Andrew Bogut, incomplete lower back fracture

worzel gummidge · Feb 5, 2009

http://www.nba.com/2009/news/features/john_schuhmann/02/05/bucks_woes.eastern.insider.20090205/

In fact, Bogut may be more valuable to the Bucks than Redd. Redd is one of the 10 best scorers in the league when he's healthy, and the Bucks' offense was certainly stronger when he was in the lineup. But this season, Bogut's presence has meant more to Milwaukee's defense than Redd's has meant to its offense.

In the 36 games Bogut played, the Bucks were 19-17 with a defensive rating (points allowed per 100 possessions) of 105.1, which is at the level of one of the five best defensive teams in the league. In the 16 games Bogut has missed, they're 5-11 with a defensive rating of 114.4, which is at the level of one of the five worst.

Taking the 7-foot, 260-pound Bogut out of the Bucks' lineup was bound to be detrimental to Milwaukee's defense. A presence as big as Bogut is takes up space if nothing else. But Bogut's backups, Francisco Elson and Dan Gadzuric, aren't exactly undersized centers. They just don't bring what Bogut does.

"He sees everything that's going on out there," Bucks coach Scott Skiles says of Bogut. "He moves well side to side. He immediately identifies a problem if somebody's posting up a smaller guard. Its things that you prepare for, but a lot of guys don't see it when the action's happening. He sees all that."

A player with a high basketball IQ and skills to match is a coach's dream. But Bogut didn't necessarily have the full package when Skiles took over in Milwaukee this season. It has been under Skiles that Bogut has begun to realize his defensive potential.
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