Wednesday night.
Dropping dimes
Ingles was the only starter on either team to not score in the first half on Wednesday, but he did have six assists, two rebounds and two steals, further cementing his growing reputation as a glue guy.
[email]tjones@sltrib.com[/email]
twitter: @tjonessltrib[/QUOTE]
[QUOTE]Dante Exum is not physically ready to be a starter in the NBA. But on this team, he's the best defender at point guard by a significant margin. And if this move does last, you've just seen a changing of the guard much earlier than expected.
When the Jazz drafted Exum with the No. 5 pick in June, fans wondered when the day would come. But it was likely that day wouldn't come for at least a year, maybe two and possibly even three.
But one thing with injuries: It makes coaches do a lot of tinkering, a lot of adjusting. And with Alec Burks down for the season and Rodney Hood down for at least a month, this Jazz team desperately needs scoring off the bench. Simply put, Trey Burke is the best candidate at this time to fill that role.
"It's something we've been looking at, generally speaking," Snyder said. "We've had trouble scoring with our second unit, and I think Trey can give us a little more pop in that respect."
So how will it all work out? For Thursday night at least, that will be answered soon enough.
Tony Jones[/QUOTE]
They could both start eventually with Dante's size. Both have to prove they're roation players first though.
[QUOTE]On a normal night, we'd be talking about Gordon Hayward scoring 13 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter. [/QUOTE]
You mean Maxi G finally waking up before it was too late.
[QUOTE]Or Enes Kanter scoring 23 points and grabbed 16 rebounds, and becoming the first Jazz player since Al Jefferson to score 20 and grab at least 15 rebounds in consecutive games. Or Utah's resiliency in the second half, things like that.[/QUOTE]
Favors has not done that? :confusedshrug:
[QUOTE]But on Thursday night, everyone's talking about the teenage lottery pick starting at point guard.
Dante Exum received the nod at point guard from coach Quin Snyder, significant because the man he replaced
[QUOTE]Rudy Gobert, who had still another solid game with 14 points and 10 rebounds.[/QUOTE]
He led the way yet again from what I saw. Did you even watch the game?
[QUOTE]It didn
[QUOTE]Jazz swingman Gordon Hayward was simply the best player on the court.[/QUOTE]
Besides Rudy anyway.
[QUOTE]He was aggressive getting to the basket, either for his own score or to set up his teammates. His energy was contagious, as his teammates seemed to pick up their games on both ends. While it got a bit tense in the end, Hayward
[QUOTE]Utah Jazz coach Quin Snyder has been questioned about his starting lineup, whether Enes Kanter or Rudy Gobert should start at one of the inside positions.
At least for tonight, Snyder won
Various media reports this week reiterated a report from November that the Jazz will bring back the Rocky Mountain Revue this July with a half dozen or so teams. The Jazz hosted the Revue from 1984-2008.
[QUOTE]The Jazz have beat the Milwaukee Bucks, the Detroit Pistons and the Charlotte Hornets all on their floors. Those teams are going to be the 6, 7 and 8 seeds in the East this year. The Jazz would be an Eastern Conference playoff team. I have no doubt. Think about how different everything would feel if we could play in the East and have the confidence of winning half your games and making the playoffs.[/QUOTE]
They'd be fighting for the last spot in the west if the front office wasn't tanking I have no doubt.
[QUOTE]Good win tonight by the Jazz. Solid fourth quarter performance taking care of the ball. Turnovers were the story of the night. The Bucks are long, active and physical. They are committed on the defensive end. They are long and able to switch all over the floor. This caused the Jazz major issues. The Jazz, who are having an issue taking care of the ball right now, turned it over 22 times leading to 32 Bucks points. But in the fourth quarter, the Jazz only turned it over three times and when the Bucks don
[QUOTE]Burke contributed from the bench about what he was as a starter: 10 points on 11 shots, 2 rebounds, 2 assists, and 3 turnovers. Nothing to write home about, but also a much more respectable line for a bench player getting 24 minutes rather than a starter getting 30+. Frankly, the 11 shots were possibly the key stat for a player with a painful .459 TS% on the season.[/QUOTE]
Yep nice game off the bench. They need a starter. Maybe Neto.
[QUOTE]As for Exum, as has become the norm, it
The Toronto Raptors and Chicago Bulls are among four NBA teams that have shown an interest in swingman D.J. Kennedy, a leading candidate for the Most Valuable Player in the top German league, sources told RealGM. RealGM
The Utah Jazz and Detroit Pistons have also reached out to Kennedy, a source said. With a deal for the remainder of the German season, Kennedy is a potential option for the summer and next season. RealGM