AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — The Jazz committed more fouls last season than any other NBA team.
Big shock?
Uh, not really.
"We're a physical team," forward Matt Harpring said. "That's the way Jerry likes it."
Physical, actually, is the only way "Jerry" — Jazz coach Jerry Sloan — knows how to play.
If the NBA has its way, however, touchy, feely, grabby teams like Sloan's will become as much a dinosaur as Stockton-to-Malone.
The Jazz, in fact, are learning the hard way this preseason that the league is serious when it suggests it wants to increase scoring — and will help do so, at least in part, by having its referees make more calls favorable to the offensive, and not the defensive, player.
In Friday night's preseason win over Sacramento, for instance, Utah was whistled for 39 fouls — 24 in the first half alone.
Message delivered? Apparently so.
"We should know," Sloan said afterward, "what the rules are."
The thing is, not one has changed from a season ago.
Interpretation of certain existing rules, however, is undergoing a transformation.
More so now than ever before, use of the forearm by a defensive player to hold off and restrict an offensive player's progress will be called — particularly from the half-court line to the 3-point arc and on moves made to the basket, especially along the baseline.
Moreover, a defensive player's ability to draw a charge will become tougher: Previously a charge might called as long a defender held his position, now referees must decide the defensive player is not moving at all before deeming it a charge.
The Jazz's bread and butter, in other words, is being taken away before they've even had a chance to wash down that toast with a refreshing glass of juice.
"A lot of our defense," Harpring said, "is putting hands on people and not letting them do what they want to do."
"The one that really concerns me is that a defensive player moving can't (draw) offensive fouls," added guard Raja Bell, who has a particular penchant for drawing the charge. "I'm not here to make rules or anything, but sometimes it's tough. Just because you're moving doesn't necessarily mean you're at fault. You know, somebody can still run you over if you're moving."
Which is precisely what Sloan says prompts him to advocate use of the forearm when defending.
"We know that they're not going to let you chuck guys with your forearm — but you have to be able to receive your guy," he said.
"We try to teach our guys to protect themselves," added Sloan, whose Jazz continue preseason play tonight at Detroit. "If you want to go this direction, and I'm standing here, what am I supposed to do? Get out of your way? Or learn how to take a little bit of punishment? If you decide to run over me, I'm gonna have to protect myself some way.
"I don't want them to hurt anybody — (but) I don't want them to get hurt."
Sloan's explainer sounds suspiciously like justification for simple trademark tricks that other teams' players often are too soft or otherwise unwilling to practice.
Truth be told, though, the issue gets him rather riled.
"Maybe what we have to do (is) just back out of the way and see if they can make layups," Sloan said. "If they miss it, we'll run to the other end — and see if we can get a 3."
Dripping sarcasm aside, the Jazz's bag of tricks — right, wrong or otherwise — is one the NBA wants to see largely disappear.
Some from Utah think they understand why, too: "The premium in this league is scoring," Bell said. "That's what fans want to see, and that's what this league is trying to promote."
Yet Sloan suggests there are viable alternative means to achieving the same end.
"How would I increase offense?" he asks. "I'd just let guys play a little bit, and let them compete a little bit . . . and let the best man win. Let the best team win."
Since that's evidently not going to happen, the Jazz have no choice but to embrace the NBA's new way.
Several with the team suggest the changes may be less and less noticeable as the season progresses, but others say adjustments must be made.
"Preseason games, they'll be very strict about it — and they'll kind of wean off of that," Bell said. "But, when the league says, 'This is the way we're gonna call it,' generally they call it more so than not. So, we'll see how it plays out.
"You know," he added, "refs change night in and night out. Some refs call it one way, some refs call it (another). So, as a player, you've got to be able to adjust — and we'll just have to be able to do that."
Sloan hopes his club can — if it must.
"There's 29 teams just like us — they're gonna have to play by the rules, and that's all we can do," he said. "I'm not gonna worry about it. . . . If we can't play the way we've played, then I've got to change. That's all there is to it."
"At first glance, it might look like it would hurt a team like us," Bell added. "But we'll be fine. We'll adjust to it, and we'll fine ways that we can execute our game plan defensively — and be physical, within the rules."
Which is not to say, however, that the Jazz won't lead the league in fouls.
Again.
Jazz at Pistons
When: 5 p.m. (Mountain Time)
Where: Palace at Auburn Hills
Radio: KFNZ 1320 AM
TV: None
E-mail: tbuckley@desnews.com