Chicago Bulls: Making a Case for Carlos Boozer to Be an All-Star
Carlos Boozer is one of those NBA players that have you scratching your head curiously. Fans see this imposing figure in Boozer, yet they question his passion for the game.
The majority of the criticism is aimed at his indifference on defense. His lift is lacking the explosiveness that he once had—although he was never much of a leaper.
Two of the knocks on Boozer coming out of college were that he wasn’t athletic enough, and that his size at the power forward position didn’t match up to those entering the draft alongside him. (Here is the USAToday.com draft capsule on Carlos Boozer once he declared to enter the 2002 NBA Draft.)
Boozer in many ways is an overachiever with several successful seasons in the NBA. Many saw him as a role player, even likening him to Alan Henderson. A career average of 17.3 points and 10.1 rebounds isn’t terrible for a prospective “role-player.”
This season, his second with the Bulls, is perhaps the best in his nine-year tenure in the NBA—one that suggests that Carlos Boozer is deserving of some serious NBA All-Star conversation.
While his scoring average is down, so are his minutes—under 30 per game for the first time since his rookie season. His 8.4 rebounds a game—down from the 9.6 that he snagged last year—lead the Bulls.
But his improvement has been his overall activity. Boozer is chasing down loose balls and is using better footwork on defense.
During some third quarter stretches, Boozer has become the go-to player in the high post. His mid-range jumper has never looked better.
His best work of the season has come with Derrick Rose out while nursing a toe injury.
During the four-game time frame Carlos Boozer has averaged 21.5 points and nine rebounds. He also got eight steals. Good players are at their best when their teams call upon them.
It is this stretch that should begin a debate about whether or not Boozer belongs in the All-Star Game. Locks for the Eastern Conference All-Stars are: Rose, LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, Dwight Howard, Carmelo Anthony, Amare Stoudemire and Chris Bosh. Rajon Rondo will most likely take up a spot while either Joe Johnson or Josh Smith will be the representative for the Atlanta Hawks.
That leaves three available spots.
Who is worthy of them?
In normal seasons, Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce would be in the discussion, but the Celtics have struggled mightily and are not even .500 at this point.
No one player has had a complete bust-out season for the Pacers or 76ers despite their good records. In fact, if you look at the numbers of Boozer, Danny Granger and Andre Iguodala, the comparisons are interesting.
Carlos Boozer: 14.8 points, 8.4 rebounds, 1.1 steals per game.
Danny Granger: 16.2 points, 4.2 rebounds, 1.69 steals per game.
Andre Iguodala: 14.3 points, 6.5 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 2.1 steals per game.
If you add a much-deserving Luol Deng to this group, you have four players vying for two spots.
Why only two spots? One of the three positions must go to a center.
Dismiss Joakim Noah for the time being. A late run of good games by Noah would perhaps make him a lock, as no other center in the east has distinguished himself from the others.
Milwaukee‘s record eliminates Andrew Bogut’s name for now as well.
That honestly leaves Tyson Chandler (no way do the Knicks deserve three All-Stars) and Roy Hibbert.
The Bulls have the best record in the NBA, and that should count for something. If Luol Deng should take one spot, does Carlos Boozer take the other?
It’ll all depend on which second center is chosen. For now, Roy Hibbert edges out Chandler and Noah thus leaving the final spot up for grabs.
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Chicago Bulls: How to Fix the Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah Situation
The Chicago Bulls are nearly a quarter of the way through their season but their frontcourt appears to be anything but well oiled. If Joakim Noah and Carlos Boozer were on different pages last season, they appear to be in two completely different books now. Noah’s numbers are down across the board and Boozer’s offensive numbers are down which spells out trouble for the Bulls who are looking for offensive support for Derrick Rose.
To their credit, Bulls leadership has been far less critical of their frontcourt than fans have. While Bulls fans are calling for drastic reactions to their tepid start, Tom Thibodeau and the management have supported Noah and Boozer and say that it is only a matter of time before both player’s games improve. There are a myriad of opinions as to how to solve the Bulls’ problems in the frontcourt, so let’s look five of them!
