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| Who'll make a bigger difference? The former Jazzman or the 2008 3rd pick? (image from NBA.com) |
The Chicago Bulls traded for Carlos Boozer. The Memphis Grizzlies missed trading OJ Mayo for Josh McRoberts. Who’s paying off now?
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| Booze has to be his normal self if this frontline will work (image by the AP) |
Bulls drunk on Booze
The Bulls thought they needed him, and still insist they do, but Carlos Boozer has been quite underwhelming for Tom Thibodeau’s herd.
Carlos Boozer wasn’t top bill when he entered the NBA by way of Duke University, but he quickly made an impression as a tough, if undersized, power forward. He had good back-to-the-basket skills and had a great knack for getting the ball in easy spots to score. He also complemented these with a nice mid-range stroke. His best days were when he tried to reprise the Stockton-to-Malone combo with Deron Williams in Utah, but then was traded to Chicago essentially for cash mid-2010.
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| Booze could collide with KG late in May (image by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images) |
Expectations for him to form a potent scoring trio with Derrick Rose and Luol Deng were high, and he did average roughly 17 points along with 10 rebounds and 2 assists, but his maiden postseason test with the Bulls has been mediocre.
Though he is still norming a double-double, his scoring has dipped to only 10ppg, far lower than what it should be if Chicago is to realize their potential. The main culprit? It’s not that Boozer has gone lazy – it’s quite the opposite! He’s been very diligent, but only when it comes to getting fouls. His time on the bench has hampered his scoring, and his woeful 36% FG% is evidence of this.
The Bulls will go as far as Rose will take them, but it’ll definitely be easier if Booze is on board too.
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| Mayo could've been shooting 3s for the Pacers (image by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) |
Top it off with more Mayo
OJ Mayo, on the other hand, was almost thrown overboard by his own team. Overboard here means the Indiana Pacers.
If not for the Grizzlies just missing the trade deadline, Mayo would be on vacation right now after being eliminated by these Bulls. Instead, he has played an integral part in Memphis upending the top seeded Spurs.
His scoring went down a little bit from 11.3ppg in the regular season to only 9.0 in 6 games versus San Antonio, but one promising stat is his 3-point FG%, which went up from 36% to 50%.
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| Mayo can get hot, and fast! (image by the AP) |
All the attention will be on Zach Randolph trying to carry the load, Mike Conley and Marc Gasol getting their jabs in, and Tony Allen flaunting his swagger, but OJ Mayo night just be the x-factor. One must remember that this is a guy who averaged around 18ppg in his first two seasons. He put up 40 points in one game against the Nuggets last season. He can light it up.
We saw how Zebo was enough for Memphis to shock the Spurs, but for them to continue gaining momentum and for them to upset a younger, fresher Oklahoma Thunder, the Grizzlies need Mayo.
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