Coach of the Year

ESPN has released its annual awards predictions to coincide with the beginning of the new season. Interestingly, the favorite to win the Coach of the Year award this year is Jerry Sloan. He tied for the most amount of votes (5) with Miami Heat Coach, Erik Spolestra.

Now, Jazz fans are very used to hearing Jerry Sloan's name thrown into the discussion for a COY award, but of course this has yet to happen. This is due to the fact that Sloan can take virtually any group of guys and turn them into a 50 win team in the league, he has shown that he can do this with remarkable consistency. However, he has failed to get his Jazz teams over this hump and to help them reach elite status, (pardon my use of the word "elite", I know that ever since the happenings with EA's NBA Elite 11,that word has a negative vibe) and since the COY isn't a lifetime achievement award, it's hard to find a single year in which he flat out deserved to win it.

If Sloan can get the Jazz to a 2nd seed in the West, and help them finish around 55 wins or more, I could see him winning the award. The acquisition of Al Jefferson could help them get to that point, but only time will tell, and in the end, I don't think that Sloan cares about the award that much. This is, after all, the man that spends his hours on his John Deere tractor when he isn't filling his role as coach. But he does care about winning , and if he can get this Jazz team to buy into that, he could take them to next level.

Photo provided by Getty Images

The Salt Lake Area is full of buzz right now. Not because we're known as the beehive state, or because of the surprise, early snow storm we had last night. Rather everyone is pumped for the new Jazz season beginning this Wednesday. Even more, the Jazz cruised to a perfect 8-0 record in preseason play amidst a myriad of injuries and roster changes.

So, what does Coach Jerry Sloan feel of this success? He said, "People get carried away especially in the exhibition season, about the wins. We've got a lot of work to do to be able to play like we'd like to play. I think we can be a better team, a better executing team than what we did. I think we can be a better defensive team. It's a matter of getting that done. I don't know how that will work out."

Typical Jerry Sloan. Still, the team looks extra promising, and newly acquired, fan favorite Al Jefferson has looked great so far. Here's to another great season!

Photo by Jeffrey D. Allred

Born Again Jazz

So long Boozer and hello Al Jefferson! Jazz fans have been thrilled to see the swift acclimation of center Al Jefferson into the Utah offense in the preseason. Further, Jefferson, or "Big Al" as he's been called recently, has developed a great friendship with all star point guard Deron Williams.

However the friendship isn't only based on the functionality of the "pick and roll" or D-Will's ability to get Big Al the ball in the post. The friendship has also been formed on religion of all things. To answer your question, neither of them are Mormon.

According to Brian T. Smith of the Salt Lake Tribune, Williams revealed to Jefferson that earlier this year he (Williams) had been baptized as a Christian. Jefferson, who had been raised Christian growing up in Mississippi, was thrilled to hear the news. “He got saved,” Jefferson said. “I didn’t know that about him. That was real good to hear. ... He said he has really done changed his life around.”

The chemistry of these two players means everything to the Jazz offense this season. If their religious beliefs can help to make this bond stronger, than they might be able to not only save their lives, but save this season for the Jazz as well.

Photo by Scott Sommerdorf