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Boozer has 31, Rose-less Bulls rout Suns (AP)
As it turned out, the Chicago Bulls didn’t need Derrick Rose against the Phoenix Suns. Carlos Boozer scored 26 of his season-high 31 points in the first half, leading the short-handed Bulls to a 118-97 win over the Suns on Tuesday night. Boozer hit 12 of 15 shots in the opening half and scored eight points during a 12-point burst that opened up a 20-point lead for Chicago, which was playing…
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How Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah Can Earn Back Their Fourth-Quarter Minutes
Much has been made in the past week about the struggles of the Chicago Bulls frontcourt.
Last week, much of Noah’s foul trouble stems from Boozer:
“I think one of the issues is that he’s getting into a lot of early foul trouble because he’s trying to help his buddy [Boozer] out. [Boozer] won’t move his feet, so Joakim is getting a lot of fouls…[Bulls head coach Tom] Thibodeau, who demands constant, outstanding work from everybody else, doesn’t seem to do it as much with Boozer. I think that probably causes some friction.”
Either way, the problem remains. Two of the top-three highest paid players are sitting in their warmups during the fourth quarter.
To get their minutes back, the duo is going to have to learn how to coexist. You hate to make them a package deal, but it’s obvious that Thibodeau sees them as such.
If the duo wants to be in the game in crunch time, they are going to have to learn to work together. Noah has to be more active on shots that Boozer takes, and Boozer himself needs to improve his defense.
If each can take little steps in improving how they interact on the court, they will find themselves back in big games.
Noah’s rebounding regresses with Boozer on the floor, and that cannot continue. Whether it is Noah standing around, waiting for Boozer to make his post move, or Noah simply not giving full effort, it has to change.
Boozer himself needs to be aware of the type of plays that make Noah valuable, which are largely put-backs and open cuts around the basket.
In addition, Boozer needs to get better at defense. He finds himself in the wrong place numerous times and puts little effort into rotation, which puts many of the players, Noah included, in bad places.
That does not give Noah an excuse for a career-low field-goal percentage, but again, there are numerous problems with this duo.
The situation is reaching a critical point.
This idea seems silly to mention on a 12-3 team, but Thibodeau himself has said that he views Asik and Gibson as starters, which is extremely disheartening:
“I have a lot of confidence in both. You can make a case that they’re all starters. And sometimes you may have a ‘big’ who’s in foul trouble. [The opponent] has a ‘big’ up-front that is scoring in the low post, so you go to your bench so you can play aggressively. All four guys, we need them, and we count on them.”
This seems well and good, it shows the great depth of the Bulls. But despite all the great things that Asik and Gibson can do, they are nowhere near as talented as Boozer or Noah.
Asik and Gibson are certainly great depth players, but with how much money is invested in Boozer and Noah, they not only need to play better together, they have to.
The duo can regain its fourth-quarter minutes by learning how to be a better floor unit.
The two must coexist, play off one another’s skills and begin to mesh, or they’ll continue to watch Asik and Gibson close out games.
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Chicago Bulls Should Consider Amnesty for Carlos Boozer or Joakim Noah Next Year
With a 10-2 start, you would think everything is rosy for the Chicago Bulls, especially considering that Derrick Rose, C.J. Watson and Rip Hamilton have missed a combined 15 games in that stretch, and eight of those 12 games were on the road.
I may be thinking too much, but I see the apparent flaws that could lead the Bulls to the same disappointing fate in the playoffs that they experienced last year with the current roster.
I don’t think there is anything they can do about it this season, outside of Dwight Howard suddenly deciding he wants to play in Chicago, but they can start planning for the future and not making this a recurring nightmare.
Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah, both with big contracts, have been spending the last quarter on the pines the last few games with Taj Gibson and Omer Asik taking their place.
Boozer hasn’t appeared to be a good fit, while Noah has seemingly lost the passion for the game that he is known for.
