tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-55211844620590417422024-03-05T19:35:30.687-08:00harpringer of doomdata-based, philosophical, and/or occasionally drunken jazz and nba musings. sent from SLC with garden state sensibilities. all in honor of notorious defender/cheapskate matt harping.james petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05022099734721904508noreply@blogger.comBlogger67125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5521184462059041742.post-89040222672257113422014-02-25T00:07:00.000-08:002014-02-25T00:14:34.254-08:00Bro, Do You Even Lift?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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That's a picture of me racing my mountain bike during the 1998 Nationals at Deer Valley. I was competing in a class that doesn't exist any longer, at least not by the same title. It was my first year racing "Jr. X," or junior expert, a class that was the top billing for riders under the age of 18. You weren't considered a pro as a Jr. X racer, both at the national and world level, a rule that famously prompted <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anne-Caroline_Chausson" target="_blank">Anne-Caroline Chausson</a> (the greatest female downhill racer ever) to refuse accepting her junior world champion jersey after her time easily bested the entire pro women's field by a considerable margin.<br />
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I had been racing cross-country mountain bikes since I was 13 or 14, and started racing downhill in 1997. I won two junior state championships (one in Utah and one in Nevada), but was never able to convert to a competitive pro as an adult. In fact, I never even made it out of the expert category once I hit 19. Between chafing at constantly losing races and developing a new love for off-road motorcycle riding, my downhill mountain bike career ended, appropriately enough, after a particularly vicious crash back at Deer Valley in 2005. I wrapped up the state series that summer and sold my downhill bike that October, and that was that.<br />
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Among other little league, high school and collegiate athletic pursuits (ranging from baseball to wrestling to cross-country running to swimming), I picked up a keen interest in two sports in which I have yet to compete: rallycross auto racing and the American motocross/supercross series. These events, much like my own beloved mountain bike racing, played out over the course of several months. They featured individual races over a season that made up the scoring elements of an overall championship.<br />
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Motocross also has an annual international one-race (two motos, but let's not get cloudy) world championship event, the Motocross des Nations, but America is so historically dominant at the event as to render it little more than a spectacle for drunken, Old Glory-hat wearing purists that it's hardly worth mentioning as being in the same league as prestige of an overall outdoor or Supercross championship. Competing in the MXdN is a feather in a rider's cap, for sure, but being named to the team is an accolade for already-champs.<br />
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There's not a lot of apples-to-apples comparisons between professional basketball and motocross racing, but there is one: the goal to win a championship. Much like in the NBA, motocross racers don't have to win every single moto in order to take home the number one plate at season's end. You do have to compete among the best racers all year, and winning individual races certainly helps with your point total. But it's not imperative to be the best all the time (Ricky Carmichael-era races being the exception to this rule).<br />
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Perhaps what's more important in motocross is starting with young talent. Motocross features two classes of races, based on engine displacement. While some guys stick around in the smaller class (250cc) for the bulk of their careers, the class is universally considered a proving ground for young riders who wish to race with the elite in the 450cc category. Every year, factory and non-factory teams alike bet huge sums on money and a season's worth of potential crow-eating on young guns who are expected to qualify for and race in every moto.<br />
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You don't have to be at all familiar with the sport to anticipate that, just like in basketball or football or life, not everybody gets to hoist a trophy. While the new kids almost universally excel on paper in some area or another, it takes coaching, training, testing, grit and luck for the best to eventually shine through and graduate to the 450 starting gate. Having the advice and savvy of an old vet in the truck next to you all year doesn't hurt, either.<br />
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This is a very long-winded, roundabout way to get to my point. Not everybody wins, and it takes a long time for one motocross racer to become dominant season after season. It really only happens once in a generation of riders. For every McGrath, Carmichael or Villopoto, there are dozens of Emigs, Henrys, Stewarts, Buttons, Windhams and Millsaps. It takes something more than raw talent and time in the saddle to craft a champion.<br />
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The Jazz had what should have been a two or three-championship team in the 1990s, but fell short. After an absurdly brief interval, Utah was back in the national title spotlight, even if it was as a dark horse team. Despite giving extended run to Deron Williams and a host of other still-young players (Stockton and Malone were in their late thirties, you'll remember, during their championship runs), that team failed to materialize into something both grand and stable.<br />
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Four years after a Western Conference appearance, that team was almost completely dismantled, with a few key remaining pieces left. Much like in the world of motorcycle production, it's difficult to re-build your stock bikes every year simply to attempt to make a finest machine on the market for practical and economic reasons. The Jazz, in their previous two seasons, were riding out the previous generation's frame and engine while the new bits were in prototyping and the small-bore racers were ironing out the kinks.<br />
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Right now, we're seeing a whole new enchilada. A new team led by new players, with effectively a new front office and coaching staff. Only the last name on the checks remains the same from 2007. Not everything is working perfectly, but signs of a subtly effective frame and strong engine are beginning to show through. The racers are fast but impatient and unpolished.<br />
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Perhaps, looking strictly at numbers, this Utah Jazz team is making some big mistakes as it prepares for the future. But as I learned racing mountain bikes, racing (and winning) as a young man doesn't always translate to a career as a champ. Sometimes it's sportsmanship and drive, not conclusions drawn from stats, that ends up making the difference. And that can be hard to guarantee in advance.<br />
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But hey, all I ever did was race. Even being a guy with a doctorate, I could be wrong. Probably because there's no peer-reviewed journals on things with two wheels. <br />
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<br />james petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14862624727805091750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5521184462059041742.post-8208836323362740882013-03-06T20:33:00.001-08:002013-03-06T20:38:16.440-08:00D'ohSo the Jazz lost tonight, another one of those effective must-win road games that is going to decide (1) whether we make the playoffs or not, depending on the Lakers, and/or (2) where we end up in the seeding. The six spot is still not completely out of reach, but with the remaining schedule Utah faces, it's not getting any prettier.<br />
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As far as I can tell the legitimate must-win road games that remain are all of our away match-ups against .500 teams (against Dallas, Portland and Minnesota), as well as our roadies against Houston and Golden State (beating the Knicks in a few days wouldn't hurt, either). The Jazz also need to win all of their remaining home games against teams under .500 (Detroit, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Portland, New Orleans and Minnesota) and can really only afford to drop one home game against teams over .500 (Memphis, New York, Brooklyn, Denver and OKC).<br />
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Finishing in this manner would give the Jazz a final record of 47-35, which is what it's likely going to take to land that six seed. Unfortunately, closing the season with such a record, given the team's late-game play of late, the number of road games remaining, and the quality of opponents we still have to face makes such a finish all but impossible. I don't have the drive to work out the stats for the Lakers, Houston and Golden State, but it's safe to say that without a major shift to emphasizing defense accompanied by an increased ability to close games, March and April could look pretty bleak by the end of next week.<br />
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In sum: I haz a sad.james petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14862624727805091750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5521184462059041742.post-55231021825430263272013-03-04T11:07:00.001-08:002013-03-04T11:07:33.424-08:00A WalkToday's post brought to you by <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njBW6VMfgwo" target="_blank">Bad Religion</a>.<br />
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As anybody who's been following the Utah Jazz online this season knows, the hallmark of the season for many fans has been the rift between those who believe strongly in the future and those who buy into the team's "win now" aesthetic. There is, undoubtedly, a serious sub-debate there about whether that rift really exists; in other words, that playing the youth more may not make much of a negative impact on the team's record once the season is over. But the fact remains that some fans are unhappy with the way the team is managed and coached, while others believe there is a long-term plan in place that makes the present seem, at best, sluggish and unyielding.<br /><br />Admittedly, I am in the latter camp. Maybe I had one too many cups of Kool-Aid, but here's some of the facts. Arguably the most dominant team in the NBA over the past 13 years has been the San Antonio Spurs, who built their dynasty on the model produced by Jerry Sloan's Jazz squad. The difference between the Jazz version and the Spurs version is that the Spurs version has won championships. You can (and I do) argue that the Jazz would have a pair of championships if not for that Jordan guy. But it's not as though the Spurs beat a bunch of slouch players to win their rings. The fact is the Spurs did things better, if only in minor ways. But the little things make the difference, and that attention to detail is what makes champions regardless of whether you're talking basketball, computer programming or flying an airplane.<br />
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So what have the Jazz done to improve their chances of winning? Instead of simply re-modeling their plan on the Spurs-modeled-on-the-Jazz idea, they just brought in the guy who, in part, put those championship Spurs squads together. With Dennis Lindsey on staff, Utah has signaled that despite KOC's "we're not rebuilding" comments from a couple of years ago, the Jazz are, in fact, hitting the reset button. And one would think that part of rebuilding means going to the youth at the expense of the older guys who, more likely than not, won't be back next season.<br />
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Unfortunately, the Jazz don't exist in a vacuum. If you sit the vets, it creates dischord in the locker room. It undermines the already limited attraction to free agents who might otherwise consider playing in a Jazz uniform. It tells the youth that they have no guarantees from the brass that, once given the reigns, they will have confidence to retain them. It signifies to your fan base that if they scream loud enough about not being a top seed in the West, the team will cave to pressure. Perhaps the biggest drawback of abandoning your vets in favor of youth is an admission that you've been doing it wrong, and thus everybody who's bought into the system (coaches, players, potential new players and fans alike) has been willing to overlook a lie.<br />
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In my opinion, there is no way for the Jazz to win this debate this season. Fans of the youth feel like their guys are being sidelined unjustly. Fans of the vets can read the writing on the wall and know what they've been rooting for is gone next season. On the other hand, both camps will have carte blanche next year, as the Core Four should see extended playing time (barring some major free agent pickups, which is extremely unlikely) and the long-term plan for the team is going to stay in place with Dennis Lindsey likely to only tinker with how to lace the wheel rather than re-inventing it.<br />
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The point I'm circling around is has to do with this being my first substantive post on HoD in months. It's been difficult for me to write anything meaningful that hasn't already been covered by more talented people, be they professional journalists or reckless boggers. There doesn't seem to be much point in continuing to debate the merits of how to handle the rest of the season. Corbin has made no bones about his commitment to staying the course. Personally, I still think the Jazz have an outside shot at landing the 6 seed in the West and taking that series to 6 games, depending on the opponent.<br />
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I would call that a victory and I would call that progress. Jumping up two playoff spots, competing hard in the first round and giving the youth real playoff experience is enough for me, as long as the opportunity isn't squandered over the summer. But given that the Jazz now are run by one of the most successful basketball execs in the business, I trust that we see further improvement next year. The rest of the West is so stacked that earning a 4 seed is going to be an immense challenge regardless of the moves the Jazz are able to make this offseason.<br />
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With those things said, here's the rub: I'm tired of the malcontent and arguing for the sake of arguing about the Jazz's 2012-2013 season. This will likely be the last post from me that touches on The Narrative or whatever we're calling it at this point. It would be nice to see Jazz fans get back to focusing on wins and having fun rather than posturing and bickering. Time to take a proverbial (or literal, if you're into that sort of thing) walk and a deep breath, and get back into rooting for our squad.<br />
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See you at The Solution, Jazz fans.james petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14862624727805091750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5521184462059041742.post-75282243052530866762013-01-28T21:16:00.000-08:002013-01-28T21:33:15.731-08:00I Work For The JazzSometimes, the problem with Twitter is Twitter itself. It's pretty much impossible to have a serious conversation with one person in 140 characters at time when both of you are hot about something and, worse, you both type quickly. Other people start jumping in, the thread splinters into a zillion mini-subjects, and the gist of the ideas you're supposed to be refining gets lost.<br />
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Take, for example, a little spat on Twitter tonight between @My_Lo, @dianaallen, @TheJerrbear1 and myself. What started as an ad hominem attack on Mychel and Diana's character vis-a-vis their "fanship" by Jerry turned out to be premised on an incorrect assumption, and was subsequently apologized for. It was too late, however, as tempers immediately boiled over. Well, they did for My_Lo. He lashed out at Jerrbear, saying, and I quote (seriously, this is verbatim what he said):<br />
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<b>I have league pass, own more memoribilia than you can dream of, work for the Utah Jazz and you want to police me?</b><br />
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I'd embed a link but I was blocked by this gentleman a few minutes later (more on that shortly). This pissed me off for two reasons. The first was incredulity about how nobody should be able to "police" this talented and selfless writer, when only a few minutes before he wrote:<br />
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<b>So who still wants to sit still at the trade deadline, keep the team as constituted, and make a playoff run?</b><br />
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This was a not-at-all disguised jab at the Utah Jazz front office and the coaching staff, not to mention the players, since the implication is that with the roster we currently have, the Jazz are incapable of doing anything memorable even if they make it into the postseason. And I also perceived it to be an attack at those of us, including myself, who have argued with him all season that we are still in the rebuilding process, it's going to take a while, and some of the right pieces are already in place. Continuing, this alternate perspective is that certainly improvements remain to be made, but we can't just keep exploding the team every two years when the Jazz get blown out. In short, if this isn't an effort to "police" opinion on what's happening with the team, I don't know what is.<br />
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What the hell is "policing," anyway, besides sharing your opinion? You get to do it, but we don't?<br />
