Despite hard work, Miles still not playing

For three straight games when small forward Andrei Kirilenko recently was out with a stiff back, reserve swingman C.J. Miles started. Previously, Miles had toiled admirably as the Jazz's backup shooting guard behind Ronnie Brewer.

In fact, over the last few weeks — ever since Gordan Giricek lost a words war with coach Jerry Sloan during a December road game, and subsequently got traded — Miles had been enjoying arguably the best stretch of his three-season Jazz career, shooting 55.6 percent and averaging 10.5 points from Dec. 21 through Jan. 10.

No wonder Sloan felt compelled to talk to the 20-year-old after he was a DNP-CD — did not play/coach's decision — in Utah's win over Orlando last Saturday.

"I just told C.J. I appreciated that he's worked real hard," Sloan said when asked Monday about what's an obviously sore subject. "He's got to continue to work, and I've tried to get him in games as much as I can.

"I'd like to play everybody," the Jazz coach added. "But it's awfully difficult. And they get discouraged, and upset a little bit. But the most important thing is how you work in practice, and as long as he does that he'll be just fine."

Sloan didn't use Miles at all in the Jazz's 98-87 win Monday night over Milwaukee, either.

Yet he had nothing but good things to say about Miles on Monday morning.

"It's not a popularity contest," Sloan said.

"I love C.J.," he added. "He's worked real hard. I told him the last three or four weeks, he's worked harder than he's ever worked."

That Miles has lost his backup 2 spot is not a result of having done anything wrong.

It's instead a concession to the acquisition of Kyle Korver in a late-December trade with Philadelphia for Giricek and a future first-round draft choice.

"I've got five guys (Kirilenko, Brewer, Korver, Miles and veteran backup small forward Matt Harpring) I've got to try to play at the two positions (shooting guard and small forward)," Sloan said, "and that's very difficult to do.

"He (Miles) is a young guy," Sloan added, "and we have to make decisions (based) on what we think is the best for our team. And it may not be the best. But we make 'em, and go on down the road."

Sloan suggested he'd rather settle on a regular rotation than pick-and-choose.

"I've got to play somebody so they have some idea of when they're gonna get in the game," he said.