The Downbeat - 26 October 2009 - #86 - The KOOF Is No Longer a Rookie Edition

by Basketball John on Oct 26, 2009 10:36 AM MDT in The Downbeat Comment 12 comments

1_medium If you're keeping score at home, the Jazz won 3 road games during the pre-season or roughly three times the number they won all of last year on the road.

They're still a young team, but most of them have been in the league several years now. So as far as having maturity and experience on the road, there are really no more excuses.

We'll see right off if the pre-season success carries over into the regular season when the Jazz open the season at Denver. The Jazz have had relative success there splitting the last 8 games.

2_medium With two of our shooters out in Korver and Miles, Deron Williams and Memo are really our only three-point threats. Wes Matthews could be there as well should he stay with the team. He shot 44% from the arc.

Jerry probably won't miss threes being put up as often as he would prefer to get all of the points in the paint. Of course teams can just pack the inside now so somebody is going to have to hit those.

8_medium Speaking of Matthews, this station in Madison, WI is reporting that he has officially made the roster,

Former Madison Memorial and Marquette basketball star Wesley Matthews tells WKOW-TV he is officially on the Utah Jazz regular season roster. Matthews wasn't even drafted out of college, but he beat out forward Ronald Dupree and guard Paul Harris to make the roster.

From the interview, they were just talking about surviving the cuts. I don't think anything is official yet and I didn't hear Matthews say anything about officially making the roster.

4_medium So how did everyone do during the pre-season? I'll group them into great, good, meh, and bad. II didn't include those that aren't with the team any more or are out with injuries. Let's get the bad out of the way.

BAD: The KOOF and Fess. They're still young, I get that. They both still looked young though. Both had a chance to step it up this pre-season and were disappointing. The KOOF couldn't hit a shot and Fess couldn't stop hacking. Maybe this is more disappointment because I was expecting more out of these two. Still early though.

Also bad, the Jazz getting balls rejected like an old man trying to send back soup in a deli.

MEH: Couldn't really find anyone to put in this category. Ronnie Price could have been here, but 3 games doesn't really give us a good sample size. With his injury, I couldn't really make a fair assessment.

GOOD: Paul Millsap, Ronnie Brewer, AK, Eric Maynor, road victories, and the Jazz D.

Millsap could have moved up to great, but he had a couple of games where he didn't play well.

Ronnie B was on the verge of great. He made some mid-range jumpers but didn't shoot the three well. GIven that's what we're going to need shortly, it knocks him down a bit. I'd like to see him knock some shots down consistently. I could be persuaded to move him up, but right now he was at expectations.

Maynor didn't shoot well but was 50% from downtown. He gets a good because he came in and performed above what most were expecting. Handled the ball and the games well.

GREAT: Deron Williams, Mehmet Okur, and Carlos Boozer.

First up, DWill. Averaged 19 & 6 in 28 minutes. He's also shooting 94% from the FT line. Would like to see the three-point percentage up a bit and the turnovers come down though. He's ready to go.

Memo has been on fire. He's shooting 50% and nailing 2/3rds of his 3PA. Can't wait for Money to start the season.

As has been said many times here, no one has ever doubted Boozer's basketball skills (well, maybe come playoff time). He's been a monster this pre-season and has kept his mouth shut. Have to give credit where credit is due. Let's hope this is what we see for the next 8 months.

5_medium The fact that this wasn't caught on video sorely disappoints me. With Deron being a Twitter/Iphone expert, I expect more.

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Wait, I'm confused

Koof had to retrieve balls (#5), but he’s not a rookie anymore (#1)? I know they say that you’re still a rookie until you play your first game in year 2, but does the pre-season even count?

I guess I just need something Jazz-related to occupy my thoughts until Wed.

Incidentally, I just checked the line on that game, and Denver is favored by 6.5. Yikes.

by chamont on Oct 26, 2009 11:05 AM MDT reply actions 0 recs

Thats what I was thinking (about #5).

So glad the game is on ESPN.

by iLoveBooks100per on Oct 27, 2009 7:32 AM MDT up reply actions 0 recs

btw, don’t even get me started on all the lack of healthy shooting guards we have, after burning bridges with morris almond.

imagine if we moth balled b-russ as a young player with no PT, and banked on benoit, chris morris and adam keefe at the 3 . . . we all know how that ended.

btw, i think i’m out of the nba/internet participation deal. i did not even get league pass this year. (as an out of state jazz fan, that’s kind of necessary)

Follow me on Twitter: AllThatAmar
Visit my blog: http://allthatjazzbasketball.blogspot.com/
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Really, I'm totally not lonely or anything . . .

by AllThatJazzBasketball on Oct 26, 2009 12:21 PM MDT reply actions 0 recs

Which means what?

