Euroleague Adventures

“Internationalized-est” isn’t a word, you say.  You are right—at least for the time being; but Give Bryan Colaneglo a month or two and I bet he could spin a deal with Merriam-Webster’s and even get them to toss in a future draft pick or cash considerations.

Yep.  The Toronto Raptors General Manager is just that crafty, and after winning the NBA’s Executive of the Year Honors in both 2005 with the Suns and 2005 with the Raptors, Colangelo laughs at those who say Yao’s absence will diminish the NBA’s international appeal.  Now that he’s gone out and signed Rasho Nesterovic and traded for Marco Belinelli in the last few days,  the Air Canada Centre may want to hand out atlases instead of programs.  Hmmm…that could work.

TorontoMike

Ok BC is a smart GM, he signed Jarrett Jack (who’s Bosh’s friend from college). BC went and got Belinelli who is great friends with Bargs. Since Bargs just signed an extention BC wants to keep his core players. Yes, they may have overpaid for Jarrett Jack but if that keeps Bosh happy, then he has a better chance to resign him in the summer. Belinelli is still young and cheaper than Delfino. This is a solid team and has a better bench than the Kings starting 5

Daily Observer

Belinelli posted a career-high 27 points in a loss to Atlanta by taking 21 shots, including 10 heaves from beyond the three-point arc.

His defence is suspect and his shot selection, at times, is questionable.

The kid is 23 years old and when one watches Belinelli shoot the basketball, his form is clinical. But people in this market should be more realistic and objective when it comes to his impact as a Raptor.

He has the potential to spread defences because he has the potential to make perimeter shots. The wise move for the Raptors would have been to address defence, rebounding and toughness, the tenets of basketball that produce long runs in the post-season.

Belinelli addresses neither.

The fact the Raptors acquired Belinelli from the Warriors for basically cash is commendable.

Almost by default, Belinelli becomes a rotation player because there isn’t much shooting coming off the bench.

Golden State of Mind

Belinelli is not only less talented than the rest of the other Warrior players at his position, but less talented than about 95% of the guards in the league. He got beat out for playing time fair and square on a 29 win team. What does that tell you? He’s not a very good NBA player.

Pro Basketball News

Still awful soft with leaders like Chris Bosh and Hedo Turkoglu, but should be much more exciting to watch with their brand of European basketball. Will likely be better at end of year than start.

It’s More Than Just A Game

  Belinelli is the lucky one. He’s moving from a team that had great talent but that clearly won’t win to a team that needs him literally. Golden State had just drafted a PG, Stephen Curry, whom everybody thinks will play shooting guard, a team that has enormous relationship issues, that had like 13 scores but no one to distribute the ball to maintain all of them happy and that has a coach who can blow up any minute and decides he had enough what means that the blame will be eventually on the players. In Canada, Belinelli is necessary right away. The Raptors upgraded their team with Hedo Turkoglu but lost both shooters, Anthony Parker and Jason Kapono, which mean they have minutes available for him, besides he’ll have the opportunity to play with a compatriot, Andreas Bargliani, what is also good when you are in a foreign country. They way they improved and the way that other teams did not, playing in the East, Toronto has a real chance to make the playoffs.

Fan590

Rasho Nesterovic – Raptors New (and former) Centre joins the Morning Show from Slovenia to talk about his return to Toronto, what to expect from him this season, and his thoughts on the roster. 

RaptorTalk

It certainly seems that the Raptors were the beneficiaries of a questionable roster move by Golden State. It makes me wonder why the Warriors backed out at the last minute on a trade deadline deal last February which had Joey Graham and his expiring contract heading to the Bay Area for Belinelli – yet now accepted a scrub in Devean George for Belinelli a mere five months later?
That was a strange situation back in February. Apparently Belinelli was so convinced that he would be a Raptor in a deadline deal that he was cleaning out his Bay Area apartment and telling all his friends he was heading north to Canada. Then suddenly, the deal was off.

Globe and Mail

The Raptors have about $5.1-million (U.S.) to use before they tip into the dollar-for-dollar luxury-tax threshold and were considering offering a one-year deal to Delfino for something close to that amount, but the acquisition of Belinelli has changed the equation.

"The likelihood that he’s going to sign here is less," Raptors president Bryan Colangelo said of Delfino. "Not only is he going to be leaving some money on the table in Europe, but one of the things that was attractive about coming here was that he’d have ample opportunity to play and maybe start and that doesn’t appear to be as open now."

Colangelo said there is the possibility of using Delfino in a sign-and-trade if he decides to leave his current team in Russia, but just as likely is that the Raptors won’t make any more significant moves between now and training camp.

Toronto Sun

"We’ll have a little bit higher intensity, a little bit quicker turnover of players coming in and out of the game," Triano said. "We’ll give everyone a fair chance at camp (in October in Ottawa). Injuries happen throughout the year and you have to be ready to play. I like the fact we have so many diverse players. The biggest thing will be trying to find enough guys the opportunity to stay on the floor."

Belinelli, acquired for forward Devean George and cash, currently is on the Italian national team with Bargnani.

"I won’t read too much into that," Triano said. "I don’t even know if they’re friends. The most important thing is that they’re teammates. It’ll be nice to have someone to talk to and show you where restaurants are, but for the most part we’ve got a great team. They’re all friends by the time the games are over."

Toronto Star

With the two moves, the Raptors now have 14 players under contract. GM Bryan Colangelo is still working on finding a backup small forward to fill his final roster spot.

Globe and Mail

"Marco fills a void at the wing position where his shooting and scoring strengths will be needed. Marco’s versatility and playmaking abilities make him a very valuable piece for us,” Bryan Colangelo said in a statement.

