The good people at Off the Chest apparel are featuring CJ Miles’ favorite hashtag this week. Show some love and buy the shirt here.
Hit me up if you have a Jazz-related quote or hashtag that should be featured on a shirt and Ross Shapland at Off the Chest will make it happen.
Michael Brandy, Deseret News
[Editor's note: With the recent acquisition of D. Favors, the Jazz are suddenly flush with big men. Guest writer Nick Smith asks where Paul Millsap fits into the rebuilding Utah Jazz... or if he fits in at all.]
In 2006, the Jazz took a second round gamble with their 47th pick and selected an undersized PF in Paul Millsap. Millsap had been, for the third consecutive year, the nation’s leading rebounder, but outside of his rebounding skills and high motor, Millsap came into the league with much to work on. However, in his 5 years with the Jazz, Millsap has done everything the organization has asked him to do and has been a complete pro. Paul made strides in his game every single year and has become one of the more offensively skilled bigs in the NBA. He possesses great guard skills, a nose for the ball, and has a Kevin-Garnett-smooth jumper that he can hit from virtually anywhere on the floor. But there is one thing Paul Millsap does not have and that’s size. You can’t stop the heart of a lion, but you can stop a power forward who stands only 6 feet 7 inches tall.
Millsap waited patiently for Carlos Boozer’s departure for his chance to be a starter, and this year he got that chance. Paul has missed only 6 games all year, and has played extremely hard. Still, evaluating the quality of this season for Paul is very difficult. Was this actually a good year for Millsap? Looking at the stats, this season looks like a staggering success. By most measures he had the type of production that nearly all teams hope for from their starting power forward. In 72 games, Paul averaged 34.3 MPG, 17.4 PPG, 7.7 RPG, and 2.4 APG while shooting a very effective 53.1% from the field 33.3% from three. Still, Millsap’s lack of size was exposed on a nightly basis (see Demarcus Cousins’ performance from Sunday), and despite his significant increase in minutes, Paul still needs 5 additional offensive rebounds in Utah’s last three games to avoid his all-time career season low for that statistic. That’s a stunning fact for a man who’s mantra has always been to out-work anyone who stepped inside the paint.
Considering that Paul has been playing against the biggest and the best big men in the NBA, he has done a nice job (especially when you remember the lack of help from forever-ailing Mehmet Okur), but on February 23rd everything changed for the Jazz. Jazz General Manager Kevin O’Connor shocked the NBA by silently pulling the trigger and dealing one of the league’s premier point guards from the Jazz and changing the entire face of the roster. O’Connor and the rest of the Jazz brass decided that they would not let their best player walk for no return. The Jazz had a generalist “big man” in Paul Millsap but with Williams departure, they suddenly had a specialist power forward in Derrick Favors. Standing at a legit 6’10 with a wingspan and vertical leap that puts even Bill Walton at a loss for words, Derrick Favors became the future of this organization. Just a few nights ago he stood toe to toe with the length of the Lakers, and for the first time in years, the Jazz could challenge LA in the paint. So, if Derrick is the future for this team, what do the Jazz do with Paul Millsap? That’s the (multi)million dollar question.
It’s no secret that the Jazz have already realized they have a logjam. The team has started talking about and playing Millsap at the small forward position. This seems to be a perfect scenario to make room for Derrick Favors while keeping Millsap’s production on the floor, but sorry Jazz fans, I just don’t see it happening. When I think of a small forward, I think of a shooter with range, a quick release on his shot, and an ability to beat other guards off the dribble. When I think of Paul Millsap’s game, I don’t think of any of these things. Why spend time trying to fit a round peg into a square hole if there are other options for Paul? Here are the options that face the Jazz:
Option 1: Express to Millsap that he is a leader of the team and the intangibles he brings are greatly needed, but he needs to go back to coming off of the bench. The Jazz need Millsap to be the third big, the Lamar Odom, the guy who comes in and dominates against other teams’ bench players inside the paint lines like he used to. Paul Millsap is an average starting power forward in this league, but he is one of the best, if not the best third big man in the NBA.
Option 2: If Millsap is not pleased with option one, the Jazz owe it to him to move him to a place where he will get what he wants. His trade value has never been higher and the Jazz could use this value to address other issues on their roster by building a deal centered on Millsap. Millsap, coupled with one or two of the many draft picks and young players the Jazz have, would likely be enough to reel in a dynamic wing player that the Jazz desperately need. Imagine a frontline of Al Jefferson and Derrick Favors that is complemented with a tantalizing wing player like Danny Granger, Andre Igoudala, or Jamal Crawford. Utah could then use one of their remaining future picks for a guy like Kenneth Faried or Tristan Thompson to replace (I hate that word) Millsap’s rebounding and energy in the paint to become the new third big. And for the really optimistic Jazz fan, one could even make an argument that between Memo’s return and the Jazz’s rights to the 7’2 Croatian Ante Tomic, the Jazz could have a high supply of serviceable bigs, even without Paul.
