what happens if...

[Pappyman]

the jazz end up with the best record in the western conference? they are only two games out of first place and still have to play two of the teams ahead of them (at NO and a home and home with san antonio). they also still have another game with houston at home. if the jazz could somehow win all of these games, i think that it is likely that may finish with the best record in the western conference, especially if the lakers keep losing to sub-par teams at home. would deron williams become a legitimate MVP candidate? he could end up averaging nearly 20 points and 11 assists per game on the team with the best record in their conference. how could he not be an MVP candidate? steve nash won the MVP two years in a row with similar numbers.

[de2nd]

the jazz end up with the best record in the western conference? they are only two games out of first place and still have to play two of the teams ahead of them (at NO and a home and home with san antonio). they also still have another game with houston at home. if the jazz could somehow win all of these games, i think that it is likely that may finish with the best record in the western conference, especially if the lakers keep losing to sub-par teams at home. would deron williams become a legitimate MVP candidate? he could end up averaging nearly 20 points and 11 assists per game on the team with the best record in their conference. how could he not be an MVP candidate? steve nash won the MVP two years in a row with similar numbers.

You read my post over on the General board before posting this? I asked the same question.

They won't be in the MVP running though. They won't even be on the all NBA first team. Booz or Deron will get at least SOME votes I bet, bet even if they win the conference it won't matter. If LA or New Orleans don't finish with the top seed, it's going to KG.

[HouseofBoozer]

I would say that in all likeliness none of that is going to happen. This team has just not been consistent enough. Based on the way they play at home though, if they ended up with the best record in the west than they could get to the finals. Unfortunately we need to remember that the Spurs beat the Jazz 4-1 last year so they still have the capability to beat us in Salt Lake. I think if they could beat San Antonio there that would be a huge step.

[Duiz]

I said that he should be top 5 or 6 a long time ago. But the Chris Paul and LeBron James have done a lot more than Deron Williams has.

[HammerDunk]

The thing I love about the Jazz is that they really don't have a true MVP candidate. The team is very well balanced. Of course DWill and Booz are both MVP caliber players and can have incredible games but DWill has been outshined almost EVERY great game he has had by an even better game from CP3 on the same night. I can't believe how many times it has happened. Of course, it doesn't happen when they go head to head, but that isn't a viable debate either.

Boozers problem is that he has had some very horrible games, and he isn't a good enough defender. He just doesn't have the consistent production that some other players have.

The thing that also hurts them is that any one of their starters can outscore them in any given game. If Boozer has one of his signature disappearing acts, Brewer, Memo or Sap may pick up his slack. If Deron goes cold, the same thing may happen.

This year is not the year for a Jazz player to be an MVP, it never was even close. I think the future is bright though. DWill is going to be an absolutely dominant PG. As his game improves, he will get even more unstoppable. He is still a 3rd year pro and makes some 3rd year mistakes. He will be so deadly because he will be able to use a post up game on smaller guards and that will be such a huge asset.

I don't think Boozer has much room to improve his offensive game. Where he could improve is with some good consistent defense. It doesn't even have to be amazing D, just consistently good. That would probably put him in a top 3 PF spot and set him up for some MVP recognition.

Finally, if Memo was consistent and had great games all the time like he could, and improves his D like Booz, he could be an MVP type player as well.

[bleu]

The Jazz have IMO a really good shot at winning all the rest of their games. I really think they will.

Anyways, how does this sound?:
If the Jazz win the Western Conference this year, we can brag that we won the toughest conference in the history of the NBA.

[Neon Black]

Adding to what Hammerdunk said, I think the balance of our team (which at times is counteractive) accounts for part of the reason Deron's stats are lower than Paul's. I honestly, deep down believe that Williams is every bit as good as Paul. On any given night, he can very well choose to get 15 assists or 35-40 points, as we've seen. He is in total control out there.

People will use the argument that "deron has a better team" to discredit him against paul, but if anything it helps his case. Paul does not have other great passers and playmakers on the Hornets; Kirilenko, Boozer and sometimes Okur and Korver eat up a good portion of the assist total. And thought the Hornets have a couple of great scoring options (aside from Paul), the Jazz have a team stacked with players that can score 20+ on certain nights.

Thing is, if you watch, Chris Paul is much more in control of Hornets games...lately he's been looking to score more than Williams has been, and he's been succesful at it. He himself creates offensive plays; you'll notice Williams knows when to hand it off and let someone else create and finish.

They're simply different systems.

That said, if Paul has any advantage over Williams, it's not in points/assists but in turnovers/steals. Those are both area's i'd like to see Williams improve in, not to mention free throw %.

To me it's totally understandable if the MVP goes to the player with better stats.

[carrottop12]

Thats the truth about Deron, he would much rather see Brewer get 15 points then himself have 5 more points on the night.

Also, a huge testament to Deron is the fact that on multiple occasions tell Sloan to keep Ronnie Price in the game because of how well he is doing.

Deron wants to have the stats, but he would much rather see his teammates succeed then have him be all the rage in Utah. I love that about Deron, there isn't one single thing that's me first about him.

Jazz won't finish with the top record, but having home court advantage for two rounds isn't out of the question. I'm not going to get my hopes up for it but it would be a huge boost come the post season.

[HammerDunk]

A couple thoughts. The Jazz can only afford to lose 1 more game from here on out to get a top 3 seed. The chances of this happening are pretty slim, though certainly possible. The top seed could happen, but they would have to win every game. The last 6 will be a true test of this team. we could very likely go 2-4 as much as we could go 5-1. It will be an awesome test of our power. I just hope we can avoid the Lakers and Spurs in the playoffs.

As for the MVP debate, I am a big supporter of Paul getting it. It's been said that Jazz fans can't also be Paul fans, but my supporting CP for MVP doesn't mean I'm any less a fan of DWill. His time will come. Paul has had an absolutely amazing season. He is pretty much the new poster child of the NBA, which I'm fine with considering how well Deron plays when he isn't given respect. I like Paul's game, but I don't think it would have fit well here in Utah. He is fun to watch, and he doesn't have the whiner factor of Kobe. It's going to be awesome to watch him and DWill develop.

I also have a hard time with the argument that Deron has a better lineup behind him. I think that Deron just knows how to take advantage of who is on his team and get them all involved. Paul has another all-star on his team that is a very good PF in West. Chandler is one of the better big men in the NBA and rebounds better than Boozer. Pargo can change the pace of a game a lot like Korver. His team is very good.