Prior to joining the Warriors, the 23 year-old, six-foot-five guard from Bologna played professionally in his native Italy for five seasons. In 33 games during the 2006-07 season with Fortitudo Bologna in Serie A, Belinelli averaged 16.4 points, while shooting .544 (99-for-182) from the field. In 13 Euroleague contests, he averaged 12.9 points on .438 (32-for-73) from the field.

CBS

GM Bryan Colangelo pulled off a coup by stealing Turkoglu from the Blazers, but then overpaid Jarrett Jack — something you often have to do in order to lure a restricted free agent. First-round pick DeMar DeRozan excelled in Vegas. If Andrea Bargnani (five-year, $50 million extension) continues to improve, the Raptors could be back in the playoff hunt.

Protect The Paint

This Raptors team is capable of the best ball movement and unselfish play we have seen for quite some time. The shooting ability of the Italian duo will spread the floor, allowing Chris Bosh and the super-athletic DeMar DeRozan to terrorize the paint.

Calderon has a huge shot, if he stays healthy, of leading the league in assists.

Bay Area Sports Guy

Warrior optimists (do any exist anymore outside the P.R. dept. and the broadcast team?) can point to this trade and say it’s actually just a vote of confidence for Anthony Morrow, who successfully fought Belinelli for minutes last season and is clearly a more valuable (and don’t forget cheaper) alternative. However, if the Raptors have coveted Marco since 2007 — and several reports over the years have said the Raptors have, which makes sense since they covet Euros more than American college girls studying abroad — couldn’t they have done better than George?

San Francisco Chronicle

The Warriors cleared out some of their backcourt logjam and found an experienced presence to help balance a youth-filled roster, acquiring wing Devean George and money from Toronto on Thursday in exchange for guard Marco Belinelli.

The move acts as a vote of confidence for second-year guard Anthony Morrow, as it should open more minutes for him. The team still has guards Monta Ellis, Stephen Jackson, Stephen Curry, Kelenna Azubuike, Acie Law, Speedy Claxton and possibly restricted free agent C.J. Watson. General manager Larry Riley said he’s not done dealing.

Golden State of Mind

Actually, as an expiring contract, George may have slightly more appeal in that do he doesn’t cost anything. As a chip in a future trade, George might have slightly more value to any team acquiring him as he’s free, his salary paid by the Raptors for the rest of the year. Ok, that’s probably not enough to entice a reluctant team thinking about moving a star for salary relief, but it can’t hurt. He also has slightly more value in that any team holding his expiring deal can sign him to another contract with fewer cap restrictions than they would for Belinelli. Why would this matter? A sign and trade (yes, I wrote it — sign and trade — I’m not proud of it and this is not license for everyone else to jump in with their favorite sign-and-trade Davidson, Watson and change for Dwight Howard) with George could be that tiny bit that makes a deal work. At this point in his career, George might agree for sake of a guaranteed contract for another year, something he might not easily find. It’s unlikely, but it’s not impossible. So relative to Belinelli’s deal, George’s expiring deal is a slightly larger asset, likely inconsequentially so, but, still it exists.

Mercury News

No matter how it added up, Belinelli was on his way out.

"I feel like Marco wasn’t going to play too much because we’re making the commitment to play Morrow," Warriors General Manager Larry Riley said. "We’re ready to commit to him. … Having known that we were not going to (pick up Belinelli’s option by the Oct. 31 deadline), we decided to take the opportunity to get a player back who maybe can contribute. We thought that was a reasonable way to go."

Make It Rain In Ukraine

The Raptors? All six white players on the roster were born outside the US. Is this something we should be concerned with? Do you have to be American-tough to win in the NBA? I used to think that foreign-born players just didn’t have that from the cradle desire to win an NBA championship. I thought that a world championship or  Olympic medal was the real prize. I took a closer look at championships of the past decade and winning rosters included names like, Parker, Gasol, Ginoblli, Okur, Oberto and Ukraine’s own Slava Medvedenko. Even the teams that lost in the finals featured guys like, Big Z, Dirk Nowitzki, Varajeo, Vujajic, Turkoglu, Gortat, Pietrus.

FIBA

Toronto had been trying to land Belinelli for the last year, as Colangelo sought to improve his guard play.
That Belinelli was his chief target was, no doubt, down in large part to the influence of Raptors vice-president Maurizio Gherardini, the former Benetton Treviso general manager who is familar with Belinelli’s game from the period when both men were in Lega A. Belinelli spent five years in Italy’s top domestic league with Fortitudo Bologna prior to joining the Warriors.
Belinelli will have to wait to meet his new team-mates – with the exception of Bargnani – as he is with Italy at a training camp preparing for the Additional Qualifying Round to EuroBasket 2009 that kicks off on August 5th.

Raptors Rapture

So, with the excitement of the offseason all but done for Raptor fans it’s time we move on to something different, something like an in-depth look at all of the Raptor players. I mean what is more fun that completely over analyzing a player well before he actually does anything? Not much! So today we will start our review of the Raptors roster with a look at our starting point guard, Jose Calderon.

Toronto Sun

In 2008, Carlo Recalcati, head coach of the Italian national team, said he hoped that Belinelli would get traded from the Golden State Warriors to the Raptors, so he can play alongside Andrea Bargnani. Recalcati believed that Belinelli would thrive playing alongside his national teammate.

Toronto Star

He has been on Toronto’s radar for almost a year. Colangelo almost pulled off a trade to obtain him in the middle of last season but was rebuffed by Golden State management. The 6-foot-5 Italian native is comfortable playing either backcourt position, which fits with Colangelo’s desire to load the roster with players capable of playing more than one position.

His acquisition further throws into question Toronto’s ability – or desire – to re-sign restricted free agent Carlos Delfino.

