Brian McCann on February 24, 2009 said:

I agree with everything. People said the same things about Malone.

Trent on February 24, 2009 said:

We are better when Boozer is healthy.

Would Millsap be a good replacement if we lose Boozer? Sure, but having both is a much better situation. Besides, Millsap isn’t a 20/10 threat night in and night out quite yet, although I think he will be very soon.

I like Boozer. I like that he works to be completely healthy before coming back. True, it may take a lot of time, but we don’t want to end up with a Gilbert Arenas do we?

Holly on February 24, 2009 said:

I definitely agree with everything here. I’ve had to defend Boozer a lot, to family and friends. We are a much better team when Boozer is healthy. Granted, Milsap is an extremely awesome player. But we are much better when we have both healthy and playing well. When they both get their time on the court.

And, I can name a lot of allstars who miss far more then Boozer. D-Wade for one. Gilbert Arenas another. Players get injuries. And if we expected Carlos to play through every injury he received, it wouldn’t be good. He did need the time to heal and get better. And I think he’ll be much better for it rather then playing through it.

But yes. I also think that he’ll opt out when the year is done. And if it comes down to keeping either Milsap or Boozer, you can bet that I’ll be rooting to keep Sap. But, I’m going to enjoy having Booz while he’s still here.

Levi on February 24, 2009 said:

I admit I’ve been upset with Boozer, but mostly for telling the national media that he is opting out at the end of the season. I was angry that he had no loyalty to Utah, because after all his family isn’t starving if doesn’t get a higher paying job by any means. Although, if I were in his shoes and could make a few million more somewhere else, I’m sure I would do it too. Maybe I should respect him for being honest about it, instead of keeping is mouth shut until the end of the season and leaving us in shock and awe then. I’m just glad he’s here now.

As far as Boozers extended injury recovery. I think Doc. Rivers said it best recently, he said, ” I’d rather be a seventh seed in the playoffs with a one hundred percent Garnett, than a one seed with a seventy percent Garnett.” With Millsap that devoloping into a great player, and Boozer being who he is,(still on fairly short list of top players in the game) we are more talented than I thought we would be when the season began. Forget about our current record. Now that everyone is healthy, Utah has a pretty sweet roster, and hopefully we can surprise everybody else and get a title for LHM.

Annie Whittaker on February 24, 2009 said:

Well done Aaron, good points.

Linda McFarland on February 24, 2009 said:

Well written blog Aaron. I want to believe the things you said and will watch for the things you mentioned. I have to admit that we don’t know “the whole story” so we should keep an open mind and see what happens.

Jessica on February 24, 2009 said:

I laugh at all the stupid people out there. I have been a Jazz fan for quite sometime now. When I watch Boozer play he is not giving his all on a consistant basis. He plays like he is afraid to break his nails. He is lazy and a big wuse. He needs to have more contact with players. He needs to drive to the basket more often. He needs to be agressive and go for the ball more often. He loses the ball to tiny players. Milsap has definitely proven himself. Look at where the Jazz are right now. It’s not thanks to Boozer. The team can do it without Boozer. Boozer needs to leave. Sloan shouldn’t take Boozer back with all his comments on wanting more money. Boozer isn’t worth more money. Mark my words, Boozer will just hinder the Jazz. The team made themselves stronger without having Boozer there. Now that he is back the good players will have less court time while Boozer does nothing to make the team a success. The great rythm the Jazz had will be lost. It’s just to sad that Sloan can’t see that. Sloan also needs to open up his eyes on Korver. Korver is one dimensional. He can’t create his own shot. His 3 pointers suck. He isn’t aggressive. He waits for the ball to come to him and that results in the other team stealing the ball. He is afraid to foul hard. If your going to foul make sure they don’t make it a three point play! He isn’t that cute either.

