Chris Bosh- Best Power Forward in the NBA??
by alvwong on Jan 21, 2010 4:44 PM EST
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PrintThis is my first blog, my friends say I have a good blogs ideas but I never publish them, so when I heard Matt Devlin during the broadcast of the Raptors vs. Cavaliers game talk about my exact article idea that I started last week, I thought I better finish it and get it this out to the fans
Is Chris Bosh the best true power forward(PF) in the league?
This year, Bosh came into the season after bulking up during the summer and has been the leader for the Toronto Raptors. In past seasons, once in awhile you could see the hunger in his eyes to compete and to win but it was never consistent. In his contract year, that look has been more consistent; his play getting better and better, and his focus is unmatched. Win or lose, Bosh has been approaching every game as if he is playing his last game.
The Competition
Eastern Conference: Kevin Garnett, Gerald Wallace, and Antawn Jamison
The East has always been weak when it comes to power forwards, Garnett has been plagued with injuries and playing for a team rich in resources, and his stats have dropped since he came from Minnesota. Gerald Wallace has moved to PF recently with the addition of Stephen Graham, but is considered more of a combo forward rather than a true power forward. Antawn Jamison deserves mention in this category as he IS one of the few good PF’s in the East.
Western Conference: Tim Duncan, Dirk Nowitzki, Pau Gasol
This is where the REAL race for the best power forward in the NBA is, in the past both Duncan and Nowitzki have held or shared the best PF crown. Both these elite players have time and time again shown why they are one of the best.
Watching the San Antonio Spurs game vs. the Toronto Raptors, it literally looked like a changing of the "guard"/forward. Chris Bosh played like Tim Duncan in his prime. Bosh was unstoppable and dominating, while Duncan struggled against the Raptors’ defence. Duncan’s year has been very inconsistent and is nowhere near the calibre of his prime.
On Sunday’s meeting against Dallas Mavericks, Nowitzki didn’t look as deadly as he is considered. Maybe it was Toronto’s defence but nonetheless Bosh went hard at Dallas. The victories against both Dallas and San Antonio should be considered statement games to the rest of the league.
Arguably, the best power forward in the NBA in past years is Dirk Nowitzki and thus is Chris Bosh’s main competition. This year, Nowitzki’s numbers are right up there with Bosh’s but where Bosh starts to make his run at crown are in some other areas. There is a strong argument that Nowitzki’s past play in the playoffs is what should make him the best, but that was last year and we really don’t know what Bosh is capable of this year in the playoffs.
On top of all the remarkable numbers that Bosh has put up, his supporting cast does not come close to the calibre of players that his competition plays with. Nowitzki, Duncan and Gasol play with at least 2 other All Star calibre players, while Bosh’s supporting cast is still in chemistry class looking through their textbook. Yet Chris Bosh continues to excel and prove why he should be considered the best power forward in the NBA today.
The Numbers
Looking at last month’s numbers(as of Jan 14, 2010):
|
Name |
min/g |
pts/g |
3/g |
reb/g |
ast/g |
stl/g |
blk/g |
fg% |
fga/g |
ft% |
fta/g |
|
Chris Bosh |
35.9 |
23.9 |
0.0 |
10.2 |
2.5 |
0.8 |
1.2 |
0.578 |
14.4 |
0.833 |
8.8 |
|
Gerald Wallace |
44.1 |
20.3 |
0.7 |
10.4 |
2.5 |
1.8 |
1.5 |
0.509 |
13.5 |
0.762 |
7.8 |
|
Tim Duncan |
32.1 |
21.6 |
0.0 |
10.7 |
2.8 |
0.7 |
1.8 |
0.562 |
15.7 |
0.750 |
5.3 |
|
Dirk Nowitzki |
36.3 |
21.2 |
0.7 |
8.2 |
2.0 |
0.8 |
0.9 |
0.470 |
16.7 |
0.912 |
5.2 |
|
Pau Gasol |
37.8 |
16.0 |
0.0 |
11.5 |
2.7 |
0.4 |
2.2 |
0.525 |
11.1 |
0.800 |
5.5 |
Bosh’s game has elevated to the next level in the last month. He’s played great overall this season but in the last month, he’s showing that he can be even better. Dirk Nowitzki’s numbers may be just as good but Bosh’s extra effort is where he starts to move away. Bosh leads the league in double doubles and is also in the top 5 for players that get to the free throw line. He’s joined in the top 5 by Carmelo Anthony, Dwayne Wade, Lebron James and Dwight Howard - that’s some pretty elite company!
Being part of the elite is the only category that puts to rest all claims for who is the best. Dirk already has his elite status but Bosh’s excellent play this year shows he is ready for his membership to this class of players.
At the end of this season, Chris Bosh will become a free agent, most of the media attention will be focused on where Lebron James and Dwayne Wade will land. But teams are starting to realize that if they can land Chris Bosh, they could be getting one of the best power forwards in the NBA today.
I plan to follow up this article with what is defined as the elite class and how Bosh is making his way into the elite. Just as an FYI, I'm not some Chris Bosh crazy fan, I felt that he deserved some recognition for his play for the Raptor's this year. I could say I'm a Dwayne Wade crazy fan, but isn't everybody? LOL
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One could argue that the main reason Bosh is putting up these guady numbers is BECAUSE he doesn’t have a fellow all-star to share the ball with.
Then D Wade’s numbers are also inflated for the same reason.
In terms of offense, no, Bosh would probably get similar numbers playing along side a fellow all-star. He’s averaging less minutes than many of the highest scoring players and managing to stay in the top 10. He’s also scoring at a very efficient pace (I was looking at a site that compared his scoring efficiency and I wish I could remember which one it was so I could link to it) of more than a point a possession (his, not the team’s). Compared to some of the top scorers, Bosh doesn’t shoot that much, so I’d argue that having an all-star wouldn’t affect his number of touches that much. Finally, while Bosh may not be playing with all-stars, the Toronto Raptors are a pretty talented offensive team, and Bosh is still putting up career numbers.
Where I do agree with you is in terms of rebounding. Bosh’s rebounding totals would take a hit if he played along side a centre who was really aggressive in terms of rebounding.
This could go either way…. one could argue that because he is on a team where he is the only rising star makes it harder to even put up these numbers. Teams double team on Bosh and key in on Bosh so what would happen if he were to play with some better personnel? Could be that his numbers can go up even more?? SKy is the limit. The biggest problem he has is that when it comes down to crunch time, his team mates don’t recognize how important of a role Bosh plays. San Antonio has always depended on Duncan, put the ball in his hands and let him decide what to do when the game is on the line. Toronto doesn’t do that.
But to me the key to Bosh’s rise to becoming the best is to attain “ELITE” status… which I will explain in my next post…. Thanks for reading guyz!
lol
bosh is not in the same league as dirk or duncan in his prime..both are going to the hall of fame..you have to look at the body of work and not just 1 season when your talking about the top players in the league…until bosh starts carrying his team to 50 win season’s and deep runs in the playoff’s I don’t think you can put them in the same league.
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