Jazz Tell AK-47 to Fatten Up

Utah’s front office wants their small forward to get rid of the supermodel physique: “In his year-end performance evaluation, the lean and lanky Russian athlete was told he needed to pack on some pounds. Jazz bosses are hoping the small forward doesn’t return next season as such a, well, small forward. They want more beef on his bones. Those might be welcome words for many people, who could probably also handle the $16 million paycheck awaiting him after his offseason of pumping iron and plumping up. But for Kirilenko, this news wasn’t exactly easy to swallow. He started the 2008-09 season weighing 226 pounds and said he shed eight pounds over the course of the hectic NBA year. Kirilenko didn’t view his weight as a problem. For one thing, he’s a basketball player, not a heavyweight boxer — despite some resemblances that suggest otherwise. Plus, his weight loss followed a predictable pattern in which he usually drops about 10 pounds a season. ‘I never feel like it’s been an issue,’ Kirilenko said. ‘I’ve never concentrate on that in my life and in my career, but obviously it’s been brought up to my attention so I will try to concentrate on that a little bit more. I will do whatever possible, whatever coach wants from me.'”