UTAH JAZZ
Recap Rewind: Looking like unstoppable juggernauts in the middle months of the season the Jazz limped to the regular season finish line winning only 4 of their last 11. This was puzzling as they weren’t dealing with injuries during that stretch. All of their big names played. They just didn’t play that well together. Carlos Boozer was the big stat guy for the Jazz this year, averaging 21 points and 12 rebounds. Center Mehmet Okur ended the season averaging 18 and 8. But the straw that stirred the drink was second-year point guard Deron Williams, who ensconced himself firmly in the Who’s Who of Up and Coming Players averaging 16 points and 9 assists with smart, passionate play. Between his physical skills and his knack for running a team he may be the best young true point guard in the game and he will soon eclipse the bigger scorers as Utah’s most valuable player if he hasn’t already.
Playoff Prospects: Under the new seeding rules even though Utah is technically the fourth seed by virtue of winning their division they lost home court advantage to the fifth seeded Rockets by finishing a game behind them. This is clearly the most interesting first round matchup in the West. The Jazz are smart, calculated, have good team-wide talent, and can score a ton. The Rockets are massive, explosive, have a couple of incredible superstars, and hang their hats on their defense. At different points in the season each team played marvelously but each team also had letdowns. It all depends on who brings the “A” game and gets hot. After their late-season collapse, though, not many would give the Jazz a chance at surviving the second round even if they get past the first.
Questions for Next Season: The Jazz aren’t going anywhere. They’ll return mostly the same cast next year, which is fine. The big question involves small forward Andre Kirilenko. Once a game-changing defensive super-stud with a splash of offensive flair Kirilenko has turned into an enormously expensive super-dud, averaging 8 points and 5 rebounds in apparently spiritless play. I’m sure the Jazz would like to move him but he’s making around $1.5 million for each point he’s averaging and his contract runs four more years, getting progressively more expensive. The Jazz are also searching for athletic wingmen at the shooting guard or small forward positions. If they could strike gold they could be scary good next year. Even if they don’t they’ll still be a playoff-caliber team for years to come.
DIVISION REPORTS
Eastern Conference
Atlantic Division
Central Division
Southeast Division
Western Conference