Utah Jazz: Joe Ingles a rookie with veteran savvy

New York • Joe Ingles suffers through the minor indignities of life as an NBA rookie because he is one. He totes the pink backpack with the characters from "Frozen" emblazoned on it. He picks up doughnuts for the team. He sings "Happy Birthday" to his veteran teammates, most several years younger.

But don't mistake Ingles for a basketball newbie.

He's already won a Rookie of the Year award, claiming the Australian National Basketball League's honor in 2007 as a member of the South Dragons. He's been to the Olympics. He's captained a World Cup team. He's been to the playoffs. Heck, he's already won a championship.

"We're not developing Joe Ingles," Jazz general manager Dennis Lindsey said. "He's been a good player on the international scene for a long time."

And as such, the Jazz haven't been hesitant to give the Australian forward a significant role off the bench, despite being a late addition to the team.

"The biggest reason I came over here at this point in my career was I thought I was ready to help a team," Ingles said. "Obviously I'm not going to play 40 minutes. But I can go out and help the team."

The Jazz claimed Ingles off waivers on Oct. 27, bringing to fruition a dream Ingles and circumstances had put on hold for different reasons over the years.

He's twice played for Golden State's summer league teams. A season ago, he had a guaranteed offer from the Memphis Grizzlies, but opted to play the season at Maccabi Tel Aviv, where, under now-Cavaliers coach David Blatt, he won a Euroleague title.

"I think Joe probably made a wise decision to mature physically overseas and come at the right time," Lindsey said. "Could he have come over and played earlier? Absolutely."

So this year, Ingles made the leap. He came into training camp with the Los Angeles Clippers with a nonguaranteed deal. The team cut Ingles just before the start of the season, though Clippers coach Doc Rivers later said the team had intended to bring him back, had Utah not been so quick to scoop him up.

Ingles is glad the Jazz did.

Utah coach Quin Snyder was familiar with Ingles. Two years ago, when Snyder was an assistant at CSKA Moscow, his team played Ingles' Barcelona squad four times.

"He's a versatile guy that could make plays and help his teammates," Snyder recalled. "That system that they played over there is really demanding."

Snyder's familiarity was instrumental in the Jazz's decision to sign the 6-foot-8 Aussie, and Ingles has called it an ideal fit for him.

"If you look at my stats over my career, I'm not going to average 20 points a game," Ingles said. "I think it's a matter of finding the right situation, a coach that understands me, and coach here obviously saw me when he was in Europe. I think it's a perfect situation."

Right out of the gate, Ingles was inserted into the Jazz's rotation. After his first NBA game, Ingles checked his watch, still stunned by the fact that he'd only been with the team for about 20 hours.

On Sunday in Detroit, Ingles scored a season-high 10 points, knocking down three attempts from beyond the arc. But that's not going to be his strength, as even he will admit.

"I'll shoot if I'm open, but I'm not going to take bad shots or force anything," he said. "I like getting the other guys involved."

Indeed, it's Ingles' length and floor vision that have allowed him to be trusted so early. "Quin's an ex-point guard," Lindsey said. "He likes the ball to move, and he likes passers." Snyder added, "He's easy to play with."

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