Levity in Jazz locker room

(Could also be titled: “What happens in the Jazz locker room on deadline while waiting for Carlos Boozer to shower and chit-chat with Miami’s Dwyane Wade, though not in the shower, and finally be interviewed by patiently waiting reporters”)

Easiest way to tell that the Utah Jazz played a great game?

The mood in the locker room. It’s a laugh factory. Players still often joke after losses – they’d go batty if they moped about and took every loss personal. But on Monday, after the 118-89 win over Miami, it felt like a Comedy Central set.

Reporters and Deron Williams joked that Carlos Boozer looked like he was going to enter the dunk contest and the Skills Challenge during All-Star Weekend for his coast-to-coast drive. It began with Boozer getting the ball by the free-throw line on the opposite end of the court, and ended with him going Karl Malone on top of Udonis Haslem.

“I didn’t know you could dribble like that,” Williams said.

Williams also had a surprise for reporters.

“I know a stat. What are we when Wes (Matthews) hits two or more 3-pointers?”

(Dramatic pause.)

“7-1.”

Impressive – about Matthews and Williams’ stats knowledge.

An exchange between Kyrylo Fesenko and Williams was particularly humorous.

After hearing Fesenko brag about his brown leather jacket – the one that supposedly made the big Ukrainian look like “Rusty Man” (an older version of Ironman, apparently) – Williams joined the fun.

“Fes, is that Pleather?”

“Fes come here. What is that?” (Williams then touched the jacket, feeling it to see what material it was made of.)

PETA won’t like Fesenko’s response.

“It was sick when I shot it.”

(Rim shot, please.)

As usual, Fesenko was on the giving and receiving ends of many of the jokes.

The Jazz center/comedic relief was asked where he was when Coach Jerry Sloan called his name late in the fourth quarter.

At first, Fesenko said he was riding a bike in the tunnel to stay warm like Kyle Korver does, and he asked why reporters don’t pepper Korver about his whereabouts. (Hmm. Could be because the whole bench doesn’t turn around and yell Korver’s name like he’s off in NeverNever Land like they did for Fesenko on Monday.)

Then Fesenko joked that he was back in the family room getting snacks.

Then he offered a reporter “an exclusive interview” after feeling bad about cracking a joke at the sports writer’s expense.

After the reporter politely declined the generous offer and teasingly retorted back that nobody would read the article, Fesenko started talking about his funky shoes and jacket – all the while poking fun of Kosta Koufos, claiming he speaks better English than the Ohio native and asking himself why he opens his mouth so much. (Good question, but please keep it open.)

Thankfully, Boozer eventually showed up, revealed that he calls Dwyane Wade “Weezy” and reporters – some wondering why Ronnie Brewer was dancing around some cash on the floor on the other side of the room to the delight of players and media over there – scurried away from the laughter room to meet deadline demands.