This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Monotony.
Five days into training camp, after two practices per day, and with the preseason opener for the Utah Jazz looming against the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday, practice can get tedious.
With many of those factors conspiring to throw the Jazz off a bit, concentration, the art of playing hard and playing as smart as possible, is more important than ever, players say. With the weekend at hand, Saturday's practice schedule was as much mental for the Jazz as anything else.
"You just have to get in there and get the work done," forward Gordon Hayward said. "Whether it's two hours, or three hours, you just have to get in there and focus. If you do that, a lot of other things will take care of itself. You're engaged, you're locked in, and time tends to go by a lot faster."
Hayward said he won't forget some of the advice given to him by his elders when he first came into the league, particularly from former Jazz shooting guard Raja Bell. Whenever the legs got heavy, whenever Hayward didn't feel like practicing, Bell would tell him to "turn the pro switch on."
Now 26, Hayward looks to impart that bit of wisdom on his Jazz teammates. As the week's progressed, coach Quin Snyder has preached defensive principles with more ferocity, with the belief that offense will come.
Sure, the Jazz are looking forward to Monday night, and the opportunity play against someone other than themselves.
At the same time, Utah players say they can't be as good as possible without going through the monotony first.
"It can get a little tiring, but basketball is what we love doing," Jazz forward Joe Ingles said. "We've got an exciting group, we know this is our job, and we know that we've got to get as much work as we can in order to get on the same page."
Favors from 3
Jazz forward Derrick Favors surprised many in Friday afternoon's open scrimmage at Granger High School with his shooting.
The scouting report says that Favors has a good midrange shot from 15-18 feet. But Favors knocked home a pair of 3-pointers on Friday, with one of them coming on a set play.
If Favors can add that to his game, it could give the Jazz a new dimension offensively.
For his part, Snyder said he trusts the shooting of his power forward. At the same time, he doesn't want Favors drifting from what makes him good, which is his ability to score close to the basket.
"Obviously, I'd rather George Hill shoot the threes, I think Derrick would too," Snyder said. "I want to play to our strengths. At the same time, I have confidence in Derrick as a shooter. I'm never going to tell him not to take an open shot."
Getting to know each other
Beginning with Monday's preseason opener, the Jazz will face Portland three times in October. Two of the three games will be in Portland, with the third being the regular season opener for both teams.
twitter: @tjonessltrib