Jazz a little hush-hush on PG Maynor News Utah Jazz

The Jazz on Wednesday quietly brought Virginia Commonwealth University senior point guard Eric Maynor into town for an interview. Maynor ? a possible Utah pick at No. 20 in tonight's NBA Draft ? recently canceled a scheduled workout here due to back spasms. Utah scouts did watch Maynor in a group workout at Golden State, and, general manager Kevin O'Connor said, "we watched (him) in college four years."

But the Jazz really wanted to meet him, so Maynor willingly came Wednesday. He's among several college point guards the Jazz are considering at No. 20, along with a few power forwards and shooting guards. Maynor averaged 22.4 points and 6.2 assists last season, and the Colonial Athletic Association's two-time Player of the Year left VCU as its all-time leader in scoring, assists and free throws made. Other point possibilities for Utah include Wake Forest's Jeff Teague, who worked out here Tuesday, and both UCLA's Darren Collison and North Carolina's Ty Lawson, who wouldn't come because of starter Deron Williams' presence. Williams commands a bulk of Utah's point minutes, often leaving just 10-to-12 minutes for his backup. But the Jazz would consider Collison or Lawson anyway. "Deron Williams can't play 48 minutes, even though he wants to," player personnel vice president Walt Perrin said. "It's a position that needs to be covered," O'Connor added. "You know, you're playing a back-to-back ? that's a 15-minute night for somebody." GOOD BUDDY: Internet chatter suggests forward James Johnson, another possible Jazz pick, didn't get along well with Teague at Wake. Not so, according to Teague. "Guys can say what they want to say, but me and him were best friends," Teague said. "Believe it or not, he gave me his car once he left college ? so that tells what kind of friend he is." The ride: a 1998 Chevy Tahoe. HE WROTE IT: ESPN.com's Chad Ford, on Jazz forward Carlos Boozer's pending decision: "Over the past few months, we've assumed Boozer is (Detroit's) primary target, but that might not be the case. A league source told me Tuesday that the Pistons' free-agent strategy likely would preclude a run at Boozer. "The Pistons want to add several players to the roster and want to keep salaries at or less than $10 million per year. With Boozer likely demanding a deal in the $15 million to $16 million a year range, his contract demands are out of their league. Add in concerns about Boozer's injury history, and I don't think the Pistons will make a play for him. "That stance ... could put Boozer in a tough position. If he opts out of his contract with the Jazz , he's going to struggle to find any team far enough under the cap to offer him what he wants. And with the Jazz interested in keeping Paul Millsap, Boozer could be out of luck in Utah, too." NO SALE: There's a slim chance the Jazz would trade tonight's first-round pick for a future one. But O'Connor reiterated Wednesday that the decision's been made ? after discussion with family ownership rep Greg Miller ? to not sell the pick to another team, as league rules permit. "We'd rather get a player than do that," O'Connor said. OFFSPRING: Davidson combo guard Stephen Curry, ex- Jazz guard Dell Curry's son, should be a top-10 pick tonight. "Terrific player," O'Connor said. "Really knows how to play the game. ... I think he's stronger than he looks, he's tougher than he looks and he's gonna play a lot like Reggie (Miller)." MISC.: The Jazz , as expected, will soon make a one-year, $1.03 million qualifying offer to Millsap, protecting their matching rights on the soon-to-be restricted free agent. ... The Jazz still want center Kyrylo Fesenko with their summer league team in Orlando next month, but so far Fesenko seems insistent on playing only for his Ukrainian national team this summer. ... It's been confirmed that Jazz center Mehmet Okur won't play internationally for his native Turkey this offseason. E-MAIL: tbuckley@desnews.com