It's been an interesting 24 hours or so. KOC has gone from being the biggest ****** in the world in some fan's eyes to a genius in others eyes.
I'm definately in the stoked to have Jefferson, however, I have to say I was never in panic mode this summer. I think if you looked at Boozer, KK and Matthews you had to realize we were destined to lose them and that's a good thing.
Boozer: Let me just say it feels so good to finally take my "Jacket" off. Boozer is a certifiable wuss. In his years as a Jazzman he only played in 70% of his games. I think the most frustrating thing about Booze was his inablity to play through pain. Maybe we are spoiled from having Stockton and Malone who played through anything but at the same time, Boozer couldn't play through a paper cut. Compound that with his inability to play tough defense and the fact that he is undersized and has difficulty playing against bigger, longer forwards and centers. It has simply become more than apparent that he wasn't the guy that was going to lead the Jazz to a championship. Once you know that he isn't the guy, there is no reason to continue the futility.
KK: I really like KK's ability to hit clutch free throws and when he heats up it's fun to watch him bomb 3's. That being said, the Jazz now have a need to have either a stud 2 or 3 that can create their own shot and compete agaisnt the Kobes and D-Wade's of the world. That kind of a player is going to be expensive. The last thing you need is KK sucking up 4 or 5 million dollars a year when you have that kind of a glaring need.
Matthews: I think Wesley Matthew's story is one of the coolest stories in the past 5 years in the NBA. I'm really happy for him and I think he could be a solid piece on a championship team. The bottom line with him in my opinion is that he is worth about 3-4 million per year. Portland is overpaying him. The Jazz are in luxury tax hell because of AK's contract. If AK was carrying his weight we wouldn't have a problem losing Wesley. Of the 3 guys who are leaving, Wes is the one that I think we will miss. You can blame the Jazz for signing AK to the max contract or for not trading him for Marion who would have been off the books by now. However, let me state the Matthews is not the missing link for us in getting to a championship. We need to add an O.J. Mayo/Danny Granger type of a player at the 2 or 3.
The bottom line is the front office has put the Jazz in a position where we are an exceptional shooting guard or small forward away from competiting for a championship. We have some assets (Ak's expiring contract, some other trade exceptions) that can get us that player.
I'm definately in the stoked to have Jefferson, however, I have to say I was never in panic mode this summer. I think if you looked at Boozer, KK and Matthews you had to realize we were destined to lose them and that's a good thing.
Boozer: Let me just say it feels so good to finally take my "Jacket" off. Boozer is a certifiable wuss. In his years as a Jazzman he only played in 70% of his games. I think the most frustrating thing about Booze was his inablity to play through pain. Maybe we are spoiled from having Stockton and Malone who played through anything but at the same time, Boozer couldn't play through a paper cut. Compound that with his inability to play tough defense and the fact that he is undersized and has difficulty playing against bigger, longer forwards and centers. It has simply become more than apparent that he wasn't the guy that was going to lead the Jazz to a championship. Once you know that he isn't the guy, there is no reason to continue the futility.
KK: I really like KK's ability to hit clutch free throws and when he heats up it's fun to watch him bomb 3's. That being said, the Jazz now have a need to have either a stud 2 or 3 that can create their own shot and compete agaisnt the Kobes and D-Wade's of the world. That kind of a player is going to be expensive. The last thing you need is KK sucking up 4 or 5 million dollars a year when you have that kind of a glaring need.
Matthews: I think Wesley Matthew's story is one of the coolest stories in the past 5 years in the NBA. I'm really happy for him and I think he could be a solid piece on a championship team. The bottom line with him in my opinion is that he is worth about 3-4 million per year. Portland is overpaying him. The Jazz are in luxury tax hell because of AK's contract. If AK was carrying his weight we wouldn't have a problem losing Wesley. Of the 3 guys who are leaving, Wes is the one that I think we will miss. You can blame the Jazz for signing AK to the max contract or for not trading him for Marion who would have been off the books by now. However, let me state the Matthews is not the missing link for us in getting to a championship. We need to add an O.J. Mayo/Danny Granger type of a player at the 2 or 3.
The bottom line is the front office has put the Jazz in a position where we are an exceptional shooting guard or small forward away from competiting for a championship. We have some assets (Ak's expiring contract, some other trade exceptions) that can get us that player.