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I don't think it's a secret that some Twitter users feel like some of the "elite" or "notorious" Jazz bloggers have a bit of a bully pulpit. There is really only one popular "alternative" source for most of Twitter's core Jazz fans, and it's SLC Dunk. The other fun and insightful bloggers have a good relationship with one or more of the editors/writers on SLCD, and their opinions have begun tracking what's being laid out by the most stat-heavy SLCDunkers because (1) they're well-informed, well-drafted pieces, and (2) it's hard to argue with math, particularly in this everybody-on-Hollingers-nuts atmosphere currently dominating the NBA.<br />
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Look, I watched Moneyball, and I grew up a big Oakland Athletics fan. Stats win games, but players win championships. And I'm not saying I don't like SLC Dunk. I read the Downbeat every day. I hang out with a couple of the contributors in person when I get the chance. I think it's an amazing blog. But I also think the success of the website is starting to get into the heads of at least one of their writers.<br />
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That's all, I think. Wait.<br />
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Oh yes. The first part of the attack on Jerry. After that little eruption, I re-read the original Tweet quoted above and was astonished to see that Mr. Lowman was attempting to bolster his credibility by stating (1) that he subscribes to League Pass; (2) that he owns Utah Jazz merchandise, and (3) that he works for the Jazz.<br />
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My face turned purple.<br />
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One, asshole, I had LP when I lived out of market, too. I had to, otherwise I couldn't watch the Jazz. You live in <strike>Idaho</strike> Indiana.* Congratulations on doing the absolute minimum required in order to watch your team play on a regular basis. And, even if <strike>Idaho is still in the Jazz market and their games are airing through your cable provider</strike> you lived in Utah* but you still had LP, that would mean NOTHING about your Jazz fan hard core street cred dick contest, because you can't watch Jazz games inside the market with League Pass.<br />
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Two, nice work on owning stuff. God knows that nobody can be a fan of something unless they can prove it with signed shoes in acrylic display cases. "Look at all this stuff! I love you! I mean it!" What's that saying about guys who drive huge, lifted pickup trucks?<br />
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Three, you work for FANZZ. That is not the Jazz. Pepsi owns the naming rights to the stadium the Nuggets play in, right? Pepsi also owns Taco Bell. Effectively, you're saying that working at Taco Bell means you work for the Nuggets. You do not work for the Jazz. You sell Lakers and Yankees hats to kids cutting high school. Being a meter maid does not mean you have a position in government. Eat a dick of shame.<br />
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Anyway, I shortly found myself blocked by this young man, and one of his fellow bloggers came to his rescue, telling me that none of what I was quoting was actually anything Mychal said. Well, he did. He said all of it.<br />
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Generally, when I get into a fight with somebody on Twitter, I'm super pissed for ten minutes and then instantly start cracking jokes and admitting where I'd been wrong. I don't like actually being mad at people, particularly regarding something as ultimately trivial as basketball. But I don't think I'm wrong this time. Undoubtedly, some people would be just as happy without my baseless ranting popping up on their Twitter feed. But I like the community, and I like getting into arguments with people because I feel like I'm constantly learning so much about a team I love. Frankly, however, I'm starting to feel like those with good opinions are just staying out of the fray, because they fear people like Mychal making bullshit statements and having his followers back him up, even if it's when he says something as FUCKING RETARDED as "how dare you question me, I own all the logos!"<br />
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I know I shouldn't post this because I'm contributing to a "rival" blog. And if this post, which I'm only posting here, results in USN asking me to fuck off, I'll do it. Because I don't think you should be able to utilize your position as an authority on sweatbands at a Fanzz store, plus the good luck of having landed a great job with an awesome blog, to sweat people after they've apologized for making a mistake.<br />
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Look, dude. You know you're trying to bully people who don't agree with you. Stop it.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">*Apparently Mr. Lowman lives in Indiana, not Idaho, as suggested by his Twitter profile.</span>james petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14862624727805091750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5521184462059041742.post-73423554288146407142013-01-02T10:55:00.003-08:002013-01-02T15:43:19.380-08:00Dear Andrei<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700099733/Utah-Jazz-Andrei-Kirilenko-becomes-US-citizen.html?pg=all" target="_blank">Jeffrey D. Alred, Deseret News</a></span></div>
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There aren't that many former Jazz players I don't mind being booed when they visit the ESA. Yet the list of former Utah players who receive a less-than-magnanimous welcome extends to almost every former player on the team. Boozer, Fisher, Humphries, Matthews, and Williams all have been booed during introductions in Salt Lake. Even Koufos and Korver have a few people who've heckled them just for wearing a different uniform.<br />
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I'm guessing tonight will see an unfortunately vocal part of The Solution's attendees greet Andrei Kirilenko with hostility.</div>
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Sorry in advance, AK47.</div>
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Despite having spent ten productive seasons in a Utah Jazz uniform, Kirilenko remains a hotly debated part of Jazz history. Some argue that AK was too fragile physically to be effective (he played in 681 of 820 possible games, an 83% availability rate). Some argue that his game fell off after the 5x5 era (AK shot 44% from the field in 2003-04, and 50.6% in 2009-10). Others argue that he was too emotional, after having shed some tears while discussing his reduced role in 2007.</div>
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Of course, the biggest complaint was Kirilenko's final contract with the Jazz. After Kirilenko told a Russian newspaper in '07 that he was willing to walk from the remaining $63 million owed him by the Jazz and return to Russia, fans were able to do some math and figure that AK was getting paid roughly $16M per year during his final four years as a Jazzman. That's a staggering number, especially when considered against some of the other contracts on the team.<br />
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And the other contracts on the team weren't a bunch of slouches, either. Deron Williams, Carlos Boozer, and Mehmet Okur were all-star level players, and none of them were making what <a href="http://cdn.bleacherreport.net/images_root/slides/photos/000/926/595/AKtat_display_image.jpg?1304995180" target="_blank">The Back Tattoo</a> was pulling in. And to complicate matters, during the 2006-07 season, Kirilenko's scoring dropped to 8.3 points per game, the lowest in his career. In fact, '06-07 saw AK's lowest numbers in attempted field goals, free throw percentage, offensive and total rebounds, and assists.<br />
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Further muddying the AK retrospective waters is the fact that something rather important happened with the Utah Jazz in 2006-07. They went to the Western Conference finals. Call it a fluke or call it the best team under the LHM group since the statues left, the Jazz knocked on the door of a Conference Championship, only to get punished by the Spurs in five games.<br />
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Even if Utah caught a lot of breaks to make such a deep playoff run with such a young team, something shifted in fan attitudes regarding the resident Russian. He was playing poorly, crying on television,<a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3029816" target="_blank"> telling Russian newspapers he wanted out of the NBA</a> if he wasn't going to be utilized correctly, and <a href="http://www.deseretnews.com/article/635189228/Kirilenkos-wife-encourages-him-to-wander--once-a-year.html?pg=all" target="_blank">straying from the bounds of traditional marriage</a>, all while making more annually than most Utah residents could dream of earning in a lifetime.<br />
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The funny thing about history is you can shape it to prove whatever point you desire. In the paragraph immediately preceding this one, it seems like AK was a real clown and that maybe the Jazz were right to have let him walk.<br />
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Alternately, you could remember Kirilenko like this: a workhorse player who improved every year he was utilized effectively. Sloan is known for asking his players to play their positions and their positions only. Following the end of the Stockton to Malone era, the Jazz had a tougher time fielding the 5-position roster with effective and talented players. The only real bright spot on the team from 2002-2005 was AK47. The kid could shoot. He could block shots. He could steal, he could dime, he could board. He could run the point or frustrate centers. There was literally nothing AK couldn't do in a pinch, and somebody in the Jazz front office recognized that.<br />
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Kirilenko was granted a monstrous contract because he was the only good part about the Jazz for 3 seasons. And when the coaching staff tried to push him back into the small forward box, Kirilenko's game suffered. Can you imagine the Jazz attempting to force a player who can't play a pure Jerry Sloan 3 to accept the role, only to watch him struggle? If you're having a hard time imagining such a scenario, ask Paul Millsap how well he thinks that works.<br />
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Basketball players are human. And Kirilenko responded in a human way: he talked to people, cried a little about watching an otherwise stellar career start to circle the drain, weighed his options, and disappeared for a while. And when he returned, his game had improved. AK posted his best FG% as a Jazzman in 2007-08, his best 3P% and his career high assists per 36 minutes (4.6). He continued to harass offensive players to a degree unlike any other post-Statue era player.<br />
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While AK's play should have earned him a reprieve from fans, the team's subsequent failure to make it back to the Conference Finals kept Jazzlandia searching for a scapegoat. "We can't build around Deron Williams with AK's contract." "Kirilenko is eating up too many minutes." "Andrei is hurt way too often." All of these excuses kept a noisy contingent of Jazz fans opposed to Kirilenko's continued presence on the team.<br />
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It is hard to dismiss a player getting paid huge sums of money only to miss 30% of a season due to a "phantom" injury like back spasms. But for anybody who has ever suffered a soft tissue injury, particularly a chronic one, you know there's nothing "phantom" about it. Yet Jazz Nation scorned AK as a soft player, a label that stuck all the easier since the guy had been willing to weep on camera.<br />
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And the money didn't help. Even as Kirilenko suggested he'd stay with the Jazz on a new contract for nine to ten million per year, fans rabidly called for his head. The brass, they shouted, on this overpaid ninny to request his market value from a team he missed 18 games with in his final season! How dare he!<br />
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So the Jazz low-balled him, and Kevin O'Connor lied on the radio, telling Jazz fans that Kirilenko was only good for 60% of the games played by the team while he was under contract. Kirilenko walked, played in Russia for a while, then signed up for two years in Minnesota. Good riddance.<br />
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Thus far in his inaugural season as a Timberwolf, AK47 is shooting 51.6% from the floor, a career high. He's still good for 1.7 steals and 1.4 blocks per game, along with 3.2 assists. And he's doing it for ten million a year. Marvin Williams, by comparison, is shooting 45.5%, with 0.4 steals, 0.6 blocks, and 0.9 assists for roughly $8.3M. Both players have missed 4 games due to injury.<br />
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I suppose this article isn't going to change the minds of those whose hearts are set against Andrei Kirilenko. But the facts bear out a different history than the one propagated by <a href="https://twitter.com/LostTacoVendor" target="_blank">certain Twitter loudmouths</a>. AK was the heart of the Utah Jazz franchise for three seasons. He earned an All-Star selection and two All-Defensive team selections. He is the only player in the history of the NBA, excluding Hakeem Olajuwon, to post two 5-by-5 games in a single season. Yeah, only eclipsed by HAKEEM F***ING OLAJUWON. Not bad company.<br />
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Andrei Kirilenko represented a new direction for the Jazz, one based on multi-dimensional players with live offenses not limited to pick-and-rolls, but where defense and hustle were still the key playmakers. Only when the Jazz tried to force AK into a role that simply didn't work for him did Kirilenko falter. Once the coaching staff realized they were mis-using a powerful tool, AK47 promptly returned to being one of the most efficient players on the Jazz roster.<br />
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More than any of that: he was a player who, every year, was fun to watch on both ends of the court.<br />
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So boo him if you must, Jazz fans. But know that you look like a real ass doing it.</div>
james petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14862624727805091750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5521184462059041742.post-34339580310966373332012-12-28T16:30:00.000-08:002012-12-28T16:30:10.757-08:00Take It Back<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Today's post brought to you by <a href="http://www.last.fm/music/Face+to+Face/_/Take+It+Back" target="_blank">the pride of Victorville, CA</a>.</span></div>
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After Wednesday night's debacle against an admittedly fortified Golden State squad, it's hard (even for us Jazz Kool-Aid drinkers) not to wonder what pieces the Jazz need to have in place to become a more competitive squad. Foye and Marvin Williams both had off nights, and obviously missing your starting PG is problematic. But the most recent Jazz loss seemed to be the perfect microcosm of all the little things haunting the Jazz this season: slow starts, lack of intensity, settling for jump shots, weak defensive rebounding, etc.<br />
<br />
It would be nice to have another quality point guard on this team. Frankly, if we had a better 1 than Mo, I'd be happy to have Mo off the bench and leave it at that, allowing Burks or Foye to run the offense in a real pinch. But that's not how the Jazz do things. Similarly, there is no real threat at the 2-3 for a take over performance. Burks might get there someday, but he's not there now. And our bigs...well, I think that problem has been discussed <i>ad nauseum</i> already so let's move on.<br />
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Who could the Jazz pick up to solve some of these problems? <a href="http://espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine" target="_blank">ESPN's trade machine</a> is probably breaking right now just from people with 801 area codes. There are a million (well, 420ish) players to consider adding to the Utah roster. And everybody wants to talk about picking up Steph Curry, Dwayne Wade, or Damon Lillard. It's not gonna happen.<br />
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But that doesn't mean we can't speculate. And, as long as we're speculating, let's start with the coulda-woulda-shouldas. The list of former Jazz players spread around the league is fairly impressive, not just in numbers but in talent as well. Assuming personnel issues and injuries aren't a factor and the paychecks are reasonable, here's a short take on the available Jazz alums and how they might affect this year's squad.<br />
<br />
<b>Blake Ahearn (N/A)</b>: 6'2", 190, PG. Last season, Ahearn played four games for the Jazz, and has only played 19 games in the NBA throughout his entire career. Blake is a terrible shooter from the field, with a career average of 27.3%. Not a terrific threat from beyond the arc either (.298). If the Jazz need somebody to fill in for MoW and neither Tinsley nor Watson fits the bill, Blake Ahearn doesn't seem like the answer, either.<br />
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<b>Lou Amundson (MIN)</b>: 6'9", 225, PF. Amundson didn't have much of a run with the Jazz, and is only averaging 8.5 minutes per game (in only 11 games) with the Timberwolves this year. Can't imagine that we'd want this guy over Millsap or Favors; he's shooting 33.3% from the field, 23% from the stripe, and only posting 1.2 PPG and 2.4 RPG. Snoozer.<br />