It’s a little early to predict doom and gloom in the playoffs again against Miami, but if the Bulls can’t get over the hump this year, do they keep waiting it out, or is it time for a change?
Boozer is owed $47.1 million over the next three seasons, while Noah has $50.6 million remaining on the last four years of his deal.
Neither player is earning his money, but which player is the better one to keep if you go this route, and what do you do with the salary cap space you save?
When the Bulls signed Boozer, he was the saving grace for the team’s failure in getting one of the marquee free agents in LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh.
He was the consolation prize, though I don’t think his presence is doing much to console Bulls fans.
Boozer was advertised as a banger—with a tough post-up game—though a little bit fragile. The fragile part has held up, but what happened to the banger?
He is using his inside position to give himself room for his rain-making fade-away jumpers. On defense, he’s playing the matador instead of the Bull, because he has the ole’ part down pat.
He almost never uses his feet to get in front of a player, instead preferring to reach in for lazy fouls. It doesn’t seem like his teammates appreciate his laissez-faire attitude much either.
Noah, on the other hand, is missing the one thing that made him special—his energy. Never the most talented player on the court, he made up for it with a zest for the game that energized his teammates and got under his opponents’ skin.
Nobody knows what happened, but if he doesn’t turn things around, and if Boozer remains Boozer, something has got to give.
For me, I would rather keep the soon to be 27-year-old Noah than Boozer, who will be 31 during the 2012-13 season.
There are two options out there that could be worth investing in, though it probably wouldn’t happen until the 2013 season. Though my first choice has a team option for 2012-13 that I am sure they will exercise, assuming he’s still with them.
This again invokes the name of Dwight Howard, because the guy I am talking about has been mentioned in trade rumors involving the Orlando center.
The player I’m talking about is Andrew Bynum. Other than Howard, he has the potential to be the most dominant big man in the game at only 24 years of age. The Lakers have a team option on him for $16,473,000 for next year that I am sure they will utilize, unless they trade him or sign him to an extension.
He has great footwork and post moves down low and has the big body that Noah can only dream of. He’s an injury risk with bad knees, but is he more of a risk than expecting Boozer to become the player they thought they signed?
Combining him with Rose to play an in-and-out-game makes the Bulls a much tougher team to defend, especially in the playoffs against Miami.
Wouldn’t they be more likely to win with Bynum than with Boozer?
Adding him to the team frees up Noah to play the power forward position he is more suited for, along with being available to back up the middle.
Asik becomes an unrestricted free agent in 2013. Gibson would be a valuable backup for Noah at the PF. He’s contractually tied to the Bulls until 2014, when he becomes restricted.
To attack the Bulls’ main weakness at the shooting guard position, they can possibly parlay Asik and or Gibson and maybe a draft pick (possibly the one from Charlotte) into a suitable running mate for Rose.
Nikola Mirotic could be here by the 2013-14 season to man the PF position, adding another offensive weapon for the Bulls.
Another alternative is Golden State Warrior guard Monta Ellis, who has an early termination option in his contract after next year. Teaming with Rose, they would form the most dynamic backcourt in the game. You could choose your poison, but you wouldn’t be able to stop both of them.
Miami should be at their apex for the next couple of years until Wade likely slows down enough to make the Heat vulnerable.
That’s when the Bulls step in to take over if they don’t surpass the Heat this year or next.
To win in this league, you have to be a couple of steps ahead of the opposition. If the Bulls think big, they can become the dominant team in the league in a couple of years.
The question is if they’re better off having Boozer, or adding a Bynum or Ellis.
I think you know the answer to that.
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Chicago Bulls: Should Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah Continue to Be Benched?
“I have to find a way to be more effective,” Joakim Noah said on Thursday while trying to explain his lack of production thus far in the season. In the game versus the lowly Washington Wizards, Noah found himself again on the bench during the entire fourth quarter.
