The Paul Millsap Conundrum

JDubJazz · Post #1 » by **JDubJazz** » Tue Dec 27, 2011 7:24 pm

Paul Millsap might be the Jazz's best player right now, and he knows it. Paul Millsap wants to start. He's towing the company line right now and saying that he's going to do whats best for the team. If that means coming off the bench, then that's fine, or so he says. Now, all of a sudden, Tyrone announces the Jazz's starters (Millsap not among them) and all of a sudden his quad has flared up and he might not go against the Lakers.

Its time to face the facts. Paul wants to start, and who can blame him? The problem is, 'Sap is a "now" player, and the Jazz are playing for the future. As much as we all like him, its pretty clear he's unhappy. The Jazz need to do both the right thing for Paul and for themselves: trade Paul Millsap.

Its no longer a matter of convenience. It needs to happen ASAP. a brooding, cancerous Millsap isn't going to help anyone. Lets move him somewhere he can play and get some more assets in return. Jazz fans will understand. Its not about this year, but Paul Millsap can't wait any longer, and the Jazz shouldn't expect him to.

Hikari · Post #2 » by **Hikari** » Tue Dec 27, 2011 7:43 pm

I don't think that just because a player says he wants to start that he will not be content with a 6th man role that he gets a lot of min. Paul has always been a teem player he wanted to start when we had Boozer but he accepted his role and I think he will continue to do so.

Very good teams have a players like Paul on the bench I also think that the Favors/Jefferson combo and Milsap/Kanter combos are the best ones to put together. There is a simple fact that Paul is undersized and as a backup he can be dominate.

I think it is ridiculous that Paul could be thought of as a cancer when you look at his track record. He has always accepted his role no matter what his personal feeling were.

Jampod · Post #3 » by **Jampod** » Tue Dec 27, 2011 7:48 pm

Are you inciting that Millsap is sitting out voluntarily? If you are, you are wrong. Even if Millsap were to play tonight, Corbin wouldn't give him a starting position due to his injury. Also, describing Millsap as cancerous is just plain out of whack. He hasn't shown any resistance towards our front office and has done his best just to play the damn game. Let's not taint our season opener with another conspiracy theory, please.

retiredcoach · Post #4 » by **retiredcoach** » Tue Dec 27, 2011 7:50 pm

by JDubJazz on Tue Dec 27, 2011 11:24 am
Paul Millsap might be the Jazz's best player right now, and he knows it.

Its no longer a matter of convenience. It needs to happen ASAP. a brooding, cancerous Millsap isn't going to help anyone. Lets move him somewhere he can play and get some more assets in return.

Every team in the NBA needs a strong PF coming off the bench, but not very many teams have one. As a starter Millsap is probably around 20th best starting PF. Coming off the bench, he is among the top 5, or maybe top 3. That's where his career is given his size and the way he plays. He can brood all he wants. You can't out work your height and natural abilities.

If Millsap plays this right, he could be one of the best 6th men in the league and wind up being worth $9 to $10 mil a year, or maybe more, for another 5 years with the Jazz.

On the other hand, if he plays it wrong, he could wind up getting traded to another lousy team that doesn't have much of a future. But he could start.

BarneyGumble · Post #5 » by **BarneyGumble** » Tue Dec 27, 2011 8:03 pm

Its in Millsap's best interest to play. Sitting with phantom injuries is the Carlos Boozer way of things. Sure, Boozer got $75 million under the old CBA. If Millsap wants a $10/year deal, he needs to avoid injuries and be a double-double guy.

Everyone in this league knows Paul is too small to start. That doesn't mean he can't play 30 mpg. He should be our 6th man, and the offense should run through him with our second unit. He can play lazier defense against 2nd unit players...and be asked to score and rebound. This is his best way to being a consistent 16/10 guy in this league. He simply can't be that guy on a winning team trying to defend Gasols, Aldridges, and Loves.

I hope someone in our organization is intelligent enough to explain this to him in a way that will make him understand.....

Post #6 » by **FJS** » Tue Dec 27, 2011 8:13 pm

Let's gonna down to earth him.
Is he a good player?? Yes, he is.
Is he a starter? In a lot of teams, yes he is.
Is he a superstar or will he be a superstar? No, he isn't, no he won't.
If this team was playing with pre-injury Okur and with Deron he would be a starter.
But he is playing with Favors, and Favors can be a better player than him.
Millsap cannor play C, the only thing why Al it's starting over him. He is an undersized PF who play really well, but he is not better than the best PF in the league.
Stoudamire, Gasol, Randolph, Aldrigde, Griffin to name a few are better than him.

