Paul Millsap Scares the Lakers
When the Lakers went up 80-58 last night, I flipped the game off. (That scene from the Italian Job when Charlize Theron is infiltrating Edward Norton’s compound for the first time was on. She’s fantastic.) But when I turned back to TNT, it was an 11-point game, then a two possession game only a couple of minutes later. During that stretch, it was Paul Millsap - not Deron Williams, Carlos Boozer or Andrei Kirilenko - who single-handedly put a scare into the Lakers.
Millsap rattled off a personal 11-0 run, all in the teeth of L.A.’s defense. He and Ronnie Price took over for D-Will and Booz as the killer pick-and-roll tandem during that fourth quarter. Eventually, Phil Jackson put Kobe back in the game to put an end to the run, which was pretty much clotted up the momentum immediately. But Millsap’s stretch allowed Utah to outscore the Lake show for the fourth straight game during the fourth quarter. (Lakers haters are feasting off of this point this morning, insisting that they’re showing an inability to close out and step on their opponents’ throats. I disagree.)
The only real effect of Millsap’s effectiveness during this game is going to be during the offseason for Utah. His 16-point outing was a team high in Game 5, and it also constituted his best game of the series. Maybe this performance inspired some confidence in the Jazz front office that they should let Boozer walk and put their eggs in the Millsap basket.
April 28th, 2009 at 10:20 am
ronnation says:
Millsap is a beast and should be paid accordingly.
Nobody on the Jazz works harder for a ball then this guy(except maybe Harpring but that guy is falling apart so he doesn’t produce like ManSap.)
April 28th, 2009 at 10:25 am
Big T says:
The Jazz need to get rid of Boozer and pick up a real center (interior defense).
April 28th, 2009 at 10:52 am
jzsmoove says:
I agree with Big T, a real bang-up center that will personify coach Sloan on the floor. Utah has not have this one player ever to do this. Stockton, Malone, D-Will have the skill set but i do not think they have the mental edge that Sloan ever will. Harpring And Antoine Carr may be the closest (and still far off) but dont have the skills to go with it. Korver is on a spectrum of his own.
If they add this type of center, with D-Will and Millsap, the Jazz will be very very good.
April 28th, 2009 at 11:05 am
BERN BROGDEN says:
ILL MILL!!!
I just wanted to say that.
April 28th, 2009 at 11:12 am
bb says:
@ jzsmoove
Antione Carr!? the Big Dawg? He hasn’t played for years. Millsap is in that same mold though. Minus the indoor sunglasses of course.
April 28th, 2009 at 11:40 am
karizmatic says:
I think Milsap is better than Boozer, the fact that he is undersized at 6′8 is really my only concern with him.
April 28th, 2009 at 11:42 am
AB_40 says:
this is basketball people and to go from a 6-8 PF to a 6-5 PF is a dumb move… he ain’t sir charles you know
April 28th, 2009 at 11:44 am
ronnation says:
He could be, he’s got great form just needs to practice his jump shot.
April 28th, 2009 at 12:05 pm
doc says:
I like him as a backup.Im not getting carried away.
April 28th, 2009 at 12:05 pm
Dave says:
Milsap is not as gifted as Boozer, but there is no doubt he plays with more heart tenfold than Boozer does. Milsap doesn’t care how good he looks or what other players or media say about him, he is hungry and works hard to play ball.
Nearly all Jazz fans want Boozer gone, but if he does opt to stay in Utah the Jazz will be able to trade him because of his expiring contract and hopefully the Jazz will bite the bullet and keep Milsap regardless of what Boozer decides to do.
April 28th, 2009 at 12:17 pm
jazz says:
jzsmoove: Regarding Utah centers, you forgot about Thurl Bailey, Mark Eaton, and Greg Ostertag.
