Cameron Boozer

[Duke4life831]

I had very similar criticisms of Paolo and still do tbh. I’m still not convinced long term you can win building around this archetype. And Paolo is more dynamic on offense then Cam by a good amount.

Ya Paolo isn’t a high leaper, but he’s pretty damn agile for his size. Allows him to be more dynamic on ball compared to Boozer. Boozer is a pretty stiff compared to Paolo.

[King Ken]

A more physically gifted Al Horford is a terrific player.

Boozer's passing skills and defense have been terrific so far, and both should translate well to the NBA.

Boozer is nowhere close to as physically gifted as Al Horford was coming out of Florida. I guess people don't remember these things and don't realize that players lose athleticism as they age. Boozer is an average athlete at best. Horford was well above average when he was younger.

Al Horford is the go to for worst of all time comps. He does so much for a winning player that its really no comp that comes close ever for Al. He's like Westbrook, there is only one Westbrook. No one is like him.

Boozer is much better than people are giving him credit for. Even in games where he struggles as a scorer, his feel for the game with the ball is just world class. He's going to be better in the NBA than in college and he's going to dominate college.

His comp is obvious. He's Carlos Boozer but not as good at the dirty work which is critical but his feel for the game, his BBIQ, his awareness is off the charts for a prospect, much less one as young as he is. His passing, dribbling for a 4 and shooting is advanced for his age at his position. He's going to be better in the NBA. His game will never be pretty. He's pretty robotic and he lacks explosiveness like pops. But he's just a terrific Basketball player and he has enough strength and skill to play his game at every single level.

To me, he's the closest to Jokic since Jokic but doesn't have the tools and size to be Jokic meaning his ceiling isn't as high. Don't sleep on him. He feels this game in his sleep.

[King Ken]

I believe all 3 are cornerstone players. You can build a long term contender around all 3 players.

[bigboi]

A more physically gifted Al Horford is a terrific player.

Boozer's passing skills and defense have been terrific so far, and both should translate well to the NBA.

Boozer is nowhere close to as physically gifted as Al Horford was coming out of Florida. I guess people don't remember these things and don't realize that players lose athleticism as they age. Boozer is an average athlete at best. Horford was well above average when he was younger.

Al Horford is the go to for worst of all time comps. He does so much for a winning player that its really no comp that comes close ever for Al. He's like Westbrook, there is only one Westbrook. No one is like him.

Boozer is much better than people are giving him credit for. Even in games where he struggles as a scorer, his feel for the game with the ball is just world class. He's going to be better in the NBA than in college and he's going to dominate college.

His comp is obvious. He's Carlos Boozer but not as good at the dirty work which is critical but his feel for the game, his BBIQ, his awareness is off the charts for a prospect, much less one as young as he is. His passing, dribbling for a 4 and shooting is advanced for his age at his position. He's going to be better in the NBA. His game will never be pretty. He's pretty robotic and he lacks explosiveness like pops. But he's just a terrific Basketball player and he has enough strength and skill to play his game at every single level.

To me, he's the closest to Jokic since Jokic but doesn't have the tools and size to be Jokic meaning his ceiling isn't as high. Don't sleep on him. He feels this game in his sleep.

I’m ngl, I do see Jokic but Jokic is 7 feet and has elite ball handling skills that boozer doesn’t have

[The-Power]

I mean to start the season he’s been an average college 3pt shooter, he’s at 35% at the moment. So it’s not like he’s some high level perimeter scorer.

High level or not, he does shoot the 3 and projects to do it reasonably well. That's already much different from Carlos Boozer, Z-Bo and whoever else has been mentioned as your old-school PF. For what it's worth, I don't think post-Minnesota Love is an old-school PF either.

I think there are two big question marks with Boozer at the next level. How do you hide him defensively, and can he become a big enough threat out on the perimeter where he doesn’t negatively affect spacing.

I'm not saying he doesn't have question marks. I suppose I am a bit less concerned about his defense than you are. To me, he seems to do a solid job staying in front of smaller/quicker players and contesting shots. Not saying he won't run into problematic NBA match-ups from time to time but I don't see him as a liability. I'll keep an eye on it, though.

I'm even less worried about his shooting. I don't expect a sniper but he projects to be a competent shooter from deep and even in today's NBA that's generally good enough to play the 4. He's not someone who'll compromise your spacing IMO.

But as of right now, I just don’t see too many slow footed 6’8-6’9 guys who play below the rim making a huge impact in the NBA at the moment.

Besides the question of how slow-footed and how much of a below-the-rim player he is (we seems to have somewhat different impressions here), how many of the potential candidates are as good as he is at playmaking and some of the ancillary stuff (screening, rebounding, shooting)? Is it really so far fetched to see him as a Sengün-ish type of player in the NBA?

