Jazz Jan 2003 Archive

• Sloan says he's sorry

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 31, 2003

  Jerry Sloan apologized on Thursday for shoving referee Courtney Kirkland, and he apologized to the Jazz organization for embarrassing the franchise.

• Malone won't go even if he's asked

  Deseret News | Jan 30, 2003

  If the NBA has any plans to make amends for the exclusion of Karl Malone from next month's All-Star Game, it may as well forget about it.

• Utah Jazz: Interim win

  Deseret News | Jan 30, 2003

  As halftime speeches go, it's not going to rank up there with Knute Rockne's "Win one for the Gipper.

• League lands hard on Sloan

  Deseret News | Jan 30, 2003

  The NBA came down hard Wednesday on Jerry Sloan, suspending the Jazz coach seven games for an incident involving referee Courtney Kirkland during Utah's Tuesday-night win at Sacramento.

• Utah's Sloan Suspended Seven Games

  | Jan 30, 2003

  Utah Jazz head coach Jerry Sloan has been suspended for seven games for confronting and making physical contact with a game official and failing to leave the court in a timely manner following his ejection, it was announced Wednesday by Stu Jackson, NBA Senior Vice President Basketball Operations.

• Blazers hit bump on road

  Oregonian | Jan 30, 2003

  Plain and simple, the Trail Blazers ran out of gas Wednesday and as a result were run out of the Delta Center, 95-71 by the Utah Jazz.

• Utah's Sloan draws seven-game suspension

  Oregonian | Jan 30, 2003

  The NBA on Wednesday suspended Utah Jazz coach Jerry Sloan for seven games for shoving an official and failing to leave the court in a timely manner after his ejection from Tuesday's game in Sacramento.

• Scorebook: Players react to suspension

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 30, 2003

  Jazz players understandably weren't enamored with the penalty handed down on coach Jerry Sloan on Wednesday, a seven-game suspension for pushing a referee.

• Phil-in does fine

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 30, 2003

  As inspirational halftime pep talks go, fill-in coach Phil Johnson's speech Wednesday night will never reach legendary status.

• Sloan's Suspension Too Harsh

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 30, 2003

  Utah Jazz coach Jerry Sloan's case proceeded swiftly from crime to punishment Wednesday, but the Jazz are not certain there was a fair trial in between.

• Sloan Deserves Punishment

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 30, 2003

  Jerry Sloan has always seemed to be an ideal character for pulp fiction.

• Jazz Notes

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 30, 2003

  The Jazz are unbeaten this season when Jerry Sloan isn't in the building, but that doesn't mean the team didn't feel his presence during Wednesday's 95-71 victory over Portland.

• Jazz Eventually Rout Blazers

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 30, 2003

  With the Jazz trailing by 10 and actually playing much worse, assistant coach Phil Johnson must have given the halftime speech of his life.

• Suspension Central

  | Jan 30, 2003

  It was a busy day for the NBA head office yesterday with news filtering that the league had handed down suspensions totalling 11 games.

• Malone disappointed by league's All-Star snub

  Deseret News | Jan 29, 2003

  There was a time Karl Malone might not have minded an All-Star Game snub like the one he received Tuesday.

• Referee's Traits

  Deseret News | Jan 29, 2003

  By the time you read this, Jerry Sloan may be suspended.

• Sloan-less Jazz get win

  Deseret News | Jan 29, 2003

  Jerry Sloan exited quite early, ejected because of an altercation with a referee.

• Devastating night

  Sacramento Bee | Jan 29, 2003

  It's nights like these that remind observers -- or at least should remind them -- that opportunities such as having the world champions on the ropes, as the Kings did last June while playing the Los Angeles Lakers, should be grasped and squeezed.

• Snubbed Malone leads Jazz past Kings

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 29, 2003

  Karl Malone had 29 points, 10 rebounds and six assists just hours after being left off the All-Star team, and the Utah Jazz snapped a seven-game losing streak to Sacramento by beating the Kings 102-92 Tuesday night.

• Malone Content as 'Silent Warrior'

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 29, 2003

  Karl Malone reached into his locker, pulled out the paperback he's been reading, and pointed at the title.

