In a previous post's comments, something of a consensus was reached on what the Jazz should do with Boozer.
Trade him for Chris Kaman.
Why, you ask? The salaries match up, Kaman's interior defense is sorely needed in Utah, and after this season, the Jazz lose Carlos anyway, so they might as well get something for him if they can.
I was on the phone with Clippers GM Elgin Baylor when a friend of mine expressed sincere doubts as to the validity of this trade idea.
Concerns such as "Boozer will keep getting better, he's only 26," and "Kaman is a stiff!" were mentioned.
I was unable to combat these statements with actual statistics, so I decided to get on nba.com and do some work.
Ages: Boozer 26, Kaman 26.
Years pro: Boozer 6, Kaman 5
Regular season ppg: Boozer 21.1, Kaman 15.7.
Regular season rpg: Boozer 10.4, Kaman 12.7
Regular season FG%: Boozer 54.7, Kaman 48.3.
Regular season blocks per game: Boozer .5, Kaman 2.8.
As far as I can see, Boozer's edge here is slight. Yes, he scores more, but the Jazz need defense far more than they need the six more points per game Booz gives them compared to Kaman. Blocks are huge, too, as we all know Boozer can't jump worth beans, and apparently the Caveman can.
What surprised me were Kaman's rebounding numbers. which were actually third best in the NBA last season behind Camby and Dwight Howard.
I also think playing with Deron would up the Caveman's scoring a little. Last year his point guards were Brevin Knight, Smush Parker and uh... Dan Dikau? I can't imagine he got too many easy buckets. Could Kaman be Deron's Tyson Chandler?
To be fair, Kaman's shooting percentage was a little low for a center, but again, I think getting easy baskets thanks to Deron would remedy that.
And he actually has less experience in the NBA than Booz.
ESPN's Trade Machine says it'd work according to the NBA's rules.
So in short, this trade would mean the Jazz lose hardly any scoring, get more rebounding, enjoy much-improved interior defense and get something in exchange for Boozer.
Hey, Elgin, what do you say? You just lost a 20-10 guy, want a replacement?
4 comments:
I would like the Jazz a ton more if they dropped Boozer off in Clippertown and grabbed Chris Caveman. That would be awesome.
Anybody who's watched Kaman play knows he can score. He's a skilled player. Korver, Memo, Brewer, and the rest of the gang can make up six points. And, bonus: I read that one of Kaman's favorite activities is archery, not strip clubs. Utah would be perfect for him.
I don't think Kamen is that good. Plus he is friggin' ugly. I don't want to look at that on a regular basis. I do not agree this time, sorry.
Boozer ain't winning any beauty contest. If you want to trade for looks, I've got two words: Kwame Brown.
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