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<b>Carlos Boozer (CHI)</b>: 6'9", 258, PF. For all the bullocks Boozer gets from Jazz Land, the guy was an integral part of going to the Western Conference Finals with D-Will and Sloan. His game has fallen off a bit, however. This year, Booz is shooting at 53.4% (not bad), 68.1% from the stripe, and collecting 9.2 boards on his way to 13.7 ppg. In contrast, Millsap shoots 51.8% & 71.6% respectively, with 8 boards and 14.7 ppg. Sap has 2.6 assists, 1 steal, and 0.9 blocks per game, however, compared to Boozer's 2.0, 0.8, and 0.5. I'd call this one a wash, frankly.<br />
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<b>Ronnie Brewer (NYK):</b> 6'7", 220, SG/SF. If Ronnie hadn't been traded and traded in such a dickfor way, maybe we still have Sloan and Deron. Just sayin'. Anyway, this season, the Milkman 2.0 is shooting a lackluster 38% from the field, 30.5% from three and 44.1% on his free throws for a measly 5.1 points per 20.4 minutes (0.25 points per minute). If we look at this purely in a Moneyball way, Hayward is averaging 12.9 points in 26.6 minutes (0.48 ppm), DMC is good for 5.3 points in 16.9 minutes (0.31 ppm), and Burks gives you 4.2 points in only 10.6 minutes (0.40 ppm). Cue The Ataris singing the intro to "Your Boyfriend Sucks."<br />
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<b>Derek Fisher (N/A)</b>: 6'1", 200, PG. Let's pretend for a minute that Jazz fans don't hate this guy on principle, because we all know it would be nice to have him back on the team. Fish was good this year for 40% from the field, 37.3% from 3, and 81.7% from the stripe. Add in 2.1 boards, 3.1 dimes and 8.6 ppg, and it's hard to argue that he wouldn't be a better backup PG than Tinsley (39.3%/32.7%/87.5%/2.0/4.9/3.3) or Watson (29.3%/18.2%/57.1%/1.6/4.0/2.0). Granted, Jamaal and Earl have higher assist numbers, but neither can score. Fisher can, and he can do it in clutch scenarios. Boy, it'd be nice to have him back.<br />
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<b>Sundiata Gaines (N/A)</b>: 6'1", 185, PG. Yada hasn't seen any NBA minutes this season, but last year he shot nearly 40% from the floor, 30% from the arc, 56.2% from the stripe while dishing 2.2 assists and scoring 5.1 points in 13.9 minutes. Plus he's young and is willing to adapt to a coach's system. Look, I love Tinsley and Earl is something of a personal hero of mine, but I have a hard time coming up with an argument that supports having two aging backup points when this guy is available.<br />
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<b>Devin Harris (ATL)</b>: 6'3", 185, PG/SG. Devin is coming off the bench in half the games he's played for the Hawks this year. In 23.1 minutes, DH is shooting at a 44.1% clip, 32.4% from three and 60.6% from the stripe. Factor in 2.5 assists and 7.7 points scored, and Harris looks like a pretty solid backup PG if the contract wasn't so absurd. His up-tempo game would fit well with the second unit, to boot. Stupid money.<br />
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<b>Kris Humphries (BKN)</b>: 6'9", 235, F. Besides being famous for having sex with another famous person who was famous for being famous, K-Hump (as I like to call him) has a 46.6 FG%, 66.3 FT%, scores 7.1 points, pulls 7.4 boards, and shows 0.6/0.3/0.7 in assists/steals/blocks per game. These are better offensive numbers (not accounting for minutes played) than Carroll puts up, but defensively Carroll has a slight edge. Favors scores more and is has better rebound/block numbers. Is it worth comparing Humphries to Jeremy Evans? Touch the Heavens is good for 2.2 points and 0.5 blocks in 7 minutes. Given Humphries' minutes, Evans goes to almost 7 points and nearly 2 blocks. Not sure that I'd want Humphries back on our bench.<br />
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<b>Andrei Kirilenko (MIN)</b>: 6'9", 220, F. I'm not going to bother with stats. If AK was getting paid a reasonable amount (I'd go as high as $6 million per year) and could stay healthy, of course you'd want him on the team. I'd have him over Marvin Williams or DMC. Hell, even with the risk of injuries, I think I'd still like to see AK in a Jazz uni again, just to show the kids how to 5x5.<br />
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<b>Kyle Korver (ATL)</b>: 6'7", 210, F. 42.8% from the field, 42.1% from three, 84% from the stripe, 2.8 boards, 1.6 assists, and 9.5 points per game. Puts asses in the seats, lots of them female. Did I mention 42.1% from beyond the arc? Please come back, Kyle. Gordon will only play 2 from now on.<br />
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<b>Kosta Koufos (DEN)</b>: 7'0", 265, C. This clown sharted all over the floor in a Jazz uni for two seasons, landed in Denver a few years later and was suddenly a reasonably talented big. This year, Koof is shooting 59.4% from the floor, 58.5% from the FT line, collecting 6.3 boards, blocking 1.8 shots and scoring 7.6 points in 22.1 minutes. Enes, in contrast, shoots 51.7%/65.9% and scores 6.4 points in 15.3 minutes, plus 4.2 boards and 0.5 blocks per 15.3 minutes. Favors shoots 44.7%/70.3% and scores 9.6 in 22 minutes, plus 3.8 rebounds and 1.6 blocks. Enes is worth keeping around for a while simply because he has such enormous potential and is still so young to the game. I'm not sure that I would be that pissed about trading Favors and some other serious assets for a package that returned Kosta and Ty Lawson.<br />
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<b>Wes Matthews (POR)</b>: 6'5", 220, SG. With 15.6 points per game, a 39.5% three-ball, and 1.6 assists per game, do you want this guy coming off the bench instead of Burks, Hayward, or DMC? No, because you want him starting instead of Randy Foye, who is shorter, smaller, slower, and only gives you 10.3 ppg, 36.9% from three, and 1.8 APG. Up yours, Portland.<br />
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<b>CJ Miles (CLE)</b>: 6'6", 210, G. In 19.7 MPG, CJ is scoring 10.1 points on 38.5% shooting, including 37.6 from three and 90%(!) from the stripe. CJ's good for 2.7 boards, 0.8 assists, and 0.5 steals a game as well. I don't think you give up Gordon Hayward or Alec Burks for this proven inconsistency.<br />
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<b>Sasha Pavlovic (POR)</b>: 6'8", 220, G/F. If you're like me, the mention of Pavlovic in a Jazz uni will make you think, "Oh, right, I guess he was on the team for a season." Anyway, Portland's Pavlovic is effectively a non-factor, with just 2.3 points on 37.3% shooting in 13.2 minutes a game. Hard to see his value above that of Hayward, DMC, or even Kevin Murphy.<br />
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<b>Ronnie Price (POR)</b>: 6'2", 190, PG. I miss Ronnie, and you do too. The dude wasn't on his way to being an all-star or anything, but he was a guy you were glad to have on your squad. This year, Ronnie is good for only 2.9 points in 14.6 minutes, an abysmal three point percentage, and negligible impacts on boards, dimes, or picks. Sadly, while it's fun to feel nostalgic about Mr. Price, we're not missing much.<br />
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<b>DeShawn Stevenson</b> (ATL): 6'5", 210, G. What to say about our 23rd pick in the 2000 draft? DeShawn is shooting at 41.2%, including 40.8 from three, on his way to 6.9 points in 24.5 minutes per game. He also manages an impressive 37.5% from the free throw line (seriously), 3.1 RPG, 1.1 APG, and 0.2 BPG. While it would be nice to have Stevenson's distance, I'm happy with DeMarre and Gordon.<br />
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<b>Deron Williams (BKN)</b>: 6'3", 210, PG. Okay, pretend Deron never got bent about losing Wes, Korver, and Ronnie. Maybe he never has a problem with Sloan, and he's still on the team. Do you really care that he's having a crappy season? Mo Williams isn't a better point guard than D-Will. I'd take him back. You would, too.<br />
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So who do we take back? Fisher, Gaines, Harris, Kirilenko (sorta), Korver, Koufos (sorta), Matthews, and Deron. Too many PG's, obviously, and I'm not sold on Koufos without it being part of a package. Otherwise, here's how my super-alumni backed Jazz would look:<br />
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<b>PG: Deron Williams</b>, Derek Fisher, Sundiata Gaines (sorry Devin Harris and the existing PGs)<br />
<b>SG: Wesley Matthews</b>, Gordon Hayward, Alec Burks/DMC (see ya, Randy Foye)<br />
<b>SF: Andrei Kirilenko</b>, Marvin Williams, DeMarre Carroll/Burks<br />
<b>PF: Derek Favors</b>, Paul Millsap, Jeremy Evans<br />
<b>C: Al Jefferson</b>, Enes Kanter, Kosta Koufos<br />
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That's a full 15-player roster. It's excessive, but it's hard to argue that it doesn't have the makings of a better squad than what we have now. Granted, most of the departed players who "made the cut" left as free agents. But as long as we're speculating, right?james petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14862624727805091750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5521184462059041742.post-36233858458071236602012-12-10T19:30:00.001-08:002012-12-10T19:33:13.608-08:00The Greatest LakerI feel unclean for compiling this data and writing this post, but my curiosity was piqued.<br />
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When <a href="https://www.facebook.com/TheBigShowZone" target="_blank">1280 The Zone's Big Show</a> posted a Facebook poll about who the greatest Laker was, I couldn't help but want to answer. Starting with Jerry West, there have been six players wearing the purple and gold of Los Angeles who are imprinted on the history of basketball in an astounding and permanent way. And because each of these players have been blessed with incredible natural talent in an individual way, it's difficult (if not impossible) to definitively declare the all-time best.</div>
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But, being basketball fans, the easiest way to start this kind of discussion is to look at stats. And so I give you: <strike>AMATEUR NUMBERS IN A PILE</strike> SOME RUDIMENTARY STATISTICS.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCPx-tzAK34oxA2Wyp3noI4XlzXf4cejpsD4fYmv9WZqv3bHUNQNK4Akdcq_PdY-zttAo_S9YPrYaKG-WvjluP7AdXf95RBwLTJcPW1jdxLSNU6teMNlHQG77vqIN_SugclHdS0AK8R27x/s1600/lakers2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCPx-tzAK34oxA2Wyp3noI4XlzXf4cejpsD4fYmv9WZqv3bHUNQNK4Akdcq_PdY-zttAo_S9YPrYaKG-WvjluP7AdXf95RBwLTJcPW1jdxLSNU6teMNlHQG77vqIN_SugclHdS0AK8R27x/s400/lakers2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Some of the numbers here bear explanation. Jerry West shows a pretty miserable chance of landing the Lakeshow in a division championship, but that's because the makeup of the NBA has changed since West's inaugural season of 1960-1961. These changes are also reflected in West's average wins per season. But the Western Conference (formerly Western Division) and NBA Championship numbers are accurate. The only other minor points to note are (1) I didn't include Magic Johnson's 1996 "season;" (2) the current season isn't included in Kobe's stats, but two lockout seasons are; and (3) the 1999 lockout is also reflected in Shaq's statistics.</div>
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Surprisingly, you don't see a different player leading in each category:</div>
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<ul>
<li>Wests numbers are a little wonky as the league was developing. 3rd in ppg, 5th in game availability, last in average Laker wins, last in division champion probability, 3rd in conference champion probability, and waaay dead last in championships per year. </li>
<li>Chamberlain: 1st in ppg, 4th in game availability, 1st in wins, 2nd in division probability, 1st in conference probability, and 5th in champ odds.</li>
<li>Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: 4th in ppg, 1st in game availability, 3rd in division probability, 4th in conference probability, and 3rd in championship probability.</li>
<li>Magic: 6th in ppg, 2nd in games, 2nd in wins, 1st in division probability, 2nd in conference probability, and 1st in championship probability.</li>
<li>Kobe: 2nd in ppg, 3rd in games, 5th in wins, 4th in division probability, 6th in odds to win the West, and 4th in championship probability.</li>
<li>Shaq: 5th in ppg, 6th in game availability, 3rd in wins, 5th in division odds, 5th in conference odds, and 2nd in championship odds.</li>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMxb03YU-ie8Z6P6f_EiDjZBbqEzMtMFsOoCmYtVImMcb2i1hWvzUuh2Fl5ekSAEMbEGJjs0QBWtM5rgCtIYU_NvCf7QEOcNJtk47fEtZLHeahwuZFUzm7F2RCNZV2Bofnsbaqm0is8MlU/s1600/lakers3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="130" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMxb03YU-ie8Z6P6f_EiDjZBbqEzMtMFsOoCmYtVImMcb2i1hWvzUuh2Fl5ekSAEMbEGJjs0QBWtM5rgCtIYU_NvCf7QEOcNJtk47fEtZLHeahwuZFUzm7F2RCNZV2Bofnsbaqm0is8MlU/s400/lakers3.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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If we look at the average rank, Jerry West (with the shakiest of mathematical underpinnings) is dead last at 4.833, which I don't feel that bad about since he only won a single championship. The fifth-greatest Laker is Shaquille O'Neal with a 4.333. At 4.000, fourth goes to the Black Mamba. Third place is Kareem with a 3.167.</div>
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There's a tie for first and second, with both Wilt Chamberlain and Earvin averaging 2.333. But these numbers include career-average point-per-game numbers, which doesn't favor a point guard like Magic. Drop ppg from the metric, and Wilt averages 2.600 while Johnson drops to 1.600 (Kobe and Shaq switch 4 and 5 spots).</div>
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So you see, using some probably-not-good-enough-for-seventh-grade statistical analysis, Magic Johnson remains the greatest Laker to ever play the game. Sorry, Kobe.</div>
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Actually, I'm not sorry. SUCK IT, MAMBA.</div>
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james petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14862624727805091750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5521184462059041742.post-72926754415075461202012-12-06T15:16:00.003-08:002012-12-06T15:29:31.689-08:00Wish List<span style="font-size: x-small;">[Author’s note:
Since I’m now cross-posting much of my content to/from </span><a href="http://utahsportsnet.com/" style="font-size: small;" target="_blank">UtahSportsNet.com</a><span style="font-size: x-small;">,
I guess it’s finally time to abandon my intarwebs-friendly all-low-caps typing
style. What a sad, sad day.]</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Today’s post brought to you by <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WdNqB-FHN30" target="_blank">Jets to Brazil</a>. They’re not that punk, but the lead singer
was in <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aogeXRqhETg" target="_blank">Jawbreaker</a>, so there’s a tie-in to my normal theme in a long-winded way.</span></div>
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As of this afternoon, December 6, 2012, the Jazz are back
to .500 after dropping two in a row on the road, and posting ESA’s first
loss. The loss in Oklahoma City wasn’t
terribly surprising. The loss in Houston
might have ended differently if not for some questionable officiating that
really killed Utah’s momentum. And the
loss against the Clippers, while also featuring some, ah, interesting whistles,
still comes down to the Jazz blowing a 14-point lead.</div>
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David Locke has mentioned during some live broadcasts
that, despite losing three in a row and still showing a lack of resolve on the
road, the Jazz are improving as the season progresses. The problem, from a fan perspective, is that
they’re not improving quickly enough.
After yesterday’s ugly-but-we’ll-take-it win over miserable Orlando, I
was reminded that, while the Jazz are improving, most other teams are still
improving as well.</div>
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After all, we’re still only a quarter of the way through
the season. Teams are still gelling
after major personnel shake-ups in most big NBA towns. You can bet that Tyrone Corbin isn’t the only
coach still tinkering with line-ups.
Players are returning from injury or getting injured. Every team in the league, as far as I can
tell, is still making adjustments for the better.</div>
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What does this have to do with wishing? There are two things on my Utah Jazz Wish
List right now. First, I’d like to see a
team that can hold onto a lead, a team that simply puts its foot down on the
gas in the third quarter until all 48 minutes have been played. I think a lot of fans really wish we could do
that. I also think we would see a lot of
fans give the team a pass for losing to superior squads if we could just crush
the games that we’re “supposed” to win.</div>
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But, when you lose games to New Orleans and Washington
every year, I’m not sure that you can ever have a “supposed to win” game. Eventually, this team will likely get to that
point. Assuming minor improvements
continue throughout this season, Utah should stop losing those
head-scratchers. And once the team
begins regularly winning games it’s supposed to win, that boosts confidence and
increases effort against teams that you might not normally beat.</div>
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So what’s second on my wish list? I hate to alienate anyone here, but it’s that
fans would calm the hell down. Nearly
everyone I follow (Jazz-wise) on Twitter was all fire and brimstone after the
Houston and Clippers losses (including, admittedly, me). This is still a young team, both in average age
and in intra-team relationships, with a young coaching staff, a brand-new GM,
and a young(ish) owner/CEO.<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5521184462059041742#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> The team is going to suffer some embarrassing
losses, but that’s how you learn.</div>
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This applies to both the Trust In Ty faction of online
Jazz Fandom and the Core Four Forever folks.
