Will Utah Keep Carlos Boozer or Paul Millsap?

The Utah Jazz have a decision to make. As I mentioned earlier this week, Paul Millsap has been an absolute stud filling in for the injured Carlos Boozer, averaging nearly 19 and 12 on 56% shooting over the last 11 games. Boozer has the option of testing free agency this summer, and considering he's already making $11.6 million, it just might take a max contract to convince him to come back.

Trouble is, Millsap will be testing the market, as well, though as a restricted free agent the Jazz will have a chance to match any offer. Millsap is currently the team's lowest-paid player, making just under $800,000, and as he admitted to Tim Buckley of the Deseret News, he's looking to get paid:

"You can't help but think about it," he said candidly of the money matter. "It's a big thing.

"But," Millsap added, "if I do things right, my time will come."

Since neither guy appears in the mood to give a hometown discount, there's a good chance the Jazz will have to settle for keeping only one. Who should it be?

At 27, Boozer is still in his prime and worthy of a long-term contract, but Millsap is three years younger and appears to have just as much potential as Boozer did when he arrived in Salt Lake in 2004. Boozer is a proven All-Star and Olympic champion and will demand to be paid as such; Millsap, on the other hand, won't be cheap but should be more affordable.

The wild card will be how much interest Millsap draws from the rest of the league. Teams generally shy away from investing any energy courting restricted free agents given the likelihood the original team will choose to keep them, but the fact that Millsap won't be asking for a max deal dictates that there will be more potential matches for him on the market than what Boozer will find.

Josh Smith went largely ignored as a restricted free agent last summer, but that might be because teams were worried about integrating his unique skillset into their lineup. But Millsap is an old fashioned bruising power forward who does his dirty work in the paint -- he could jump into any lineup and thrive. And while he may give up an inch or two to some of his opponents, it certainly doesn't show in his numbers.

The most predictable scenario is that the Jazz will let Boozer walk (he's been linked to the Heat for years, and the Pistons might throw their hat in the ring) and keep Millsap, but the longer Millsap proves himself as a starter the more likely it becomes that another team will make this decision very hard for Utah.