Jazz - Past Issues and Hope for the Future

I started this post weeks ago when the prospects for the Jazz this season looked pretty bleak. I was looking for explanations. Why is it that this team has never won the NBA title, a team that since it's founding in 1974 has had the 4th winningest coach in NBA history (Jerry Sloan, or as he likes to be known in the locker room, Gerald Eugene Sloan), a player holding both the all-time career assists and steals records (John Stockton), the second most prolific scorer in NBA history (Karl Malone), 2 conference titles,and 8 division titles? How is it that this team has never taken the big cake? I don't claim to have the answer but here are few ideas that have been batted around the sports world and my take on each:

Why We Didn't Win Then

#1 - We were cheated out of it in 1998 by Dick Bavetta. Michael Jordan pushed off Brian Russell and it was an ineffably egregious no-call on Mr. Bavetta's part.

#2 - Karl Malone choked on his free-throws. A lot of good things can be said of Karl Malone's play, but that was the greatest choke job in Jazz history.

Why We Haven't Won Since

#3 - Is there something inherent about the franchise that somehow prevents us from succeeding? Well yes, and no. One problem is the location. What up-and-coming NBA star wants to come to Utah? We managed to land Karl Malone and he enjoyed being the big fish in a small pond, practically every public statement he made ended up on the front page of the Sports section, or was at least mentioned on the evening news. John Stockton stayed because he enjoyed the lack of paparazzi outside his house. We don't have the flashy clubs or the exclusive restaurants and so we lack the excitement and appeal of an LA or a Miami.

#4 - Jerry Sloan's coaching style - This has been discussed as a problem by many people. Even Deron Williams admitted that opposing teams always know what plays the Jazz are going to run. However, I think Jerry's coaching philosophy is a good one, and one that we can be proud of, championship or not. He likes hard workers, he doesn't like selfish stars, and he plays inside-out. The problem with his strategy of looking inside first has been that we've never had a big presence at the Center position. Having a decent power-forward is probably not enough to make his strategy as successful as it could be. The real issue I have with Jerry is his defensive philosophy. He plays soft defense around the 3-pt. line, likes to take his chances on teams missing those low-percentage perimeter shots, but teams regularly have their highest three-point-shooting nights of the year against us. But, you've gotta love his passion for the game and the success he hass brought. We've had very very few bad seasons during Jerry's tenure.

Why We Aren't Winning Now

#5 - Carlos Boozer - The guy is greedy, selfish, and soft. He is a distraction to the team with his injury antics and talk of where he's going next. He clearly doesn't want to stay in Utah, and now that Paul Millsap is looking like our forward of the future and Karl's heir-apparent, I say we get rid of Boozer ASAP. We can use the ridiculous amount of money we're spending on him to get a decent center (not to disparage Memo, love his three-point threat but he's not a bruiser inside).

#6 - Lack of a decent Center - We do not have now, and never have had a good Center. Ostertag was our mainstay and let's face it, nobody's going to win relying on that guy for an inside presence. As I said, I am a fan of Memo, he is versatile for a big guy and his inside game has improved dramatically over the last two years. However, we need a big, dominating Center if we're going to continue our inside-out offense. I don't see our young prospects (Koufos and Fesenko) being the inside presence we need.

#6 - Youth - We are a young team, and since the big two (Stockton and Malone) left, we have missed their leadership. However, the good news is that our young players look better and better as the season goes on. We have finished strong the last few years, and it appears we will do so again this year. As teams like the Spurs, Lakers, and Celtics get older, we get better and that bodes well for the future. If we can get a core group of guys to stay here for the long term (Williams, Millsap, Brewer, etc.) I think we're in good shape.