Healthy Jazz see Okur, Brewer flourish News Denver Nuggets

Carlos Boozer and Andrei Kirilenko are back on the court after in-season surgeries. As a result, Ronnie Brewer, Mehmet Okur and everyone else on the Utah Jazz are playing better. That's the hypothesis of Jazz point guard Deron Williams, and it's hard to argue with him ? especially since the Jazz are on a nine-game winning streak with Brewer and Okur leading the way.

Brewer is on his best scoring streak of his professional career entering tonight's late (8:30 p.m. thanks to ESPN coverage) Northwest Division battle against the Denver Nuggets at Energy-Solutions Arena. He's scored 16 or more points in nine straight games, averaging 19.1 during that span. Okur, meanwhile, is currently on fire from the field ? especially from long distance. The Jazz center is 19-for-29 from 3-point range during Utah's current winning streak. That's an incredible 65.5-percent success rate. Having Boozer back "makes life easier for everybody," said Williams. "Anytime Booz is there, people have to pay a lot of attention to him. They have to double down on him. It frees up Memo and it frees up Ronnie Brewer to run along the baseline. It allows me to come off on pick-and-rolls a bit easier." As a result, the Jazz are winning and right on the Nuggets' heels in the divisional standings. While it is just one of 82 during the regular season, the Jazz know that tonight's game with the Nuggets is bigger than most. "It's an important game," said Jazz coach Jerry Sloan. "It's a two-game swing with this one game. You hope it goes your way." The fact is that if Okur and Brewer continue in their current red-hot ways, it will give the Jazz a much better chance at beating the Nuggets. "I'm shooting with a lot of confidence right now, so my teammates just keep telling me to keep shooting," said Okur. He also acknowledges that having Boozer in the paint leaves him more open for long-range jumpers on the perimeter. "(Boozer) is such a great post-up player," said Okur. "He really gets attention (from opponents) on the block and he creates open shots for the rest of us." Meanwhile, Brewer and Kirilenko are making the most of their minutes on the floor together at their respective wing positions. "We try to be active. I'm looking for Ronnie, and Ronnie is looking for me," said Kirilenko. Brewer's average in his past nine games is five points above his season average, which was already five points better than his career average entering the season. "Ronnie's been playing great," said Boozer. "He's been aggressive, been finishing and playing great defense. Ronnie has come a long way since his rookie year, and he's turned himself into an outstanding starter." Brewer's solid play all season is one reason the Jazz were able to withstand the injury bug that had plagued them most of the year. Now healthy, Utah is within striking distance of a division title and a possible No. 3 seed in the Western Conference playoffs. Brewer has played in 60 of Utah's 61 games, missing only one outing in December due to a death in his family. "Ronnie is a very talented guy with a lot of athletic ability," said Sloan. "He's trying to use his athletic ability and is learning what we're doing. He's been competing very hard and making plays that help us win." E-MAIL: lojo@desnews.com Jazz on the air Denver (40-22) at Utah (38-23) Tonight, 8:30 p.m. EnergySolutions Arena TV: ESPN Radio: 1320 AM, 98.7 FM