Michael Beasley Over Chris Bosh: A Lesson In Perception

Everyone knows that the Heat has a ton of CASH for this 2010 free-agency. Probably, every media out-let and "Wade Homer" would like to see the Heat move the 2nd year forward, Michael Beasley, and pursue a deal for Chris Bosh, a 5 time All-Star. This is mostly due to most of them not knowing the truth behind Beasley's 2010 season and just caring about the success of Wade. But a careful look at the situation would show that Beasley is a more beneficial asset to Dwyane Wade and the Miami Heat organization, then Chris Bosh ever will be.

 Peolple forget that, against Chris Bosh this season, Beasley had a 21 point - 12 rebound game. A 28 point - 11 rebound game. He had a 6 point and 6 rebound effort in 8 minutes before Bosh under-cut him on an attempted alley from Wade(guess he was upset he couldn't stop Beasley). Anyway, this is a second year guy, that people say can't play, going at a 7 year NBA All-Star.

 The Heat says they want to build a DYNASTY. We all assume that Wade would be the logical choice as the foundation that every thing is laid upon. Now the question is, what player should be the next piece... Beasley or Bosh. If we look at the HISTORY of the NBA, most big men find themselves in their third or fourth season. Same happened to Bosh, he became a All-Star in his third season after being the 4th pick in the 2003 draft. Yet for some odd reason, Beasley is labeled a bust because he didn't become one in his second. It's amazing how people hear one thing and just assume it's the truth. It's amazing how one guy gets a pass for doing less in a similar manner(Bosh) and another guy gets burnt because he's playing with a SUPER-STAR.

 Well this article will compare the second season of Bosh, against that of Beasley. I hope some of you come away a little bit more open minded when viewing players and what you hear about them.

 Teammates

 Chris Bosh had a chance to play with a very balanced unit in his 2nd season. After 20 games, the team traded Vince Carter to the Nets to free up the development of Chris Bosh. Jalen Rose(18.5 points per game... 81 games), Vince Carter(15.9 per game... 20 games) Morris Peterson(14.3 points per game... 61 games as a starter), Rafer Alston(14.2 points per game... 80 games), Donyell Marshall(11.5 points per game... 65 games), Loren Woods/ Rafael Araujo( starting centers).

 Michael Beasley and the Heat were somewhat balanced but suffered mainly due to poor point guard play. Dwyane Wade(26.6 points per game... 77 games), Jermaine O'Neal(13.6 per game... 70 games) Udonis Haslem(9.9 points per game... 78 games), Quentin Richardson(8.9 points per game... 76 games), Mario Chalmers(9.6 points per game... 23 games as a starter).

 Anyone with half a brain, understands that the more talent a player is surrounded by, the easier their job becomes. 

 Consistency

You always hear that Beasley is a inconsistent player andscorer. But those who watch him know it's more a opportunity issue. He's playing with a MEGA STAR that puts up 20+ attempts per game and also was on a team that feature a former All-Star center who was more often than not, the second option. But let's look at the shooting numbers for Beasley and Bosh.

Games Played: Bosh (81) and Beasley (78)

Games of shooting +60%: Bosh (15) Beasley (10)

Games of shooting 50% to 59%: Bosh (14) Beasley (35)

Games of shooting 45% to 49%: Bosh (14) Beasley (9)

Games of shooting 40% to 44%: Bosh (14) Beasley (7)

Games of shooting -40%: Bosh (24) Beasley (17)

Chris Bosh managed to shoot +45% in 43 of his 81 games played(53% of the time) Michael Beasley, on the other hand, did it 54 of his 78 games played(69% of the time). I'm gonna need someone to see explain how he, consistently struggled to put the ball in the basket. 

Scoring totals

Beasley actually averaged more points per game his rookie season than Bosh did in his... never mind the fact that Bosh played 8 more minutes than him per game. Beasley also holds a 17.9 scoring average(per 36 minutes), that would be better than the 16.2 that Bosh yielded. Anyway, let's look at what each player did in their second season.

