‘At the Hart of the Matter’ (M. Majchrzak - NBAE/Getty Images)

How do you like that alliteration for a title eh? Pretty clever I think. OK, not really. But, gimmicky headline aside, I really do think that Jazz fans have been a little too ready to ship Jason Hart out of town already. True, the guy hasn’t played that well to date but I don’t think he’s cost us any games either. Even if he had played well, the Jazz would still be 5-2. The losses to LA and Houston were caused by other problems than our backup guard - more on those in a minute.

As for Hart, my hope that he will improve is based on a couple of observations. First, he has looked timid and unsure at the point but I blame that more on a lack of experience with the Jazz and their style than any inability on his part to play the game. He’s a 7 year vet. Second, he hasn’t been shooting well and has an ugly shot but I don’t really care about that. We don’t need him out there to score 10 points a game. If he can get to a point where he is maintaining a lead and not turning over the ball, I’ll be happy. I think he’ll get there in about 15 more games.

The bigger problem I see right now with the Jazz is not their problems at the backup point guard, but at interior defense. Heck - their defense all around blows right now. What’s worse about this problem is that I don’t see it getting any better with the current roster. My friends and I often commented late last season and during the summer that the Jazz should have traded Memo while he was at his peak value. Coming off an all-star season (likely to be his only one in the NBA) and averaging 17ppg and 7rpg he could have been moved for a better defensive center. Alas, that didn’t happen and I fear it never will. Which means the Jazz are going to struggle against good teams all season long because they can’t stop them from scoring. If only Jason Hart could grow a foot taller, maybe he could play center and I’d be happy.