Morning Coffee

Thirty years in the business and I have never seen such acceptance of choking down the stretch as I saw in the Toronto Raptors locker room after they failed to make the playoffs.

Chris Bosh is right about one thing: It’s time for the Raptors to spend some money, exceed the salary cap and forget about the NBA luxury tax. Raptors fans have been extremely supportive. They deserve far more than what management and ownership has provided in return.

Success will be defined differently for each top free agent. Bosh might have been satisfied by a mere show of progress — a playoff berth, a seven-game series, maybe a second-round appearance.

He’s basically boxed himself in and now Colangelo must realize his next move is to try to capitalize on Bosh’s market value. That is why Bosh must go.

Colangelo cannot begin next season with Turkoglu, Bargnani and Calderon in the starting lineup. Not after the softness and lack of self-respect they have shown this season.

"I give them credit," said Kuester. "They really shot the ball truly well. You shoot 60% on three and 60% overall. I know our defense wasn't all that great, but I still give them a lot of credit. "

General manager Bryan Colangelo has had busy off-seasons in the past, but the one that looms is shaping up to be his biggest, a summer that assuredly will define his time in Toronto and by extension dictate his future.

Turkoglu has got three games left to change all the negativity; three games to be the leader Bryan Colangelo signed him to be. Score like he was expected to and he could turn a lot of boos into cheers.

“We know if we play this way on Sunday, we have a good chance to win,” said Jose Calderon, the Toronto point guard. “It’s not like (the Bulls) are the best team in the league.”

If you break it down by minute, Bargnani is actually shooting slightly less frequently when Bosh is out of the lineup, at the precise time when they need more offence.

“I feel really hurt today when I was out there and we missed a couple of shots and several fans booed us,” said Calderon. “I took it a little bit personal (because) I give a lot to this team and it was a tough situation. We're trying to win, we're trying to go to the…