Paul Millsap embodies everything that’s good about the NBA. Off the court he’s a class act, and on the court he’s very tough, plays through injuries, and leaves it all on the table every night. Even though Coach Sloan isn’t with the team anymore, I still love to use the following term when describing players like Millsap; he’s a Jerry Sloan type guy. It’s no secret why the fans love him, why the organization loves him, and why the only Jazz jersey I own is #24. Hopefully the Jazz can manage this issue with a simple rotation change, but depending on how well that goes over with Paul, I’m here to warn you Jazz fans: Millsap’s days here in Utah may be numbered.
Let us know what you think in the comments, and follow Nick on Twitter!
[The good people at Raptor's Republic asked a few questions leading up to tonight's game between the Jazz and the Raptors in Salt Lake City. I had a few answers. Thanks to our friends from the frozen wasteland to the north for putting this together.]
Raptor’s Republic: We always knew that Millsap would be a beast when given a chance. What does it mean for the Jazz that they will get similar production as Boozer without the shortened seasons because of injury?
You guys were able to pick up Al Jefferson for a song. How is the pairing with Millsap working out? Does this make Okur a trade candidate (he’s expensive for someone playing limited minutes off the bench)?
Spencer Ryan Hall: The Millsap Corollary has been a favorite topic for the stat-head community. When Boozer left for Chicago, it was exciting to finally have a chance to see if Millsap could maintain his high PER with starter minutes or if his true genius was only effective as an energy guy matched up against then opposing second unit.
The arrival of Al Jefferson, however, threw a wrench in the test. With Jefferson playing the traditional center spot and doing work on the low block (rather than playing alongside Mehmet Okur, who floats out to 3-point territory), Millsap has been free to pick up scraps and show off a midrange game. He still gets to play the role of energy guy without the burden of being the focus of the offense.
So, instead of replacing Boozer with Millsap, the Jazz have countered with the two-headed monster of Jeffer-sap. It took a few games to figure out, but if the nearly flawless performance against the OKC Thunder on Sunday is any indication, the Jazz will be an offensive force to be reckoned with.
The Jazz now have the luxury to allow Okur to ease back in when he returns from a devastating ruptured achilles tendon last season. He won’t be back until December at the earliest, and probably not until January, but his unique offensive game won’t require him to do much work inside to be effective. All that to say, I don’t see Okur becoming trade bait upon his return. He’ll be an important weapon for the Jazz down the stretch.
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Photo by Chris Detrick | The Salt Lake Tribune
I’ll be live chatting on NBA.com from the Utah Flash D-League draft party today at Noah’s in Lindon. Stop by and say hello.
The Flash will have the rare luxury of having a veteran team this season. I’m looking forward to good stuff from newcomer Ryan Thompson as well as new head coach Kevin Young and assistants Gene Cross and Norm DeSilva. Besides Thompson, the team should be very excited about the return of Kevin Kruger, fresh of a stint in Mexico.
The press release:
PROVO, Utah, Oct. 31, 2010 – Nine players, including returners Brian Hamilton, Kevin Kruger, Jordan Brady, Orien Greene, Andre Ingram and Dontell Jefferson, will join eight players selected by the Utah Flash in Monday’s annual NBA Development League Draft when training camp opens Nov. 9 at APX Alarm Headquarters in Orem.
Utah Jazz training camp invite Ryan Thompson has signed to play in the NBA D-League and will play for the Utah Flash along with Atlanta Hawks training camp invite Evan Brock. Thompson played for Rider University for four season averaging 17 points and five rebounds per game. Thompson was the only player in Rider University history to be in the top ten in points, rebounds and assists. Brock graduated from the University of Alabama and has played professionally in South Korea and Venezuela.
The Utah Flash have also invited guard Terry Martin to training camp. Martin was selected from an open tryout. He played at LSU and has played professionally in Austria.
“I feel good about the mix of players we have coming to training camp,” said head coach Kevin Young. “With the veteran group we have returning, and the players we’re looking to pick up in the draft, we could be a very good team this year.”
