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Paul Millsap Is Not a God
Posted by: Jason Garner on August 10th, 2010
The author's views are entirely his or her own and may not reflect the views of the Utah Jazz.Ah.. Paul Millsap the prodigal son of Utah. Everyone loves this man. We all remember his 19 straight double-doubles when Boozer went down. And since then there is nothing he can do wrong. I love Paul. He works hard every minute hes on the court, but he has big shoes to fill this upcoming season. Can he finally prove hes worth the contract the Jazz signed him to last summer. And Can he prove the Jazz made a good move by letting Boozer go. Here’s my opinion, and here’s where the controversy begins. Carlos Boozer is better than Millsap. Definately not on the defensive end but offensively he is better by leaps and bounds. Here are my reasons why at this moment in time Millsap is not an All-Star power forward like Boozer.
Reason #1: He has yet to prove he is a 20/10 kind of guy. And Boozer was the definition of 20/10. Boozer was the most consistent player on the team last year. In the 09/10 season Paul averaged 11.6 points a game and 6.8 boards a game in nearly 28 minutes. Boozer averaged 19.5 ppg and 11.2 rpg in 34 mpg. Now if Paul was given 6 more minutes a game I dont believe he could put up 8 points and 5 boards to match Booz. What gives me hope however is the playoffs. Paul put up 18 and 9 on average in 32 minutes and that definately sounds like a 20/10 kind of guy. Booz put up 20 and 13 in 40 minutes. Could Paul put up 2 points and 4 boards in 8 minutes? Absolutely. Millsap’s offensive post game is not to the level of Booz. He has no jumpshot and he doesn’t know when to kick the ball out and when to take it himself. Millsap is obviosly brilliant at getting double-doubles but I’m not sure if he is at a Boozer 20/10 level yet. Keyword yet. I believe he is still improving and every point I bring up may be proven absolutely false by next summer.
Reason #2: Paul Millsap is listed at 6′8″ and thats pushing it. I noticed this season he gets pushed around alot in the paint, but he can push back at the right times to get boards. Now there is nothing Paul can do about this, but in order to replace Booz he is going to have to learn to create his own shot like Booz. Fighting for boards is one thing and Millsap is brilliant in that category. But on offense his strength appears to be cut in half.
Reason #3: This one is 100% my opinion. After every call mad Millsap will whine. He cries about every call against him and he complains for fouls that are none existant. This has alot to do with him being pushed around. He thinks because he’s smaller and players use their bodies against him he should get calls. And this wouldn’t even bug me that bad if he didn’t sit there and talk to the ref while the game goes on. He’ll miss a shot and then cry to the ref while he should be running back on D.
As I said at the start of the article I love Paul Millsap. With him and Jefferson combined Boozers shoes will definately be filled. Millsap is great defensively and on the boards. If I’m not mistaken he led the Jazz in blocked shots last year which at his size is very impressive to me. I think in a couple years he will be at an All-Star level. As of now I don’t think he is.
Replies: 23
Views: 408
23 Responses
wow i dont think you are giving Millsap the credit he deserves. I think the only reason Millsap’s offensive numbers aren’t quite as good as Boozers is because he is much younger and never got the same amount of playing time as Booz. As far as talent and skill go, i think Millsap is a step ahead of Booz. He also shows more heart and hustle on a regular basis than Booz. Think about it, Boozer was our starting PF ever since we got him 5 years ago and since then, hes been getting over 30 minutes every game. Millsap has proven he can do the same thing in half the time it took Boozer to accomplish. Dont get me wrong, i loved Boozer and we lost a lot when he left us. But Paul DOES have a good jump shot and CAN create his own space, and there is no way what you are saying about him whining about calls is true. As i recall it was Boozer’s fierce battle cry that you would hear everytime he was trying to squeeze out a non-existent 3 point play. Chomp on that!
Yeah Drew is right, but if you like stats by minutes played like Jason apparently does I got news for him. I recently ran across the top ten most productive players per minute list on Fox Sports and no surprise our very own Paul Millsap was on there. D-will was also top ten and guess what? No Boooooz to be found. They show their calculations by minutes played points earned, rebounds, etc and break them down per minute. Millsap is very consistent and efficient. So sorry Jason your wrong on this one. As for Millsap whining, I watched every Jazz game this past year (thanks to my league pass and DVR) and I have no idea where you come up with that. I’m sure if you watched all the games you wouldn’t be saying that. It’s ridiculous, far fetched, and other words I’ll hold back. So no Jason, reasons rejected as shown. And your right he’s not a god, he’s a demigod, that’s old news.
