Deron Williams, Utah's almost All-Star point guard, once again filled up the stat sheet in leading the Jazz to a 119-109 victory over the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday night at EnergySolutions Arena.
Williams finished with a team-high 29 points to go along with a team-high dozen assists.
But the stat that Williams seemed to be most proud of was his team-high two blocked shots.
"I'm a shot blocker, you know," joked Williams, who had one particularly amazing block on a fast-break layup attempt by Warriors guard Monta Ellis.
For the record, the blocked shots were Williams' 15th and 16th of the season, giving him an average of less than one-third of a block per game.
So, he's not really much of a shot blocker, but he did point out, "I've got more (blocks) than (fellow starting guard) Ronnie Brewer ... I've almost got more than (center) Memo (Okur)."
Shot blocker or not, Williams showed yet again he is one of the best point guards in the league. Williams easily had the better of Golden State star Baron Davis, who had just 17 points and four assists.
Williams, meanwhile, went 10-for-14 from the field, made seven of his eight free throws and turned the ball over just three times in controlling the action, even if it was a bit faster paced than the Jazz usually prefer.
"We like to run, but we were on the pace to score 140 in the first half," said Williams. "It worked, though. I can't complain."
Despite the fact that the first-half pace was to the run-and-gun Warriors liking, the Jazz had opened up a 77-64 halftime lead while shooting nearly 70 percent from the field.
"We can play both (fast paced or slow)," said Williams. "I thought we did a good job running with them. I asked coach if he wanted us to slow it down one time and he said, 'No, keep pushing it.' So I kept pushing it."
Williams failed to be voted in by the fans or the coaches to the Western Conference All-Star team, but the Warriors coach certainly felt the Jazz playmaker was deserving of that honor.
"I've been watching (Williams) play like an All-Star for three years now," said Don Nelson, the Golden State coach. "He's just a sensational young player. I'm a big fan of his and I always have been. Jerry (Sloan) is so blessed to have great point guards here for his whole career, and I'm happy for him. He's one of my favorite coaches."
The Jazz will now have two days of practice to prepare to play the Los Angeles Clippers.
Williams, no doubt, will try to use some of that time to continue to work on his shot-blocking ability.
E-mail: lojo@desnews.com