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• A couple of years ago, the city of Brixton introduced its own currency as a complement to the pound sterling. It was a way to entice local residents to buy from district merchants and to keep money in the neighborhood. A new series of notes has been released. On the five pound note, you'll find Luol Deng, whose family emigrated to Brixton to escape civil war in Sudan when Deng was a boy.
• How much do residents in municipalities that underwrote the construction of NBA facilities have a right to demand accountability from NBA owners? Tom Ziller explores the question at SB Nation.
• An unofficial training camp in Lexington, Kentucky.
• Beckley Mason of HoopSpeak asks whether you'd rather have Monte Ellis or Arron Afflalo in your backcourt.
• Video of LeBron James and Dwyane Wade working out.
• If you peruse Ball in Europe's first installment of the Euroleague Power Rankings, you'll find a slew of NBA names. Andrei Kirilenko has joined CSKA Moscow, while Danilo Gallinari is wearing Emporio Armani.
• Speaking of Kirilenko, would he absolutely return to the NBA in the event of a labor resolution or is he better suited to playing out the autumn of his career in his native Russia?
• Walton High School grads Daron and Zack Blaylock -- the twin sons of former NBA guard Mookie Blaylock -- will be attending the University of Kentucky on football scholarships. "I never was any good at basketball," says Zack.
• Will Knicks fans ever forgive Charles Smith for the 1993 Eastern Conference finals?
• Hirsute San Francisco closer Brian Wilson explains why the 1986 Celtics are the best team ever. "The Chief. He's sweet. He's the Chief. That's his name. 'Hi, I'm the Chief.'"
• Jean-Ralphio Saperstein, Roy Hibbert and Detlef Schrempf all in one place. [Hat Tip: Rob Mahoney]
• Via PistonPowered, Pistons rookie Vernon Macklin might not get the chance to brandish his skills on an NBA floor this season, but his Twitter game is doing just fine, thank you.
• Twitter gives Rasual Butler the munchies.

SALT LAKE CITY -- When the Utah Jazz greet the media at their practice facility in Salt Lake City, each player (and the head coach) stakes out a familiar spot in the gym where he addresses the scrum. Andrei Kirilenko, Kyle Korver and Wesley Matthews take questions in the middle of the court. Carlos Boozer fields questions along the far baseline beneath the basket. The peripatetic C.J. Miles roams freely, while Jerry Sloan stands stoically in front of the plastic purple bleachers. Once the camera crews from local affiliates are gathered, there will be a moment of deferential silence as the reporters make sure Sloan is ready, at which point he blurts out, "Whattaya got?"

Where can you find Deron Williams? The Jazz point guard is in the far corner of the gym, slouched on a training table leaning back against the wall. That's his spot, away from the busy flow of the gym. Williams had a reputation of being truculent with the media during his first couple of seasons, but now in his fifth year, he accepts the spotlight with a fairly polite tolerance, though he's still a somewhat reluctant participant. More than anything, he's still -- legs stretched out in front of him, head tilted back, a dozen voice recorders in his face. As he's peppered with questions, Williams barely moves from that position.

On the court, it's an entirely different story. Williams never stops moving. He's not hyperkinetic like Steve Nash or Chris Paul. It's a more orderly velocity, a good kind of reactive. Williams rarely lets the defense dictate where he's going, but he uses every piece of information to make snap decisions with an impressive change of speed. Where are the other nine guys on the floor? What does the system demand of my talents at this instant? Can I counter-program and get to the hole off the dribble?

The answer to each of these questions usually produces a foray into the paint, where the Jazz are getting anything they want against Denver thanks to Williams' orchestration of the offense. Williams is averaging 28.2 points and 11.6 assists in the series with a player efficiency rating (PER) of 28.19. He's the first player in NBA history to have five consecutive 20-point, 10-assist games within a single postseason series. Williams is both statistically and operatively the best player on the floor in this series, which prompts the question:

Despite the absence of Kirilenko and Mehmet Okur and the presence of an undrafted rookie and a project big man in the starting lineup, can a team with a supernova like Williams controlling the action truly be called an underdog?

When Okur went down, conventional wisdom deemed the Jazz a long shot, present company included. Even the Jazz's success in taking a 3-1 games lead headed back to Denver was framed as a triumph of discipline over combustion, the achievement of a cohesive team over a disparate collection of talent. After all, the Nuggets extended the Lakers to six games in a grueling conference finals last season, earning the mantel of the team most capable of dethroning the Lakers if the champs were to falter. Denver features Carmelo Anthony, one of the preeminent shot creators in the game. The Jazz? High I.Q. players, but no competition for the Nuggets' athletes.

Now that we've been living with this series for the better part of two weeks, the matchup has a different quality to it, in large part because of Williams' influence. Anthony has undoubtedly produced over the five games, but Williams has dominated. The execution of the Utah system held in such high regard isn't merely a product of whiteboard magic -- it's a direct result of Williams' leadership and court vision.

"He's as good as it gets,'' Nuggets point guard Chauncey Billups said at shootaround prior to Game 5 in Denver. "He can do everything. He really doesn't have any weaknesses. I think that's the ultimate compliment that you can pay to a player is to say that he doesn't have any weaknesses, and I think he's reached that point now.''

Williams doesn't merely ignite an effective transition or choreograph the Jazz's motion offense, he's also become a knockdown shooter from long distance, hitting at a 54.2 percent rate in the series from beyond the arc. He's also Utah's second-best option behind Carlos Boozer in the post, where he can score and wreak havoc with brilliant kickouts. In this series, he's doing stellar work off the ball and on the defensive end. But Williams' defining quality might be, more than any point guard in the league, his unwillingness to waste a possession.

Singling out Williams shouldn't discount the synchronicity carried out by each of the Jazz players in Sloan's offensive scheme, but the old construct of this series as a battle between a system and an individual talent is no longer relevant. The Jazz have their individual performer in Williams. They also have Boozer, the best big man in the series (something that was true before Nene went down with a sprained left knee), and reserve Paul Millsap, whose 24.08 PER ranks him 10th in the postseason among players who have logged more than 15 minutes per game.

Denver notched a much-needed victory at the Pepsi Center on Wednesday night, a feat it accomplished by moving the basketball and running a coherent offense for the first time this postseason. But in reassessing this series headed into Game 6 -- a possible clincher for Utah on its home court -- it's time to bury the idea that the Nuggets have considerably more talent than the Jazz. Denver might have a decisive edge in athleticism (less so now that Nene is out), but Williams' repertoire of skills should give us pause about the long odds originally assigned to Utah after Game 1.

It might spoil the storybook narrative, but we're now learning that Deron Williams is simply too good to be an underdog.