National Post

Belinelli was the No. 18 pick in the 2007 draft but rarely saw the floor in Golden State, which has a surplus of wing players. But he is only 23 years old, while George will turn 32 next month. The 6-foot-5 Belinelli is considered a promising shooter and scorer and is a favourite of Raptors general manager Bryan Colangelo, who has been trying to acquire him. Although healthy, Belinelli played in only 42 of the Warriors’ 82 games last season. When he did play, he averaged 21 minutes, 8.9 points, 1.7 rebounds and 2.1 assists.

Fanhouse

Belinelli is likely going to get more of a chance to play in Toronto than he got in Golden State under Don Nelson. Belinelli played sparingly as a rookie, then received inconsistent minutes during an injury-plagued 2008-09.
He averaged 13.4 points per game when he got 20 or more minutes, but there were also 15 times when Belinelli took a DNP-CD. Depending on how Toronto’s backcourt shakes out, Belinelli could be in the starting two-guard mix along with Antoine Wright and Jarrett Jack.

Protect The Paint

The gray eminences in the Warriors front office have just traded him to the Toronto Raptors for three cans of paint and a suppository. Well, for Devean George.

Yes, I know it’s unlikely that George will ever play for the Warriors. And I know the Warriors have more shooting guards than Don Nelson has beers in his fridge.

But this is Marco Belinelli. Someone whose eyes said “I am asleep” and whose shot said “I can do this in my sleep”.

Empty The Bench

With Anthony Parker now in Cleveland, the 6-6 DeRozan will be given a chance to win the starting shooting guard job in training camp; his main competition is newly signed veteran Jarrett Jack, but at 6-3 and more of a point the team would much rather Jack spells Jose Calderon off the bench. DeRozan had a strong showing in Vegas, averaging 17 points (49% FG) and 4.8 boards per and showing some serious hops. He turns just 20 years old next week and clearly has more long-term potential than short, but should make enough of an impact to sneak onto the Second Team.

Straight From The Arse

Perhaps the Raptors choice of loading up on Europeans is the ying to the yang of their MLSE counterpart the Toronto Maple Leafs.  Brian Burke has spent all off season unloading anything with a non North American passport and his Basketball counter part Bryan Colangelo has been doing the direct opposite.

Nonetheless I like this move on the surface for both basketball reasons and non basketball reasons.  I’ve been fond of Belinelli’s game and actually thought the Raptors might try to acquire him during a draft day trade in 2007.  Hopefully his game will blossom under the guise of the Euro-Raptors style.  If anything at least Andrea Bargnani now has an Italian running mate to take the pressure off of him from all the Vito’s in Woodbridge who call in the Fan590 .

Golden State of Mind

My oh my. It was a joke that really wasn’t that funny. To tell you the truth it’s a joke that some Warriors fans feel outraged over this trade. It’s meaningless and it’s not going to effect the 2008-2009 Golden State Warriors season one bit. Folks hate it when I say this, but I doubt Belinelli is even in the league in 2 years. Actually scratch that. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Toronto Craptors "braintrust" inked him to a 5 year $50 million extension a la Andrea Bargnani.

We probably have some Raps fans reading and looking for some 4-1-1 on Belinelli’s tenure with the Warriors. Here’s my 20 cents that I detailed earlier:

TSN

One of the most unrecognized aspects of Toronto’s offseason has been the fact that the team has shed two of its best perimeter shooters in Anthony Parker and Jason Kapono this summer. While neither one was exactly a make-’em-when-they’re-needed threat last year, both still demanded attention from defenses and both helped keep the mid-range open for guys like Bosh and Bargnani to operate in.

With both of those players gone, and ostensibly replaced by poor three-point shooters Antoine Wright and DeMar DeRozen, the Raptors were actually looking like a club without an overabundance of long-range bombing. After all, this is a team that still carries the league record for consecutive games with a three-pointer made (859) and has a reputation for stocking their team full of gunners – at times at the expense of guys who will penetrate or draw fouls. Belinelli (along with Turkoglu and Andrea Bargnani) helps keep Toronto’s long-range reputation alive.

Toronto Sports Media

My reaction to this is “awesome,” at least until we know more. Even then, I’m pretty sure it’ll be something between that and “good.”

Basically, the Raps trade a guy who was hardly going to play, on the downside of his career, for a 23-year-old who’s shown plenty of promise in the past.

Take a look at that picture above – That’s what Raps fans should (hopefully) get used to seeing. This guy can flat out shoot, and all indications are that he actually wants to use that skill in games (as opposed to Mr. Kapono). He’s also pretty cheap and should be a solid scoring option off the bench. Golden State simply had too many wing players and ball handlers, whereas Toronto certainly has a spot for someone like this.

RaptorsHQ

In today’s NBA economy, especially with Toronto seemingly being the lone bidder for his services, the last thing I wanted to see was a $5 Million deal handed out to Delfino, or any contract that was for over three years.  As one of our readers discussed with me over the weekend, we would rather see Toronto pay extra for Carlos provided the club wasn’t handcuffed to yet another long-term deal.

So while I did value Delfino’s return, it was partly based on the lack of other options, and partly dependant on his final contract amount.  So if a cheaper alternative presented itself…

In my books that’s exactly what Bryan Colangelo has done here, presented fans with a cheaper, and possibly as productive alternative.  Let’s look at some stats.

Fan590

The 23-year-old guard has, admittedly, had an “average” start to his NBA career.  After struggling through his rookie season, Belinelli had a chance to bust out a little bit last year … given the glut of injuries the Warriors were experiencing.  He started 23 games for the Bay Area Boys – including an impressive 15-game stretch from mid-December to mid-January where he averaged more than 15 points per game and earned a ton of respect from his teammates.