• Malone Plays Like a Snubbed All-Star

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 29, 2003

  It was not so much who was present in Arco Arena that was notable in the Jazz's 102-92 walloping of the Kings on Wednesday night.

• Jazz slate gets tougher

  Deseret News | Jan 28, 2003

  In one of those odd quirks of NBA scheduling, it seems like you never have a get-well game when you need one.

• Meet Matt Harpring

  UtahJazz.com | Jan 28, 2003

  Matt Harpring joined the Jazz after spending last season with the Philidelphia 76ers where he enjoyed career highs in scoring, rebounding, and games played.

• Kings' focus likely is defense

  Sacramento Bee | Jan 28, 2003

  The Kings have the NBA's third-best record and the Western Conference's second-best mark (32-13).

• Jazz floundering in funk

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 28, 2003

  The Jazz are sputtering, and so are the Sacramento Kings.

• Hope to Return to Winning Ways

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 28, 2003

  After attending Karl Malone's Super Bowl party Sunday afternoon, the Jazz sat in front of the VCR on Monday morning at their Franklin-Covey practice facility.

• Is It a Losing Funk?

  Deseret News | Jan 27, 2003

  With a growing losing streak on their tail and no easy games under their nose, the Jazz are in the midst of a real dog-days sort of stretch.

• Jazz try to play catch-up, lose again

  Deseret News | Jan 26, 2003

  You'd think they would have learned their lesson last Wednesday night, when they fell behind early against the Los Angeles Clippers and never could come back.

• Jazz stumble vs. young Warriors

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 26, 2003

  Gilbert Arenas scored 27 points and the Golden State Warriors beat the Utah Jazz 108-95 Saturday night to win for the fifth time in six games.

• Kirilenkos' pop life

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 26, 2003

  When Andrei Kirilenko and his family return to Russia after the season, the Utah Jazz forward may not be the one who gets hounded for autographs.

• Absence of 2 Warriors Fuels Speculation

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 26, 2003

  The Jazz were innocent, if interested, bystanders as the Warriors dealt with some missing players.

• Warriors Run Wild Over Jazz

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 26, 2003

  Rivers are flowing uphill, the sun is setting in the east, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are in the Super Bowl.

• Duncan delivers again

  San Antonio Express-News | Jan 25, 2003

  Forget The Shot.

• Jazz blow big opportunity

  Deseret News | Jan 25, 2003

  Friday had all the makings of a streak-breaking kind of night.

• Jazz done in again

  Deseret News | Jan 25, 2003

  When you're a good team and you lose to another good team 11 straight times, you have to start wondering what they have on you.

• Scorebook: Duncan makes most of minutes

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 25, 2003

  If Tim Duncan has one flaw as a player, it's that he needs a breather once in a while.

• Duncan delivers despair

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 25, 2003

  The San Antonio Spurs were missing their Admiral on Friday night, but the Jazz still couldn't catch a break.

• Jazz Not Happy With 'T' That Aided Spurs

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 25, 2003

  When Greg Ostertag plays like that, the Jazz usually win.

• Duncan's winner gives Spurs 11th straight over Jazz

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 25, 2003

  So many things had to go wrong for the Jazz and right for the Spurs in the final minute Friday night in order for San Antonio to pull out a 91-90 stunner, it almost seemed scripted.

• Halfway home

  Deseret News | Jan 24, 2003

  A look at the Jazz's record at the halfway-home point going back to 1988-89, the first season they finished with 50-plus victories.

• Jazz midseason stats

  Deseret News | Jan 24, 2003

  A look a stats midway through the 2002-03 campaign.

• Jazz focus on defense and sticking to offense

  Deseret News | Jan 24, 2003

  After losing 10 straight games to the San Antonio Spurs, Jerry Sloan thinks he knows what he has gone wrong.

• Jazz mid-season: Honors to ponder

  Deseret News | Jan 24, 2003

  With their 2002-2003 season now halfway done, several members of the Jazz organization seem like bona fide candidates for postseason award consideration.

• The Jazz get 2nd wind

  Deseret News | Jan 24, 2003

  When it all began, the Jazz were going down.

