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Buyer's Guide: Chris Bosh
He might not be a No. 1 option, but Bosh can -- and should -- command a max deal
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By Tom Haberstroh
Special to ESPN Insider
Archive
Chris BoshRon Turenne/NBAE/ Getty ImagesChris Bosh needs a quality playmaker to reach his potential. But that potential is worth a max deal.
For the next few weeks, ESPN Insider will be analyzing NBA free agents not named LeBron James (we covered him pretty extensively a few weeks ago, and there's even more coming every day on the LeBron Tracker) to try and get a handle on what they're really worth to the teams chasing them this summer. We begin today with Toronto big man Chris Bosh.
OVERALL ASSESSMENT
Chris Bosh would be the grand prize in most offseasons, but the tantalizing prospect of his partnering up with Dwyane Wade or LeBron James suggests he couldn't succeed landing on a team without another superstar. But he can, so long as he goes somewhere with the right type of talent.
Few players can match Bosh's lethal combination of post moves and a legitimate outside shot. He's athletic enough to attack the rim but lacks the overpowering strength that Carlos Boozer or Amare Stoudemire, two other highly coveted free-agent power forwards, use to bulldoze their way to the rack.
Chris Bosh, F
AGE: 26
HT: 6-10
WT: 230
WING: 7-3½
VERT: 33 inches
PPG: 24.0
RPG: 10.8
BPG: 1.0
FG% .518
FT% .797
WHAT HE'S WORTH: Max Contract
WHAT HE'LL GET: Max Contract
GOOD FITS: Bulls, Rockets, Heat
LESS THAN IDEAL: Raptors, Knicks, Clippers, Wizards
NEXT-LEVEL STATS
PER: 25.1 (4th in NBA)
EWA: 17.1 wins (8th)
Usage Rate: 28.7 percent of team poss. (8th)
Off. Rating: 117 pts per 100 poss. (NBA average: 10
Def. Rating: 111 pts allowed per 100 (NBA average: 10
Off. Rebound Rate: 9.9 percent of rebounds while on floor
Def. Rebound Rate: 25.2 percent of rebounds while on floor
Tot. Rebound Rate: 17.7 percent of rebounds while on floor
Adjusted plus/minus: +6.97 (17th)
... indicates the player's Plus-Minus, adjusted to account for both strength of teammates and the opponents on the floor with a player over the course of the season.
93
RELIABILITY RATING
A composite rating that quantifies a player's offensive dependability on a 1 to 100 scale after considering efficiency, shot creation, playing time and clutch performance. LeBron James is a 98, David West is a 75, DeMarre Carroll is a 10.
Component Stat %Rank
CLUTCH 30.9 points per 48 clutch mins 88
USAGE 28.7 percent of team poss. 96
EFFICIENCY 117 points per 100 poss. 90
RUN 36.1 minutes per game 84
DEPRECIATION
Career Regular-Season Games: 509
Missed Regular-Season Games: 65
Durability Percentage: 88.7
Injury Concerns: A rarely problematic left knee
Injury Risk: Mild; no severe surgeries or areas of chronic injury.
CAREER SUMMARY
Looking at his body of work, only five other players in NBA history have amassed as many total points and total rebounds as Bosh has through his age 25 season. Still, for all his individual accomplishments, Bosh has yet to advance past the first round of the playoffs in his seven years with Toronto.
Rather than employing brute strength, the 6-foot-10 lefty excels on the block through his virtually unparalleled finesse and creativity. Bosh averaged 1.09 points on his 549 post-ups last season, a rate so remarkably efficient that it topped every big man in the league, according to Synergy Sports Technology. One league executive likened Bosh to classical music, pointing out that, while lacking the "wow" factor of Stoudemire and Dwight Howard, Bosh's quiet effectiveness will please any team more focused on the win column than the highlight reel.
"There's a big difference between soft and having a body to do something about it," the source said. "Bosh has the mentality but just doesn't have the physical capability to impact the game as a bruiser."