Speaking about Belinelli back in December 2008, then-teammate Stephen Jackson told the San Francisco Chronicle:

“When (Marco) wasn’t playing, when he said he wanted to be traded and all that stuff, I was like, man, we’re going to lose a good player.  He’s a guy that got caught up in a numbers game, and I’ve been through that too. I’m glad he’s taking advantage of his opportunity, because that’s what it’s all about.”

HoopsAddict

By moving a player that had minimal value to the franchise in George, they were able to obtain a 23-year-old who many predict will have  bright future in the NBA. Sure, he only averaged 8.9 points and 2.1 assists per game with the Warriors last season, but Belinelli scored more than 15 points on seven different occasions last season. It’s no coincidence that those scoring outbursts came in games where Don Nelson finally gave the youngster some minutes and freed him from the end of his bench.

NBA Roundtable

As for Toronto, it’s an excellent trade. They basically got a player for nothing, and that player is useful in the present tense and has good potential for the future. Nice get for the Raptors.

Unfortunately, I think Belinelli is a lousy fit in Toronto’s current lineup/roster due to the team’s problems defensively and on the glass, and I think that will limit his immediate impact on the Raptors.

You have to love moves that have no negative possibilities and the Belinelli trade is just that. This one falls in the “doesn’t hurt” category. As in, it doesn’t hurt to have some more insurance at shooting guard. Or, it doesn’t hurt to have another ball-handler who can get hot from time to time and finally, it doesn’t hurt to give Bargnani a real friend on the team. The 6′ 5″ Italian was lost in the shuffle in Golden State and a change of scenery will do him some good, but the stark reality remains that he’s unlikely to get the 21 minutes he got last year, unless of course Delfino is out of the picture. Look at it this way: it’s better to have a deep and meaningful bench that could come in handy than have Devean George at the end of it playing tic-tac-toe with Marcus Banks.

Why did we do it?

Credit to Colangelo for creating something out of nothing and believe me, Devean George was nothing. At best he was going to be third on the depth chart at any position and I’m sure he wouldn’t have been thrilled. Colangelo nips the possibility of a disgruntled player in the bud and acquires a young, skilled player who will have a chance to crack the rotation in training camp, that’s more than what you could say about George who is coming of knee surgery to repair cartilage damage.

After recognizing the crappy qualities of Will Solomon and Hassan Adams, Colangelo’s tried to acquire Belinelli last year in November but the offer which apparently involved Kris Humphries was promptly turned down. Sources in Italy continued to link him to the Raptors for obvious reasons and when the trade didn’t happen by the deadline, everyone was silently surprised. After all, we needed help in the backcourt and Belinelli wasn’t playing in GSW. It only made sense. Now that the point-guard position is settled it’s time to worry about the backup wing and he’s perfect insurance in case we can’t get Kleiza or Delfino to sign. If Colangelo deems him worthy of significant minutes it’ll allow us to fill out that final roster spot with a big man instead, something we need even more.

What do we have in him?

He is a scorer, a dramatically inconsistent and frustrating one but he is a scorer. On any given night he could be our Vinny “Microwave” Johnson or our Fred Jones, you just don’t know what you’re going to get. When he’s on, he’s unstoppable and when he’s not, he’s terrible. He dropped 37 in a summer league game in 2007 and the Raptors received first-hand punishment last year in Golden State when he dropped 23 on us circus-style. That inconsistency is what kept him out of the lineup in GSW who already have enough players who take terrible shots. He played the majority of his minutes at SG last year and spent the rest of them at the SF, but take that with a grain of salt because Don Nelson’s offense doesn’t define positions, just players. He’s a basketball player that can make stuff happen if you give him the freedom and he’s going to get that chance. Just like Douby, he’ll have an opportunity to steal minutes away from Antoine Wright and Jarrett Jack at the SG. Whether he has the discipline to stay in control of his talents and harness his offensive urges remains to be seen. Even if he doesn’t, at the end of the day we get a 23 year old for a 32 year old.

Is he good enough to get time?

His playing time will depend entirely on whether we manage to sign Delfino because that’ll determine if he’s 2nd or 3rd in the second wing depth-chart. Suddenly signing Delfino isn’t that important and we’ve gained a bargaining chip in the negotiations – we already got somebody inconsistent! Belinelli’s lack of strength on the defensive end is a concern but you could easily argue that he’s a better offensive weapon than Delfino. Belinelli’s a career 40% three-point shooter (Delfino is at 36%) and has a quicker first step, something coaches in Golden State and Europe felt he doesn’t utilize nearly enough. He’s got the slashing ability to use screens and then unleash a shot using his high release-point, something similar to what Anthony Parker did well his first year with the Raptors.

Theoretically speaking, if Belinelli could usurp Wright as one of the off-guards and get consistent minutes at the position, we could move Jack over to strictly backup PG duties, but I don’t see it happening because of Belinelli’s defense. Jack is just too good and strong of a defender to not guard the tougher SGs out there. Belinelli’s best shot at making a mark is at SF where the competition isn’t as stiff. If Delfino is out than all he’s got to do is beat Wright which isn’t inconceivable. Really, can’t say much about his role on the team until we know what we’re doing with that final roster spot.

Salary Impact

None. George makes $1,600,000, Belinelli makes $1,547,640 and both are going to enter the final year of their contracts. Belinelli has a team-option followed by a qualifying offer which works out to the Raptors’ advantage since if he shows something good, we can get him cheap ($2.4M and $3.4M, respectively). The Raptors send some cash to Golden State to make up the difference in talent and age. The amount can’t exceed $3M and it certainly isn’t even going to be close, I’m almost ready to call the amount negligible. The cash does not count against the cap for either team and if anything, we end up shedding $52,360 off the cap. Why Golden State would do this trade is a mystery and the only thing that I can conjure up is that maybe it’s easier later on to trade a player who doesn’t have options and qualifying offers attached to him. That and they believe in Anthony Morrow.

