I've been away for a few days due to a death in the work family. SIDENOTE: It is a sad thing to see someone taken by a disease that there is no cure for. After the past few months, I am now making it a habit to donate to cancer research and I encourage you all to do the same if you can afford it. END SIDENOTE
Alright, now that I've said my peace on that, let me get through a few of these breakdowns today so I can get back on track.
Toronto just made a trade this week by sending Jason Kapono to the 76ers for Reggie Evans. I originally had Jordan Hill slotted in this pick, but I had to rethink the pick...and basically the rest of the draft.
Follow me inside to get a look at the newest Toronto Raptor...
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2009 Free Agents
- Carlos Delfino (Restricted - playing overseas)
- Joey Graham (Restricted)
- Pops Mensah-Bonsu (Restricted)
- Shawn Marion (Unrestricted)
- Anthony Parker (Unrestricted)
- Jake Voskuhl (Unrestricted)
With Marion and Parker on the list of free agents for this team, it opens up some salary cap space for this team. I'd assume Joey Graham and Pops Mensah-Bonsu will be brought back, but again, for the sake of this, I am going to assume that all the players will walk.
Depth Chart (Pre-Draft)
PG: Jose Calderon - Roko Ukic - Marcus Banks
SG:
SF:
PF: Chris Bosh - Kris Humphries - Reggie Evans - Nathan Jawai
C: Andrea Bargnani - Patrick O'Bryant - Reggie Evans - Nathan Jawai
Draft Picks (Mock-Picks)
- 9th overall - Gerald Henderson, SG, Duke - Henderson would definitely be a shot in the arm to this team. Is he the 9th best player in this draft class? No, probably not, but who's to really say with this class. Henderson is the child of a former NBA player, so he knows how to carry himself and would be a great addition to the Raptors.
Depth Chart (Post-Draft)
PG: Jose Calderon - Roko Ukic - Marcus Banks
SG: Gerald Henderson
SF:
PF: Chris Bosh - Kris Humphries - Reggie Evans - Nathan Jawai
C: Andrea Bargnani - Patrick O'Bryant - Reggie Evans - Nathan Jawai
Players on Trade Block
- Chris Bosh
Bosh has already said that he won't sign a contract extension this summer, which means to me that he is looking to bolt next summer when free agency hits. The Raptors could strike it rich if they send Bosh out this summer and grab some picks from a team that is hungry for a big post presence. Say...Oklahoma City, Memphis, or even Minnesota.
Final Analysis
This team has plenty of holes to fill and the trade of Kapono for Evans sort of tells me that they are possibly looking at dealing Bosh. Bargnani had a breakout year last year, so I'll be interested to see if he can expound on that this season. Most likely lottery bound this season if they don't make some moves or signings.
Comments
That would be an interesting trade to say the least. Mini-Colangelo should just blow this thing up and start over.
Trade Bosh and Calderon and re-tool like the Thunder and Trailblazers have. It wouldn't be a popular move at first, but in the long run, it would be their best move....in my opinion.
Say the Bulls traded Gordon and Tyrus Thomas plus their late 1st round pick for Bosh. That would give them a SG and PF to start up a fast paced lineup with Bargnani and Calderon. Say they go with DeRozan at #9, now they have a freak at the SF position. With the Bulls pick at 26 maybe they get Ty Lawson or Patrick Mills, too. If they took the Bulls 16th pick instead they could take Austin Daye, Earl Clark or James Johnson. They would have a roster filled with speed and athleticism almost immediately.
PG - Calderon - Lawson/Mills
SG - Gordon -
SF - DeRozan -
PF - Tyrus Thomas - Evans - Humphries
C - Bargnani - Evans - O'Bryant
or something like that...
That looks like a lineup similar to the running style the Suns had with Colangelo's dad.
That is definitely a reasonable trade too.
How would you feel about the Bull's playoff chances if they acquired Bosh?
I'd feel very good as long as they used their first round pick on a swingman. They would keep Hinrich if Gordon left so here is what I'm looking at:
PG: Rose - Hinrich
SG: Salmons - Hinrich - Terrance Williams (16th pick)
SF: Deng - Free Agent - Terrance Williams (16th pick) - Tim Thomas
PF: Bosh - Miller - Noah
C: Noah - Bosh - Miller - Gray
That would be a nice second unit with Hinrich leading the way.
They seem to be missing some pieces.....ha! Bosh to the Bulls for some draft picks and a sign/trade of Ben Gordon?