"We went to the Clive (Tooele County) facility and looked under a lot of rocks," Haslam said of the Jazz's due diligence. "We haven't found anything that bothers us."

Creamer, meanwhile, acknowledges that his company is not in a consumer services industry, so the naming agreement serves a different purpose than it would for discount retailer Target or cell phone giant Verizon. In this case, the naming rights agreements gives EnergySolutions an international platform to better educate Utah, the nation and the world about its waste management solutions, which include the secure disposition of nuclear waste. Besides, the NBA and its star players are conversation starters worldwide, considering 20-25 percent of them are international players.

We can all scoff at that notion, but how many of us, while traveling in this nation, or internationally, have done the same thing? Professional sports are part of business/travel vernacular because they are always a safe topic. They help us avoid the topics that can trip us up, such as politics and religion. What better ambassador for international business than a 10-year association with an NBA team?

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Marjorie Cortez, who will probably remember to refer to Salt Lake's downtown multi-use arena as the EnergySolutions Arena in about three years, is a Deseret Morning News editorial writer. E-mail her at marjorie@desnews.com.