• The crew at Raptors Republic has built a great-looking, Raptocentric draft board. Toronto will most likely pick 13th, and Raptors Republic has its eyes on big men Ekpe Udoh and Hassan Whiteside. Butler small forward Gordon Hayward also makes the list. Pretty incredible that fewer than 10 months after Toronto signed Hedo Turkoglu, "SF is the Raptors' greatest need."
• The Rio Grande Valley Vipers took the D-League crown on Tuesday night, sweeping their best-of-three series over the Tulsa 66ers. The Vipers are the Rockets' D-League affiliate, which might be evident from this description of their offense by Steve Weinman of D-League Digest: "I noted on a couple of occasions this year that RGV was the D-League’s most watchable team because they shared the ball so well. The Vipers didn’t spend a lot of time pounding the ball atop the circles waiting for teammates to clear out for isolation sets. The ball always seemed to be hopping off the hands of the guys in the red and white, finding a big sealing his man on the low block or a wing player spotting up for a good look at a jump shot at just the right times."
• Have you seen the insanity that took place in closing seconds of the Adriatic League title game?
• As of publishing, the cheapest pair of tickets in the Ford Center for Game 6 between the Thunder and Lakers will run you $238 on StubHub-- and that's jut to get into the building. If you want two seat together in the lower bowl, then you'll have to cough up in excess of $800 for the pair.
• For those scratching their heads at Atlanta's lackluster performance against Milwaukee, there's a plausible explanation. As challenged as the Bucks may be offensively without Andrew Bogut, the Hawks are a mediocre defensive squad. Bret LaGree of Hoopinion: "The Hawks have but two good (two very good) defensive players, the Bucks have figured out how to neutralize the impact of those two players (at least as long as the Bucks make almost 60% of their shots), the Hawks may be over-compensating for their (admittedly numerous) poor defenders, and, underpinning all of these specific reasons: It is hard to play good team defense without good defensive players."
• At Jazz shootaround in Denver on Wednesday, Andrei Kirilenko said that even though he's experienced no setbacks in the rehab of his strained left calf, his return for a potential Game 6 in Salt Lake City is "highly unlikely."
• Chris Webber tells Petros & Money that Jerry Sloan is not the guy to ask, "You want some?!" (Hat Tip: Trey Kirby)
• How do you turn the tables in a series that's slipping away? Switch up your game, as Caron Butler, Brendan Haywood and Rick Carlisle did last night for the Mavs.
• The issue of rest vs. rust is one of those longstanding debates in sports that's rarely been answered to anyone's satisfaction. The Magic made quick work of the Bobcats and will now wait for the winner of the Hawks-Bucks series, which could extend into the weekend. At Magic Basketball, Eddy Rivera takes a stab at figuring out whether Orlando will benefit from a long wait.
• How do you define selfish play?
• Is controlling the pace all that important? A peek at the Phoenix-Portland series, being played at a pokey 89.8 possessions per game, suggests that the slow pace isn't bothering the Suns much.
• The Lakers' blowout of the Thunder prompts Dan Filowitz to get a head start on recording The Disciples of Clyde podcast. Among other topics for debate: Can the Mavs really prosper by riding the successes and failures of Caron Butler?
• Josh Childress can roll!

DENVER -- On November 1, 2006, all was well in C.J. Miles' world. He had split his rookie season between the big club in Salt Lake City and Albuquerque of the D-League. Now, in his second year, he was making his first career start on opening night against Houston. Miles came out on fire, scoring 12 points in Utah's 35-point first quarter. "I was in a zone. I was in a focus. My mind was set that I was going to play hard and play well. Now I've just got to keep it up," Miles told the Deseret News after the game.

For Jazz head coach Jerry Sloan, though, Miles' first-quarter exploits only underscored how the 19 year old failed to sustain his intensity for 48 minutes. Sloan is notoriously tough on younger players and his critique of Miles after the game was especially pointed.

"When he came out in the second half, he didn't have any energy. You can say, 'Well, he's young.' But if he's going to be a man, he's got to step up again tomorrow and get after it and get in better shape so that he can finish it up," Sloan said.

A couple of nights later, after a comeback win for the Jazz over Phoenix in which Miles shot only 1-for-5 and played some iffy defense, Sloan was downright rough.

"He came out kind of soft," Sloan told the Deseret News. "I mean, I don't care if he's 19 or 30. If he's going to be on the floor in the NBA, he's got to be able to step up and get after it. We can't put diapers on him one night, and a jockstrap the next night. It's just the way it is."

Miles knew it wasn't a marquee performance. On repeated occasions, he was taken out of plays by Suns' big man Kurt Thomas and got completely lost on a few of Phoenix's high pick-and-rolls. Still, the comments stung.

"It was tough for me," Miles said. "You know Coach Sloan’s reputation coming in, so you expect it a little bit. I was extremely young. I was 18 when I got here. There was a lot I had to learn."

The learning process for a guy like Miles at Utah is twofold. First, there's the NBA game -- in particular, the exacting nature of Jerry Sloan's offensive and defensive schemes.

The second lesson might be even more difficult: Miles had to arrive at the realization that, for the first time in his life, he wasn't the best player on the floor. Not even close.

At Skyline High School in Dallas, Miles was a star. The southpaw had signed to play for Rick Barnes at the University of Texas. Kansas, North Carolina and Georgia Tech had also come calling, which was no surprise when you examine Miles' prep résumé: 23/10/5 as a senior at Skyline. McDonald's All-American, Dallas Morning News' Player of the Year.

The praise was so resounding that Miles decided to skip college altogether and enter the 2005 Draft. He slipped to the second round, where Utah plucked him with the 34th overall pick -- not exactly the way he envisioned draft day unfolding.

"It hit me hard at the beginning," Miles said. "At one point I thought maybe I shouldn’t have went [into the draft].But then I was kind of like, ‘Forget about it. You’re here now. There’s nothing you can really do about it.’"

For a few years, Miles was of marginal use to the Jazz. He had trouble maintaining his endurance and attention on the defensive end, and continued to struggle with the demands of an offense in which every player on the floor is required to perform every offensive function.

"I never had to set a screen in high school, because I was the one getting the ball," Miles said with a grin. "As a young guy coming in, you want to run, you want to go, especially athletic guys who can get up and down the floor."

You can see why this might conflict with Sloan, right? It wasn't as if Miles acted out. By every account, he was a diligent student of the offense. He studied Andrei Kirilenko's defensive tendencies, Derek Fisher's professionalism and the way the Jazz move in sync on both ends of the floor. But in high school, Miles was never asked to do the things that supporting wing players need to do in the NBA. When Miles made defensive plays, it was because he was bigger, longer -- and just better -- than the other kid. Nobody called those stops at Skyline. They were just there for the taking.

"In high school, when you’re the biggest, fastest most athletic guy on the court, you basically just float around, try to gamble for steals and block shots," Miles said. "You never really had to guard anybody. And I was the tallest person on my team, so it wasn’t like I was guarding guards. Then I got here and everybody was my size. The most talented guys were at my position."

Think about this for a second: For 18 years, basketball was played under a very uniform set of conditions for Miles, the first of which was "I'm better than everyone." That isn't an expression of arrogance or glibness. There simply weren't more than a half dozen kids in the Dallas area who could compete with Miles. For him, getting to that point required countless hours, but the actual floor time in high school? That was easy. There was you, the ball and the hoop. There were no back picks to set, or Tracy McGradys to defend, or Kurt Thomases to dodge.

And there certainly wasn't a Jerry Sloan -- a coach who demands precision if you want minutes in his system. An inability to master the fine points of that system can earn you a public lashing.

"We had conversations where we’ve sat down in his office after practice or before practice and talked about some of the things we’re trying to do to help me move forward and he would do everything he could to help me," Miles said of Sloan. "When he’s not saying anything, that’s when you should be worried.”

Six weeks after Miles exploded in the first quarter of the win over Houston on opening night, he was placed on the inactive list.

