BuzzerBeater Forums

Agree about Perk. Purely a defensive guy IMO. Boozer didn't show up as much as I thought he would in the playoffs, and the Heat definitely exploited that. That said, I think Westbrook is better than Deng. Deng is better defensively, but Westbrook's defense isn't horrible. I think Deron would be better if he didn't have to give the ball to Lopez and Kirilenko (in Utah).

I'm a DWill guy, mainly because I'm an Illinois guy. :-)
Fine, Deng isn't really an underachiever, it's that he just doesn't consistently bring what the Bulls need. Okay maybe I overrate Perk but I really feel that Noah isn't all that and he is about as good as Ibaka.
Deng and Boozer maybe be better than the rest of the thunder's supporting cast but it isn't always quantity, it's quality. I'd take KD on my team over BOTH Deng and Boozer.
Rose did all the heavy lifting when it mattered the most. He couldn't beat three NBA all stars by himself....

What are you talking about. Deng was one of the most constistant players in the league. He always gets 17-20 points but Boozer was a B-U-M. I watched every single bulls game last season.

Boozer was a bum? I respect that you watch all of the bulls games, but the guy scored 17.5 (51% fg's) and had 9.6 boards. Not too many guys are 18/10 guys. I'm not saying he is a superstar, but that seems like a solid stat line...

17-20 pts isn't really enough when you have no other scoring options other than Rose.
Bozzer's a Bum? no. Underachiever(especially during playoffs),yes.

Last edited by Coolbobj at 6/22/2011 6:11:15 AM

In the regular season the top 3 starters for the bulls averaged 60 pts (deng, boozer, rose) and the top 3 starters for the Thunder averaged 59.5 pts (ibaka, russ, kd). The other two starters for the Thunder combined for 10 pts per game and Noah had 11.7 pts by himself. You can argue James Harden if you want, but he only averaged 12.2 ppg and like I have been saying he isn't on the floor at the same time as Russ and KD most of the time.

Before they traded Jeff Green it would probably be different, but it's no secret that once they traded him their offense didn't flow well but the defense got 10 points better. I would say 17-20 pts for Boozer is enough when Deng is scoring almost identical in the regular season. The playoffs were not kind to Boozer for sure though. I know you would trade Boozer/Deng for KD, and I think anyone would, BUT then you have Noah starting and scoring 12 points as well which tips the scales in my opinion. You are naturally harder on the bulls as I'm guessing you are a Bulls fan and I know people have a tendency of scrutinizing their own players more.

It's funny because in the playoffs Rose and Westbrook almost shot identical percentages...Rose just shot more. KD actually shot more shots in the playoffs than he did in the regular season and he scored less. Interesting...KD underperformed as well even though he got the ball more. Everyone for some reason thought he didn't get the ball enough, but nobody said that during the regular season did they? I just think the media decided to throw Russ under the bus because they had to have something to talk about in the playoffs. Sure he needs to mature as a PG, but the rest of the thunder team and the coach have to do the same thing.

yes. he is a bum... he gets injured for most of the season. and when he is playing, he has many terrible flagrant fouls especially in playoffs.

I'll allow you to live in your fantasy land. Enjoy.

Yes, he is a player teams would like to have. But look at his salary. This is is salary over the next couple of years. Is he worth that much money? NO also, another point worth bringing up is that Taj Gibson played almolst as well if not better than Boozer in les minutes. In late game situations, taj Gibson is usually playing. Is that what you want from the highest payed player on your team? NO. He also only played in 59 games. When you Carlso boozer, and the other team is allready double teaming Rose(which happens sometimes), he is supposed to play better than the way he does.

You also said that 17 ppg is a solid statline. Well during the playoffs, he only averaged 12.6. Im sure youl agreee that this is not such an amazing statline for your hihest paid player, and the second (and sometimes third) option on a team. His salary is below.

Player: Carlos boozer salary


$14,400,000

$13,500,000

$15,000,000

$15,300,000

$16,800,000




Last edited by shoe lover at 6/25/2011 12:27:50 AM

I said he had a bad playoffs if you read my previous posts. Still not a bum, but he definitely didn't play a lick. If almost every other team wants the guy I'm pretty sure that qualifies him as a pretty good player. I'll go ahead and trust the NBA brain trusts over an obviously bitter bulls fan. ;)

However, your salary has no basis on whether or not you are a "bum". Did he underachieve from his salary? You have a lot better argument for that, but go tell me how many other guys are getting 17.5/10 a game. There is a short list. Is Kobe a bum because he is the highest paid player in the league but didn't win the MVP? Absolutely not because salary doesn't define you. You can say a guy is overpaid or underpaid but salary should not be the basis of whether or not a guy is good or bad. Taj Gibson does not have an offensive game so don't compare him to Boozer. He can dunk. Defensively he is better than Boozer though, but overall he is great in his role as the first big off the bench. He brings energy, athleticism, and defense. Perfect for what he does.

PS Nick Collison was the highest paid player on the Thunder this season. Does this mean since he isn't their best player or their 2nd best player that he is a bum too? Absolutely not.

Do I think you guys overpaid for Boozer? Yep. Do I think the Hawks overpaid for Joe Johnson? Absolutely. What about the Heat for Bosh? Definitely. However none of those guys played like bums this year. People did the same thing with Boozer as they did Bosh and Johnson...they overrated his skills with his previous team and then grouped him with the top tier of FA's. Sure Boozer's averages over the last 4 years in Utah were slightly better than this season, but look at the offense he was in. It's the same offense that Karl Malone become the 2nd all-time leading scorer (could be 3rd). What position does Boozer play? Yep same as Malone. So of course his numbers are going to be better in an offense tailor made for him. If any GM didn't realize that then they are crazy. Just look at his numbers in Cleveland before the trade if you want confirmation that the system helped. Honestly if people would look at things like that then they would realize that there is a reason for things that happen. Just try to look at it from a non bulls fan point of view. 17.5/10/51% fg's. That's a great stat line. He had 30 double doubles without playing the first part of the season. Nobody in the final 4 in the playoffs had a big man that put up those numbers in the regular season. You want to know why? Because that's dang good. Was he the best PF in the league. No, of course not. That's not my argument though.

As for the playoffs, 12.6pts is terrible out of Boozer...especially 43% from the field. However the guy still pulled down 10 boards a game. Not bad.

I see your point, but in critical moments, he often did not play. Also, no stats can show his poor defence. The person he was gaurding probably got 17 ppg as well, so this is not to good.