He could be the best 6th man of the league or to be in the bottom top 10 PF of the league (with luck)

RolloTommasi · Post #7 » by **RolloTommasi** » Tue Dec 27, 2011 8:47 pm

LOL @some comments on this thread

Millsap earned his starting spot waiting 3 yrs behind Boozer and now got benched for a 20yrs old

Ok, I'll say that again: "benched for a 20yrs old"

How should he react ???

How should YOU react ?

I wonder how many people here have ever played in a basketball team........

retiredcoach · Post #8 » by **retiredcoach** » Tue Dec 27, 2011 8:55 pm

by RolloTommasi on Tue Dec 27, 2011 12:47 pm
LOL @some comments on this thread

Millsap earned his starting spot waiting 3 yrs behind Boozer and now got benched for a 20yrs old

Ok, I'll say that again: "benched for a 20yrs old"

How should he react ???

How should YOU react ?

Well, suppose the guy's name was James instead of Favors. What would I do? How would I react?

I would call my Mom "Mom, the Jazz just got a 20 old new guy named LeBron James. And damn he's good! So the bad news, Mom, is I might not be starting. The good news is I'm still going to get my $10 mil a year deal in 2 more years, even if I'm not starting!"

And Mom replies, "Son, I always knew you could do it!"

Paper Face · Post #9 » by **Paper Face** » Tue Dec 27, 2011 8:55 pm

Insinuating that Millsap would sit out with a phantom injury as a form of protest shows a severe ignorance of his career thus far. Dude is the most professional baller on the team. He's proven that every year in myriad of ways, and not just on the court.

He is the opposite of a locker room cancer. He is going to conduct himself as a professional just like always. There is zero evidence in the available press on him to suggest otherwise, and I defy anyone to produce any.

Post #10 » by **StocktonShorts** » Tue Dec 27, 2011 8:58 pm

RolloTommasi wrote:LOL @some comments on this thread

Millsap earned his starting spot waiting 3 yrs behind Boozer and now got benched for a 20yrs old

In what universe are jobs earned simply by waiting patiently for your turn?

Talk about Entitlement Culture.

UTJazzFan_Echo1 · Post #11 » by **UTJazzFan_Echo1** » Tue Dec 27, 2011 9:26 pm

I know I'll be in the minority here but Paul Millsap isn't our best player. If he was our best player then he'd be starting for us; simple as that.

I love Millsap more than anyone but he's a backup PF on a championship team. No, I'm not saying we're a championship team but that's the ultimate goal and we need to start developing a guy like Favors for the future as our starting PF/C. There will never be a time in Millsaps' career when he could start for a contender at the PF spot unless perhaps he's on a nearly unreal team like the Miami Heat who could more than makeup for his defensive liabilities with sheer and overwhelming firepower. He's a great player but he's not a starter by any stretch; he's just too small. Last year as a starter, Millsap was one of our worst defensive liabilities (I think his defensive rating was similar to, or even below Boozers'). That's not because he's a poor defender or because he doesn't play hard... it's simply because he's too small to compete with the starting 4's and 5's in the NBA. It's an unfortunate truth that we and Millsap need to face and accept. He could be one of the all-time great 6th man in the league if he's willing to accept that role, the big question is if he will ever be able to accept it mentally.

I want Millsap on the Jazz and I want him to retire a Jazz man but he needs to accept that he's going to be our 6th man and not a starter unless injuries force him into the starting lineup. He needs to become our Jason Terry... but if he isn't willing to do that, then we need to trade him ASAP. It would be a disservice to him and to our team to keep him on the bench if he doesn't want to be there. I understand why he feels like he should be starting... and yes, he's earned the right to demand a starting role with all the waiting and the hard work he's put in... but he's just not a starter; not on this team at least.

I just pray that he can and will accept his role on this team. He could be a huge difference maker for us if he's willing to do what's necessary.

Litany · Post #12 » by **Litany** » Tue Dec 27, 2011 9:31 pm

UTJazzFan_Echo1 wrote:I know I'll be in the minority here but Paul Millsap isn't our best player. If he was our best player then he'd be starting for us; simple as that.