• Robinson stays back in town

  San Antonio Express-News | Jan 24, 2003

  David Robinson did not accompany the Spurs to Utah on Thursday after experiencing tightness in his back.

• Jazz on pace for 50 wins

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 24, 2003

  Ten games into the season, coach Jerry Sloan may have been the only one around who believed not only that the Jazz could be a playoff team, but a team capable of knocking off anyone in the league.

• Midway, Jazz in Good Shape

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 24, 2003

  The season was only five days old, but it already seemed over for the Jazz.

• Brand shows his game in leading Clips by Jazz

  Deseret News | Jan 23, 2003

  For Jazz fans wondering why they paid big bucks to see their team coast for three quarters Wednesday against the Clippers, there may have been a bright side to the eventual Utah defeat.

• Will Andre join Andrei?

  Deseret News | Jan 23, 2003

  The future star of the Utah Jazz staged a nice demonstration Wednesday night at the Delta Center.

• Clippers stun Jazz

  Deseret News | Jan 23, 2003

  Last time, Mark Eaton started at center.

• Reading with Scott Padgett

  UtahJazz.com | Jan 23, 2003

  What happens if you give a pig a pancake? The children gathered at the Sandy Library can answer that question and many more after spending Friday afternoon, January 17, with Scott Padgett of the Utah Jazz.

• Scorebook: Jazz may not have an All-Star

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 23, 2003

  The Jazz reach the midpoint of the season with a 25-16 record, good enough for fourth place in the NBA"s Western Conference, and the league"s sixth-best record overall.

• Extra Point: Miller & Co. deliver surprise

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 23, 2003

  The assignment (should you choose to accept it) was to write something interesting, informative or insightful about Andre Miller, the former University of Utah basketball star.

• Jazz clipped by lowly L.A.

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 23, 2003

  A losing streak this long was bound to end at some point, but the Jazz might have been expected to put up more of a fight to keep it going.

• Jazz's Padgett Knows Hoops and Movies

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 23, 2003

  As much as he would enjoy it, the Jazz's Scott Padgett has never had a chance to attend the annual Sundance Film Festival -- what with a young son, a pregnant wife and a hectic pro basketball schedule to juggle.

• 14 Years Later, Clippers Repeat History

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 23, 2003

  Darrell Griffith's three-pointer bounced off the back of the rim just as the buzzer sounded, and the Jazz trudged off the Salt Palace floor, as dejected as the sellout crowd of 12,444.

• LA Ends Years of Misery with Win in Utah

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 23, 2003

  Leave it to Jerry Sloan to ignore 14 years of precedent, 31 games of evidence and a mountain of history -- recent and ancient -- of the parties involved.

• Harpring Puts Up All-Star Numbers for Jazz

  | Jan 22, 2003

  Most NBA players look forward to going home over the All-Star break, Matt Harpring among them.

• Jazz may have no All-Stars

  Deseret News | Jan 22, 2003

  With the Feb.

• Karl, John keep chugging along

  Deseret News | Jan 22, 2003

  Nearly halfway home in an NBA season that seems to run as long as a train with its engine in one state and its caboose a couple borders back, the Jazz have as much to savor these days as the hideaway hobo who just happens to hop into a vacant first-class cabin.

• Jazz can't look past Clippers

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 22, 2003

  The Jazz needed to survive a tough overtime fight to knock off the top team in the Eastern Conference on Monday, and on Friday looms a game with the San Antonio Spurs, a team that has beaten them 10 straight times.

• Stockton logs 40 minutes

  Deseret News | Jan 21, 2003

  Jazz coach Jerry Sloan normally is not one to tinker with his regular rotation.

• Kidd doesn't get the calls

  Deseret News | Jan 21, 2003

  More often than not, when a game ends on a last-second shot that could determine the outcome, there's going to be some controversy.

• Stockton and Malone carry Jazz to OT win

  Deseret News | Jan 21, 2003

  Calbert Cheaney has played only three of them in nine previous seasons.

