Time Is Now
After winning consecutive Northwest Division titles and three playoff series in the last two seasons in the rough-and-tumble Western Conference, the Utah Jazz feel they’re on the brink of something bigger in 2008-09.
Of course, they’re unlikely to get very far without their most important player.
The Jazz will begin their season without injured point guard Deron Williams, who will be recovering from an ankle sprain when Utah welcomes the Denver Nuggets to Salt Lake City on Wednesday.
Oddsmakers from SBG Global have made Jazz –7 point spread favorites (NBA Odds) for today’s game, the over/under has been set at 210.5 (View Matchup). Current public betting information shows that 59% of bets for this game have been placed on Jazz–7. (View NBA Bet Percentages).
Since the Jazz selected him with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2005 draft, Williams has improved in each of his three seasons, missing only four total games over that span and developing into one of the league’s best point guards.
Last season, he ranked third in the NBA with 10.5 assists per game, also averaging 18.8 points, shooting better than 50 percent from the field and starting all 82 games.
Williams won’t duplicate that last feat this season, however. He injured his ankle in the preseason and is likely to miss at least the first two regular-season games, but X-rays were negative and the Jazz are hoping he won’t be out any longer than that. Ronnie Price and Brevin Knight will be the point guards in his place.
"We can’t do anything about it, other than hope he gets healthy as soon as possible," Utah coach Jerry Sloan said. "Our job still remains the same regardless of who’s here."
Utah will also begin without reserve Matt Harpring, who has been dealing with an infection that resulted from ankle surgery. With Harpring out, former All-Star Andrei Kirilenko has become the sixth man, with youngster C.J. Miles sliding into the starting lineup.
There’s still plenty of optimism entering Sloan’s 21st season at the helm. The Jazz’s roster remains almost unchanged from last season, when they went 54-28 and advanced to the West semifinals, eventually falling in six games to the Los Angeles Lakers.
"We’re going to come out here, try to dominate and try to get a championship," forward Carlos Boozer said. "Whoever we have to go through, we go through them."
Boozer will again draw plenty of attention from opponents after averaging a career high 21.1 points in 2007-08, also ranking in the NBA’s top 10 with 10.4 rebounds per game. He shot nearly 55 percent from the field, helping the Jazz rank second in the league as a team in that category (49.7 percent).
Utah was especially good at home, going an NBA-best 37-4. The Jazz won both of their home games against the Nuggets last season by 27 points.
They’ve won nine of their last 11 overall against their Rocky Mountain rivals, and they had little trouble scoring against Denver in 2007-08, averaging more than 120 points in the teams’ four meetings and winning three of them.
With that in mind, the Nuggets have set their gaze on improving an unsightly defense. They allowed 107 points per game last season – the second-worst in the league – then traded away former NBA defensive player of the year Marcus Camby during the offseason.
But coach George Karl didn’t run any offensive drills early in training camp, and offensive-minded stars Carmelo Anthony and Allen Iverson both said the team has rededicated itself to defense.
"I know a lot of people are saying that our defense left when Marcus Camby left," Anthony said. "So, I think that gives us motivation to go out there and prove to everybody that we are going to come together as a team and play defense.
"I’m pretty sure you guys will see a different defensive team this year from the Denver Nuggets."
Karl is hoping the return of Nene to the starting lineup will help. Nene missed most of last season due to testicular cancer, but he’s slated to take Camby’s spot and the Nuggets are looking for him to regain his 2006-07 form, when he averaged 12.2 points and 7.0 rebounds.
Despite their defensive woes – and thanks mostly to the league’s second-best offense – the fast-paced Nuggets went 50-32 in 2007-08 and captured the West’s final playoff spot. Iverson and Anthony were both among the top four in the league in scoring, with each averaging more than 25 points.
But Denver was swept out of the first round by the Lakers, the fifth straight season the team has been knocked out in the West quarterfinals. The Nuggets have won only four total postseason games over that span.
"I’ve been in this league going on my 13th year and I’ve been to the finals once. I would have thought I’d have been there five or six times by now and won a championship," Iverson said. "So, obviously, the commitment is there from me to sacrifice my game, do whatever the team needs me to do."
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