Aside from his post moves, Bosh also makes a perfect pick-and-pop candidate. He's one of the few bigs in the NBA with an elite inside-outside game to draw the full attention of his defender. The lefty doesn't have 3-point range, but he's a yearly lock for 45 percent from just inside the arc. If it weren't for Dirk Nowitzki and Kevin Garnett, Bosh would garner recognition as the most dangerous shooting big man in the game.
But Bosh is not as stellar on the defensive end. He doesn't have the bulk to match up with centers, but he's long enough to make up for it against power forwards. He lacks the instincts to be an elite shot-blocker, but Bosh will get the nightly block solely based on his athleticism. "He's long and he's in the right position the majority of the time," said one league executive. "I think he's a cut above those other guys [on the free-agent market] defensively."
With a career-high 28.7 usage rate, only seven players in the NBA had more responsibility on offense than Bosh did this past season in Toronto. But while he has demonstrated individual success as the No. 1 option, the optimal scenario would have him paired with a ball-dominant wing or All-Star point guard to create for him.
"Bosh can't be a No. 1 guy," one league executive warned. "If a team's going to be good, Bosh has to be two and a best-case three. I don't see Bosh as a carry-the-mail kind of player. But I don't think any of the power forward free agents are either."
Teams will pay him to raise a championship banner and that will only happen if Bosh has other elite shot-creators that he can complement.
FINDING THE RIGHT FIT
Bosh's stint in Toronto gives his prospective suitors a blueprint to avoid. As a No. 1 option lacking both a premier point guard and a defensive cog in the middle, Bosh never had the tools to lead the Raptors past the postseason fringe. Boozer and Stoudemire have each enjoyed the luxury of playing co-pilot with a Hall of Fame-caliber point guard, but Bosh has yet to experience the benefits of teaming up with an elite playmaker.
"If Bosh played with Steve Nash, I'd probably feel completely different about him," said one league executive. "He needs a guy to put him in the best possible situation to succeed."
“
If Bosh played with Steve Nash, I'd probably feel completely different about him. He needs a guy to put him in the best possible situation to succeed.
He might not be a No. 1 option, but Bosh can -- and should -- command a max deal
* Comments39
By Tom Haberstroh
Special to ESPN Insider
Archive
Chris BoshRon Turenne/NBAE/ Getty ImagesChris Bosh needs a quality playmaker to reach his potential. But that potential is worth a max deal.
For the next few weeks, ESPN Insider will be analyzing NBA free agents not named LeBron James (we covered him pretty extensively a few weeks ago, and there's even more coming every day on the LeBron Tracker) to try and get a handle on what they're really worth to the teams chasing them this summer. We begin today with Toronto big man Chris Bosh.
OVERALL ASSESSMENT
Chris Bosh would be the grand prize in most offseasons, but the tantalizing prospect of his partnering up with Dwyane Wade or LeBron James suggests he couldn't succeed landing on a team without another superstar. But he can, so long as he goes somewhere with the right type of talent.
Few players can match Bosh's lethal combination of post moves and a legitimate outside shot. He's athletic enough to attack the rim but lacks the overpowering strength that Carlos Boozer or Amare Stoudemire, two other highly coveted free-agent power forwards, use to bulldoze their way to the rack.
Chris Bosh, F
AGE: 26
HT: 6-10
WT: 230
WING: 7-3½
VERT: 33 inches
PPG: 24.0
RPG: 10.8
BPG: 1.0
FG% .518
FT% .797
WHAT HE'S WORTH: Max Contract
WHAT HE'LL GET: Max Contract
GOOD FITS: Bulls, Rockets, Heat
LESS THAN IDEAL: Raptors, Knicks, Clippers, Wizards
NEXT-LEVEL STATS
PER: 25.1 (4th in NBA)
EWA: 17.1 wins (8th)
Usage Rate: 28.7 percent of team poss. (8th)
Off. Rating: 117 pts per 100 poss. (NBA average: 10
Def. Rating: 111 pts allowed per 100 (NBA average: 10
Off. Rebound Rate: 9.9 percent of rebounds while on floor
Def. Rebound Rate: 25.2 percent of rebounds while on floor
Tot. Rebound Rate: 17.7 percent of rebounds while on floor
Adjusted plus/minus: +6.97 (17th)
... indicates the player's Plus-Minus, adjusted to account for both strength of teammates and the opponents on the floor with a player over the course of the season.
