Utah Jazz: Starter Review

 Being a Utah Jazz fan in the Philippines is a drag. games are rarely shown on tv, you can see sports article regarding the jazz once in a blue moon, you go to malls and look at sports establishments and not even one single nba item with jazz logo in it. the jazz is a good team, good franchise, good players… whats wrong with you people!!

its a big surprise to everybody (including me) about the jazz fast start in the still on going nba season. they started the season with a 4-0 mark and surprised everyone when they defeated post season favorites houston rockets and san antonio spurs. the jazz is now 23-10 4th in the western conference and 1st in the northwest division.

its a good start… but the main question is will it last? will they continue surprising people when playoffs arive? or the most dreaded question to every jazz fan… can they stay healthy?

lets analize the 5 starters on the jazz roster this year:

 (C) Mehmet Okur
Memo is often called the poor-mans Dirk Nowitzki. he can pretty much do all dirk can do but just a little slower. while i personaly love memo, i have to agree to that. he's a good spot up shooter can rack up 3's on a regular basis, can post up any player in the leage and he's a good rebounder. the only problem with memo is his quickness. he doesnt have a quick release, it would usually take him 1-2 secs before he fires up a 3 ball… now that is bad when your the 1st or 2nd option on your teams offense. opposing players can run towards you, block or distract you given that huge time frame. its a good thing that the jazz play system gives him enough space for him to set up those shots. the brightest spot on memo's game though is his clutch play. several game winning shots are included in this turkish snipers resume.

 (PF) Carlos Boozer
Booze is the biggest surprise not just in the jazz season but for the whole nba this year. avaraging 21.5 points and 11.8 rebounds per game, this double double monster is arguably the main reason why the jazz are in the tops of the nba rankings this year. the main concern about boozer is his health, he played just 84 games for the past 2 seasons bec of countless hamstring injury. if booze can continue his health streak the jazz can go all the way.

 (SF) Andrei Kirilenko
AK47 is the lone bright spot on the jazz defense this season. this long armed russian moves well w/o the ball and usually get his block shots on the weak side or on opposing teams fast break plays. he can also knock off open jumpers and is a good inside player as well. this guy is a freak and i mean that in a good way, long arms and good jumping abilty is what makes him one of the best off ball defender in the "history" of the nba.

 (PG) Deron Williams
this sophomore player from Ilinois University have certainly stepped out of Cris Pauls shadow this season. some fans were disappointed (including myself) that the jazz picked D-Will over CP3, stating that its the dumbest move the jazz organization has ever made in the history of the franchise… boy did williams proved them wrong. averaging 16.5 points and 9.5 assist per game, williams is the operator of the jazz offense. whether he will drive then dish to an open okur for 3, hit jumpers off of a screen from AK or reliving a Stock to Malone moment with boozer, this guy can do it all… and the most scary part, D-Will is only 21 yrs old, he's still improving.

  (SG) ???
this is bad… the jazz doesnt have a legit player to cover this spot this season, as i recall vs the Lakers, Mamba actually dropped 52 points against the jazz that night, then Redd fired 57 vs the Bucks and just last night T-Mac scored 44 points in a blow out against Houston. all of these comming from a guy from the shooting guard position. the jazz really cannot defend this position really well, AK can only cover much but we need a legit player that can stop bigtime scorers like them. right now Derek Fisher is the designated starter for this spot, he's an undersized guard with good range and a championship caliber exp. though fish is always having a hard time defending taller guards bec of his size and his slow movement speed, he makes up for it with his physical play that suits well with Jerry Sloans defensive system. Ronnie Brewer the "i-sprain-my-foot-while-walking" rookie can potentialy cover this spot, he's quick on screens and is very athletic as well. he's still a young guy though… lets just hope he's not a late bloomer.