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Utah Jazz notebook: Catching up with former player Jarron Collins while in L.A.

The former Jazz center, who played with Utah from 2001-09, was on assignment Sunday with his new employer, the Los Angeles Clippers, and took time out to visit with his old team before Utah and Los Angeles took to the court.

The 6-11 Collins has been hired by the Clippers, whom he also briefly played for, to do pro personnel scouting and some broadcasting. That new position, he joked, was announced on ESPN.

"They probably aired it at 3 a.m.," he said, smiling.

As part of Collins' job, he attends Laker home games to scout a variety of NBA teams. He also goes to college practices and recently provided commentary for a L.A. D-Fenders D-League game. The well-spoken Stanford product misses playing basketball, but this is a good alternative for the Jazz's 2001 second-round pick.

"I'm just happy that I'm able to stay involved in the sport that I love," Collins said. With a smile, he added, "And then I live vicariously through my brother (Jason), who's still playing for the Celtics."

Jody Genessy, Deseret News