• One-on-One with Curtis Borchardt

  UtahJazz.com | Jan 21, 2003

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• Nets' Salt Lake Pity

  New York Post | Jan 21, 2003

  There were plots and subplots everywhere: Kenyon Martin against Karl Malone, Jason Kidd against John Stockton, the Nets against the road.

• Jazz Journal: Jazz are way ahead of last year

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 21, 2003

  The Utah Jazz are overachieving.

• Scorebook: Massenburg makes hay in middle

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 21, 2003

  When Jarron Collins went down with a season-ending knee injury last month, the Jazz were lucky that Tony Massenburg was just sitting around the house in Maryland.

• Vintage Jazz win

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 21, 2003

  John Stockton's classic performance against the New Jersey Nets Monday night wasn't what Jazz fans have come to expect the past 19 seasons.

• Kidd Puts Up Big Numbers in Wild Game

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 21, 2003

  This thing was wild, entertaining, frustrating and filled with ups and downs.

• Malone, Stockton outshine Kidd as Jazz win in overtime

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 21, 2003

  Jason Kidd is a fantastic NBA player, quick, smart and talented, perhaps a Hall of Famer some day.

• Time to Repair Jarron Collins - Mailman vs Martin

  Deseret News | Jan 20, 2003

  Los Angeles Lakers orthopedist Dr.

• Kidd Kudos for Stockton

  New York Post | Jan 20, 2003

  Jason Kidd says tonight's Nets game will feature the best point guard in the NBA.

• Harpring credits Jazz for breakout season

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 20, 2003

  Matt Harpring's dramatic rise in production this season says more about his new teammates, the Jazz forward believes, than it says about him.

• Why No Early Jazz Tipoff on MLK Day?

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 20, 2003

  And now, here with today's news and commentary is the guy who was half right, which is an improvement, in suggesting the Utah basketball team should take Ripon College seriously .

• Jazz Have Found New Comfort Zone

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 20, 2003

  Rashard Lewis didn't like it.

• Visiting Nets to challenge Jazz home win streak

  Deseret News | Jan 20, 2003

  Before the beginning of the season, and again a couple of weeks ago, Jerry Sloan challenged the Jazz.

• Cavs' solid start has repeat ending

  Cleveland Plain Dealer | Jan 19, 2003

  The Cavaliers followed two of their most disappointing losses of the season with a yet another defeat last night in similar fashion -- they fell flat in the second half.

• NBA: 24—second clock

  Deseret News | Jan 19, 2003

  Chicago Tribune columnist Sam Smith recently wrote, "The talk in Utah is LaGrange native Jeff Hornacek will guide the new Jazz, perhaps as early as next season.

• Utah scares Sloan, wins

  Deseret News | Jan 19, 2003

  Despite his advancing years, Jerry Sloan seems like a guy who can handle the most-dizzying of roller coasters.

• Scorebook: Jazz spurts won't work vs. Nets

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 19, 2003

  The Jazz put together several nice stretches of basketball Saturday night and they won by 17 points, but there were plenty of stretches that also worried coach Jerry Sloan.

• Jazz cruise past Cavs

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 19, 2003

  Ricky Davis was a one-man team for two quarters Saturday night, so when the Jazz shut him down in the second half, they also shut down the Cleveland Cavaliers.

• Crotty's 10-Year Career Filled With What-Ifs

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 19, 2003

  "If" is one of the cruelest words in the NBA.

• Kirilenko Bounces Back After Sloan Tongue-Lashing

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 19, 2003

  Late in the first quarter, Andrei Kirilenko allowed his man to get open on an inbounds play and score an easy basket.

• What Player Has Potential to Boost Jazz?

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 19, 2003

  Our sports fantasy question of the day -- no, it has nothing to do with Anna Kournikova -- deals with a tantalizing issue, a dirty expletive, the dreaded P-word, that indirectly has vexed many a coach and general manager in the NBA: potential.

• Streaky Jazz keep Sloan in sweat

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 19, 2003

  Jazz basketball is getting to be like Utah weather -- if you don't like what you see right now, just wait a couple of minutes.

• MONROE: Harpring jazzes Utah

  FoxSports.com | Jan 18, 2003

  Let's play "NBA Jeopardy.