As usual, Noah had company. Veteran forward Carlos Boozer joined him in what is fast becoming a huge problem for the Chicago Bulls—one that will plague them later.
As many recall, Boozer signed a huge five-year $75 million contract, and Noah inked for five years and $60 million last offseason. For the Bulls, the signings have translated to wins, yet without the maximum return from both frontcourt starters.
Noah is an energy player who happens to have some solid basketball skills. He truly is in complete control of his contribution to the team. Early in the season, foul trouble limited what he brings to the table. Right now, I see a player who has seemingly lost interest in his duties. There is a particular perception about Noah that, deep down, I do not believe he will accept for one moment.
His detractors agree that, with his offensive limitations, he is no more than a slight upgrade over Cleveland‘s Anderson Varejao. During the summer, Noah worked on his post-up game, and the results are mixed. While he has added a couple of moves to his arsenal, the confidence isn’t there to match the hard work. The whistles and missed shots are taking their toll, and something must be done soon.
If not, you’ll have a lost player, just as Noah was at a loss for words once he was asked what he could do to improve.
Carlos Boozer’s case is slightly different. He nonchalantly gave his response to several questions.
Boozer is an offensive force when he his firing on all cylinders. Overall, he has improved a little, which makes his fourth-quarter benching puzzling.
It is evident that Boozer has lost his explosiveness. Not to be confused with the Clippers‘ Blake Griffin, athletically, at any point in his career, but rarely did you see Boozer miss dunks the way that he did on Wednesday.
Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau must be taken to task here. Sure, the Bulls have a 10-2 record with his frontcourt rotations, but he has to figure out how he can get more from Noah and Boozer.
Sitting both of them for the majority of the fourth quarter will backfire, and it could happen sooner rather than later. He has to trust his “bigs” to make a positive impact during the waning minutes of a game. The Miami Heat series is over, the punishment has been received, and now it is time give his frontcourt another chance at finishing games.
The Bulls need to build chemistry with Boozer on the floor and—to a lesser degree—Noah. In the former, you have their only true low-post scorer. Point guard Derrick Rose needs to find him early so that Boozer feels involved more. While some will suggest that is coddling him, what is the harm in stroking the ego of a player if the ultimate reward could mean a championship banner?
Without Boozer, the Bulls do not get past the Heat. It is time to forgive his transgressions and play him when it matters most.
The same goes for Noah. Get him back involved late in games, or risk losing a key component to anything the Bulls are looking to accomplish. As the past has taught us with him, when he is inspired, the Bulls are victorious.
Failure to reinstate Noah and Boozer will affect team unity going forward. For a team that stresses how their strengths are a based on the result of harmony, it’s hard to imagine them winning without it.
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Bulls Come Up Roses as Derrick Rose and Carlos Boozer Blow Out the Pistons
There were three keys to victory for the Chicago Bulls during their stretch of five games in six days: create turnovers, find Joakim Noah and trust Jimmy Butler.
Game one versus the Pistons was a rounding success despite only utilizing one of those keys.
Creating turnovers.
The Bulls defense was stifling against Detroit and a decisive fourth quarter propelled the Bulls to a 92-68 win. The victory gives them three games at home in which the Bulls defense have not allowed more than 75 points to a team.
In the fourth, Derrick Rose and company forced 10 Piston turnovers and outscored Detroit, 24-9.
Led by Carlos Boozer (23 points) and Rose, who scored 22 points and handed out eight assists, the Bulls pulled away early in the final quarter in which they opened by using a 13-3 run.
As for the other keys, Joakim Noah played a little bit better, but he was not up to the standards that have been set for him.
What happened to the double-doubles that Bulls fans have grown accustomed to? That is a question that no one can answer. Noah’s energy was up, slightly. By not attempting a field goal in 25 minutes, one is beginning to believe that he has lost favor in the eyes of Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau, who has opted to go with Omer Asik in crunch time.
If you compare their numbers: Noah 7.7 points and 7.4 rebounds; Asik 3.2 points and 5.4 rebounds. The argument weighs in the direction of Noah but in earnest, he has struggled while Asik has shone during the season.