I love Millsap more than anyone but he's a backup PF on a championship team. No, I'm not saying we're a championship team but that's the ultimate goal and we need to start developing a guy like Favors for the future as our starting PF/C. There will never be a time in Millsaps' career when he could start for a contender at the PF spot unless perhaps he's on a nearly unreal team like the Miami Heat who could more than makeup for his defensive liabilities with sheer and overwhelming firepower. He's a great player but he's not a starter by any stretch; he's just too small. Last year as a starter, Millsap was one of our worst defensive liabilities (I think his defensive rating was similar to, or even below Boozers'). That's not because he's a poor defender or because he doesn't play hard... it's simply because he's too small to compete with the starting 4's and 5's in the NBA. It's an unfortunate truth that we and Millsap need to face and accept. He could be one of the all-time great 6th man in the league if he's willing to accept that role, the big question is if he will ever be able to accept it mentally.

I want Millsap on the Jazz and I want him to retire a Jazz man but he needs to accept that he's going to be our 6th man and not a starter unless injuries force him into the starting lineup. He needs to become our Jason Terry... but if he isn't willing to do that, then we need to trade him ASAP. It would be a disservice to him and to our team to keep him on the bench if he doesn't want to be there. I understand why he feels like he should be starting... and yes, he's earned the right to demand a starting role with all the waiting and the hard work he's put in... but he's just not a starter; not on this team at least.

I just pray that he can and will accept his role on this team. He could be a huge difference maker for us if he's willing to do what's necessary.

My sentiments exactly. Thanks for this posts, so I don't have to post it myself

UTJazzFan_Echo1 · Post #13 » by **UTJazzFan_Echo1** » Tue Dec 27, 2011 9:40 pm

It's the same problem we have with Jeremy Evans.

Everyone loves Jeremy Evans and the kid produces every time he's on the floor BUT there is a reason why he's a 3rd string/backup big and not a starter. Those reasons really suck but it's the truth none the less.

The two situations at the most basic level are the same.

carrottop12 · Post #14 » by **carrottop12** » Tue Dec 27, 2011 9:43 pm

Millsap is a stud 6th man, it has been his career and it will always be his career. He's one of those rare guys that is goo enough to start, but helps your team more coming off the bench, and any NBA
player who really is in it for the right reasons will do what's best for the team while he's under contract.

We'll win more games with Paul dominating off the bench than we would with him being marginalized by bigger starting front court players.

He's every bit as important as a starter, it just so happens he comes in 6 mi utes into the game rather than from the tip.

nguyenbalong · Post #15 » by **nguyenbalong** » Tue Dec 27, 2011 10:13 pm

what kills me is bell is starting but o well. I think Sap on the bench for the Laker game makes allot of sense.

Jazzfan12 · Post #16 » by **Jazzfan12** » Tue Dec 27, 2011 10:19 pm

The only thing I like about Al starting is that it can probably keep his trade value up. Millsap does everything better than Al except Al can "slow down" centers which is great except there's literally five centers in the league who have an offensive game and score at all so he's really just shutting down guys who can't score anyway. Millsap is a much better scorer and helps the offense flow better with his lack of ball dominance and the floor spacing he provides and the ability to score in various ways that he provides and is a better defender since he's ten times the help defender. And I guess Al can put up more bad shots than Millsap but I don't know how that could possibly be considered a good thing...

The59Sound · Post #17 » by **The59Sound** » Tue Dec 27, 2011 10:20 pm

I can't believe Paul would ever become a locker room cancer, but I always think back on his answer to whether he would ask for a trade if Boozer re-signed. Something to the effect of: "Maybe. I can't say. I'm not sure."

retiredcoach · Post #18 » by **retiredcoach** » Tue Dec 27, 2011 11:08 pm

by nguyenbalong on Tue Dec 27, 2011 2:13 pm
what kills me is bell is starting but o well. I think Sap on the bench for the Laker game makes allot of sense.

Corbin has a biased eye when he looks at Bell and CJ. He sees what CJ could be but won't ever be, and he sees what Bell was but won't be again.

He leaves both of them in to long after the brick chucking starts. If Corbin loses enough games with those guys maybe he'll wake up and act on what is going on, not what he wishes were happening.

retiredcoach · Post #19 » by **retiredcoach** » Tue Dec 27, 2011 11:11 pm

HappyProle on Tue Dec 27, 2011 12:58 pm

In what universe are jobs earned simply by waiting patiently for your turn?

Talk about Entitlement Culture.

This universe working for the government!

HolyToledo · Post #20 » by **HolyToledo** » Tue Dec 27, 2011 11:20 pm

Only the Jazz coaches and players know if Millsap is ok with being a 6th man. If he is a cancer simply trade him away, if not and he does well as a 6th man then keep him. Simply, there are fews players in the league that I would start over Favors. I would consider benching Jefferson for Millsap before I would bench Favors.

Favors is the face of the franchise for the next 10 years!