Williams----->Kirilenko----->Okur----->Super Bowl

It is time for some apologies, two from me and one from you. Don't worry, I won't make you apologize to Carlos Boozer. You can keep on refusing to forgive him. I advise you to take note that last night he not only showed (again) that he is the best player on the team but also displayed the most genuine concern for a teammate I have ever seen after Laundry Kirkilenko got knocked down by Malik Allen in the 4th quarter.

The first apology goes to Deron Williams. Mostly for trying to get the "Deron Williams is Eric Maynor's Ricky Green" movement going. And for calling him trade bait. And probably for Twitting about he and Koufos's baldspots having a total cranium domination race once.

Listen, Dude. You have to understand. I was really starting to dislike your game. In 2007, I thought there was no way the Jazz should have picked Chris Paul over you. Since then, though, you have been trying to be just like Chris Paul, only you will never be. You were left looking like a poor man's Chris Paul, which was pretty crappy. Then you do this thing against the Lakers in the playoffs where you are terrified to face Derek Fisher until the Jazz are getting blown out. Derek Fisher is nobody's All-Star. Even if he was as good defensively as you think he is, don't you remember how he couldn't hit any shots when he was a Jazzman?

Anyway, it seems like you have finally stopped all that. Or at least the Chris Paul thing. The Derek Fisher thing must still go to trial. Anyway, you are finally playing like a point guard. You have finally learned how to make your teammates better. The way you toyed with the Blazers was incredible. Please don't stop.

Next up is Kirilenko. It is being said you are playing the best you have since the year you made the All-Star team. Incorrect. You are better now, and it isn't even close. You're finally playing smart and physical. My favorite improvement is how you no longer look like you're playing Whack-a-mole when you drive to the hoop. You keep your head up and are determined to crap on any defender who might contest you. It seems that if you don't slam it, you at least get fouled. Atta boy.

Mr. Money O, I don't owe you an apology. A lot of other people do, probably. They were so bent on your lower scoring average. Maybe you were playing hurt. Maybe you weren't scoring as much because your teammates were using up shots you would usually get.

Furthermore, Jazz fans have gotten the need for a shot blocker so twisted. If you watch college basketball, you will see a lot of good shot blockers. Have the Jazz drafted even one of them in the last five years? No. Last year, there was one right under their noses, the University of Utah's Luke Nevill. They instead went with Goran Sutan--not a shot-blocker--in the second round. It looks that the Jazz organization, like Jazz fans, have really high standards for a shot-blocking center. So, they probably won't ever get one. So, deal with it. If the Jazz keep playing good on-the-ball defense, they won't need a shot-blocker anyway.

In 90 minutes, we might see the most exciting end-to-end Super Bowl in history. Both teams are awesome, to boot. Part of me wants the Colts because I want Peyton Manning to be recognized as the best QB ever (this coming from a 49ers fan). If the Colts lose, Manning will probably get ripped up for the next few weeks.

The Saints winning would be great too. Drew Brees is the coolest QB in the NFL. He deserves to get a Super Bowl win under his belt, since every one seems to (wrongly) think players are defined by their titles.

Additionally, both teams have awesome uniforms. I might be more sad for the loser than happy for the winner tonight. If the Colts didn't have a few injuries, I think this would be their game for sure. Since they have the best QB ever, they will still find a way to win. Prediction: Colts, 38-30.

Here is another song that mentions a Jazz player, "The Future" by Guilty Simpson, as recommended by Moni.



I got a cousin that plays for the Utah Jazz
But I don't have to run the two to shoot y'all azz
Peace to Ronnie Brewer
On the mic I'm the manure

(According to Wikipedia, the claims of cousinship are true. How did I not know about this? This is the kind of stuff I'm always hip to.)

In defense of Mehmet Okur

One of the most common complaints about recent Jazz teams is the lack of a shot-blocking center.

Fans want a big man who can make up for Williams, Brewer and Kirilenko's inability to guard anyone. They want Dwight Howard.

But they know that Boozer's buddy Superman isn't going to be coming to the SLC anytime soon. So, fans have accepted that all they need is longer center who can block shots and help the defense. Nothing special, just a player to make it more difficult for opponents to score.

Listen to that. They want Greg Ostertag.
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
Yes. You want a huge presence in the middle. Someone who can block shots. Or at least disrupt drives to the basket. The player doesn't even need to score that much.

Ostertag says: I did all of that. For 10 season. But you all wanted a center who could score from the outside. An offensive presence. Remember Todd Fuller?

The center position in the NBA today isn't very good. How many 5-men are, without any doubt, better than Okur? PFs who play a little bit of center don't count (Garnett, Duncan).
-Howard
-Al Jefferson
-Brook Lopez
-Chris Kaman
-Andrew Bogut
-Marc Gasol

After that, there are a bunch of maybes. Shaquille O'Neal, Andris Biedrins,
Andrew Bynum, Emeka Okafor and Spencer Hawes.

These days it would be hard to find even a Greg Ostertag. And there aren't many options coming up in the draft. The best bet is Greg Monroe from Georgetown.

It would be really nice to have a shot-blocker, but the Jazz have a better chance of learning how to guard people with what they have.