RealGM Basketball

Utah Jazz Wiretap

Collins frustrates Bulls center

Brad Miller had more technical fouls than points Wednesday night, a sure sign Jarron Collins was doing his job.

Miller came into the game averaging 12.6 points per game but the Chicago Bulls center took just four shots, missed them all and went scoreless in 22 minutes.

For much of the night he appeared more concerned with getting at Collins than getting to the basket, at one point shoving Jazz forward Bryon Russell in frustration to draw a technical foul.

""I can tell when a guy gets frustrated because he starts throwing elbows and cheap shots," Collins said. ""You just keep playing. That"s when it"s fun."

When Collins, a 6-foot-11, 255 pound rookie center, sees the frustration simmering in an opponent, he knows to keep applying the pressure.

""He"s more worried about me than doing his job," Collins said. ""That"s what I try to do defensively."

Four days earlier, Sacramento All-Star Chris Webber went 4-for-16 from the field, getting so frustrated at one point he threw an elbow into Collins" chin, drawing a flagrant foul - and later earning a one-game suspension from the NBA.

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Jazz take fight out of Bulls

There was plenty of thievery at the Delta Center Wednesday night - along with yet another Karl Malone milestone - but there was nothing that reminded folks of the Jazz-Bulls rivalry in its heyday. Instead of Michael Jordan in No. 23 leading the way for Chicago, there was Eddie Robinson in No. 32 leading them with 18 points.

Instead of posturing for an NBA Finals rematch, the two teams were struggling simply to find their way.

Instead of intensity, there was apathy.

""It looked like we were just trying to get it over with," Jazz coach Jerry Sloan said of his team"s 90-78 victory over Chicago, the worst team in the league.

The game featured 30 steals but many of those came from sloppy offense rather than great defense.

""When you"re not concentrating on playing basketball and looking to get the game over, that"s what you get from both teams," Sloan said, noting Chicago had 22 turnovers and the Jazz had 20.

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NBA Suspends Webber For Elbowing Collins

The NBA suspended Sacramento All-Star forward Chris Webber for one game and fined him $7,500 for deliberately throwing an elbow at the head of Jazz rookie Jarron Collins during the Kings' 114-90 win over Utah on Saturday at the Delta Center. Webber also will lose about $155,000 of his $12.75 million salary because of the suspension, which will prevent him from playing tonight against Seattle. With 9:58 left in the third quarter, Webber was called for a flagrant foul after running down the floor and -- away from the ball -- hitting a surprised-looking Collins in the face. "The league makes those decisions," said Kevin O'Connor, the Jazz's vice president of basketball operations. "They review every flagrant foul and, just like last year, when Karl [Malone] backhanded Christian Laettner, they felt it was intentional and a blow to the head. . . . Based on that, they made the decision to suspend" Webber.

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Jazz Jan 2002 Archive