Golden State Warriors 2013-14 Player Grades: Andrew Bogut
Grade: B+
Andrew Bogut is a highly underrated center and, along with Andre Iguodala, should have been more seriously considered in Defensive Player of the Year talks. He’s a strong rim protector, a skilled finisher at the basket and most importantly, he knows his role on a team that fancies itself a future championship contender. He’s extremely candid with the media and isn’t afraid to give his opinion, which just goes to show the kind of fearless personality he has both on and off the court. Though it may lead to some uncomfortable things being said, his unapologetic nature is exactly what you want in your center, especially on a team that needs a little attitude on the defensive end.
The only problem with Bogut is he seems to be pretty injury prone. He’s played less than 40 games in three of his nine NBA seasons, which is kind of worrisome when you consider the history of unhealthy seven-footers in this league. In his career, Bogut has suffered elbow, hand, wrist, rib, foot and ankle injuries that have sidelined him for significant time. I’m not a scientist or a doctor, but there are just some red-flag guys in this league who seem to be more injury-prone than others and Bogut might be one of them.
Bogut is not the double-double machine he once was, but he’s efficient when he does get looks at the basket and he knows what his role is. You need that kind of glorified blue-collard hard worker on a championship team, the kind of guy who doesn’t care about his numbers as long as the team is winning. Bogut is that guy. Though the Warriors will want to see him stay healthy for a full season in Steve Kerr‘s first year as head coach, they certainly know they have the anchor of their defense in Andrew Bogut.
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