25-year old power forward was excited when he got a huge offer sheet from the Portland Trailblazers last summer but the Jazz matched it. Now he is just biding him time as a backup until Carlos Boozer’s contract ends or he is traded. Millsap has played in 64 games (5 starts) for the Jazz this season and he is averaging 27.6 minutes, 11.5 points, 6.3 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.2 blocked shots. Millsap is shooting an outstanding 55.9% from the floor this season for the Jazz. The Jazz know that Millsap will be a great player for them down the road and he is playing hard despite probably being disappointed with his amount of playing time this year.

The Jazz sprinted to a win last night outscoring the Suns 41-22 in the 4th quarter. Deron Williams led the way for the Jazz last night with 27 points and 9 assists. Mehmet Okur also had a good game for the Jazz last night with 24 points and 6 rebounds. Carlos Boozer was his usual tough self down low as he finished up with 15 points, 15 rebounds, 2 assists and 3 steals. C.J. Miles pitched in with 15 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists in 27 minutes off the bench last night. The Jazz are now 39-22 on the season.

Deron Williams does just about everything for his team and he is the main reason why the Utah Jazz are 38-22 this season.  He is averaging 18.4 points, 10.1 assists, 4.1 rebounds, and 1.2 steals.  He is shooting 47% from the field on the season, but lately his shot has been pretty inconsistent from night to night.  It may be that his legs are wearing down towards the end of the season, but he hasn’t really put up two good shooting nights in consecutive games in the past month.  For example, last game they lost to the Clippers 108-104 and Williams went 5-15 from the field for 13 points.  The game before that the Jazz blew out the Rockets 133-110 and Williams went a red-hot 13-17 from the field for 35 points.  The game before that was a loss to the Kings, and Williams only went 4-16 from the field for 10 points.  He had 20 points on 8-17 shooting before that, and you get were I am going.  In the past month, if you look at Williams game log, there is almost a pattern of one good shooting night, followed by one bad shooting night, and then followed by one good shooting night, etc.  The Jazz have only lost three games since February 1st, and in those three losses Williams had very bad shooting nights.  So, Williams needs to focus on trying to end this pattern and try and get a few good shooting nights together.  If this type of thing happens in a playoff series, it would be very bad for the Jazz chances.

The Jazz just didn’t have enough to beat a very motivated Clippers’ team in L.A. last night. Carlos Boozer led the way for the Jazz last night with 20 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 steals and 2 blocked shots. Paul Millsap had a decent game off the bench for the Jazz with 17 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocked shots in 34 minutes on the floor. Kyle Korver had a outstanding game last night for the Jazz with 16 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals in only 21 minutes off the bench. The Jazz are now 38-22 on the season.

Guards Wesley Matthews and Sundaita Gaines both were undrafted last June but they have both helped the Jazz this season. Matthews has played in 56 games (22 starts) for the Jazz this season and he is averaging 21.8 minutes, 8.2 points, 2.0 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game. He is back into the starting lineup at shooting guard for the Jazz after the trade of Ronnie Brewer. Gaines has played in 13 games (0 starts) for the Jazz and he is averaging 7.8 minutes, 3.7 points, 0.7 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game. Gaines will be most remembered for hitting a game winning shot against the Cavaliers in Salt Lake City as time expired.

The Jazz have traded 24-year old shooting guard Ronnie Brewer to the Grizzlies for a lottery protected first round pick in 2011. Brewer played in 53 games (all starts) for the Jazz this season and he averaged 31.4 minutes, 9.5 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.6 steals per game. He finishes his career with the Jazz having played in 266 games (223 starts) in which he averaged 26.4 minutes, 10.5 points, 2.9 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.5 steals per game. This trade looks money driven and for that reason I don’t like it. The Jazz are hot right now and they didn’t need to subtract a starting player from the team.

C.J. Miles was a starting player last season for the Jazz. But this year he is coming off the bench for the Jazz for the most part but the numbers are still the same. Miles has played in 32 games (10 starts) for the Jazz this season and he is averaging 19.9 minutes, 8.6 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game. I think this is about the ceiling for Miles at least as long as the Jazz have other options on the offense.

