What if . . . Deron Williams' buttocks bruise doesn't heal completely or gets aggravated?

The Jazz would be bummed. Their playoff hopes would come to an end. They would go into a tailspin. They would bottom out. Trouble would rear up. Playoff booty would be gone. The Jazz's junk would fall out of their trunk. Everyone would assume and assess that without that assistance the Jazz would be hard-pressed to assert themselves, leaving them more assailable and less assured, we assume.

OK, OK, enough already.

Butt - sorry - look at what happened against the Spurs on Wednesday night. Tony Parker tore Williams - sorry, again - a new one. Afterward, the Jazz point guard said, "It's hard to push off. I see openings and it's hard to get to them. I can't explode like I'm used to, and it definitely affects my game. It affects my teammates. I can't push the ball like I normally do."

He also said: "I'm going to play."

So, he will. A couple of days off have helped him. But Williams is the most irreplaceable of all the Jazz. He's the most valuable of all the Jazz's assets, sorry, sorry, sorry.

What if . . . the Jazz lose a home game?

That's unlikely, but the Rockets were one of only four teams to beat the Jazz at EnergySolutions Arena this season, boosted as they were by Tracy McGrady's 47 points. Obviously, the Jazz would then have to win two games at the Toyota Center, a tall order considering their road troubles this season.

"Hopefully we can win in their building," Jerry Sloan said. "You'd like to get a split in the first two games."

Williams stressed his team's need to dial in on the road more than it has over the past six months: "We're going to have to win on the road. We haven't proved we can do that all season. We've got to now."

What if . . . the Jazz find the same energy and intensity on the road as they've had at home?

They'll win this series in five games.

What if . . . Andrei Kirilenko breaks down and cries the way he did last year after Game 1?

Sloan will hand him a hankie, pat his head, and, then, kick him in his asset. A thousand more sorrys.

What if . . . Tracy McGrady goes off?

McGrady is the heart and soul of the Rockets. For them, that's encouraging and discouraging. He's a great player who never wins in the playoffs. A year ago, he shot under 40 percent from the field against the Jazz in the first round, and, in a close series, that doomed the Rockets. On the other hand, he's capable of explosive nights and, if he strings together a few of them, combined with Houston's home-court edge, it would give the Jazz a lot about which to worry.

What if . . . McGrady doesn't go off?

The Rockets are toast.

What if . . . Mehmet Okur goes cold?

This would create a huge headache for the Jazz because they need Okur's perimeter game to open up their interior offense. Sloan has been complimentary of Rick Adelman's defensive schemes and, without Okur's outside shots, the Rockets would bolt down on Williams and Carlos Boozer. Kyle Korver's presence might bring help, at least in part, but the Jazz need Okur as their third scorer and they need him bad.

What if . . . the Jazz have a major defensive lapse?

That was the cause of their periodic slumps during the regular season. As noted, they first and foremost will have to focus on McGrady. "On offense, he can do everything," Boozer said. But they also must clamp down on the supporting cast. It's a rag-tag bunch, hardly an offensive juggernaut, but that group did average a collective 75 points during the season, alternating leading roles night to night. In that way, the Jazz won't be certain, outside of McGrady, which Rocket is most dangerous in any given game. Houston outscored its opponents by about five points a game. And the Rockets outrebounded other teams by more than four boards.

What if . . . the Jazz win one of the first two games in Houston?

That's what every playoff team opening on the road looks and hopes for. With the Jazz's expansive comfort zone at EnergySolutions, such an occurrence would facilitate a quick demise for the Rockets.

What if . . . the Jazz don't get at least a split in the first two games?

Expect a long, harrowing series, not unlike last year's physically grueling seven-gamer.

What if . . . the Jazz sweep the Rockets?

They will get needed confidence and rest for a series against the Lakers that could match the best, most memorable playoff series in Jazz history.

What if . . . the Jazz lose and are eliminated?

Spirits around here will droop, but that's not all. Season-ticket renewals for next year will sag alongside, what with hefty price increases already announced.

---

* GORDON MONSON hosts "The Big Show" weekdays from 3-7 p.m. on 1280 AM The Zone. He can be reached at gmonson@sltrib.com.