Andrew Bogut officially packs his bags

Andrew Bogut made the announcement everyone expected today. He is leaving the University of Utah after his 2nd year to declare himself eligible for the NBA.

Bogut was as polished and mature as he has been all year long. He also announced that he had retained Dave Bauman of SFX sports to be his agent, so there is no going back. Andrew also, announced a parting gift for the University of Utah, in the form of a $125,000 donation for a new locker room.

Andrew Bogut was a class act and he'll be missed. Good Luck Andrew!



How will Andrew do in the Pros?
I think one on one he had little to no trouble with anyone. The 7'3" guy from Kentucky gave him a mild problem, but then Bogues figured him out and went around him twice from top of key. Without 3 guys on him, he would have done more. It's hard to pick on his numbers, but those of us who got to see him often, know that he is a team player who did not force shots or break the offense to get his numbers. In the NBA he'll make those around him better and probably not face as many creative zones and triple team combinations.

I am not sure he'll be superstar in the NBA, but as I follow the NBA pretty close as a part of the Utah Jazz Column on the Most Valuable Network, I do know that it is very hard to find good big men in the NBA. I think he could be an all-star level at that position within a couple years. After the O'Neals there is a lot of room in the league at Center position. Yao is good, but his level seems more than obtainable, for Bogut in that Bogut should rebound as well, shoot with a little more range, be a little more mobility, and should pass better than Yao.

Honestly, I haven't broken down the other players going into draft, so I'm not going to proclaim Bogut as #1 overall...but I would expect Bogut to be top 5 draft pick, have a long good career, and his international experience probably means he is more ready for the pro game at this moment than most of the other college kids coming out. His immediate area of improvement, would just be more strength. Bogut already has good hands in that he catches almost everything, but probably could get stronger in his upper body that would allow him to be even stronger going to the basket.