Jefferson has only been to the playoffs one time in his entire career,
and he’s having to learn how to be on a team that wins more games than it
loses. Even if you think the sun rises
and sets by Favors and Kanter’s future, they are still learning a lot from Big
Al and Millsap (arguably more than they’d be learning if they were doing it by
themselves for 30 minutes a night, but I digress).</div>
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While nobody likes waiting around, the Jazz are going to
have to be patient. But that’s always
been the name of the game with this franchise:
steady, reliable soldiers who are willing to do things the hard way
because it’s the right way. Maybe it’s
time some of us take a cue from the team we love so much.</div>
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<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=5521184462059041742#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
I am aware that Gail Miller, and not Greg Miller, is the legal owner of the
Utah Jazz. Don’t miss the forest for the
trees here.</div>
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james petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14862624727805091750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5521184462059041742.post-23470409398794212282012-11-28T12:30:00.004-08:002012-11-28T12:30:50.631-08:00at the bottomtoday's post brought to you by <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p03JSRyqoY8" target="_blank">brand new</a>, who is kind of growing on me but i also kind of hate.<br />
<br />
it's been a little while since i've updated the ol' HoD. it's not because i haven't wanted to. in fact, i attended all the preseason games and haven't missed a regular season game yet (regretfully, only on television thus far). but things are a little busy on my end, with some personal and professional upheavals that have kept me from banging out any respectable (for this blog) content.<br />
<br />
one tricky thing about getting really into the jazz intarwebs content this season has been that i'm starting to feel like everything is already covered. there's definitely some statistical work that i could drudge through, but frankly it's such a pain in the ass to put those things together without having access to synergy or something similar that i can't bring myself to get into it. i suppose i could string things out over a few days rather than spend 6 hours putting raw data together from a bunch of websites, but by then the numbers have changed and the whole thing is next to pointless.<br />
<br />
and, as far as coverage goes, i think it's common knowledge in jazz twitter land that fans are starting to divvy into two factions: those who want something to happen this season, and those who are looking to the future. for the former, there is cause for grumbling about some of coach corbin's substitution patterns. while this new sit-millsap-through-the-fourth trend suggest ty is willing to ride hot hands, until last weekend we could expect sloan-style substitutions. three minutes left in the first? mo and al come out. four or five minutes into the second? mo and al back in. nobody had a problem with that when it was stockton and malone, because they were <strike>all-stars</strike> <strike>hall-of-famers</strike> immortal gods, but it's pretty obvious that mo williams and al jefferson aren't walking through that door. it's a little frustrating to watch earl throw an alley-oop off a pick, have sacramento call timeout, and see earl sitting on the bench when play resumes.<br />
<br />
as for the latter crowd, they've been bitching about ty pretty much since the lockout ended. the problem, for these folks, is what's referred to as the "OKC model," and means you hand the keys to your rookies and hope things come together in four seasons. looking at where durant and westbrook are now, it's hard to argue that there isn't some merit to the way the thunder have handled their inception. however, given the minutes favors and kanter are getting, i don't think it's very reasonable to anticipate that either of them are going to develop into the next kevin durant--the guy is a once-in-a-generation player. similarly, hayward is showing flashes of being a solid role player, and burks (in absurdly limited minutes) isn't showing shit; neither of these guys is going to develop into the quality of guard you'd get with westbrook (or arguably even harden).<br />
<br />
interestingly, both camps are starting to blame ty corbin for all of the team's shortcomings, in the same week that western media is decrying john embree's canning from colorado after only two seasons. the thought on embree, as i've understood it, is that you can't give a brand new coach two years to turn a starting-over-program around. gee, that sounds awfully familiar. two years ago, the jazz were cruising along at the top of the northwest division until the wheels just totally fell off the whole program. sloan and johnson quit, deron got traded, and a couple of months later, the only guys left from a western conference run were millsap and CJ miles.<br />
<br />
yet, while the new school/old school debate rages on twitter and the jazz blogosphere, both sides seem to be ignoring the real core of what ty's biggest problem seems to be. corbin is running effectively the same system that sloan ran for 20+ years, and everybody recognizes that the biggest problem is when the pick and roll offense/defense isn't clicking, your team is going to blow chunks. the old schoolers won't admit that, while jefferson is a great offensive weapon, there is no pick and roll defense while he and millsap are on the floor. on the opposite side, the core four crowd doesn't seem to acknowledge that burks and favors simply aren't stockton and malone, and even if they turn into all star-level role players, that still only gets the jazz into the playoffs, but not out of round 2.<br />
<br />
the heart of this (rambling) post is this: jerry sloan's system was so successful not only because of the design itself, but because of the players. neither the vets nor the young guys on this team are going to be statues outside the solution, that's a simple fact. and it's unreasonable to expect a coach trying to blend that old-world system with the new NBA to be wildly successful roughly two years into his first tenure. while the debate rages on about new versus old and both sides blaming corbin, i have to think that the only person in the jazz organization who has a realistic chance at blending old and new is the man from south carolina. call me crazy, but the biggest complaints from both sides seem to be dissipating, and criticism of individual players is also beginning to subside. could it be that ty is actually improving? i'm thinking yes.james petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14862624727805091750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5521184462059041742.post-13816418962375740312012-10-10T16:06:00.000-07:002012-10-10T16:06:05.148-07:00league passfor those of you wondering how league pass works, this was my experience. i don't know if things have changed since last year, so keep that in mind.<br />
<br />
when i was living in new jersey, it was difficult to catch any jazz games at all, so league pass seemed like a logical choice. i still had a blackberry, so i didn't get the mobile option, but i think it was free if you were paying for the cable (TV) and broadband (computer) services. i was able to watch multiple broadcasts of games not in the greater NYC market--in other words, as long as i wasn't trying to watch the knicks or nets, i could get the home and away broadcasts of other games. there were many (if not most) nights where i could choose between the FOX/ROOT broadcast being called by boler and harpring, or the opposing team's play-callers.<br />
<br />
the only time i couldn't watch the jazz on league pass in newark was when a local or national station was airing the games. if the jazz were playing the knicks (in NY or in UT) and the game was televised on YES or ESPN, there was no jazz game on league pass on my TV or my computer. similarly, if the jazz were playing miami and the game was on TNT, there was no league pass broadcast.<br />
<br />
unquestionably, the biggest drawback of league pass is the local blackout. if i was visiting family in utah, jazz games were unavailable on league pass, period. while you could suffer through missing the 7-12 nationally televised jazz games (likely via streaming the games illegally or going to the bar) and watch the rest of the season on league pass, there would be no reason to have cable at all for some of us.james petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14862624727805091750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5521184462059041742.post-87613541987964207612012-10-08T20:14:00.002-07:002012-10-08T22:06:16.941-07:00mass nerder 2it took a little longer than i anticipated (partly due to the fact that i spent the weekend <strike>being a total sot</strike> <a href="https://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/541159_548734201974_1085002297_n.jpg" target="_blank">winning the second quinquennial ultimate raingutter regatta</a>), but i finally got around to fleshing out<a href="http://james-jersey-jazz.blogspot.com/2012/10/mass-nerder.html" target="_blank"> last week's schedule comparison</a> for the rest of the teams in the bottom of ESPN's predicted western conference playoff seeds. the images i'm uploading are huge, so it will likely be challenging to read this on a mobile device. but, as you'll see from the amount of data in each image, i couldn't really go much smaller without losing the ability to read what's happening.<br />
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here's <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxOPsdzleENtomfh6IuuU1_LFwtUcFymgj4FMjC54zgK6iQtLm-OZvhHOmQtvARJVP-HcxrFOUjWVlveCB-N26kSUTsH3Fm2AZITNomS5fKNbqbUnHIJLaumPbvkKqFrqHNOu2Y6alAB2h/s1600/UTA_full.jpg" target="_blank">the jazz schedule</a>. light green blocks are short homestands (3 games in a row at home), kelly green blocks are longer homestands (4+ games in a row at home). conversely, pink blocks are short road trips (3 consecutive away games) while red blocks are long road trips (4+ road games in a row). back-to-backs are noted via outline boxes.<br />
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for the sake of including a modicrum of organization, here are the "existing" (as far as espn.com is concerned) rankings for teams 5th through 8th in the west (the jazz were ranked 16th overall, 9th in the west).<br />
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<ul>
<li><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHOOpt0TVx1T3JoERi7-B1IQTROUA0voG2arzOsd3EDcz3YA2SNq83Zvm9ssGBY0GxbRu87fPx5I8Yad3WwTDoL-fX474zr-nnMUs4bZeAKqO6ss-6JjR9snUQucvhLhvyoqCAxEgqA3Z9/s1600/MIN_full.jpg" target="_blank">minnesota timberwolves</a> - ranked 14th overall, 8th in the west</li>
<li><a href="http://james-jersey-jazz.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">memphis grizzlies</a> - ranked 11th overall, 7th in the west</li>
<li><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisYuqVO6zj9ZFZritp3hr_OcidINywi2IYdohYC3MYOA1ZelIcxjSA0YnJZUlvkKBpltp-8iB50_O19h6G3b1m-gcdSgCyRFEsSGvjo0OKMHGTuyu0XEPzCSTgYOF8Hd6aqylweer_tExc/s1600/DAL_ful.jpg" target="_blank">dallas mavericks</a> - ranked 10th overall, 6th in the west</li>
<li><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUIJOiwdLmq-YaK_2W3nxxXbAwv1cJCjAkztMEW2cWI6RiLZUQmsPKA7RLM83ecsDmebpWZLb2cSR3WiK0sQ_wYLMo45YsVCmey7ajn7m5iVZfajQBaKwuLa_b3zv2hNW74nrW0QttmNAd/s1600/DEN_full.jpg" target="_blank">denver nuggets</a> - ranked 9th overall, 5th in the west</li>
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it's difficult to compare these five sets of data against each other in such a large format, so here is just the conclusory goodies from the bottom of each squad's chart:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBLzPCT_66LrUtjTLRK_idSU6h-SBT47o0Wsxkf4g4psmTcdopOZgxGlnXhyphenhypheniRnR_5WlvETei88166ZKEWV-zwwBstH5BcQI6aRAY2QVOhZl4Ai18YbY6CnsVFWIVMLNfudsebwOM9kdSO/s1600/Composite_20121008.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="90" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBLzPCT_66LrUtjTLRK_idSU6h-SBT47o0Wsxkf4g4psmTcdopOZgxGlnXhyphenhypheniRnR_5WlvETei88166ZKEWV-zwwBstH5BcQI6aRAY2QVOhZl4Ai18YbY6CnsVFWIVMLNfudsebwOM9kdSO/s400/Composite_20121008.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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(<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBLzPCT_66LrUtjTLRK_idSU6h-SBT47o0Wsxkf4g4psmTcdopOZgxGlnXhyphenhypheniRnR_5WlvETei88166ZKEWV-zwwBstH5BcQI6aRAY2QVOhZl4Ai18YbY6CnsVFWIVMLNfudsebwOM9kdSO/s1600/Composite_20121008.jpg" target="_blank">view full-size in a new window here</a>)</div>
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as i explained last time, the "trends" listed are based on divvying up the season into 73 ten-game blocks (starting with games 1-10 and concluding with games 73-82). a "home trend (6+)" means six or more games out of ten consecutive games are played at home; "home trend (7+)" is the heavier extension, with seven or more home games played in a set of 10. "away trends" are the same for away games.</div>
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if this still isn't make sense (and i'm not surprised if it doesn't), look at the jazz's info:</div>
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<ul>
<li><b>back-to-backs</b>: the number of back-to-back series the jazz will play. for 2012-13, the jazz have 17 B2B sets (34 games). the percentage refers to the number of regular season games that are in back-to-back sets. 34/82 = 41.46%</li>
<li><b>home blocks (3+)</b>: this refers to the number of home stands (three or more consecutive games at ESA) the jazz will play. this year, it's a total of six.</li>
<li><b>home blocks (4+)</b>: refers to the number of long home stands (four or more consecutive games at ESA) the jazz will play. this year, there's only two long stretches in salt lake city.</li>
<li><b>home trends (6+)</b>: the number of 10-consecutive-game groups that feature more than six home games. the jazz have 25 total. 25 of the 73 season blocks is 34.25% of the 10-game blocks.</li>
<li><b>home trends (7+)</b>: the number of 10-consecutive game groups that feature seven or more home games (nobody in this group has more than 8 out of 10 games at home or away in any 10-game stretch). the jazz have 14 of these almost-always-at-home blocks, which equates to 19.18% of the blocks.</li>
<li><b>home trend runs</b>: the jazz start block 36 (games 36-45) with at least six out of ten at home; block 37 also features at least 6 home games, as does block 38, all the way through block 51. in all, from game 36 to game 60, the jazz play 16 of 25 at home. similarly, from game 66 to game 82, the jazz play 10 of 17 at ESA.</li>
</ul>
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the opposite side of things holds true for the away numbers. as you can tell, super annoying and possibly not very informative. take a moment to ponder everything and head back when things start to click.</div>
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<b><u>back to backs</u></b></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_dTD1SVY0ORaogYrM-kUEWaIS-MK7a_FGWiwXUsiXzwyEGT85bdfib3yRXoXCj8qXV2CtqT3SWPWo0QZdMZ0fVszPaYHHHVg5xFFTENgubA8GLXwYEimgTeS6e1YqR-97cP3rdwY8j1uE/s1600/back2backs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_dTD1SVY0ORaogYrM-kUEWaIS-MK7a_FGWiwXUsiXzwyEGT85bdfib3yRXoXCj8qXV2CtqT3SWPWo0QZdMZ0fVszPaYHHHVg5xFFTENgubA8GLXwYEimgTeS6e1YqR-97cP3rdwY8j1uE/s1600/back2backs.jpg" /></a></div>
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good? then let's get started. the easiest numbers to compare are the number of back to back games, being fairly straightforward and without any 10-game run bullshit involved. when i started compiling this info last week, i thought playing 41.46% of your games as part of B2Bs was an astronomical number. at least from this extremely limited sample, playing twice in two nights seems to be about the median value. the t-wolves are the worst-off team of the bunch, with 22 B2Bs over the course of the season. that's a lot--over 50% of their games will be twice in two nighters. brutal.</div>
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minny doesn't get much rest anywhere either, with 11 B2Bs coming in each half of their season. on the plus side, 3 of the doubles are being played in minnesota, so ricky rubio will get to sleep in his own bed between games. but that still leaves 19 nights where the timberwolves have to play a game, get on an airplane, sleep for a few hours in a hotel, and repeat the next night.</div>
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memphis has the most favorable number of one home/one away B2Bs (13 of 18), with the bulk of their B2Bs coming with one game in front of their home crowd, where everybody else is evenly or nearly evenly split. but the grizzlies are also the only team that has to play the bulk (10 of 18) of their B2Bs in the second half of the season, when injuries are sapping players and energy is running low. minny has to play more in the second half, though, so again a rough draw for Kevin Lovetown.</div>
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my conclusion on the back-to-back numbers is that these teams battling for 5th-8th in the west aren't going to be able to use this part of their schedules as an excuse. everybody is facing almost the same demons, with MIN carrying a moderately heavier load to DAL's barely-easier assignment. if, somehow, the number of two-in-twos ends up being the sole differential between these teams, jazz fans should feel content knowing that the #8 spot would wind up ours.</div>
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<b>NEXT TIME: HOME/AWAY BLOCKS AND WHAT IT MEANS FOR YOUR WEEKEND</b></div>
james petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14862624727805091750noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5521184462059041742.post-46272683845199595222012-10-03T13:03:00.000-07:002012-10-03T13:04:20.311-07:00mass nerder<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">today's entry brought to you by the title-track from the descendents classic, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T9F4k8dZf00" target="_blank">mass nerder</a>.</span></div>
<br />
with the free scrimmage days away, the pre-season in under a week, and regular NBA season games resuming before the end of the calendar month (<a href="http://shop.fxnetworks.com/the-league-fear-boner-t-shirt/detail.php?p=290772" target="_blank">anticiperections</a>, anyone?), it's time to dust off my attempts at breaking down numbers for the Utah Jazz. to make things easy, i figured i'd just start off with <a href="http://www.nba.com/jazz/schedule/" target="_blank">THE ENTIRE SEASON</a>.<br />
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this is, hopefully, going to be an ongoing project. according to the <a href="http://espn.go.com/nba/powerrankings" target="_blank">september 28, 2012 ESPN.com power rankings</a>, the jazz are in the top 16 teams in the league, but aren't making the playoffs. the teams to beat, according to marc stein, to land a post-season spot are presumably the <a href="http://images.profileengine.com/large/423723056/the.most.sweet.and.romantic.gay.guys.on.facebook" target="_blank">t-wolves</a> or <a href="http://cdn.motinetwork.net/demotivationalposters.net/image/demotivational-poster/0907/douchebags-douchebag-jon-gosselin-demotivational-poster-1248957486.jpg" target="_blank">memphis</a>. <a href="http://mayopie.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/butthole2.jpg" target="_blank">dallas </a>and <a href="http://blogol.hu/pikz/fellowship/some_real_crazy_shit.jpg" target="_blank">denver </a>round out the postulated 5-8 seeds in the west; getting a first-round home court advantage means playing up with the clippers or the spurs (no funny images for them because, well, they're both going to be <a href="http://media.photobucket.com/image/recent/hectorbusinspector/TinaTurner-SimplyTheBest-cover.jpg" target="_blank">tough to beat</a>). so, my goal is to post this same breakdown for at least MIN, MEM, DAL, and DEN in the next few days.<br />
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what am i rambling about, you ask? the teams individual schedules themselves. since this isn't last last/lockout year, everybody is effectively on the same playing field in terms of the number of home/away games and opponents faced. but that doesn't mean every team has to deal with the same balance of home and away games. that balance involves stretches played at home where the players (hopefully) have a fan base, they sleep in their own beds, eat where they know is good, see their families, and generally have more time to rest, as compared to the opposite side of the spectrum where teams might go two weeks living out of a suitcase and sleeping on a chartered jet. it's arguable that, for a team like the jazz which likely sits on the playoff bubble, having a rough schedule full of away trips could be the deciding factor for the season. alternately, having a relatively cushy road last january landed the jazz in the west's number 3 spot 5 weeks into the shortened season.<br />
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so how does 2012-2013 shape up for coach ty's squad? besides featuring 17 back-to-back sets (34 games, a whopping 41.5% of of the season's matchups), the jazz can expect 6 home stretches (3 or more games played at home consecutively) versus 7 road trips. of those stretches, 2 of the stay-at-homes are 4 game runs, while 3 of the away kicks feature 4 consecutive contests. fortune does not seem to be smiling on the beehive state just yet.<br />
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to make things particularly insipid to calculate (and unnecessarily difficult to interpret), i also looked at the season in 10-game blocks (i.e. games 1-10, games 2-11, games 3-12, etc.). there are 73 of these slices,starting with 1-10 and concluding with 73-82. looking at the season this way, things remain slightly gloomy:<br />
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<ul>
<li>home game trends (6+/10 at home): 25</li>
<li>home game heavy trends (7+/10 at home): 14</li>
<li>home trend runs</li>
<ul>
<li>games 36-60 (16 of 25 at home)</li>
<li>games 66-82 (10 of 17 at home)</li>
</ul>
<li>away game trends (6+/10 at home): 29</li>
<li>away game heavy trends (7+/10 away): 8</li>
<li>away trend runs</li>
<ul>
<li>games 1-19 (12 of 19 away)</li>
<li>games 28-41 (8 of 14 away)</li>
<li>games 59-71 (8 of 13 away)</li>
</ul>
</ul>
<div>
the season begins rough for the jazz, with 12 of the first 19 games on the road (game blocks 1-10 through 10-19). a brief reprieve of splitting time evenly ends on december 22, when the jazz play 8 of 14 on the road (blocks 28-37 through 32-41).</div>
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but the second half of the season sees much more action at energy solutions arena. in particular, beginning with game 36 (january 7 vs. the mavs), utah plays 16 of 25 on its home court. games 59-71 see the jazz playing 8 of 13 away, but the season closes with the jazz playing 10 of their last 17 at home (10 of 15 if you discount the season's final two games).</div>
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if these ten-game blocks can be used to analyze anything (and i'm not sure that they can), it's a little frustrating to see that only 34.25% (25 of 73) of the blocks are home-heavy, compared to 39.73% (29 of 73) of the blocks featuring 6 or more road games. however, note the "heavy" trends: only about 11% (8 of 73) of the blocks feature seven or more away games, versus 19.2% (14 of 73) of the blocks featuring 7 or more out of ten at home. in fact, only one 10-block of games features eight road contests (games 2-11), while five blocks have eight of ten at home, including three consecutive blocks from 1/14 - 2/8!</div>