April 28th, 2009 at 12:21 pm
flavur says:
This is one of those battles between skilled vs. hardworkers
Boozer is a skilled player and getting rebounds and scoring come easy to him but Milsap is just a hardworker and not as skilled as boozer and I think that Milsap would be a better fit for jerry Sloan because he works hard and since he’s 6′6 or 6′7 he’s not 6′8 he has to work harder and play harder. THAT’S MY OPINION ON THE MATTER
April 28th, 2009 at 12:28 pm
SayItAintSo says:
They need to let Boozer walk because I honestly think Mansap (like that nickname though we may as well call him ejaculate) is just a less expensive version with more upside.
They should trade away Boozer for Okafor or even a Joel Pryz type of player that can help them sure up the paint.
April 28th, 2009 at 12:37 pm
NYCBalla says:
Milsap is the man! For the last three years I have been a closet Jazz fan - my hometown Knicks are still #1 in my heart, but I loved D-Will in college and have loved him more in the nba. Because of him I’ve developed interest in Utah and watch there games whenever I can. Having watched a number of Utah games this season I can admit that Boozer is better than Milsap. The difference though is their competitive drive (which results in hardwork). Milsap owns Booze in that regard. Because Booze is supposed to be a team leader but doesn’t seem to care about winning - his team suffers. Utah is better off without him. Utah needs to dump Boozer - resign Milsap - and find a reliable big man who is a competitor (wants to win). If they can find that one piece I really think, if they can stay healthy, could be a title contender.
April 28th, 2009 at 12:38 pm
LA says:
Millsap single-handely forced Phil to bench Bynum for most of the series. Drew just couldnt handle him down low and was routinely outworked in every facet of the game.
April 28th, 2009 at 9:27 pm
MattinVA says:
I think the real spark was Ronny Price. Came in, and had a putback dunk at the end of the 3rd quarter, then made another nice hoop. May not sound like much, but Utah was struggling to get any offense in the 3rd. In the fourth he was once again all over the place. If he had the last name of “Bryant” or “Williams” he would have drawn about 4 fouls down the stretch due to getting contact by going to the hoop hard. He came up with three offensive boards in 14 minutes - as much as Boozer and Millsap combined. Then, he fought hard to the end, getting a T with under 10s and scoring the last points of the game. Price was the one who really turned the Jazz around, and it was before the 4th quarter.
Millsap is good, and I’m a fan of his. But he consistently missed his free throws all series, and was blocked multiple times earlier in the game. Love his hustle, but he wasn’t the spark.
A huge part of the lift Price brought to the game is that Brevin Knight had been playing so terrible - no points all series, fouls, turnovers, and bad D. In his first minute Price contributed more than BK had all series.
Ronny Price deserves his due. Unfortunately, the NBA won’t even show his highlight putback dunk online.
April 28th, 2009 at 11:12 pm
Borgs says:
Paul Millsap is among the best frontcourt backups in the game, but he fouls too frequently and hasn’t quite the talent to be an effective starter on a team in title contention. He has to play all out to compensate for his lacking size and relative skill level. Without major improvement, particularly on his jumper (and another growth spurt!), he’ll never be the first/second option on offense that Boozer has shown he’s capable of being. If Utah keep Boozer and lose Millsap Jazz fans shouldn’t be too discouraged.
Utah has more than enough to score with the Williams-Boozer one-two punch and without Okur. What they need is an athletic, defensive-oriented C with just a little touch around the hoop to slot in next to Boozer and a SG with handles and an accurate long jumper to co-exist with Brewer and be a second option when the shot-clock runs low. That would make for an exceptionally well balanced team.
May 20th, 2009 at 11:48 am
Doworkville says:
I agree about Ronnie Price. I even respect Jerry Sloan for coming out and saying he made a mistake in not playing Price more. The Jazz need to lose Knight and resign Price, lose Boozer and resign Millsap. If we could get a backup PF like Brandon Bass of Dallas, or someone that hustles we will be fine starting Millsap. If not we are very thin at the PF position, but maybe the Jazz will let the rookies (Koufus) play.