Colorado University Athletics
Ex-Buff Burks Healthy, Ready To Roll With Jazz
October 10, 2015 | Men's Basketball, Neill Woelk
TEMPE, Ariz. — For the first time in five years, former Colorado standout Alec Burks is completely healthy.
Burks, entering his fifth year with the Utah Jazz, underwent shoulder surgery last December to correct an injury that first occurred early in his sophomore season at CU. He missed most of last year, and after a spring and summer of rehabilitation, was finally cleared for “full basketball activity” in mid-September.
Thus far, the results have been good. In his second preseason game of the year he scored 27 points and added six assists and five rebounds in 37 minutes of play in a win over the Los Angeles Lakers. Friday night, Burks played 23 minutes and had six points, six rebounds and a pair of assists in an exhibition loss to the Suns.
CUBuffs.com caught up with Burks after the game, when Burks took time to chat with several members of the CU Athletic Department.
“I'm feeling good,” Burks said. “It's nice to know that my shoulder is finally 100 percent. Now I just need the preseason games and the practices to get my rhythm back. The mental part of sitting out was the toughest, but knowing my shoulder is back is a big relief.”
Burks actually first suffered the injury in preseason conditioning drills in his sophomore year at Colorado. After discussing the situation with head coach Tad Boyle, who was in his first year in Boulder, Burks decided to play through the injury.
“Coach Boyle wanted what was best for me,” Burks said. “I ended up having a pretty good year.”
Indeed, Burks ended up having a season that ultimately led to him becoming the 12th overall pick in the NBA draft. In 38 games, Burks averaged 20.5 points, 6.5 rebounds and nearly 3 assists per game as the Buffs advanced to NIT semifinals in Madison Square Garden.
By his third year in the league, Burks had become a mainstay for the Jazz. In 2013-14, he averaged 14.0 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists.
A year ago, the Jazz rewarded him with a four-year $42 million contract extension. He was on his way to another solid season when he re-injured his shoulder to the point that surgery was virtually the only option.
Now, the Jazz are obviously counting on him to have a big season.
“Our best free agent is Alec Burks,” general manager Dennis Lindsey recently told the Deseret News. “It's like he's a new addition.”
Jazz coach Quin Snyder said earlier this fall that Burks will play a key role in getting the Jazz back in the playoff hunt.
“Alec's a dynamic player,'' said Snyder. “He's a weapon getting to the basket. Alec's got to create his shot and get out in transition. Some of the things he does very well will help our team in very specific areas, especially offensively.''
Burks is simply anxious to get back on the floor on a regular basis. While sitting out most of last season gave him a chance to study the game from a different perspective, he's now ready to produce.
“They showed a lot of faith in my to give me the contract,” Burks said. “They also supported my decision to have my shoulder fixed. I'm going to do my best to make sure it works out well for everyone.”
Burks still stays in close touch with many of his former CU teammates, including Oklahoma City Thunder forward Andre Roberson, and he and Roberson attended the CU-UMass football game earlier this year.
Burks also keeps an eye on the progress of Boyle and the Buffs.
“Last year shocked me a little bit,” Burks said. “Coach Boyle is a good coach, and he can usually get his players to do whatever he wants them to do and play hard.
“But they'll bounce back this year, I'm pretty sure of that. Tad is too good of a coach to have another season like that. They've got some good players there and Tad will get the best out of them, no doubt.”
