London » Following an injury-ravaged 2008-09 season, the Jazz couldn't even make it to their second preseason game this month before losing one of their starters.

C.J. Miles will require surgery and miss the start of the regular season, the team said, after rupturing a ligament in his left thumb in practice Monday. Miles suffered the injury to his shooting hand while going after a loose ball in a scrimmage.

The Jazz were leaning toward having Miles fly back to Salt Lake City to undergo the surgery as soon as possible rather than staying with the team for the duration of its Europe trip, which finishes with a Thursday game against Real Madrid in Spain.

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"Certainly, he worked his tail off to get himself in really good shape," Jazz general manager Kevin O'Connor said. "I think we saw that in the week-and-a-half so far that we've had. But injuries are a part of the game, and if we start to feel sorry for ourselves then we're making a mistake."

The news was a setback to Miles, who had been hoping for a breakthrough as he enters his fifth NBA season and scored 16 points in the Jazz's preseason opener.

He averaged 9.1 points in 22.5 minutes while starting 72 games last season.

"All things were pointing in a pretty fabulous direction this year," said Billy Ceisler , Miles' agent.

The Jazz said they would wait to set a timetable for Miles' return

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until after he undergoes surgery. Chicago's Kirk Hinrich underwent surgery to repair a torn ligament in his right thumb last November and missed two months before returning.

With Matt Harpring out indefinitely, the Jazz will open the season with just 11 available players unless they add a 14th player to their roster, though doing so would increase their $82 million payroll.

"We're over here, so it's difficult to react, but I don't know what we'll do as far as that goes," O'Connor said.

Andrei Kirilenko and Paul Millsap will likely see increased minutes in Miles' absence. Kyle Korver (inflamed left knee) sat out most of practice Monday and is questionable to play tonight, as is Kyrylo Fesenko , who suffered a sprained left heel.

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Had Luol Deng not reached agreement on a contract extension with the Bulls last summer, the Jazz were said to be interested bringing the restricted free-agent forward to Utah through a sign-and-trade. It's clear Deng was open to the possibility.

"The Jazz are definitely one of my favorite teams, just in terms of how well they're coached and how professional that ball club is," he said.

"It's just the way they play. If you're really into basketball and just watch the offense and defense and just the way they move and how disciplined it is, you can just tell how well they're coached. As a basketball fan, I really love watching it."

rsiler@sltrib.com