Utah Jazz Notes

Deron Williams seemed a little subdued after the Jazz's shootaround on Thursday morning at EnergySolutions Arena.

I guess that's understandable, given Utah's 1-3 record.

Williams stopped on his way out of the locker room to answer reporters' questions, but he spoke quietly and was succinct.

Why are the Jazz struggling to finish games, especially Tuesday's 96-85 loss at Dallas?

"We're just losing in the fourth [quarter]," he said. "No excuse. As a team, we just didn't play well."

Is the problem a focus thing? An effort thing?

"It's a wanting-to-win thing," Williams said. "We've got to want to win and put together 48 minutes of basketball."

Is he getting tired of questions about the Jazz's inability to defend?

"It's a problem area," he said, "so people are going to ask about it."

Through four games, Williams averages 22.3 points, 8.8 assists and 4.5 rebounds. But he's playing 40.3 minutes a game -- over five minutes more than his career average. He's also shooting only 43.8 percent from the field.

All those numbers are probably a direct result of the Jazz having to depend too much on Williams because Carlos Boozer is struggling with this shot (35 percent) and injuries have sidelined Kyle Korver and C.J. Miles.

-- Steve Luhm