Utah Jazz likely to add player by Tuesday

SALT LAKE CITY — General manager Kevin O'Connor on Saturday said the Jazz "probably would wait" until Tuesday before adding a 13th player, a requisite move prompted by last month's trade of backup point guard Eric Maynor and forward Matt Harpring's expiring contract.

Waiting until Tuesday, the NBA's deadline for Utah to add a 13th, would allow the Jazz to sign a player to a 10-day contract.

But the Jazz aren't necessarily locked into using the 10-day option, O'Connor suggested.

Rather, a trade is possible.

"I don't want to paint it like we're definitely gonna do that (10-day), because we're talking to some teams about other players," O'Connor said before Utah's home game against Denver.

The Jazz haven't decided for sure if they'll add a youngster or a veteran, either.

"It's gonna depend on some of the calls that you continue to get," he said. "But right now I don't have a preference."

If they do bring in a youngster, it's unlikely he'd see extensive action right away.

Because they have only two real point guards now — starter Deron Williams and backup Ronnie Price — adding either a point or a combo guard remains most likely for the Jazz.

Available guards under consideration include Dontell Jefferson of the Utah Flash, ex-Flash point Kevin Kruger (who had been, but no longer is, playing in Italy) and former Jazz guard Keith McLeod of the D-League's Albuquerque Thunderbirds.

No consideration was made to bringing in a 13th player for Saturday's game even though Williams missed the Jazz's morning shootaround with what the team called "stomach flu."

"He'd be probably more confused than we are," Sloan said when asked about the possibility.

"That'd probably be the biggest thing ... unless it's been somebody that's played with us or somebody that's been here and gone through training camp, because we play kind of out of a system."

KORVER BACK: After skipping the Jazz's two-game trip to Minnesota and Oklahoma City last week to rehab his surgically repaired but still bothersome left knee, reserve shooting guard Kyle Korver dressed Saturday.

"It's real hard to rehab on road," Korver said. "You're limited to the hotel, and a little bit of court time before the game. So I stayed here and worked out with the physical therapist for the team for a couple hours every day ... and I feel a lot better."

Not necessarily totally healthy, though.

"If I feel like I can be out there to play I want to try to help. I feel a responsibility to do that," said Korver, who since returning from Oct. 28 surgery to remove a bone spur — and before Saturday — has played four games, missed two, played one and missed two.

"At the time same time, I don't want to do this all season," Korver added. "But I feel like I'm at a point now where I can start playing, hopefully, every game — I don't know how much — and maybe things will change. I don't know. But I'm gonna try."

Korver clearly remains flustered.

"I thought I was gonna be great by now," he said. "It just hasn't happened like that, for whatever reason. And it's been frustrating. But I just want to keep on trying to play."

UPON FURTHER REVIEW: After finally seeing a replay of the foul call on Paul Millsap that led to Oklahoma City's one-point win over Utah on Thursday, Sloan was no more pleased than he was when it happened.

"I just thought (Millsap) got fouled when he got the ball in his possession, and it's one of those things," Sloan said Saturday. "They didn't see it, and they called it the other way."

e-mail: tbuckley@desnews.com