Utah Jazz: Fuzzy future — Jazz have financial questions to answer

O'Connor said he couldn't comment on Boozer's contract situation, which won't be discussed until next summer. And like Jazz fans and management, Williams says he "can't predict" what the big three will choose to do. He only hopes they stick around.

"They know that I love it here," Williams said. "They know that this is where I want them to be with me, and hopefully those guys can win a championship with me."

One double-edged factor, though, is that Williams' impending salary jump — with his new multi-year extension that will kick in next summer — will contribute to the Jazz's financial quandary. He will make about $15 million in 2009-10 — up from $5,069,449 this season — and could tie up almost $70 million in salary space over four years.

Then there's Kirilenko's beefy contract, which will swallow up $15.1 million this year, $16.4 million the following season and nearly $18 million in 2010-11. Would the Jazz be willing — or able — to move him in order to clear space for Boozer or others?

• The contracts of Paul Millsap, Jarron Collins, Ronnie Price and Brevin Knight expire at the end of this season, which will leave the Jazz without a backup point guard (not counting, ahem, Kirilenko) and without their top two big bench players.

Millsap, it would seem, has the most to gain financially this season. Based on the power forward's production as Boozer's backup, his $797,581 contract for 2008-09 has to be considered one of the bargains of the league and is, no doubt, only a fraction of what he'll demand on the open market next year.

But will Millsap's all-around offensive game (particularly his mid-range shot) be fine-tuned enough to merit a starting spot in the Jazz lineup if Boozer goes elsewhere? Or can he be satisfied in a reserve role if the Jazz can afford to pay his increased salary?

Either way, keeping both Boozer and Millsap beyond this season will be an expensive luxury the Jazz might not allow themselves, even if they have the chance.

• Utah must decide is whether or not to take the team option on rookie deals in place for Brewer, its starting 2-guard, and third-year-to-be pros Almond and Fesenko.

Picking up Brewer for his fourth season at a discounted rate seems a no-brainer at this point, but will the Jazz see enough progress in Almond's defense and Fesenko's consistency and work ethic to continue investing in their futures?

• The Jazz will also have to add the salary of a 2009 first-round pick to the sum total, assuming they don't trade it away or pick a player who postpones his NBA career.

All of which might make this past offseason's business — picking up an option on Millsap, extending Williams for three to four more years, re-upping with Miles, drafting and signing Koufos, and trading Jason Hart for Knight — seem like a summer picnic.

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