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another factor making the early season even tougher for the jazz is the number of games played in calendar periods. i'm not going to get too crazy about this, but the jazz play seven games in the first eleven days of the season, nine games in sixteen days starting 11/16, and six games in ten nights (including five games on the road, four of them in a row) starting 12/14.</div>
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it's difficult to make much of a conclusion about this data so far. once we can compare it to the other teams in the middle of the west, things will be more interesting. but, for now, it looks like we can expect a pretty haggard team through the first week of 2013.</div>
james petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14862624727805091750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5521184462059041742.post-11344509136139514202012-07-17T11:20:00.002-07:002012-07-17T13:44:55.704-07:00dream on<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;">"It'd be a tough one, but I think we'd pull it out."</span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;">and so kobe bryant inflamed an entire generation (or two) of NBA fans when <a href="http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/olympics-fourth-place-medal/kobe-bryant-team-usa-2012-played-dream-team-163639708--oly.html" target="_blank">he told reporters</a> that the 2012 US men's olympic team could defeat the '92 squad. yeah,<i> that</i> 1992 squad. the dream team. the team <a href="http://www.nba.com/history/dreamT_moments.html" target="_blank">some people</a> refer to as "the greatest team ever assembled, in any sport."</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;">a lot of discussion has ensued, peaking (for me, anyway) with <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2012/07/17/opinion/lee-kobe-bryant-dream-team/index.html?hpt=hp_t2" target="_blank">a very interesting story</a> passed around twitter this morning by <a href="https://twitter.com/TrueHoop/status/225245536767320066" target="_blank">ESPN blogger's henry abbott</a>. CNN's shayne lee argues, in effect, that the nature of competitive sports (or even scientists) lends to ever-increasing performance. lee points to historical moments in figure skating, baseball, and dance to support his point, cementing his argument with the intimation that were joe namath in today's NFL draft, he'd sink right to the bottom of round 5.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;">lee ignores, of course, that yesterday's players grew up with yesterday's technology, nutrition, and historical knowledge. it's one thing to say that joltin' joe doesn't get on base today because the quality of players worldwide has increased tremendously, but it's another to suggest that dimaggio would never had been able to hit 100 mph fastballs even had he grown up with them along with everyone else. in other words, who is to say that steffi graf wouldn't be crushing the williams sisters' asses all over the globe had she risen through the ranks with all of the perks of modern training?</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;">kobe stated himself that his team is at something of a physical disadvantage in the paint, what with the dream team featuring the likes of the admiral (7'1"), the mailman (6'9"), and the beast of the east (7'0"). these three guys are the very best, or at least in the top 4 players, to ever play their positions. none of the league's prominent big men are on Team USA. today's team's elite players are all guards and small forwards. well, i don't know if kobe checked, but the guards and small forwards in barca included, among others, these guys named jordan, magic, stockton, and pippen.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;">and further, the numbers just don't play out in favor of bryant's brash prediction. compare the dream team members' 1991-1992 NBA season performance to that of the 2012 crew.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">(<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhRIP1C0yIaQXOSpz1ZfjFIwGqaqn33DLlsxAQ3umhrEdRRnPU4jf4P99_S6BviK1vRqTvQZxnZn_skFphKr3hwlVpTkpnolkn2t2BCvRu976Jx3YDj_sqFyYxgk6Cy6e3lc9eip1RBo5D/s1600/DreamOn.jpg" target="_blank">click here for fullsize</a>)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;">(you'll note i didn't include anthony davis with the current squad. this was for two reasons: (1) the barcelona team only had 12 players while the london squad has 13; and (2) davis' college numbers probably wouldn't provide a valid comparison against a bunch of NBA vets. either way you slice it, davis isn't likely to be a major player at the games this summer, a theory supported by his DNP-CD in last night's game against brazil--a game which, in my humble opinion, showcased how wrong kobe really is.)</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;">because the length of the two seasons was different, it's hard to compare some of the stats straight up. but in terms of the most basic per-game averages, the Dream Team spanks today's clowns all over the court. each 1992 player averaged 1.6 more rebounds, 1.3 more assists, 0.4 more steals, 0.6 blocks, and (most importantly?) 1.6 more points per game than today's guys did this season. the average dream teamer also made it to the line almost half a trip more often than 2012ers did. chuck & friends had higher field goal percentages and took more shots.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;"><br /></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;">the only advantages this year's USA basketball team can claim are at the three-point line, where the average modern player takes more than twice as many shots at a nearly 5% improved efficiency level. but, as the points per game numbers suggest, this lonely area of superiority doesn't make up for shooting less and poorer overall and from the stripe.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;">i'd like to postulate as well that lee missed something else that has changed in 20 years that kobe didn't take into account. the dream teamers wanted to win with whatever team, market or coach they had been given. in contrast, today's silver-spooned all-stars twist the proverbial nipples of ownership to land bigger and bigger contracts in huge markets along with other elite players. modern superstars are amazing athletes, but they're too busy trying to buy their way into chemistry instead of making it happen on the court. disagree? see the miami heat in the 2011 NBA championships.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px;">i'm not a stats genius (haven't taken it since high school, where i don't remember excelling at it), and these simple numbers obviously don't begin to tell the whole story. for the record, i'm not sure that kobe was 100% serious when he made his comment. be that as it may, i take solace in knowing that chuck was likely 100% correct when <a href="http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1256013-charles-barkley-responds-to-kobe-bryants-dream-team-comments" target="_blank">he responded</a>: "[they] weren't going to beat us. that's a no-brainer."</span></span>james petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14862624727805091750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5521184462059041742.post-4896831930397688592012-04-25T15:00:00.001-07:002012-04-25T15:00:06.237-07:00when i get old<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">today's post brought to you by the erstwhile descendents and <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IvrnXpIBQ1k" target="_blank">a song i'm identifying with more than i'd like to</a>.</span></div>
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today on <a href="http://www.1320kfan.com/" target="_blank">KFAN</a>'s "people's court" segment, <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/benbags" target="_blank">ben bagley</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/TPKFAN" target="_blank">tony parks</a> asked jazz fans who they'd rather see utah face in the first round of the playoffs, the spurs or the thunder. i got out of the car and walked into my house while they were tallying votes and missed the final count.<br />
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but before i left my trusty <a href="http://i044.radikal.ru/0802/7a/0c7d7ebc415e.jpg" target="_blank">subaru</a>, bags addressed the several fans who were burning the spurs for being "geriatric" and "one broken hip away" from being totally irrelevant. he mentioned that the spurs aren't really as old as everybody thinks they are. and he's right.<br />
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as you can see, the average age of san antonio's squad is a whopping 8 months older than the average jazzman. and it's not like san antonio is a bunch of really old guys balanced by a bunch of young guys while the jazz have a more balanced spread of birthdates. the median year of birth for jazz players is 1985; for the spurs, it's split between 1984 and 1985.<br />
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even if you consider a player's peak to be age 28, the spurs only have six such "over-the-hill" types (a/k/a "veterans" and/or "multiple-time champions and all-stars") while the jazz have five--not exactly a gigantic difference.</div>
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so the next time somebody says "the spurs are too old to win a championship," tell them that if they're right, the jazz are only about a year away from being in the same position.</div>
<br />james petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14862624727805091750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5521184462059041742.post-81155364601100008652012-04-13T09:32:00.000-07:002012-04-13T09:45:42.962-07:00tell the truth<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">today's entry brought to you by the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OS4T0sCOL_4" target="_blank">best track</a> on hot rod circuit's final album.</span></div>
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things have changed, ever so slightly, in the bottom of the west. see for yourself.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgarNANDKXTt3-maqe8BP7xK5Ics23NIaBMKAKmRCMsIeUpsf80CsLTBmj6v_bls9PhLnhz3tZkRFi1jnZtMKgh00hC2QmfrS14QPBo58Pnc0aGVMSGBE4BdypK9F79N7m3nyFlKL9PrCGI/s1600/2012_04_13_truth.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgarNANDKXTt3-maqe8BP7xK5Ics23NIaBMKAKmRCMsIeUpsf80CsLTBmj6v_bls9PhLnhz3tZkRFi1jnZtMKgh00hC2QmfrS14QPBo58Pnc0aGVMSGBE4BdypK9F79N7m3nyFlKL9PrCGI/s400/2012_04_13_truth.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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obviously, two big things have changed since <a href="http://james-jersey-jazz.blogspot.com/2012/04/take-lots-with-alcohol.html" target="_blank">my last post</a>. one is the 5-6-7 spots shuffling around, what with dallas having beein sorking a cork the last two weeks.</div>
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more important is the fight for the 8 spot. the jazz still have work to do, but in an upset-free next 13 days, guess who's making the playoffs?</div>
<br />james petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14862624727805091750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5521184462059041742.post-85660843202142658812012-04-01T17:19:00.003-07:002012-06-22T09:38:09.316-07:00eating it upi love eating well. one of the things i hated about moving to new jersey was that i left behind 25 years of compiling an impressive restaurant go-to's list. and, now that i'm back, i find myself missing newark's one or two secret gems, plus the plethora of cullinary orgasms housed in hoboken and new york city.<br />
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normally this blog is utah jazz only. but this season, several of the jazz-twitter community types have been trading restaurant tips. i'd been meaning to actually put a list together of my favorite spots, so i took advantage of a recent tweexchange about SLC lunch spots and did just that.</div>
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the information below was compiled with two things in mind: (1) in salt lake city proper (with a few well-deserved exceptions) and (2) lunch spots. most of the joints listed here are also available for dinner, and i've noted those that serve breakfast/brunch as well. my rating is totally from the gut and meaningless, out of five stars. i only listed restaurants i've been to three or more times. the rest should be fairly self-explanatory.</div>
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<div>
<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 395px;">
<colgroup><col style="width: 48pt;" width="64"></col>
<col style="mso-width-alt: 2486; mso-width-source: userset; width: 51pt;" width="68"></col>
<col style="mso-width-alt: 4534; mso-width-source: userset; width: 93pt;" width="124"></col>
<col style="width: 48pt;" width="64"></col>
<col style="mso-width-alt: 2742; mso-width-source: userset; width: 56pt;" width="75"></col>
</colgroup><tbody>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl65" colspan="2" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt; mso-ignore: colspan; width: 99pt;" width="132">Restaurant</td>
<td class="xl65" style="width: 93pt;" width="124"></td>
<td class="xl65" style="width: 48pt;" width="64"></td>
<td class="xl65" style="width: 56pt;" width="75"></td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl65" height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">Price</td>
<td class="xl67">My Rating</td>
<td class="xl65">Neighborhood</td>
<td class="xl65">Alcohol</td>
<td class="xl65">Breakfast</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl74" colspan="5" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">Notes</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
9th South Delicatessen</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">9th and 9th</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">N/A</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="60" style="height: 45.0pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="60" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 45.0pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">NYC-style sammies, complete with matzo ball soup
and Dr. Brown's Cel-Ray soda. But NYC
pricing, so order big to feed two.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl82" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Ahh Sushi</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="border-top: none; height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none; border-top: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none; border-top: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none; border-top: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none; border-top: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="41" style="height: 30.75pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl79" colspan="5" height="41" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 30.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Shares space with O'Shucks bar. Try the Funky Charlie if you don't like raw
sushi.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Al Forno's</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Hit or miss.
Really great when it's on, sub-par when it's off.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Aristo's</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">U of U</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Greek doesn't have to be gyros and souvlaki. Try the skordalia.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Atlantic Café, The</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="40" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 30.0pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">No-frills mediterranean fare. Relaxed, neighborly atmosphere in the
evenings.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
B & D Burgers</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">U of U</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Cheap burgers and shakes. 2-for-1 Tuesdays!</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Barbacoa</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">9th and 9th</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">SLC's original, local-first burrito joint. Better than Chipotle.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Bay Leaf Café</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">**</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="40" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 30.0pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Decent lunch, tastes way better when you're
hammered and they're still open at 2 am.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Bayou, The</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">**</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Bar</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="40" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 30.0pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Always packed and slightly overrated, it's still
the best jambalaya in town.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Big Daddy's Pizza</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="40" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 30.0pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Do yourself a favor and order this pie: chicken,
onions, artichoke hearts, mushrooms, on pesto sauce.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Blue Plate Diner</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">**</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Sugarhouse</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td></tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt; mso-height-source: userset;"><td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="40" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 30.0pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Somehow people love this place for breakfast. I prefer it for lunch.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Bombay House</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">*****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Sugarhouse</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">I've eaten better Indian once in NYC. Enough said.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Boston Deli</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">**</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="40" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 30.0pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Blue-collar lunch for SLC's white-collar
workforce. Good sammies.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Busy Bee</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Midtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Bar</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="40" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 30.0pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Garlic burgers on garlic toast that will give
Cotton Bottom a run for its money any day.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Café Med</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Midtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Yellow curry pasta is amazing.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Café Rio</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">**</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="40" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 30.0pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">I loved this place, then I found out about
Barbacoa. Still pretty good if you
don't want actual Mexican food, I guess.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Café Trang</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">**</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="40" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 30.0pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">A Utah institution, I can't eat here because they
bought out Xiao Li's (SLC's last great Chinese spot) space on 3rd and
3rd. But great food.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Café Trio</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">9th and 9th</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Weekends</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="40" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 30.0pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">A good way to try your hand at semi-fancy
dining. The balsalmic/goat cheese
appetizer is bloody amazing.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Cannella's</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Classic Italian.
Reminds me of Lady and the Tramp.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Canton Village</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">**</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="40" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 30.0pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Dragon Grill is disgusting, both in taste and
hygiene. Order in from these guys
instead.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Cedars of Lebanon</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Mmmmm.
Schwarma and lentil soup.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Christopher's</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td></tr>
<tr height="60" style="height: 45.0pt; mso-height-source: userset;"><td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="60" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 45.0pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">If you need to impress a wealthy client or just
want a perfect steak. Not really a
lunch place but one of my favorite SLC steakhouses.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Cinegrill</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="40" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 30.0pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Sort of a weird place (pink neon lighting?) but
the salad is worth every penny.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Citris Grill</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">**</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Millcreek</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="40" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 30.0pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">My friends love this place. I think it's mediocre at best. Try it if you want.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Copper Onion, The</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Weekends</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Not revolutionary but pretty good foodie spot.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Crown Burger</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">*****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="40" style="height: 30.0pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="40" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 30.0pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">There is no better burger in the United States and
I will fight you if you disagree.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Curry in a Hurry</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">*****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Midtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">I have no words.