Just saying if I had a top 5 pick, I’m not sure I’d be willing to take that gamble

I do see some question marks myself (finishing touch is by the way one of them that isn't discussed enough IMO), so I'm not sure exactly where I'd be taking him. I currently would have Dybantsa, Wilson and Peterson ahead of him, and maybe there's someone else out there to challenge him for the next spot(s). But I seem to be more confident that he translates well to the NBA than you are. Which is fair enough, reasonable minds can disagree.

On the Paolo comp: I was lower on Banchero than most on here. I think Boozer is in the same ballpark for me. Banchero is a more skilled ball handler and scorer inside the arc overall, and bigger too. But I just love Boozer's passing, and I also think he fits better into a team context because he does not need to be a primary guy (which is one of the main issues with Banchero) due to his advantages as a 3pt shooter and rebounder and him looking like a more engaged defender (with some of it also just coming down to mindset, which is tough to change and I see Boozer ahead here).

Last game against a strong team he struggled to score but I still saw a player who elevated his team because he got a ton of defensive attention and constantly made the right plays to set up his teammates or create the first advantage. He has a ton of latent value in those situations and that matters a lot to me. Great playmakers who receive defensive attention are awesome to have in the NBA.

[EvanZ]

Never thought of Carlos Boozer as high IQ. That Dukey was Shane Battier. He have a kid yet?

[Duke4life831]

I mean to start the season he’s been an average college 3pt shooter, he’s at 35% at the moment. So it’s not like he’s some high level perimeter scorer.

High level or not, he does shoot the 3 and projects to do it reasonably well. That's already much different from Carlos Boozer, Z-Bo and whoever else has been mentioned as your old-school PF. For what it's worth, I don't think post-Minnesota Love is an old-school PF either.

I think there are two big question marks with Boozer at the next level. How do you hide him defensively, and can he become a big enough threat out on the perimeter where he doesn’t negatively affect spacing.

I'm not saying he doesn't have question marks. I suppose I am a bit less concerned about his defense than you are. To me, he seems to do a solid job staying in front of smaller/quicker players and contesting shots. Not saying he won't run into problematic NBA match-ups from time to time but I don't see him as a liability. I'll keep an eye on it, though.

I'm even less worried about his shooting. I don't expect a sniper but he projects to be a competent shooter from deep and even in today's NBA that's generally good enough to play the 4. He's not someone who'll compromise your spacing IMO.

But as of right now, I just don’t see too many slow footed 6’8-6’9 guys who play below the rim making a huge impact in the NBA at the moment.

Besides the question of how slow-footed and how much of a below-the-rim player he is (we seems to have somewhat different impressions here), how many of the potential candidates are as good as he is at playmaking and some of the ancillary stuff (screening, rebounding, shooting)? Is it really so far fetched to see him as a Sengün-ish type of player in the NBA?

Just saying if I had a top 5 pick, I’m not sure I’d be willing to take that gamble

I do see some question marks myself (finishing touch is by the way one of them that isn't discussed enough IMO), so I'm not sure exactly where I'd be taking him. I currently would have Dybantsa, Wilson and Peterson ahead of him, and maybe there's someone else out there to challenge him for the next spot(s). But I seem to be more confident that he translates well to the NBA than you are. Which is fair enough, reasonable minds can disagree.

On the Paolo comp: I was lower on Banchero than most on here. I think Boozer is in the same ballpark for me. Banchero is a more skilled ball handler and scorer inside the arc overall, and bigger too. But I just love Boozer's passing, and I also think he fits better into a team context because he does not need to be a primary guy (which is one of the main issues with Banchero) due to his advantages as a 3pt shooter and rebounder and him looking like a more engaged defender (with some of it also just coming down to mindset, which is tough to change and I see Boozer ahead here).

Last game against a strong team he struggled to score but I still saw a player who elevated his team because he got a ton of defensive attention and constantly made the right plays to set up his teammates or create the first advantage. He has a ton of latent value in those situations and that matters a lot to me. Great playmakers who receive defensive attention are awesome to have in the NBA.

So like big picture here is where Im kind of at with Boozer at the moment.

I do think he has solid potential with his perimeter skills (shooting/passing, not much of threat driving though from the perimeter). And I do think he is a high level rebounder. So I dont think he is a guy that will be out of the league in 5 years, kind of bust.

My issue is with Cam, is solely does he have the ceiling to be a top 5-10 pick? I think worst case scenario he has like a Bobby Portis kind of career. Not saying identical play style, but in his prime is a spot starter/good offensive 4 to bring off the bench.

