The Jazz could only shake their heads when the schedule was released in August, with Saturday's game in Chicago followed by a two-day wait to play in Milwaukee and finish this five-game pre-Christmas trip.

Hoping to get their players an extra day off around the holidays, the Jazz asked the NBA and the Bucks to move the game to Monday. Their request was denied, however, and the Jazz spent Sunday cooling their heels a little too literally in Chicago.

"It would have been more convenient, you know," Jazz coach Jerry Sloan said. "We would have had more time for Christmas. But that's the way it is. It's not a big deal."

There is no scheduling conflict Monday at Bradley Center, and the Bucks will play four Monday home games later this season. The likeliest explanation is that the Bucks didn't want to play opposite the Packers-Bears game on Monday Night Football.

By the time they make the 90-mile trip up Interstate 94, the Jazz will have had plenty of time to consider the importance of Tuesday's game, against a Bucks team they have beaten the last eight times they have played.

With a victory, the Jazz would head home with a winning record (3-2) on their pre-Christmas trip for only the second time in five years. The Bucks are 13-16, but are coming off Saturday's 119-85 victory over the L.A. Clippers in which they led by as many as 44.

"It puts a lot of emphasis on this next game," Williams said, adding, "It's definitely going to be a big game for us. To go into Christmas 3-2 -- we wanted a little bit better -- but 3-2 would be great right now."

The Jazz were off entirely Sunday -- the high temperature was minus-2 -- and will practice this morning in Chicago before leaving for Milwaukee. They will look to improve on the 22 turnovers they committed against the Bulls and 106 points they allowed.

Most significantly, the Jazz can prepare for continued life without Carlos Boozer, who will see a specialist in Los Angeles about his injured left knee on Dec. 29. Boozer already has missed 17 games and is likely to be out for several more.

With Boozer possibly requiring arthroscopic surgery, Paul Millsap has become increasingly entrenched as the team's starting power forward. So far on this trip, Millsap is averaging 24 points, 11.3 rebounds and shooting 63.9 percent.

That included Millsap's career-high 32-point game against the Celtics and Saturday's 11-for-14 shooting night against the Bulls. Millsap hit his first eight shots Saturday and has recorded 15 consecutive double-doubles starting in Boozer's absence.

"We definitely want Booz back, need him back, but he's been doing his part," Williams said of Millsap.

"His offense has been an added plus. He's always had the rebounding, the defense, and he's just been given the minutes now that he can go out there and put a consistent effort up every night."

rsiler@sltrib.com Run of the mill

Paul Millsap has been the star of the Jazz's road trip and will continue to start as long as Carlos Boozer is out with an injured left knee. A look at Millsap's trip so far