Utah Jazz notebook: Brewer, Korver rotation has changed a little bit
But that changed a bit during the Jazz's four-game road trip last week, and — at least for now — there is no telling who might finish.
"It's kind of a gut thing," Jazz coach Jerry Sloan said. "I don't have anything in concrete."
In a loss at Chicago and a win at Milwaukee at the start of the trip, it was Brewer who closed. In Friday's victory at Boston, Korver finished. And Saturday in New Jersey, due partly to matchups, both were on the floor for the last several minutes of a two-point loss to the Nets.
Brewer's defensive presence, Sloan suggested, is a big reason he's been getting called on more and more lately.
"Teams go at us some defensively," the Jazz coach said, "and Ronnie's probably is a little bit bigger and little bit stronger, and seems to be able to guard people a little bit better under those conditions at times."
Sloan said he also has confidence in Brewer as a late-game free-throw shooter, something for which Korver is well-known.
In fact, he suggested during the week that he's cognizant of the need to more regularly integrate the sharpshooter as a viable option within the Jazz offense.
"If somebody else is shooting the basketball, he doesn't get, maybe, an opportunity," Sloan said, "and it's hard for him to stay in a rhythm playing that way
"We need to help him more to get him some shots," he added, "and probably have failed some in that."
The Jazz coach also suggested that a second-year player like Brewer should not discouraged when he's not called upon: "Sometimes we have a tendency to think they've been in the league 10 years," Sloan said, "but they have to work through a lot of stuff to find out who they are — in tough situations."
DEFENSIVE SNYDER: In 2004, the Jazz used first-round draft choices on Kris Humphries (No. 14 overall) and Kirk Snyder (No. 16).
Neither lasted more than two seasons in Utah.
But Humphries seems to have established himself as a reserve-role player in Toronto, which visits the Jazz tonight.
Snyder, meanwhile, is trying to salvage his NBA career in Minnesota, which acquired him last month from Houston.
According to last Friday's St. Paul Pioneer Press, "Defense has defined Snyder's brief tenure in Minnesota, highlighted by the swingman's shutdown performance against (Kevin) Durant in the (Timberwolves' March 2) overtime loss to (Seattle)."
Recent comments
WOW!! Your points above make absolutely no sense.
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re: Jazzsmack | March 18, 2008 at 10:21 a.m.
How about none of the above is true.
The problem is the...
Jazzsmack | March 17, 2008 at 6:37 p.m.
Basketball is a team sport and he has many assistant coaches that...
Anonymous | March 17, 2008 at 5:42 p.m.