The Flash will hold its 2010 NBA D-League Draft Party at Noah’s Reception Center in Lindon beginning at 5 p.m. MT Monday. The entire draft will be audio streamed live on d-league.com. The public is invited to attend and observe how a professional basketball team is built, as well as enjoy free 5 Buck Pizza and drinks compliment of Pepsi. The Flash have the eighth selection in the first round of the serpentine formatted draft.
The Flash opens its season Nov. 20 by visiting the Reno Bighorns. The home opener is set for Dec. 3 when the Austin Toros visit the UCCU Center in Orem. Tickets can be purchased by calling 801-434-HOOP.
ESPN asked Spencer Hall, our Editor and Chief, to weigh in on the Jazz’ early season struggles over on the Daily Dime (#9). Here’s what he had to say…
An 8-0 preseason with all kinds of great chemistry seems like a distant memory for the 0-2 Jazz. Just last week all the talk centered around a new kind of leadership from a revitalized Deron Williams. The players were taking each other to lunch and making plans to start a multi-year dynasty together.
The pendulum swings both ways. The goodwill and camaraderie have been replaced with frustration, confusion, and lack of effort. It all boiled over in the fourth quarter when Williams fired a bullet baseball pass to rookie Gordon Hayward, who was standing only a few feet away. The angry gesture from the newly named team captain seemed to shock the crowd and fueled the boo birds.
Hayward put on a good face after the game, but had to cover for his captain when asked about the incident. “With time it will all be fine. I just need to learn what he wants me to do. Next time I’ll be in the right place. Once I stop rushing and just slow down it will all be fine. I keep telling myself to slow down.
“You know, in warmups I can’t miss, and then I get out there and the shots won’t fall. I just need to shoot. I’ve been a shooter my whole life. It starts on defense though. If we can get some stops, we’ll be fine. We’ll be fine; I have confidence in us.”
The players tried to say the right things, but after the game, the tension was palpable in the locker room. A frustrated C.J. Miles tossed a crumpled roll of athletic tape and missed the trashcan by a few feet, proving that too much pressure doesn’t help with crisp play. So what happened between the end of the preseason and the start of the 82-game grind? Williams talked about players not knowing the offense. Miles thought the team got caught up in the euphoria of being the preseason champs.
“The Lakers started the regular season with a ring ceremony,” Miles said, “and I guarantee you they didn’t go 8-0 in the preseason.”
The Suns are another team that didn’t go undefeated in the preseason. The powerful display by the aging trio of Steve Nash, Grant Hill and Jason Richardson as well as eye-opening play from Hakim Warrick and Goran Dragic bode well for the Phoenix squad that looked completely overmatched several times in the preseason. It should be noted that Warrick threw down one of the most ferocious dunks in the history of the world in the third quarter.
Somehow the Jazz need to get their hands on whatever alchemy the Suns medical staff is performing. They’ve not only rejuvenated 90-year old Hill, they’ve also created a Slovenian clone of Steve Nash in Dragic.
Jazz fans will have to wait until Sunday to see if a matchup against Kevin Durant and the Thunder in Oklahoma City reveals a new demeanor. The pendulum has to swing sometime.
UTAH FLASH HOST DRAFT PARTY
2010 NBA Development League Draft set for Monday Nov. 1
PROVO, Utah, Oct. 26, 2010 – The Utah Flash are hosting their annual NBA Development League Draft party at Noah’s in Lindon on Monday, Nov. 1 beginning at 5 p.m. MT.
Noah’s, which also serves as a practice facility for the Utah Flash Dance Team, is located at 644 North 2000 West on the East side of I-15 at exit 275 in Pleasant Grove.
The draft is eight rounds and will be conducted via conference call from NBA D-League draft headquarters and at locations in each of the 16 league cities. The ninth-annual event will be streamed on-line (www.nba.com/dleague) beginning at 5 p.m.
The Flash have the eighth selection in the first round and the ninth pick in the second round of the serpentine draft. The unique draft format allows a team who has the last pick in the first round to have the first pick in the following round. The Reno Bighorns have the first overall selection.
Flash fans will be allowed to observe the “war room” where coaches and basketball operations personnel make the final decisions in drafting players. Fans will also be able to purchase Flash merchandise as well as season ticket and group ticket packages.
Flash head coach Kevin Young will provide in-house commentary on draft picks for fans, giving insight into the thought process behind the player selections. Flash fans will also have a chance to meet the newest addition to the Flash coaching staff, Gene Cross.