Keep in mind that the salary cap and tax will be lower next year and if Bosh signs an extension at the max, we’ll have to cross the tax level to sign these players.

Check back later in the day for a podcast.

@raptorsrepublic :: facebook :: rss feed

Still early stages and awaiting league office approval.

Both have one year left and salaries are pretty much even, but the Raptors will include some cash to make the Warriors feel better about themselves.

So the Raptors roster has filled out pretty nicely over the offseason. The team has made several nice additions while losing very few key pieces. However, after an extremely disappointing 2008-09 season, and a few obvious weaknesses still remaining, it is still difficult to tell just how well the Raptors will do in 2009-10.

Ranking the offseason moves of all NBA teams, ESPN’s Chad Ford said of the Raptors, who rank 8th:

Although I don’t think these moves suddenly make the Raptors a serious contender, I do think they’re a playoff team. Given last year’s disaster, that’s pretty significant.

But the term ‘playoff team’ means very little in a top-heavy Eastern Conference. With the power balance shifting from the West to the East this past season (an article for another time, but rest assured it happened), playoff-bound could mean a first round exit for the Raptors. In the East, behind powerhouses like the Celtics, Cavaliers, and Magic, the goal for most teams now appears to be 4th place. Not only does 4th place mean home court advantage in the first round, but it also means missing a first round matchup with either of the three aforementioned Beasts of the East.

So the question for Raps’ fans maybe shouldn’t be about Delfino, DeRozan, or 2010 Chris Bosh. Maybe we, as a collective, should be working to figure out if the 4th seed is a realistic goal for this team.

Considering the changes that accrue for a roster as offseason roster and philosophy changes are made, here is a look at the current roster based on previous performance, with the hope being to shed some light on how the Raptors stack up against the Heat, Wizards, 76ers, Bulls, Hawks, and Pistons (with apologies to those other teams).

Marcus Banks: “Laughin’ Straight to the” Banks’ $4.46M contributions can be summed up in one word: Ugh. I’d be surprised if he gets off the Inactive List this season. Last year he had a 7.83 PER, and he’s never had a PER close to 15.00 (league average). Hey, at least we’re on the hook for another year at that price tag!

Andrea Bargnani: “Il Mago” was paid this offseason. Paid. To the tune of $10M per season. Like I said, paid. Bargnani will make $6.53M this year before that extension kicks in. Last year his PER became razor close to the league average 15.00 (14.66) but things really started to look up in the second half of 2008-09, to the tune of 19.4-5.4-1.7-0.6-1.7 (P-R-A-S-B) with a 49.3% shooting percentage, 45.7% from downtown. Those numbers are mouth-watering and well worth the new price tag if he can pick up his defense and rebounding to any degree at all.

Chris Bosh: Not a lot to say about CB4, but the implicit goal of 2009-10 is to do well enough that Bosh stays for 2010-11 and beyond. He may not be a superstar, but he’s definitely a top-level player. His contract sees him earn $15.78M this year, so he’ll need to repeat his 22.7-10.0 (P-R) and 22.19 PER, but his leadership role and demeanor will be the real attributes tested this season.

Jose Calderon: Jose’s efficiency is something all point guards should strive for – he’s lead the league in assist-to-turnover ratio two years in a row, and he’s developed into one of the league’s deadliest shooters with a 61.3% true shooting percentage. His 18.88 PER is more than fine for his $8.22M contract, and the addition of Jarrett Jack should help ease his workload and keep him on the floor for 82 games.

DeMar DeRozan: He who shall remain nickname-less (for now) has been covered by yours truly. As I wrote last week (in my RR debut), DeRozan doesn’t need to be a superstar this year, but he will need to contribute immediately.

Quincy Douby: Q-Dubs probably won’t see a lot of run for the Raps this year, barring injuries, but for $0.86M he has potential as an end-of-the-roster fill-in. He’s not very efficient for a scorer (48.6 TSP and 10.26 PER), but he’s a deadly free throw shooter and good enough to score in streaks as a 12th man.

Reggie Evans: Evans is a rebounding machine. He can’t score, he can’t pass, and he doesn’t do enough to keep himself on the floor for long stretches, but he is constantly among the league leaders in Rebounding Rate. He put up 12.7 Rebounds per 40 and grabbed 19% of total rebounds when he was on the floor last year (14th in the league), making him a more-than-serviceable 4th big man for $4.96M.

Devean George: At 31 years old and with declining minutes the past two years, George was really just a salary-match in the Turkoglu sign-and-trade. George scores very little but can add veteran leadership and adequate wing defense if asked to, but it seems more likely he’ll play the Darrick Martin role or be trade bait at $1.60M expiring.

Jarrett Jack: The J-A-Double R-E-Double T (aka Angel) was a bit overpriced at a $4.5M starting salary, but I’m positive he’ll be worth it. He is a great friend of Chris Bosh, a great community member, and a great backup at the one- and two-guard. His PER has never reached the league-average 15.00 but he is a decent shooter, a great free-throw shooter, and a strong two-position defender. His contributions will, strangely, be a byproduct of DeRozan’s, as Jack will spell Calderon at the point and Wright/DeRozan at the two. Regardless of the minutes or the position, Jack is a monster depth addition to a team that sorely needed it.

Patrick O’Bryant: You would think, having been a lottery pick, that Irish Kobe would show some signs of development three years into his career. He really hasn’t, and size appears to be his only discernible ‘skill.’ Patty O is on the books for $1.62M, which can’t even be considered a bargain given that his salary would be better used bought out to clear room under the luxury tax line (or for, say, Notorious PMB aka Prince Daddy Whale Slayer aka Pops Mensah-Bonsu). Like Banks, it would be a surprise to see O’Bryant on the floor much this year.

