Off-season update
It has to be a tough month for Jazz fans, who are going to have to wait to get the ball rolling on the off-season. The NBA draft isn't until June 25 and the opt-out deadline for Carlos Boozer, Mehmet Okur and Kyle Korver isn't until June 30.
In the meantime, here are some morsels for those starved for Jazz news, starting with draft preparations. The Jazz own the No. 20 pick in the first round and will start bringing in prospects after the Chicago pre-draft combine May 27-31.
Portland had a group of six second-round and free-agent prospects in for a workout Monday, although general manager Kevin Pritchard, coach Nate McMillan and assistant general manager Tom Penn all were away on vacation.
The Jazz plan to start workouts June 3 or 4, with most first-round prospects wanting to wait until after the Chicago combine to stay auditioning for individual teams.
As unpredictable as last year's draft was - - with Kosta Koufos sliding all the way from the late-lottery to the Jazz with the No. 23 pick - - this year's draft might be even more so.
There's already been several projected lottery picks - - including North Carolina's Ed Davis, Georgetown's Greg Monroe and Kansas' Cole Aldrich - - who opted not to declare for the draft in the first place.
According to ESPN.com's Chad Ford, 11 projected first-round picks declared for the draft without hiring an agent, reserving the right to return to college.
Already, we have seen Kentucky's Patrick Patterson and Mississippi State's Jarvis Varnado do just that in withdrawing from the draft without going through the Chicago combine or attending a single workout for a team.
As a result, a draft class lightly regarded beyond Oklahoma's Blake Griffin has gotten even thinner. Wake Forest point guard Jeff Teague is another possibility to follow Patterson and Varnado as a first-round pick headed back to college.
What you hear is that the difference between a player selected No. 10 and a player selected No. 40 won't be all that great. It's a muddled draft, to be sure, and it'll be interesting to see what players the Jazz opt to bring to Utah for workouts.
* * *
From what I'm hearing, you can put to rest any issues about discontent on the part of Andrei Kirilenko this summer.
Kirilenko is said to be happy to be in Utah, has settled into life in Salt Lake City with his wife and sons, and is looking forward to being back with the Jazz next season.
With the Jazz making decisions about the future of their entire roster, this is no small consideration when it comes to Kirilenko, who is owed $34.3 million the next two seasons. Don't expect any trade demands to a Russian blog this summer.
Kirilenko also voiced no displeasure with his role coming off the bench, although he felt the second unit was more effective earlier in the season, before Paul Millsap had to move to the starting lineup to replace an injured Boozer.
* * *
With the opt-out deadline not for another month-and-a-half, the Jazz aren't expecting to hear anything for a while. The economy only has added to the uncertainty for prospective free agents.
In Boozer's case, a good guide might be Corey Maggette, who didn't opt out of his contract with the L.A. Clippers until the June 30 deadline last year. Maggette and Boozer share the same agent in Rob Pelinka.
--Ross Siler
In the meantime, here are some morsels for those starved for Jazz news, starting with draft preparations. The Jazz own the No. 20 pick in the first round and will start bringing in prospects after the Chicago pre-draft combine May 27-31.
Portland had a group of six second-round and free-agent prospects in for a workout Monday, although general manager Kevin Pritchard, coach Nate McMillan and assistant general manager Tom Penn all were away on vacation.
The Jazz plan to start workouts June 3 or 4, with most first-round prospects wanting to wait until after the Chicago combine to stay auditioning for individual teams.
As unpredictable as last year's draft was - - with Kosta Koufos sliding all the way from the late-lottery to the Jazz with the No. 23 pick - - this year's draft might be even more so.
There's already been several projected lottery picks - - including North Carolina's Ed Davis, Georgetown's Greg Monroe and Kansas' Cole Aldrich - - who opted not to declare for the draft in the first place.
According to ESPN.com's Chad Ford, 11 projected first-round picks declared for the draft without hiring an agent, reserving the right to return to college.
Already, we have seen Kentucky's Patrick Patterson and Mississippi State's Jarvis Varnado do just that in withdrawing from the draft without going through the Chicago combine or attending a single workout for a team.
As a result, a draft class lightly regarded beyond Oklahoma's Blake Griffin has gotten even thinner. Wake Forest point guard Jeff Teague is another possibility to follow Patterson and Varnado as a first-round pick headed back to college.
What you hear is that the difference between a player selected No. 10 and a player selected No. 40 won't be all that great. It's a muddled draft, to be sure, and it'll be interesting to see what players the Jazz opt to bring to Utah for workouts.
* * *
From what I'm hearing, you can put to rest any issues about discontent on the part of Andrei Kirilenko this summer.
Kirilenko is said to be happy to be in Utah, has settled into life in Salt Lake City with his wife and sons, and is looking forward to being back with the Jazz next season.
With the Jazz making decisions about the future of their entire roster, this is no small consideration when it comes to Kirilenko, who is owed $34.3 million the next two seasons. Don't expect any trade demands to a Russian blog this summer.
Kirilenko also voiced no displeasure with his role coming off the bench, although he felt the second unit was more effective earlier in the season, before Paul Millsap had to move to the starting lineup to replace an injured Boozer.
* * *
With the opt-out deadline not for another month-and-a-half, the Jazz aren't expecting to hear anything for a while. The economy only has added to the uncertainty for prospective free agents.
In Boozer's case, a good guide might be Corey Maggette, who didn't opt out of his contract with the L.A. Clippers until the June 30 deadline last year. Maggette and Boozer share the same agent in Rob Pelinka.
--Ross Siler
2:47 PM
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