Preseason: Jazz 101, Kings 88. Here are some good statlines that are worth noting. Andrei Kirilenko: 27 minutes, 13 points, 7 boards, 7 assists, 4 blocks, 3 steals. If he'd played 40 minutes we may have seen a triple double and 5X5. Curtis Borchardt: 15 minutes, 8 points, 9 rebounds, 2 blocks. This from the guy who's played 16 games in 2 seasons. Box Score It is only preseason, but if these players can carry this form over to the regular season it would be great. Okur and Giricek played horrible however.
Okur is scaring me a bit, I actually expected more of him out of these games. Hopefully, he'll play better in the regular season. If we wanted these kind of numbers we could of just resigned Ostertag.
Okur is a player who needs a lot of touches to be productive. He showed in the Olympics the offensive skills he has, and had no problem lighting up Team USA from inside and out. I could see him finding his way into Sloan's doghouse, because he's a not a very good defender, but he's definitely an upgrade over Ostertag. The player I've been impressed with is Snyder. He's a gamer and should be able to make a difference off the bench for the Jazz. The Jazz's defense has been very impressive as well. They are going to push the TWolves and Nuggets all season long.
Okur turned up to camp overweight, and was taking it easy. Sloan soon complained publically about this, and Okur said he would try to get in shape. He seems to have lost some fat, and looks skinnier. However his numbers so far aren't what you'd expect from someone on his salary. The Jazz have to find him a way to be effective on the court, because Sloan will get him working hard as he does with everyone, otherwise we could be looking at John Amaechi all over again. If Curtis Borchardt can play like he did vs. the Kings, the Jazz wont need Okur to put up numbers however.
No one seems to be talking about Kris Humphries. This guy can flat out play and if Boozer hadn't of signed this off season he would have been my front runner for Rookie of the Year. He has had an excellent preseason and I expect him to earn a spot on the All NBA Rookie Team as an 8th or 9th man in the Jazz rotation.
^^ Good point. In preseason so far, Humphries has worked hard and had some impressive statistics for a rookie. He's making his shots, and getting the rebounds. So far he's been a great pick, and he could start some games for the Jazz if Boozer goes down. If he carries on playing like this, Jerry Sloan will not be afraid to give him some minutes in the regular season.