"It drove me nuts," Miles said. "It wasn’t about not being ‘the guy.' It was about not even being on the floor. I was sitting behind itching, with a suit on -- and I hate wearing suits -- watching guys play. I just tried to soak up as much as I could."

A few days after New Years 2007, Miles was sent down to the D-League for a second time -- an assignment he now considers a blessing. Call it the royal jelly, oxygen, or just burn, but playing time is the most vital component for a young player’s development. At Boise with the Idaho Stampede, Miles made quick work of the competition: A Player Efficiency Rating of 20, a true shooting percentage of 62.9 percent and an offensive/defensive rating of 116/102. For the first time since his senior year at Skyline, Miles was once again the very best player on the floor.

"I think it was great," Miles said of his time in the D-League. "You’ve been sitting up here and you haven’t really gotten much playing time. So to go down there and play 28-30 minutes in a real game -- there’s nothing like game experience. You can practice as hard as you want, but there’s nothing like game experience.”

The story from there is by no means a linear path to success. By many metrics, Miles has compiled a disappointing five-year career. His shooting improved enough in his third season to be the show starter for Utah in 2008-09, but there was still an incomplete quality to Miles' game. Maybe the contrast to Kirilenko at the small forward was too distinct, but until very recently Miles continued to be a liability for the Jazz on the defensive end -- particularly as a help defender on the wing. Neither of Utah's two most productive lineups in 2008-09 included Miles, with the most striking feature being defense, where the Jazz were far more effective with either Kirilenko or Kyle Korver at the 3. This season has been a mixed bag. After starting every one of his 72 games in 2008-09, Miles has mostly come off the bench this season, stepping into the lineup if Kirilenko was unavailable. Miles' defense improved this season, though his advanced offensive stats were eerily similar to his 2008-09 output.

When Kirilenko strained his calf prior to Utah's first round meeting with Denver, Miles was put on the spot. The Jazz just happened to draw one of the two Western Conference playoff teams that features a dominant small forward as the focal point of its offense. The Nuggets' Carmelo Anthony is an assignment for Kirilenko or the quasi-retired Matt Harpring. Denver acting head coach Adrian Dantley even said as much both before and after Anthony exploded for 42 points in the Nuggets' Game 1 victory.

Anthony had a less efficient outing in Game 2 against a far more physical Miles, hitting only 9 of 25 shot from the field en route to 32 points. More notable, however, was Miles' performance on the offensive end. Know what Miles looked like? The quintessential starting wing in Jerry Sloan's flex offense. There were the pretty interior passes on the move to Kyrylo Fesenko and Carlos Boozer on cuts -- two of his six assists. There were the two crucial layups off smart basket dives along the baseline in the game's final four minutes with the Jazz trailing by three points. Miles says that those weren't plays he would've instinctively made two years ago.

“It’s a matter of growing, being on the floor, getting playing time and maturing as a player," Miles said. "You see things and you see them quicker, then you begin to see them before they happen. You see how they trap Deron off the pick-and-roll, and my standing here [on the wing] is not helping. So what do I need to do the next possession? I saw guys turning heads toward Deron, so I cut to where Deron can see me, and I was able to make the play a couple times in a row.”

Apart from his rebounding and 3-point shooting -- he's a lowly 5-for-21 from beyond the arc in the series -- Miles has been an important piece for the Jazz in their four games against Denver. He hit eight shots from the floor on Sunday night as part of a 21-point effort, including three huge buckets in the opening two minutes of the second half. Though Miles isn't stopping Anthony -- few can -- he's doing his part as the fulcrum of a defensive scheme that's denying Denver consistent ball movement. He now understands that the best way to keep Anthony even remotely off-balanced is to show the scorer a variety of looks.

"I try to play him different ways the whole game," Miles said. "He made fade-aways, step-backs, and all those moves [in Game 1], so I've been trying to make everything a second move, not just one move and to the basket, or one move and a shot. I tried to make him spin off me and not get into too much of a rhythm."

If Denver is able to extend the series with a win on Wednesday night, speculation will begin to surface about Kirilenko's ability to achieve his stated goal of coming back for a Game 6 in Salt Lake City on Friday. When Kirilenko was asked about his timetable a week ago, the subtext was that if the Jazz could desperately hang with Denver for five games, then Kirilenko could provide both an emotional and defensive lift for the Jazz to write a storybook ending to the series. Kirilenko would still be a welcome sight for the Jazz if they're forced to a Game 6, but thanks in part to C.J. Miles, Kirilenko's return is now more of a luxury than a necessity for Utah.

DENVER -- A beleaguered Utah Jazz team entered Game 2 in Denver with a litany of worries. In Game 1, they lost their starting center, Mehmet Okur, for the season with a torn left achilles tendon. That void thrust the very green Kyrylo Fesenko into the starting lineup for Monday night’s Game 2. Meanwhile, the Jazz were already without their best defender, Andrei Kirilenko, whose absence put excessive pressure on his understudies, C.J. Miles and Wesley Matthews. Carmelo Anthony torched the young tandem for 42 points in Game 1, and arrived on Monday night hungry for more.

Undermanned on both the offensive and defensive ends of the floor, the Jazz had only one saving grace -- their lethal screen-and-roll combination of Deron Williams and Carlos Boozer. The pair orchestrated a clinic on Monday night, baffling the Nuggets’ defense with their two-man waltz, with Deron Williams as the lead. Williams finished with 33 points and 14 assists, vaulting the Jazz to an improbable and frenetic 114-111 win over the Nuggets at the Pepsi Center, tying the series at one game apiece.

"This is a big win for us," Williams said. "Nobody was really giving us a shot. We just wanted to come out here and put that to rest. We feel like we still have a great team that can compete and we're really proud of how we played and battled tonight."

Williams had a series of offensive imperatives on Monday night, and he succeeded at every one of them. First, he attacked Denver off the dribble every chance he got, looking for either a seam to the basket, or contact against a collapsing Nugget defender. Williams made his way to the stripe for 18 attempts, draining 16. Second, Williams engaged Boozer -- and occasionally Paul Millsap -- with their patented pick-and-roll. Finally, if Williams was unable to find a path to the rim or his post option was covered, he empowered weak side threats like Kyle Korver and C.J. Miles by executing the Jazz’s offensive system to perfection. Korver scored 13 points, while Miles had another solid offensive performance with 17 points.

"[Williams] set the tone from the beginning," Boozer said. "He came out aggressive, got to the basket, hit shots -- jumper after jumper -- then got to the free throw line ... It made the job easier on the rest of us because he was playing so well offensively."

Williams’ most exquisite play came out of a timeout with 1:43 remaining in the game and the Jazz trailing 106-105. At the top of the circle, Williams broke down Chauncey Billups off the bounce. When the Nuggets’ wing defenders collapsed on him in the paint, Williams threw a dart to Korver in the right corner, where the sharpshooter drained a 3-pointer to put Utah on top 108-106, a lead that they would never relinquish.

"I was kind of open a lot in the fourth quarter," Korver said. "Never wide open, but kind of open and I kept telling myself, 'Be ready.'"

Utah was open a lot in the first half. The Jazz shot a blistering 73.3 percent in the first quarter, and 67.7 percent overall before halftime. In addition to Williams' proficiency from the outside, Boozer killed Denver both rolling to the basket and by flashing to the top of the circle, where he drained a series of high-arching shots during a 17-3 Utah run to close the first half. Boozer scored 20 points on the night.