One more thing, shout out to csl. I’m waiting for a bio and a response on the reputation blog. It isn’t over lets finish it.
Paul Millsap is better than Boozer. His slight loss of offence though… he makes it up on the other end.
Didn’t Milsap outplay Boozer during the laker playoffs? Even though hes shorter? Has Paul missed 2 years of his contract due to injury? Milsap wants to be in a Jazz uniform and wants to play hard, Boozer hardly wants to play and is looking for the next big thing and will always come up short. Talking out of both sides of his mouth.
Good ridence, Boozer wont be missed in my household. I Just saw a Malone special on NBAtv… If only we could bring back the days.
ya i dont even know where to start with this post……
and whats with the prodigal son reference, do actually know the story of the prodigal son? cuz millsap is more liek the other son, the prodigal son would be liek if fisher came back…. also i agree with drew, champ, and kelton.
haha i know what you guys are saying. I said i like millsap i just dont think hes quite there yet. i think he will get there. with a starting spot and a main role i think he will be an All-Star. i do watch every single game. you guys are awesome the only reason i write this is because i was always a boozer fan and i dont believe millsap is as good yet.
@Drew i dont agree that he has a good jumpshot i do agree with boozer crying too.
@champ demigod.. i like it ha millsap is a beast these are just a couple downpoints for me personally. i watch every jazz i wouldn’t miss them for anything. and DVR is awesome for that
@Kelton millsaps D is a lot better than boozers agreed
@matt millsap did play alot better than booz against the lakers and in the playoffs for that matter. but during the season it was a different story.
guys millsap is a beast i want him to average 20/10 i just dont think hes an allstar yet but he will get there
Jason, you didn’t acknowledge the top 10 most productive players list for last season? What say you?
Millsap whining? If you ask me, Millsap gets mugged without a whistle more than anybody in the league. It seems like every ref hates him for some reason. I guess I don’t see him whining as much as you do, but if I did, I wouldn’t blame him one bit
@Jason…bold. I like it. I like it because it’s well thought out and because it’s okay to admit that a player has shortcomings, or that he may not yet be everything we want him to be, even if you are a big fan of his. I too love Millsap. He is my second favorite player on the team…behind only Ronnie Price. Kidding–second behind Williams, obviously. But I agree with you that Millsap is not the offensive player Boozer is. Look, I had plenty of problems with Boozer and I’m kind of glad to see him gone, but he was an incredibly skilled offensive player, a good shooter, and had an amazing ability to finish with either hand. Like you, I’m excited to see what Millsap does now, but also like you I recognize that he is not currently an All-Star caliber player because he just doesn’t have the same offensive skill set that Boozer does. But Seth is right about the prodigal son thing. It doesn’t fit Millsap (it would fit Fisher if he came back).
@champ good for millsap i really want to see him get more minutes this year and us to see that production.
- prodigal son is my bad i was thinking of the word prodigal and not the actually bible story
I think the combo of AJ and Sap is better than Booze and Okur. The end of the game stats of these two together will be a lot better than last year of Booze and Okur. It will also be a plus to have someone like Okur in the second unit instead of KK or Fess. I wish we could get Henry from the Grizzles, that would be alright.Plus I think Heyward will prove his worth as well…
@jason if u were thinking of the word prodigal then u r even further off, look it up.
