Point guard Deron Williams completed all of the Jazz's practice Wednesday, evidently boosting the possibility he'll play when the Dallas Mavericks visit EnergySolutions Arena tonight.
Williams sat out Monday's win over Charlotte and missed practice Tuesday because of a deep thigh bruise and subsequent swelling in his right knee, both stemming from an injury sustained in last Saturday's loss at Portland. Utah Valley product and usual No. 3 point Ronnie Price opened against the Bobcats, and veteran backup Brevin Knight closed.
Price, though, could be back on the bench for the start tonight.
The Jazz are calling Williams a "game-time decision," but Williams suggested prior to Wednesday's practice that much would depend on how the workout went.
And it apparently went well.
"I definitely want to play (tonight)," he said beforehand, "so I'm shooting for that."
The knee, Williams added, is "still swollen, but it's down a lot."
"Hopefully we're gonna have him back," Jazz coach Jerry Sloan said. "But only time can tell."
If Williams were to be unavailable tonight, Sloan added, Price again would get the start and Knight again would remain as the backup point.
Williams was wearing a brace and a protective sleeve on his right leg Wednesday.
Yet he still remained quite hopeful he can go against the Mavs -- albeit perhaps without the bulky brace.
"I'll probably end up throwing it off," he said.
It's beneficial, Williams added, that the NBA All-Star Game break is just a week away.
"It definitely helps," said Williams, who also missed 13 games earlier this season with a sprained ankle. "It's a chance to get some good rest, stay off my ankle for a while, let that heal.
"It's good to have the All-Star break every year," he added, "just to get that rest in."
COMPETITIVE WHEN HEALTHY: Sloan on Wednesday addressed the Jazz's 19-6 home record this season as opposed to their 8-16 road record, saying, "We'd like to be able to play like we do at home more often, but we don't seem to be able to get it done. That falls back on my responsibility."
But, Sloan added, "I'm still reluctant to make a lot of changes, because I think I know who we are. ... We know when we have everybody healthy we're a competitive team."
With power forward Carlos Boozer (arthroscopic knee surgery) missing his 38th straight game and small forward Andrei Kirilenko (ankle surgery) sitting out his eighth in a row, the Jazz's count of man-games lost due to injury this season will hit at least 126 tonight.
TV TALK: Retired Jazz star Karl Malone will be in-studio throughout the evening, serving as a guest analyst alongside host Ernie Johnson and regular analyst Kenny Smith for tonight's NBA on TNT doubleheader, which includes national cable-TV airing of the Jazz-Mavs game. E-mail: tbuckley@desnews.com
