Millsap steps into spotlight

PHOENIX — It's not as if Paul Millsap needs motivation.

The Jazz's rookie backup power forward spent the first half of his first NBA season proving he has plenty.

Still, if ever there was a time for Millsap to elevate his game, it's the present.

With starting power forward Carlos Boozer out at least another week-and-a-half and maybe another month or more (who, at this point, can really say for certain?) with a hairline fracture in the fibula head bone leading into his left knee, opportunity knocks for a certain second-rounder from Louisiana Tech.

He knows it, and so do teammates.

"He's done a great job so far. I think he'll continue to get better," Boozer said of Millsap, who averages 6.4 points and 4.7 rebounds — but has averaged 11.7 and 11.0 respectively since Boozer was injured. "He'll have a chance to improve at a faster rate now ... He's going to have a great opportunity to get a lot of confidence, which is something he's going to need, especially as we get closer to postseason."

"I told Paul he's going to have to have 15 (points) and 15 (rebounds)," point guard Deron Williams added. "I think he can do it, though. That's the crazy part."

Here's some of the sanity:

In the last three games Utah has played — including the one last Saturday at Oklahoma City in which the Jazz's leading scorer and rebounder exited early in the opening quarter — Millsap has logged an average of 32 minutes, which more than double the 15.3 he was averaging before Boozer broke down.

Yet — no surprise here, based on his unassuming personality — Millsap remains rather grounded, even with a higher-profile role.

"In a way, I do," the somewhat soft-spoken giant said when asked if he realizes just how much the Jazz need him while Boozer — who has an injury that typically takes four to five weeks to heal, yet still hopes to play in the Feb. 18 NBA All-Star Game — remains out. "(Coaches) didn't have to say nothing to me. It's just a player thing to know you've got to step up your role a little bit.

"In another sense," Millsap added, "I don't put too much pressure on myself ... I still play the same game. It's gotten me this far, so why change now? I don't want to do nothing out of character, get out there and do something I can't do."

Good idea?