by By Kurt Kragthorpe Tribune Columnist , The Salt Lake Tribune

While fellow forward Paul Millsap is being celebrated as an overachiever, deserving of a huge raise after originally landing in the league at roughly the same point in the draft, Boozer is vilified for not living up to expectations with the Jazz after jumping from Cleveland as a free agent.

Speaking as the last remaining Boozer advocate in this town, I don't get it.

Actually, I do understand the reasons his image is damaged, and acknowledge the Jazz's payroll complications that accompany his decision to play out the sixth year of his contract. It makes re-signing Millsap more challenging and painful in terms of NBA luxury taxes on a one-year basis. Yet here's the fundamental question: Right here, right now, who would you rather have as your starting power forward, Carlos Boozer or Paul Millsap?

Obvious answer: Boozer.

In the real-time, immediate-delivery world of pro sports, each season is its own era. Think of it this way: For one year, at the hardly unreasonable price of $12.67 million, the Jazz are renting one of the league's best offensive players. Boozer's presence gives the Jazz their only genuine hope of moving up in the tough Western Conference in the coming season, and nobody's obligated to him after that.

For all of Millsap's admirable qualities, he will never score at Boozer's level, or demand the same defensive attention that frees center Mehmet Okur and others to shoot from outside in coach Jerry Sloan's system.

The Jazz thrived without Boozer for much of this past season, but that was a function of a favorable middle section of the schedule, as much as Millsap's fill-in contribution.

So while keeping Millsap is important to the Jazz's future, in surrounding Deron Williams with some talent, they already have their starting power forward for 2009-10. A healthy, motivated Boozer can only help them. While I occasionally overvalue statistics, there's no convincing me that the Jazz would be better off without Boozer's 20 points a game. Boozer is one of only five players in franchise history with multiple All-Star selections.

While there's a lot to like about Millsap's rebounding ability and overall approach to his job, he's limited enough offensively that projecting him as an All-Star in Utah, Oklahoma City or anywhere else is still difficult.

It will cost the Jazz more than the actual salary numbers to have both Boozer and Millsap on the roster this season, thanks to the luxury tax. Boozer could have made balancing the budget easier for owner Greg Miller by opting out and departing this summer, making plenty of money available to re-sign Millsap and avoid penalties. Then again, judged against the rest of this season's payroll, Boozer is as good of a value as Andrei Kirilenko, Okur, Matt Harpring, Kyle Korver, C.J. Miles -- or Millsap, at his presumed new salary. So why blame Boozer alone for the team's temporary financial bind?

In a contract year, with his marketability on the line every game, Boozer will be a largely positive force for the Jazz . Sure, a big year from Boozer may engender more disgust from fans who will wonder why he couldn't have played more consistently or simply appeared in more than two-thirds of the games in his first five seasons in Utah, but it would also mean that he made the Jazz better in 2009-10.

Give this guy one more chance, is all I'm saying. At this time next year, you'll be happy or sad that he's leaving. Either way, the Jazz will have come out ahead.

kkragthorpe@sltrib.com

? Alt Heads:

Defending Boozer Boozer vs.

Career

Games ? 432

MPG ? 32.4

FG% ? 0.536

FT% ? 0.725

OFF ? 2.8

DEF ? 7.2

RPG ? 10.0

APG ? 2.4

PF ? 3.10

PPG ? 16.8

2008-2009

Games ? 37

MPG ? 32.4

FG% ? 0.490

FT% ? 0.698

OFF ? 3.0

DEF ? 7.4

RPG ? 10.4

APG ? 2.1

PF ? 3.60

PPG ? 16.2 Millsap

Career

Games ? 240

MPG ? 22.8

FG% ? 0.523

FT% ? 0.685

OFF ? 2.5

DEF ? 3.9

RPG ? 6.4

APG ? 1.2

PF ? 3.30

PPG ? 9.4

2008-2009

Games ? 76

MPG ? 30.1

FG% ? 0.534

FT% ? 0.699

OFF ? 3.3

DEF ? 2.5

RPG ? 8.6

APG ? 1.8

PF ? 3.80

PPG ? 13.5

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