This is what basketball is about,go out and play,and hope for the best. Just look at the Boston-Atlanta series.Boozer needs to step it up and be the leader that he can be,and play defense.It is time to play with the big boys,leave your heart and soul in the court and go after the tile.

Considering the Lakers have the same amount of time to gameplan and prepare for the game as the Jazz do. The question should be: Did the lakers have too much time off and will the Jazz have enough energy after battling with Houston for 6 games?

go jazz go! we just beat a team that had pretty much the same success during the regular season and we have the best fans in the NBA. we just have to make sure LA is the team that is scared in this series!

I get sick of reporters who constantly bring up the negative. Buckley just as easily could have written an article from a positive point of view, but then he could have risked hurting his reputation, which is all that most journalists really care about, by appearing to be a homer. Still, it would be nice to read things from a positive point of view. This article reminds me of gloomy and pessimistic Gordon Monson from the Tribune, who will never depart from what the mainstream sports reporters think.

How about these positives: Charles Barkley favors the Jazz to win it all because the Jazz have some great players and an amazingly deep bench. The Jazz have been remarkably successful at stopping teams that rely primarily on one player for the bulk of their scoring and assists. The Jazz have the best record of any Western team in terms of road wins over opponents who made the playoffs and, thus, could regain home court advantage with a single win at the Forum. The Jazz match up well with the Lakers because they are deep at shooting guard and, hence, can throw a variety of defenders at Kobe, etc.

Game 1 will be close. They should play the Lakers the same way defensively as they did the rockets (with a little more hustle) and work Boozer in the post. I think this can be a realy good series for him. The jazz have to really box out defensively or they will get destroyed on the Offensive boards. On the offensive end they really need to crash the boards. The shooters need to be making shots, as well as good decisions. MAKE FREE THROWS, because if they go to the whole they will get fouled.

Who cares how much time the Jazz had to prepare for the Lakers? The better question is will they rise to the occasion and show what they can do against a superior team? And by the way, Mr. Buckley....it's Pau (not Paul) Gasoal. Clearly Carlos Boozer, Mehmet Okur, and Deron Williams need to remain or get healthy. The bigger worry is the Jazz bench players. Matt Harpring, Paul Millsap, et al need to be sharp as well. Ron Brewer and Andre Kirilenko are also vital. The main issue is just as I suggested in my previous message board items....continue to push the ball, get to the basket, and get the Lakers front line into foul trouble; low turnovers, by passing crisply, and getting into the passing lanes on the defensive end.

I do think the Jazz can get into the heads of the Lakers by playing it smart.

Go Jazz....you can do it.

The only question with the Jazz this whole season has been which Jazz team will show up? They are the most schizophrenic team in the NBA -- one night world beaters, the next night patsies.

This is the playoffs, just pack your bags and go after them like regular season back to backs. Effort is what is needed not sympathy. Man-Up Jazz, you'll get a rest after this afternoons game for three days, just like this past series there is plenty of rest time and you guys are all young and should have plenty of energy. I'm sick of excuses, just walk the walk. Good luck.

I agree with schizophrenic...The Jazz have shown this season that they have the talent and desire to beat any team in the league. They also showed that they could get sucked into an overconfident mode and got smacked by some of the league's worst teams. After two games of the Houston series, the media was calling the series over. The Jazz appeared to buy into that and lost game 3 with a lame effort. They should just ignore what is being said and keep hungry. They are pretty tough when they are out to prove a point. I like them being under the wire. It's just a matter of whether they can get themselves ready to play consistently at a high level. I know they can, but will they?

It's Pau Gasol, not Pau Gasoal!

And "are they ready for us" do you honestly think the Lakers have been sitting on their thumbs and not preparing for the Jazz/Rockets 'til Friday night? Come on get real!

Go Jazz! I agree, which team is going to be out there on the floor? 2 teams I feared coming into the playoffs: Lakers and Spurs.

Your quoting Charles Barkley a guy who has never won a championship. He says the Jazz will win it all?. I along with every other Laker fan are just waiting for Jazz fans to start complaining about the refs. That usually comes out the minute they realize they have no chance to win. Act like winners and you might win something. Stop with the church basketball mentality.

Sorry Jazz fans, but the Lakers win this one four games to only one for the Jazz.

Don't you understand that, at this level of the playoffs, the officiating is what decides games? The NBA is more interested in selling jerseys, posters and TV time than it is in honest competition. The Jazz would have to be 50% better than the team from the large market with one of the NBA's favorite poster-boys just to have a chance to win (and if we could get into the Eastern Conference we could do it). The real game story, the one you won't read or hear, is what Dick Bavetta and his boys decide to do. As long as most calls in the highly-promoted, televised playoffs are made on the basis of who was involved, instead of what really happened, the Jazz are relegated to to status of spunky, respectable, competitive losers.

Whether the Jazz have a chance to win it all (says Barkley) depends on how much the refs protect the other teams' superstars and how much they dis D-Will, like they did in most of the games against Houston.

