Even as they scout big men they may select in the June 24 NBA Draft, the Jazz have not ruled out the possibility of re-signing veteran center Greg Ostertag.
"We're gonna establish what we consider a fair market value, he's gonna establish what he considers a fair market value, and we're gonna talk about it," said Kevin O'Connor, the Jazz's senior vice president for basketball operations after watching draft prospects Rafael Araujo of BYU and David Harrison of Colorado work out Friday.
Ostertag, an unrestricted free agent who has spent his entire nine-season NBA career in Utah, has not ruled out re-signing with the Jazz.
But earlier this week he also told the Dallas Morning News how much he would love to play for his hometown Mavericks, reiterating remarks he has made on previous occasions.
"My guess," O'Connor said, "is that when the dust clears, we're gonna be one of the teams involved in looking to bring him back."
The Jazz can begin negotiating with Ostertag and other free agents July 1.
RUSSIAN RUMOR: According to ESPNInsider.com's" Chad Ford, sharp-shooting swingman Sergei Monya of Russia "is not working out for any teams, causing whispers of 'promise' around the league. . . . Utah is one of many teams that really likes Monya. He'd be a great fit."
Monya is represented by Marc Fleisher, the same agent employed by Jazz All-Star forward Andrei Kirilenko, a Russian, and Jazz restricted free agent shooting guard Gordan Giricek, who is from Croatia.
"I'm not saying Utah promised anything, but it makes some sense," Ford wrote Friday. "Monya likely will have to play one more season in Russia before heading to the NBA, giving the Jazz time to sort out logjams at (shooting guard and small forward)."
The Jazz will travel to Russia to play Monya's current team and Kirilenko's former team, CSKA Moscow, in a preseason game this October.
TRADE TALK: A trade rumor, also courtesy of ESPN's Ford: "One (scenario) has the Bulls working out a deal with the Jazz, who would send their No. 16 pick and Matt Harpring to Chicago for the Bulls' No. 3 pick and Jerome Williams."
MISC.: University of Nevada swingman Kurt Snyder unexpectedly canceled a planned Friday visit to Utah; instead, the Jazz will watch him in Chicago. . . . Snyder was replaced in Friday's four-player workout by 6-foot-8 forward Evan Burns, who severely tore his left knee while playing for San Diego State during the 2002-03 season. . . . O'Connor leaves this weekend to scout a big men's camp in Italy that features not only 7-5 Siberian giant Pavel Podkolzine, but also highly regarded 18-year-old Martynas Andriuskevicius, a 7-2 center from Lithuania, and Mile Ilic, a 7-1 center who plays in Serbia. . . . According to a report in the Hartford Courant, the Jazz are among several teams who have recently watched University of Connecticut point guard Ben Gordan work out.
E-mail: tbuckley@desnews.com