Flirting with such danger, however, eventually caught up with the Jazz, who for the next 33 games settled into being what amounted to a rather average .500-ish team.

2. TWO ALL-STARS

By mid-February, their record at the time 35-17, the Jazz had two first-time NBA All-Stars on their hands.

One was Boozer, though a fracture on the fibula head of his left knee cost him eight games — and a chance to actually play in the league's annual showcase game. The other was Turkish center Mehmet Okur, who made it to Las Vegas for his All-Star debut as a Western Conference replacement player.

Boozer wound up the season as the Jazz's leading scorer with a career-best average of 20.9 points per game and leading rebounder with an average of 11.7 boards per game. The Duke University product also finished with a team-leading 51 double-doubles, third-most in the NBA.

Okur, who averaged 17.6 points per game, set new franchise records for both 3-pointers made (129) and treys attempted (336). Though he cooled off late in the season, the sharp-shooting big man also hit four game-winning shots and scored a career-high 38 points (five more than his previous best) in a January game at Washington.

3. POINT ON THE RISE

The season was a breakout one for probable future All-Star Williams, the No. 3 overall selection in the 2005 NBA Draft.

Williams is still frustrated he was not permitted to be a full-time starter as a rookie. But the University of Illinois product was just that as an NBA sophomore — and made the most of his opportunity.

Williams finished the season ranked second in assists per game with an average of 9.3, trailing only two-time NBA MVP Steve Nash of the Phoenix Suns.

That more than doubles Williams' average as a rookie, 4.5, and is the biggest improvement among all NBA players.

Williams also recorded 30 double-doubles, 25 more than in his rookie season, and averaged 16.2 points.

Beyond the statistics, though, he used his sky-high confidence to run the Jazz offense like a veteran — and make many forget the debate that ensued when Utah drafted him instead of New Orleans' Chris Paul.

4. A FLUSTERED RUSSIAN

The Jazz's scoring leader in the 2003-04 scorer, Andrei Kirilenko was reduced to no more than a fourth scoring option behind Boozer, Okur and Williams this season.

In fact, his points-per-game average of 8.3 was almost half of what it was when it peaked at more than 16 — and ranked just sixth among Jazz leaders behind those three, Harpring's 11.6 and Derek Fisher's 10.1.