There's No Jazz In Utah...and Even Less In Moscow



Liz Robbins of the New York Times reported yesterday on the NBA's cancellation of an October 8 exhibition match between the visiting Utah Jazz and Moscow's CSKA amidst fears of a terrorist attack.

"We've got a wonderful security staff with the N.B.A., and if they tell us not to go, there must be a good reason," said Kevin O'Connor, the general manager of the Utah Jazz. The Jazz's marquee player, Andrei Kirilenko, who is from Russia, played for CSKA and was the primary reason to the two teams were to have met in Moscow.

David Stern, the commissioner of the N.B.A., said in a statement yesterday that the league would work with CSKA to reschedule a game and regretted that the "unstable situation in Russia" was threatening security.

"We are saddened that it will not be possible for the Jazz to play CSKA Moscow next month," Mr. Stern said in the statement, adding that he was confident that the game "would have been a great success."

The president of CSKA, Aleksandr Gomelsky, told Reuters that the club had given the N.B.A. security assurances and was disappointed that the game had been canceled.

This face-saving gesture is right up there with a Velvet Revolver gig being cancelled due to "exhaustion". Once the good people of Moscow figured out that Stockton and Malone were no longer on the team, who'd want to spend a week's salary on Jazz tickets? Unlike Salt Lake City, there's actually something to do in Moscow.

Posted: Sun - September 19, 2004 at 10:00 AM      

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