It seems only fitting that the Jazz will open the preseason Tuesday night in Anaheim, Calif., against the Los Angeles Lakers, the team that ended their season not even five months ago in the Western Conference semifinals.
Asked Monday how long it took him to move on after the series, Deron Williams said it was still in his head. The Jazz were eliminated in six games, which might as well have served as a microcosm of their season.
"I thought we could have played better that series," Williams said. "It was rough for us. They posed a lot of matchup problems for us, and I don't think we defended them very well. They were definitely the better team in that series."
The Jazz lost all three games to the Lakers in Los Angeles, but by a combined total of just 28 points. That only served to underscore the importance of home-court advantage, which the Lakers claimed by finishing with the conference's best regular-season record.
Williams noted Monday that the Jazz have played five playoff series the last two seasons and held home-court advantage in only one of them, against Golden State in the 2007 conference semifinals.
"It's definitely important for us to come out strong, I think this year and finish strong as well and not have so many ups and downs,"
