Jazz Notes: Favors, Burks, Booker

Four years after the trade that sent Deron Williams from the Jazz to the Nets in exchange for Derrick Favors, Devin Harris, draft picks and cash considerations, it’s Favors who has emerged as the top player, Stefan Bondy of the New York Daily News writes.

Favors, who averaged a career-high 16 points per game last season along with 8.2 rebounds per game and 1.7 blocks per game, said his goal is to make the All-Star team this year for Utah. Meanwhile, the Nets waived Williams in a buyout agreement during the summer.

“I thought about the trade for the first couple of years and what might’ve been if I stayed on [with the Nets],” Favors told Bondy. “But obviously it worked out for me.”

Here’s more out of Utah:

  • Alec Burks, who had left shoulder surgery in January, can be looked at as the best addition to the Jazz because he missed the majority of last season and Utah did not make any splashy signings in the summer, Ben Dowsett of Basketball Insiders writes in a preview of the team. Burks, who was a breakout player in his last full season, has some work to do defensively, as Dowsett adds. The Jazz  signed Burks to a four-year extension worth $42MM plus incentives, so the 24-year-old is a cornerstone for the team.
  • Trevor Booker said surgery to repair a nasal fracture went well and he’ll start playing basketball next week, Andy Larsen of Saltcityhoops.com tweets. Booker’s salary for this season is fully guaranteed for $4.775MM.
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