This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2007, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Posted: 2:53 PM- Carlos Boozer originally thought his sore knee would keep him out a matter of minutes. Then he expected to be back within a day or two. But that's never been Carlos Boozer's luck, has it?
The Jazz's leading scorer and rebounder will miss at least a month, the team announced Wednesday after doctors detected a hairline fracture in the head of his left fibula, the narrow lower-leg bone that runs alongside the tibia and attaches to the knee.
"I'll be out for four or five weeks," Boozer said Wednesday as he propped himself up with a crutch. "The good news is it's not as bad as it could have been."
Probably true. Boozer's two previous injuries in his three-year tenure with the Jazz cost him 31 games during the 2004-05 season and 49 during the 2005-06 season. This one comes during a relatively light part of Utah's schedule; the Jazz play only five games in February's first 19 days. A five-week injury from the day it occurred would cost the power forward only 13 games.
And Boozer hinted it could be less. "We'll see how it heals. I've just got to take it day-by-day," said Boozer, who was injured during the first quarter of Saturday's loss in Oklahoma City when Hornets center Tyson Chandler collided with him while receiving an entry pass.
Boozer refused to rule out an appearance in the Feb.�18 All-Star Game, should he be named to the team Thursday night. "I'm not going to say no, I'm not going to say yeah. I'm just going to say possibly," Boozer said.
The injury likely will cause his team more pain than Boozer himself will feel. "It's not as painful as it may sound," he said. "It's sore. It throbs a little bit here and there, but not too bad."
The Jazz will have to get by without a 22-point, 11-rebound powerhouse. Jarron Collins will take Boozer's place in the starting lineup, with Mehmet Okur moving from center to Boozer's forward spot. But the load will mostly fall upon rookie Paul Millsap's shoulders. Millsap will receive substantially more than his 17-minute average, assistant coach Phil Johnson said.
The team will also bring in another player on a 10-day contract, though probably not until next week, Kevin O'Connor said. "We're having a discussion about that right now," said the team's senior vice president of basketball operations. "We still have 12 players, though. We'll try to make that decision quickly."
Another big man would be the team's first choice, to fill Millsap's role in limited minutes, but quality power players are in short supply. That could convince the Jazz to bring in a small forward or a shooting guard instead, with former Jazz forward Roger Powell, cut in early January, as one possibility.