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Boozer doesn't seem to have much recent net team impact according to Adjusted +/- (because of his weak defense, other than defensive rebounding) but his raw numbers could be useful on the right team with the right role and for less than some of the others. I've assumed he is headed to Miami but he is a wild card. Not the first to get picked, available probably to the highest bidder.

Boozer to OKC would surprise everybody but depending on the price it could be a not totally crazy gamble. But it would be a gamble and it would be crazy to see.

i think more people should talk about dirk or lee maybe even boozer?

either of those three would fit well in okc

The list seems kinda silly in that New York has no assets to do a sign & trade and I really doubt the Lakers want to split up a team that is tearing through the playoffs. Seriously, if they aren't going to pay Phil Jackson, why would they pay Bosh? And why would you include Toronto on the list if you're going to the trouble to make the list in the first place.

Ibaka just doesn't have the ball skills to be as good an offensive player as Bosh. Bosh is actually very similar to Durant (less range, better in isolations) the way they score points.

@Larry

There isn't a question that Ibaka *could be* a much better defender than Bosh? Ok. I would say defense is the only thing where Ibaka has a chance to be consistently better than Bosh.

Tho, keep in mind that Bosh has more responsibility than Ibaka when he's on the court. He has to conserve some energy because he has to play more minutes. He can't play as aggressive on defense because his team can't afford for him to get into foul trouble. Nevermind that Bosh is Toronto's primary scoring option.

So yeah, Ibaka could be and probably should be a better defender than Bosh.

Ibaka isn't a better rebounder. He could be, but he's going to have to work on it. He's so focused on contesting shots that he rarely boxes out. He needs to temper his pace a little and use some judgment on his contests. This would help his foul rate too.

Ibaka isn't a better scorer, and likely won't ever be. Bosh is great; his Usage Rate for Toronto was close to Durant's rate for us, and his TS% was comparable as well. His offense is the reason why he's going to get the max.

Green won't ever be worth the max. I seriously doubt Ibaka will ever develop into a player that will be worth the max either.

Bosh won't sign outright with another team. He'll get the 6 year max he's eligible for. Toronto will do a sign and trade so Bosh gets the max under his Bird rights.

@f5alcon

Colangelo came out and said: "It has been narrowed down to a handful of teams, including us."

Based on the article you linked, it sounds more like Bosh gave the Raptors a list w/o talking to his agent. His agent is right; it's downright stupid to make a list. The bigger the market (all NBA teams instead of just 5), the more competition and the higher likelihood of someone paying the max.

But it still sounds like there's been some notable communication.

@justin
How do you know that? Ibaka is a rookie who came off a playoff perfomance against the Lakers that would equate with anything Bosh had done against them. I don't think there is any question Ibaka could be a much better defender than Bosh, and by the way, Bosh is not this much better than Green and Ibaka: Under such a scenario, the athletic power forward could then sign for the maximum six years at $125.5 million. Should he sign outright with another team with sufficient cap space, he would be limited to $96.1 million over five years.

well this came out, saying there is no list

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/miami-heat/sfl-...

lebron to chicago and bosh to miami probably. Why would he go to NY when they suck, better off staying in toronto

@Mark!
That would be awesome beyond description.

@Mark!
Do they need Michael Finley?

@Mark!
Hadn't heard that speculation, but that team instantly becomes my favorite non-Sonics/Thunder team of all time.

@Brew

Ugh.

Anyway, I agree w/ Simmons. If Dirk does leave Dallas, he's going to reunite w/ Nash in Phoenix after Amare leaves.

Or Ibaka would work at the 5 with Dirk at the 4.

I know it would never happen, but Dirk is opting out. Imagine him at 5 for this team.

I agree with that.

There is some recent stuff at basketball-reference's blog that is interesting about important positions and usage distribution. SF is the least common position for a #1 guy among title winners. Makes the precision of the main 5 and the shot distribution even more important.

The Green situation, whether he's going to be a starter, 6th man, or is going to get traded, needs to be resolved before this team can be a legit title contender.

With him at PF this team can probably get to the WCF but will not be able to get past LA, or a healthy Portland team. Those teams have too much size/length.

