Utah Jazz rookies looking for niches in revamped team

SALT LAKE CITY — There is one battle Jeremy Evans has already won in his fledgling NBA career.

The second round NBA draft pick out of Western Kentucky beat the odds by surviving preseason cuts and claiming an opening day roster spot with the Utah Jazz. For Evans, simply being on the team marks a first step in his journey.

It is not his final destination.

"Just to know I'm still here, I guess, has given me a little confidence," Evans said. "I'm here, but I still need to work, and I want to stay on the team."

For Evans and other Jazz newcomers, the goal is to find a way to compose sweet music in Utah by making a positive impact immediately.

The pressure will be on some new players to make big contributions right away. Rookie forward Gordon Hayward is one under a particularly big microscope. Once the Jazz selected Hayward out of Butler with the ninth overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft, the level of expectations for the lanky forward was immediately ratcheted up.

Hayward considers himself a competitor and a winner. But he also wants to show he is a learner who will soak up whatever information from coaches and teammates will help him adapt to pro basketball faster.

"I just want to go out on the court and play hard every night," Hayward said. "I want to know that when the game is over I gave it my best shot. This year, especially, is going to give me a lot of opportunity for learning."

Recent history suggests that Evans could emerge as an important contributor off the bench to Utah's success.

The Jazz have shown a knack for turning undrafted free agents and former second round picks into solid role players. Bryon Russell, Shandon Anderson, Jarron Collins and Mo Williams are among players who went from late draft pick in Utah to build lengthy NBA careers.

Longtime Jazz coach Jerry Sloan is already high on the work ethic Evans possesses and the energy the paper-thin rookie brings to the court.

"That's how you get better, if you're willing to try to make yourself better through hard work — which he did," Sloan said. "We like him. We think he's got a chance to play in this league."

History does not greatly favor Hayward's quest to be an impact player. Over the past decade, only one player selected at his NBA draft position — Amare Stoudemire — has gone on to be an all-star and three of those players selected at ninth overall no longer play in the league.