This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Andrew Bogut became expendable in the 2015 NBA Finals, as the Golden State Warriors altered their lineup and played without a center in their past two victories over Cleveland.

Similar strategy may come into play if the Warriors meet the Cavaliers again in June, but they need Bogut to help them get there. That became evident Monday in Golden State's 115-106 defeat of Houston in Game 2 of a first-round series.

As the Warriors played without injured guard Steph Curry, Bogut contributed 10 points, seven rebounds and three blocked shots. In his 27 minutes on the court, Golden State outscored Houston by 23 points. In Dwight Howard's 35 minutes, the Rockets were outscored by 22 points.

So that's a clear victory for Bogut, a former University of Utah center. And as Jakob Poeltl, the latest 7-foot Ute star, prepares for the NBA draft, this is a good time to reassess Bogut's impact in the league. Here's the fundamental question: If it were offered to him right here and now, would Poeltl take Bogut's NBA career? Well, he should.

He would be signing up for 11 years, more than $105 million in contracts, an NBA championship and a starting role for a team with the league's all-time best regular-season record. Injuries and high expectations also are part of the deal, although Poeltl won't have quite as much to live up to as Bogut, the league's No. 1 overall pick in 2005.

With his offensive value diminished in Golden State's scheme, Bogut's career scoring average may dip to 10 points by the time he's done. This season, he scored a career-low 5.4 points in 20.7 minutes, playing in 70 games. Yet he has remained a vital part of a great team, having made himself into a defense-oriented player. His professional success is a good sign for Poeltl, considering the way Ute coach Larry Krystkowiak has influenced each of them.

Bogut improved significantly in the two seasons Krystkowiak spent with him as a Milwaukee assistant and head coach, and Poeltl made a major jump as a sophomore by using Krystkowiak's outline for summer development. Their careers may have a further connection, if Milwaukee drafts Poeltl. Pending the lottery outcome, the Bucks should have the No. 10 pick, right in Poeltl's projected range.

Bogut, from Australia, and Poeltl, from Austria, are a lot alike as 7-footers with athletic ability, good hands and other similar qualities. "Both of those guys are really, really cerebral when it comes to the game," Krystkowiak said. "There's an awful lot of talent at the next level. What separates you a lot of times is your knowledge."

Bogut's shot-blocking numbers with the Utes were about the same as Poeltl's. Even so, "Andrew wasn't stellar defensively at Utah, and he'll be the first to admit it, but that was something when he got to the next level that he really figured out," Krystkowiak said. "His perseverance is fantastic."

Krystkowiak likes to point out how Bogut once led the NBA in both blocked shots and charging fouls drawn in a season, illustrating his defensive judgment. OK, that never happened. Bogut was far down the list of charges absorbed in 2010-11, when he led the league with 2.6 blocks per game. But it's true that in other years, he was adept at drawing fouls and still blocked a lot of shots.

Poeltl was willing to take charges at Utah. He blocked fewer shots as a sophomore, partly due to a commitment to avoiding foul trouble and staying in the court longer, as he generally succeeded in doing.

Otherwise, his statistical improvement almost exactly matched Bogut's degree of advancement from his freshman to sophomore year. Poeltl went from averaging 9.1 points and 6.8 rebounds to 17.2 points and 9.1 boards. Bogut went from 12.5 points and 9.9 rebounds to 20.4 points and 12.2 boards, while playing for Ray Giacoletti's staff as a sophomore after being recruited and coached by Rick Majerus and interim coach Kerry Rupp.

Poeltl faced tougher competition in the Pac-12 and his teams posted three NCAA Tournament victories to Bogut's two, as each of them reached the Sweet 16 once. The difference was that Poeltl's Utes lost to Gonzaga in the round of 32 in his last game, as he played poorly. Bogut performed decently in a Sweet 16 loss to Kentucky in his final appearance.

The other divergence is Bogut's improvement during his Ute career was accelerated by his Olympic experience with Australia in Athens in 2004, the summer prior to his sophomore season. Poeltl did most of his summer work on his own, with Krystkowiak's outline, becoming a much better free-throw shooter and developing other aspects of his game.

And then he thrived as a Ute sophomore — just as Bogut did, and has continued to do for 11 years in the NBA. Bogut is likely to win another NBA title in June, just before Poeltl is drafted by Milwaukee or another team and extends the presence of Ute 7-footers in the league for another decade or so.

Twitter: @tribkurt —

Ute first-rounders

Utah players taken in the first round of the NBA draft in the past 35 years:

Year Player Pick Career

1981 Danny Vranes No. 5 7 years

1981 Tom Chambers No. 8 16 years

1997 Keith Van Horn No. 2 9 years

1998 Michael Doleac No. 12 10 years

1999 Andre Miller No. 8 17 years*

2005 Andrew Bogut No. 1 11 years*

2015 Delon Wright No. 20 1 year*

* — active player

Battle of the big men

Utah statistics for centers Jakob Poeltl and Andrew Bogut:

Jakob Poeltl

Year G Min. FG FT Pts. Reb. Blk.

2014-15 34 23.3 .681 .444 9.1 6.8 1.9

2015-16 36 30.4 .646 .692 17.2 9.1 1.6

Total 66 26.9 .658 .607 13.3 8.0 1.7

Andrew Bogut

2003-04 33 30.4 .577 .640 12.5 9.9 1.3

2004-05 35 35.0 .620 .692 20.4 12.2 1.9

Total 68 32.7 .603 .674 16.6 11.1 1.6