Reader comments
Chemistry more vital than talent

Great article Mike!! I couldn't agree more. Lets get rid of Boozer and anyone else who is bringing this team down. We have much more talent then our record shows and I'm worried that if we don't make a serious move soon our man D-Will wont want to be here either.

There are numerous examples in team sports where a team is better off without a "star" that does not contribute to the team chemistry. When a player simply cares more about self that those playing with him he immediately takes away from the team rather than adding to it.

I think what Mike was trying to say is get rid of Boozer and AK. They play for themselves and not the team. They may say all the right things to the press but they could care-a-less about their teammates or the winning. Memo he is a ? mark. Not too sure what goes on in his head.

excellent article - thanks. greg in washington

. . . of course, not trying to specify who "CB" and "AK" might be, and strictly for discussion purposes only, the Jazz would be much better off without either Carlos Boozer and Andrei Kirilenko. But of course, that's only hypothetical.

Coach Slone is the best NBA coach EVER. He took the Jazz to the finals with no bench but the team did have good chemistry. The only reason the Jazz ever missed the playoffs was the rebuilding year and the only reason they haven't won it was a lack of team chemistry or no support for a young team. Phil Jackson on the other hand has never proved he could win without Jordan or Shaq and Kobe. Jordan made the team great and only Shaq and Kobe fighting could stop Shaq and Kobe in their prime. This Jazz team now has a lot of chemistry but I agree lets get rid of Boozer and give D-Will someone who can mesh with this team. Stoudemire? LeBron? I don't know how to get either of those players to come to Utah but its fun to think of the possibilities. The Grizzlies gave Gasol to the Lakers. Why couldn't the Cavs give LeBron to the Jazz?

KSL news had a little news on Boozer last night that said he's hinting towards leaving Utah. Not a HUGE suprise, but I'll be uneasy until I see him officially sign with another team.
The options for Boozer are:
1- Opt out and sign with the Detroit Pistons because they've got money to spend and have shown interest.
2- Sign and trade with the New Jersey Nets who work a deal with Toronto which means............. CHRIS BOSH IN UTAH!!!!

Obviously I'm praying for option #2!

LeBron in Utah??? NO THANKS! Why would we want a player that tries to do it all himself? Didn't you watch the Cavs-Magic series? How many times did you see Lebron at the top of the key waiting for the shot clock to wind down before he drove out of control into the lane only to have it stolen or miss the shot? Yea he scores a ton of points...but his teammates stand around the key waiting for him to do something. Pretty hard to get a rebound when he misses.

The article was about chemistry and Lebron would bring ZERO chemstry to the Jazz.

Go anywhere but Utah.

reminds me of that golden state game towards the end of the season. gs only had 7 players available, mostly rookies and undrafted, and scrapped their way to a victory. you need players who are willing to scrap, and value the team over themselves. for pf, i'd say, hand the starting job to millsap (who isn't going anywhere), trade up to get dejaun blair as his backup, let boozer go where he wants and get rid of ak.

Sloan doesn't exactly inspire team chemistry either, but I see no one calling for his head. He's the most grouchy, childish, perpetually perturbed coach in the NBA, I certainly wouldn't want him as a boss, it would be unpleasant to say the least.

Chemistry is all... Remember Argentina winning against the USA team

@ RE: Jenny

I realize the Lebron James in Utah is a laughable subject but you saying you wouldn't want Lebron on your team is more laughable.
His 34 pts 8 assists & 8 rebounds a game just wasn't getting it done was it. Bottom line was Lebron's team choked and they were scared to do anything so he had to take over. His coach isn't even a real coach! He just sits there and calls every play for James.
Mo Williams couldn't shoot, Illgauskus couldn't gaurd me, and where was the defense? The Cavs were outmatched but your complaint of Lebron doing it all himself is absurd!

The Jazz will be a very different team next year. Not so much in personnel changes, although I expect to see at least 4 players come and go. More likely 6.

The Jazz next year will be trying to come together with their new lineup and different first-off-the-bench guys. They won't contend next year for the title, but probably will make the playoffs and bomb out in the first or second round.

UNLESS, Bosh ends up here. That could make up for not having a real PF after Boozer leaves. Then, there's hope.

Can you imagine two shot blockers on the floor at the same time (maybe most of the time), for the Jazz? Bosh, AK, Koufos, and Fez can all block shots. It'd be nice if Koufos comes through next year the way Brewer did in his second year.

Boozer leaving can't happen fast enough. It will free up much needed money for the others. I can't believe Boozer took all that money from the Jazz. He should have returned at least half of it back to LHM. I will drive him to the airport if needed.

Also, you talk about CB not getting along with is teammates...Where does this come from? I know you admitted to not really following the Jazz, but do you remember who was their to publicly support AK after he broke down crying in the Rockets series 2 years ago. In a TNT interview he didn't mock AK for crying he just said "He's been going through a rough time, but we know how good he is" He later went to his wifes failing store to purchase some clothes and give them business.

CB is the man and he's a great competitor and great teammate. He's been unfortunate to have injuries early on in his career but you really want to get rid of the potential Williams Booze combination after 10 years of playing together? Millsap can hardly run the pick and roll...

Boozer is a great guy, but an incredibly selfish basketball player/businessman. I wish Boozer nothing but the best in life maybe not so much on the basketball court though. If we pass on a chance to trade Boozer for Bosh then the Jazz organization is as dumb as Memphis'

"If we pass on a chance to trade Boozer for Bosh then the Jazz organization is as dumb as Memphis." What makes you think that the Jazz organization is bright. From 1974 through 1980 the Jazz did not pick anyone the is memorable. Lately the Jazz picks have been less that memorable.

Solution, Greg, time to decide what you want from this team.

RE: Jenny. "Jerry Sloan the best coach ever?" I agree with you about Jackson. The coach from San Antonio might beg to differ. Sloan may be the best coach to never win a title, but far from being the best coach ever. You actually have to win a title before you can be mentioned with the greats. 20+ years, with two Finals appearences, no wins and 10 years since, is a pretty mediocre resume. He has to thank his lucky stars that he coaches for UTAH, because anywhere else he would have been fired long ago. Sometimes the dice roll funny. Switch Sloan and Jackson and we would be talking about Jackson having a mediocre resume.

Lately the Jazz have been making some of their best draft picks; D-Will, Brewer (you have to consider when he was drafted), Millsap, and Kofus. Though I was talking about getting rid of our cancer player (nothing against him as a person though) Boozer. Short of trading Deron we should do whatever it takes to get rid of Boozer and get Bosh. The Knicks pick will never be worth more than it is right now. Mike Di'Antoni (sp?) may not be a great coach but in the leastern conference he should be able to win about 35-40 games next year. The odds for getting #1 go down with every Knicks win next year. Besides who is so great that is coming out next year? Bosh is our best shot at a title.