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George Hill, the Jazz's version of an educated big brother, was saying the other day there is a thin line for him and his teammates between self-assured and fatheaded. And for his part, he'd like to see them stop short of allowing the latter to spoil the progress they're making.

"It's good to have confidence, but you don't want to have too much," he said. "You don't want that arrogant confidence where your ego is so high that you feel like you're untouchable. Our confidence needs to be humble, to stay down low. It's good when no one [acknowledges] us and we get to come up and be the lowly guys where we sneak up on people."

Not sure how long that sneaking-up-on-people thing will last, what with the Jazz emerging in the middle of the Western Conference playoff race, after not making the postseason for a fistful of years. Having freshly beaten LeBron James and the defending NBA champion Cavaliers, and facing now a stretch of games in which they could reasonably be thought — at least by outsiders — capable of winning 10 of their next 12, a streak were it to be accomplished that would put their record at 34-18, the Jazz are highly profiled on every opponent's radar.

The pursuit of Hill's humble-confidence, though, is a theme echoing around the team.

On more than one occasion, Quin Snyder has reminded his players and anyone else willing to listen that the Jazz haven't accomplished anything yet, saying the long road ahead is steep, while concurrently recognizing the positive ground the team is winning.

Dennis Lindsey said he wants everyone who's a part of the club to earn his Ph.D — which in Lindsey parlance stands for an attitude that reflects being "poor, hungry and driven."

Even at the highest levels of basketball, athletes need to accompany burgeoning self-esteem with humility as they climb through the various stages of advancement. That seems to have been at the heart of the gains made by players such as Rudy Gobert and Gordon Hayward, competitors whose personal pride and drive are evident every time they take the floor.

And that's exactly the way Hill said he likes it.

No flash. No panache. Maybe a bit of swagger, but only as it remains useful. Just gritty collective diligence accompanied by a team-first approach, high on what's best for the group, low on egocentrism.

"I'd rather just come in, do our jobs, stay humble, keep working hard," he said. "Take one day at a time, one game at a time, and just build."

Even with a thorough assortment of young players, mixed now with the veterans, Hill said he enjoys playing for the Jazz because his vision for the outfit, while far from complete, is mostly what he sees — in practice and in games.

"I don't think we have guys with egos on this team," Hill said. "A guy like Gordon can be having such a great year and stay that way. Sometimes you see guys who start to think, 'It's about me.' You don't get that with these guys. You don't get that with Rudy.

"It's fun to be part of a team where it's not about ourselves individually. It's about, 'What can I do to help the team win the game?' If it's scoring 20 points or grabbing nine rebounds, if it's about blocking five shots and, 'I'm not going to be scoring this time,' just, 'What can I do to help us win the game?' With all the guys that's what it is … 'What does it take to win?' "

Hill said the Jazz have set their sights on an ultimate big prize this season, but those results are off in the future, tomorrow's reward for today's grind:

"We have high expectations. I'm not a big believer in trying to reach too high or too far right now. Once you do that, people let their guards down and start thinking we're doing better than what we should. Our biggest goal is to make the playoffs and let everything else take care of itself.

"We're one of the deepest teams in the NBA, as far as what we can do at both ends of the floor, defending, guys who can come in and score at a high rate. … The way Gordon's playing at an All-Star level and Rudy at an All-Star level, our expectations are very high and our ceiling is even higher. …"

But then comes the nod to humility and the turn from hubris from a player who has, in fact, earned his Ph.D.

"… It's the NBA. It's hard to win games. You're not going into arenas and winning games just by doing nothing."

GORDON MONSON hosts "The Big Show" with Spence Checketts weekdays from 3-7 p.m. on 97.5 FM and 1280 AM. Twitter: @GordonMonson.