Utah Jazz

[luis.lane]

bos revi ... you're on !

 

ei! seattle vs. jazz today . keep us posted !

[FF]

UTAH rips SEATTLE ... goes 8-1 !

 

SEATTLE (AP) -- Deron Williams continued his streak of outstanding all-around play with 27 points, reserve Matt Harpring added 21, and the Utah Jazz improved to 8-1 with a 118-109 victory over the Seattle SuperSonics on Friday night.

 

The 8-1 start for Utah -- best in the NBA -- is the second-best in franchise history, trailing only a 9-1 start to the 1999 season. Utah gets a chance to match that on Saturday night, hosting Phoenix.

 

It's unclear if Andrei Kirilenko will play in that game. The talented Russian forward stayed in Salt Lake City, missing his second straight game with a sprained right ankle.

 

Utah didn't need him against the Sonics. Not with Williams scoring at least 20 points for the third time in Utah's last four games and six Jazz players scoring in double figures.

 

Mehmet Okur scored 15 points with 11 rebounds and Carlos Boozer had 14 and 13. Rookies Ronnie Brewer and Paul Millsap both finished with 11 points.

 

Williams scored 23 in the second half and combined with Derek Fisher to hand out 14 of Utah's 27 assists. Williams also kept Seattle's Luke Ridnour in check, leaving the Sonics' scoring load to Allen and Rashard Lewis.

 

Allen finished with 32 -- his fourth game already with 30 or more points -- and Lewis added 24. But a third and fourth scorer failed to emerge for the Sonics (4-6), who have lost two straight at home after a three-game win streak.

 

Ridnour finished with 15 points, most coming late. Ridnour had scored 19, 32 and 20 points, respectively, in his last three games.

[clubber_lang]

Wow, Deron is indeed for real!

 

Good news for the Jazz. Now they can smile again at the PG position.

 

The key for this team is to avoid injuries (yes, I'm talking about Boozer, Kirilenko and Harpring)... but that's stating the obvious.

[FF]

Wow, Deron is indeed for real!

 

Good news for the Jazz. Now they can smile again at the PG position.

 

The key for this team is to avoid injuries (yes, I'm talking about Boozer, Kirilenko and Harpring)... but that's stating the obvious.

 

Jazz 120 Phoenix 117

 

si senhor clubber ... d-will is for real. leads the jazz from 16 pts down in the 4th quarter to beat the suns in OT with 25 points and 14 assists. boozer and okur combine for 40 points and 21 rebounds. paul millsap is a genuine stud in the making with 10 boards ( six offensive ) and 18 points on 5-6 fg and 8-10 ft.

 

go jazz !

[spongebobby]

Jazz 120 Phoenix 117

 

si senhor clubber ... d-will is for real. leads the jazz from 16 pts down in the 4th quarter to beat the suns in OT with 25 points and 14 assists. boozer and okur combine for 40 points and 21 rebounds. paul millsap is a genuine stud in the making with 10 boards ( six offensive ) and 18 points on 5-6 fg and 8-10 ft.

 

go jazz !

 

yup, was monitoring the game via the web. i actually thought that the jazz would lose as time was running out. good thing okur made some free throws. yes, the jazz are for real. sloan just has so many weapons.

 

on another note, milsap seems to be even better than brewer...

[luol_deng]

after a run with injuries this is the jazz team that you were suppose to see two year ago...now its here enjoy until the injuries run again...

[FF]

indeed injuries may derail the jazz again this season. we're keeping our fingers crossed that dwill , boozer and okur stay healhty through to the playoffs.

 

the significant difference from last year is that the the jazz may have found the depth to weather injuries. last year , jazz were 11-21 in games ak47 was out. this season jazz are 3-0 with kirilenko on the sidelines.

 

the bench is really doing an excellent job with harpring , fisher and millsap anchoring the reserves.

 

that guy millsap is a genuine stud. along with brewer , the jazz may have gotten the most value out of their two picks this year.

[revi]

the significant difference from last year is that the the jazz may have found the depth to weather injuries. last year , jazz were 11-21 in games ak47 was out. this season jazz are 3-0 with kirilenko on the sidelines.

 

that guy millsap is a genuine stud. along with brewer , the jazz may have gotten the most value out of their two picks this year.

 

... You are definitely correct F.F.. The difference is the emergence of a bench and the surprising play of Deron Williams.. Williams was not too good last year but this year he is just phenomenal.. Adding Brewer and Millsap was just heavenly for the Jazz.. Let us see if this would all carry over up to the playoffs..