• Jackson walking fine freelance line

  Deseret News | Jan 18, 2003

  Seeing John Crotty in Denver the other night got Jazz coach Jerry Sloan to reminiscing.

• Little things pay dividends for Utah

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 18, 2003

  The rule changes last season legalizing the zone defense in the NBA didn't garner much support from the Jazz, one of the few teams voting against the switch.

• Precedent Set for Injured Borchardt

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 18, 2003

  Curtis Borchardt has discarded his crutches, which is a positive sign.

• Payton, Stockton still tough

  Deseret News | Jan 17, 2003

  It was a night to note Matt Harpring, whose 15 third-quarter points turned the game around.

• Bad start, good end for Jazz vs. Sonics

  Deseret News | Jan 17, 2003

  They seemed tired.

• John Stockton: The Interview

  UtahJazz.com | Jan 17, 2003

  It’s a matter of fact that John Stockton is one of the three best point guards of all-time (only Magic and Cousy compare in this discussion).

• Making His Case for Coach of the Year

  UtahJazz.com | Jan 17, 2003

  If the season ended today, who would deserve Coach of the Year? Need some clues? His team’s 2001 and 2002 first-round draft picks suffered season-ending injuries before the first game.

• Sonics' slide hits 6 games

  Seattle Post-Intelligencer | Jan 17, 2003

  The Sonics were within one point of matching their largest halftime lead of the season.

• The collapse continues as Sonics lose sixth straight

  Seattle Times | Jan 17, 2003

  He had to shoot.

• Scorebook: Season turns sour quickly for Sonics

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 17, 2003

  The Seattle SuperSonics are finding a season that started so promising has taken an extended downward turn.

• Jazz get started late

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 17, 2003

  Tipoff was pushed back an hour Thursday night to accommodate national television audience.

• Sloan Unable to Implement Yak-and-Roll - Linko an All-Star?

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 17, 2003

  With so much free time to kill, lots of NBA players and coaches go shopping when they are on the road.

• Jazz Second Half Sinks Sonics

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 17, 2003

  The last time Karl Malone faced the Sonics, he didn't score a point.

• Harpring-Jazz: Perfect match

  USA Today | Jan 16, 2003

  Note to NBA Western Conference coaches about to pick All-Star Game reserves: Check out Matt Harpring.

• Coach's Corner on the Jazz

  NBA.com | Jan 16, 2003

  Now in his sixth season broadcasting games for the Cleveland Cavaliers, Guokas shared his insights with NBA.

• Kirilenko to Play in Rookie Challenge

  UtahJazz.com | Jan 16, 2003

  A record six international players will be participating in the contest.

• Lots of Streaks for Sonics Entering Utah

  Seattle Post-Intelligencer | Jan 16, 2003

  Five consecutive losses isn't the only streak the Sonics carry into Utah tonight.

• 'Tag bounces back in Denver - Kirilenko Criticized

  Deseret News | Jan 16, 2003

  In the Jazz's first game since coach Jerry Sloan blasted his club for having "an inordinate number of coaches," and singled out Greg Ostertag's poor reaction to being pulled out of Sunday's loss at Phoenix, Ostertag responded.

• I know racism when I hear it

  Deseret News | Jan 16, 2003

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• Win 'n' run: Jazz do both in Denver

  Deseret News | Jan 16, 2003

  Sometimes, you win and run.

• Malone, Stockton hold Denver at bay

  Denver Post | Jan 16, 2003

  Youthful exuberance on one side and experienced execution on the other made for an interesting confrontation Wednesday night at the Pepsi Center.

• Nuggets' effort better, but result is the same

  Rocky Mountain News | Jan 16, 2003

  It was a warmer night.

• Jazz convert critical plays

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 16, 2003

  A big difference between veteran and young teams is an ability to execute in crucial situations.

• Kirilenko Picked for Rookie Challenge

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 16, 2003

  Andrei Kirilenko, whose .

• Stockton Leads Jazz to Victory

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 16, 2003

  Nene Hilario, 20-year-old workhorse and budding superstar, is a wonderful building block for the future.