I love Curry in a Hurry and you will, too.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Desert Edge</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Great sandwiches and it's a pub, so great beer
too! Try the balsalmic chicken with a
Latter Day Stout. Also, great french
onion soup.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Dodo Restaurant, The</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Weekends</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Bunch of hipster clowns serving you overpriced
food. But it's delicious, so if you
don't mind idiots, stop on in.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
DP Cheesesteaks</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Pretty good cheesesteaks, lots of options if
you're already in the middle of downtown.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Eggs in the City</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">*</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Sugarhouse</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Worst breakfast in SLC. Just awful.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
El Chihuahua</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">**</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Millcreek</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Food here is nothing to write home about. The Deathstar is (you can only order 2).</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Em's Restaurant</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">N/A</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Sunday</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Good foodie grub in the Marmalades, who knew?</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Este Pizzeria</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td></tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;"><td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">The closest thing you can get to a New York slice in Utah. It's not Grimaldi's good but it's tasty.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Esther's</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="44" style="height: 33.0pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="44" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 33.0pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Seems kind of dicey, but this is a great
get-it-done sandwich shop.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Fiddler's Elbow</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">**</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Sugarhouse</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Bar</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Sunday</td>
</tr>
<tr height="63" style="height: 47.25pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="63" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 47.25pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">The 21+ side of SLP&P, this place is totally
overrated and (excluding the prime rib for brunch) the food is rarely
tollerable.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Finn's Café</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">*</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Sugarhouse</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Another breakfast place I don't care for but
always has a line on Sat/Sun mornings.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Gandolpho's Deli</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">A zillion sandwiches. Not crazy good, but I've been eating
there since high school.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Gracie's</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Bar</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Sunday</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Pretty good pub grub. No-pay shuffleboard!</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Greek Souvlaki</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Best gyro in Utah.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Green Pig</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Bar</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">So-so food, great rooftop patio.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Happy Sumo</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Really good sushi at the Gateway.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Hector's (Molcasalsa)</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">*****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Millcreek</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Formerly Molcasalsa, they should have changed
names to "Hector's Super Delicious Mexican Food."</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Hector's Miramar</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Midtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">This place used to be a used car dealership, now
they have amazing enchiladas suizas.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Himalayan Kitchen</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Fantastic weekday lunch buffet, plus a great
evening menu as well.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Hires</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">**</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Pretty good burgers, shakes, and fries. Eat here; the food doesn't stand up well in
"to-go" form.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Ichiban</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">*****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">My favorite SLC sushi.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Koko Kitchen</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">*****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">N/A</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">I could eat the chicken curry udon noodle soup
every day forever.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Kyoto</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Sugarhouse</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">My second favorite SLC sushi.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
La-Cai Noodle House</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Midtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">N/A</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Above-average indochine cuisine at a reasonable
price. Great pho.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Lamb's Grill Café</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Lamb's has been open since the Mormons got to
Utah, I think. Good BLT, so-so french
onion soup.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Little World</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">**</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Midtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">It's hard to find good Chinese downtown, and
Little World isn't a blockbuster. But
it works.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Lucky 13</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Midtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Bar</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Sunday</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">These guys smoke their own bacon and it is
AMAZING. Really great burgers.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
MacCool's</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Sugarhouse</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Weekends</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">The "Irish" fare here is pretty
tasty. But Sunday brunch is where
MacCool's really shines.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Market Street Grill</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Grill/broiler, whatever. Boring but consistently delicious.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Mazza</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">*****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">9th and 9th</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Everything at Mazza will blow your mind. Seriously.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Meditrina</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Midtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Solid tapas joint for pre-Bees conversing.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Mill Creek Café</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Millcreek</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Pretty solid breakfast/lunch joint across the
street from Milosport.</td></tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;"><td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Moochie's</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">*****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Wow.
Cheesesteaks. Meatball parm
subs. Go now.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Murphy's</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Bar</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">SLC's best reuben sandwich, great staff.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
My Thai</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">*****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Midtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">The best Thai in SLC, rivaling only the Thai joint
in Tooele for the state title. Thai
fried rice 4EVAR.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Oasis Café</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Weekends</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Great foodie spot, try the lavendar flan for
dessert.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
O'Falafel</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Sugarhouse</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Kind of overpriced for what you get, but good
falafel (surprise) and decent schwarma.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Other Place Restaurant, The</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">N/A</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
</tr>
<tr height="63" style="height: 47.25pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="63" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 47.25pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">I used to go here when it was too busy at
George's Café (now defunct). Typical
Greek/American greasy spoon with a decent breakfast.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Pago</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">*****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">9th and 9th</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Sunday</td>
</tr>
<tr height="43" style="height: 32.25pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="43" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 32.25pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Go on a date here and impress your significant
other with your knowledge of SLC's sneaky but amazing elite restaurants.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Park Café, The</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">*****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Midtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
</tr>
<tr height="63" style="height: 47.25pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="63" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 47.25pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Best breakfast in town, bar none. Great biscuits and gravy, good bacon, good
potatoes. Solid lunch lineup as well
(try the chili).</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Pat's Barbeque</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Midtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Nationally famous for a reason.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Pie Pizzeria, The</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">*****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">It's not NYC thin crust, and it's not Chicago deep
dish. Once you get past the labels,
it's just so good.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Poplar</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">**</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Bar</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Weekends</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Less-than-amazing lunch, and there's no Uinta
beers on tap.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Red Butte Café, The</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Sugarhouse</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Weekends</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Best fish tacos in Utah? Fight it out with Lone Star Taqueria, I
guess.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Red Iguana</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">*****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Weekends</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">I had dreams about the Iguana while I lived in New
Jersey. Regularly. Try all the moles.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Red Rock Brewing Co.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Bar</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Great mashed potatoes, my friends don't seem to
like this place as much as I do.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Rich's Mighty Fine Burgers</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="62" style="height: 46.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="62" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 46.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">These guys exist solely for the business lunch
crowd, but I bet they expand in the next two years. Great burgers, amazing blue cheese fries.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Robin's Nest</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Sort of</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Awesome sandwiches, and you can order from Cheers
to You next door if you want a pint with your lunch.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Ruby River Steakhouse</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">**</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="63" style="height: 47.25pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="63" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 47.25pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">One step above chains like Outback, I don't know
how these guys perpetually win "best steak" in CW when Spencer's is
1.5 miles away.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Rusted Sun</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Midtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Really fantastic pies and calzones that are
generally traditional but not always (try the Mediterranean).</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Ruth's Diner</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Sugarhouse</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
</tr>
<tr height="63" style="height: 47.25pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="63" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 47.25pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Half the point of eating here is driving out of
the valley to escape the summer heat.
Great biscuits and corned beef hash though.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Sampan</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">**</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Sugarhouse</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">N/A</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Another of SLC's mediocre Chinese spots.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Sawadee</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">N/A</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">I thought this was SLC's best Thai until My Thai
came along. Still pretty good,
definitely better suited to formal/romantic occasions.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Settebella</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">*****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">It's not New York pizza, it's Neopolitan, which
apparently is the traditional pizza form.
Either way, it's f-ing fantastic.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Siegfried's Delicatessen</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Got Spaetzle?
It's the best German deli in SLC.
But I think it's the only one, so that's not saying much.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Squatters Pub Brewery</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">**</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">Weekends</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Decent beers (I prefer Uinta), pretty good
food. Another place all my friends
love and I don't think is that amazing.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Star of India</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">I rate only Bombay House higher. Saag aloo FTW!</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Su Casa</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Barely mexican food, this is more or less straight
from the Old El Paso can but the chile verde isn't half bad.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Sugarhouse Barbeque</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">*****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Sugarhouse</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Pat's might be famous, but SHB is my preferred
source for mac n cheese, collard greens, oh and also brisket.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Tasty Thai</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Midtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Near my house, I want this joint to be amazing
every time I eat there. Yet it's
constantly only pretty good.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Toasters</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Good sandwich selection though a little
pricey. Real Boar's Head meat and
cheese though!</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Training Table</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Sugarhouse</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Hickory burger and an order of cheese fries.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Tres Hombres</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">**</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Millcreek</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">So-so mexican food. Mucho mas bueno margaritas.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Trolley Wing Company</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">****</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="21" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.75pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">A zillion different kinds of wing sauce. Well, 120+.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Uinta Brewing Co.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Midtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Just cold-cut sammies at the Uinta facility, but
there's Cutthroat. Lots and lots of
Cutthroat.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Yanni's Greek Express</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">***</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Sugarhouse</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td>
</tr>
<tr height="42" style="height: 31.5pt; mso-height-source: userset;">
<td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="42" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 31.5pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">On the weird, non-perpendicular intersection of
1300 E & Highland resides this quick gyro gem.</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20" style="height: 15.0pt;">
<td class="xl68" colspan="5" height="20" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 15.0pt;"><br />
Z'Tejas</td>
</tr>
<tr height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">
<td class="xl76" height="21" style="height: 15.75pt;">$$</td>
<td class="xl78" style="border-left: none;">**</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Downtown</td>
<td class="xl75" style="border-left: none;">Yes</td>
<td class="xl77" style="border-left: none;">No</td></tr>
<tr height="63" style="height: 47.25pt; mso-height-source: userset;"><td class="xl71" colspan="5" height="63" style="border-right: 1.0pt solid black; height: 47.25pt; width: 296pt;" width="395">Some folks "love" this place, including the Radio
from Hell staff and numerous sports radio people (all of whom to get paid to
say so).</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>james petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14862624727805091750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5521184462059041742.post-54944548096831964272012-04-01T15:11:00.003-07:002012-04-03T11:46:29.140-07:00take lots with alcohol<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">today's entry brought to you by <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2qlaOybYU3Q">alkaline trio</a>.</span></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
well, here we are in the final month of this truncated season. last week the jazz had a shot (in hell?) of making a big push and landing the four seed. as of today, they sit outside the playoffs entirely. what is it going to take for this team--this real team, not the one that showed up for two weeks then slunk back to let the february crew regain control--to make it to the post season?</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
currently, memphis sits in 6th at 28-22. houston is technically in 7th and denver in 8th, both with a 28-24 record. the jazz are in the nine spot at 27-26. and phoenix is hanging around in 10th at 25-26. assuming there are no upsets for any of these teams for the entire month, the jazz don't make the playoffs. sorry.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
if you waste 30 minutes like i did writing out the remaining schedules for these teams and assume the team with the superior record always wins, here's how things look:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaYLx6bFrN5t07nG794JXMkfzb4r-Kjg8tu4-zDBT6iJbhOsVH2Y-1hLQ5Yvqr-y_P1kOzLz1QDI8GgR9EBCqIopT18w6U4AA3WenBsYaFebQoOZAcURHrlm2AEUEbEgJGJIFrJWHSZHYD/s1600/april.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="283" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaYLx6bFrN5t07nG794JXMkfzb4r-Kjg8tu4-zDBT6iJbhOsVH2Y-1hLQ5Yvqr-y_P1kOzLz1QDI8GgR9EBCqIopT18w6U4AA3WenBsYaFebQoOZAcURHrlm2AEUEbEgJGJIFrJWHSZHYD/s320/april.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">(<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaYLx6bFrN5t07nG794JXMkfzb4r-Kjg8tu4-zDBT6iJbhOsVH2Y-1hLQ5Yvqr-y_P1kOzLz1QDI8GgR9EBCqIopT18w6U4AA3WenBsYaFebQoOZAcURHrlm2AEUEbEgJGJIFrJWHSZHYD/s1600/april.jpg" target="_blank">full size image here</a>)</span></div>
</div>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: justify;">memphis shouldn't move much, with a projected 9-7 finish to stay in 6th with a final record of 37-29. the grizzlies play nine at home and seven on the road through 4/26. but...</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">houston also finishes 37-29, having the "easiest" finish where they should win 9 and lose only 5. but houston has to play eight games on the road and six at home. houston loses the head-to-head tiebreaker as memphis already wrapped up the series 2-1.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">denver would stay in 8th, finishing out 7-7 for a 35-31 overall. like houston, denver has only six home games remaining and eight on the road.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">the jazz just miss the cut finishing their final 13 games 7-6 for a 34-32 overall. seven of these games are at home, and six are on the road.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">the suns look to completely bomb, with a tough schedule that should see them go 4-10 in april to finish 29-36 they split their remaining 14 games evenly at home and as a visitor.</li>
</ul>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
despite their projected 9-7 finish and a 9-7 home/road advantage, memphis has the most to lose in the immediate future (excluding phoenix, who i'm counting out at this point for the sake of brevity). the grizzlies start april with a back-to-back-to-back @OKC, vGSW, and @DAL. then they get one day off before a back-to-back @MIA and vDAL. then one more day off before facing the clippers in memphis. for those with a good handle on standings, that means memphis should lose five of their next six before they face the inferior suns. but of MEM's final eight games, the only one they should lose will be the season closer against the magic.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
houston should lose their next three in a row but then it's smooth sailing through 4/26 excluding a 4/18 contest in dallas and a 4/22 game in miami.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
denver, on the other hand, should lose to the magic today then win five in a row before things get rough to close the season. starting 4/13 against the lake-show at staples, the thuggets are likely to lose six of their final eight. the only bright spots in late april for denver are a 4/21 game in phoenix and the season closer at minnesota.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
that brings us to the jazz, who <i>should</i> win (knock on wood) their next three, lose three, then more or less trade W's and L's for the rest of the season. the biggest detriment to the jazz are that they don't have many games that are paper losses but could be wins: utah faces SAS twice, houston, memphis, dallas, and orlando for their projected remaining losses. which, to some degree, puts utah's fate in its own hands. besides beating inferior-record teams, utah's best shot at the post season requires at least toppling houston and memphis. that brings each of those teams down to 26-30 (still a "tie" for sixth but with memphis retaining the tie-breaker), and ties the jazz with denver for 8th. but the jazz own the head-to-head tie-breaker over denver so we'd sneak in.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
basically, with roughly a quarter of the season to go, the jazz can't afford to make any mistakes. but with a little luck and doing what they're supposed to do, the playoffs aren't impossible at this point. one spurs game, one dallas game, and one orlando game are at ESA so an upset there is possible as well.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
but it all has to start tomorrow in portland. let's hope wes and friends are ready to throw in the towel.</div>james petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14862624727805091750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5521184462059041742.post-92015650093850335092012-03-21T13:24:00.001-07:002012-03-21T13:57:39.972-07:00the end<span style="font-size: xx-small;">today's entry brought to you courtesy of <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UwIF95svGp0">a band that has wussed out </a>harder than almost any other band i can think of.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;">
The Jazz are half a game out of the playoffs right now,
and, as <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/sluhm/status/182535492800225281">Steve Luhm</a> pointed out earlier on Twitter, only two and a half games
out of the number four spot, giving them home-court advantage in the first
round. There are twenty games remaining
before the post-season, and thankfully for Utah fans, the schedule for players
in a note jersey could be much more terrifying.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;">
Utah does play 11 of the final 20 on the road, and 8 of
those games are back-to-backs. Certainly
the most terrifying of those back-to-backs is playing the Spurs in Texas on
April 8<sup>th</sup>, then having to face them the next day at the ESA. But otherwise, the schedule should be
manageable should Corbin continue leading his team down this frankly astounding
post-All Star break path:</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span>There are ten remaining games against teams with
records currently worse than the Jazz (3/22@SAC, 3/26@NJN, 3/30vSAC, 4/2@POR,
4/4vPHX, 4/6vGSW, 4/13@NOH, 4/18@POR, 4/24vPHX, 4/26vPOR).</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span>There are four games against teams currently
with superior records but by a margin of two or less games (3/23vDEN, 3/28@BOS,
4/11@HOU, 4/14@MEM).</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span>That leaves the Jazz with six games against
division and conference favorites (3/25@ATL, 3/31@LAC, 4/8@SAS, 4/9vSAS,
4/16vDAL, 4/21vORL).</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: .25in;">
There are a
bunch of reasons why I feel this schedule should work to Utah’s advantage. First, the final three games of the season
(ORL, PHX, POR) are all played in Salt Lake City, with plenty of rest to prep
for both the Magic and Suns games. Dwight
and the Magic also have a nice break before the April 21<sup>st</sup> game
(both UTA and ORL play their previous game on the 18<sup>th</sup>), but while
the Jazz only have the short flight from Portland home, Orlando has to travel
from Boston (and play at altitude late in the season). This travel advantage doesn’t translate for
the Phoenix game, unfortunately.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: .25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: .25in;">
Second, the
Jazz play their toughest road games in the next two and a half weeks, starting with
Atlanta on Sunday night. This is good
news considering the wave of excitement and energy (not to mention wins) the
Jazz are currently enjoying. The Jazz’s final
three games against the league’s best are all going to happen on 300 West and
South Temple.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: .25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: .25in;">
Third, of
cellar-dwellers and teams slumping in that direction, the Jazz get a nice
handful of such teams late in the season.
Barring a bunch of New Orleans moments (why must we play down, why??),
there should be a gang of relatively easy W’s.
We have two games against the 17-29 Kings (3/22 and 3/30), one against
Deron and the 15-32 Nets (3/26), one against the 18-25 Warriors (4/6), one
(revenge) game against the Hornets (4/13), and three against poor, poor put-a-bird-on-it
Portland (4/2, 4/18 and the season closer on 4/26). That’s eight gimmies if the Jazz can keep
their heads on straight.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: .25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: .25in;">
Fourth,
assuming the Jazz beat only the worst inferior teams mentioned in point three
above, split with similar teams, and take home two wins against the big boys,
that’s 12 wins to close out the season and the Jazz end up with a .545 record. That alone is good enough to bump Denver out
of 7<sup>th</sup> right now. But that
assumes the Jazz can’t top the Suns in one or both of their in-Utah meetings. Taking two of the games against Denver,
Boston, Houston or Memphis is modestly realistic. Three of those four games are on the road,
and Denver likely hasn’t forgotten their home loss to the Jazz back in
January. Playing in Boston is tough
(<a href="http://james-jersey-jazz.blogspot.com/2011/01/hashtag-jazzfail.html">such an amazing arena and fans!</a>).
