The Proper Cultivation Edition - The Downbeat - #884

I have to share this tweet from our liege lord Basketball John, because it cracks me up. Not only that, it's a very, very real possibility.

A question that Clark and Andy asked on their podcast two weeks ago:

Name the Jazz player that, at the end of the year, will have accumulated the largest flopping fine bill.

(H/T clint.johnson.bball): Derrick Favors' lack of playing time is getting national attention. CNNSI's Rob Mahoney named Favors on his five-man list of "underused players who deserve more minutes."

Favors has the unfortunate distinction of being his team’s third-best big man — a title that’s far more complimentary of Paul Millsap and Al Jefferson than it is critical of Favors, but it’s a drag on his minutes nonetheless. Inevitably, having so much talent stacked between three positionally similar players creates a crunch and makes it incredibly difficult for Utah coach Ty Corbin to play each of his skilled bigs as much as he’d like.

Yet out of that logjam came a bit of ingenuity; last season, Corbin employed lineups featuring all three bigs (arguably his three best players) at once to give the Jazz a stark interior focus and glaring point of advantage. Such configurations weren’t without their flaws, and they certainly aren’t useful in all situations. But Corbin owes his most talented prospect a chance to prosper with more playing time (Favors is averaging about 22 minutes for the third straight season), and shifting Millsap to the wing more frequently may be the most accommodating way to accomplish that goal.

Favors’ two foundational skills — his finishing ability and shot blocking — could form a stellar all-around game if properly cultivated, and given the contract uncertainty of the Millsap-Jefferson tandem, the Jazz will likely need Favors to take on a bigger role sooner rather than later. So why not steal Favors some extra court time to refine his awareness and instincts now, especially when the only playing-time victims would be Marvin Williams and DeMarre Carroll? Favors needs as many reps as he can get at this point in his career, and if those opportunities aren’t going to come at the expense of Utah’s frontcourt, it should at least come by way of some lineup creativity.

The "if properly cultivated" part is the part that worries me.

We've heard Jazz personnel and media members on the Jazz's payroll go on ad nauseum about how Favors doesn't have a go-to move as part of the justification why he doesn't deserve to start/get more minutes. Favors works out with former NBA guard Dion Glover during the summer. Tyrone Corbin was a small forward in the league and there are no big men on his coaching staff. Kevin O'Connor once said you don't need to be big to coach bigs, but I remain concerned nonetheless.

Say what you want about Big Al, but I truly believe that both Favors and Enes Kanter would not be as far along as they are if they weren't working with Big Al at practice, or if Big Al weren't so willing to work with them.

By now, you've all heard of Memo's retirement. On an unrelated note, the Jazz once had a broadcaster blog back in the day that featured posts by, among others, Boler, David James, Thurl Bailey, and BC7's favorite dude in the whole wide world, Steve Brown. Ron Boone, however, was the unquestioned star of the blog due to his unique brand of unintentional humor/comedy.

Here's an anecdote involving Memo:

The Jazz travel schedule has not been bad this year as far as flight delays. But on our recent trip back east, the plane had battery trouble, which delayed us an hour or so. While waiting for a battery I was told that an airplane battery is about the same size as a car battery. How can that be? That’s something I’d better investigate.

After the battery was installed I asked Memo if he felt better now that the plane had a new battery. He said, “I feel better, but there are question marks in my head”. I agreed. If a car battery and a plane battery are about the same size I have question marks in my head as well.

I loved this tweet from @hipmrbully:

It won't happen, but it would be so awesome if it did.

Should the Jazz retire Mehmet Okur's number, or at least honor him in some way?