• Jazz tunes out Nuggets down stretch

  The Daily Camera | Jan 16, 2003

  Camera Sports Writer Ryan Thorburn reports on last nights Nuggets 92-81 loss at the hands of the Utah Jazz.

• Well-traveled Crotty familiar face to Jazz

  The Denver Post | Jan 15, 2003

  Marc Spears has an article on John Crotty and his past w/ the Utah Jazz.

• Well-traveled Crotty familiar face to Jazz

  Denver Post | Jan 15, 2003

  John Crotty's pro career has included stops with teams you've heard of and others .

• Jazz-Nuggets preview

  The Rocky Mountain News | Jan 15, 2003

  The Denver Nuggets take on the Utah Jazz tonight at the Pepsi Center.

• Sloan to Players: Coaching Job Is Taken

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 15, 2003

  Jerry Sloan is addicted to victory, and he needs to feed that hunger in the worst way right now.

• Rock on . . . - Game of 'Tag

  Deseret News | Jan 14, 2003

  Someone is "sideways" with Jerry Sloan again.

• Sloan's comments leave Jazz wondering

  Deseret News | Jan 13, 2003

  Some Jazz players weren't sure what coach Jerry Sloan was referencing when he said he had "an inordinate number of coaches" following Utah's loss at Phoenix on Sunday night.

• Suns torch Jazz, stay hot at home

  Deseret News | Jan 13, 2003

  The Suns are super at home.

• 3 deliver in clutch as Suns top Jazz

  Arizona Republic | Jan 13, 2003

  All season long, Stephon Marbury, Shawn Marion and Amare Stoudemire have ranked among the NBA's most productive players in clutch situations.

• Suns duo thwarts Jazz

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 13, 2003

  It was a great night for the M&M's of the surprising Phoenix Suns.

• Players Give Sloan Lip for Substitutions

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 13, 2003

  Nine wins in 11 games usually makes for a happy bunch of players.

• Phoenix Uses Jazz's Formula of Success

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 13, 2003

  If teams could trademark their style as well as their logo, if it were possible to sue for copyright infringement in the NBA, the Jazz would have a pretty strong case against the Phoenix Suns after Sunday's 107-99 Utah loss.

• That's Amare: Phoenix rookie Stoudemire looks like the real deal

  Deseret News | Jan 12, 2003

  Entering this season, little was expected of the Phoenix Suns or their fresh-out-of-high-school rookie, Amare Stoudemire.

• NBA 24—second clock

  Deseret News | Jan 12, 2003

  Suns' Stephon Marbury, on Jazz's veteran duo: "(John Stockton) could play for another five more years, and Karl Malone could play as long as he wants.

• Jazz face familiar foe in Phoenix

  Deseret News | Jan 12, 2003

  If these guys from Phoenix look familiar, it's only because they should.

• Will Jazz eclipse Suns?

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 12, 2003

  It's not too early for thinking about big games on the Jazz schedule, not in a tightly bunched NBA Western Conference.

• Jazz Have Stifled Stoudemire So Far

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 12, 2003

  One night, he's scoring 38 points on Kevin Garnett.

• Jazz Formula for Success -- Chemistry

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 12, 2003

  Minutes after the Jazz had collected their ninth win in 11 games, this time a 16-point clubbing of the Miami Heat, Jerry Sloan paused to ruminate over his team's blessed, though imperfect, current condition and then acknowledged a fact that most would have considered fiction 35 games ago.

• Heat skid reaches five

  Miami Herald | Jan 11, 2003

  With a quick flip of the hand as he walked off the court, purple and teal streamers falling all around him, Caron Butler dismissed the 48 minutes of basketball that was just completed.

• Harpring's layups cool down Heat

  Deseret News | Jan 11, 2003

  Matt Harpring is the master of a technique so simple, so obviously effective, that it's a marvel others don't emulate it: the layup.

• Scorebook: Harpring highlights Jazz win

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 11, 2003

  Matt Harpring scored 31 points for the Jazz on Friday night, but he doesn't figure many of his baskets were ESPN-worthy.

• Jazz turn down Heat

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 11, 2003

  The Jazz toyed with the Heat Friday night, and they nearly got burned.