Houston and Memphis are, obviously, the most available games of that
group of four. And of the big boy games,
Atlanta and the Clippers are not invincible, plus we get three at home. Considering all of this, let’s assume the
Jazz win 9 of 10 against worse-record contenders (we’ll say Nash snags another
W), beat HOU and MEM, and somehow manage to win four of those six elite-team
contests. Now we’re talking about a team
that finishes 39-27. That’s a .591
record which bumps the Clippers out of forth (currently at .578). Obviously that’s a best-case scenario and probably
not all that likely. But it’s also not
impossible.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: .25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: .25in;">
Finally,
assume that the three current playoff teams within two games of the Jazz (HOU,
DEN, MEM) continue on pace through the rest of their games. To get to fourth, the Jazz need to best those
three plus Dallas and the Clippers.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span>The Clippers are 6-7 (.462) since March 1, a
pace good enough to land them between Minny and Portland for the year. The Clippers have 21 games remaining; if they
step up a bit and finish 11-10 that’ll put LAC at 37-29 going into the playoffs. That’s a .560 record on the season, slotting
them between Memphis and Denver. 11 of
the remaining 21 games are on the road, though April is far more road heavy
than March (9 of 14 April games are on the road). They have ten back-to-back games remaining as
well. However, it’s entirely possible
that the Clippers turn the ship around (ha!) and return to form, as they only
face 6 top-tier opponents before the post-season (but only 7 lotto-bound
franchises).</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol;">·<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span></span>Currently Dirk and the crew are riding a 4-game
win streak (including a 17-point blowout of Denver at The Can on Monday), but
they also have lost 8 of their last 14.
The reigning champs are still a savvy team, and more likely than not,
this streak is the beginning of a serious push to land a division title and
home court advantage. But the nature of
DAL’s remaining schedule favors a more modest picture. Dallas has 19 games to play, with 7 of those games
against top-4 teams. 11 of the 19 are
away games for the Mavs, and 10 are back-to-backs. Dallas does still get to see ten games
against sub-.500 teams, but six of those games are on the road, and two of them
are against the Knicks (if that means anything).</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .25in; text-align: justify;">
Between
these two teams, I think the Clippers probably don’t hang on to the four spot
in the West. Given the remaining
schedule and the recently blasé ball, they don’t stay 7.5 games ahead of the
Jazz for long. The Mavs are more likely
to continue with their existing pace, if not improve their winning percentage.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .25in; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .25in; text-align: center;">
***</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .25in; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .25in; text-align: justify;">
So what’s the takeaway here? A <a href="http://top-people.starmedia.com/tmp/swotti/cacheYWX5C3NHIG1PBGFUBW==UGVVCGXLLVBLB3BSZQ==/imgAlyssa%20Milano2.jpg">good</a> close to the season puts the Jazz at
.545; a <a href="http://static.fjcdn.com/comments/love+_9847611efef6bdad805a5e2ed9725591.jpg">great</a> close wraps up at .591 (see point four). It’s unlikely that Houston, Denver, or
Memphis is going to surge much at this point, and the Clippers are trending
downwards. So to see a Jazz team that
ends the season in fourth in the West, there are two things will suggest the
gods are smiling on The House That Larry Built.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .25in; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .25in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .25in;">
First is to see the Mavs struggle as the season winds down. That .591 record is good enough for the Jazz
to push the Mavs out of the top four by itself, but with the more realistic
.545 Denver is going to have to finish 9-13 (not to mention that .545 isn’t
enough to move past Memphis). For a team
with Dirk and the Jet attempting to repeat a championship, that’s not terribly
likely.</div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .25in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="margin-left: .25in; text-align: justify; text-indent: .25in;">
The other will be to see the Jazz win one or both of the back-to-backs
against the Spurs. Those two games are
games 11 and 12 of the 20 remaining, and the Jazz’s final back-to-back. Beating the #2 team in the West obviously
would be a huge ego boost going into the final stretch, where the Jazz are
likely going to be controlling their own destiny as to who they will face in
the first round. If the Jazz can beat
SAS twice, it makes finishing sixth or seventh much less intimidating and gives
us momentum going against (likely) them in round one. Lose both of them, and it seems that the .545
record is going to be a tough nut to crack.</div>james petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14862624727805091750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5521184462059041742.post-62670510460666115672012-02-09T12:17:00.000-08:002012-02-09T12:17:08.041-08:00making friends<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">today's post inspired by <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwNSvX83NDg">lagwagon</a>.</span></div>
<br />
when <a href="http://james-jersey-jazz.blogspot.com/2010/12/youre-better-off-without-him.html">i started blogging</a> about the jazz roughly 14 months ago, i wasn't exactly sure what my angle was going to be. <a href="http://www.utahjazz360.com/wp-admin/post-new.php?custom-write-panel-id=12">i had tried out for one of the jazzbot positions</a> and made it through the preliminary round of submissions. when i was interviewed on the phone in the second round, derrick asked me a question: "what will set you apart from the other jazzbot writers?" even though it was a pretty simple question (and one that i should have anticipated), i didn't have are ready answer. i vaguely remember sputtering out something about having a fan perspective from <a href="http://media.nj.com/star-ledger/photo/2011/12/10363021-large.jpg">another large-market team's home base</a> and being a <a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/7/71/StepByStepOpening.jpg/265px-StepByStepOpening.jpg">second-time-around</a> jazz fan. i solidly remember not being offered the jazzbot position, and it didn't take me long to figure out why.<br />
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this blog has been, for the most part, pretty scattered in its focus. it's more of a <a href="http://james-jersey-jazz.blogspot.com/2010/12/weekender-andrei-o-fish.html">diary of my experiences</a> and <a href="http://james-jersey-jazz.blogspot.com/2011/12/wore-out-soles-of-my-lockout-boots.html">unfiltered thoughts on the jazz</a> than any of the publishable-quality posts you see at the premier jazz blogs (namely <a href="http://www.slcdunk.com/">SLC dunk</a> and <a href="http://www.saltcityhoops.com/">salt city hoops</a>, along with the jazzbots and jazznots at <a href="http://www.utahjazz360.com/">utahjazz360</a>). i don't have much of an end game in mind, and while i've <a href="http://james-jersey-jazz.blogspot.com/2012/01/its-not-over.html">dabbled in some stat work</a>, i'm coming to terms with the facts that (1) i'm not great with math or excel, and (2) my understanding of the game of basketball itself is, shall we say, <a href="http://cache.thisorth.at/00000/00167/048.460x325.jpg">less than perfect</a>.<br />
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fortunately, the experience hasn't been a wash. somewhere along the lines i figured i could fuse my experiences as <a href="https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/5850_508574582174_187300437_30340317_466129_n.jpg">an aspiring punk rock musician</a> with my passion for LHM-related basketball, and it's clicked for me today why that parallel seemed so obvious and easy. while i've been trying to make this blog something people will be willing to read without smashing their monitor in disgust, i've also had the pleasure of being welcomed into the jazz fan community with open arms via twitter. for those of you who are/were a part of a serious underground/counter-culture movement or scene, you know how rare it is to find community in something that seems, facially, universally accessible and bereft of deeper meaning. i had that kind of connection through music in high school and college; i'm finding it again through the utah jazz.<br />
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it's eerie how similar the larger families of punk rock and jazz basketball are. effectively, once you know a few of the buzzwords and how to swing the lingo around, you're in. with punk rock, it was appreciation for <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gEl1xSPyOwA">bad religion</a> and the <a href="http://www.kingsroadmerch.com/files/image/original/5/2/3/5232.jpg">descendents</a> that got me past "<a href="http://images.sodahead.com/polls/000343531/polls_hot_topic_2230_859078_answer_2_xlarge.jpeg">poser</a>" status when meeting other band kids, even though we were all photocopying green day and nofx <a href="http://thesis.mekerr.com/now%20start%20a%20band%20tee.jpg">song structures</a>. as i grew older and started meeting people with <a href="http://www.occupyforanimals.org/uploads/7/7/3/5/7735203/872496_orig.jpg">more sophisticated tastes</a>, referencing the fugazi catalog and understanding the relationships between fat wreck chords artists more or less guaranteed you an inner-circle spot among active SLC punk rock musicians, even if i was more into <a href="http://www.brokenheadphones.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/tk.jpg">social distortion-inspired pompadours</a> than circle jerk <a href="http://seejanenurse.files.wordpress.com/2010/06/pink-bondage-pants.jpg">bondage pants</a>. ultimately, <a href="https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/337_504498460754_187300437_30221051_7656_n.jpg">opening for guttermouth</a> (or whatever other 40-somethings pass through the shittiest dive in salt lake) seals you as a member of the fraternity of serious punk rock fans, and you get that badge forever, even if you take <a href="https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/260137_521595518114_187300437_30632474_5957570_n.jpg">your gauges</a> out, <a href="https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/6090_508988772134_187300437_30359331_6803810_n.jpg">get married</a>, and <a href="https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/252119_521308692914_187300437_30628033_6927472_n.jpg">move to new jersey for law school</a>.<br />
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i'm seeing the same pattern happen to me within the jazz fan community; going from a guy who watched deron's first few seasons with something between hope and disinterest, and having that blossom into having things like an autographed millsap jersey on my wall, and actually making new friends. i've been fortunate enough reconnect with <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/Clintonite33">a cousin</a> i hadn't seen in well over a decade, score amazing tickets to some of the year's best (so far) home games, and feel like i'm a part of something that shouldn't matter because it's "just a business." but that's the fun thing about this jazz team and supporting it--it's not just a business. it's a team that, despite its early stumbles, is showing <a href="http://www3.pictures.zimbio.com/gi/Earl%20Watson%208tAoWfJAk9Um.jpg">willingness to back each other universally</a> and fight hard when it has to. that kind of camaraderie is something i've missed since leaving my last band almost four years ago.<br />
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maybe this jazz team doesn't make the playoffs this year, and maybe they don't win another game on the road for a month. maybe millsap and CJ, the two longest-tenured jazzmen on the roster, get traded for <a href="http://www.celticstown.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/ray-allen-jump-shot.jpg">an old man from boston with an outside shot</a>. i don't know how things are going to play out. but, i do have to say, just being a part of it, with a bunch of other people who also simply love being a part of it, has been pretty amazing so far.james petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14862624727805091750noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5521184462059041742.post-4178571327464185652012-02-06T13:47:00.000-08:002012-02-06T13:47:35.847-08:00cool kids<span style="font-size: xx-small;">today's post brought to you by <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QBWpWSKjTbU">screeching weasel's timeless classic</a>.</span><br />
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the hubbub on the intarwebs over the last few days regarding which jazz players will go to the all-star game seems to converge on two points. first, jefferson isn't going to go and millsap is a bit of a longshot. second, at least one of the jazz rookies/sophomores should be in orlando come the final weekend of february.<br />
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but there are questions within that second point, as the annointed youth isn't being discussed as deserving a trip to florida to play in the actual rookie-sophomore game. rather, jeremy evans has <a href="http://p.twimg.com/AhSD3VpCAAAvvDT.jpg">illustrated his dunking prowess</a> time and again, to the point of <a href="http://hangtime.blogs.nba.com/tag/matt-harpring/">garnering national attention</a> and inspiring <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3SEo-jlPqA">an online campaign</a> furthering his inclusion in the dunk contest titled, fittingly, #LetJeremyDunk.<br />
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despite the momentum behind jeremy "elevator" evans (i refuse to acknowledge this "human pogo stick" moniker), some of the jazz faithful have been wondering whether some of the ESA's other underclassmen should be making an appearance in the Rising Stars Challenge on the first night of all-star weekend. while i think gordon hayward probably should be in that game, i'm not sold on any of the other junior jazzmen as shoe-ins. but the ongoing conversation did get me thinking about what the can't-rent-a-car-yet jazz players have been doing so far this year.<br />
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the stats in the images below represent the basic production numbers from the rookies and sophomores on this year's jazz squad: gordon hayward, derrick favors, enes kanter, alec burks, and jeremy evans. the top matrix in the image below shows the total numbers put up by those five per each game, and the second grouping has those numbers averaged out in a few different ways.<br />
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my initial idea was just to look at the rookie/sophomore player production from the first half of the existing season against the second half, and those numbers aren't terribly encouraging by themselves. the only categories to see improvements by the jazz youth are points per game and steals. fouls committed dropped nearly a whole foul per game, but that could be attributed either to smarter play or softer defense--a determination i'll have to leave to the synergy crowd. all other basic categories (field goal percentage, rebounds, assists, blocked shots, blocks allowed, and assist-to-turnover ratio) have seen a slight decline from the utah youngsters. the only stat not to make any change at all as been turnovers, with the rookie/sophs averaging 4.36 on the season and in both the first and second half of games played.<br />
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but there are some serious signs of good things from the the youth on the roster. the youngest jazzmen actually play arguably better offense on the road, with increased points per game despite a lower field goal percentage--a pair of stats that means gordon & co. are driving and picking up fouls while they're out of town. similarly, the kids up their assist game on the road by 1.5 per game, get more steals, turn the ball over 40% less often, with the resulting road assist-to-TO ratio sitting at an impressive 1.9 versus 0.75 at home. it seems likely to me that the starters and vets on the team are making the bigger plays at home, whereas the young guys are gritting it out in garbage time on the road.<br />
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which, by the way, is fine with me: if the bulk of away-game playing time our young guys see is in down by 20 in the fourth, and they still come out strong, so much the better. in april of last year, the only hope we had as jazz fans was that the team would improve and build. at this point in the season, the youth on the roster remains committed to playing 48 full minutes, even if they're actually only playing 4 late in the game. the two biggest W's at the ESA (that i saw in person) in terms of lop-sidedness this year were the january 10 cleveland game and the january 17 clippers game. both of those games showcased a second unit from the visiting team more or less give up somewhere in the fourth. the jazz's rookie/soph road numbers do not reflect that kind of attitude.<br />
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the rest of the numbers require a more in-depth analysis than i have time/talent for. but for those of you who are keeping tabs on the long-term future of the jazz, these numbers might be a fun start for you. i'd be happy to email the spreadsheet to anyone who wants to play with the numbers themselves, just leave a note in the comments.james petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14862624727805091750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5521184462059041742.post-15659402107162656782012-01-24T15:09:00.000-08:002012-01-24T15:48:12.134-08:00it's not over<span style="font-size: xx-small;">today's post inspired by what is possibly<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDfaMCgXhYQ"> the greatest single punk rock song</a> of all time.</span><br />
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so we're a quarter of the way through an NBA season that has seen the jazz go from inspiring thoughts of a season of terror to inspiring dreams/delusions of grandeur. one thing is for certain: december 2011 did not show the jazz roster playing to their potential. with that in mind, i put together the jazz's numbers to compare the season in groups of five games.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">(<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmrrngyzKeGJYdykJw_Us7UlMOz-rd0pfROw1SBBh2Macvgk11cxDY6r7RkjppzemFaKB9eMUEYp7xbxvKuih-JqKocMMHA3gNb0h3CcGiFkfc3vzf7LdwdEKsHrd3AaEkaYb73HLKgpMK/s1600/Games1-15.jpg">click here for the full-sized image</a>)</span></div>
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the easiest way to break these numbers down is to compare the season in thirds; i'll be referring to the stats from games 1-5 as being from "1T," from games 6-10 as from "2T," and from games 11-15 as from "3T."<br />
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the most encouraging numbers, of course, are to look at the the production purely in terms of shooting. the 1T jazz scored 91.2 points per game on just over 42% shooting; 2T jazz scored 93.4 ppg on 47.3% shooting; and the 3T jazz averaged 104 ppg on 48.4% shooting. that's a 12.8 ppg bump and a 6.4% increase in efficiency.<br />
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less positive are the long-range numbers, at least in some sense. the jazz started with 15.2 three-point attempts in 1T, dropped to 12.2 three attempts in 2T, and are down to 11 three attempts in 3T. the plus side here is that the percentage of threes made is improving. through the first five games, the jazz shot only 26.9% from beyond the arc, dipped a bit moving forward to 26.34% in 2T, and improved to 33.32% in 3T. while a nice step forward, according to nba.com's sortable team statistics, boston is leading the league with 41.1% 3-point shooting. on the season, the jazz are shooting just 28.85% from deep, which is good enough for 27th in the nba. even looking only at the last five games, 33.32% from three is only good enough for 18, still in the bottom of the pack.<br />
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as for free throws, it's a mixed bag. in 1T, the jazz were shooting 73.32% from the charity stripe. things got worse through the next five games, with FT% dropping to an abysmal 68.04% (in comparison the clippers, at 66% on the season are second to last on the year). but that has turned around for now, with the jazz shooting 79.22% in 3T, which would put the jazz third in the league against the season averages. the upside of the free throw numbers is utah's ability to impact those percentage numbers, with the 1T jazz only making it to the line 24.6 times per game, 26.2 attempts in 2T, and 27 attempts per game in 3T.<br />
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on the boards, the jazz continue to improve, going from 41.2 rpg in 1T, 42.8 rpg in 2T, to an impressive 45.6 rebounds per game in 3T. the pacers currently lead the league in glass-cleanery at 45.4 rpg, giving the recent jazz numbers league priority against all other teams' season averages. the jazz's offensive rebound numbers haven't changed too much, going from 11.6 to 10.4 and finishing with 12.6 per game. the defensive board numbers are marching steadily highward, with only 29.6 in 1T, 32.4 in 2T, and 33 o-boards per game in 3T.<br />
