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This team is better off!

7StraightIsGreat

7StraightIsGreat

Well-Known Member
Seriously, even without a sign and trade bringing assets back, I am so happy Utah didn't get emotional in the bidding for Boozer. Matching that contract would have been a big mistake for this franchise. Obviously some fans are upset, but I think Utah is going to be just fine at the PF position. Center is the real spot KOC needs to turn his attention to now that Carlos is gone.

The fact of the matter is, Utah has been at or around an All-Star level in regards to their PF's since the mid-80's. Now obviously a lot of that is Karl Malone, but if you look at the numbers since Malone left, I think it's fair to say that a lot of it also has to do with the Utah Jazz system.

-When Karl left Utah, Kirilenko played 1 year at the 4. In 37 MPG he averaged 16.5 points and 8 rebs and was awarded with an All-Star selection.

-AK only got to play PF for 1 season before Boozer was brought in. In the 6 years that followed, Boozer gave us 2 All-Star appearances (which could have been much more if he would have stayed healthy) and put up the kind of stats that enticed Chicago to invest 5 years and $80 million on him.

-In 2008/2009 Paul Milsap was forced to start a good chunk of games due to yet another Boozer injury. That season he averaged 30 minutes per game and put up 13.5 points and 8.6 rebounds. Now that we get to see Millsap finally enter the realm of 37-to-40 minutes per game, I'm interested to see where his numbers go from there. Considering the track record of PF's in Utah, I'm guessing his numbers will look very comparable, if not better than the numbers Carlos averaged over his 6 year span in Utah.

It may sound crazy/dumb, etc. but I think there's enough evidence to support the theory that Utah will lose nothing in regards to production from the starting PF. The test for KOC now is to find a decent replacement for Millsap to come off the bench and give us quality minutes in the back up 4 spot as well as finding a way to put a decent defensive center on the court.

Those things are a lot easier to find solutions for now that Utah has refused to tie themselves up for 5 more years and $80 million on a player who wasn't going to lead us to a championship.

Wh
 
well the luxury tax just came in at about 70M. Jazz are about 10 million under that and have a huge expiring deal & trade exception. I would imagine(hope) they have some moves up their sleeve.
 
This team is better off.....in the long run.

We'll take a small hit next year, but we'll be better off over the next 5 years.
He's not the answer. He's not going to bring us a championship with Dwill, he's probably going to be wearing a lot of suits over the next 5 years,
and best of all he'll not be playing defense for the Bulls.

We'll miss his scoring, and not much else.
 
-Over the next 1-2 years we're taking a major step back, but in the long run we should be better off by not having a 33year old Boozer pulling down $16 million/year. I just hope Deron's on the team by then.

-We'll improve defensively but we'll miss Boozer's defensive rebounding, his ability to run high screen-roll w/Deron and knowing when to slip screens. The Suns game in the season finale showed we're a different offense with Millsap at PF.

-Also there's a little misconception that Kirilenko played PF and was an all-star in 03-04. He started the season at PF and Harpring started at SF, but once Harp tore his ACL (just 31 games into the season) AK slid back to SF and we had PF by committee next to Tag (first Ruffin then Gugliotta).
 
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TheMulletMutilator said:
5 and 80 is a lot. I am glad we didn't bring him back for the long run but this really hurts for next season IMO.
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It does, although the Jazz made a move that's farsighted but its understandable given his injury issues and the fact that we haven't been competitive w/ LA. I do wonder how much the Jazz are taking into account the potential (or perhaps guarantee) of the lockout looming in 2011. Lets say that happens, Booz becomes a yr older and when they resume play, he's 30, and his contract has another 4 yrs on it. Maybe they got it wrong and he remains a 20/10 guy for 5+ yrs but given whats happened with the big contracts they gave AK and Memo and their injury issues, I understand why they didn't pay him. Only time will tell.
 
I should have clarified my title because it certainly is the long run in which the Jazz are better off. With Boozer we know Utah cannot beat LA or win a title against anybody for that matter. If the Jazz are going to build a team around D-Will in the future that has a chance of being an honest-to-goodness contender, this day had to come. At first I was hoping for a sign and trade but now I'm starting to hope that isn't the case.

Sure, some will say Utah let Boozer walk for nothing, but I would disagree. Letting Boozer walk and not brining back any contracts allows Utah to dictate their financial and personnel course on their terms. They let Boozer walk for financial freedom purposes and it was a good decision.

However, I don't think Utah has to take a huge step backwards for the next year or two. I honestly think Millsap will at least equal what Boozer brought to the table and in many ways I think he can exceed it. His ceiling is nowhere near that of what a "great" PF can bring to the table but I see no reason he can't be an 18 point, 10 rebound kind of guy. Thats what Boozer was giving us and Millsap can now give us that for around $6 million next season while Chicago is paying Boozer close to $16. Not only that, now that Carlos is out the of the Jazz system, I bet his scoring numbers take a bit of a dip in Chicago.

