Top 10 Utah Pro Athletes: #10 Andrew Bogut

Andrew Bogut was dominant as a sophomore at Utah in the 2004-05 season, leading to him winning the Naismith and Wooden Awards and being selected No. 1 overall in the 2005 NBA Draft. While Bogut has not completely lived up the the lofty expectations of a No. 1 pick, he has had a good NBA career so far.

Bogut seems to have found a great home with the Golden State Warriors, having helped them win their first NBA title in 40 years. His stout defensive presence helped lead the Warriors to the best regular season record and an NBA Championship. An underrated skill of the former Utah big man is his passing ability. Getting the ball to Golden State's great shooters Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson on the perimeter is key for the Warrior's offense to run smoothly.

The center from Australia played well in the Western Conference playoff games but saw his minutes dwindle a bit in the NBA Finals against Cleveland. Bogut played well in the first two games at home, recording two blocks in each of the first two games and grabbing 10 rebounds in game two and likely would have put up better stats had he not gotten into foul trouble.

Bogut has had a few career highlights. He was also named to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team this season for his hard-nosed defensive efforts. Other NBA career highlights for Bogut include being NBA All-Rookie First Team in 2006 All-NBA Third Team in 2010, and being the NBA blocks leader in 2011.

When healthy, Bogut is one of the best defensive centers in the NBA. His career though has been marred by injuries. He only played 70 or more games in his rookie season of 2005-06 and the 2007-08 season. Bogut managed to play in most of the Warriors' games this season (67) and was able to get NBA All-Defensive Team honors. He fits his role with the Warrior's so perfectly that if he stays healthy, he could get more All-NBA awards in the coming seasons.

Over his career, Bogut has averaged 10.9 points, 9.2 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.6 blocks per game. In the 2009-10 season, Bogut had his best scoring season, averaging 15.9 points per game The 2010-11 season was his best for blocks, when he led the league with 2.6 blocks per game, and he also had his best career rebound total with 11.1 rebounds per game (how he did not get NBA All-Defensive Team honors that season is a mystery).

Bogut checked in at No. 10 on our list of all-time best Utah pro athletes. Keep checking back to find out who the remaining nine are.