Season and group tickets remain on sale and can be purchased by calling 801-434-HOOP. The Flash opens its season at Reno on Nov. 20, with the home opener slated for Dec. 3 against the Austin Toros.
by Donald Toomey
Special to Salt City Hoops
twitter: @Deejay14 / @DLeagueDaily
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Andres Sandoval was on of many players showcasing his talent to Coach Gene Cross (http://twitter.com/coachcross) and the rest of the Utah Flash staff at the XSI Factory in Lehi in hope of returning to the DLeague and earning a spot on the Flash’ roster.
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More than 25 athletes paid the $150 fee in hopes of inching closer to their dream of playing in the National Basketball Association. The Utah Flash, NBA Affiliate for the Utah Jazz and Atlanta Hawks held their local player tryout on Saturday October 16. As one of just 25 open tryouts (http://www.nba.com/dleague/news/open_tryouts_2010.html) spaced all across the United States and Canada. “During our open tryouts we look for players that will develop those talents, but also help us win a championship.” said first year head coach Kevin Young.
There were many sizes of men from 5’7” point guard Jon Foster all the way up to Kentucky Wildcats Center Jared Carter at 7’2″. Many were at their 2nd or 3rd DLeague Tryout of the month. Local man Jason Fullmer (UVU) to Durwin Williams of Cal State and across to Eastern Michigan, they gathered in hope of being one of 17 to attend training camp on November 8th. Joshua Jones attended the tryout in Reno, Nevada last weekend and could be going to Boise for the next one. “I was winded at the end of the first game, caught a second wind and now I am great”
Among the standout were Andres Sandoval, Lamont Morgan, Robert Porter and Carlos Medlock (http://twitter.com/loso3). Andres was the last pick in the 2008 DLeague draft and spent the beginning of last season with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants before being waived. His fiancé works here in Utah so he said it would work out fine although he knows if Dontell Jefferson returns his minutes at point guard would be limited.
Brigham Young University basketball co-captain Lamont Morgan Jr has hopes of performing in front of the Utah County fanatics as his college teammate Lee Cummard did a season ago. Lamont injured his knee with half the season left but was able to step on court during the Cougars’ second round match up against Kansas State. He looked strong and seemed to play himself into a chance to make the team. Former BYU volleyball player Kent Tuttle also tried out and impressed everyone with his freaky athleticism.
Robert Porter graduated from Urbana University in Ohio last season where he averaged double digits in points and was one of the teams’ top rebounders while being just 6’3”. Carlos Medlock averaged double digits all four seasons while attending Eastern Michigan including a career high 42 points the last time he stepped on the court in the MAC championship game against Akron.
The Flash’ tryout lasted almost five hours. The first two consisting of warm-up activates and shooting drills while the last three involved several games. After spending two seasons in the ABA with the Atlanta Vision fifty-one year old Kelvin Davis hoped he could step into the next level. He joked “Got any oxygen over there” while taking his turn on the bench. While many showed signs of fatigue during the ending moments of the tryout Young stated that no one lacked effort in the tryout. The staff will hold a meeting Monday afternoon and submit names to the league which are due by October 28th.
Steve Newman, John Millsap, Ryan Diggs and Brian Hamilton are among those who have worn a Utah Flash jersey after attending open tryouts. Hamilton went on to attended the New Jersey Nets training camp (http://www.nba.com/dleague/news/hamilton_080930.html) after just one season. The 2010-11 NBA Development League Draft (http://www.nba.com/dleague/news/draft_order_100921.html) will be held on November 1st.
The D-League will use a new design for the game ball this season.
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I’m digging the design on the new ball the D-League will use this year. I’m still not a fan of the weird synthetic material that makes it seem like it cost $10 at K-Mart, but at least it looks good from a distance.
Image stolen from the yfrog account of Utah Flash president Drew Sellers.
By Fareed Taghvaee
Special to Salt City Hoops
Follow @tag_fareed
Fesenko gets his Rik Smits on (AP Photo/Don Ryan)
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After an impressive home debut, the Jazz and Blazers went at it again, this time in Portland. Much like Thursday’s game against the same team, the Jazz came out to a strong start. Deron Williams took control of the Jazz attack and had 8 points in the first quarter. However, the story of the game has to be the play of Kyrylo Fesenko, who finished with 18 pts and 7 rebs in the Jazz 109-100 win over the Blazers.
Fesenko seemed to get the message from Coach Sloan after some immaturity and inconsistency in the first game. Fes has really been pushing for a spot in the rotation with an injury sidelining Mehmet Okur. A Fes and AK 5/4 combination could be very intriguing.
Ryan Thompson, making his first career start had some good moments in the first half. Jazz Analyst, Ron Boone noted some solid footwork on the defensive end for the rookie. He seemed to be involved and active throughout the quarter. However, he was completely non-existent in the second half.