Is the tide turning for the Bulls center position where Asik is fast becoming the better player?
Jimmy Butler’s minutes were too minuscule to impress. Does he have to find some dirt on Thibodeau in order to garner playing time?
Once the Bulls lead swelled to 17 with about five minutes to go in the game, Thibodeau brought back in Boozer and had every starter on the floor except for Luol Deng and Noah.
Note to Tom Thibodeau: Detroit isn’t coming back to win this game being down 79-62. It really is okay to pull your starters and give minutes to players like Butler. The season is lost if Rose blows out his knee during a game that you should win.
You’ve broken the spirit of Detroit and you did it without Richard Hamilton and C.J. Watson. Play the rookie, coach.
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Chicago Bulls: Did Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah Right the Ship Against Detroit?
I know it is only one game, but for one game this season, Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah were able to co-exist.
For the first time this season, Noah recorded a double-double. Boozer led the team in scoring, totaling 19 points and seven rebounds. The two combined for 32 points and 18 rebounds.
That is much better than the 21 points they were averaging together heading into Wednesday’s game.
Derrick Rose might be able to will the Bulls to a few wins here and there during the regular season, but they need Boozer and Noah if they want to win a championship.
Friday was a perfect example of how dangerous the Bulls can be. Even without Luol Deng having a good game, the Bulls beat Detroit 99-83.
Maybe the most impressive thing about Wednesday’s victory was that Boozer and Noah were on the court in the fourth, unlike the night before. Tuesday against Atlanta, the two combined to play four seconds in the fourth. Noah played those four seconds on the critical in-bounds play that lead to the win.
Against Detroit, the duo of Boozer and Noah added six assists, three steals and two blocks. Also, Noah only committed one personal foul and played 35 minutes.
So the question is whether this the beginning of great things or just a flash in the pan.
To be honest, no one knows, but I personally think that it is the start of things to come. Remember that until the playoffs last season, this pair never had a stretch longer than nine games together.
Counting the end of last season, playoffs, this preseason and regular season, they have played in 32 straight games together. Even if you put all their games together, they have yet to play a full season’s worth of games.
We will get to see how the duo holds up on Friday when the Bulls travel to take on Dwight Howard and the Orlando Magic. Let’s hope for the best, otherwise Tom Thibodeau may have to look into making some lineup changes.
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Chicago Bulls: Can Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah Coexist?
Last night as the Chicago Bulls pulled off a fantastic comeback against the Atlanta Hawks, they did so with their first-team bigs, Joakim Noah and Carlos Boozer, watching while their second-team bigs, Omer Asik and Taj Gibson, led the team defensively.
It has some people wondering whether Boozer and Noah are able to coexist.
Exacerbating this problem is that the Bulls’ starting center and power forward combine for $25 million in salary—about 43 percent of the cap.
There are some big problems with this line of thinking. First and foremost, the tandem of Boozer and Noah has actually been more productive than the tandem of Asik and GIbson on a per-36-minute basis, in spite of last night.
Gibson and Asik combine for 16.8 points per 36 minutes, 19.2 rebounds and are plus-3.8 on the season. On the other hand, Noah and Boozer combine for 27.3 points, 20.2 rebounds and are a plus-9.2.
In spite of last night’s game, the Boozer/Noah tandem is in fact more productive and has a better net value than the Asik/Gibson tandem.
Having said that, it’s more about Noah than Boozer. It’s becoming increasingly clear that the Bulls are a better team with Boozer on the bench than on the court.
Last year while Boozer was on the court, the Bulls were a plus-7.0. With Boozer on the bench, they were a plus-7.5. While Boozer has been on the court this year, they are a plus-7.6 While he’s on the bench, they are a plus-13.6.
