Utah Jazz: Power forward Paul Millsap's play gaining notice

From inside.

From outside.

From in-between-side.

"Offensively, we can go to him at times," Corbin said. "He's just continued to work to expand his game on both ends of the floor."

Whether they wanted to admit it or not, Millsap's improved defense hampered big-ticket guys like Blake Griffin and Kevin Love in recent games.

"He's a tremendous all-around player," Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin said. "He's a great team guy. He does a great job of handling his responsibilities. Defensively, he gets up in the guy. ... He takes something away from guys on the defensive end."

Corbin explained that Millsap is quick enough to defend the perimeter and strong enough to get back down and bang around in the post.

The doubt and dissing of Millsap's skills only fuels his fire as it's done since the three-time NCAA rebounding leader was given a chance to prove himself after being picked in the second round by the Jazz in 2006.

"He's always proven a lot of people wrong. His skill level's so high and he's always had an edge," Watson said. "Whether people see him coming or not, he definitely comes in with an unbelievable focus and an ability to do some incredible things throughout the flow of the game, especially in crunch time."

What Corbin loves most about Millsap is his lunch-pail attitude — the mentality that he has to get back to work because, well, he's only as good as his last game.

"He's not a huge talker, but when you throw the ball up and then blow the whistle, he's ready to go to work," Corbin said. "He just go out and do his work, spend his extra time on his shot."

If other people overlook Millsap, so be it.

The rate he's going, they certainly won't be able to for much longer.

Added Corbin: "He'll continue to work to make people believe in him."

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