Deron is not a leader

[Primo]

I think I love Primo.

Done deal then? I'll drive.

[The59Sound]

There are very few guys in the NBA who play every single play down the floor, and Deron is one of them.

I just don't believe that. Over the years, there's been many games where I felt Deron just didn't show up.

[Soul Patch]

I think I love Primo.

Done deal then? I'll drive.

Good, my car's broken.

[carrottop12]

He calls it the pickle wagon.

[idajazz]

Defining what constitutes a leader by the criteria of the OP is pretty exclusive as well as pretty inaccuate. Deron being a motivator is not the simple solution to our problems, and the fact that he isn't a outspoken motivator doesn't detract from his skills in leading the team on the court. He is frustrated with a lackluster gameplan as am I. Does anyone have any doubt that Deron could put up 40 points a night? He is trying to execute a gameplan that isn't working.

It's hard to see this team only find success when it plays with desperation and comes back in games due to Deron taking games over and looking for his shot. Game after game after game our starting gameplan fails and we are constantly behind by 20 points. I find it assinine to think that this is due to a failure in any player to take the role as a motivational speaker.

PLUS 1000.

I love how arm chair quarterbacks think that they know what goes on with the team
Fact is all you can judge by is what you see at games and what you read, and that is a very small piece of the whole picture.

[JazzFan4Life18]

I would hope that most Jazz fans don't follow the TC's opinion. Deron isn't perfect, and he can get emotional, but he's a genuine player who busts his ass and wants to win more than any of us know. We are toast without him.

[sendai91]

I think that the OP is really off base. Jazz fans have an impossible expectation of who or what a leader is from the PG spot because of Stockton. If the expectation is that your floor general play for nearly 20 years without ever saying a critical or harsh word of teammates, the coach or the organization, and miss no more than 15 games in that timespan, you need to quickly readjust to today's game. Deron's a phenomenal leader, he's tough ( how many total games has he missed in 5 years besides the injury a couple of seasons ago to open the year), he forms strong relationships with several team members, he's kept himself out of any negative press since his rookie year, he gives back to the community ( http://www.pointofhopefoundation.org/news/) and as a 4-year STH, I can honestly say he's busted his butt in nearly every game I've attended. What more can we expect really?

He's right to be frustrated with Korver, Brewer and Matthews' departure. If your coworkers that best accentuated your performance left with minimal talent coming back in return, you wouldn't be grumpy? We all get that the Jazz couldn't afford all three, but that doesn't change the fact that this is a tough adjustment year. We all like Al's attitude and good-naturedness, but the learning curve has been slower than Deron and I'm sure the rest of the coaching staff would like.

Yes, he can be surly, but the way some of you react, it's as if you'd like to see one of the top 5-10 players in the game leave just because he dares speak out or vent. That's just short-sighted and narrow. Considering the PG's available in the league and how sharp the downgrade is to whoever would replace him, I'll tolerate a little bit of pissiness and chalk it up to a hyper-competitive talent that we'd be so very stupid to let go..

[The59Sound]

I would just reiterate that I find the "Deron busts his ass on every play in every game" assessment way too generous.

[sendai91]

Way too generous or not, you're not addressing the real issue. Who's your suggestion that's going to a. come to Utah in the first place and B. offer more than Deron? Chris Paul - no. Rose or Rondo - no. Some 18 or 19 yr old in high school or college that might be a decent pro? Yeah, let's target that instead. . It just seems like this is one of those let's bust on my kid deals because he occasionally returns a B+ or an A - on the report card. If Deron were to leave, it's because of ignorance and completely unrealistic expectations. How about we support the guy we've got, if for no other reason we could do so much worse, and categorically will if he were to leave.

[The59Sound]

Way too generous or not, you're not addressing the real issue. Who's your suggestion that's going to a. come to Utah in the first place and B. offer more than Deron? Chris Paul - no. Rose or Rondo - no. Some 18 or 19 yr old in high school or college that might be a decent pro? Yeah, let's target that instead. . It just seems like this is one of those let's bust on my kid deals because he occasionally returns a B+ or an A - on the report card. If Deron were to leave, it's because of ignorance and completely unrealistic expectations. How about we support the guy we've got, if for no other reason we could do so much worse, and categorically will if he were to leave.

I don't want Deron to leave. I want him to play hard, push the ball instead of walking up the court and then complaining about us not running, etc. I want Deron to work to improve the situation, instead of pouting about his teammates, management, the coaching staff, etc. Seriously: why are people acting like this all so unreasonable for a man making $15 million this year?

[BringtheD]

I want Deron to play whatever way he wants, everything they do on offense is like difficult, so keep going for easy buckets for sure, but they really need to find a rhythm with the half court and then easier buckets in transistion will follow when they are playing at the pace they set there.

[Neon Black]

Way too generous or not, you're not addressing the real issue. Who's your suggestion that's going to a. come to Utah in the first place and B. offer more than Deron? Chris Paul - no. Rose or Rondo - no. Some 18 or 19 yr old in high school or college that might be a decent pro? Yeah, let's target that instead. . It just seems like this is one of those let's bust on my kid deals because he occasionally returns a B+ or an A - on the report card. If Deron were to leave, it's because of ignorance and completely unrealistic expectations. How about we support the guy we've got, if for no other reason we could do so much worse, and categorically will if he were to leave.

I don't want Deron to leave. I want him to play hard, push the ball instead of walking up the court and then complaining about us not running, etc. I want Deron to work to improve the situation, instead of pouting about his teammates, management, the coaching staff, etc. Seriously: why are people acting like this all so unreasonable for a man making $15 million this year?

Yeah I don't think anyone that's criticized Deron has said they want him to leave. If anything a lot of his recent whining tangents have indicated reservations that he has about potentially leaving. It's good to be upset after a loss, but there are ways to express that without taking shots at the entire organization and breeding negativity while propagating the thick smog of an already-low morale.

Why can't we bring up some of the things Deron needs to improve upon without someone interpreting it as if we've turned our backs on him? I'm giving him all the patience and benefit of the doubt I can as a fan, along with the team. It's just frustrating when he fails to have the patience with his own team and organization.

Being passionate does NOT = being overly negative

[God Squad]

Everyone thought Daron was great until this slump. Come on.

[StocktonShorts]

Everyone thought Daron was great until this slump. Come on.

There are many of us who have consistently said that Deron isn't a great leader, despite obviously being a great player.