Chicago Bulls: 5 Reasons Carlos Boozer's Scoring Can Help Bulls Beat the Heat
"The Big Outburst" is loud, nasty and effective when he scores. The Bulls are good when he tallies 10 or 12 points per game. They are even better when he scores 20.
The $15 million man will be in the spotlight as much as ever against the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals. The time has come to show if the Bulls are contenders or a year away.
Boozer's performance will have a lot to say about that.
5. The Bench Plays Looser
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When Boozer doesn't score, it puts extra pressure on guys the Bulls aren't paying to score to assist with the scoring load.
There are times when the role players will have games like Taj Gibson had in Game Five. You cannot count on this happening consistently, especially on the road.
Ideally, the pressure and the work load should fall on your Prime Time players.
For the Bulls, that is Rose, Boozer and Deng. This should be the Bulls pecking order from a offensive perspective.
Deng has stepped up, but Boozer was brought to Chicago to average 20 and 10.
4. Boozer Defends Better When He Scores
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The biggest issue with Boozer's game has been his defense. In the games that he has an offensive rhythm, he has far fewer mental lapses on defense.
This is the case with most big men who are more offensive minded—their defense feeds off their offense.
This is especially the case because Thibodeau's equal opportunity substitution patterns have Boozer looking at the sidelines after turnovers and poor shot selection.
Thibs is no respect of persons, as he has benched Noah in favor of the defensive play of Omer Asik. This is a double-edged sword, but either way, when Boozer puts it together, this is another reason the Bulls are a different team.
3. It Creates Another Passing Resource for the Bulls Shooters
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The Bulls offense runs through Derrick Rose about 90 percent of the time. If Boozer is producing on the block, he will produce double-teams.
This will create open shots for the corner and elbow three point shooters. If they are making their shots, their defenders cannot leave them.
This allows Boozer to go one on one and Rose to play off the ball, if he's not delivering the post entry pass. It really becomes a pick your poison situation for teams defending the Bulls.
NBA offenses that are dangerous have options and an effective Boozer creates the most options for this roster.
2. Noah Can Play His Role
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When Boozer doesn't score, Noah feels compelled to become the inside scoring threat. While "The Igniter" is effective driving the ball to the basket and finishing with either hand on occasion, it is definitely not his best attribute.
If you are the Bulls, you want him banging the offensive and defensive boards, blocking shots, running the floor and finishing strong. Noah doesn't ask for the ball, he's content playing the glamour-less role.
His comfort in his role is one of his greatest assets.
Boozer's production makes the Bulls play comfortably in their intended roles.
1. It Allows Derrick Rose to Play Point Guard
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As dynamic a scorer as Rose can be, as Game Six showed, the Bulls are much better when his points are around 20 as opposed to 30 or 35.
He plays very relaxed and he gets every one involved. He doesn't take as much of a pounding and his explosions are more effective.
The Boozer threat allows Rose to catch the defense on their heels when he sees the opening.
The Bulls performance in Game Six was possibly their best performance of the year. There were two reasons for this, defense of course, but the other was Boozer's 23 and 10.
