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SALT LAKE CITY -- The Golden State Warriors received quite the makeover at the NBA’s trade deadline.
Golden State traded longtime Warrior and leading scorer Monta Ellis and up-and-coming big man Ekpe Udoh and Kwame Brown to Milwaukee for the defensive-minded former Utah Ute center Andrew Bogut and Stephen Jackson. Jackson was immediately dealt to the Spurs for Richard Jefferson.
Golden State is looking to take a more defensive-minded approach to the way it plays basketball, as a result the trade for oft-injured Bogut fits in with its long-term goals.
"There's going to be nights where I'm going to have a scoring drought, but if I can affect the game by blocking shots, taking charges, grabbing rebounds, getting loose balls, I will remain on the floor and help my team win. Sometimes it doesn't always show up on the stat sheet," Bogut said to the San Jose Mercury News. "I love playing defense, I love getting the crowd involved by blocking a shot and leading to a fast break. So I don't anticipate anything different."
Golden State gambled on the former All-NBA center who has had a history of missing games due to injury, but Bogut believes that his injuries have been “freak” injuries and that he hasn’t had any health concerns otherwise.
“My injuries aren’t classic injuries due to conditioning or being overweight or being out of shape,” Bogut said to Yahoo! Sports. “They are just freak game ones. Hopefully, I can put them behind me now. I’m professional with my rehab. If I can get back in two weeks, then I’ll do everything in my power to do that.”
Bogut, who is out now with a fractured left ankle, will undergo an MRI in a couple of weeks, but with only six weeks remaining in the season, the center is unlikely to play for the Warriors this season.
As for the Jazz, when they face Golden State tonight, they’ll be happy to not face Ellis, who has managed to score 30 or more the last two times they’ve faced him.
"I'm glad that we don't have to play Monta (Ellis) again. He's kind of killed us in both games,” Gordon Hayward said to the Deseret News. “But they're a tough group; they've got some talented scorers, and they're right there in the (playoff) race with us,"
For the Jazz, they’re looking to build off the momentum gained from their 111-105 overtime victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Thursday.
The Jazz had a chance to win the game in regulation as power forward Paul Millsap missed a wide-open lay-in, but the forward redeemed himself in overtime, making several key plays to seal the victory.
"He showed true professionalism and toughness. It was a tough break in missing the shot (at the end of regulation). It was a point-blank shot for him,” Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin said to NBA.com. "But the overtime performance, getting his hands on balls, making the big shot right there at the end at the free-throw line ... he just showed who he is. He's a tough competitor."
The Jazz will be without leading scorer and rebounder Al Jefferson, who will be attending the funeral of his grandmother, who recently died.
Jefferson averages 19 points and 9.4 rebounds per game. Derrick Favors is likely to start in his place.
The game will take place at 7 p.m. at EnergySolutions Arena and will be televised by Root Sports.
Jarrod Hiatt is a freelance writer who writes Jazz previews for KSL.com. You can follow him on Twitter at @jarrodhiatt.
