Utah Jazz: Williams bruised and banged up but still on court

MILWAUKEE — The Jazz practiced Monday in Chicago without starting point guard Deron Williams, who watched because of a bruised right calf.

Williams said a "knot" in his calf seems be moving down toward his Achilles tendon. He also has a bruise near his right knee.

"It seems like it gets worse every game," said Williams, who apparently sustained at least one of the injuries — even he isn't sure exactly what happened — in a Dec. 15 loss at Boston.

But Williams does plan to play when the Jazz visit Milwaukee tonight — the final stop on a five-game pre-Christmas excursion for the 17-12 team, which is 2-2 so far on the trip.

Williams already has missed 13 games with a badly sprained left ankle, which could adversely affect his hopes for a first-ever NBA All-Star Game appearance.

"If I have a big January, it could happen," he said Monday, before the Jazz worked out at Chicago's Moody Bible Institute. "If we as a team have a big January, that's the most important thing."

But, Williams added, "I didn't start the season healthy, so I'm not really worried about it. And, you know, after not making it the last two seasons, I'm even more not worried about it."

Williams, though, is still obviously frustrated with the season.

"I'd like to be a lot better than I am," he said. "That's how injuries go. You know, it takes time to get back in the swing of things. I feel I'm just now getting back. My ankle's feeling a lot better — and I'm dealing with other stuff.

"I thought I'd be back 100 percent by now," Williams said. "It just hasn't happened how I wanted it to."

Jazz coach Jerry Sloan actually is more upbeat.

"Deron hasn't been on top of his game, but I think he's certainly come around a lot more the last three or four games he's played," Sloan said. "I think you can all see a difference in his activity, his liveliness."

UPON FURTHER REVIEW: Sloan was adamant after Saturday's loss at Chicago that fatigue shouldn't have been a factor in his club's late-game collapse.

Monday, however, he conceded this: "Some of the things that happened ... indicated it looked like they might be a little bit tired."