Not too long after Andrei Kirilenko literally shed tears about his diminished role with the Jazz, his teammates let him know that they're still counting on him for this series. From the Salt Lake Tribune:"AK's fine," forward Carlos Boozer said. "We talked to him yesterday. Sometimes, you have to get some things out. He got what he had to get out, and now he's ready to move forward and he's ready to play. I went up to him on the bus and told him, 'Look, man, you're our X-factor. We need you. We need you more than anybody.' He basically said thank you. I told him I loved him. . . we just basically pumped him up and told him that this team can be great with you."That's nice to see, especially since it's been Boozer's emergence as the team's dominant player this year that's pushed Kirilenko to a supporting role. But if you were hoping to read about some kind of heartfelt moment shared between player and coach, you're going to be sadly disappointed:
Coach Jerry Sloan and Kirilenko both said they did not speak much about the incident - "a little bit," Kirilenko said - and Sloan said he still plans to start Kirilenko against the Rockets tonight.Jerry Sloan is notorious for being one of the biggest hard-asses roaming the sidelines in the NBA, so I'm not surprised at all that he's "not qualified" to handle seeing a grown man cry.
"I probably haven't gotten him in a position where he's as comfortable as he would like to be," Sloan said. "Our job is still to win. . . . Nobody wants to see him play any better and play well than I do. I'm sure his teammates would feel the same way. We all want to try to solve people's problems, but I'm not qualified to solve those problems."
Previously on FanHouse:
Andrei Kirilenko Cries Over Shrinking Role
Will Andrei Kirilenko Ever Escape Jerry Sloan's Dog House?
Jarron Collins and Andrei Kirilenko Won't Win These Battles