One way to use the KD at SF or PF debate is to ask what they need more of, passing / outside shooting or interior scoring / defense / rebounding. With KD at SF, easier to add interior scoring / defense / rebounding. KD at PF, easier to add more good passing / outside shooting. They might want to be "versatile" and be able to go either way.

Bosh is so much better than either Ibaka or Green there's just no comparison.

@Jax Raging Bile Duct
Not sure I want him here. If you like Ibaka's chances, why would you get Bosh? He is just going to confuse the situation. What about Green? He plays defense, can shoot from distance and is a perfect complement player for Durant. He can play both forward spots, so whether a starter or reserve, he is extremely valuable IMO

I think the team will wait one more year to determine exacly what they have before making any major moves. i do think OKC could play a role as facilitator with Knicks, Heat, Raptors as they try to make these trades happen

Wingspan Ratio in order of highest to lowest

Durant : 9.6%
Harden : 8.9%
Westbrook : 7.4%
Green : 6.9%
Collison : 5.9%
Mullens : 2.1%
Maynor : 0.3%

Sefolosha, Krstic, Ollie, Thomas, Weaver, White, Ibaka were not included in Draft Express data.

Other interesting:
Vaden : 5.9%
Sene : 11.45%
Wilcox : 5.9%

If anyone is interested in the spreadsheet, just say so and I'll shoot it your way.

@Mark!

I suppose, but from his perspective, Chicago with him and Lebron would be a championship contending team and going to the Lakers obvously keeps them in contention. The Raptors are probably just thrown in there to keep the fans off his back. The only questionable choices are the Knicks and Heat and he'll only be going there if the Knicks get Lebron or if the Heat keep Wade and sign a decent mid-level FA. Those are all big market cities where he can finally break out of the obscurity of Toronto AND they would have an excellent shot at a championship (well, I don't think the Knicks or Heat will, but that's personal opinion). Let's also not forget that his agent probably has a huge say in this list. Bosh has been in the league long enough to show that he's not a punk. He's trying to do what's best for him. We may disagree with not including OKC on the list but people posting on here that we didn't want him anyway are being reactionary.

@slimjimzv

That's kind of the point tho, right?

If Bosh were interested in playing for the Thunder -- especially if he would take a little under the max which we realistically needed -- it would have said a LOT of things about his character that we would have liked.

I think it's funny that since this supposed list came out. Bosh is suddenly a bum. IF he could have fit on this team financially and IF we didn't have to give up too much to get him, he would have been an excellent addition. The guy is one of the best big men in the league and he would have been a great fit for us. Ah well. I guess we'll have to wait and see what suprises Presti has in store for us.

Everyone needs to go read FreeDarko's dinosaur mock draft. It's epic.

@shiki=4 seasons
To be fair, Bosh put on 15-20 lbs over the last couple years to help with the pounding he takes. His listed weight doesn't reflect how big he actually is (I believe his listed weight was from the draft, when he was 7 years younger and skinnier).

Who needs Chris Bosh when you've got Air Congo on your team?

On a totally unrelated note - in honor of our new hockey team, a trip down memory lane. Sort of...

http://odenized.files.wordpress.com/2008/07/durant...

Bosh is a decent defensive player,better than Amare.
He is a little slim in 4 just as KD in 3,they are the same weight.It is his weakness.
I hope he can join thunder but it is obvious that he wants to be in big city.He can be a Pau Gasol for LBJ or wade.

@Bob

he's better than Amare in pretty much every way.

at least he's letting them know where to focus their efforts. Instead of wasting time talking to teams like NJ, Dallas, Houston, etc and then losing him for nothing when he tells them he doesn't want to go to those places, they can focus on looking at all those team's assets and find the best possible package of players/picks a team would give up.

@Bob

Bosh is a much better and more active defensive player than Amar'e.

Brackins and Sanders have the longest hands. Pittman and Sanders the widest. They are clearly the largest 3 "mitts" overall.

I've never before seen the hand length and width data that the DX site is now showing. I guess that is good to know but I would use that information with caution, in collaboration with stats and video in diagnosing problems like catching passes or rebounds or with shooting form.

