Five free agent replacements for Willie Reed
By Simon Smith
1. Andrew Bogut
Like Splitter, Bogut has had his fair share of injury setbacks. His latest was undoubtedly his most inglorious, fracturing his left tibia in the first minute of his debut for the Cleveland Cavaliers. Sustained at the beginning of March, Bogut was immediately ruled out for the season, and faces a lengthy rehabilitation schedule leading into the 2017-18 season.
This season, Bogut played just 26 games for the Dallas Mavericks, before being traded mid-season and bought out of his contract to join the Cavaliers. When on the court, Bogut averaged 2.9 points and 8.1 rebounds in 21.6 minutes per game. On top of his broken leg, Bogut also suffered separate knee and hamstring injuries during his time with the Mavericks.
At 32, Bogut’s day’s as a starter are clearly numbered. But as a reserve and backup to Whiteside, Bogut’s basketball I.Q. and experience would be invaluable. Over his 12 year’s in the league, Bogut has career numbers of 10.0 points, 8.9 rebounds and 1.6 blocks in 29.1 minutes per game. his best individual season came in 2009-10 when he posted 15.9 points 10.2 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game. In the process, Bogut was named to the All-NBA third team
More recently, Bogut was the starting center for a Golden State Warriors team that made consecutive trips to the NBA Finals, including the 2015 title. With the team loaded with scoring options, Bogut’s elite level defense and passing skills complimented the Warriors’ away of stars. Being named to the NBA All-Defensive second team during their championship winning season highlighted his importance.
Despite Bogut’s limited play this season, his impact was still profound. Up until February 15, Bogut’s last game for Dallas, the Mavericks as a team had a defensive rating (points allowed per 100 possessions) of 106.1. During that time, Bogut had a defensive rating of 97.4. Furthermore, when Bogut was off the court, the Mavericks’ defensive rating rose to 108.5.
Bogut’s most recent standout game as a member of the Warriors consisted of 15 points, 14 rebounds, two-assists, two-blocks and two-steals during the 2016 Western Conference Finals. Check out the highlights of this performance here:
In all, and despite his significant injury history, Bogut represents the most formidable free-agent available to replace Reed. Following his injury playing for the Cavaliers, Dallas head coach Rick Carlisle expressed his thought’s regarding Bogut’s future:
"“To me, off of how he played here when he was healthy, he’s still in his prime. He’s a prime-time rim-protector. He’s one of the best rebounders I’ve ever been around and he has a great feel for the game.”"
Next: Free agent replacements for Dion Waiters
Despite coming off a three-year, $36 million contract, Bogut is not expected to be offered significant deals, despite his experience. And having made approximately $115 million over the course of his career, the Heat’s renowned culture and history of success could be just enough to entice Bogut to take a discount, and his talent’s, to South Beach.