Mark Heisler:
NBA

New Jazz faces, old Jazz issues for Lakers

Stockton and Malone have been replaced by Williams and Boozer, but this much hasn't changed: Utah, and Sloan, still figure to be thorns in Lakers' side.
Mark Heisler, NBA
May 4, 2008
Not all that Jazz again. . . .

There was a time, before Karl Malone finished his career here as the world's most physical teddy bear, when the mere words "Utah Jazz" inspired fear and loathing among Lakers fans.

 
It was the dawn of the Shaquille O'Neal-Kobe Bryant era, before they even started feuding (or winning anything), when the talented young Lakers seemed to bump into the venerable old Jazz annually.

In 1997, Utah stunned the Lakers, 4-1, in a series best remembered for Bryant's four airballs in Game 5.

Of course, with that experience under their belts, the Lakers were sure they would handle the old guys in the next season's West finals.

The Lakers were favored after pulverizing Seattle, after which SuperSonics Coach George Karl (probably just a coincidence) announced, "We might have awakened a great team."

Remembering Utah center Greg Foster's throat-slashing gestures the spring before, the Lakers' Rick Fox announced, "I hold grudges for a long time."

Lakers coach Del Harris said the physical Jazz style wasn't "good for the credibility of the game."

Whatever that style was, it was good enough to sweep the Lakers, 4-0, this time.

Lakers guard Nick Van Exel argued with Harris on the court in Game 3 but saw enough of the game to compare it to "project guys" playing "a bunch of guys who set the pick-and-rolls. . . . .

"Maybe it's the age," Van Exel said. "We feel if we go out there and just lace up the shoes and run around and do the dunks and do all the little things that we can win.

"But it's not like that."

Unfortunately, the day before Game 4, Van Exile, er, Exel yelled "Cancun!" instead of "Lakers!" as they broke the huddle in practice, angered O'Neal and wound up in Denver.

So there's good news in case the Lakers want to avenge Van Exel and Fox is still holding that grudge:

The Jazz is back!

This is an upset in itself. With its small market and tight budget, the Jazz got back to the conference finals last spring, just four years after Malone and John Stockton left.

Of course, there could never be another Old School team like their old one -- could there?

This Jazz team actually resembles those teams, just with younger players, more offense (No. 5) and less defense (No. 13).

Carlos Boozer, 26, and Deron Williams, 23, are not Malone and Stockton (or won't be until they pass 36,000 points and 15,000 assists) but they're good and they still run pick-and-rolls from the time they get off the bus.

Now as then, the coach is Jerry Sloan, in his 20th season (while Phil Jackson, Pat Riley and Larry Brown worked for 11 NBA teams and one in the NCAA), still playing his credibility-threatening, manly man-to-man defense.





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