Hedo (Hidayet) Turkoglu: Turk was the marquee acquisition for the Raptors this offseason, part of a four-team sign-and-trade, and will be the team’s second highest paid player behind Chris Bosh at roughly $10M per season. Turkoglu is a great offensive weapon, though not necessarily an efficient one with a PER of 14.82. For the Raps, though, his key attributes are floor spacing (38.5% career three point shooter), his flare for the crunch time (top-50 in Production per 48 Clutch Time Minutes), and his offensive versatility (a sterling Versatility Index of 7.6 last year). His fit with the team is not being questioned; it’s a question of earning his sizable contract over the long haul and helping move the Raptors from also-ran to contender.

Roko Ukic: Roko Leni Loco appears to be an odd man out this year. Like Banks and O’Bryant, it appears he’ll be a member of the Inactive All-Stars, the D-League, or another franchise. Ukic struggled mightily last year, thrust into a back-up role after Wo-So (In Case Y’Aint Know So) ate it and was shipped out, and didn’t look a great deal better in Summer League. Colangelo has agreed to look for a new home for him, otherwise, Roko is a $1.35M trade chip (he has a player option at $1.45M he may decline to return to Europe).

Antoine Wright: Wright was acquired in the Turkoglu deal. While he was perceived to be a throw-in, he’s a huge grab for the defensively challenged Raptors, as he can guard three positions and isn’t an offensive liability. At $2.11M expiring, Wright will be a huge part of the team as DeRozan insurance, a defensive stopper, and/or trade bait.

Rasho Nesterovic: Arsenalist did a great job summing up Rasho’s role on this team. His personality and leadership cannot be understated, and that goes double for his unintentional comedy. As the team’s 3rd or 4th big man, The Slovenian Superman is a great value at $1.9M, a necessary defensive and rebounding presence, and a lovable goofy white guy on the team that may soon be named Bosh and the Lovable Goofy White Guys.

The 15th Man: Contract or not, I’m just going to assume this is Carlos Delfino. Livin’ Good ‘Loso probably isn’t worth the $4M or $5M he’s asking for, but with the Raptors technically unable to spend that money elsewhere it makes sense to give it to him in a short-term contract. Delfino is versatile on offense and defense, continues the theme of floor-spacers who can create their own shot, and has hopefully been humbled by an unhappy year in Russia to the point of being coachable for Jay Triano.

The overall theme here is that the Raptors project as a much better team than last year. While they haven’t managed to cover up any of their defensive problems from last season….well, y’kno, sometimes guys like a girl with a fat ass. More cushion for the pushin’, after all. If that lost you – point is, it’s okay to be optimistic about a team with obvious flaws, especially when the unspoken goal is the 4th seed in the East.

The difference between 4th and 8th in the conference won’t be an extra player or a D-League find. More than likely, the onus falls to Jay Triano to get the most out of a 10-man rotation that is long on depth but short on a clear playing time hierarchy.

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Toronto Star

Rasho Nesterovic is coming back to his adopted hometown.

The veteran centre, who spent two seasons with the Raptors before being traded to Indiana a year ago, has agreed in principle to a one-year deal worth about $1.9 million (U.S.), the so-called biannual exception to the NBA’s salary cap.

The move comes as little surprise since president and general manager Bryan Colangelo has long held that the 33-year-old 7-footer is exactly the kind of solid veteran the team covets in a second unit role.

The deal also works moneywise for the Raptors, who retain any financial flexibility they will have at the end of next season.

Globe and Mail

It will be the big Slovenian’s third season with the Raptors. He played in Toronto in 2006-07 and 2007-08 before being traded to Indiana last summer as part of the multi-player trade that brought the Raptors Jermaine O’Neal. Nesterovic, 33, averaged 6.8 points and 3.4 rebounds for the Pacers last season, playing in 70 games and making 19 starts while shooting 51.3 per cent from the floor.

National Post

The move cements the team’s front court, where Reggie Evans was the only credible backup to starters Chris Bosh and Andrea Bargnani. Now, the team has a 7-foot veteran to throw into the game on those inevitable nights when Bargnani faces foul trouble. Raptors general manager Bryan Colangelo has just one move left in an off-season during which in which he has added rookie DeMar DeRozan and veterans Hedo Turkoglu, Jarrett Jack, Antoine Wright, Devean George, Evans and Nesterovic. Negotiations with former Raptor Carlos Delfino are continuing.

NY Post

The manager, Hadi Teherany, and Bosh both say they were laughing at the idea the question was asked, not the subject of the question itself.

"He was simply laughing because the caller said that out of no where, it was NOT a reaction to going or playing for the Knicks," Teherany’s Twitter page says.

"We both love and respect NYC, the fans, and the mecca of Basketball. Be clear."

"I swear the media writes up stories and accusations when it’s a slow sports day. Rediculous. (sic)"

Bosh’s Twitter page says: "I always laugh it off when people ask me to come to their cities. I wasn’t laughin’ because it was the Knicks."

NBA Roundtable

I would have preferred to have seen the Raptors sign a different type of backup big man. To go with someone more mobile, a quicker big, more of combo forward, similar to what Pops Mensah-Bonsu brought to the Raptors last season.

Someone who could cover the pick and roll well (a huge problem for Toronto last season), who could run the floor well allowing the Raptors to push the tempo, and rebound at a high level (another Raptors problem area). None of which Rasho Nesterovic does.

