44You could say they are on the same page, that they are one.

Literally.

When Utah Flash head coach Brad Jones wants to trade for a player, it doesn't take him long to get an answer from the general manager because all he has to do is look in the mirror.

After a year of D-League experience under his belt, Jones has now expanded his job description. In addition to his duties as head coach, Jones is now the team's general manager, too. He took over GM duties after Dave Fredman took a position with the Utah Jazz as a scout.

"I just love to coach, but I also understand it's part of it. It's really helped me grow. It has helped me look at it in a different way," Jones said. "It was really a great challenge and fun at the same time. Going through the draft this year, we spent hours and hours and hours. Last year, I was almost like the consultant. Freddie (Dave Fredman) did all that. Now I'm the guy who makes the decision. We're very fortunate to have some resources through the Jazz and Celtics that I feel like helped us differentiate who would fit our system and who wouldn't."

It didn't take long for Jones the general manager to work a deal.

The Flash anticipated that point guard Kevin Kruger would be back this year, but just a day before the D-League draft, Kruger took another offer, leaving the Flash without an experienced point guard.

Jones the coach then turned to Jones the general manager for help and presto, Jones worked a deal with the Dakota Wizards. Utah gave the Wizards their No. 1 pick in the draft and the Flash got guard Dontell Jefferson, one of the top players in the league last year.

Jefferson helped Dakota win the D-League championship in 2006-07 and started 33 games for the Wizards last season, averaging 39 minutes, 17.0 points, 4.7 rebounds and 5.0 assists.

It worked out great for both Jefferson and the Flash since Jefferson, who is a University of Arkansas teammate of Utah Jazz guard Ronnie Brewer, was living with Brewer in Salt Lake.

"The Friday before the draft, we thought Kruger was coming back. The Monday of the draft, we found out he was not," Jones said. "We were scrambling a little. We'd already done a lot of draft work. Then it kind of changed our whole focus. Then we have to find a point guard in our system; it's the most important thing."

The Flash got their point guard, but with a roster in a state of flux, Jones knows his job as general manager will continue to keep him busy during the season. So he'll rely on assistant coach Dale Osbourne more to help the team stay on the same page.

"Freddie (Fredman) and I were very well connected. He'd say what are your thoughts on this. I'd give him my thoughts and then he'd make the decision. I was consulted, but it wasn't totally on me," Jones said. "This year, Dale is kind of using that, come to me and I having to be Freddie a little bit. Dale has been terrific and he knows a lot of different guys. I'll throw something out and he would give me his opinion and then I'd work with Brandt (Andersen) and Joe (Brown) on if we wanted to go forward on it like we did with the trade."

Jones has the background for both jobs. He made a name for himself at Lambuth University in Jackson, Tenn., where he won two Mid-South Conference titles, was named coach of the year twice and had five 20-plus win seasons. He gave up his job at Lambuth in 2003 and moved to Louisiana so his wife Lori could take the head coaching position for the women's basketball team at Southeastern Louisiana.

As the nephew of Utah Jazz coach Jerry Sloan and having been around Sloan, Jones knows the system the Jazz run, which is what the Flash are trying to duplicate. He worked as a regional scout for the Utah Jazz since 2001.

Jones says the two are close and they even filmed an ESPN type of promo that is on the Flash Web site.

The promo opens up with Jones trying unsuccessfully to break a clipboard over his knee in his office.

Sloan walks by and asks, "Hey Brad, what's going on in herefi"

"I'm just trying to get ready for the season, coach."

Sloan says, "Looks like you need a little help with that, son."

Sloan then breaks the clipboard over his knee and as he walks away, he turns and says, "Practice. All in one motion. Brad. Practice."

The hope for Jones and the Flash is that their organization can be a model of consistency, much like Sloan has been with the Jazz. Turnover is expected among players, but when it happens at the coaching level on a regular basis, then you know you're doing something wrong.

"I hope we can be a more consistent, high-energy team," Jones said. "I felt like last year, we were a bit inconsistent with the ups and downs. Even in games, we'd come out and have a good first quarter and wouldn't have a good second quarter, so we were inconsistent even with the game point of view."

To address the team's inconsistency, one of the areas of emphasis this year will be on the approach of the players.

"Something we have really focused on since Day 1 is, this is your job. Our job is to help you be more professional and understand. If you came in and worked half a day, do you think you would keep getting paidfi It's the same thing we're talking about," Jones said. "These are young guys who are just getting out of college, who only had to go to school for three or four hours a day. From Day 1, our mantra has been, this is your job. It's just like working for IBM of Xerox or whoever else and you show up at 8 o'clock, it's time to go to work. There's no getting yourself into it. There's no working early and then laying off, so we've really tried to focus on that."

So as the team approaches its second season, Jones is ready to take on a dual role. If the team doesn't win, you can blame the coach and if there's not enough talent on the roster, you can blame the general manager.

Jones is responsible either way, but despite the added pressure, he still is quick to answer a question with a smile.

When asked how the transition from coach to general manager is going, Jones says, "I guess it's going okay. I'll tell you in April," he says with a laugh. "It depends on how our new point guard does."