Here are my thoughts on Deron Williams.
Deron is not only the face of the Utah Jazz franchise, but he is one of the faces of the NBA. Despite a few slip ups during his rookie year, he has been a standup citizen as far as we have been told. He seems to like Utah, the fans, and the franchise. Despite his mediocre looks (the veneers really helped), there are hundreds of ladies in the ESA sporting D-Will jerseys. We also like that he is respectful yet has a great sense of humor when it comes to the prodominant religion in the state.
At the first of the season he was coming off a stellar performance in the 2007 playoffs. We all saw his first All-Star game coming along with much more respect in the D-Will vs. CP3 debate. The season started and he fell flat. Don't get me wrong, he wasn't terrible, but it wasn't the Deron we had seen in the playoffs. December came and his struggles continued. It seemed as though he was hesitant in establishing himself as the go-to-guy on the team. The part I wish he would have realized, is that as Deron goes, the team goes. The Jazz struggled mightily in December and found themselves in 3rd place in the Northwest division and out of the current playoff race.
Then the Jazz signed Kyle Korver. This made Deron realize that he could easily lose the Pink Jersey crown along with his title as "Most Admired Jazz Player" by the ladies. The fact that Gordon Giricek wasn't around to be his cancerous self helped as well. Deron began to pick up the pace and brought his points and assists back up to playoff performance. But it wasn't enough as he was passed over for the All-Star game. Instead, CP3 stole the show and had the entire nation hanging off his jock strap...except Deron. D-Will elevated his game to another level after the All-Star game and brought the Jazz into full stride. They were the hottest team in the NBA and they were being led by a fearless 3 year point guard who didn't ask anyone to give him respect. He would earn it on his own and force them to notice.
The playoffs came and Deron single handedly (due to the lack of production from his "side kick") helped the Jazz beat down Houston. Tracy McGrady tried his best to bring him down by asking how his name was pronounced (he would have known it had McGrady been asked to play for USA basketball, but he wasn't...because...he sucks), but it didn't phase our superstar. He led his team to victory and sent McBitchy packing for the second year in a row.
Then the Lakers rolled in. He struggled in games 1 and 2 by trying to get his team involved and put his success on the back burner. He quickly realized that he would need to man up and take over again. Even Kobe took notice of Deron's abilities. There was no other player I wanted taking the game tying shot in Game 6 than Deron Williams. Yeah, he missed. But he had officially solidified himself as an All-NBA player, and the future of this franchise. Every other player became expendable when it came to resigning D-Will.
Here's to hoping for many more YouTube compliations like the one below in the years to come.
Fellow Jazz bloggers Deron Williams Season Recaps:
Biased Fan
SLC Dunk