To some degree, though, it has to be considered that Boozer’s effect is felt in a positive way. He’s the only Bull who consistently scores in the paint. Last year, the Bulls were a better shooting team while Boozer was on the court, and they shot better from literally every area on the court. Having Boozer’s ability to score at the rim was valuable. Last year, 40 percent of his points were close, and 53 percent of his points came on jump shots. This year, 35 percent of his points are close and 63 percent are jump shots.
The problem isn’t who is playing, it’s more about how Boozer is playing.
He’s playing like a cow, not a bull. He needs to man up and start getting to the rim. When he does that, he spreads the court and makes everything easier for the rest of the team.
The problem with Taj Gibson is he doesn’t really have any post-up game, either. The difference between Boozer and Gibson is that Boozer has one—he’s just not using it.
The pick-and-roll has shown glimpses of promise this year. Rose has certainly improved his passing into the post. Now Boozer needs to start finishing.
While it’s premature to sit him, and Gibson really doesn’t give the Bulls any reason to, it is time for Boozer to start earning that paycheck.
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Bulls vs. Lakers: Chicago’s Carlos Boozer Needs to Dominate LA’s Josh McRoberts
If Chicago Bulls power forward Carlos Boozer wants to make a good first impression, he needs to dominate the Los Angeles Lakers’ Josh McRoberts in the NBA‘s season opener.
Boozer, who signed a huge contract with the Bulls last season, has not made a good impression with Bulls fans. He suffered through injuries that made him miss 23 games while limiting him to under 32 minutes a game.
The Bulls hoped Boozer would be a consistent 20-point, 10-rebound guy, but Boozer struggled to establish himself as a dependable force. He played soft in the post and around the rim last year, resulting in missed baskets and opponents gaining easy points.
Boozer vowed he would play better for the Bulls and worked hard in the offseason to get in athletic shape. According to Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau, Boozer is 20 pounds lighter and ready to go.
The Duke product had an uneven preseason with the Bulls. Chicago’s first game against the Indiana Pacers saw Boozer play softly around the rim as Boozer missed his first five shots and finished 3-of-10 from the field with five fouls.
Pacer big men Tyler Hansbrough, Jeff Foster and Roy Hibbert pushed Boozer around in the post all-night long.
Come Tuesday, Boozer seemed a changed man as both Derrick Rose and newcomer Richard Hamilton opened the paint for Boozer to maneuver. Boozer dominated his arch nemeses on the offensive end by going 11-of-17 for 24 points and three assists.
Defensively, Boozer was not impressive, as Hansbrough scored 19 and 24 points with Boozer as his primary defender. Hansbrough is a solid player, but Boozer is more athletic and should stay in front of him more often.
What Boozer is looking for is a fast start, and McRoberts could be the perfect victim for him to achieve that.
McRoberts, a fifth-year player out of Duke, was acquired by the Lakers to the recently traded Lamar Odom. He was a backup power forward for the Pacers, who averaged 7.4 points and 5.3 rebounds a game last year.
However, McRoberts will never be a consistent NBA starter, as he is temporarily filling in for Lakers center Andrew Bynum as he serves his five-game suspension for clobbering J.J. Barea in the playoffs.
Since Bynum is suspended, Boozer will face McRoberts instead of Pau Gasol as the Spanish baller will shift to the middle.
Boozer has a decided advantage by playing McRoberts over Gasol. McRoberts is not a very good defender, who has average lateral quickness and cannot stop more physical power forwards.
The Bulls’ Boozer is healthy and ready to go. Being lighter allows Boozer to be quicker and jump higher. He historically is a physical player and can utilize his superior post moves to dominate McRoberts.
A fast start would be optimal for Boozer, who desires to erase an uneven 2010-11 season.
If Boozer can score 25 or more points against McRoberts, the Lakers are in for a long night as Boozer announces to the NBA his return to top form.
If Boozer somehow does not perform well, the Bulls will have to worry that Boozer will always remain an inconsistent player who will never take his game to the next level.
Bob Bajek is a Featured Columnist for the Chicago Bulls. He is also a freelance reporter and can be followed at Patch.com and Twitter.
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