 

OT: Good thing I invested on some Ronnie Brewer cards.. Better get me some Millsaps right now.. :cool:

[FF]

... You are definitely correct F.F.. The difference is the emergence of a bench and the surprising play of Deron Williams.. Williams was not too good last year but this year he is just phenomenal.. Adding Brewer and Millsap was just heavenly for the Jazz.. Let us see if this would all carry over up to the playoffs..

 

OT: Good thing I invested on some Ronnie Brewer cards.. Better get me some Millsaps right now.. :cool:

 

ya do dat bos revi ... millsap may be the nba's next boozer or rodman ( power forwards drafted in the 2nd round ). :cool:

[FF]

for emerging paul millsap fans ... here's a backgrounder from nba. draftexpress ....

 

Name:Paul Millsap

Height:6' 7"

Weight:258 pounds

Previous Team: Louisiana Tech , Junior

Drafted: #47 in 2006 Draft by Jazz

NBA Position:PF

Date of Birth:2/12/1985 (21 Years Old)

High School:Grambling H.S.

Hometown:Grambling, La

Earliest Draft Class:2005

Current Position:PF/C

Possible Positions:PF/C

Best Case Scenario:Udonis Haslem

Worst Case Scenario:Reggie Evans

Profile Written By:Jonathan Givony

Last Updated:2/16/2006

 

Strengths:

Bruising big man who is on track to led the NCAA in rebounding for a record third time consecutively.

 

Millsap has an NBA body minus an inch or two, an excellent frame and some of the longest arms in the NCAA relative to his height. He has decent quickness, good leaping ability and excellent strength; especially in the lower body. He’s also highly coordinated and possesses a very wide base and low center of gravity which allows him to control his body with ease.

 

Millsap’s biggest virtue as far as the NBA is concerned is easily his rebounding ability. He has suction cups for hands and is aided greatly by his outstanding motor and terrific reach. Like all great rebounders, he not only has excellent technique boxing out and the physical gifts needed to make his presence felt on the glass, but also combines that with outstanding anticipation skills to help him predict where a missed shot will end up and get there before his opponent is able to react. Millsap will clean up any missed shot in his area with ease, but will also go well out of his area to come up with rebounds. He is extremely active and absolutely relentless when he sets his eyes on the target. Seeing him coming up with a rebound after his 2nd or 3rd bounce after a tip or the ensuing scramble is something you get used to quickly when watching him play. He just refuses to give up on any play.

 

Offensively, Millsap is able to do a lot of damage at the mid-major level thanks to his bulk, athleticism, tenacious attitude and the way he runs the floor. He wanted to be the man in college (the reason he plays for Louisiana Tech) and that is exactly what he is, to the tune of over 20 points a game. He relishes contact and will finish in the toughest of situations even when being fiercely contested. Defenders at the mid-major level just seem to bounce off of him, and it’s not even clear that Millsap notices them.

 

He uses his body extremely well to establish position deep inside the paint and then seal off his man. Once he has him pinned he will extend and outstretch one of his super long arms to make tough catches and then finish strong at the basket. He watches the trajectory of the ball much like a wide receiver would in football, anticipating the lob, following it with his eyes and adjusting accordingly, corralling it with his extremely soft hands and then finishing with aggression.

 

Millsap has a fairly soft touch around the basket and knows how to use the glass, even though he clearly prefers to make a statement by throwing down powerful dunks. He can finish with the jump-hook or baby hook shot in and around the paint area, and shoots a very high percentage from the field at 57%.

 

That is mostly the extent of his offensive game at this point except for some basic spin-moves and a nice baseline jump-shot he will show on occasion, but not nearly enough. He gets his points quietly, within the flow of the offense and doesn’t show anything close to a superstar attitude when he’s not getting enough touches.

 

Defensively, Millsap blocks a decent amount of shots thanks to his wingspan and leaping ability, but not quite enough (2.2 a game) to make us think that this will completely translate over to the NBA considering his height.

 

Don’t expect anything flashy out of him, he’s a lunch pail type who will get the job done and go home without making much noise.

 

Weaknesses:

Measurements will be key. Millsap is listed at 6-8, but it’s always hard to tell exactly with players of his size and bulk just by eyeballing them. Anything less than 6-8 (despite his tremendous wingspan) could cause his stock to drop.

 

Millsap has one position and one position only at the NBA level: power forward. He is too wide and not skilled or athletic enough to consider making him a 3, and is a couple of inches too short to keep him at the center position which he currently occupies.