Leading 63-51 at intermission, the Jazz had to sustain a furious 14-0 rally by the Nuggets in the third quarter. The Nuggets combined a sequence of strong stands on the defensive end and aggressive ball pressure to fuel their comeback. The Jazz gave the Nuggets a hand by putting them in the penalty at the 9:18 mark of the period.

"We know who they are," Jazz head coach Jerry Sloan said when asked about Denver's rally. "It's not a secret. They're a terrific team -- and they can score. They can really score easily."

Both Denver and Utah are notoriously foul-prone and that held true Monday night, as the teams combined for 91 free throw attempts. In total, there were 73 successful free throws converted to 71 made shots from the floor.

Utah regained control of the game for a stretch at the end of the third quarter behind three Korver jumpers and three pairs of free throws, but would have to withstand another run by Denver in the fourth quarter. A turnover and a blocked shot on consecutive Utah possessions ignited the Nuggets' break in the opening minutes of the period. Billups lobbed a pass on the break over the Utah transition defense to Nene for an easy slam. Then Smith collected his block of Williams' layup attempt and found Billups downcourt for a spot-up 3-pointer to give Denver its first lead of the second half at 92-91.

The game's final nine minutes were a back-and-forth affair. Each team pounded the ball inside as the interior defenses disintegrated on both ends. Utah spread the wealth as Williams compiled five assists over the final stretch, while Denver put the ball into Anthony's hands and let him attack the Jazz inside. In the run-up to Monday night’s game, Utah vowed to match Denver’s prolific offense with a more rugged brand of physicality. Anthony, in particular, was able to roam around the floor relatively untouched in Game 1. Utah’s defenders clearly adjusted their strategy on Anthony. As advertised, Miles and Matthews bodied up on him, invading Anthony's space by playing right on his hip.

"They tried to force me more to go to the basket," Anthony said. "They tried to jam me a little bit."

That strategy can be seen if you examine Anthony's shot chart. He finished the night with 32 points, but he converted only 9 of his 25 attempts from the field – every one of those nine in the immediate basket area. Like Williams, Anthony took advantage of a tightly-officiated contest, earning 15 free throw attempts of his own. For Jazz's part, they were relatively satisfied. Utah appreciates that stopping Anthony from scoring is an impossibility. The goal for Miles and Matthews coming into Monday night's game was to frustrate Anthony and take him out of his comfort zone. Mission accomplished on both counts.

"They did great" Boozer said of Miles and Matthews. "They set the tone by being a little more physical with [Anthony] when he crossed over half court."

The Nuggets were whistled for 37 fouls -- a new record for a Jazz playoff opponent. Throughout the game, Denver was demonstratively upset with the officiating, though the free throw disparity favored Utah by only a 47-44 margin. The Nuggets' frustration was palpable and the excess emotion might have been detrimental to their cause.

"We talked about trying to get under their skin a little bit," Williams said. "We wanted to be physical with them from the start of the game, make guys have to work a little harder for their points. I think we did a good job of that tonight."

Denver will have a hard time erasing the memory of the game's closing minutes, when they led the Jazz by three points inside of three minutes. In addition to a missed Billups free throw with 53 second left, there were two offensive fouls -- one each by Billups and Anthony -- along with two additional miscues by Anthony. The first occurred when he brought the ball low on a drive to the basket, ultimately getting stripped and turning it over to Utah. The second mistake came with 25 seconds left with the Nuggets trailing by a single point. Anthony decided to pressure Miles aggressively in the backcourt, and picked up his sixth foul in the process.

"We'll take all those," Williams said of Denver's blunders.

The Jazz's resilience stems from the confidence that if they implement their program with intelligence and poise, they can succeed, even with key personnel in street clothes. Utah's belief in that system is a primary reason why the Jazz have tallied only one losing season in Sloan's 22-year tenure. Even with Okur and Kirilenko sidelined, Utah's offensive schemes hummed with a familiar precision on Monday night. If anything, the injuries seemed to strengthen the Jazz's resolve.

"Their team is a wounded team," Billups said. "They came out and took care of business."

Cornered and bloodied, the Jazz mimicked the Trail Blazers and wrested home court advantage from an ostensibly superior opponent with more firepower. The wounded animal bit back.

• The Rockets made out like bandits in yesterday's three-team trade with Sacramento and New York. Jason Friedman gets to the heart of what Daryl Morey & Company were able to accomplish: "In Martin, the Rockets have filled a glaring void at the 2-guard spot. And this isn’t simply some band-aid, stop-gap solution. Martin is one of the NBA’s most efficient scoring weapons, a player who drains 3s and draws fouls in bunches, which has allowed him to post a True Shooting Percentage above 60% for four consecutive seasons. In other words, he’s the perfect fit for a team which treats efficiency like it’s the Holy Grail ... Then there are those draft picks. Oh, those wonderful draft picks ... the Rockets now own a pair of first round picks in 2011 and 2012 which gives Morey more of an opportunity to weave his magic, be it through savvy selections or additional wheeling and dealing. We’re talking about laying down this franchise’s foundation of the future here, people; one which suddenly looks so very bright not just for the rest of this year and (especially) the next – but for the years to come as well."
• At Hardwood Paroxysm, Wyn Douglas takes a historical look at the success and failure of teams after the trade deadline. Also at Hardwood Paroxysm, Jared Wade isn't ready to bury Tracy McGrady just yet. He wonders if McGrady can revive his career as a Grant Hill-like facilitator, and runs through the list of other superstar journeymen who have played for multiple teams.
• Lots of fun with player comps in a two-parter from Neil Paine at Basketball Reference. Fascinating stuff: Paine's project makes Andrei Kirilenko the modern equivalent of Marques Johnson.
• At the deadline, the Chicago Bulls acquired four ... gremlins?
• Byron Scott and Mychal Thompson engaged in a real-life boxing match. There's some disagreement about which former Laker won on points. In the same interview, Scott says that the Clippers head coaching job is intriguing: "I do think the Clipper job is a pretty good job for me. They have got some young talent.Obviously they are going to have a lot of cap room and another lottery pick coming in."
• The worst thing about blogging the Cavs, according to John Krolik of Cavs: the Blog.
• Jeremy Wagner of Roundball Mining Company looks at Carmelo Anthony's big shot against LeBron James.
• Michael Schwartz of Valley of the Suns delves into the host of questions surrounding Amare Stoudemire's staying put in Phoenix.
• "Shake" -- not just a liquified dessert, but a way to measure a player's consistency.
• You know that remixed "Defense" NBA spot? The most amusing clip in the ad is the unintentional irony of Eddie House in the Celtics huddle yelling, "Keep playing defense!" House was dealt from Boston to New York yesterday. At Celtics Hub, Zach Lowe bids farewell to the C's inveterate shooter, focusing on his favorite House moment, which occurred in the fourth quarter of Game 4 of the 2008 NBA Finals.
• Matthew Bunch of Hot Hot Hoops says sometimes the best move at the deadline is no move at all.
• The best thing about the Bucks' deal for John Salmons? Milwaukee hung onto its picks and got some draft considerations from Chicago.
• Knickerblogger draws up an extensive report card on New York's deadline moves.