Watching Carlos walk away may be tough for some Jazz fans to swallow but I think it was a good move and a good day for the Utah Jazz franchise. Now it's up to KOC and Co. to make the correct moves in the aftermath of Carlos' departure. The opportunities will now be there to build this team into a true contender. Whether or not KOC will be able to make the most of those opportunities is the big question.
 
I'd also like to let you guys know that it is going to take SMART contracts for us to win a championship in Utah. We can't afford to overpay for our players, and I'm pretty sure our FO knows that after the AK debacle.
 
jazzman12 said:
....... I honestly think Millsap will at least equal what Boozer brought to the table and in many ways I think he can exceed it.... .
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Sorry,ya lost me there..I get it, some people dont like Boozer and his No d play. But to even think Sap can equal or surpass Boozer is ridiculous at best. Not Sap, by himself. WAY too limited. I love the guy too, but Im realistic.
I did agree with alot of what you said otherwise though. Letting Booz go and not having to take contracts back will help in the long run.
 
Jazzman12 good comments. We miss the great left hand of Boozer which opened up the court a lot for Deron. I will be watching how Milsap slips the picks and slides into different positions. (Or maybe that will be AK ;) )

The only part here is that when the Jazz slide in the standings everyone will blame it on Boozer for leaving and I think it will more so be the fact that Okur is out, and will be for the first half of the season. Otherwise the stats of Milsap will be interesting to watch. I bet your right.
 
Scorpjazz said:
Sorry,ya lost me there..I get it, some people dont like Boozer and his No d play. But to even think Sap can equal or surpass Boozer is ridiculous at best. Not Sap, by himself. WAY too limited. I love the guy too, but Im realistic.
I did agree with alot of what you said otherwise though. Letting Booz go and not having to take contracts back will help in the long run.
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Don't underestimate Sap. He's got the heart to do pretty much anything.
 
After playing 78 games in a contract season if the Jazz had resigned Boozer you know he was going to miss something like 45-50 games due to a strained somethingorother after starting out great. So the Jazz might be better off in the short run as well. They just need to make some smart moves.
 
PFs are easier to find than Cs

It's easier to find a good PF in this league than a good C. The Jazz will be looking for a PF this summer... while playing Okur, Koufos, Fesenko at C until the much anticipated arrival of 7-2 Ante Tomic who's a cross between Pau Gasol and Yao Ming.
 
Scorpjazz said:
Sorry,ya lost me there..I get it, some people dont like Boozer and his No d play. But to even think Sap can equal or surpass Boozer is ridiculous at best. Not Sap, by himself. WAY too limited. I love the guy too, but Im realistic.
I did agree with alot of what you said otherwise though. Letting Booz go and not having to take contracts back will help in the long run.
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I see where you're coming from, but I wouldn't be so sure if I were you that Millsap can't equal or surpass Booz's numbers. In a contract year this year, Booz gave us 19 pts and 11 rebs per year. In 2008/09 Millsap was playing 30 minutes a game and giving us over 13 points and 8 rebounds per game. Once his minutes finally elevate to starter level for a full 82 game season, I don't see why Millsap shouldn't be projected as a 16 and 10 guy next year and I certainly don't see why he can't improve on that in the following seasons.

However, my theory is based more on what the Utah Jazz tend to get out of their Power Forwards more than it is about Millsap. On paper, my theory is sound. We'll see if it translates into actual numbers for Millsap........
 
David Stern said:
Don't underestimate Sap. He's got the heart to do pretty much anything.
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Heart can't make you taller.

I agree with most of what has been said. The Jazz had no choice but to let Booz walk his way to the windy city. He'll get boo'd by fans when he comes back to ESA but should be cheered. Who would have wanted that contract for the next 5 years??? The only thing I keep coming back to is how Dwill is taking this. I would have thought he wanted Booz back and he has made it quite clear that the Jazz need to make some moves to get GREAT and not settle for being good. That's not worth his time and I don't really blame him. I don't know if a promise of big things to come when AK's contract is off the books is going to be enough. The team is better of, provided that the front office keeps working and does not settle for having a good team.
 
To those who think there is no dropoff between Millsap and Boozer, don't forget we got the Williams-Matthews-Miles-Millsap-Okur lineup against Phoenix in the season finale in what was essentially a playoff game. How did Millsap do in that one?
Sap is talented, but he's not Boozer. This will be a really intriguing offense-defense tradeoff.
 
vslice02 said:
To those who think there is no dropoff between Millsap and Boozer, don't forget we got the Williams-Matthews-Miles-Millsap-Okur lineup against Phoenix in the season finale in what was essentially a playoff game. How did Millsap do in that one?
Sap is talented, but he's not Boozer. This will be a really intriguing offense-defense tradeoff.
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That is one of the worst arguments of all time. It's like the Jazz deciding to sign John Amaechi because he had a good game when he played against them (true story).
 
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