The Jazz outscored the Raptors 26-16 in the 4th quarter last night and they held them to 37.4% shooting from the floor which helps explain the win. Carlos Boozer led the way for the Jazz last night with 22 points, 18 rebounds and 2 assists. Deron Williams returned to action last night and he repsonded with 20 points, 6 rebounds and 9 assists. Andrei Kirilenko had one of his best games of the year last night finishing with 20 points, 7 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 blocked shots. The Jazz are now 5-6 on the year.

22-year old point guard Eric Maynor was just supposed to sit and learn behind Deron Williams this season. But, Williams recently had to miss a couple of games due to a sickness in his family putting Maynor in the starting lineup and he played very well. Maynor has played in 8 games (2 starts) for the Jazz this season and he is averaging 13.5 minutes, 6.4 points, 1.1 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game. Look for the Jazz to give Maynor a few more minutes than he was getting when Williams returns. 23-year old SG/SF Wes Matthews has been a huge surprise for the Jazz so far this season. The undrafted Matthews has played in 10 games (2 starts) already for the Jazz this season and he is averaging 20.1 minutes, 7.6 points, 1.3 rebounds and 0.6 assists per game. The Jazz would probably be better off with Matthews coming off the bench but due to injuries he’s been forced into the starting lineup where he is holding his own so far this year.

The Jazz outrebounded the Cavs 38-28 but they didn’t play any defense last night as the Cavs shot 51.3% from the floor and that did them in. Carlos Boozer led the way against his old team with 25 points, 12 rebounds and 1 assist. Rookie point guard Eric Maynor got another start and he was very good again with 24 points, 3 rebounds and 4 assists. Mehmet Okur, Wes Matthews and Andrei Kirilenko pitched in with 13 points apiece last night. The Jazz are now 4-6 on the year.

The Jazz shot 51.2% from the floor last night and they outrebounded the Sixers 44-33 which explains the ease of the win last night. Carlos Boozer was outstanding again last night with 24 points, 12 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals. Wes Matthews continues to play well as he scored 16 points, grabbed 4 rebounds, dished out 2 assists and he stole the ball twice. Rookie point guard Eric Maynor got a rare start in the place of Deron Williams who had to fly back to Salt Lake City for personal reasons. All Maynor did was score 13 points, grab 4 rebounds and dish out 11 assists in 36 minutes on the floor. The Jazz are now 4-5 on the season.

The Celtics shot 53.2% last night and it was too much for the Jazz to overcome in Boston. Ronnie Brewer led the way for the Jazz last night with 13 points, 1 rebound and 3 assists. Deron Williams didn’t have his best game of the year as he scored 13 points, grabbed 7 rebounds and he dished out 4 assists. Andrei Kirilenko pitched in with 12 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists last night. The Jazz are now 3-5 on the year.

Carlos Boozer is off to a good start for the Jazz this season. He has played in 7 games (all starts) for the Jazz this season and he is averaging 35.0 minutes, 16.7 points, 11.6 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.1 steals per game. The Jazz tried to move Boozer in a trade all summer but they couldn’t find any takers. They figured that Paul Millsap was ready to move into the starting lineup as he played very well when Boozer was out of action. Still, the Jazz have to be happy with the way that Boozer is playing so far this season.

The Jazz outrebounded the Knicks 53-40 and that was a key factor in the win last night. But, it wasn’t easy for the Jazz as they almost blew a 14-point lead after three quarters before barely holding on in the end. Andrei Kirilenko led the way for the Jazz last night with 23 points, 6 rebounds and 6 assists. Carlos Boozer had one of his best games of the year finishing with 23 points and 14 rebounds. Mehmet Okur also played tough around the basket as he finished up with 18 points and 12 rebounds last night. The Jazz are now 3-4 on the season.

