Wanted: starting shooting guard for the Utah Jazz. Must play defense, keep coach happy and carry the burden of being “the final piece of the puzzle.” Outside shooting a bonus, but must not overdo it — or prepare to ride the pine.
So goes the want ad for perhaps the most scrutinized job vacancy in Utah since the days of Jeff Hornacek. Forget the latest mayoral election — Utahns want to know who will be manning the wing opposite Andrei Kirilenko this season.
If the first three preseason games are any indication, Ronnie Brewer is the clear front runner to be called among the first five on Oct. 30 — the season opener in Oakland, Calif., against the Warriors.
On Wednesday evening, however, the Milwaukee Bucks spoiled the Jazz’s preseason opener, despite Brewer’s 17 points-tied for game-high honors with Milwaukee’s Michael Redd. The Bucks embarrassed the Jazz 18-9 in the final quarter and exited EnergySolutions Arena with a 90-81 win.
The Jazz traveled to Milwaukee three days later and returned the favor on their floor. Brewer stuck it to the Bucks with 28 points and five steals to help the Jazz claim a 92-78 victory.
Sandwiched between the Milwaukee exhibitions, Brewer took it to the Detroit Pistons on Friday and once again led the Jazz, this time with 18 points. The Jazz pocketed another win at Auburn Hills, 100-85. So far, their résumé is looking pretty good.
“It’s good to play well your first game,” Brewer said Wednesday night. “I was more confident and I worked on, over the summer, my shooting, my conditioning and my strength in Arkansas. I’m not a big vacation guy.”
If that’s his idea of a job interview, Jazz coach Jerry Sloan should be impressed. Brewer is noticeably bigger than last season and, after all, the last Jazz player who spent his summers lifting weights in Arkansas has his No. 32 jersey hanging in the rafters of the EnergySolutions Arena and retired as the NBA’s No. 2 all-time scoring leader.
Brewer, last year’s final lottery pick (14th overall), struggled to get off the bench last season, averaging 12 minutes in 56 games. He contributed 4.6 points and 1.3 rebounds per game.
But most telling is his shooting efficiency — a remarkable 53 percent despite an unorthodox release that he developed after breaking his arm in a water slide accident as a boy.
Through the first three games so far, Brewer is torching the nets at nearly 64 percent shooting.
Fans might wonder why Sloan, notorious for benching his rookies, didn’t learn his lesson after watching play-making phenomenon Deron Williams struggle through the same ordeal his rookie year. Williams proved he belonged and blossomed into one of the premier points in the league his second year.
Brewer is the first to answer that question.
“Last year for me was like being a deer in the headlights,” he explained. “You don’t know what to expect. The jump from college to the NBA is a huge transition.”
Brewer says he feels a lot more relaxed in his second year. And just like Williams, he expects a huge improvement — in performance and in minutes — during his sophomore season.
No more carrying other players’ luggage. No more locker room pranks. No more headlights.
Lennie MahlerRonnie Brewer dunks the ball in the first quarter of the Jazz’s preseason loss against Milwaukee on Wednesday.