D-Will and the boys can’t write the great American novel… yet.

Before the Jazz can become an offensive juggernaut, they first need to learn to be boring. They don’t just need to "learn to walk before they can run", they need to learn to stand before they can walk! This is a squad that has a great fountain source for scoring that they will be able to draw from again and again… but first they need to dig the well. Had enough of the clichés? Let me give you just one more:
Watching the Jazz right now is like watching Ernest Hemingway whe he was first learning to read and write. Hemingway became one of the greatest American writers, but just like you and I, he had to learn the 26 letters of the alphabet first.

So before the Jazz ink a great line like “Courage is grace under pressure.”, they must first put their bright green crayon to a piece of recycled scratch paper to scribble the words:

“See Deron pass the ball. See Al score. Score Al. Score.”

Seems simple right? Well here it broken down.

See Deron pass.

D-will has been crowned “the greatest PG in the NBA” by a large group of talking heads. Good news on this one; he is. It may not appear so right now, but the man is learning to be a solo leader for the first time in his career. It takes actual energy to be a captain. It takes additional focus to be the leader. He is trying to develop not only his team as a team, but also individuals on his team. Jerry always said John was an extension of him on the court. That allowed John to put guys where he knew they should be just by giving them a quick look or by his own location where he brought the ball down. Deron is not there yet. I understand that they are different types of players, and that each bring/brought a different type of skill set. One thing remains the same: they are the exact type of PG that you want running the Jazz system.

The three things that will put the crayon to the paper for the D-will are:

1. When in doubt, drive to the cup.

While this team learns to “stand”, D-will needs to score. His cross over jumper and fast/hard slide to the rim early and often in games will suck in the D and allow our shooters to start getting more open shots(and hopefully start making them).

2. Easy passes.

Deron has to make simple passes. This doesn’t just benefit his teammates, but him as well. If Deron can get 3 to 5 easy passes off early, the talent around him is good enough that odds are at least one of those passes will turn into an assist. This allows for a confidence to make and receive more tricky passes off reads. Williams spoke about not being in a rythem... a rythem is hard to jump into. It has to be built piece by peice as the game goes on. Especially for a "new" team.

3. Continue to play with passion!

I feel like this is one of the lacking factors for Williams. He has so much talent, is so fun to watch, and is in a city that loves him… light it up! Get the crowd (at home) and teammates jacked up by communicating with them (Who doesn’t like a good ol’ raise the roof!), and play the part at away games… be the guy that silences the crowd. Make the big play… which isn’t always the big shot.

Score Al. Score.

The next Crayon out of the box to hit the paper is the new shiny BIG AL crayon.

He needs to score fast! Part of this will just come with time. But part of it will be taking what is up for grabs until the plays start coming to you. Not the other way around. This is what makes Milsap such a great player. He seems to get started by going after what is “up for grabs” (Milsap game high 13 rebounds vs the Suns). Milsap usually gets his production (especially early on) from broken plays & rebounds… this is something Al can learn from Milsap. If Al can pick up 2 boards and 1 or 2 put backs in the first 5 or 6 series HE WILL BE IN RYTHEM THE REST OF THE GAME. Really good bigs all have one thing in common: they do the really hard stuff early. It’s a simple thought; get busted up and smacked around early, and the rest of the game is easier and will come to you.

Al, get your Crayola out and take notes:

1. Go your hardest early and often. Get YOURSELF going and then let the game come to you. D-will will get you the ball if you’re ready for it. Take notes from Milsap, he is one of the best in the league at this.

2. Become an expert at passing. You have teammates that are ALWAYS ready for the ball. That is one thing the Jazz system CAN create; open guys (see all the role players who looked better than they really were during the Malone/Stockton years).

“It was the best of times; it was the worst of times.”

Right now, we are seeing some pretty terrible times. But take heart, Rome was not built in a day. This Jazz team will put out a very competitive team that CAN beat anyone. It will take time. It will take effort. It will take some more losses.

The good news right now is this: You don’t have to read any more clichés because this the end of this post and the Jazz can only go up from here.