How Many Licks…

Posted by Trevor Fuchs on September 18, 2009

…does it take until you get to the center of an NBA championship ring?  41,236.  Which….means absolutely nothing, but I like obscure questions referencing candy commercials from my youth.

The better (and more logical) question is: Are the Jazz, as currently constructed, a championship caliber team?  The argument of what components make up a title contender is always in debate, but there are several things that these teams have in common:

1. All championship teams have had one or more All-Star caliber player(s).  The last four Lakers championship teams have had two All-Stars each season (Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal/Pau Gasol). 2. The starters are always solid (especially in clutch moments), and the bench is always deep.  It is impossible to forget the clutch 3-pointers that Michael Jordan could pull out of thin air as Toni Kukoc, Steve Kerr, Luc Longley, and Ron Harper provided the hustle off the bench for the Bulls in 96-98.  3. A championship team plays defense.  Every championship team, since the Washington Bullets won the title in 1978, has had at least one player on the All-Defensive team in the year of, or the year prior to their NBA Finals run.  Dwayne Wade made the All-Defensive Second Team for his first time in the season prior to Miami’s run in 2006. 4. The team is always rounded out with a great coach who knows how to utilize his players and win games.  There is no better example here than Phil Jackson, owning 10 of the last 19 championship rings.  5. Luck. I am far from a statistical expert and I am also far from superstitious, but in between, I have to say there is a fair amount of luck involved.  Some teams get to face the right opponents at the right times, in the right arena.

So do the Jazz have what it takes to experience the confetti and champagne shower in 09-10?  Obviously, there are many other things that factor into a championship run.  Pure desire to win, “mental toughness”, and experience are all involved, to name a few.  For argument’s sake, we will just focus on the previously mentioned five categories:

All-Star Players

-D-Will’s got the skills that pay the bills and supply the thrills.  With the top 4 point guards in the league all falling in the Western Conference, it is hard to say if Deron will make the team this season or not, but it goes without saying that he is All-Star caliber.  Most “experts” rank Williams at the #3-4 point guard in the league, behind Chris Paul, but we’ve all seen Deron pick CP3 apart repeatedly.

-Carlos Boozer, if kept unmoved, will be playing at a high level due to his contract status.  As a two-time All-Star already, we are likely to see him in Dallas this coming season.

-Both Andrei Kirilenko (2004) and Mehmet Okur (2007) are one time All-Stars.

Solid Starters and Deep Bench

-We know that the presumed starters of Deron Williams, Carlos Boozer, Mehmet Okur and even Ronnie Brewer are all solid offensively.  All four players were in the top 100 of PPG last season, where the Lakers had only three (Bryant, Gasol, and Bynum).

-Carlos Boozer, Mehmet Okur, and Paul Millsap were all in the top 50 in RPG last season, matching the Lakers three in the top 50.

-Ronnie Brewer was ranked 7^th in steals last season which was ahead of the Lakers’ Trevor Ariza at 9^th.

-With Ronnie Price, Kyle Korver, Andrei Kirelenko, Paul Millsap, and Kosta Koufos the Jazz have, in my opinion, one of the best benches in the league.

Defense

-Andrei Kirilenko has been named to the NBA All-Defensive Team 3 times (2004, 2005, 2006).

-The Jazz were ranked #1 in the league for steals per game in the 08-09 season. (.01 SPG higher than the Lakers.)

-The Jazz caused the second most turnovers in the league in the 08-09 season.

-Paul Millsap and Mehmet Okur were both in the top 50 for blocks per game and the top 25 for rebounds per game last season.

Coach

-Not many teams can say they are being coached by a Hall of Famer.  Jerry is fourth on the list of all-time most winning coaches and has recorded the most wins with any single team at 1137.

Luck

-This is where the Jazz have always stumbled.  It is time to pull out the lucky rabbit’s feet, four leaf clovers, lucky pennies, and stop changing our underwear.  Don’t walk under any ladders…run away when you see a black cat, and please….please don’t break any mirrors or open an umbrella indoors.

In conclusion, I think that with the right amount of luck and determination, the Jazz are definitely in a position to be title contenders in the upcoming season.  All of the so-called “experts” are short sighted and can’t look past the previous season’s outcome.  Remember that, before all of the injuries, the same “experts” had the Jazz picked as title contenders for the 08-09 season.  With less than two months until the season starts, my anticipation is overflowing and I can’t wait to see what the Jazz can do.

4 Comments

Joey Parker on September 18, 2009 said:

Trevor, what would you do for a Klondike Bar?

Great post! I think luck has a lot to do with it, especially concerning injuries. Most injuries that happen, besides the chronic ones like Bill Walton’s feet, are just freak accidents.

tman11 on September 18, 2009 said:

this is the first post i have agreed with all the way through nice job trevor. See trevor’s know what we are talking about haha. great job

Trevor on September 18, 2009 said:

@Joey – ….probably just go to the store and buy a box…they are pretty easy to get a hold of these days. I’ll save a few for ya.

@tman – thanks fellow Trevor.

The Sad Man on September 22, 2009 said:

I do agree with the points you make on this post. On paper the Jazz do have a very high caliber team. As we all know, last year could have, and should have gone much better. The obvious downfall for this team, to me, is they are mentally weak. Shocking for a team coached by Jerry Sloan, but ultimately true. I believe this to be the reason for their abysmal road record these last few seasons. If they can toughen up mentally and start winning on the road, I think they have a shot.

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