0-9 point games:

Bosh:Nov(4), Dec(4), Jan(0), Feb(1), Mar(2), Apri(0)

Beasley: Nov(3), Dec(2), Jan(3), Feb(3), Mar(5), Apri(2)

10-19 point games:

Bosh:Nov(9), Dec(10), Jan(6), Feb(5), Mar(7), Apri(8)

Beasley:Nov(9), Dec(7), Jan(5), Feb(2), Mar(6), Apri(4)

20-29 point games:

Bosh: Nov(3), Dec(1), Jan(8), Feb(5), Mar(3), Apri(3)

Beasley: Nov(4), Dec(5), Jan(7), Feb(2), Mar(2), Apri(1)

30+ point games:

Bosh: Nov(0), Dec(0), Jan(0), Feb(0), Mar(2), Apri(0)

Beasley: Nov(0), Dec(0), Jan(0), Feb(1), Mar(0), Apri(0)

One would think that the minutes per game and freedom for Bosh would yield a greater margin of difference. But once again, it just goes to show how ignorant fans and the media can be in regards to players and how they perceive them.

STATS by the MINUTE

Bosh played (37.1) minutes per game, his second season. But that wasn't his numbers to began the season... his numbers gradually increased each month(36, 32, 38, 38, 39 and 42). Three reason this happened. One was they had no one behind him to bench him if he played poorly. The second was he suffered no injuries that forced him to miss games. Third and most important, they didn't have a star demanding that they be a winning club. They started the season 13-17...  He was a 16ppg and 8rpg guy prior to the All-Star break, shooting 47%... He was a 18ppg and 10rpg guy after it, shooting 43%. (5 minute increase)

Beasley on the other hand had almost a opposite season. He finished with a (29.8) minute per game average but his numbers dropped as the season progressed(31, 32, 30, 28, 27 and 28). Three reason this happened. The first was a injury to his knee on Jan 27, against Toronto(forced him to miss the next 2 games and be fitted with a knee brace for the next 8 games). The second was a thigh contusion to his left thigh on March 10, against the Clippers(forced him to miss the next 2 games). The third and most important, Wade wanting to win now(if Haslem wasn't on the team, they'd be forced to play Beasley)!!! The Heat started the season 22-22 prior to Beasley's injury... He was a 16ppg and 7rpg guy prior to the All-Star break, shooting 46%... He was a 13ppg and 6rpg guy after it, shooting 43%. (3 minute decrease).

Turnover Issue

They say Beasley has a problem with focusing and turns the ball over. They say he doesn't do a good job of recognizing the floor. Well lets have a look. Let's look at the turnovers and assist of both guys. Keep in mind Bosh did play 7 more minutes per game than Beasley.

Games of 0-1 turnovers: Bosh (25) Beasley (40)

Games of 2 turnovers: Bosh (20) Beasley (23)

Games of +3 turnovers: Bosh (36) Beasley (15)

Both players had 77 games of 4 or fewer assist... Bosh had 4 games of 5+ and Beasley just 1.

As one can see, the guy that a lot say rarely has his head in the game, is better at not giving the ball up... and by a large margin. And even 5 years later, Chris Bosh is still turning the ball over at a similar clip(actually at a higher rate). I'm gonna need someone to explain the double standard.

Rebounding per Minute

People want you to believe Beasley is a poor rebounder, they usually guage him against the efforts of his 7 year NBA veteran teammate, Udonis Haslem. How idiotic is that? Anyway, like Bosh, Beasley is a one and done college-pro. And like Bosh, Beasley was a 8 rebound per 36 minute player(7.7 per 36 minutes)... Bosh was at 8.6 per 36 minutes... keep in mind that Beasley had two 5+ game stints of playing with injuries to his legs.)

 In Conclusion

The Heat might wanna reconsider that getting rid of Beasley idea and you as a fan might not wanna believe everything you hear. Try watching a game every now and then!!!