With the calendar turning and the clock ticking ... seven days ... on matching Paul Millsap's toxic and noxious offer from the Blazers ... six days ... the Jazz are now staring straight down two barrels ... five days ... aimed directly at their nose: what they could do and what they will do.

And everybody else who cares is looking down a couple more: what the Jazz should do and what they shouldn't do.

It's stressful times like these when vows to re-sign restricted free agents are broken ... unless ... well, unless.

Losing Millsap is particularly toxic and obnoxious to the Jazz because he is their guy. They drafted him, they developed him, they gave him his opportunity, and, given the fact that top free agents don't line up to come here, losing what is theirs is painful.

Especially when what is theirs gets 16 and 10 a night.

Back to the coulds and shoulds.

The Jazz could just let Millsap go. The offer from Portland -- four years, between $32 and $36 million, including a big bonus -- is more than the club is comfortable paying, due to their slammed luxury-tax situation. Still, it's likely the Jazz will match the offer.

They could let Millsap walk, and then keep Carlos Boozer, and his $12.7 million deal, for another year as a key figure in Jerry Sloan's layup-first, power forward-based offense. In theory, the Jazz could extend Boozer's deal and keeping him longer. If they were to do this, however, every one of the front-office guys should have bamboo shoots hammered up his fingernails and his innards disemboweled as part of the halftime show of the Jazz's season opener this fall.

There are reports that the Jazz have already told Boozer he's dead to them, and those reports were confirmed when the Jazz extended Mehmet Okur's deal. In doing so, they essentially booted Boozer, because Okur and Boozer cannot effectively play together, at least not without opposing big men busting up in laughter at the Jazz's interior defense.

They will try to trade Boozer, dumping his $12.7 mill, along with his history of injuries and elongated healing time and sparse defense and cryptic attitude, and then match Millsap's offer. Very likely. But that would not alleviate the money crunch, given that the Jazz would have to take back in trade a player or players within 75 percent of the cake they're shipping out.

If that money brought, say, Chicago's Tyrus Thomas, a long, lean shot-blocker, and the Jazz retained Millsap, now the Jazz are headed in a positive direction that helps solve their deficiencies. That's still expensive, but it works from a competitive standpoint. Status: unlikely.

There has been a lot of talk about a three-way deal between the Jazz, Portland and Chicago, in which the Jazz end up, one way or another, with Thomas and Millsap, the Blazers get Kirk Hinrich, and the Bulls get Boozer.

If the Jazz could pull that off, find a way to match up the numbers, they should jump all over it, ignoring the fact that they also would be shoveling cash to their lesser-spending brethren.

Question is, if that were the plan all along, why is one of Millsap's reps popping off on the Jazz the way he recently did? He said, in so many words, that they had their chance to reel in Millsap early and blew it.

Point is, the idea -- this one, or one like it -- is appealing. Solve the Boozer problem by shipping him off, gaining a long defender in exchange, and keeping Millsap, too, potentially at less than what the Blazers offered. But Millsap would have to agree to take less guaranteed money. Prediction: fat chance. Suggestion: keep trying.

There is another drastic option that could ultimately ease the Jazz's payroll crunch and give them a shot at rebuilding:

Punt.

Don't match Millsap, let Boozer's contract simply run out next season, trade for as many last-year deals -- is Tracy McGrady still out there? -- as possible, follow the theory that the best way to get real good is to first get real bad. The Jazz would suffer in the short run, driving Deron Williams to insanity's brink, but, thereafter, the benefits roll in.

Not only do the Jazz get New York's first pick in next year's draft, they also would earn a second lottery pick by way of their own top selection, a pick they otherwise would lose, because of the deal for Kyle Korver, except it is lottery-protected. In other words, the Jazz keep the pick -- if they are bad enough.

That strategy isn't as dirty and lowdown as it seems. Some might call it tanking. Others prefer the term regrouping. Either way, it's both risky and unlikely.

Bottom line: Significant tweaking, in this case, is better than regrouping, even if it is more expensive. The Jazz had best ... four days ... hurry up and choose a path ... three days ... because time is running short.

GORDON MONSON hosts "The Monson and Graham Show" weekdays from 2-6 p.m. on 1280 AM The Zone. He can be reached at gmonson@sltrib.com .