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Following up on the last analysis of Okafor for Chandler, we will today be looking at another aspect of Okaforce's (No?) contributions. Emeka's long term deal for big bucks was the primary reason he was traded away from Charlotte, and has been one the biggest concerns amongst Hornet fans since his arrival in the Big Easy.

When discussing if a player is overpaid, it's common to look into the future, especially in regard to the years remaining on a contract, but with Okafor only 27 years old and still trying to fit into a new system, it's unclear how he will fare in the next couple of years. That being said, let's take a look at how Emeka's salary and performance compare against other centers, this year specifically. I'll be using a statistic that I think I made up called Salary Value, or S-Value if you will. For now this is a very raw formula, really for use in evaluating guys who play the same position. In the future I will certainly spend some time getting into more detail.

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Lately there has been more than a little Emeka Okafor bashing, with some even going to far as to say that an injured Tyson Chandler is better than a healthy Okafor. It's time that we get into some real detail about Okafor's play, and how much worse he has really been than Tyson.

First let's take a look at Tyson's first year in NOLA compared to Emeka's. Seems fair since it obviously takes some time for centers to adjust to playing a pick and roll offense, especially in a point guard dominated offense. Granted Tyson was a bit younger than Okafor when he started with the Hornets, but they both had accumulated about the same amount of NBA experience prior to coming to the Hornets. Here are some basic stats.

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Like Hornets Hype said last week, it's bittersweet seeing Tyson Chandler go; not so long ago we believed he was a key piece in a championship-caliber team, yet there's no doubt Emeka Okafor is excellent compensation for him.

Chandler will be missed for reasons beyond basketball. He came to New Orleans three years ago, spitting venom back at the Bulls for trading him. He felt he'd been lied to by then-Bulls GM John Paxson, and he was determined to make his former employer regret the deal.

Now Tyson has been dealt again, but he leaves the Hornets and New Orleans with nothing but kind words. Excerpts from his recent blog post:

I'm sad to leave New Orleans. I met a lot of people in the community that I got close to. It was an incredible playing environment, playing with a group of teammates that I grew to love and respect. That part I'm really going to miss. With those guys it was like a family. Being under Coach Scott and his staff and growing close with he and his family and the Pauls, really all of my teammates...

Everyone knows how I feel about Coach. I just love and respect him so much and he's helped me turn my career around from where it was heading in Chicago, coming into New Orleans and allowing people to see that talent that I have...

I just want to thank the city of New Orleans, the Hornets organization for the opportunity and for the great couple of years that I had there. I also want to thank my Hornets teammates for everything they've done for me. I had great time in New Orleans being able to enjoy the game again, with them.

Sure, Tyson had a better run in New Orleans than he did in Chicago, but he could have easily taken some parting shots this past week. After all, he's headed to a franchise that hasn't won more than 35 games in any of its five seasons, and there's not much to suggest Year 6 will be any different. Plus, no more easy buckets courtesy of the world's greatest point guard.

But no. Tyson took the high road this time, proving he's come a long way in three short years. He's no longer a Hornet, but he's left with a lot of fans in New Orleans.

For my initial take on the Tyson Chandler-Emeka Okafor trade, take a gander at  my previous post.  For stats, keep readin'.

The casual fan will look at the raw numbers, see that Okafor has career averages of 14 ppg, 10.7 rpg, and 1.9 bpg  and compare that to Tyson Chandler’s 8.2, 9.0 and 1.4 and assume that the Hornets had gotten the better of this deal.   Even if you pick out individual best seasons, Tyson’s 11.8, 11.8 and 1.1 doesn’t really match up with Okafor’s best season of 14.4, 11.3, and 2.6.

That’s not an accurate representation however, due to Tyson’s exceptional defense, but at least offensively, it is a true statement.    So first let’s take a look at the offensive numbers.  For those of you who don't care about the numbers that much - skip to the end to get a summary.

Offense:

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According to ESPN.com and various other outlets, The Hornets have agreed in principle to a trade of Tyson Chandler to the Bobcats for Emeka Okafor.  I'm working on a stat-pack post to evaluate the new acquisition, but I wanted to get my first thoughts out there.

To be honest, despite that irritating(or so I'm told) optimism I've exuded, this deal comes as a relief.  Tyson Chandler is a top-10 center when healthy, and one that could push the top five.  Emeka Okafor is also a top-10 center (though probably closer to 10 than 5) but he doesn't have the health risks of Tyson Chandler.  Oh, and Okafor is 26 years old and under contract through 2013-14 when he turns thirty.  Essentially, his prime years, admittedly for a hefty salary.

I'm going to miss Chandler, but given the choice between a trade for Okafor or for Ben Wallace's retiring contract?  Okafor is infinitely more palatable.  For me, if not for George Shinn's wallet.

For now, I'm going to go work on my stats post and try to refrain from kicking dirt in the eyes of all those blathering pundits who have talked about how lame the Hornets front office is for a couple weeks now.  Oh wait, I guess I just did kick dirt in their eyes.  Wups.