OCR Text |
Show NBA OU TLOOK Jazz hope Morris may be the final key to title These guys are so loose, but they work hard . "I need to get fami liarized with everything they did last year to win 60 games, and hopefully I can help th em get another one or two." AP SPORTS WRITE R At 6-t, Stockton - often the smallest player on the court - se s benefits from having Morris in a Jazz uniform. SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - john Stockton faked left, drove right and snapped a pass " We can take advantage of his s.ize," he said. "ll he' open for the 3-point, you're out from the pain t to a teammate on the perimeter for a long jumper. confident he can make it, and you can take advantage by getting him down ther It's a play the BA' career assist leader ha executed thousands of times. This in the paint again t some mailer guard ." time, though, ex-New fer ey et Chri Morris was on the receiving end. Malone welcomes a versatil scorer who could At 6-foot-8, Morri got a clear look at the ba ket loosen the double- and triple-team h ha d spit tight d fense and drilled a 3-point jumper. battl d for year . Utah coac h Jerry loan hop s Jazz [ans sec the , "We have to mix it up (in ide) and go from Stockt n-to-Morris combinati n a lot thi sea on. there," he said. " If (Morris) i on a roll, l'm suxe Indeed, he's counting on it, starting Morris in we're going to look for him ." place of Jeff Homac k, who ha a sore kne , for Sloan will look to Davi<l Benoit at mall tonight' sea on opener in Seattle. forward, hoping the fourth-year pro can continu Morri cou1d be the mi sing piece for the Jazz, his i m provement. B noit avcrag1:d n arly 12 who set a £ran hi e record with 60 wins la t points and six rebound in Utah's five-game eas n but Lost to Houston in the £.irst round of playoff wi.th the Rocket last spring. the playoffs. With Stockton now 3 and Karl Injuries have made the center position the Malone 32, thi year may be Utah' last chance to Jazz's weak spot - at least for the short term . ·advance beyond the conference finals, something Felton Spencer, Utah's 7-foot starter, and backup the Jazz has never done. Antoine Carr both begin the 1995-96 sea on on " He gives us a lot of thing ," Sloan aid of the injured list. Morris, whom th e Jazz s igned as a fre agent. Spencer hopes to return in D ecem ber from "He's a longer guy, and l ee the possibility of him "' rehabilitating a torn Achilles tendon. Carr helping us rebound better with his bigger body." ~ sprained his right knee two weeks ago and was Last season, the Jazz ranked 20th out of 27 A questionable for the opening game. teams in rebounding. ~ Even Greg Ostertag, the rookie 7-footer from "He also gives us the opportunity to bring Jeff 8 Kansas, was on the injured list. l.m Tuesday, he off the bench, at least for tight now," Sloan said. ~ tore a tendon on the little finger of his right hand, "(Hornacek) doesn't have to bang and be beat up ~ requiring surgery that will keep him sidelined at to death to start, and I think that will help his least two weeks. game a bit." Karl Malone is ready for another year of banging up against guys That leaves Sloan with 38-year-old James Homacek isn't entirely happy with the role Donaldson. He, too, is fragile, having returned to change. He started 81 games for Utah last season, like Charles Barkley. The Jazz open the year in Seattle tonight. practice this week after suffering a partially torn when the Jazz finished with a franchise-record 60 hamstring early in training camp. victories, second best in the NBA, only to be ousted by Houston in the first round. Stockton and Malone, in their 12th and 11th pro seasons, respectively, remain "It's always tough when you're used to starting, but my concern was how the the dependable core of the Jazz. rotation was at the end of the game," Hornacek said. "That's when the game is Malone is coming off a season in which he averaged 26.7 points and 10.6 really fun - win or lose, to be able to be part of that. rebounds a game. He played all 82 games, taping a painful ankle. "Jerry has told me that I'll be out there (then). I can see situations where I might No active player without a championship ring has a higher career scoring average not, but for the most part I will be." than Malone. As for Morris, who was known as a problem player in New Jersey, coming to "I don't know if I'm defying time or not," he said with a laugh. "I don't know Utah gives him both a fresh beginning and the chance to play for a contender. (how many more years) .... Initially, two or three, but I'll just have to see what "!New Jersey) was a situation I didn't want to keep myself around," he happens." said. "Now I'm with guys who really like to play the game and have fun . By BOB MIMS Miller working to lock up Malone, Stock for careers SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - Utah Jazz owner Larry Miller is preparing contract extension offers for Karl Malone and john Stockton that could carry them through to the end of their careers. "I don't think it will be long until we have some kind of announcement," Miller said. Stockton, 33, is eligible to become a free agent on July 1, but has indicated he wants to sign again with the Jazz. "I'm not sure John wants the insecurity of becoming a free agent, and we don' t want him to go through that either," Miller said. "Nobody wants that kind of stress." The Salt Lake Tribune said Miller and Stockton apparently have discussed a three- or four-year extension for an unspecified amount of money. "I'm not in any hurry. I have faith in Larry," Stockton said. "We've had a good relationship - a tmsting relationship. I'm not at all worried about it, to be honest." Malone, 32, has three years remaining on his contract. The Tribun.e said he is scheduled to make $3.5 million this season, $4 million next season and about $4.4 million in 1997-98. "It's not a big deal, and I hope people don't make a big deal out of it," Malone said. Miller said Malone would like to play longer than the three years he has on his current contract. Malone hinted he would prefer a two-year extension, the newspaper said. · If Stockton took a four-year extension and Malone a two-year extension, they would end their careers at the same time. "I'm starting to think I want to stop playing when Stock stops playing," Malone said. I |