Jenn Sokia on February 24, 2009 said:

While I don’t agree with most of your points, I respect them. I think we need Boozer to be a better team, no doubt, but I don’t think he is the person you think he is. I think he can do better on and off the court. I have a hard time respecting him fully when he is always trying to tell the press that he is the leader, when he is clearly not. I have a hard time talking about Boozer because he makes me SO mad. BUT, we need him and as long as he is wearing a Jazz jersey I will support him.

Deb on February 25, 2009 said:

Wow Jessica!
Why don’t you tell us how you really feel. Are Brewer’s ears too big, do Memo and AK not speak English well enough? Do you have stats to back up these accusations? I agree Millsap is playing well but where are we with him, battling with four teams for 8th place, where would be we if Boozer had played all year? As you have been a Jazz fan for quite some time, who do you think belongs on the team?
I guess I am just one of those stupid people you are laughing at. I can live with that.

Oh I guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and Korver may not be “that cute”, but he has a great smile.

Brian McCann on February 25, 2009 said:

Jessica- Call me stupid, but I really, really, really wish we had Booz all year. I think we would be right up there with San Antonio right now if we had. Look, the guy is a 20/10 man. You might not like everything he does, but the things he does well, he does really well. There are very few “perfect” players out there, but as far as power forwards go, who is better?? Millsap is the man, but he, at this point in his career, is not as consistent as Booz. In fact, there are very few players that have the package Booz gives the Jazz.

I think we would all do well to stop nit-picking all the weaknesses of the players we have, and start looking at their strengths. Only one team wins the championship each year, which means 29 don’t. I think we have a legit shot in the next few years if we can keep our team together, but it takes time. Everybody wants it now…if we don’t win it now, let’s blow up the team. Michael Jordan was criticized as one-dimensional for a good part of his career, and didn’t come out of college winning championships. It took time. Have a little patience, and let Booz and the other guys mature together.

Also, Kyle Korver has a place in Utah-Period.

canadajazz on February 25, 2009 said:

What is it with this Carlos Boozer thing? Booze has more detractors than Prohibition.
I, for one, am anxious to see just how dominate we can be with Boozer starting, Millsap coming off the bench, and then the two playing together to command the boards. We may only witness it for less than half a season, but I think it’s going to be outstanding.
To paraphrase John Lennon, “All we are saying, is give Booze a chance”.

Blake on February 26, 2009 said:

Jessica is right on the money. Booz doesn’t play hard. He earns his 20-10 while playing moderately most of the time. Now 20-10 is unachieveable by lots of players, so should we complain? Donno. Is this because he’s injury prone? Donno. Only he can answer that.

But Mr. Boozer has a GIANT problem that most people don’t seem to realize. Booz can’t shoot on a moving right-to-left shot. He can shoot the left-to-right and the fade-away. Remember those 5 point games all throgh the playoffs? Mr. 20-10 went 5-10 all through the playoffs. That’s how- you just hold him to having to make the moving right-to-left and he’s toast. He was completely shut down in the playoffs as soon as the scouts discovered this flaw. And without fixing, he’s virtually worthless in playoff situations.

So is that worth a raise? $11.6 million a year plus a raise? Not unless he learns a way not to get shut down in the playoffs I say!

Brian McCann on February 26, 2009 said:

Blake- Thats the beauty of the guy being so young. When Malone was 27, he didn’t even have a jumpshot.

Derrick Daye on April 02, 2009 said:

From Kevin O’Connor via email…

If you look at some of the other players and what their stats are when he was there and when he was back, he helps make other players better by being a low-post presence. Big guys that have injuries, especially on ankles and knees, it takes them a little longer to rehab. They’re carrying around a little bit more size and the knee is the same structure, it’s just that there’s more weight on it, and so it always takes big guys a little longer to get back. The key thing is going down the stretch, we hope everybody stays healthy and we’ll see what we are as a team. The fact that he was awarded two All Star appearances certainly says something for him. He’s an undersized power forward that still averages double-figures in rebounds; one of the things that doesn’t get pointed out is that he consistently shoots better than 50 percent from the floor.