The All-Star Game is a collection of the best basketball talent in the world, but it rarely produces anything resembling the best basketball. Counter-intuitive as that might seem, the reasons for this annual letdown are fairly obvious. Chauncey Billups recited some of them following the lackluster 2007 All-Star Game, everything from fear of injury to exhaustion from the weekend's festivities.

Could there be other factors that keep this collection of talent from playing beautiful, or even watchable, basketball? In a highly functional basketball unit, do certain players need to defer to other players, something that's difficult to demand of the world's premier scorers? Are teams loaded with this kind of firepower vulnerable to the pitfalls that might have doomed USA Basketball in 2002, 2004 and 2006?

These questions got us thinking: Is it possible to assemble a roster of non-All-Stars that could challenge the teams taking the floor in Dallas on Sunday?

We asked the bloggers in the TrueHoop Network to participate in our high-grade parlor game.

In sculpting our roster, we came up with a few basic questions. What kind of players would you look for? Do you tap the best of the remainders who were left off the rosters (snubs like Josh Smith and Nene)? Knowing you're outgunned, is it better to adopt the principles of guerrilla warfare and engage in a less traditional brand of combat? To that end, are there specific skill sets you should look for?

A few criteria and common themes emerged:

Defense and Rebounding

• Bret LaGree of Hoopinion: "Defense and rebounding would ... be vital, both to limit the efficiency of the All-Stars and to rebound as many missed shots as possible. If the non-All-Stars give the best offensive players in the world many second shots, it's hopeless."
• D.J. Foster of ClipperBlog: "I want them to grab every defensive rebound, I want them to get tons of turnovers..."
• Matt Moore of Hardwood Paroxysm envisions a team whose tactical goal is "DEATH FROM HYPER-LONG-ATHLETIC DEFENDERS FROM ABOVE."

Is it realistic to believe that there are defensive stoppers who can contain the most prolific scorers in the game? Probably not, which means we should look for a very specific brand of defender.

• Rahat Huq of Red94: "In a game like this, you don't necessarily want guys who are great individual defenders. No one is going to shut down those all-stars in combination ... You need the best help defenders in the game. These guys can't be left alone on an island."'

We asked David Thorpe to chime in. He told us that, in thinking about defense, it's ill-advised to worry about "'who's going to guard THAT guy,' because defense in the modern NBA is a five-player gig, so that's the wrong question." With the right coach and coverages, anyone with enough athleticism and commitment can play good team defense.

On Offense
Our team won't have the capacity to create shots the way the All-Stars can, so they better be efficient, says Matt Moore. "You're creating a team that takes shots at the rim and at the arc. Most at the rim. Very much so at the rim." When the Houston Rockets are clicking on the offensive end, they do this proficiently without a single player who approaches All-Star status.

Meta-Factors
"Intangibles" are abstract, unsatisfying and impossible to measure, but there's no denying that our players need to embody certain qualities to knock off the big boys.

• Henry Abbott: "If you look at the best lineups in the NBA, they almost all include role players (like Anderson Varejao). But when picking the best teams, it's very hard for coaches, GMs or anybody else to pick a role player over a multi-talented star. So they take the star. Anyone read Malcolm Gladwell's book "Outliers"? After 10,000 hours people are candidates to become masters at something. I'm thinking you want people who have their 10,000 hours in doing boring things that lead to wins, like playing D. Stars don't have more hours in their days. They have to spend a lot of time on other stuff."
• Rahat Huq: "You want players who 'impact winning,' which entails deflections, making quick rotations, pushing pace effectively, never making mistakes -- all the things that impact the outcome in the aggregate. The only way to beat an all-star team is through some sort of synergism. You'll have to play a virtually flawless game."

Toppling the All-Star teams is an uphill battle, but not impossible. Here's the group we've recruited to get it done:

Starters

Jason Kidd (PG)
If mastery comes from 10,000 hours of practice, then Kidd is the wily veteran to run point for our squad. Darius Soriano of Forum Blue & Gold: "I'd want a point guard who could push the ball and make the right decisions on both the break and in the half court."

Andre Iguodala (SG)
Defense? Rebounding? The ability to finish at the rim? It's all right here. Iggy's outside shot presents a bit of a concern, and makes him an imperfect selection. The sum of the parts, though, gives our team too many important ingredients to pass over.

Andrei Kirilenko (SF)
There was a groundswell of support for Kirilenko, whose ability to make plays from anywhere, cover multiple positions, protect the rim and provide help defense, make him a classic insurgent against a team of All-Stars.

Josh Smith (PF)
Ryan Schwan of Hornets247 likes Smith and Kirilenko as a forward tandem. "Kirilenko and Smith will cover each other and everyone else on the floor with quick-footed athletic defense."

Lamar Odom (C)
Not a traditional center by any stretch, but a trio of Odom, Kirilenko and Smith just might be skilled, long, springy and athletic enough to defend an elite front line. Spencer Ryan Hall of Salt City Hoops is as enamored with the playmaking potential of the Odom-Kirilenko combo as I am. "Give me Odom at the 5 just to watch him and Kirilenko together." Thorpe adds that the defensive strategy of Kirilenko-Smith-Odom would be "to press and trap baseline and corner catches and generally make it a scramble game. Blitzing ball screens will be effective too."

Reserves

Kyle Lowry (G)
Henry Abbott makes the strong case for the efficient Lowry off the bench, where he's excelled for Houston. "[He] fights like a dog and gets to the line like crazy, while also making his team's defense better."

Jamal Crawford (G)
Thus far, we don't have any pure shooters. As Zach Harper of Cowbell Kingdom points out, Crawford has his flaws, but is worth signing up. "I'm not sold on him completely here but if he's hot, it doesn't matter who is guarding him." Just ask the Boston Celtics. Anthony Morrow finishes a close second for the role of sharpshooter off the bench.

Manu Ginobili (G)
"Manu Ginobili HAS beaten All-Star teams, in international competition," writes Henry. He gives the squad one guard who can truly probe the defense in the half court.

Tyreke Evans (G)
We don't care how you classify him positionally. We just know he can score on any perimeter player in the league when he's disciplined and keeps the ball moving in the half court.

Hedo Turkoglu (F)
Critics will knock his defense, but he did just fine on Orlando's shutdown squad last season. In a talent pool that's bereft of big wings, Turkoglu is a good choice for his flexibility as a pick-and-roll practitioner. Imagine what he and the guy just below could do as a tandem in the second unit to that effect.

Nene (F/C)
Jeremy Wagner of Roundball Mining Company describes his assets this way: "A big man who can score on the block, face up and hit the 15 footer or drive and is a very good passer. Plus he has as good of a chance to defend both Tim Duncan and Dwight Howard as anyone." If Nene is unavailable, we like the indefatigable Carl Landry.

Anderson Varejao (F/C)
We don't need him to score, we just want him to annoy the hell out of max-contract superstars. When that pest makes his team's defense inordinately better, crashes the glass and collects the garbage, we'll find the minutes. Joakim Noah was a strong contender for this 12th man slot.

Gregg Popovich (Coach)
"You don't deserve anything. You just go play. You start thinking about what you deserve and what you don't deserve and it just makes you soft. You just go play the game." -- Gregg Popovich, May 2006.