I was amazed how many times he got knocked down without a call being made and how many times defenders of McGrady got called for just being near him. But that's been the way in the NBA.

Give D-Will another few years (and maybe a lucky NBA ring this or next) and he'll begin to get some of the refs' respect. But not until then. The Utah market has too many negatives (small, religious bias, etc.) for it to come around any sooner for him.

Luckily, D-Will thrives when being dissed. Hopefully that'll keep him motivated enough against the Lakers to help the Jazz win the series. Let's just hope Kobe doesn't get too many ghost fouls in his favor.

Ouch!

I, along with every Jazz fan, can't wait until the Laker fans start complaining about "injuries" once things start getting rough for them. Or how it's unfair people "boo our players" whenever they touch the ball (so sad). Only in LA can a player go from criminal to MVP in such a short time.

Pau Gasoal, Pau Gasol, Paul Gasol. What's the dif if he's on the hated Lakers?

GET UR BROOMS OUT, LAKERS ARE GONNA SWEEP THE JAZZ

Quit bringing up the "conspiracy" about how the NBA wants the Lakers to win because they're in a "bigger" market that is so old. You mean to tell me the Jazz never made it to the Finals? San Antonio is considered a small market and they've been champions. Quit crying about "conspiracy"! You either have the team or you dont. The better team will win regardless!

Am I missing something? The Lakers have no bench..
I will take Millsap, Harpring and Korver anyday over
Vukovic (whatever) Farmar and Walton...Come on, we
have a more talented team...Odom and Gasol are softies...they make Boozer look like Grizzly Adams,
a rough tough hombre...

I am looking forward to a great series. I come here to get Utah perspective and find the same fans you find all over the net. Already complaining, the Lakers fans complain about ref. D.B. also. You folks make up your excuses before the games even start. You right to boo has always been the mainstay of the low life trailer trash. I don't think that the real fans that have all the facts and know what Fisher and his wife have gone through, will boo. Take a real look at those that are doing the booing. Would you take them home to meet your mom?

Are the Jazz prepared for the Lakers? Not unless the great Mark Eaton suits up.

I sure hope Jerry's had time this morning to read your coaching comments on how to beat the Lakers....now, if he can just get the rest of the team to read them and go to the "whole"!!

What I want to know is if the Lakers win it all, will the Memphis front office get playoff shares and a ring from them for handing the Lakers Gasol for basically nothing?

Amazing how you all look for excuses even before the game starts. I like your confidence in your team. The key to winning in the playoffs is defense. Not hoping the refs make the call. We all have our bias when it comes to our favorite team. So, we ought to just shut up about it. Throw that ball up and get this GAME started. Then, maybe luck (the second key factor) will be on our side and the shots drop. Go Jazz!

To conspiracy is old you have to take this into consideration. Consider that this (The NBA) is a business and David Stern’s job is to make a profit so hence who do you think he is going to side with small market utah or BIG MARKET L.A.(no brainer) and by the way yes the Jazz did get to the finals but obviously Jordan was getting the benefit of the call. Remember game 6 1998.

wow. u jazz fans are bitter

wow. watch laker become bitter when jazz win this series.

Laker fan here; not that this myth is unique to the writer of this article, but if people look at his stats over the last four years in particular-since Shaq left-his assist numbers have not increased dramatically. Kobe has always been unselfish. It's just now he has better help than Chris Mihm and Smush Parker (no disrespect to Chris) and a late edition Aaron McKie. Jazz will be competitive, and if the Lakers don't rotate better than they did in this game, they'll win the series. But as long as Jazz compete like this, the series will be competitive.

Not bitter let’s just say that we just want equality when it comes to the officiating.

Jazz fans are sad?.....shoot, minorities are sad. I imagine if you went and looked at the posts in the LA news papers the Lakers fans would complain like the Jazz fans here and some idiot Jazz fan would say the Lakers fans are bitter about something. Probably how the Jazz swept the Lakers with Kobe and Shaq severel years ago. It's basketball people. If you didn't enjoy the game today then your not a basketball fan. Jazz win or lose (I hope win), I hope everygame is as enjoyable as game 1 was.

Love the sour grapes...the true mark of the truly desperate. Enjoy the off season as Laker roadkill.

Don't you mean that the team with the bigger stars will win? When the Jazz went to the finals it was 15 or so years into 2 hall of fame careers. When San Antonio won it's first Championship it was at the end of David Robinson's career. To go to the finals in the NBA you have to either 1) Be on a Big Market team or 2) Have a long successful Hall of Fame type career. Why? Because everyone know that the refs give the calls to the stars of the NBA. I've seen plenty of NBA games that have been decided by the officiating - and usually it is the "Big Market" teams that benifit from it because they have a bigger fan base and their "Star Status" has been awarded quicker. It's almost like the NBA has a leveling system depending on your jersey sales as to how the refs treat you.