Again my issues are, I do think he's just flat out slow (for NBA 4 standards). He kind of has that high knees, running in mud, you can really see the pistons trying to get moving style when he runs. My biggest issue with his speed is just the quickness, it doesnt exist. I dont think he has the rim protection or a freakishly high defensive IQ/skill set to play significant minutes at the 5. So I dont think he has all that great of positional versatility, I think he's kind of landlocked at the 4.

When it comes to Sengun (and I get you're not making a 1:1 comp), I get it, but I still have some question marks. Sengun is just a bigger body, so its easier to "hide" him at the 5. Play drop coverage and hope his size is enough to kind of deter offensive guys from just having a free for all at the rim. But it's also the offensive side. Sengun to me is kind of the lowest you can go when it comes to having a player like him on offense. What I mean by that is, he's really skilled but even with that, he's league average efficiency as a scorer. The high level passing really helps him out to being a positive overall.

My fear there is, what if Boozer is just slightly below that. I think Boozer is a very good passer, Im not sure he will ever be on Sengun's level though. Sengun also has pretty good natural touch within 10ft. Boozer is much more of a bruiser inside. So kind of using Sengun as an archetype. What if Boozer is just slightly less efficient than Sengun as a scorer, and 1 tier down as a passer. Then add in him being locked in at the 4. Is that still a player that is an everyday starter, or does that turn into more of that Bobby Portis, spot starter/solid offensive 4 off the bench?

[HadAnEffectHere]

Never thought of Carlos Boozer as high IQ. That Dukey was Shane Battier. He have a kid yet?

Boozer had an excellent IQ on offense... Not on defense though.

Good passer, great movement without the ball, exploited weaknesses constantly.

On defense, one of the worst defenders I've ever seen as Sloan had him and Okur give soft fouls to constantly give up And-1s.

[EvanZ]

Never thought of Carlos Boozer as high IQ. That Dukey was Shane Battier. He have a kid yet?

Boozer had an excellent IQ on offense... Not on defense though.

Good passer, great movement without the ball, exploited weaknesses constantly.

On defense, one of the worst defenders I've ever seen as Sloan had him and Okur give soft fouls to constantly give up And-1s.

I mean he had a career 1:1 ast:tov ratio. That's not basketball genius imo.

[HadAnEffectHere]

Never thought of Carlos Boozer as high IQ. That Dukey was Shane Battier. He have a kid yet?

Boozer had an excellent IQ on offense... Not on defense though.

Good passer, great movement without the ball, exploited weaknesses constantly.

On defense, one of the worst defenders I've ever seen as Sloan had him and Okur give soft fouls to constantly give up And-1s.

I mean he had a career 1:1 ast:tov ratio. That's not basketball genius imo.

He had a lot of offensive fouls since he did a lot of bullyball stuff, he was pretty smart on offense.

[Cammo101]

Never thought of Carlos Boozer as high IQ. That Dukey was Shane Battier. He have a kid yet?

Thomas Haugh has big Shane Battier's kid energy.

[EmpireFalls]

good comps tbh. PHO Barkley won MVP. DET Griffin was an all-star. Kevin Love is my comp and Love is a Hall of Famer. I think people are being too harsh. Remember, there's a legit possibility he's outside the top 5 come draft night.

If he even drops to 4 a team will trade the farm to move up and get him. If he’s outside the top 5 the NBA have lost their minds

Why have they lost their minds?

I’m not a Boozer hater, you can even say I’m a Boozer stan. Even after last night I think he’s going to be penciled in as a consensus All American as a freshman.

But the question is simple, who in the NBA with a similar archetype is a high impact player? Who is similar to Boozer who is racking in All NBA teams? No one in the last 5 years.

Boozer is your classic PF. He’s your strong 6’8-6’9 below the rim who’s an high level rebounder and his best part of his offensive game is working 15ft and in. Even if his 3pt shot gets consistent, okay we saw a classic PF with a 3pt shot in Kevin Love. We literally watched Kevin Love’s roll go extinct in his prime.

I’m extremely pumped to watch Boozer all year for Duke at the college level. I just don’t see anyone close to Boozer’s archetype making any kind of splash currently in the NBA.

To use another Duke guy as an example. How is this really any different than Okafor? Elite high school player, elite from day 1 in college. But by the time it came around to him playing in the NBA. All his comps were guys that were dominant in a different era. His style of play had become extinct in the NBA. The same has happened to the classic PF.

I think Cam Booz's path forward is quite simple.

He is strong enough to demand a double in the roll, his shot will develop to do pick and pop, and he will be able to function as a sort of Derik Queen style playmaking big right off the bat, except he is a better shooter and defender.