National Post

NBA All-Star Chris Bosh brought some glamour to a Vaughan, Ont. suburb on Friday. He dropped in at the home of Naji Naeemzada, 21, who won of the Driveway Challenge, a competition to bring a pick-up game with the Toronto Raptor to his street. Michael McKiernan was there to see it.

Hoopsvibe

Nesterovic also upgrades a defense that gave up 102 points per game in 2008-09. Former coach Sam Mitchell loved how he provided weakside help for teammates. Next season, current coach Jay Triano will expect the veteran to foster a get-stops mentality.

He’s cheap insurance. Bargnani has had health issues and struggles with consistency, while Bosh could get traded before hitting free agency next summer. If necessary, Nesterovic, a former starter, could step in for either and log heavy minutes.

The old is new again in Toronto. Like his previous run with the Raptors, Nesterovic will be a success.

Bleacher Report

And Bryan "theMangelo" ‘s latest move is one that is minor, yet major at the same time. Bringing in former Toronto Raptor Rasho Nesterovic by using the Bi-Annual Exception, for a 1 year/1.9 million dollar deal is great. He loves Toronto and is an under-rated defender. He’s a steal for the Raptors and is a great backup.

Also, these moves make Chris Bosh happier too. He was excited with the Hedo Turkoglu signing, and he was calling Turk encouraging him to sign aswell. Also, him and Jarrett Jack were teammates at Georgia Tech.

The off-season is not even half way over, and it’s a safe bet that there will be a few more tweaks made by the Raptors General Manager before the Raptors first game. And it wouldn’t be a surprise if another big signing was made either.

Bleacher Report

With a front court of Rasho, Bosh, Barney, Evans, POB(i made an acrostic poem for patrick it’s Poo On Bricks)are suited up front and ready to go. Which unless Pops Mensah-Bonsu is a actually working real hard on becoming a SF his already slim chances of returning to the ACC as a Raptor are none.

Negotiations that have been going on with another former raptor Carlos Delfino since July 1st continue. No, word on whether they are any closer to retaining the argentinian. But, he now gets his wish of being the #1 target on the raptors free agency list.

Bleacher Report

while we wait a while for those two roster spots to be filled and the Season to start and while my amigo and also arch nemesis Micheal Malcolm decides to name the best raptors squad ever. Why not do the complete opposite just to see if we can piss him off?

So, like mike’s article we’ll put the position, then the name, and why. While including honourable mentions. But, we’ll see if we can’t be a little bit creative with it as well. Let’s get this started

Beware The Claw

Throughout the media, bloggers and friends alike, the people I’ve spoken to and read were all in agreement that they wanted to see Rasho return to Toronto, a place he really didn’t want to leave in the first place.

Three reasons I LOVE this deal for the Raptors:

Salami and Cheese

I love this deal–the Raptors have signed a solid, veteran big man for cheap money. The bench looks to be getting much better, and the future looks increasingly brighter.

I believe the Raptors have around $5M left to spend, but it must be on a player the Raptors have the rights to. I’m guessing with this money, Bryan Colangelo will continue to pursue Carlos Delfino. If the front office decides not to use this $5M, the Raptors can sign whomever they wish–just at a veteran minimum. So, talent wise, bringing back Delfino makes the most sense.

Sit back, and relax Raptor fans…life is good.

Blog Talk BayHawk

I can’t praise Douby’s performance enough. He’s a talented individual, and I think he’s a more mature player at this stage of his career than he was coming out of Rutgers. It also didn’t help being stuck in Sacramento where the revolving door of coaches through off any chance for consistency. I like his chances of sticking in Toronto this season or else catching on with another NBA club.
As for the others, it’ll be interesting to see how the Raptors utilize the relationship with the BayHawks this season. Hopefully they’ll follow more in the mold of the Cavs and be open to development assignments and less like the 76ers who seemed very unconcerned with their Erie affiliation last season. In any case, welcome aboard Toronto. Summer League is fun, and hopefully the rest of the year will follow suit.

Toronto Sun

Bryan Colangelo insisted all along last season that he liked his Raptors roster. So I went on vacation and he blew it up real good. Have to be impressed with the quick work done by the Raptors GM — which puts the team into playoff contention, but still nowhere near Orlando, Cleveland or Boston in the East

Le Basketbawl

Bargnani is a kid who right now is an above-average player in which I will be a superstar soon. He’s an amazing player to watch with his stupendous abilities for his position. He can shoot and rebound, but it’s not like every NBA center. His shooting is just too good.

His best season was just last year as he had averages of 15 points and five rebounds per game. He’s been doing very well so far and in his short career, and has a very long way to go. Watch out for this kid, he’s looking good.

Celtics17

As for the Raptors article, I think many people believed I was a big Raptors-hater but I wasn’t deliberately trying to imply that. Although I did say nothing but negative about Toronto, I think I have changed my mind a bit. Although I still believe Toronto won’t make the playoffs next year, I did mention the year after that. I totally messed up on some parts by leaving out other Raptor stars like Andrea Bargnani. And now with Jarrett Jack, I do see them as a playoff-contender now. I really don’t know but I think they’ll be nothing better than about the seventh seed.

Las Vegas Review Journal

The Toronto Raptors have left Las Vegas after completing their NBA Summer League run. But their coach is sticking around for another week.

Jay Triano will oversee the USA Basketball minicamp at Valley High School beginning Thursday. Twenty-five players will participate with the hopes of being invited back to Las Vegas in 2010 as Team USA prepares for the FIBA World Basketball Championships in Turkey.

"I think we want them to get an understanding of what the national team represents, and we want them to understand the international game," Triano said of his primary goals for the three-day camp, which will culminate with the USA Basketball Showcase intrasquad game Saturday at the Thomas & Mack Center. "I want to keep it similar to what Coach K (Mike Krzyzewski) does and keep it as simple as possible."