Now, it seems to me that I’ve been in the minority on this site about this subject, yet I haven’t been afraid to express it either. If you were to put me in a corner and force me to pick either Boozer or Millsap, I would pick Boozer. I seem to be one of the few Jazz fans that actually liked Boozer and was disappointed to see him go. I’ve also been very adamant about Jefferson starting at PF and not C. Now, I am excited to see Millsap get a chance to step up into a starting role. However, I think that he will be a more effective player as a huge spark off the bench and part of a three way rotation at the PF-C spot. Let’s be honest here. Millsap has never had the opportunity to be the full time starter and I don’t know if he can carry the Jazz for all 82 games. When Boozer was healthy, he and Williams were capable of putting this team on their backs. Both were proven all-stars. Millsap isn’t an all-star. In order for Millsap to get to Boozer’s level, I think he needs to take a huge step forward. I’m not sure if Millsap will ever make an all-star game, but I hope I’m wrong. Jefferson is Boozer’s replacement. Millsap is Jefferson’s backup. I see Jefferson making an all-star game long before Millsap does. Without Jefferson, I would’ve been surprised to see the Jazz make the playoffs. Now, I don’t see Millsap as a complainer. His height isn’t a huge deal to me. His stats are also decent. So I don’t know if I’m on Jason’s side, but I think I might be since I say Millsap hasn’t arrived. Don’t know if he ever gets an all-star appearance or an MVP vote in his career, but I sure hope he wins the sixth man player at least once and I do think that he is a very important player for the Jazz. One we couldn’t do with out. So there we go. I think you get my point. I’m going to stop rambling now.
Oh, and by the way, Millsap isn’t a god. Yet, if anyone ever actually refers to an NBA player as a god and is serious about it, I think their priorities are seriously screwed up. But, hey, that’s a subject for another day.
And did you notice? Champ and I disagree on a subject. Oh no. The world’s going to end now.
Hey Jason, sorry if my reply was harsh, we are all on this site to express our own opinions, and i respect yours. I do think Millsap needs to improve his game a little bit, and he doesnt have that crazy behind the head fade away jump shot that Boozer had. but Paul really is about the same size as Booz and has the potential and drive to become an allstar.
@Adam i disagree with you, Millsap can carry the team as well as Boozer did, he proved that two seasons ago when Booz was injured. The only reason that this is kind of sketchy, is because we now dont have a true PF to back up Millsap. The AJ/ Millsap at PF might work like you say, but then we will be weak at the center position because Memo is still a question mark and we havent even signed Fes yet!
Yes, Millsap carried the Jazz while Boozer was injured, but can he carry the Jazz for 82 games straight for the next 10 years? That is up in the air. We don’t know. It’s never been tried. That’s the point. The question, to put it simply, is this: has Millsap arrived? No, he has not. That’s my point. That’s also Jason’s point. Both of us love Millsap and think he’s a beast, but he’s no Boozer. Not yet, anyway. He’s even further away from being Malone. As much as Jazz fans hate to admit it, Boozer was a 20-10 king and talent-wise is one of the top 5 PF’s in the league. Put attitude and injuries aside and you know it’s true. We took a huge hit and it is yet to be seen if we can make up for our loss.
And yes, no matter where Jefferson starts right now, the Jazz will have a hole on their roster. I agree with that.
Ha we disagree Adam, but I don’t want to sound like a trouble maker just by simply arguing my point (like csl feels we do) so I will just say we matched Portland’s offer and signed Millsap as Boozers replacement, seeing that he wanted to get out. So Millsap is actually Boozer’s replacement and Big Al was a gift that came from Boozers final departure, which we thought was going to be sooner.
prod·i·gal /ˈprɒdɪgəl/ Show Spelled[prod-i-guhl] Show IPA
–adjective
1. wastefully or recklessly extravagant: prodigal expenditure.
2. giving or yielding profusely; lavish (usually fol. by of or with ): prodigal of smiles; prodigal with money.
3. lavishly abundant; profuse: nature’s prodigal resources.
doesn’t make a heck of a lot of sense. i admit i just thought that sounded like a good phrase
@adam in Vernal i could not find one Boozer fan besides myself and my dad. everybody i know wanted him to die pretty much. i think they made a lot of assumptions about him and the media stretched the truth alot about him wanting to leave. i never once heard him say he wanted out of Utah. He said how he thought chicago and miami could be a good fit but he never said he wanted out he always said he would be happy to come back and that it was all up to the organization and the direction they wanted to go with the franchise
I really do hope you are right, champ. That’s being honest and not being a smart alec.
And Jason, it is nice to know I wasn’t alone in the world on Boozer.
@ Adam and Jason, I’m a Boozer fan. I’m more of a Booz fan than a Millsap, but I just think he can fill Booz’s shoes when given the opportunity. We will see. When I went to Laker/Clippers games, there were a lot of Boozer jerseys. I’m going to miss how loud he was. He’s the only guy you can hear most of the time screaming and yelling.