The counter argument
Leave it to M. Haubs of The Painted Are to be the hard-bitten realist. For him, this is a fun, but ultimately futile, exercise. The talent on the All-Star rosters is just too much to contend with, no matter how much synergy our team can muster and no matter how much precision it can deploy. He also challenges the premise that the USA Basketball teams that struggled in the early part of last decade failed because they were overstaffed with scorers:

I have to say that as much as people wanted to blame Team USA's underachievement from 2002-06 on lack of shooting or role players or some mystical qualities, the dirty little secret about the ultimate redemption in 2008 was talent - they brought a roster filled with All-NBA players, which they had not really done since 1996. The teams that Manu beat in '02 and '04 were not really All-Star teams -- those teams had too many role players, not too few.

I'm really not trying to be the poop in the punch bowl here, but I will take CP3, Kobe, Melo, Dirk and Timmy, with Nash, D-Will, Durant, and Pau off the bench, and you can try to beat me with your collection of role players. And please, by all means, try to press and speed up the tempo; I have Chris Paul and Steve Nash.

In reality, I would suggest that you lobby hard to play the game under FIBA rules, with unlimited zone defense to clog the lane and a shorter three-point line for a better puncher's chance, and I'd recommend that a college coach like Coach K be forced to be the game coach for the All-Stars.

We've given you our roster, please tell us yours.

And then there were 12. Eurobasket 2009 begins its second phase and The Painted Area has it all sorted out for you:

Can Pau Gasol lift Spain out of its first-round funk?  (Photo by Janek Skarzynski/AFP/Getty Images)

Thursday was an off day so teams could transition from the opening round to the qualifying round (second round). Starting Friday in the Polish cities of Bydogoszcz & Lodz, teams play three games in their group with a day off between games. The top four teams from each group qualify for the quarters starting on Sept. 17th.

Israel, Latvia, Britain, & Bulgaria have been eliminated leaving 12 teams divided into two groups (Group E & F). Group E appears to be a little weaker, while Group F is packed with quality teams. You will have two pretty good teams not make the quarters out of Group F, while you will see a quarterfinal slot awarded to one of the three weaker qualifying round entries (Germ, Russ, Macedonia) in Group E. No off days in Group F.

Group E: (Playing in Bydogoszcz)
1) Greece (2-0)
2) France (2-0)
3) Croatia (1-1)
4) Germany (1-1)
5) Macedonia (0-2)
6) Russia (0-2)

GREECE: Should have no trouble moving onto the quarterfinals. Greece's change from a methodical defensive-minded brand of basketball to a more free-wheeling offensive team looks successful, so far. Greece's offense has looked exacting with constant movement and spacing. Greece has outscored their opponents by a combined 66 points and lead the tourney with 58 percent from the floor. The Croatia game where they won by 8 points, wasn't not quite as close as the score should indicate.
schedule: Fri., vs. Germ./Sun., vs. Russ./Tues., vs. France

FRANCE: Though, they went 3-0 in Group B, they weren't all that impressive. Group B was easily the weakest, and Les Bleus only beat Russia & Germany by five pts each. As usual, the half-court offense has gone thru major lulls. And obviously, this team can't hit from outside. Still having trouble shooting -- 14-for-53 (26 percent) behind the arc and 45-for-81 (56 percent) at the free throw line. France is the worst deep-shooting team left in the field. We've beaten this into the ground, but still holds true -- pack the painted area all game vs. France. France counteracted their ragged offense like they always do -- with great defense and rebounding.
schedule: Fri., vs. Mace./Sun., vs. Croat./Tues., vs. Greece

CROATIA: Nice contributions from their big PG combo, Roko Ukic and Zoran Planinic. Both have done a good job getting into the lane to create scoring opportunities. Nikola Vujcic had been the leader of the deep, veteran frontline scoring in double figures in each game. Expect them to secure a spot in the quarters with wins over Russia & Germany. France game is a toss-up.
schedule: Fri., vs. Russ./Sun., vs. France./Tues., vs. Germ

GERMANY: Not surprisingly the Germans have found it difficult to score with no Dirk. No one who is a reliable No. 1 option, and the Germans shot 38 percent from the floor in the opening round. Jan Jagla has brought his usual activity, but when he's your leading scorer you're in trouble. Only reason they're still playing has been the horrible free throw shooting of their Group B opponents. France, Russia and Latvia combined to shoot 65-for-120 (54 percent) from the free throw line vs. Germany. Germany is in better shape for a quarterfinal berth than Russia or Macedonia because they get to carry over a win into the second round. Don't see them beating Greece or Croatia, have a chance vs. Macedonia. A win vs. Macedonia would be huge for their playoff chances.
schedule: Fri., vs. Greece/Sun., vs. Mace./Tues., vs. Croat.

(FYR) MACEDONIA: Macedonia has a legit shot at the quarters because they should be favored to beat Germany, and are closely matched with Russia. Wouldn't be shocked if they pushed France. Gotten strong play from their frontline of Jeremiah Massey, Todor Gecevski and Pero Antic. Vrbica Stefanov has also been his usual steady floor genera selfl.
schedule: Fri., vs. France./Sun., vs. Germ./Tues., vs. Russ.

RUSSIA: Offense has not been quite as putrid as I thought it would. Kelly McCarty's athleticism has been a nice addition on both ends of the floor after the loss of Andrei Kirilenko and Viktor Khryapa. Gotten solid play from their PG combo of Sergey Bykov and Anton Ponkrashov. Will be tough to get victories against Greece and Croatia. Really can't afford a loss to Macedonia.
schedule: Fri., vs. Croat./Sun., vs. Greece/Tues., vs. Mace.

GROUP F: (Playing in Lodz)
1) Turkey (2-0)
2) Slovenia (1-1)
3) Serbia (1-1)
4) Spain (1-1)
5) Poland (1-1)
6) Lithuania (0-2)

TURKEY: Turkey has looked like a totally different team than the one that stunk up the '07 Euro. The Turkish offense that couldn't get out of its own way two years ago, has been smoking this year. Most importantly, they are converting shots around Hedo Turkoglu. Turkey has a point differential of +54 and is shooting 54 percent overall, 42 percent from 3. Their NBA pair of forwards have not disappointed. Hedo and Ersan Ilyasova have shown their mismatch ability creating offensive opportunities all over the floor. Ilyasova has led the Turks with 17 points per game on 58 percent & seven rebounds per game, while Hedo has added 13 points per game. Hedo has teamed with Kerem Tunceri and Ender Arslan to bring some type of order to their PG position. The PG play has left a lot to be desired the last few years, but nothing to complain about this year. Arslan has been hitting runners off ball screens & burying his open shots (8-for-11 on 3-pointers.).
schedule: Sat., vs. Spain./Mon., vs. Serb./Wed., vs. Slov.

SLOVENIA: Were some questions how all their talent would mesh, and so far, so good. Looked sharp vs. Serbia, and pushed Spain to OT with Matjaz Smodis only playing five minutes. The strong defense from their '07 run seems to have transferred over. No surprise the offense has looked crisp with the collection of shooters this team can put on the floor at once. Slovenia is shooting 51 percent overall, 36 percent from deep. PG Jaka Lavovic (14 points per game) has led the way buried jumpers off of screens -- Jaka is 9-for-19 from 3-pointers. Boci Nachbar has been ballin' as well with 12 points per game on 54 percent and 5.7 rebounds per game. Erazem Lorbek has been a nice option on the blocks with his sharp footwork -- 13 points per game and 5.7 rebounds per game. Phoenix Sun Goran Dragic has been a defensive pest once again--gave Rubio & Spain issues -- and even adding a little scoring to the mix with 11 points per game. They can take it up a notch if Smodis can go heavier minutes in the next round. Supposedly, his back is feeling better.
schedule: Sat., vs. Lith./Mon., vs. Pol./Wed., vs. Tu
rk.

