Okur vows to keep on playing
Sprained ankle has hobbled center, but streak must live on
The Jazz's starting center was held out of practice Tuesday, but said, "I feel good right now."
"You know I can't miss a game," the big Turk added when asked if he expects to play when the Jazz visit the Los Angeles Clippers tonight.
Okur, who sprained the ankle late in Monday's blowout win over Dallas, didn't miss an appearance during his first two seasons in Utah.
His games-played streak, one in which he takes great pride, now stands at 201.
That's good for sixth place among active players, a list that — after Atlanta's Joe Johnson fell out Sunday because of a strained calf — is now topped by San Antonio's Bruce Bowen at 376.
"It's not about that, though," Okur said. "My goal is to just stay healthy, and play all 82 games (this season)."
The Jazz can only hope Okur indeed is available tonight; he's led Utah in scoring in its last four meetings with the Clippers, including 27 in a 112-90 win earlier this season.
Jazz television broadcast analyst Ron Boone, incidentally, played 1,041 consecutive ABA and NBA games from 1968 through 1981.
"We're pleased, obviously, with our record," he said. "But sometimes I'm not pleased with their effort.
"I don't know about (keeping up) the pace," the Jazz coach added. "We haven't played a lot of teams that are playing well."
For the record, eight of Utah's 16 wins have come over opponents with current winning records.
QUICK QUIZ: The Jazz have used four different opening lineup combinations this season, but only one is undefeated. Which is it? Answer: Deron Williams, C.J. Miles, Ronnie Brewer, Carlos Boozer and Okur are 5-0.
Miles and Brewer, though, no longer start.
CAMPAIGN SPEECH: Williams, Boozer's campaign manager for an invite to this season's NBA All-Star Game, likes how his power forward bounced back from Friday's struggles vs. Minnesota's Kevin Garnett.
Boozer scored a game-high 31 points Monday and helped hold the Mavericks' Dirk Nowitzki to 26 — an effort akin to that against two-time NBA MVP Tim Duncan of San Antonio earlier this season.
"He played good against another All-Star again," Williams said. "I think Booz takes those matchups personally. He wants to come out and show that he's one of the best players in this league."
MILESTONE MANIA: Now that Sloan has coached his 1,000th NBA victory — doing it vs. Dallas — he can look forward to moving into fourth place on the league's all-time wins list. The Jazz coach needs 11 more victories to pass Larry Brown and settle in behind leader Lenny Wilkens, second-place Don Nelson and third-place Pat Riley.
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