The Jazz didn’t play good defense last night as the Kings shot 57.9% from three point range. Deron Williams was outstanding in running the offense as he scored 29 points, grabbed 3 rebounds, dished out 15 assists and he stole the ball twice. Carlos Boozer was very effective around the basket with 16 points, 17 rebounds and 2 assists. Mehmet Okur pitched in with 16 points and 6 rebounds. There is no excuse for a team like the Jazz to lose to a team like the Kings in Salt Lake City. The Jazz are now 2-4 on the year.

The Jazz shot 53% from the floor last night and that was too much for the Spurs to overcome. Carlos Boozer had by far his best game of the season and he scored 27 points, grabbed 14 rebounds, dished out 3 assists, stole the ball twice and he blocked 2 shots. Deron Williams was outstanding running the offense as he finished up with 27 points, 7 rebounds and 9 assists. Wes Matthews had by far the best NBA game of his career to date as he scored 12 points, grabbed 3 rebounds and he also stole the ball twice. The Jazz are now 2-3 on the season.

The Jazz absolutely choked in this game as they were leading 67-52 heading into the 4th quarter. That was when the roof caved in as the Mavericks outscored them 44-18 in the 4th quarter as Dirk Nowitzki dropped 29 points on them in the final quarter! Deron Williams paced the Jazz last night with 22 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists. Mehmet Okur really stuffed the stat sheet for the Jazz last night with 14 points, 14 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 steals and 2 blocked shots. Andrei Kirilenko pitched in with 12 points, 5 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 blocked shots last night. The Jazz are now 1-3 on the season with this loss.

With all of the injuries the Jazz have suffered before the season started they needed Andrei Kirilenko to step up and that he has done so far this year. Kirilenko has started the first three games of the season for the Jazz and he is averaging 39.7 minutes, 13.0 points, 5.3 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.7 blocked shots. The Jazz need Kirilenko to keep up the good work until reinforcements arrive later in the year.

The Jazz just couldn’t keep up with the Rockets in this game. The Rockets outscored the Jazz 59-39 in the second half of this game and that was just too much for the Jazz to overcome. Mehmet Okur led the way for the Jazz in this game with 21 points and 4 rebounds. Ronnie Brewer pitched in with 19 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists in this game. Andrei Kirilenko really stuffed the stat sheet in this game with 18 points, 7 rebounds, 2 steals and 3 blocked shots. Deron Williams had his usual solid game with 18 points, 6 rebounds and 8 assists. The Jazz are now 1-2 on the season.

The Utah Jazz played without starting center Mehmet Okur who was injured so they played small for a lot of this game. They still outrebounded the Clippers 48-35 and they shot 50% from the floor which were two huge factors in this win. The Jazz had to outscore the pesky Clippers 28-14 in the 4th quarter to win this game. Paul Millsap only played 25 minutes tonight but he still led the Jazz with 23 points and he snatched 9 rebounds. Carlos Boozer had a fantastic game finishing with 20 points, 12 rebounds and 7 assists tonight. Deron Williams was the guy who ran the show on offense with 21 points, 4 rebounds and 9 assists. The Jazz are now 1-1 on the season.

The Jazz were only down 2 points heading into the 4th quarter when the Nuggets outscored them 32-25 to seal their fate. Deron Williams was outstanding in leading the Jazz on offense with 28 points, 3 rebounds and 13 assists. Andrei Kirilenko pitched in with 16 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists. Ronnie Brewer also was busy for the Jazz with 16 points and 6 rebounds. The Jazz are now 0-1 on the season.

The Utah Jazz brought everyone back from last season but that might not be enough to win 50 or more games this year. Kyle Korver, C.J. Miles and Matt Harpring are all banged up and that will definately hurt the team’s depth. I would have to take the under when making a bet on the Jazz this season.