SERBIA: Have gotten nice contributions up and down their deep, young roster. 10 players average at least 14 mins/game. Stunned Spain with an impressive defensive effort. Nenad Krstic (12 points per game & four rebounds per game) has been a solid option on the blocks and protecting the rim. Guards Milenko Tepic and Milos Teodosic have run the offense efficiently and stayed away from forcing the action. Need to get their shooting back on track after a poor display in the first round -- 24 percent from 3.
schedule: Sat., vs. Pol./Mon., vs. Turk./Wed., vs. Lith.

SPAIN: Not sure what's going on with this team. Serbia totally whupped them, Britain gave them a huge scare, and Slovenia roared back to push them to OT. Maybe they're too many players to keep happy with playing time. Maybe it's the coaching change (Spain's third change in as many years). Maybe they're disinterested. Whatever the reason, it's hard to figure because this team rarely, if ever, goes-through-the-motions. Should get props for controlling Slovenia for most of the game, but questions resurfaced when they let Slovenia comeback in the fourth to force OT. Expect them to get in a groove in the next round. But I thought they would destroy Britain, but that didn't happen.
schedule: Sat., vs. Turk./Mon., vs. Lith./Wed., vs. Pol.

POLAND: Our sleeper pick has performed admirably in front of the home crowd. The frontline has been killing it. Marcin Gortat has been an interior force and also turned himself into an offensive juggernaut the last week. Gortat is averaging 17 points per game (fifth-best) on 67 percent (fourth-best) and 11 rebounds per game (second-best). We highlighted some of Gortat's newfound offensive skills. PF Maciej Lampe has been an inside-out terror scoring 18 points (third-best) & grabbing seven rebounds per game. Gortat and Lampe are leading the tourney in blocks as well. The offense has functioned very well shooting 50 percent from the floor and 38 percent from 3-point. land. Don't have an easy road to the quarters with Serbia, Slovenia and Spain on the upcoming schedule.
schedule: Sat., vs. Serb./Mon., vs. Slov./Wed., vs. Spain

LITHUANIA: We knew there would be struggles without their two legendary playmakers, Saras Jasikevicius and Ramunas Siskauskas. The shot selection has been spotty, which is a rarity with the normal precision offense we expect from this national team. Their patchwork backcourt has been predictably lackluster. Deep frontline has been solid, but they could play better as well. Burly big Marijonas Petravicius (16 points per game on 71 percent shooting) has been a nice interior presence drawing fouls, finishing around the basket, and pushing people around. Linas Kleiza has been a little uneven and can't find his deep touch (0-for-7 on 3s) The normally sweet-shooting Lithuanians have been off from deep -- 32 percent from 3. Lithuania's quarterfinal chances are dicey with a 0-2 record and having to face brutal gauntlet of the top three of Group C.
schedule: Sat., vs. Slov./Mon., vs. Spain./Wed., vs. Serb.

Ross Siler of the Salt Lake Tribune talked to salary cap expert Larry Coon last week about ways the Jazz can kiss goodbye to the contract of the disgruntled forward. Here's what he found:

For starters, the Jazz can't just release Andrei Kirilenko. If they do, they're on the hook for the $63 million he's owed. As part of the contract, Kirilenko also is required to play for the Jazz. He has to show up for training camp, otherwise he'll be suspended without pay and fined.

Kirilenko also can't just decide he's done with the Jazz and is going to play in Russia this season. NBA teams and FIBA countries honor each other's contracts. That's why the Jazz had to negotiate a contract buyout with Kyrylo Fesenko's Ukrainian club.

(A great line I heard Thursday from someone with the Jazz was that Kirilenko would have to go to Iran or Malaysia if he wanted to sign with a team while still under contract in Utah. In fact, I'm sure there are people who would like to send Andrei to Tehran right now.)

If Kirilenko's serious about walking away from the $63 million he's owed, the Jazz could negotiate a contract buyout for an amount all the way down to zero dollars. That's what happened with Derek Fisher earlier this summer.

Kirilenko would be free to sign with another club and probably would lose $40 million at least when everything was said and done. They could negotiate a buyout for more money but the question is if Larry Miller wants to cut a check for someone NOT to play for his team.

But the Jazz would gain a large measure of salary-cap flexibility if they reached a reasonable buyout with Kirilenko. Unless the Jazz believe Kirilenko is going to be a $17 million player down the road, it's something they have to investigate.

Siler also reports that Coach Jerry Sloan has to be feeling a bit of heat at the moment, for a number of reasons. Interesting moment for the NBA's longest-tenured coach.

Andrei Kirilenko has apparently asked to be traded; a Russian-language tale that appears to have been written by Kirilenko himself was published yesterday on the website Sports.ru. Here it is in the original Russian. And here, with the kind of brilliant comedic timing you could not fabricate, is some of that same story as translated by Google:

For the week to come to the club, but if honest, special joy on this occasion did not have. Last season was disappointing for me and very seriously disappointed. Many thought about it and came to the decision - I want to leave the "Concept". European soccer ended was a peculiar litmus test, and it was all for me to their seats.

Coach Sloan is one of the reasons, but not the only one. Six of the NBA years, I, of course, has enormous experience. It is clear that the NBA-strongest league world. Every game makes you better as a player only because it is a challenge. Call for battle. Such conditions zakalyayut. All these words have been fair to me, except for the last two seasons. I now feel that progressiruyu not as a player. I try, but fails. 5 40NB. Do not give. Do not get support coach and the club. I am convinced that the methods Sloan had a negative impact on me. His main method of motivating players - care guilt. Our wages, our mistakes in the games, our actions outside the track is always cause for criticism. I want to play basketball, I want to enjoy it and not be a robot, piece of Sloan. Therefore, do not see their future in the team, "Utah Jazz."

Take that, you robot piece of Sloan.

Kirilenko (or someone posing as Kirilenko) also writes about how much he loved playing for David Blatt. He contrasts that experience with how much he does not enjoy playing for Sloan.

Ross Siler of the Salt Lake Tribune has enjoyed actual human translation, and wrote an informative story based on it. An excerpt:

Kirilenko also revealed that he talked to Kevin O'Connor, the Jazz's senior vice president of basketball operations, a few weeks ago and asked to be traded. O'Connor said Tuesday that he had spoken with Kirilenko but declined to comment on what was said.

"What you're trying to do is overall look at the success he's had with us,'' O'Connor said. "He has a long-term contract with us and I don't think we would have given him a contract like that if we weren't confident he'd be here."

Kirilenko is required to report for camp by Oct. 1 and O'Connor said, "We explained to him when everybody was supposed to be back and we expect him to be here."

The Jazz would face sizable obstacles in trying to trade Kirilenko, their highest-paid player owed $63 million through the 2010-11 season. They also face untold distractions as they open the season trying to build off a conference finals appearance.

Of his conversation with O'Connor, Kirilenko wrote, "I told him that I don't see myself in the team and want to leave." He added: "I don't want myself and my contract to be a burden for the club. I want the club to continue in its own direction."

