Carlos Boozer: Is the Bulls' PF Lying About How His Injury Happened?

The New York Daily News reported that the Chicago Bulls are looking into Carlos Boozer’s story of how he hurt his hand.

Boozer, who just signed an $80 million dollar contract and is expected to make the Bulls an immediate contender in the East, supposedly broke his fifth metacarpal in his hand tripping over a gym bag while trying to answer his door.

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According to Boozer, “It was just dark, my doorbell rang and I tripped over a gym bag, tried to brace myself and it popped. I jumped back up, opened the door and my hand was still a little numb.”

The Bulls aren’t sure that they want to buy Boozer’s story and while there has been a lot of talk about why they would even look into it, because no good can come out of anything they find that contradicts Boozer’s story, they have the right to investigate. For the Bulls to seriously look into the issue, nonetheless, and allow their investigation to become public, they must have serious reason to believe Boozer’s story could be fabricated.

Boozer insists that he will “be back better than ever”, however, one can’t help but wonder how a serious injury to your shooting hand can allow you to come back better than ever. Are we supposed to believe that a right-handed shooter can come back and be a better shooter and/or finisher than he was before?

It sounds like a strong attempt by Boozer to put doubt to rest in the minds of the Bulls organization and fans. No one comes back “better than ever” from an injury of this magnitude. It’s an inconsistency that makes Boozer’s prudence seems a bit odd.

Boozer missed out 132 of 492 games in Utah due to injury. I think it’s safe to say that he never came back “better than ever” and he’s definitely not getting any younger. During the three seasons in Utah that were significantly shortened due to injury, Boozer averaged 16.9 points per game and 9.3 rebounds per game. In his three healthy seasons in Utah, he averaged 20.5 points per game and 11.1 rebounds per game. That doesn’t bode well for the Chicago Bulls.

Hopefully Boozer isn’t lying about his injury and it did happen to be a freak accident that resulted in a gym bag being in the wrong place at the wrong time. No matter what the Bulls find to be the truth, it doesn’t change the fact that this definitely puts a damper on the hype of their upcoming season.

Boozer wouldn’t be the first high profile athlete that has lied about his injury to protect his image, as well as his new contract. In 2008, Monta Ellis, who had signed a large offseason contract with the Golden State Warriors, tore up his ankle. He claimed it happened in a pick-up basketball game, when in actuality it happened in a moped accident. The reason that he got caught is because his injury wasn’t typical of a basketball related incident.

Boozer could be in the exact same boat. The end result for Ellis was 30 games without pay.

Maybe the Bulls are only investigating to possibly save themselves some money. If they can prove it happened as a result of a irresponsible act by Boozer, his $80 million dollar contract could quickly become a little less. However, their win total could also take a hit.

According to healthlibrary.epnet.com, the most common occurrence to break the fifth metacarpal in the hand is punching an object with a closed fist. Here is what their website says:

“Fractures of the metacarpals (the bones in your hand just before your knuckles) and your phalanges (the bones between the joints of your fingers) are also common sports injuries. The most common fracture of the metacarpals is a boxer’s fracture. A boxer’s fracture usually occurs when you strike an object with your closed fist. With a boxer’s fracture, the fifth metacarpal joint (the one at the base of your littlest finger) is depressed and the surrounding tissue is tender and swollen.”

Typically, when someone falls, they attempt to catch themselves with an open hand. Are we to believe that Boozer pounded the floor with a closed fist when trying to brace his fall? Who does that?

If there is one thing that Carlos Boozer should have learned from the Monta Ellis saga, it is that it is best to come up with a story that is consistent with the type of injury that you incur. On that same note, I guess there’s not too many stories where Boozer could have struck something with an open fist that could result in a good outcome.

Surely Boozer didn’t hit something or someone out of anger, right?