93
RELIABILITY RATING
A composite rating that quantifies a player's offensive dependability on a 1 to 100 scale after considering efficiency, shot creation, playing time and clutch performance. LeBron James is a 98, David West is a 75, DeMarre Carroll is a 10.
Component Stat %Rank
CLUTCH 30.9 points per 48 clutch mins 88
USAGE 28.7 percent of team poss. 96
EFFICIENCY 117 points per 100 poss. 90
RUN 36.1 minutes per game 84
DEPRECIATION
Career Regular-Season Games: 509
Missed Regular-Season Games: 65
Durability Percentage: 88.7
Injury Concerns: A rarely problematic left knee
Injury Risk: Mild; no severe surgeries or areas of chronic injury.
CAREER SUMMARY
Looking at his body of work, only five other players in NBA history have amassed as many total points and total rebounds as Bosh has through his age 25 season. Still, for all his individual accomplishments, Bosh has yet to advance past the first round of the playoffs in his seven years with Toronto.
Rather than employing brute strength, the 6-foot-10 lefty excels on the block through his virtually unparalleled finesse and creativity. Bosh averaged 1.09 points on his 549 post-ups last season, a rate so remarkably efficient that it topped every big man in the league, according to Synergy Sports Technology. One league executive likened Bosh to classical music, pointing out that, while lacking the "wow" factor of Stoudemire and Dwight Howard, Bosh's quiet effectiveness will please any team more focused on the win column than the highlight reel.
"There's a big difference between soft and having a body to do something about it," the source said. "Bosh has the mentality but just doesn't have the physical capability to impact the game as a bruiser."
Aside from his post moves, Bosh also makes a perfect pick-and-pop candidate. He's one of the few bigs in the NBA with an elite inside-outside game to draw the full attention of his defender. The lefty doesn't have 3-point range, but he's a yearly lock for 45 percent from just inside the arc. If it weren't for Dirk Nowitzki and Kevin Garnett, Bosh would garner recognition as the most dangerous shooting big man in the game.
But Bosh is not as stellar on the defensive end. He doesn't have the bulk to match up with centers, but he's long enough to make up for it against power forwards. He lacks the instincts to be an elite shot-blocker, but Bosh will get the nightly block solely based on his athleticism. "He's long and he's in the right position the majority of the time," said one league executive. "I think he's a cut above those other guys [on the free-agent market] defensively."
With a career-high 28.7 usage rate, only seven players in the NBA had more responsibility on offense than Bosh did this past season in Toronto. But while he has demonstrated individual success as the No. 1 option, the optimal scenario would have him paired with a ball-dominant wing or All-Star point guard to create for him.
"Bosh can't be a No. 1 guy," one league executive warned. "If a team's going to be good, Bosh has to be two and a best-case three. I don't see Bosh as a carry-the-mail kind of player. But I don't think any of the power forward free agents are either."
Teams will pay him to raise a championship banner and that will only happen if Bosh has other elite shot-creators that he can complement.
FINDING THE RIGHT FIT
Bosh's stint in Toronto gives his prospective suitors a blueprint to avoid. As a No. 1 option lacking both a premier point guard and a defensive cog in the middle, Bosh never had the tools to lead the Raptors past the postseason fringe. Boozer and Stoudemire have each enjoyed the luxury of playing co-pilot with a Hall of Fame-caliber point guard, but Bosh has yet to experience the benefits of teaming up with an elite playmaker.
"If Bosh played with Steve Nash, I'd probably feel completely different about him," said one league executive. "He needs a guy to put him in the best possible situation to succeed."
“
If Bosh played with Steve Nash, I'd probably feel completely different about him. He needs a guy to put him in the best possible situation to succeed.
