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Ostertag lost in Sacramento
Not what he expected: Minutes are way down for former Jazz center who signed with the Kings
By Phil Miller
The Salt Lake Tribune
This isn't what Greg Ostertag signed up for, isn't what he expected at all.
Ostertag wanted to play basketball for the Kings, and he wanted to play a lot.
That wasn't too much to plan on, was it? After all, despite his many critics in Utah, one thing Ostertag never could be accused of was not putting in his time. In nine seasons with the Jazz, he missed more than a game or two only twice, when he broke his hand during his rookie season and when he fractured a leg bone two years later.
And Sacramento, reluctant and ultimately unsuccessful in bringing Vlade Divac back for a seventh season, had a need for size. Combined with the small-market, country-music ambiance, and the presence of fellow outdoorsman Brad Miller, the move to Sacramento seemed a perfect fit for the Utah expatriate.
"I thought so. It's a nice place," Ostertag said last week, upon his first visit to the Delta Center as a member of the Kings. "I was excited about it."
He won't say it, but Sacramento is a lot less exciting for Ostertag now. He mostly sits and watches these days.
After playing just four minutes against the Jazz - and being loudly booed upon being introduced - Ostertag is on track to play less than in any season since he was a rookie.
At the beginning of the season, there was a good reason for his absence: Ostertag broke his right hand again, though not on the basketball court but in his bedroom at home. "I just fell on it, that's all," he said. "Nothing more to it."
Except that the hand kept Ostertag from participating in training camp, which in turn prevented him from being ready for the season, which cost him playing time important for getting used to his teammates. Now he plays only 10 minutes a game, and four times this season hasn't gotten off the Kings' bench at all. It isn't what he signed up for.
"It's been a little rough. It's been a little frustrating," conceded Ostertag, who has scored only 38 points all season. "But what can I do? I go out there and do the things I can do, and see how it goes."
His coach believes the problem isn't Ostertag's game, but the rest of the league's.
"A lot of the time, it's nothing more than matchups," said Sacramento coach Rick Adelman, who has stuck with the more mobile Miller as his center most of the time. "With [the success of] Phoenix, a lot of team are using smaller, quicker lineups. But I have to find ways to use his shot-blocking and rebounding."
Those skills remain intact. Despite playing only 233 minutes this season - by contrast, he played a career-high 2,153 minutes last season - and despite per-game averages that have plummeted because of those minutes, Ostertag has the second-highest total of blocked shots on the Kings, and he's fifth in offensive rebounds.
Those are numbers that Ostertag hopes will translate into bigger minutes soon. "It's just the way Coach likes to play," Ostertag said. "I don't think it's me so much as, he likes to play his starters 35-plus minutes a game. So you just have to try to stay ready."
Coming back to Utah with his new team was a sentimental journey, and an awkward one, too, he said. Ostertag embraced Larry Miller in a tunnel near the locker room, joked with his former teammates during warm-ups,
shook hands with dozens of arena employees, and hugged Jerry Sloan as soon as he spotted him.
Not that any of that was a surprise.
"You guys always saw the bad things between me and Coach. We're actually good friends," Ostertag said. "We just bumped heads on the court sometimes, that's all. But that's a friendship I'll take with me forever."
Same goes for the fellow head-bumper.
"I looked forward to seeing Greg. I was with him a long time," Sloan said. "We have a lot better relationship than most people realize. Even though we argued and fussed a lot when he was here, Greg's a nice man. I have a lot of respect for him as a person."
"I was only his teammate for a year, but it seemed like Greg was on the Jazz forever," said Raja Bell. "So seeing him with the Kings is really strange."
Strange, occasionally frustrating, but still rewarding, Ostertag said. "I'm not disappointed, not at all. We're winning, we're in second place in our division, and I think we've got a good chance to contend in the West."
And the Kings organization is a good fit, too, Ostertag said. "Everything there is so much more laid-back," he said. "The weather's nice, the city's nice - I can't ask for anything else."
Well, maybe some playing time.
pmiller@sltrib.com
Jazz at Rockets
l At the Toyota Center, Houston
l Tipoff: 6:30 p.m. MST
l TV: KJZZ
l Radio: KFNZ-AM (1320)
l Records: Utah 11-19, Houston 15-15
l Season Series: Jazz lead, 1-0
l All-Time: Jazz lead, 81-67
l At Houston: Rockets lead, 44-29
l Streak: Jazz, 2 wins
l Last Meeting: Jazz 90, Rockets 80 (Nov. 26)
l Line: Rockets by 7 1/2
About the Jazz: They have fallen to 14th place in the Western Conference, only ahead of New Orleans. . . . Four of their next five are away from home.
About the Rockets: They are 10-7 at home. ... They have won two straight to reach .500 for the first time since they were 6-6.
Ostertag stats
Year Team Reb Blk Pt
1995 Jazz 3.1 1.1 3.7
1996 Jazz 7.3 2.0 7.3
1997 Jazz 5.9 2.1 4.7
1998 Jazz 7.3 2.7 5.7
1999 Jazz 6.0 2.1 4.5
2000 Jazz 5.1 1.8 4.5
2001 Jazz 4.2 1.5 3.3
2002 Jazz 6.2 1.8 5.4
2003 Jazz 7.4 1.8 6.8
2004 Kings 3.1 0.8 1.7
Career 5.8 1.8 5.0
Ostertag lost in Sacramento
Not what he expected: Minutes are way down for former Jazz center who signed with the Kings
By Phil Miller
The Salt Lake Tribune
This isn't what Greg Ostertag signed up for, isn't what he expected at all.
