Bosh vs. KG

Garnett is a game-changer defensively. Bosh isn’t. An extra point per game does not compensate for this.

Also, this analysis seems to ignore the fact that Garnett played small forward for a substantial part of his early career.

Before KG arrived in Boston I probably would have made the comparison purely on a statistical basis, but since being aquired by the C’s I really think there is no comparison between the two purely on the little things KG brings to the Table.
- The Best Leadership
- An Unreal Defensive presense
- Energy

Bosh, while I like his game ALOT just doesn’t bring these little things. In all the games I’ve seen Bosh play,he seems to lose his sense of his own ability when a decent PF puts any sorts of pressure on him. I’m certain he’ll gain that mental consistancy eventually but right now there’s no comparison.

There’s really no comparison except both are big men. Bosh has never played continuous defense for any one quarter in his whole life. Being tough is just not in his mental make up. To play good defense one has to be mentally tough. It does not require a ton of muscle either, just the willingness to impose your will on your opponent.

KG has always played defense, always been intense on both ends of the court. That mentality is infectious. Your team mates bond to it, your opponents are intimidated by it. There are different levels also.

I the finals last year everyone said Gasol played tough and to his credit he did, but was his opponent of the same caliber of defense as the Celtics, the answer is a resounding NO. Phil Jackson understands they are not really tough. That’s the reason Artest was brought in. They still will come up short because Danny came up with Sheed and Williams. Yes Williams the guy who has never had a good big man couch in the nba. At the very least Clifford Ray will make Williams in to a much better player.

…but this is an example of how misleading it can be if not done rigorously. By using the 6-year sums instead of looking year-by-year, it is missed that Bosh was a bit more polished and NBA ready in his first couple of years than KG but that by year 5 KG had blown past him. Because there were no 82games.com net +/- numbers for early in KG’s career the non-box score aspects of the game are ignored, but it shows up in the win-loss record where KG’s Wolves were always in the playoffs in the stacked West while Bosh’s teams have struggled to make the playoffs in the much weaker East with similar calibers of teammates.

An example to bring home my point is that if you expanded this same comparison to include the first 6 years of Shareef Abdur-Rahim, he would also measure out about the same as Bosh in the analysis. But most Raptors fans would be horrified if you told them that Bosh was comparable to Abdur-Rahim, who has become something of a posterchild for putting up good box score numbers on awful teams. But if you completely ignore team impact and the fact that Abdur-Rahim was more productive early (like this author has done with Bosh and KG), you could really argue that Bosh is closer to Shareef than KG. Actually, even accounting for those things it is arguable that Bosh is more Shareef than KG…which I’m sure is not the message that the article wanted to convey.

Bosh isn’t near KG’s class. These analysis are complete nonsense and ignore too many important factors from KGs game to make it valid.

KG was an All-NBA player by year 3, Bosh really isn’t to the same level yet.

one is just now entering his prime, and the other is a hall-of-famer near the end of his career (but hopefully not TOO near). and besides, they’re totally different players. to me the more apt comparison is KG to big baby, given KG’s role as a mentor and influence.

Yawn…the only thing that makes them on the same level if if KG is hobbling on one leg

Well, they both play the same position….

It would be like comparing Joe Johnson to Michael Jordan.

KG was 19 years old, but had 0 years in college. Bosh played at GT as a freshman. Not quite fair then, to use KG first year numbers when they bring down the number substantially.

Second, defense matters, and at no time does Bosh influence the game the way KG does.

Three, I would argue that if you break down KG’s number into 2 year blocks, you’ll see a consistent rise till his peak. I argue, you’ve seen the best of Bosh, with his numbers consistent, I don’t expect another jump from Bosh.

four, KG played in 47 more games, but one of those seasons was locked out, therefore, he’s would have played in about 40 more, resulting in a whole season worth of games more. His longevity cannot be discounted in this discussion

Looking at the pure numbers, you could argue that Bosh and KG are very similar. IF I’m a raptors fan, I would hope to see a similar career for Bosh in terms of production. But KG isn’t about the points or the rebound, it is much more about his defense and intensity. Intense is not a word I would ever use to describe Bosh.