In the NBA, Chris Bosh is … and has always been … a Finesse Center/5.
Chris Bosh (6-10, 230, Lefty) is not a Power Forward/4.
Never has been; never will be.
In fact, Chris Bosh is not a Power player, at all.
In the NBA, Chris Bosh has few, if any, ‘Mismatch Advantages’ when he isn’t playing the Center position.
Is Chris Bosh a franchise player?
YES, he is … but not THE kind of player many THINK he is …
nor the kind of player he’s been made to play as, to this point in his pro career, as a Core Member of the Toronto Raptors, under the Leadership of Rob Babcock & Bryan Colangelo (the team’s General Managers) AND the coaching of Kevin O’Neill & Sam Mitchell.
Chris Bosh’s Strength, as a basketball player, is as a Finesse Center/5 … who is:
1) A terrific Team Defender, in the Middle of the action, in the Lane, where & when he can defend each of the other 4 players on the court … in addition to his own individual check, which he isn’t very good at doing to begin with, as a Finesse, Shot-blocking 5 … in the mold of ‘the Great Bill Russell‘ (6-10, 220, Lefty);
2) A terrific Rebounder, capable of averaging 15+ boards a contest, if made to emphasize this aspect of the game … in the mold of ‘the Great Bill Russell’;
3) A terrific Character Guy, with the Core trait of Un-Selfishness that is shared with the other truly great Centers who have ever played the game … e.g. Men like Miken, (the Great Bill) Russell, Reed, Abdul-Jabbar & Walton (plus, in today’s environment, the ‘Big Fundamental’, Tim Duncan);
4) A solid Mid-Post and Elbow scorer (i.e. within 15-18 feet of the basket) … when he’s matched-up exclusively vs THE opponent’s Big … all of whom he can simply ‘out-quick’, relative to this position on the floor … but which can only be dictated by Bosh’s coach, if said coach plays Bosh as THE Biggest player within his own ‘Group-of-5’ and not the 2nd biggest, who can go into the Post and command an ‘Inside-Out’ double-team, based on his ability to score the ball from this position on the floor … with his FINESSE ‘Face-Up’ game; rather than a ‘power game’ which Chris Bosh simply does not and will NEVER EVER have.
Unfortunately for Chris Bosh, since he was drafted into the NBA by the Toronto Raptors he has yet to play for a GM or a coach who knows what his ACTUAL STRENGTHS are as a pro player, and as a person, in general … and has not yet been developed into the type of dominating ALL-PRO individual he is truly capable of eventually becoming in this League … similar to ‘the Great Bill Russell’.
But, for anyone to claim that Chris Bosh is not a franchise player … is just plain WRONG.
When a player handles the ball a lot off the bounce, or on the dribble-up … something which Chris Bosh does not do … it is irrelevant if that player is being played out of position, on Offense, in the NBA.
That player can simply ‘go and get the ball’ and take the game over by himself, off the bounce, when need be … e.g. like MJ, Kobe, LBJ, Chris Paul, Oscar, Magic, etc.
Likewise, when a player has an ‘interior’ Power game (i.e. Drop Step, Jump Hook, Turn-around Jump Shot, Up & Under, etc.) … in general, something which Chris Bosh does not have … this player’s teammates can simply throw the ball inside to him whenever he is using his SIZE & PHYSICAL STRENGTH to gain an advantageous position, in the Low Post, and allow him to ‘go to work’ inside, either scoring the ball himself or by creating open shots for his teammates … e.g. like Shaq, Duncan, Wilt and Miken have all done.
However, when a player is a Finesse Center/5 … like Chris Bosh or Rasheed Wallace or Hakeem Olajuwon or Jack Sikma or Bill Walton or Dave Cowens or Kareem Abdul-Jabbar or Willis Reed or ‘the Great Bill Russell’ … on Offense, he is dependent (i) on his coach to play him in the correct position, for his unique skill set, and (ii) his teammates to get him the ball in the spots on the floor that he can be the most effective, either as a passer or a scorer; while, on Defense, he is dependent on his coach to match him up correctly against the individual check that allows him to not only defend this player BUT the other 4 players on the court, as well, especially if he can ‘block shots & rebound’ like Chris Bosh, Olajuwon, Walton, Abdul-Jabbar and ‘the Great Bill Russell’ can/could all do at the peak of their NBA careers (i.e. from 27-to-35 years of age).
Chris Bosh (at only 24 years of age) is a Finesse Center/5, in the NBA … who, if used correctly, is a Franchise Player that can be a Centrifugal Force in the League for years to come … in the mold of ‘the Great Bill Russell’ … unless, of course, the best years of his career are frittered away playing for a hapless team whose GM’s and coaches do not have a clue about what his actual strengths are, as a player and a person, and just how good (i.e. talented, unselfish & hard-working) he is, relative to the other players in the League who play the Center position.
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