On the flipside CJ Miles, making his first start was a black hole in the first quarter. In fact, Raja Bell (the first guy off the bench) replaced him over Ryan Thompson. CJ did redeem himself with an explosive thrid quarter. He scored 14 points in the second half.
After solid debuts for Jeremy Evans and Gordan Hayward both seemed to struggle some tonight. Hayward was frustrated after picking up two offensive fouls in the second quarter and be relegated to the bench. While he had an inconsistent offensives night, Hayward found ways to be involved in the game. He definitely had a “rookie” kind of night. A telling sign will be how he responds tonight in Phoenix. Evans was solid again. He finished with 3 points and 5 rebounds.
Al Jefferson had more of a standout game for the Jazz. He struggled offensively in the first half, but came out strong in the second half, going 4-6 from the field and finsihing with 14 points and 6 rebounds. Jefferson did seem to be out of place a lot in the first quarter on the offensive end, but over time he should be able to blend in better.
Paul Millsap was his usual consistent self. He did have some problems with LaMarcus Aldridge on the defensive end. When he gives up good position to long players they seem to score with ease.
The player nobody will talk about was Andrei Kirilenko. He sparked a big run for the Jazz second unit and had 4 points and 5 rebounds in 7 minutes. AK has looked very good at the 4 and his versatility and passing are way too valuable for the second unit. AK will start the season as the 6th man, in my opinion.
To much surprise Sundiata Gaines started the second quarter for the Jazz, and played the entire quarter. Gaines showed some good signs of leadership, but still was not a smooth floor general. His unit had 6 turnovers in their quarter. Right now Othyus Jeffers seems to be in the lead. He has energy, plays hard and continues to impress in limited minutes. Demetrius Nicholos effectively got himself cut with his performance in the second quarter. He has a long way to go.
Sloan went with a D-League type lineup of Fesenko, Evans, Nicholos, Jeffers and Gaines for the last 5 minutes of the second quarter. Matched up against mostly Blazers starters, they did surprisingly well and kept the Jazz in the lead going into half time.
“D-Will just hustled off bench to catch a full-court buzzer-beater attempt by #blazers. He then spiked it as if it were a TD reception.” – @DJJazzyJody
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The rumor mill has been talking about the Jazz signing Francisco Elson, the only Dutch NBA player of Surinamese descent. A legit seven-footer, Elson is a veteran player with the height and length to give Utah some depth behind Al Jefferson and Mehmet Okur. He also has championship experience after picking up a ring with the Spurs in 2007.
Do you know how hard it was to find a picture of him that wasn't of him getting posterized? Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images North America
Here’s Hollinger’s Scouting Report:
Elson’s main selling point is his mobility for his size. Even though he’s 33, he still runs the floor better than most centers and is a good pick-and-roll defender who can check smaller players. However, he lacks muscle and bigger centers maul him inside. As a result, he fouls a lot (more than once every seven minutes) and doesn’t grab many rebounds.
Offensively, Elson is too thin to play the post and mediocre at best as a midrange jump shooter, hitting 35.8 percent of his long 2s over the past three seasons. He’d get more baskets around the rim but he has terrible hands; plus, he has poor instincts as a scorer and rarely finds easy buckets off cuts and feeds.
Lacks muscle? Gets beat up by centers? Terrible Hands? Rarely finds easy buckets off cuts and feeds? He might just fit right in with a long line of similar Jazz big men.
It’s always nice to have an extra big body and six extra fouls to go around. Obviously with Okur out the Jazz would love to find someone who isn’t going to foul at a high rate and knows the system. And while Fesenko certainly has potential, he’s taking his dear, sweet time to sign the tender from the Jazz.
That’s why (okay, deep breath. I can’t believe these words are going to leave my mouth) the Jazz need to go out and sign Jarron Collins. There I said it. Yes, Jarron Collins. If Fes isn’t coming back, the Jazz should bring back Collins.
[Editor's Note: I am not on board with this. Repeat, I am not on board with this.]
The Jazz said they got tougher this year. Collins likes hard fouls. Sign him. (AP Photo/The Arizona Republic, Michael Chow)
Collins could relief minutes for Al Jefferson while Okur is getting healthy, and then later in the season, when everyone is healthy, he can be the foul machine that Sloan enjoys. With Jefferson and Hayward a few new joining the team and learning the new system, adding Collins could make the process of gelling as a team easier. He is a good locker-room presence and the players know him. If the Jazz are going to sign a guy who is going to foul then why not a guy who is huge and knows the system?
