The neverending comparisons between Chris Paul and Deron Williams that started with the 2005 draft have taken on a new dimension with Paul being selected to the All-Star Game and Williams snubbed for the second consecutive year.
"I'm disappointed because he didn't make it," Jazz coach Jerry Sloan said of Williams, who has posted seven straight double-doubles and helped lead the Jazz to an eight-game winning streak. "There's no question about that. That's the luck of the draw.
"Their team is probably a little farther along. They were ahead of us two weeks ago and our team has come on pretty good and won some games. That's the way it works. You can be a victim of circumstances sometimes and you can't do anything about it."
Williams can take some consolation with a victory tonight over Paul and the Hornets at EnergySolutions Arena. The Jazz and the Hornets are arguably the NBA's two hottest teams, having gone a combined 23-4 in January.
With a victory tonight, the Jazz would be able to boast a nine-game winning streak, their longest since March 2000. The Hornets had a nine-game winning streak in January, capped by two 24-point victories against San Antonio and Denver.
It was enough to leave them with the Western Conference's best record (the Hornets currently are a half-game behind Phoenix). Paul, averaging 20.7 points and 10.9 assists this season, joined Kevin Garnett, LeBron James and Kobe Bryant in early MVP talk.
Both Paul and Hornets forward David West were selected as All-Star reserves. New Orleans' Byron Scott also will coach the Western Conference team. Williams, meanwhile, generated little buzz as an All-Star candidate in the wake of the Jazz's 5-11 December.
How upset Williams was not to achieve one of his goals is anyone's guess. He said after Friday's victory over Washington, "I'm definitely disappointed not to make it, but that's how it goes."
Williams did play on an even bigger stage in last year's playoffs, leading the Jazz to the Western Conference finals. The Hornets, by contrast, finished out of the playoffs in each of Paul's first two seasons.
For his part, Williams said he was going to invite Paul to his house Sunday for a Super Bowl party. "It's definitely an important game, I'm not going to overlook the game," he said. "The matchup-wise, it's just another game for us both."
The first showdown this season between Paul and Williams largely fizzled out. Williams played just 29 minutes because of foul trouble while Jason Hart and Ronnie Price filled in as unlikely heroes in the Jazz's 99-71 victory on Nov. 23.
The Hornets shot just 32.9 percent in the game (1-for-17 on three-pointers) and crumbled against the Jazz's zone defense in the second half. New Orleans scored just seven points in the fourth quarter and missed its first 13 shots.
The Jazz, who were 16-16 on Dec. 29, have won 14 of their last 16 games. They succeeded in regrouping at home in January, which coincided with Kyle Korver's arrival, and are giving up just 92.6 points on average during their eight-game winning streak.
"This is the time of year," Sloan said, "when you've got to be careful, in my opinion, because you're getting ready for the All-Star break and you run into teams that are either really good or really struggling.
"Some teams, they know that's coming up and they kind of have a tendency to look to that rather than to the game at hand. We can't afford to do that because we've had a lull that really hurt us, put us way out of contention there for a while."
Jazz note: According to a team source, the Jazz are not interested in trading for Indiana center Jeff Foster, contrary to a New York Daily News report Sunday. The team still is uncertain how likely it is to make another trade (after the Korver deal in December) before the Feb. 21 trade deadline.