At worst, you’ll be watching as many Jazz games as I will…
(come on, internet sites!)

True Blue Jazz
I'm on Twitter
RIP Nick Adenhart. 4/9/09

by UtesFan89 on Oct 26, 2009 4:22 PM MDT up reply actions 0 recs

btw, you get any interviews yet?

Follow me on Twitter: AllThatAmar
Visit my blog: http://allthatjazzbasketball.blogspot.com/
E-Mail me at: allthatjazzbasketball@hotmail.com
Really, I'm totally not lonely or anything . . .

by AllThatJazzBasketball on Oct 28, 2009 3:30 PM MDT up reply actions 0 recs

Amar, I love you as a fellow Jazz enthusiast/blogger.

And most of the time I love your stuff, but you are really wrong about Morris Almond. Since not being picked up by the Jazz, he has gone on to get cut by the Knicks and Magic and he averaged like 0.7 ppg on 28% shooting from the floor with the Magic. He was good enough in college to just sort of score however he wanted, no matter how inefficiently, but in the pros, you have to hone your game and he never has. Probably never will.

The more you try to erase me, the more that I appear.

by clarkpojo on Oct 26, 2009 4:43 PM MDT up reply actions 0 recs

I think a niche exists for Morris Almond in the league

… one that has apparently eluded him so far. We’ve seen him in the NBA in two forms: as a garbage time ball hog (first season) and due to injuries, a complimentary piece surrounded by better players (like in the kings game at arco where he handled kevin martin better than brewer or cj did).

Of course, one game a career does not make (unless you are greg ostertag in the west finals, against hakeem where you ended up playing a first ballot HOF guy to a stand still) . . . but how many oppurtunities do we have to judge Almond upon in that, complimentary, role?

Using Hindsight, I’d have loved to have Almond on the team this year, when we have so many wing injuries already. A guy going into his 3rd year in the NBA — and his 3rd year in the Jazz system — is miles ahead of some unknown guy. Wes has been doing exactly what we want — he’s playing with the starting unit, not geting double or triple teamed, passing the ball and when he’s open — he’s making jumpers.

I’ve felt for a long time that Almond could be such a type of player — but we’ve rarely seen him play with guys better than him. (which leads him to old, bad, habits) Almond was never going to be a D-Wade . . . he’s much close to Sasha V (lal) then even he’d wish to admit.

Shouldn’t the Jazz at least admit that they never gave him the oppurtunity to be our Sasha V ? (I think you played with D-Will more than Morris did over the last two season . . .)

Follow me on Twitter: AllThatAmar
Visit my blog: http://allthatjazzbasketball.blogspot.com/
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Really, I'm totally not lonely or anything . . .

by AllThatJazzBasketball on Oct 28, 2009 3:38 PM MDT up reply actions 0 recs

why so much love for morris almond?

by moni on Oct 26, 2009 6:24 PM MDT up reply actions 0 recs

I can't speak for him

but it can’t help that our 2 best options for that spot are hurt, and the 3rd option is a rookie or something.

True Blue Jazz
I'm on Twitter
RIP Nick Adenhart. 4/9/09

by UtesFan89 on Oct 26, 2009 10:03 PM MDT up reply actions 0 recs

CJ hurt
Korver hurt
Harpring hurt

leaving: Brewer (can’t shoot), Andrei (ditto), Wes (rookie)

Perfect oppurtunity for Wes, so best of luck to him and the Jazz this season.

Follow me on Twitter: AllThatAmar
Visit my blog: http://allthatjazzbasketball.blogspot.com/
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Really, I'm totally not lonely or anything . . .

by AllThatJazzBasketball on Oct 28, 2009 3:42 PM MDT up reply actions 0 recs

D-League

I think some look at his time there and some of the numbers he put up. Thought that should have translated to much better shooting with the Jazz.

by hamaca on Oct 27, 2009 8:13 AM MDT up reply actions 0 recs

Almond too less than 100 shots total with the jazz. he improved by 24% from his rookie year to his soph year. do you think that he can’t make that jumper that Harpring shoots? I think he can make an open jumper off of a screen. How many times did the Jazz run that play for Almond? zero? Instead his fg% was wrecked by his own ambition in garbage time.

Follow me on Twitter: AllThatAmar
Visit my blog: http://allthatjazzbasketball.blogspot.com/
E-Mail me at: allthatjazzbasketball@hotmail.com
Really, I'm totally not lonely or anything . . .

by AllThatJazzBasketball on Oct 28, 2009 3:40 PM MDT up reply actions 0 recs