They call Boozer what?

In his spare time on Team USA’s bench, Carlos Boozer might not want to ask hoops fans in China what they allegedly call him in the People’s Republic.

His Chinese moniker, according to a Cleveland newspaper, is “Fan Gu Zai.” Unfortunately for Utah’s power forward, this does not mean “The Next Karl Malone” or “Little Guy Who Shuts Down Yao Ming.”

Rather, “Fan Gu Zai” pretty much falls into the “sticks and stones” category. This likely means, of course, Boozer will be repeatedly called “Fan Gu Zai” from here on out by Cavaliers’ fans who are still bitter about his sly departure from Ohio in 2004.

In case you skipped that day of Chinese 101, the nickname “Fan Gu Zai” supposedly translates to “Betrayal Skull Dude.” So, how do you say “Ouch!” or “If you don’t have anything nice to say….” or “Get over it, Cleveland!” in Chinese?

Bao Renjun of the Erie (Ohio) Chinese News reported that the phrase refers “to those who betray, but ‘betrayal skull’ also refers to a protuberant bone on the front or back of a head.” This allegedly comes from a legend about a famous Chinese military savant who once claimed his general would betray the country to join the Utah Jazz. Or something like that.

Anyway, if really true, that’s as good as Chinese gold for fans looking for a two-for-the-price-of-one insult. They get to make fun of the shape of Boozer’s head and diss him for going Art Modell on Cleveland.

As Jodie Valade of the Plain-Dealer wrote: “Take heart, Cavaliers fans. About 1.3 billion people think Carlos Boozer lied, too. Or at least that he has an oddly shaped head.”

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