Los Angeles ? The signs hadn't been encouraging all week and the expected became official Sunday: Mehmet Okur will miss the Jazz's playoff opener against the Los Angeles Lakers with the strained right hamstring he suffered Monday.
The Jazz will start veteran Jarron Collins in Okur's absence. They also will start Kyle Korver at small forward matched up against Trevor Ariza, with coach Jerry Sloan opting for another shooter in the lineup without Okur. "We've got to be able to make some shots out on the perimeter," Sloan said, "so they can't just play a total zone inside and let their big people camp out in there and make the people out on the perimeter try to play us a little bit more."
Sloan has used Korver almost exclusively off the bench ever since the three-point shooter came to Utah in a December 2007 trade. Korver has played 128 regular season games with the Jazz and started exactly twice.
Collins, meanwhile, started and played 23 minutes in Tuesday's loss to the Lakers. He has played in only 26 games this season and averaged just 7.7 minutes, but Sloan will be counting on his experience.
"He has experience playing, that's the one good thing about it," Sloan said. "He'll set screens and help us the best way he can out there and that's what he's always done. We've got to play better around him to hopefully make him play better."
Okur spent pregame in the trainer's room and was unavailable for comment. His availability for Game 2 on Tuesday is uncertain.
Sloan also talked about the Jazz's need to keep the Lakers off the foul line. The Lakers made more free throws than the Jazz so much as attempted in last year's conference semifinals series.
Sloan said there were too many "silly fouls, ticky-tack fouls," adding, "If you're going to make a foul, make it worthwhile. Don't give them a three-point play on it."
rsiler@sltrib.com
