Utah Jazz basketball: So many big men, so little time

The Utah Jazz have a problem that many teams in the NBA would love to have. So many talented big men, so little time.

Jazz head coach Ty Corbin has Derrick Favors and Enes Kanter whose stocks are on the rise and two veteran big men in Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap. Corbin will have to make a choice on the future and the present for the Jazz, nba.com said.

Favors was the No. 3 overall pick in the 2010 draft and has potential to be a defensive powerhouse. But he can't do that from the bench, with limited minutes. The Jazz took Kanter at No. 3 in the 2011 draft and are expecting big things from him as well.

Outside of big men, the Jazz are doing just fine. The organization made some deals to get Mo Williams and Randy Foye from the Clippers and Marvin Williams from the Hawks. All three are veterans and can shoot 3-pointers, two things the Jazz desperately needed last season.

The only real question mark for the Jazz is what will happen with Favors and Kanter. Favors is stronger and bigger now than at any time previously in his career and worked out against the U.S. Men's Senior National Team before they took off to London to win the gold medal, nba.com reported. Favors' play last season, especially in the playoffs against the Spurs, clearly shows that his time is now.

But even with all the praises Favors received from players, fans and coaches, it's difficult to make a case that he should start over Millsap, who has averaged 17 points and 8 boards a game since 2010.

Corbin has declined to decide on a definite starting lineup for the 2012-13 season.

"We have ideas," Corbin told nba.com. "Always subject to change, but we have an idea of what might work out. What gives us the best chance to win. Which combination is going to give us the best chance to win against what opponent. It may change at times, it may take a little while to figure it out."

The Jazz barely made the playoffs last season, claiming the eighth spot in the Western Conference at the end of a season that started with fairly low expectations for the team.

Pregame.com says one area the Jazz excelled at last season was points in the paint, and there's some pretty good evidence to back that up. The team ranked No. 2 in the entire NBA with 49.8 points per game in the paint. The only team better on the boards than Utah last season was the Chicago Bulls.

Jefferson is one of the post-up players in the game on offense, shooting 67.6 percent from the field at the rim. But he's not too great on the defensive end. Millsap does the same for the Jazz with good offense but lackluster defense. The Jazz were the 3rd worst in the league at defending at the rim, allowing opponents to shoot 65.8 percent shooting in the paint.

The expectations for the Jazz are higher this season than they were last season. But not too many people are expecting the Jazz to go all the way this year. Pregame.com says the Jazz's odds are 150-1 at winning the title and 50-1 at winning the Western Conference.

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