• Jazz Notes

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 11, 2003

  Player of the Game - Matt Harpring - Jazz Somewhere amid the tangle of arms under the basket stood the Jazz's layup machine, waiting for a pass threaded his way or a loose ball bouncing toward him.

• Harpring Dunks Heat

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 11, 2003

  It's not exactly Babe Ruth delivering a home run for a dying boy, but Matt Harpring didn't disappoint his growing army of fans Friday night.

• The Jazz bench is 'Rescue Squad'

  Deseret News | Jan 10, 2003

  After a game-saving performance against the Phoenix Suns, the Utah Jazz's bench now has a nickname.

• Jazz can't look past the Heat

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 10, 2003

  As they headed to Denver to face the Nuggets earlier this week, Miami Heat coach Pat Riley was asked if he thought his players were looking past the league's worst team.

• Collins' Knee Starting to Heal

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 10, 2003

  It's not an anniversary he cares to celebrate, but Jarron Collins is an optimistic person, so he looked for the positive on Thursday: Exactly four weeks after tearing two knee ligaments in his right knee, he can bend the joint again.

• Jackson reaches assist milestone

  | Jan 9, 2003

  In a movie, it would have been a deft lob for an alley-oop dunk, maybe a no-look, behind-the-back needle-threader through the heart of the defense for an easy layup.

• Rebounding helps Jazz come back

  Arizona Republic | Jan 9, 2003

  The Suns have made a habit of rallying from big deficits to win this season.

• Borchardt to start running

  Deseret News | Jan 9, 2003

  The Jazz consider backup center Jarron Collins and rookie guard Raul Lopez both out for the season due to knee blowouts requiring reconstructive surgery, but the status of rookie center Curtis Borchardt remains somewhat of a mystery.

• Hot Jazz rebound to cool off Suns

  Deseret News | Jan 9, 2003

  This time of the year, discounts are a dime a dozen.

• Scorebook: Jackson in special company

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 9, 2003

  Only three players in NBA history have amassed 10,000 career assists.

• Bench helps Utah cool off Phoenix

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 9, 2003

  Upon first glance at the box score from Wednesday night's Utah Jazz-Phoenix Suns game, you'll immediately notice Karl Malone's 24 points, or Matt Harpring's 22 points and 11 rebounds, or perhaps Andrei Kirilenko's 14 points off the bench.

• Three Milestones Reached

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 9, 2003

  Mark Jackson got his 10,000th assist Wednesday night during the Jazz's 99-93 win over Phoenix at the Delta Center.

• Fine-Tuned Play Gives Jazz a Win

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 9, 2003

  Sometimes the tiniest subtleties can trump the broadest strokes.

• Sizzling with Stoudemire

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 8, 2003

  The Phoenix Suns have been on a tear since their 10-10 start, and point guard Stephon Marbury can sum up the reason for the turnaround in one word.

• Assist Leaders Have What Jackson Wants -- NBA Titles

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 8, 2003

  The coolest thing about reaching 10,000 career assists, as Mark Jackson probably will tonight, is the company you get to keep.

• Massenburg expected to be retained - Milestone Coming

  Deseret News | Jan 7, 2003

  Look for the Jazz to retain reserve big man Tony Massenburg, whose one-year, non-guaranteed pro-rated $1.

• 'Baby' Bulls get tough to end Jazz win streak

  Deseret News | Jan 7, 2003

  For a while there, it seemed like the Jazz had grown quite accustomed to this whole winning thing.

• 2 enjoy fun of run

  Chicago Tribune | Jan 7, 2003

  Before Monday's game, Donyell Marshall downplayed matters.

• Crawford, Bulls get by Jaz

  Chicago Sun-Times | Jan 7, 2003

  After turning the ball over with an offensive foul with 9:43 left in the fourth quarter Monday, Bulls guard Jamal Crawford looked over his shoulder at coach Bill Cartwright.

• Bulls scratch itch

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 7, 2003

  The Chicago Bulls have added a little something to their game since the last time the Utah Jazz saw them.

• Fizer Comes Off Bench for Huge Lift - Donyell Happy

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 7, 2003

  It wasn't a trade, a call-up or a free-agent signing, but the Bulls somehow managed to add a confident, talented 16-point-per-game scorer to their roster since their 20-point loss to Utah in November.

