Jazz welcome Okur

In the past few months, Mehmet Okur was part of an NBA championship in just his second year in the league, been the tall part of a wedding ceremony in his native Turkey and caught a Utah Jazz bouquet worth $50 million for six years of his company.

"Life is good," Okur said during a media conference minutes after signing his deal with the Jazz at the Zion's Bank Basketball Center. "I can say my dream has come true."

"He had a big smile on his face," said Jazz president Dennis Haslam after watching Okur sign his contract.

But what can he possibly look forward to now, though, in a Jazz uniform? He has it all already.

"A championship here," he said quickly.

But before that can happen, what Okur seeks as he leaves the title-winning Detroit Pistons is playing time, maybe a starting job and a chance to be the finisher on the Jazz's famed pick-and-roll plays.

He has the offensive skills to dribble-drive or stop and pop. "Pick-and-pop," said his agent, Marc Fleisher, who considers that one of the reasons Utah was "intrigued" by Okur.

He can even shoot long range, and he wants to use those abilities. Detroit coach Larry Brown inhibited that, insisting Okur "play inside all the time," he said.

Finally, the Pistons' opportunity to get Rasheed Wallace at midseason last winter put Okur on the bench. Okur respects Wallace's game but said of the transaction, "Of course that bothered me. Everyone wants to play in this league."

Utah's Kevin O'Connor was impressed with the way Okur handled the bench time, even if it left him wanting to leave Detroit.

"He cared about his players," said O'Connor, the Jazz's senior vice president of basketball operations.

Okur cheered for his teammates, stayed interested in games, and when he got to play, "he tried to compete," O'Connor said. "He cared about the team."

It's a trait the Jazz admired, as are the 6-foot-11 center's offensive skills, toughness and rebounding abilities that allowed him to average 5.9 boards in 22.3 minutes a game. Also, "He sees the floor well, is a good athlete, can hit the open jumper and is a very good position defender," O'Connor said.