Boston Herald

The decreasing cap means little personally to James, Wade and Bosh, especially if they re-sign with their teams. What it can do is crush any hopes they might have of playing somewhere together, because a cap in the low $50 million range would make it difficult to afford two maximum salary players and fill out a professional roster around them.

But if that’s going to convince them to stay put, would they decide to do it now?

The All-Star trio can receive three-year extensions, tacked on to the two years left on their current deals, for a total value of about $95.2 million through the 2013-14 season.

If they opt out of their deals next summer and re-sign with their current teams, they would be allowed to sign six-year contracts. That would earn them $125.7 million through 2015-16. Signing with another team limits deals to five years with smaller annual raises each season, giving them a top value of $96.2 million.

The Inside

First of all, Jarrett Jack doesn’t have to start to give his team production in the NBA. He has only started a full season once for Portland and a few games last year due to injuries to a point guard controversy following injuries to TJ. During Ford’s absence, Jack flourished with the chance to get quality minutes averaging over 15 points per game. In my opinion, Jack will do a great job replacing Calderon if he gets injured or coming off the bench as a spark plug. I can pretty much assure you that the point guard controversy will not follow Jarrett to T-Dot.

He will be able to offer leadership to a team with young players such as Bargs or D squared (my new nickname for DeRozan).

Bleacher Report

Turkoglu was one of the NBA’s best last year, as he is an outstanding shooter who causes a lot of match-up issues. He is one of the two biggest difference makers in this deal. Geoge and Wright each bring strong shooting and defense to their new team.

Raptors Rapture

DeMar DeRozan: DeRozan showed why he was the Raptors first round pick this year averaging 17.0 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 1.2 apg, and 0.8 spg in 32.6 minutes a game. DeRozan struggled from beyond the arc but the Raptors knew that when they drafted him. On the other hand it seemed like he could get to the rim whenever he wanted and look every bit the high flying guard that we thought we were getting. DeRozan should be the 6th man for the Raptors for the majority of his first year in the league, developing on the bench while providing a scoring boost when he is put on the court.

New York Daily News

Toronto doled out big dough (four years, $20 million) to Jarrett Jack, a reserve, but the Raptors hope it helps keep Chris Bosh in the fold. The Raptors are operating under the assumption that the Pacers will not match their offer sheet this week. Jack and Bosh were incoming freshmen at Georgia Tech in 2002 and played one season together. … Shawn Marion’s new deal in Dallas is for $39 million over five years, with bonuses that can get him over the $40 million mark. …

Let it not be said that BryCo doesn’t do work. In what is the craziest trade this franchise ever made, B.C. Colangelo turned Marion, Humphries and Uni-brow (Douby) into Hedo (don’t call me Hedu) Turkoglu, Devean George, Antoine Wright while being able to keep our mid-level exception (actually they have just under $8mil to sign whoever they want – Twitter source – I’m not going to verify, but take at face value -> at the very least we have the mid-level).

To Toronto:
Hedo Turkoglu (Orlando)
Devean George (Dallas)
Antoine Wright (Dallas)
Mid-Level Exception: $5.6mill+ (Jah)

To Dallas:
Shawn Marion (Toronto)
Kris Humphries (Toronto)
Greg Buckner (Memphis)

To Orlando:
Trade Exception: $10mill (Jah)

To Memphis:
Jerry Stackhouse (Dallas)
Quincy Douby (Toronto)
Cash (Cuban’s left pocket)

Oh, and we didn’t have to rescind our offers to Carlos and Pops. Now, if we can do something about Banks, we might actually have a team that can win some games on our hands. That all sound about right?

Clearly last nights heroic interpretation of the CBA and shrewd deal-making has the left the Raptors much better off then if they just went out and signed Turkoglu (thank God for the week between July 1st and the cap being announced, or I shudder to think…). If Carlos and Pops accept their qualifying offers (whatever they are), the Raptors will look something like this:

PG – Calderon / Ukic / Banks
SG – Delfino / DeRozan / Wright
SF – Turkoglu / George / Wright
PF – Bosh / Evans / Pops
C – Bargnani / O’Bryant / Jawai

AND you have to include the mid-level in there somewhere, ALSO, we could be in line for our bi-annual exception, about $2mil (LLE) … depending on league approval on the details of the furry of movements taken place. (There you go, mid-level + bi-annual exceptions = under $8mill, there, above Twitter source is verified, thanks Gagan) I would look at bringing into a REAL backup point guard [Royal Ivey], a wing [Linas Kleiza] and possibly a center [Rasho Nesterovic]. We would have to definitely get rid of Banks and maybe one of Jawai/O’Bryant to accommodate these three, but just imagine:

PG – Calderon / Ivey / Ukic
SG – Delfino / DeRozan / Wright
SF – Turkoglu / Kleiza / George
PF – Bosh / Evans / Pops
C – Bargnani / Nesterovic / Jawai

That is a pretty solid team that would be in the 45-49 (I just have a hard time saying 50 wins because our coaching is…lacking…) fighting for 5th/6th in the East, and who I would be proud to blog/tweet for . Even Chris approves.

On another quick note, the Magic get a $10mill trade exception??!?!?!!!????? That is ridiculous…they can pretty much acquire whoever they want, under $10mil of course, during the season…the list is almost endless…but, imagine they go after Josh Smith (who Atlanta is reportedly shopping), and field a starting lineup of: Nelson, Carter, Lewis, Smith and Howard…LOL

Let it not be said that I can’t eat crow with the best of them…I forgot to include crucial info in my Tuesday’s post, some of you ripped me a new one (thanks for keeping me on my toes), and some of you stood by me (thanks for being good peoples).

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… Free Ukic … No Pirates …