In the last 24 games the Jazz are a - .500 ball club. Currently riding a four game losing streak, things have been particularly ugly as of late. I believe there are several reasons why the Jazz have struggled, including coaching, personnel and lastly the struggles of Andrei Kirilenko.

All year we have had people discussing what a disappointment Andrei Kirilenko has been. It is getting to the point now that everywhere I turn someone is calling for the Jazz to trade the Russian Rifle. The thinking goes that Kirilenko is not fitting in and that the Jazz need to get value for him before it is too late.

I am not sure whether or not we should trade AK, but I am sure of one thing, Kirilenko’s problems are not his fault – at least not entirely. Instead, his problems are the result of playing out of position and the Jazz failing to recognize ho to take advantage of his unique skill set. Kirilenko is a power forward.

Flash back to three seasons ago when AK was an All-Star. What position was he playing? He was not a shooting guard, though Sloan has asked him to play there for extended stretches since that All-Star year. It was not at small forward, where Kirilenko is now playing and where most observers would say is his position. No, Kirilenko had the best season of his career as a power forward.

Kirilenko can be a devastating position defender in the post. With his fundamentals, length and quickness, he can shut down most players down low. When defending the post, he is also able to block more shots as he is in position to more easily slide over for help defense. Moreover, his activity and perimeter oriented offensive game allowed him to have real match-up advantages on that end of the court that he easily exploited.

The Jazz have a star. But they thought think they have a star small forward. They have totally missed on that evaluation. They have one of the most unique players in the league, a power forward tailor made to take advantage of the new rules that encourage a fast paced, perimeter oriented system. They just didn’t realize that he is a power forward.

The next time you watch the Suns just keep your eye on Shawn Marion at the four and you’ll know what I mean.

Shortly after his All-Star year, the Jazz signed not one, but two, free agent power forwards in Memot Okur and Carlos Boozer. Since that All-Star year, Kirilenko has seen his production decline in every area. His decline has been masked during the last two seasons as he filled in at power forward for an injured Carlos Boozer. Now that Boozer is healthy, we are seeing that AK is just not made to play SF in today’s NBA.

For as great a defender as Kirilenko is, the Jazz are now asking him to guard people like Lebron James and Carmello Anthony. The fact is, he is not a natural to guard those guys, they are too quick on the perimeter. But that’s not all. Sloan is even now asking him to guard everyone on the court, including shooting guards. In the last week they have asked him to guard Dirk Nowitzki, Ray Allen, Dwayne Wade and even Gilbert Arenas. He is great, but the only player mentioned that he is equipped to guard is Dirk. He doesn’t have a chance against the other guys.

So now Jazz fans and front office types alike are scratching their heads, heck, I bet even Kirilenko is scratching his head, wondering what has gone wrong. The problem for Kirilenko is that he is playing out of position. And this is essentially the root of the Jazz’s problems, they are starting three power forwards, one at center, one at power forward and the other at small forward. They have two guys playing out of position in their starting five.

So tonight when Kirilenko has a line of 10 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 block and 1 steal you will know why.

If the goal is to win a championship, the Jazz have a difficult decision to make, trade Kirilenko or trade Boozer.