 

He’s clearly uncomfortable operating outside of 12 feet, possessing very basic ball-handling skills and not enough range on his jump shot, at least not on a consistent basis.

 

Millsap hasn’t really been challenged to improve his offensive skill level in college because of the competition he’s gone up against. He can bully his man in the paint and get 2 points almost whenever he pleases, so there is no reason for him or his coach to make things more difficult on him. His footwork is therefore not nearly as polished as many recent undersized, but highly talented big men we recall coming out of college such as Sean May or Ike Diogu, and therefore questions will linger about how much of his offense will translate over to the NBA game. He is athletic, but not an explosive freak, so there aren't many outs there either. Millsap has worked hard to expand his range and has even hit a couple of 3-pointers this year (4-12 in 25 games at the time of this report), but still has plenty of work ahead of him in this area to expand his expand his offensive game.

 

On the other end of the floor, Millsap definitely is not an amazing man to man defender. His lateral quickness is just decent guarding big men on the perimeter, and he has a tendency to take possessions off as many players in his situation in college are forced to do because of the way their team relies on them on the other end of the floor. When he is playing with full intensity on this end he has a tendency to pick up cheap fouls, which is a clear recipe for disaster for Louisiana Tech if he has to sit out more than 5 minutes at a time. Like many good shot-blockers, Millsap has issues at times with trying to block every shot that comes his way and therefore being vulnerable to pump-fakes, head fakes and exposing his team on the glass once he bites.

 

He’s isn’t a very good free throw shooter, and has not improved on this part of his game in his three years in college. He shot 64% as a freshman, 60% as a sophomore, and 61.3% as a junior at the time of this report

[spongebobby]

hmmm...milsap was probably drafted as a backup to boozer. i wouldn't be surprised if one of them gets traded next year. milsap's stock will most likely increase this year.

 

and did i read louisiana tech? same college as malone's?

[luol_deng]

hmmm...milsap was probably drafted as a backup to boozer. i wouldn't be surprised if one of them gets traded next year. milsap's stock will most likely increase this year.

 

and did i read louisiana tech? same college as malone's?

 

hold on fella not yet, this is a 82 game season...Milsap is going to hit the rookie wall, although he has had good games his isnt there just yet...remember Ronald Murray? where is he now??

 

Booze might get traded if he falls injuried and they would wanna trade him coz of his huge contract thats if he derails...

[spongebobby]

hold on fella not yet, this is a 82 game season...Milsap is going to hit the rookie wall, although he has had good games his isnt there just yet...remember Ronald Murray? where is he now??

 

Booze might get traded if he falls injuried and they would wanna trade him coz of his huge contract thats if he derails...

 

oops, that's right. it's still too early. same with what's happening with brewer who started the season well. he's supposed to start in place of ak47, but he hasn't produced the numbers. instead, it's milsap who's making the most of kirilenko's absence.

[FF]

hmmm...milsap was probably drafted as a backup to boozer. i wouldn't be surprised if one of them gets traded next year. milsap's stock will most likely increase this year.

 

and did i read louisiana tech? same college as malone's?

 

yup same college. la tech ...

[FF]

hold on fella not yet, this is a 82 game season...Milsap is going to hit the rookie wall, although he has had good games his isnt there just yet...remember Ronald Murray? where is he now??

 

Booze might get traded if he falls injuried and they would wanna trade him coz of his huge contract thats if he derails...

 

agree with you there bro. now that he's gaining a rep and teams are aware of millsap he might find it more difficult to sneak up on people. let's see if he can keep the energy and effort up in the next few games.

 

ronald murray is now detroit. he's a prime example of a what-could-have-been career. after two mediocre seasons ... he gets inserted into the starting lineup in seattle in place of the injured ray allen and averages 23.2 ppg. over six games . when allen gets back ... he gets sent back to the bench and fades.

 

he gets traded to cleveland ( where lbj is ) ... back to seattle ( behind allen ..again ) and now resides in detroit ( where he sits behind rip , chauncey and lindsey). murray could have showcased his talents more on an expansion team or rebuilding team.

but sadly that's the way the ball bounces...

 

re boozer was trade bait until the season opened not only because of his contract but because of the perception that he's injury prone and that he lacks toughness ( remember last season where he got ripped by team owner larry miller ?) and can you imagine a soft player playing on a jerry sloan team ?

 

but to boozer's credit ... he's playing anything but soft right now. hopefully ... he's gotten over the injury bug and plays a majority of the season...