The Utah Jazz have lost SG/SF Kyle Korver indefinately due to surgery on his left knee. This will hurt the Jazz who have already lost C.J. Miles for a while hurting the depth of the Jazz big time. The Jazz will likely try to talk Matt Harpring into playing this season as he was considering retirement due to bad knees. If they can’t succeed in talking Harpring out of retirement then Ronnie Brewer will likely be playing big time minutes at shooting guard. Point guards Ronnie Price and rookie Eric Maynor might have to play some minutes at shooting guard until Korver is ready to return and there lack of size will be a huge problem.

Not many teams are led by Hall of Fame head coaches but the Jazz are. Jerry Sloan was inducted in the Basketball Hall of Fame over the summer and he deserved it. He is still looking for the elusive NBA Championship as a head coach but who knows maybe this will be the year. The Jazz were 48-34 (58.5%) last season but they were only 1-4 (20%) in the playoffs. The Jazz expect to get past the first round of the playoffs this season. Sloan now has a career record of 1,043-630 (62.3%) during the regular season for the Jazz and he is 92-94 (49.5%) in the post season. The Jazz expect Sloan to get his playoff record over .500 this season with a deep run in the playoffs. Sloan now has a overall career record as a head coach in the NBA of 1,137-751 (60.2%) and he is 94-98 (49%) in the post season.

The Utah Jazz like to get their centers from far away lands because they are more fundamentally sound. It all starts with 30-year old Mehmet Okur who played in 72 games for the Jazz last season in which he averaged 33.5 minutes, 17.0 points, 7.7 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game. Okur also is a deadly shooter from three point range as he nailed 44.6% from that range last season. He often drags the opposing center away from the basket making it easier for the forwards of the Jazz to get to the boards. 20-year old Kosta Koufos is a player on the rise for the Jazz. He played in 48 games for the Jazz last season and he averaged 11.8 minutes, 4.7 points, 2.9 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game. Koufos is being groomed to replace Okur one day but that day is not likely to come too soon. 22-year old Kyrylo Fesenko is #3 in line for minutes in the pivot. He played in 21 games for the Jazz last season and he averaged 7.4 minutes, 2.3 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.2 assists per game.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE CENTERS IN 2009-2010: B

Not many teams can match the tandem of Carlos Boozer and Paul Millsap. The Jazz have tried to trade 27-year old Carlos Boozer who has been a little bit injury prone for the Jazz lately. Still, when he plays Boozer is one of the best power forwards in the NBA. He played in 37 games for the Jazz last season and he averaged 32.4 minutes, 16.2 points, 10.4 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.1 steals per game. The Jazz will keep trying to trade him but that won’t likely hurt his play any. 24-year old Paul Millsap is a outstanding player who will likely get time at both forward spots and maybe center this season. He is the reason the Jazz feel that they can trade Boozer and not miss a beat. Millsap played in 76 games for the Jazz last season and he averaged 30.1 minutes, 13.5 points, 8.6 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.0 steal per game. He has the potential to be a 20-10 player if he gets the minutes.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE POWER FORWARDS IN 2009-2010: A

28-year old Andrei Kirilenko’s play the last few years has not been up to his ability. The Jazz need him to get the fire back in his gut as when he is focused he is a darn good player on both ends of the basketball court. He played in 67 games for the Jazz last season and he averaged 27.3 minutes, 11.6 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.2 blocked shots per game. He has the potential to be much more than he is and the Jazz need him to lift his play back to previous levels as both of his back ups (C.J. Miles and Matt Harpring) are out with injuries. 22-year old C.J. Miles will start the year on the injured list and he’s going to miss a lot of time. That’s too bad for both him and the Jazz as he was due to start getting more minutes in the rotation. Miles played in 72 games for the Jazz last season and he averaged 22.5 minutes, 9.1 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game. 33-year old Matt Harpring is considering retirement because of bad knees but the Jazz really need him to play because of all of the injuries that have hit the team (Kyle Korver, C.J. Miles). Harpring played in 63 games for the Jazz last season and he averaged 11.0 minutes, 4.4 points, 2.0 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE SMALL FORWARDS IN 2009-2010: C