The Utah Jazz are playing some great basketball the past month and are climbing up the ladder in the Western Conference standings because of it.  Going into last night’s game, the Jazz had won 9 straight games and have gone 14-2 since January 6th.  It’s not like the Jazz have been playing cupcake teams either, since 10 of those 14 wins have come against teams with a record better than .500.  They are currently 32-19, which puts them only 2.5 games behind the Denver Nuggets who are currently at the two spot in the Western Conference.  The Los Angeles Lakers are still playing great basketball as well, and sit atop the Western Conference at 41-13.  That puts the Jazz 7.5 games behind the Lakers, but if they keep playing at the rate they have been over the past month they could challenge the Lakers.  They did have their chance last night against a Kobe-less Lakers team, but Pau Gasol had a monster night and led the Lakers to a 15 point win.  Still, the Jazz have been playing great team basketball and have been bringing a strong effort on defense every night.  Deron Williams, Carlos Boozer, and Andre Kirilenko have all been playing some great basketball, along with some role-players like Paul Milsap, Ronnie Brewer, and Wesley Mathews.  The Jazz could be a very dangerous team in the West during the playoffs.

Mehmet Okur’s numbers are down a little bit this season but I think it is because Carlos Boozer has been healthy most of the year and he’s getting the ball a lot more than last season. Okur has played in 45 games (all starts) for the Jazz this season and he is averaging 29.1 minutes, 12.6 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game. Okur is still shooting well from long range hitting 39.4% on his three point attempts which is outstanding for a center.

20-year old center Kosta Koufos has stunk so bad this season that he was demoted to the D-League for a while. He has played in 22 games (0 starts) for the Jazz so far this season and he is averaging 3.7 minutes, 1.2 points, 1.2 rebounds and 0.2 assists per game. Koufos is only shooting 39.1% from the floor this season which is down right pathetic for a player his size (7′0″, 265 pounds). He is still young but his play is regressing and that has to have the Jazz concerned.

Deron Williams has been one of the best PG’s in the NBA for the past few seasons, and this year is no different.  This season Williams is averaging 19.0 points, 9.5 assists, 3.9 rebounds, 1.1 steals, 49% FG, and 38% 3Pt.  Williams has led the Jazz to an 28-18 record this season, and they have really played great basketball in the last month.  They have won 5 in a row and went 10-4 in January, with Williams leading the way for them at point guard.  Things were looking a little shaky for the Jazz after the first 2 months of the season, but they have really been hitting their stride lately and are one of the more dangerous teams in the Western Conference once again.  Deron Williams is the main reason why and as he goes, so go the Jazz.

After having an injury-plagued season last year, Carlos Boozer has returned this year healthy and hungry to prove he is one of the top power forwards in the game.  He has yet to miss a game this year and has returned to his old double-double form Jazz fans have grown accustomed to seeing night in and night out.  He is averaging 19.3 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 1.1 steals, and is shooting 54% from the field.  Boozer has 28 double-doubles on the season, which is good enough for third best in the NBA behind Chris Bosh and Dwight Howard (both with 32).  The Jazz have won 6 of their last 7 games, and Boozer is a big reason why.  He is showing no signs of slowing down and in the past 7 games Boozer is shooting 55% from the field and is averaging 20.4 points, 11.2 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 1.9 steals.  In the past few seasons, Boozer has been one of the best forwards in the game, yet he does not get enough recognition he deserves.

The Utah Jazz appear to be shopping starting shooting guard Ronnie Brewer with the Grizzlies said to be very interested in him. The Jazz are having little luck in trying to move Andrei Kirilenko or Carlos Boozer so they might be moving Brewer to save money. The Grizzlies are offering up a first round pick and maybe a little more so the Jazz would be dumb not to listen. He has played in 42 games (all starts) for the Jazz this season and he is averaging 32.7 minutes, 9.9 points, 3.6 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 1.8 steals per game. Look for Brewer to be moved as soon as the Jazz think they can extract the right price for him.

SG/SF Kyle Korver has missed most of this season due to him rehabbing a injury but he is on fire shooting the ball. He has played in 10 games (0 starts) for the Jazz so far this season and he is averaging 10.1 minutes, 4.4 points, 0.9 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game. Korver is shooting 60% from the floor, 58.3% from three point range and he has yet to miss a free throw this season. His minutes will continue to go up as his conditioning gets better and he will be a huge asset to the Jazz.

Former Utah Jazz sharpshooter Jeff Hornacek was overlooked his entire basketball career.  Despite being a star as a prep player at Lyons Township High School in La Grange, Illinois he was barely recruited and settled for a walk-on spot at Iowa State University.  Not only did Hornacek lead the Iowa State Cyclones to their first NCAA tournament win in over 40 years, but he also brought them all the way to the “Sweet 16″ in 1986 where he averaged 14 points that year.  He left ISU with a Big-8 conference record of 665 career assists.  Hornacek kept getting overlooked though, as he was the 22nd pick (46th overall) in the 2nd round of the 1986 draft by the Phoenix Suns.  Hornacek had some very good years for the Suns, including a career-year in the 1991-’92 season where he was an All-Star who averaged 20.1 points, 5.1 assists, 5.0 rebounds, and 2.0 steals while shooting 51% from the field and 44% from three.

