Williams has MRI exam on wrist

Jazz starting point guard Deron Williams didn't practice Sunday and instead had an MRI exam performed — on his right wrist.

The newly disclosed injury has bothered Williams on a recurring basis, so the test was taken as a precautionary measure.

Even if the wrist were fine, though, Williams wouldn't have practiced anyway Sunday. His strained left groin — which caused him to miss Tuesday's loss to Portland and was heavily wrapped in Saturday's win over Boston — still is quite sore.

Despite all that, the Jazz are calling Williams "probable" for tonight's game against the Los Angeles Lakers.

Also being dubbed "probable" for tonight are starting small forward Andrei Kirilenko, who didn't play Saturday due to a muscle bruise on the inside of his left knee sustained in Friday's win at Denver, and starting center Mehmet Okur, who sat out the past two games with back spasms.

Meanwhile, Jazz trainer Gary Briggs said the team will "continue to monitor and increase" starting power forward Carlos Boozer's minutes as he recovers from a hairline fibula fracture. Boozer played 12 minutes at Denver, his first game back after missing eight straight, and 23 against Boston.

REMEMBERING CHIEF ILLINIWEK: Banned by the NCAA after being deemed an offensive characterization of native Americans, Chief Illiniwek — the time-honored mascot for University of Illinois sports teams — performed his final dance last Wednesday, replete with headdress and war paint.

The Chief's ouster left Jazz rookie Dee Brown — who returned to Illinois earlier this month to watch his old team play — with what he suggested were mixed feelings.

But it isn't tough to tell how Brown really feels.

"I was always in the middle. I wasn't pro- or anti-. But he represented," said Brown, an Illini fan favorite. "Everybody loved him, everybody honored him. He meant something to the university. But, at the same time, other people viewed him in another way.

"I used to love watching him. I actually knew the guy. I really respected what he did for my school. It's tough to see him go, man. Things are always going to change in life, so you've just to move on, man. But people honored him. People looked up to him. He was a big deal to the community, to the fans."

TRADE TALK: According to the New York Daily News' Mitch Lawrence, Los Angeles Clippers shooting guard Corey Maggette "survived another trading deadline day" last Thursday.