Warriors Analysis: Should Festus Ezeli Start Over Andrew Bogut?

It’s crazy to think that a couple of seasons ago, an injury to Andrew Bogut would have probably marked the beginning of the end of the Golden State Warriors’ season.

With the emergence and improvement of the Warriors roster, including young big man Festus Ezeli, the Warriors championship hopes no longer evaporate with a Bogut injury. Bogut sustained a concussion on opening night, and Ezeli has proved to be a more than capable replacement. The Warriors are +39 with Ezeli on the court, and Festus has been developing right in front of our eyes so far this young season (I wrote here about Ezeli’s celing before the season). With Bogut getting healthy and Ezeli playing well, who should be the starting center for the Warriors?

The Case for Bogut

You know what they say: if it ain’t broke don’t fix it. Bogut came to Golden State in 2012, and has been in the starting lineup ever since. He has great chemistry with the first unit, and you will see plenty of dribble handoffs/pick and rolls between he and Stephen Curry throughout a game.

Bogut is a superior passer to Ezeli, and his passing ability elevates Golden State to the best assisting team in the league. His ability to make a crisp backdoor pass after setting a screen for Curry adds another dimension to Golden State’s offense that they don’t have with Ezeli on the floor. Bogut also helps Warrior guards get easy lay ups by setting screens while the ball is in his hand and having the guard, usually Curry or Klay Thompson, come around him as he (usually illegally) screens their defender and dumps it off to them for a wide open basket.

Even though it looks like Bogut is moving around on stilts at times, when healthy he is one of the best rim protectors in the NBA. Bogut is a legit 7-footer whose basketball IQ and experience oftentimes bails out teammates who make mistakes defensively *cough, Harrison Barnes*. You’re not scoring on a Bogut/Draymond Green frontcourt — just ask Anthony Davis or Marc Gasol how much fun they had in the playoffs last season.

The Case for Ezeli

Festus Ezeli is far from a finished product, but he could probably start for a handful of teams in the league. Festus adds a whole other dimension to the Warriors’ offense that Bogut cannot with his athleticism.

On pick and rolls, Ezeli can catch a lob in traffic, and his presence alone can open up driving lanes for guards because the big man protecting the rim have to stay back and try to defend the lob pass to Ezeli. According to NBA.com, Ezeli is second in the NBA in points off of paint touches with 59, while shooting an efficient 71.4%.

Ezeli’s efficiency comes from dunks, of the lob and putback variety, and although Ezeli’s post game is still underdeveloped, he no longer has hands of steel that cause him to fumble the ball as if it were a hot plate of food. Ezeli being surrounded by superior players would no longer speed up his development.

The Warriors are at their best when they are running, and Bogut has a tendency to slow the Warriors down. Think about all the times you watch on TV and you wait for Bogut to come into the screen so the Warriors can run their play. Bogut’s presence in the second unit would add a third above-average passer to the bench unit, and along with Andre Iguodala and Shaun Livingston, the Warriors would get so many baskets off of excellent ball movement and cutting.

Conclusion

The Warriors have proved that they can win no matter who’s starting at center. Both of the big men have their advantages and drawbacks, but the most important thing is that whoever ends up coming off of the bench won’t divide the locker room or cause a distraction.

My guess is that once Bogut gets fully into game shape he reclaims his starting position, and Ezeli continues to learn and develop from the bench. I just wrote 700 words on a “problem” that most teams would love to have. We got it good, Dub Nation.