Ex-Aggie Nelson back in camp

Salt Lake Tribune

There are a lot of familiar faces in training camp for the Utah Jazz, including one who has never played a regularseason game for them. Spencer Nelson played in two Rocky Mountain Revues for the Jazz, and he participat¬ed in camp before the 2005-¬06 season. A Pocatello, Idaho, native who starred at Utah State, Nelson is optimistic about his latest attempt to finally stick with the Jazz. 'A few faces have changed but obviously the system is the same and the organiza¬tion is as first-class as it's al¬ways been,' Nelson said Sat¬urday. 'I'm just excited to be here. I feel like it's a great opportu¬nity to come in and try to earn a spot. I feel like, if I come in here and do my best, I've got as good a chance as anybody to stick around.' In the last four years, Nel¬son has played profession¬ally in Germany, Italy and Greece. A power forward in college, believes his experiences in Eu-rope have improved his chanc¬es of making the Jazz's roster. 'Overseas, you learn a lot,' Nelson said.'... I played a lot of perimeter over there. I came here my first year trying to play the 'three' and I was OK, but there were adjustments I had to make. 'This last year in Greece, I played the majority of time at the three spot. So I've gotten more familiar with playing on the perimeter, offensively and defensively.' Coach Jerry Sloan breaks into a broad smile when asked about Nelson and his chances of sticking with the Jazz. 'We love Spencer,' Sloan said. 'He's one of the most refreshing guys you can have on a team. He's always come in and worked hard. He's just so close, you know, to having an opportunity to play [in the NBA].' During the conversation about Nelson, Sloan took the opportunity to sing the praises of Utah State coach Stew Morrill. 'I'll say this about the guys we get from Utah State,' Sloan said. 'They all know what's going on. The head coach up there is probably the best coach in the country, in my opinion. He does a great job, and the kids we've gotten in here from up there are just wonderful people.' Nelson spent four seasons with the Aggies, who won 96 games during his career. As a senior, Nelson aver¬aged 16 points, 7.9 rebounds and 4.8 assists. Told of Sloan's high opin¬ion of Morrill, Nelson said, 'As good as any coach I can imag¬ine. A great detail guy. He pays attention to all the little things. Very disciplined. He runs a lot of schemes, so you learn a lot from that standpoint.' Nelson added: 'He always emphasizes defense and re¬bounding and that's what wins championships, regard¬less of the level you are play-ing on. ... Stew's incredible. I'm grateful for the opportunity to play for him. Great person. Great coach.' The NBA education of rook¬ie guard Eric Maynor is just beginning. The Jazz used the 2Oth pick in the 2OO9 draft on Maynor, a highly decorated point guard from Virginia Commonwealth, and he spent his first day of Jazz training camp trying to absorb everything that was happening around him. 'Just learn as much as possible,' Maynor said, 'and get prepared for the season. Learn from these veterans. That's my main thing before the season starts — get every¬thing down.' With Sloan unlikely to overwork Deron Williams in the camp, Sloan will likely give Maynor plenty of play¬ing time during the exhibition season, which opens Thursday against Denver at EnergySolu¬tions Arena. 'He's got a point guard men¬tality,' Sloan said. 'I think he's going to have to work on his body to get better, but he looks to pass the ball. 'We think he can be a play¬er in this league. But obvious¬ly, where we picked, he's got to work and figure out what's go¬ing on. We'll see how that goes for him as we go forward.'