Are you taking into account the points given up by Boozer's comparitively terrible 1 on 1 and PnR defense (and it's not like these are thing Scola exactly excels at, but Boozer is just that bad)? Also, are the few extra points and rebounds, which may be negligible after Luis's showcase this season, worth that extra money? I mean, seriously, that is almost the antithesis of the moneyball strategies our GM subscribes to.
Varejao was signed prior to the crisis, and was signed by the dude who gave Larry Hughes a boatload of money. TA is infinitely better than Floppyjao, and he only got the mid-level.
Not only that, you're talking about someone who fooled a blind man, and who sat out a couple of months due to a strained pinky. Even Sloan is on to Boozer, I remember him giving Boozer a dressing down a season ago, saying something like even though Boozer scored 20 he let his opponent go off for double digits as well.
Varejao isn't worth his contract. The Cavs simply overpaid....the same way the Magic did with Lewis. Varejao is making more than Gortat right now, but I doubt many people would say he's better. It depends what you define "one of the best" as. Is he a top 10 post up player? No. Is he a top 15? Maybe. Off the top of my head, here's a list of superior post players: Yao, Al Jefferson, Shaq, Duncan, Garnett, Rasheed Wallace, Pau Gasol. Maybe even Boozer and Zach Randolph. To me, the phrase "one of the best" implies top 5.
boozer screwed over the cavs after they tried to hook him up and didn't resign him for his 3rd year of his rookie contract. i wouldnt want such an untrustworthy person on the team.
The point is, being a restricted free agent, some team will over Scola a big contract. It only takes one team. Scola is definatley worth more than MLE. Well you listed 9 players, some I agree with, others I dont. I think it is fair to place him 5-10, which I would label as one of the best.
Boozer has his flaws but even despite that he's still an All-Star level talent. If I were the Bulls, I would be exploring the idea of dumping Deng's contract and pairing Boozer with another elite playmaker.
Scola will be 30 this season and his athleticism is below average. Even though he's been huge for us, he already has a lot of mileage on his body. No team will give Scola a long contract, and if you believe he's worth more than the MLE, you're in the minority. Don't forget that both Ariza and Gortat signed for the MLE. You think Scola will get paid more than them? I'm curious as to which of the 9 you disagreed with since I thought they were obvious (btw, those were listed off the top of my head; if I researched it, I could come up with more names).