Hornacek played one year with Philadelphia before coming to Utah, where he finished out the next seven years of his career and was a key member of their two NBA Finals teams in 1997 and 1998.  In his 14 year career (1,077 games), Hornacek averaged 14.5 points, 4.9 assists, 3.4 rebounds, and 1.4 steals.  He had a 40.3% career 3-point percentage (20th all-time) and won the 3-point competition in 1998 and 2000.  He was also a phenomenal free throw shooter, hitting 88% for his career (12th all-time), including 95% in his final season (5th all-time).  He was more than just a great shooter though, as he was a very good passer and a strong defender who often guarded the oppositions best player.  Hornacek may not be a Hall-of-famer, but he is one of the Jazz’s best players of all-time and one of the best shooters the NBA has ever seen.

The rookie Wesley Mathews has been a huge steal for the the Utah Jazz this season.  The Jazz didn’t even have to use a draft pick on him since the 6′5″ 220 lbs. Mathews was undrafted out of Marquette and the Jazz signed him as a free agent.  He has been playing with a big chip on his shoulder ever since getting passed up in the draft.  He has played in all 38 games for the Jazz (19 starts) and is averaging 8.4 points, 2.0 rebounds, and 1.1 assists on 48% shooting in only 23 minutes per game.  In his last few games, Mathews has really been effective in the short amount of playing time he is getting.  In the Jazz win over Miami last game, Mathews had 18 points, 3 rebounds, and 1 steal in only 18 minutes of play.  The game before that in a win over Dallas, he had 10 points in only 14 minutes.  In a win over Memphis on January 6th, Mathews had 15 points, 3 assists, and 1 rebound in only 20 minutes.  So, in three of his last four games Mathews has easily scored in double figures even though he averaged only 16.5 minutes in those four games.  This guy is extremely efficient and when he plays well the Jazz seem to win.  In the 16 games this season that Mathews has scored in double-figures, the Jazz have won 11 of them.  Coincidence?  I think not.  They really need to get this guy on the court more.

I think if the right offer comes along the Jazz would still consider trading Carlos Boozer. They tried all last summer finding no takers as they wanted to open up a starting spot for Paul Millsap. Moving Matt Harpring in the Eric Maynor trade gives the Jazz some payroll relief and they might use it to keep Boozer who has played very well this season. Boozer has played in 37 games (all starts) for the Jazz this season and he is averaging 34.9 minutes, 19.0 points, 10.4 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game. I think the most important factor in the decision to either trade or keep Boozer will depend on how the team plays before the trade deadline as they are 20-17 right now.

The Utah Jazz is a veteran team with little playing time for rookies. That is what led to the trade of point guard Eric Maynor to the Thunder along with the fact that it saved them a lot of money by including Matt Harpring in the deal. Maynor played in 26 games (2 starts) in his time with the Jazz and he averaged 14.0 minutes, 5.2 points, 1.5 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game. Wesley Matthews has been a real find for the Jazz as the guard signed with the Jazz as a undrafted free agent out of Marquette. He has played in 35 games (19 starts) for the Jazz this season and he is averaging 23.9 minutes, 8.2 points, 2.0 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game. He is also shooting the ball very well hitting 47.7% from the floor this year. Undrafted rookie guard Sundiata Gaines made his NBA debut last night. He played 21 minutes for the Jazz finishing with 3 points, 1 rebound, 5 assists and 1 steal. But, he was only 1 of 7 shooting from the floor and he will need to do better if he is to get playing time for the Jazz.

Andrei Kirilenko is back to stuffing the stat sheet just like the Jazz like him to this season. He has played in 27 games (8 starts) for the Jazz this season and he is averaging 29.4 minutes, 10.9 points, 4.7 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 1.0 steal and 1.0 blocked shots per game. The Jazz prefer to bring AK-47 off the bench where they can just turn him loose to play all out.

Ronnie Brewer has really played well this season despite not being a top option on the offense. Brewer has played in 30 games (all starts) for the Jazz this season and he is averaging 34.6 minutes, 10.7 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.8 steals per game. Brewer will likely get more shots down the road for the Jazz but until then he will keep doing the little things that winning teams like the Jazz need him to do.