• Youthful Bulls Use Decisive 3rd-quarter

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 7, 2003

  That old knock on the NBA, that you only have to watch the final two minutes to see a game decided? With the Jazz, it seems you can arrive late and leave early, because only the third quarter matters.

• Improved Amaechi says he's 'earned' more time

  Deseret News | Jan 6, 2003

  With two one-game suspensions in as many seasons on his resume now, one might suspect John Amaechi wants to work elsewhere.

• Jazz's latest weapon: their bench

  Deseret News | Jan 6, 2003

  It seems only appropriate that game after game recently, the Jazz's bench has given them quite a lift.

• Point guard school in session

  Chicago Tribune | Jan 6, 2003

  As Jay Williams limped to the trainer's room Sunday at the Bulls' Berto Center, Jamal Crawford stayed late on the practice floor, receiving extra instruction from veteran Rick Brunson.

• Bulls getting better

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 6, 2003

  The Chicago Bulls have gradually succeeded in gathering a core of talented young players.

• Kirilenko Is Providing Utah With a Sixth Sense

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 6, 2003

  Candidates traditionally come to the Midwest to test their electability, so it makes sense that the Jazz's three-game trip here gives them a chance to consider a few candidates, too.

• Ageless duo still have it vs. Wolves

  Minneapolis Star Tribune | Jan 5, 2003

  Factor in their age, their timelessness and the fact that Karl Malone and John Stockton are selling the same old stuff in the same old can that they peddled an NBA generation or two ago, and losses such as the Timberwolves' 105-97 setback Saturday night at Target Center aren't just disappointing.

• Moving four-ward

  Deseret News | Jan 5, 2003

  After the 32nd game, Jerry Sloan could tell something about his players about which he wasn't necessarily certain at the start of this season.

• Amaechi talks rugby

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 5, 2003

  From: Dallas Morning News Utah Jazz big man John Amaechi recently talked about rugby.

• Jazz stars teach lesson in chemisty

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 5, 2003

  The Utah Jazz proved a couple of things Saturday night: Karl Malone can still score, and superb free-throwing doesn't hurt, either.

• Amaechi Returns With Important Minutes - Harpring Helps

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 5, 2003

  One day he's in street clothes, suspended for breaking team rules.

• Jazz Get Big Game From Malone

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 5, 2003

  Calbert Cheaney's good buddy, Karl Malone, scored 33 points Saturday, while Greg Ostertag's pal, Matt Harpring, added 17.

• Bucks unable to overcome pitiful third quarter

  Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | Jan 4, 2003

  The Milwaukee Bucks' mastery over the Utah Jazz in recent years has been one of those mysteries that defies explanation.

• Jazz play Bucks sans Amaechi

  Deseret News | Jan 4, 2003

  The Jazz played Friday night without reserve big man John Amaechi, who was suspended one game with pay for violation of team rules stemming from an incident following Utah's win over Toronto last Monday.

• Jazz hang on to down the Bucks

  Deseret News | Jan 4, 2003

  If the sizable mouse beneath John Stockton's right eye could speak, it would probably say something like this: "Shhhh.

• Jazz hit high note in win over Bucks

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 4, 2003

  Running its offense through Karl Malone, the Utah Jazz scored a season-high 41 points in the third quarter.

• Jazz Stay Composed, Beat Bucks

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 4, 2003

  The game was a track meet, Ray Allen was a gymnast, and John Stockton looked like he had been in a title fight.

• Jazz expect road wins

  Deseret News | Jan 3, 2003

  Back before the Jazz were perennial playoff qualifiers, before winning was something they assumed they should do more often than not, before they were good, Frank Layden had a theory regarding records.

• Jazz resolve to improve record on road

  Standard-Examiner | Jan 3, 2003

  Jerry Sloan has a New Year's resolution for the Utah Jazz: Play better on the road.

• Bucks' Fortunes Continue to Dwindle

  Salt Lake Tribune | Jan 3, 2003

  The Bucks were on the brink just 18 months ago.