Ostertag wanted to play basketball for the Kings, and he wanted to play a lot.
That wasn't too much to plan on, was it? After all, despite his many critics in Utah, one thing Ostertag never could be accused of was not putting in his time. In nine seasons with the Jazz, he missed more than a game or two only twice, when he broke his hand during his rookie season and when he fractured a leg bone two years later.
And Sacramento, reluctant and ultimately unsuccessful in bringing Vlade Divac back for a seventh season, had a need for size. Combined with the small-market, country-music ambiance, and the presence of fellow outdoorsman Brad Miller, the move to Sacramento seemed a perfect fit for the Utah expatriate.
"I thought so. It's a nice place," Ostertag said last week, upon his first visit to the Delta Center as a member of the Kings. "I was excited about it."
He won't say it, but Sacramento is a lot less exciting for Ostertag now. He mostly sits and watches these days.
After playing just four minutes against the Jazz - and being loudly booed upon being introduced - Ostertag is on track to play less than in any season since he was a rookie.
At the beginning of the season, there was a good reason for his absence: Ostertag broke his right hand again, though not on the basketball court but in his bedroom at home. "I just fell on it, that's all," he said. "Nothing more to it."
Except that the hand kept Ostertag from participating in training camp, which in turn prevented him from being ready for the season, which cost him playing time important for getting used to his teammates. Now he plays only 10 minutes a game, and four times this season hasn't gotten off the Kings' bench at all. It isn't what he signed up for.
"It's been a little rough. It's been a little frustrating," conceded Ostertag, who has scored only 38 points all season. "But what can I do? I go out there and do the things I can do, and see how it goes."
His coach believes the problem isn't Ostertag's game, but the rest of the league's.
"A lot of the time, it's nothing more than matchups," said Sacramento coach Rick Adelman, who has stuck with the more mobile Miller as his center most of the time. "With [the success of] Phoenix, a lot of team are using smaller, quicker lineups. But I have to find ways to use his shot-blocking and rebounding."
Those skills remain intact. Despite playing only 233 minutes this season - by contrast, he played a career-high 2,153 minutes last season - and despite per-game averages that have plummeted because of those minutes, Ostertag has the second-highest total of blocked shots on the Kings, and he's fifth in offensive rebounds.
Those are numbers that Ostertag hopes will translate into bigger minutes soon. "It's just the way Coach likes to play," Ostertag said. "I don't think it's me so much as, he likes to play his starters 35-plus minutes a game. So you just have to try to stay ready."
Coming back to Utah with his new team was a sentimental journey, and an awkward one, too, he said. Ostertag embraced Larry Miller in a tunnel near the locker room, joked with his former teammates during warm-ups,
shook hands with dozens of arena employees, and hugged Jerry Sloan as soon as he spotted him.
Not that any of that was a surprise.
"You guys always saw the bad things between me and Coach. We're actually good friends," Ostertag said. "We just bumped heads on the court sometimes, that's all. But that's a friendship I'll take with me forever."
Same goes for the fellow head-bumper.
"I looked forward to seeing Greg. I was with him a long time," Sloan said. "We have a lot better relationship than most people realize. Even though we argued and fussed a lot when he was here, Greg's a nice man. I have a lot of respect for him as a person."
"I was only his teammate for a year, but it seemed like Greg was on the Jazz forever," said Raja Bell. "So seeing him with the Kings is really strange."
Strange, occasionally frustrating, but still rewarding, Ostertag said. "I'm not disappointed, not at all. We're winning, we're in second place in our division, and I think we've got a good chance to contend in the West."
And the Kings organization is a good fit, too, Ostertag said. "Everything there is so much more laid-back," he said. "The weather's nice, the city's nice - I can't ask for anything else."
Well, maybe some playing time.
pmiller@sltrib.com
Jazz at Rockets
l At the Toyota Center, Houston
l Tipoff: 6:30 p.m. MST
l TV: KJZZ
l Radio: KFNZ-AM (1320)
l Records: Utah 11-19, Houston 15-15
l Season Series: Jazz lead, 1-0
l All-Time: Jazz lead, 81-67
l At Houston: Rockets lead, 44-29
l Streak: Jazz, 2 wins
l Last Meeting: Jazz 90, Rockets 80 (Nov. 26)
l Line: Rockets by 7 1/2
About the Jazz: They have fallen to 14th place in the Western Conference, only ahead of New Orleans. . . . Four of their next five are away from home.
About the Rockets: They are 10-7 at home. ... They have won two straight to reach .500 for the first time since they were 6-6.
Ostertag stats
Year Team Reb Blk Pt
1995 Jazz 3.1 1.1 3.7
1996 Jazz 7.3 2.0 7.3
1997 Jazz 5.9 2.1 4.7
1998 Jazz 7.3 2.7 5.7
1999 Jazz 6.0 2.1 4.5
2000 Jazz 5.1 1.8 4.5
2001 Jazz 4.2 1.5 3.3
2002 Jazz 6.2 1.8 5.4
2003 Jazz 7.4 1.8 6.8
2004 Kings 3.1 0.8 1.7
Career 5.8 1.8 5.0
