2007-2008 NBA Season Preview: Utah Jazz

The Utah Jazz did what no one thought they would do entering the 2006-2007 NBA season: compete for a NBA championship. With the re-emergence of All-Star power forward Carlos Boozer, who missed the equivalent of an entire NBA regular season in the two previous years with the Jazz, things looked good. With Mehmet Okur's comfort with the Utah system and his improved conditioning, the Jazz looked better than good. And with the rise of point guard Deron Williams into the beginning of an elite player's career and the steadiness of former NBA champion Derek Fisher in the backcourt, things looked great.

While the Jazz eventually lost to the eventual NBA champion San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference Finals, the team still has some strong areas of positive reinforcement.

One is that the Jazz have improved the shooting guard position to some degree. While Fisher was let out of his contract, for consideration of treatment of his daughter dealing with cancer, Utah drafted sharpshooter Morris Almond from Rice University in the first round of the 2007 Draft. The Jazz also signed Ronnie Price away from the Sacramento Kings, whose acrobatics and solid play made him an occasional SportsCenter highlight. Utah also has the luxury of being able to use Ronnie Brewer, a lottery pick from the 2006 Draft, at shooting guard, as being 6'8" and with highly-developed passing skills seem to compliment Williams in the backcourt.

Outside of addressing the positions of need for the Jazz, the one true question is whether Andrei Kirilenko will be true to form for the upcoming season. A former All-Star and one of the league's most versatile players, Kirilenko's emotional breakdown in the 2007 Playoffs, due to inconsistent individual play and a feeling of misuse in coach Jerry Sloan's system, showed a fragility that not known and deeply affected his play. While piecing himself back together, Kirilenko must accept the fact that he will not be playing mismatches on the court with traditional power forwards like Boozer on the court. He must exploit opponents from the small forward and guard positions (which he can easily play).

Beyond those points of emphasis, look for Utah to make another run to a NBA title. Williams, Boozer and Okur are sure to replicate their All-Star years, and even counting Kirilenko as a potential 2008 All-Star isn't out of the question, if he can get with the program.

Counting the mix of young and old prospects with a clear sense of who's the general leading the team (Sloan), don't be surprised if the Jazz make beautiful, funky music all the way to the Finals.