Utah Jazz Blog

The Jazz had a great start to the season but have fizzled in the last 10-12 games.  As of today, they are sitting outside of the playoff picture, looking in at a crowded Western Conference race.  As the Jazz were getting pummeled by Oklahoma City this week, there was a lot of obvious frustration on the faces of multiple Jazzmen, and that wasn’t a good sign.  Hopefully the team can pull together and create more of the magic that got them off to such a hot start this year.  It’s time to change the diapers, slap some baby powder on the young guys bums, and play some good basketball.

The Utah Jazz signed Josh Howard to a one-year contract.  He has had a good career in the NBA, with the apex being an All-Star year in 2007 with the Dallas Mavericks.  Look at this picture.  Take away the headband (since Ty Corbin is old-school like Jerry Sloan).  Change Howard’s jersey to a Jazz uniform, and replace Tim Duncan’s knee joints with metal plates, and that’s what we’re hoping to see a lot of this year.

Read this article by Brad Rock of the Deseret News about how young this year’s Jazz team is.  Since the season is shorter and games are packed in tighter, maybe that will play to their advantage.  All I know is, I hope Enes Kanter (19 years old) doesn’t still wear diapers.  Training camp begins now, so hopefully the Jazz come together quickly as a team and get ready to whip the Lakers on the 27th!

With the shortened and quickened NBA season right around the corner, I’ve been thinking about how this year’s Utah Jazz team will come together.  I can’t even remember the last time they played a game, so I’m anxious to see how they’ll be this year.

The biggest question mark for me is how Enes Kanter, the beast from Turkey, will impact the team.  Will he contribute significantly right off the bat?  Will he keep a place warm on the bench throughout his rookie season?  Will his ankles explode and he be forced to become a color commentator for the next 20 years?  Nobody knows.

I, for one, am hoping he can contribute very soon.  From the videos I have seen of Kanter, he looks big, he looks mobile, and he looks versatile.  I think he could be a great player in the NBA if he stays healthy and learns the system.

The greatest thing in quite a while happened yesterday: I almost got eight hours of sleep.  An even greater thing happened: I got to watch professional basketball!  (I can’t get myself to say I saw NBA basketball, because I don’t even know what that means anymore.)  A charity game was played yesterday, pitting the “Utah Jazz” against several NBA players from around the league, including Jimmer, Stephen Curry, Chauncey Billups, and others.  It was exciting and refreshing to see these guys suit up, even if it was in cheap jerseys, on a strange floor, in a small venue, and only available to watch on a mediocre internet stream.  It felt like more of an All-Star game, just from the fact that there were tons of dunks and not much defense to speak of.  It did my heart a lot of good.

Then I read the headlines for the NBA this morning, and I wept.

Not

Ballin’

Anymore