Jazz labor without Harpring

PHOENIX — The Jazz lost to Phoenix on Friday night without veteran forward Matt Harpring, who returned to Utah early Friday morning because his wife, Amanda, went into labor late Thursday night.

The couple was expecting their first child.

Because his doctor does not want him playing in back-to-back games as a result of offseason surgery on his right knee, Harpring would not have played tonight had he played Friday.

Now, depending on circumstances, it's possible he could be available when the Jazz face Memphis at the Delta Center.

Also Friday, point guard Keith McLeod sat out a third-straight game due to back spasms. McLeod, who did travel with the team, initially hurt his back in Utah's loss at Chicago last Saturday night. His availability remains day-to-day.

With those two out, Milt Palacio and rookie Deron Williams started in the backcourt and usual starting 2 guard Gordan Giricek, who returned after missing two games due to tonsillitis, started at small forward.

Had he played Friday, Harpring might have started at small forward. That's Andrei Kirilenko's usual job, but he remains out 1-to-3 more weeks with a sprained right ankle sustained in Chicago.

Neither Kirilenko nor Carlos Boozer (strained left hamstring, out at least another month) made the trip.

With Mehmet Okur at power forward and Greg Ostertag at center Friday, as they have been all season long, the Jazz now have had four different starting lineups in their last four games.

VOTE NOW: The Jazz have four players among the 60 listed on the Western Conference side of the recently distributed ballot for the 2006 NBA All-Star Game, which is scheduled for Feb. 19 at the Toyota Center in Houston.

The foursome includes Boozer, who has yet to play a game this season, and big man Okur, who is listed at center on the ballot but — with Boozer out — has only started at power forward this season.

The others are Kirilenko, who played in the 2004 All-Star Game at Los Angeles, and Harpring, who has missed three of 10 games this season.

All 120 players on the ballot were selected by a panel of media members who regularly cover the NBA, including Professional Basketball Writers Association president Steve Aschburner of the Minneapolis Star Tribune, Ric Bucher of ESPN the Magazine, Turner Sports' Ernie Johnson, Mike Monroe of the San Antonio Express News and the Chicago Tribune's Sam Smith.