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assists have improved, but seem to be plateauing to some degree. in the first five games, utah only averaged 14.2 dimes per game. currently, the kings are dead-last in the league in assists with 15.56 per game, so those first five jazz games look pretty terrible in comparison. but the 2T jazz made it up to 22.4 assists per game, and 3T showed 22.6 per game. the season high 5-game assists average for the jazz thus far has been 25 per game in games 8-12. denver currently leads the league in assists per game with 24.47; the jazz aren't putting up stockton-era assist numbers per game but the last seven or eight games at least have them among the top five or so teams in the league.<br />
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fouls committed haven't changed in any appreciable manner, starting with 23.4 in 1T, staying static in 2T, and dropping a hair to 22.6 in 3T for a season average of 23.13. that season average is the third-highest in the league, by the way. the lowest fouls committed in a five-game stretch by the jazz was during games 4-8, with 21.6 per game, which only bumps the jazz down in the fouls standings a handful of spots.<br />
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i've got a discrepancy in my steals numbers versus what the nba website says; i have the jazz averaging 7.87 per game, while the league's numbers say 8.4. to eschew the appearance of bias, i'll proceed with my own lower numbers. the 1T jazz averaged only 7.02 steals per game; the 2T team improved slightly to 7.4 spg,; and the 3T jazz jumped way up to 9.2 takeaways per contest. 9.2 steals per game puts the jazz in seventh in the NBA overall-not bad for a team who was sorely lacking on defense last year.<br />
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with block numbers, things aren't moving in a great direction lately. 1T jazz blocked 6.6 shots per game, the 2T jazz blocked 7.6 per game, and the last five games only had the jazz swatting 4.4 shots per contest. on the season, the jazz sit third in the league with 6.2 blocks per game. these recent lower-blocking games have come against teams with some pretty efficient big men, including denver, dallas, and minnesota.<br />
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finally, the turnover numbers have the jazz settling into the season average. 1T jazz turned the ball over 12.4 times per game; 2T jazz had 14.4 turnovers, and the 3T jazz slipped 13.2 times per game. on the season, the jazz are allowing 13.33 turnovers between the tip and the buzzer. which, by the way, is a pretty solid number, with only two teams holding onto the ball better (ATL and PHI).<br />
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i suppose the takeaway here is that the jazz are generally improving. a lot of people are reminding each other (and the national media) on twitter that the first five games are looking more and more like an aberration against the rest of the jazz season. that's fine, but it's important to remember that since january 1, the jazz schedule (and opposing injuries) has been very beneficial to the utah club. but, unlike the past few seasons of jazz basketball, the jazz aren't playing down to "inferior" teams and are winning the games they're supposed to win. february is going to be tougher, and march/april will both be pretty brutal. but for those of us who only asked the jazz to improve over the season, we're certainly getting our money's worth through this first quarter of the season.<br />
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not too shabby.james petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14862624727805091750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5521184462059041742.post-4822215101447927782012-01-23T13:47:00.000-08:002012-01-23T13:47:06.819-08:00predators<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />james petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14862624727805091750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5521184462059041742.post-19329423110764259682012-01-16T09:54:00.000-08:002012-01-16T10:17:24.873-08:00what's your name?today's post brought to you, surprisingly, by NUFAN again, with <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8PLQK0Gu2Jk">the first cut off 1997's "making friends."</a> first five seconds of the song <a href="http://www.comicbookmovie.com/images/users/uploads/10959/633710907085182960-boobs.jpg">NSFW</a>.<br />
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been a crazy month, and i don't have a ton of time right <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mXPeLctgvQI">meow </a>to do a big update but i wanted to do two quick things.<br />
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first, i know it's still early in the season for all the teams, and the jazz have had a bunch of home games, and we haven't had any serious injuries, and there are a million little qualifiers here...but the utah jazz are kicking ass and taking names. they are doing exactly what they need to do without a go-to finisher or whatever you call the <a href="http://www.uniquemedicaltoys.com/catalog/images/product_images/bulb-douche-syringe-12oz.jpg">wades</a> and <a href="https://img.buycostumes.com/mgen/merchandiser/21774.jpg">dirks</a> of the league: playing team ball. saturday's nets game was a blast (even from row 19 in the upper bowl-next time, opera glasses) and last night's W over denver at The Can (thanks for the insight on that one, <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/Clintonite33">cuz</a>) was a thriller. paul millsap played at Miracle in Miami level and may have earned a new nickname, The Captain, via a silly but on-point string of tweets immediately following the game from some of the intarw3b's big jazz players.<br />
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second, and this was the original point of this whole update before i got ellipses and link happy, was to give a quick list of the twitter accounts for the jazz players. not all of them have one, and not all of those that do update with any regularity. but the utah media guys all have twitter accounts and they pay attention to what people are saying through the social media website. so, with that in mind, if you're not already following all the jazz players (and some of the org's personnel) below, get on board.<br />
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alec burks: <span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, 'Liberation Sans', FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px; text-align: left;">@AlecBurks10</span><br />
<span style="text-align: left;">derrick favors: </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, 'Liberation Sans', FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px; text-align: left;">@dfavors14</span><br />
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<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">devin harris: </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, 'Liberation Sans', FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px;">DevinHarris5</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">gordon hayward: </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, 'Liberation Sans', FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px;">@gordonhayward</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">josh howard: </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, 'Liberation Sans', FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px;">realjoshhoward</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">enes kanter: </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, 'Liberation Sans', FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px;">@EnesKanter</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">c.j. miles: </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, 'Liberation Sans', FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px;">@CJMiles34</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">jamaal tinsley: </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, 'Liberation Sans', FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px;">@jatinsley</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">earl watson: </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, 'Liberation Sans', FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px;">@Earl_Watson</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">a few of the remaining players have "accounts" but aren't verified and don't have many tweets, so i haven't included them here as their authenticity is suspect. the non-players who are connected with the team include:</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">greg miller (CEO): </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, 'Liberation Sans', FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px;">@GregInUtah</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">david locke (radio play-by-play): </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, 'Liberation Sans', FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px;">@Lockedonsports</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">craig bolerjack (TV play-by-play): </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, 'Liberation Sans', FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px;">@BuckleUpBoler</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">matt harpring (american visionary/TV color commentary): </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, 'Liberation Sans', FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px;">@mharpring15</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">gordon hayward (pre/post-game host): </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, 'Liberation Sans', FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px;">@AlemaHarrington</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">thurl bailey (jazz legend, jazz analyst): </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, 'Liberation Sans', FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px;">@bigTbailey</span><span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;"> </span></div>
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jody genessy (deseret news jazz beat writer): <span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, 'Liberation Sans', FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px;">@DJJazzyJody</span></div>
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brian t. smith (salt lake tribune jazz beat writer/jumper to irrational conclusions): <span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, 'Liberation Sans', FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px;">@tribjazz</span></div>
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diana allen ("unofficial" jazz twitter rep): <span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, 'Liberation Sans', FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px;">@dianaallen</span>
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clint peterson ("unofficial" jazz twitter rep): <span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, 'Liberation Sans', FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px;">@Clintonite33</span></div>
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david smith ("unofficial" jazz twitter rep): <span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, 'Liberation Sans', FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px;">@davidjsmith1232</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: -webkit-auto;">official jazz twitter account: </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, 'Liberation Sans', FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 22px;">@utahjazz</span></div>james petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14862624727805091750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5521184462059041742.post-91562739305334968882011-12-16T13:23:00.000-08:002011-12-16T14:52:12.708-08:00stomach aches(this post brought to you by <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7yV6eQ9cuT4">the only band full of people that never made it</a> that finally made it.)<br />
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last night, among all the josh howard / andrei kirilenko chatter, prolific jazz tweeter <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/Clintonite33">clintonite33</a> mentioned that J-Ho isn't much of a security blanket if you're talking about injuries as compared to AK. just last year, howard only played in 57 games while <a href="http://cdn.bleacherreport.net/images_root/slides/photos/000/926/595/AKtat_display_image.jpg?1304995180">The Russian Back Tattoo</a> played in 68.<br />
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jazz fans are, i think, pretty spoiled by their history when it comes to resilient players. after all, <a href="http://www.nba.com/playerfile/karl_malone/index.html">the mailman</a> had ten seasons with the jazz where he didn't miss a single game, and another seven where he missed two or less. with all the complaining that we hear from SLC about players missing too many games, i thought it would be interesting to see how many games players are actually missing.<br />
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to make it more interesting (and to avoid my data being skewed by DNP-CD guys), i only compared the number of games played by each team's top six players. the top six players were selected by the number of minutes each played throughout the entire 2010-2011 season, and placed within a team based on where the player was under contract at the close of the regular season. for example, deron williams' numbers are based on his entire season's play, and is listed as a nets player rather than a jazz player.<br />
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the relevant information is entered into an excel spreadsheet, which is linked below. all info was gathered from <a href="http://www.basketball-reference.com/">Basketball Reference</a>. the categories of data are as follows (auto-calculate equations in parentheses):<br />
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<ul>
<li><b>Games Played</b>: the number of games the player actually played in during the season.</li>
<li><b>Games Missed:</b> the number of games the player did not appear in (82 games minus Games Played).</li>
<li><b>Games Started</b>: the number of games the player started.</li>
<li><b>MPG</b>: the number of active playing time minutes the player averaged per game.</li>
</ul>
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for each team, the top six players have their stats averaged; each category of stat was summed and divided by six. so, the jazz's top six players averaged just over 73 games played last year, or almost missing 9 games each to injury (AK's missing 14 games--five more than the rest of the best guys--isn't so far removed from the mean here).</div>
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further, each team's top-six-players-average stats is has been averaged in with rest of the team's division (each division has its own tab), each division averaged against the rest of the conference, and a league-wide average is available as well. finally, note that the first tab on the spreadsheet only refers to teams that made the playoffs last year; each conference's playoff teams have been averaged together as well.</div>
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<a href="http://www.mediafire.com/?apdlu0v2rdxndhn">the link to the spreadsheet is here.</a><br />
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this is a lot of data, but answering the question as to whether AK is a big wuss compared to the rest of the league is pretty easy. on the "TOTAL" tab, note that the league-wide average for top players missing games due to injury is 10.383 games missed. kirilenko is a little softer than the the average, having missed 14 games (but still in a much better spot than josh howard). compared to the eastern conference only (13.233 games missed per season), AK's not looking too shabby.<br />
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while it's nice to know that andrei is a softie in the west but an average miss-16-percent-of-my-games guy in the east, the rest of the numbers here provide some interesting points.<br />
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note on the "Playoff Teams" tab that only three teams averaged higher than 10 missed games per season from their top six players. chicago had a tough season with noah, boozer, and thomas all missing a bunch of games, but the heat and dallas each have a wild outlier in haslem and butler, respectively. taking haslem out of the heat's equation and only looking at the remaining 5 players, MIA's numbers move to only 5.6 games missed per season. similarly, if you drop butler from dallas' numbers, the team's average drops to 4.2 games missed per each of the remaining 5 players. excluding the lakers' freak show of invincible players, that 4.2 number for dallas would easily be good enough for best in the post-season. it's little wonder, from this perspective, that they were able to put together a championship run, as the best players on the team didn't have to fiddle with alternate line-ups all season.<br />
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also interesting to consider that, in what is arguably the last year of the recent era of the west having generally better teams than the east, the western conference has a slight advantage in top-six players being available per game, 73.044 to 68.767. and, within the western conference, the division with the best star-availability sent the most teams to the playoffs: the southwest division's top-six players missed an average of only 7.533 games all year, easily the lowest in the league, and sent four teams (DAL, NOH, MEM, SAS) to the post season.<br />
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something that i found strange was that, excluding CHI, MIA, and DAL's above-ten-games departure from the other playoff teams, having a healthy core that missed under 10 games a year didn't necessarily translate to making the playoffs (or even being on the cusp of making them). the jazz, for example, averaged only 8.333 missed games per player, the same number as portland, yet finished 11th in the west. detroit's squad averaged a missed 9.167 games and didn't make it out of the regular season. golden state's guys missed 7.333 games each, and phoenix--old as balls, nash/hill/carter phoenix--led the league in available talent at only 4.167 games missed yet neither of the pacific division teams earned a playoff berth.<br />
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on the other side of the coin, missing a bunch of games from your core was pretty much a guarantee that your team was going to enjoy a lengthy summer break. toronto, whose dismal record was bested only by sad, sad cleveland, missed an average of 30.333 games per each of the squad's heaviest hitters. the closest western conference number to approach the raptors part-time team was the clippers, with 18 games missed by each of the team's best (impressive, considering that blake griffen played all 82 games), which was enough to earn them dead last in the pacific division, and ahead of only SAC and MIN in the west.<br />
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the last thing that struck me up front is most apparent on the "Playoff Teams" tab. dallas, while en route to their championship, leaned heavier on its bench for minutes than any other playoff team. this is apparent from the "games started" column; dallas's top six (by minutes played) guys only started 48.833 games each during the regular season, the lowest average number of games started by any playoff squad. the number is also good enough for second most bench-reliant starpower in the west, behind only sacramento. whether or not this is something actually worth noting is beyond my limited analytics skillset, but it does seem interesting.james petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14862624727805091750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5521184462059041742.post-40080706233605385552011-12-16T09:16:00.000-08:002011-12-16T09:16:12.476-08:00stern, cp3, and the united states<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">(today's entry fueled by <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JrecfRlHxQA">badger legion</a>)</span></div>
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during my final semester of law school at the illustrious <a href="http://law.shu.edu/">seton hall university</a>, i took a class called "advanced topics in sports law." our adjunct professor was this big-time sports attorney in manhattan; the dude knew everything there is to know about the NBA from a technical standpoint (and from a fan perspective, also) but wasn't the most effective educator.<br />
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anyhow, for those of you familiar with ABA requirements of law schools, this class satisfied an "advanced writing requirement;" in other words, what would be a journal note or a publishable-quality article on a legal topic. about five weeks before the semester began, the NBA bought the new orleans hornets, which piqued my legal curiosity. four months later, i had a zillion endnotes and a few thousand words on the razor's edge the NBA owners are walking between collusion and "investing" with their ownership of the hornets.<br />
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<a href="http://www.mediafire.com/?x1iqw2xjydkw1bq">this is the article i wrote.</a> for those of you in the legal field, you'll note that there are no hard conclusions other than that what the league is doing with NOH has a high potential for illegality. stern's citation of "<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/08/chris-paul-lakers-veto-trade-hornet-nba-stern-basketball-reasons_n_1138364.html">basketball reasons</a>" when blocking the initial CP3 trade to LAL goes, i think, to my point. if you're not into legal stuff, the piece is going to be pretty boring--even if you are, it's still pretty dry. but i think it might be a point worth considering. enjoy.james petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14862624727805091750noreply@blogger.com0