Utah Jazz basketball: Centers of attention different for Jazz, Nuggets

SALT LAKE CITY — If there is any lesson to be learned from the Utah Jazz vs. Denver Nuggets series, it may be that starting centers are overrated.

Actually, no basketball coach in his right mind is going to agree with that statement. But — for whatever reason— both the Jazz and Nuggets have done just fine immediately after what seemed like a devastating injury to one of their top big guys.

First, Jazz center Mehmet Okur was lost for the season early in Game 1 of the series when his left Achilles ruptured. Utah inserted seldom-used big man Kyrylo Fesenko into the starting lineup and promptly won three consecutive games.

Then on Wednesday night in a win-or-the-season-is-over game, Nuggets center Nene was knocked out with a left knee sprain in the second quarter. Despite that fact, Denver rallied from a halftime deficit to post a 14-point victory. That closed the gap to 3-2 entering tonight's Game 6 at EnergySolutions Arena (8 p.m. tip-off).

Johan Petro — a fourth-year player from France who averaged 3.4 points in just 36 games during the regular season — is expected to start tonight for the Nuggets in their second straight elimination game. No one could have predicted before the playoffs began that Fesenko and Petro would be the respective starting centers in Game 6, but that's likely the case tonight.

"I hate to see anybody get hurt," said Jazz coach Jerry Sloan, "but we have to adjust to that."

Nene did not make the trip to Salt Lake City with his teammates and won't play tonight. The good news for him, however, is that tests on Thursday showed no ligament or meniscus damage to his sprained left knee. Should the Nuggets win, he could possibly be available for a Game 7 on Sunday.

"It's tough. It looks like some of their big men are hurting," said Jazz point guard Deron Williams. "People go out, other guys step up. You've seen it with (the Jazz). There is no reason why they can't do it as well."

Certainly the Nuggets did just fine without Nene in the second half on Wednesday — particularly in the first few minutes of the third quarter, when they erased a deficit and took the lead for good.

"They played almost better without Nene," said Jazz power forward Carlos Boozer. "All their big guys can shoot really well. K-Mart (Kenyon Martin) had his best game of the series. Birdman (Chris Andersen) came in and played really well, and so did Petro. So we've got to step up our big-man play and play better."

The Nuggets scored 36 points in the third quarter on Wednesday to begin to take control of the game.