Andrew Bogut has the best seat in the house
The NBA playoffs is upon us once again, and as has been the case for what feels like ages now, the Golden State Warriors are the prohibitive favourites to win it all.
Is that a bad thing? For neutrals, perhaps. But the Warriors and Andrew Bogut couldn't care less.
Bogey made his return to the Bay last month, joining up with the Dubs right after the conclusion of his maiden NBL season with the Sydney Kings. Since then, he's played in 11 games, and he actually started in five of them. He's been averaging 3.5 points and 5 boards per game in just 12.2 minutes. Pretty good!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAHfyMC1fwI
But that's probably as good as it gets for him. With the games that matter about to begin, Bogey is unlikely to see much - if any - playing time from here on out. Playoff rotations are much shorter than regular season ones, and the Warriors will most likely be deploying their 'Death Lineup' more, with Draymond Green at centre.
Along with DeMarcus Cousins in the starting lineup, that means that Bogut should get used to the intricacies of bench warming. Hey, could be worse than having a front row seat to a championship, right?
That said, there are situations in which he could get some game time. The Warriors are playing the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round, and Bogut matches up decently with Clipper big man Montrezl Harrell and his old Laker teammate Ivica Zubac.
Depending on who the Warriors get in the second round, he could also provide useful minutes against the Utah Jazz's Rudy Gobert or Clint Capela of the Houston Rockets.
Still, with the league's emphasis on guard play and pick and roll offense, it would be a tall ask of Bogut to chase guards such as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Donovan Mitchell or James Harden around when he's inevitably switched onto them. It's pretty unlikely that coach Steve Kerr would even put him into such a predicament.
All in all, Bogey made a really smart decision to come back to the Warriors. He's helped the team's main big men get some rest in the lead up to the playoffs, and could be rewarded with a second championship ring. We just shouldn't expect him to play as big a role as he did back in 2015.