But Kirilenko wrote that he hadn't heard back from O'Connor or the organization in a week, which he took as a sign of disrespect.

Plenty of people are not high on Kirilenko. I am not one of them. Back then the Blazers still had Zach Randolph, and it wasn't clear what they were going to do with him, I was keen on the idea that they might swap him for AK-47. Why? Of course, a big part of the reason is because Kirilenko plays hard all over the court, is long like a piece of spaghetti, and has a ton of skill. But mainly because he has an unbelievable knack for getting his hand where the ball is. He can strip you, he can block you, he can pick up the loose ball, he can grab the rebound. He can just get that ball better than most, and players like that are disheartening to play against. He is also willing to work hard to improve his shooting stroke, while being willing to be the team's third or fourth scoring option.

Let me share something with you about Andrei Kirilenko, the professional. Consider this account, from coach Dan Barto, of running Kirilenko's workouts last summer:

I had the pleasure of working with Andrei for a little over six weeks last summer. Upon meeting him he stated his goals for what he wanted to accomplish and why. In no uncertain terms he knew what was going to happen both with the Jazz this past season and with the Russian National Team this summer.

Stating "things (with the Jazz) are going to change for me because our team is going to win by pounding people off ball screens and defending. My opportunities are going to come in transition like always, spot ups and some isolation/mismatch. I will be the fourth option and I have to do what is best for my team."

He talked about his skill improvement and shooting both off of the catch and dribble "a couple years" process where he would probably fail numerous times to successfully implement them, but would eventually master them and increase the length of his career and value.

He stated that the summer of '06 was his first summer of not playing with the national team because he needed to rest. With the playoffs, international play and being an NBA starter, he would play more minutes than anyone in the world from October through next training camp. Also he talked about trying to get his body right since he dealt with so many injuries in the past. With the FIBA qualifiers and Olympics over the next two summers this would be his only chance to do that.

These were not ingenious concepts, but so few players are able to look at the scope of 12 months with such precision, honesty and hunger, let alone 3 years. Over the next six weeks Andrei would teach me so much about the international game, being a "professional" and how many different ways "dawg" could be used in the English language.

Utah fan and TrueHoop reader Doug emails to say:

For all of us Jazz fans who have been thinking it would be best if Kirilenko and the Jazz parted ways,it finally looks like its happening. But now that he has demanded a trade ... we'll get almost nothing for him. I wish the Jazz would have stepped up and gotten something done to get the Matrix; especially if its true that Andrei spoke with Kevin O'Connor privately about this two weeks ago before going public. Regardless whether Marion liked Utah or not, it was a much shorter term contract and would have allowed the Jazz to have a solid 3 during his remaining years.

Here is some Andrei Kirilenko information you have to see to understand.

What happens now? Will the Jazz move him? It takes two to tango, and it's no secret the Jazz are ready to dance. Even the owner has admitted as much. The Tribune's Ross Siler wrote this on his blog back in June:

In case you missed it, Andrei Kirilenko has a contract worth $63 million that makes him difficult, if not impossible, to trade. Larry Miller admitted as much Thursday on the radio. Yet Sloan and Miller have each taken their shots at Kirilenko this week -- a player who most
likely is going to wind up back with the Jazz next season.

Looking for one other team ... We have heard it might be the Suns, right? If they are really concerned that Shawn Marion might walk away for nothing when he can opt out next summer, perhaps they really would consider getting Kirilenko (who is cheaper per season, but has a hefty four years left). Any other ideas about what might work? Get trading.

UPDATE: Here's my proposal: Channing Frye, Jarrett Jack, and Raef LaFrentz for Andrei Kirilenko. In a year, the Jazz would presumably trade LaFrentz to someone looking to get under the cap -- so this would cut their total guaranteed out-of-pocket expenses by about $50 million, while not exactly making them worse. Portland gets a quality big man, and two roster spots to address their need for even more bigs. The downside is that Portland would be giving up super-valuable future cap room. (Cap room, a great city, and buddying up with Greg Oden, and a posse of young stars? That would lure a serious free agent.)

Everyone I know who was there says this tournament was well worth the trip, mainly for a fantastic performance. So many subplots. Jose Calderon can clearly now shoot. Viktor Khryapa is good. (And remember Sergei Monia?) Lithuania, Russia, Spain, and Greece now join Argentina on the growing list of teams who might give even the re-vamped U.S. team trouble in the Olympics next year. A million other stories.

Some of my favorites:

Memo to Utah coach Jerry Sloan: when you give Andrei Kirilenko some room to roam on offense, things go pretty well. That's what the coach of the Russian team, American David Blatt (great coach), did again and again throughout this tournament, and Kirilenko got high-percentage shots out of the deal.

It's amazing to see Andrei Kirilenko so happy, saying this is the best achievement of his basketball life.

Cheers to ESPN's Chris Sheridan, for singling out Russia's starting point guard, American J.R. Holden, for feature treatment last week. Holden ended up hitting the tournament-winning shot.

Now Sheridan has some advice about how Team USA can learn from Spain's shocking loss to Russia in the EuroBasket finals:

Make 20 or 30 copies of the game tape from Sunday night's final, and send them to every single player in the Team USA program and the Team USA pipeline. Include a little note that says: "Guys, take a look at this tape, and keep one thing in mind as you watch it: Crazy, crazy things can happen in international basketball, and giants really do fall. And DO NOT EVER, EVER take any opponent lightly, or you'll end up looking as shellshocked and downcast as Pau Gasol, Jose Calderon and the rest of the Spanish team looked at the end of this one, when they let their entire country down."

I also spoke to chief U.S. scout Tony Ronzone right after the game, and I asked him what advice he would give to the Team USA players if he were to go back to his hotel room and e-mail them about what happened Sunday in Madrid's Palace Arena.

His answer: "Respect, respect, respect, respect, respect, respect."

The Painted Area has in-depth coverage of the whole tournament, and highlights, but wants you to remember that the Finals were hardly the whole story. The semi-finals featured Russia's narrow escape of Lithuania. Here's a sample:

Kirilenko did it all offensively: jumpers, turnaround jumpers, post-ups, and driving lay-ins. His key sequence of the second half came in the third quarter, after Lithuania made a run to tie the game at 52, and they seemed ready to take the momentum away from Russia. But AK47 single-handedly sparked a 8-0 run with a three-pointer, then on the next offensive possession he snaked his way to a falling down lay-in plus the foul. Then on the ensuing defensive possession AK made a gigantic block on a Kleiza dunk attempt, which led into a J.R. Holden bucket to all-of-a-sudden make the game 60-52. Huge sequence for Russia. But that was not it for AK; he added some more big plays in the fourth when Lithuania made a few more mini-runs. Andrei ended the day with 29 points on 10/14 (8/11 fts), eight rebounds (4 off), three steals, and three blocks. Jeezum Frickin' Crow.

And the Painted Area says Spain vs. Greece was the real show-stopper (there are also highlights there):

Maybe as intense and entertaining a game as I've ever seen, certainly in FIBA. Both teams expended every bit of energy they could muster and left everything on the floor. I know I'm getting cliche-y, but don't know better way to describe this game. Spain's natural talent advantage basically pulled them through and helped them hold off the gritty Greeks. With both teams exerting max effort, I can't imagine either team could have played any harder. Have to say I was spent after watching the game.