Sloan vs. Ostertag - Let's get ready to rumble...

Jazz Head to Break on Sour Note
BY STEVE LUHM
THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE

MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- Long one of the rock-solid franchises in professional sports, the Jazz suddenly have taken on a look that would be laughable if it was not so shocking.

Take Memphis' 86-79 win over Utah on Tuesday night at the Pyramid.

Against a team that had lost 10 of its previous 11 games, the Jazz trailed by 27 points early in the fourth quarter. They shot 30 percent and, for 3 1/2 quarters, threatened the NBA's all-time record of 22 percent. They scored a season-low 31 points in the first half.

The Grizzlies, who in recent days had lost by 39 to the Lakers and by 38 to the Trail Blazers, were so comfortably in front that Ike Austin got off the bench and played 10 minutes. In Memphis' previous 24 games -- going back to Dec. 21 -- he had played 24 minutes.

But hold on.

It gets worse.

With 7:40 remaining in the third quarter, Jazz coach Jerry Sloan yanked Greg Ostertag after the veteran center had committed his third flat-footed, intentional-looking foul in four minutes.

As Ostertag came to the bench, Sloan said something. Ostertag responded, "I'm ready. I'm ready. Put me back in."

Ostertag made a sharp left turn and headed toward the scorer's table, as though he was going to check himself back into the game.

He walked past Sloan, who ordered him back to the bench. Ostertag did an about-face and, as he walked past Sloan again, he bumped his coach with his left arm and shoulder. Sloan pushed Ostertag and ordered him into the locker room, where he spent the rest of the game.



Afterward, Sloan announced, "Ostertag is going to be suspended." He did not say how long the suspension would last. The Jazz are off for the All-Star break until next Tuesday, when they visit Indiana.

"Greg wanted to go back in the game and he picked the wrong path to get back in the ballgame," Sloan said.

When approached for his version of the incident, Ostertag said, "Nothing. I've got nothing."

"Greg has to grow up and decide if he wants to play basketball or be Bear," Sloan said, referring to the Jazz's comedic team mascot. "Everything's a joke to Greg. But if wants to play, he's got to step up. One game every month is not enough. He gets paid a lot of money . . . and he should earn it. He should start to concentrate on being a basketball player."

Other Jazz players shied away from discussing the trouble between Sloan and Ostertag, which has often boiled up over the years but never to the extent it did on this wintry night on the banks of the Mississippi River. Of course, Ostertag has never played worse than he has lately, which might explain Sloan's unprecedented public flogging.

"It's definitely not a plus," John Stockton said of the disagreement. "We need him to play [well]. We need everyone to play well. . . . It's not good."

"I hope everything is fine after the [All-Star] break," said Bryon Russell. "I hope cooler heads prevail."

The Sloan-Ostertag Affair took some of the spotlight off a thoroughly miserable performance by the Jazz, who lost their second straight game to a Western Conference bottom-feeder. Houston defeated Utah on Monday, 104-97.

"You have to give them credit," Sloan said. "They cracked us early and we shied away from it. We wanted to play in our tuxedos and they played in their work clothes."

Rodney Buford led the Grizzlies (14-34) with 20 points. Rookies Pau Gasol and Shane Battier contributed 19 and 12, respectively.

"It was a great effort," Memphis coach Sidney Lowe said. "It was an outstanding win. Our defense was solid and our offense was very good."

Rookie Andrei Kirilenko topped the Jazz (25-24) with 15 points. Scott Padgett added 14 and seldom-used Quincy Lewis, the most energetic player on the court for Utah, scored 10.

"Right now," Stockton said, "it's best we take advantage of the break and have everybody come back with a fresh mind. We need to make a fresh start and go from there."

"I hope everything is fine after the break," said Russell, "because s--- ain't going good for us right now."

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The best part of the article is Jerry Sloan comparing Osterslack to the Jazz mascot.

Bryon Russell s-bomb comment also gave me a warm and fuzzy feeling.

I hate the Jazz!