Height - wingspan ratio is useful. Standing reach is good too and maybe better for some things. It can vary beyond what height - wingspan ratios might suggest as guys have different length necks and torso widths and shoulders stretch upwards to different degrees.

A list where you wanna play next year? how unprofessional is this? He sure wants attention and i am glad he wont get it in OKC. Fact is that he is not even a max player - for the same reason as amare.. you have to play well on both ends. I think many of you will say defense is teachable, yes i agree, but you have to get teached to play defense and prove that you can play defense before you sign a 6-year max contract what he apparently wants. Though, i see him going Sign and trade for Andrew Bynum and picks or whatever.

Wingspan can make opponent passing tough and can help on long rebounds out on the floor to be picked up. It probably helps on your own passing, particularly in feeding the post. It might help some with converting made up as you go and have to contested inside shots.

Standing reach and top height reached by your hand after jumping affects jump shooting and finishing inside, all shot defense, blocks and most rebounds still high in the air.

@Jax Raging Bile Duct

I'd be interested...

He's going to go to Miami. I've got a feeling.

I got sucked into an interesting venture. Someone asked Givony on twitter who measured the most impressive height to wingspan ratio. He said it was Whiteside (7'7'') but the actual ratio goes to Jason Love. His wingspan is 11% longer than his height.

So I threw in every measurement from 2000 to 2010 just to see what I would find out. Most of those players never made it.

J.J. Redick and Jon Scheyer are 2 of only 10 players (out of 947) who have a shorter wingspan than height.

Eric Maynor and Chris Kayman basically have no wingspan at all, since its nearly identical to their height.

Jason Maxiell's wingspan is 13.3% longer than his height. There are 3 guys who are better than that, but you've never heard of them. Maxiell is 6' 5'' without shoes, and has a 7' 3.25'' wingspan.

Larry Sanders has a wingspan to height ratio of 10.5%
Kevin Durant has a wingspan to height ratio of 9.6%
Jeff Green has a wingspan to height ratio of 6.9%

If anyone is interested, I'll do all the Thunder players I can find.

@justin
I'll just bury my head in the sand for now, but I appreciate the offer. I'm not opposed to Lee or Jefferson, but they just don't hold the same place in my heart as Chris.

@Keith

There's plenty of room on the David Lee bandwagon. :)

Denial is my best friend. Until he signs/is traded, he's still my offseason wish.

Get your head in the game, Chris! You can't team with Lebron and have any semblance of a team around you two! Chicago's team isn't as good as OKC's by a long shot! Miami is the same situation as Lebron in New York. Just do the right thing and grab a ring for OKC!!!

Westbrook's not a #2 option unless he seriously improves his shooting.

@Chris

Except, if the LeBron rumor is true, then it's pretty obvious he doesn't care about that alpha dog number 1 option thing after all.

@justin

There have been rumblings about Bosh to LA off and on since the trade deadline.

I'll be sufficiently relieved when he signs elsewhere.

Whew, that's a relief.

Thank you Chris Bosh for your lack of interest.

The feeling is mutual.

I'm glad OKC isn't on the list. Bosh is a prima donna who doesn't play good defense. He also said he doesn't want to be the number 2 option on a team. That's fine, but we have a number 1 already, and I'm fine with Westbrook being our number 2 option.

What was OKC going to offer in a trade anyways? Do they wanna deal Jeff Green to make room? Not convinced.

I'm happy Houston isn't on this list. He'll probably stick in the East which is fine by me...

not surprising. how this season went, seeing Lebron and Wade fails, he knows he needs to play alongside another star to win.

My gut told me Chicago all along. Looks like I missed it.

However, it doesn't all add up. Also from that article...

One of the sources told ESPN.com that Bosh's ultimate decision will likely be heavily influenced where LeBron decides to play: "If LeBron decides to go to either New York or Chicago, I think that's where you'll see Chris land. If LeBron stays in Cleveland, I think the process is more wide open."

Cleveland and Toronto will both want a sign and trade deal, and probably LeBron and Bosh too, seeing as it would bring them another year on their contracts. There is just no way that the Knicks could get both, they don't have enough assets to do a sign and trade for both players. Chicago doesn't either. So Bosh following LeBron is a nice idea, but they won't both be sign and trades.