Yet another opportunity for the Raptors to head in the right direction
If the Raptors are, in fact, presented with the opportunity to end this week with the following player roster:
PG: Jack, Belinelli and Banks
OG: Weems and Barbosa
SF: DeRozan and Kleiza
PF: Diaw, Johnson, Davis, Evans and Dorsey
C: Chandler, Alabi and Jones;
while being able to preserve the full ‘TPE’ which they just received from Miami …
as suggested in this blog entry
… then, they should jump at it immediately, as:
i. A legitimate way out of their current mess with a 1-dimensional player like Andrea Bargnani [C] at the core of their team:
and,
ii. Yet another feasible opportunity to gradually build a legitimate contender in the Eastern Conference which could eventually be able to win a league championship in the not-too-distant future.
Bryan Colangelo is a resourceful and hard-working GM. He just needs to be pointed in the right drection by the people working around him. 
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PS. That’s the sort of roster which just might allow the Raptors to obtain a player like Harrison Barnes [i.e. Exhibit 1 & 2] through the 2011 NBA Draft.
Update:
PPS. Just to clarify the specific trade proposal outlined here, for the benefit of those who still might be confused by it … and, to distinguish it from what’s been proposed by other ‘sources’ in the on-line hoops community … this is what it would actually look like, according to the ESPN NBA Trade Machine. And, you know what? Michael Jordan might then actually decide to go through with it, rather than getting cold feet at the last minute.
Tags: Andrea Bargnani, Boris Diaw, Charlotte Bobcats, Dwayne Jones, Harrison Barnes, Hedo Turkoglu, Jose Calderon, Leandro Barbosa, Michael Jordan, Phoenix Suns, Toronto Raptors, Tyson Chandler
July 12th, 2010 at 2:15 pm
How inaccurate is that line up? Where’s Bargnani?? Multiple players playing out of natural position. Evans was traded and i think Jones too. Why is Belinelli hilighted??
lets go raps!
July 12th, 2010 at 3:31 pm
confused,
1. Welcome aboard!
2. Trust that what I’ve written, in this case, is exactly what I meant to write.
3. If the Raptors are going to trade Calderon to Charlotte then, IMO, this is precisely what their line-up SHOULD look like heading towards the start of next season … which would also include the shipping of their “albatross” to the Bobcats, in exchange for a player like Chandler, while allowing them to keep the full TPE they received from the Heat.
That, my friend, would be a trade proposal I would have to accept, which would then take their team in a whole different [and more productive!] direction.
Here’s hoping the Raptors’ brain-trust is actually smart enough to pull THAT off!
July 13th, 2010 at 1:26 am
Harrison Barnes by every account is far and away the most talented player in his draft class and has legitimate All NBA potential.
He will most likely be the overall # 1 selection in next years NBA Draft so to be able to be in the position to select him, the Raptors are going to have win 20-25 games next season.
So, are you saying the roster you have listed above is going to be capable of losing 50 games next season? B/C we all know BC is going to do everything in his power to finish .500, miss the playoffs by a few games and receive another late lottery pick therefore eliminating the opportunity to select Mr. Barnes.
July 14th, 2010 at 1:06 am
SS,
re: Harrison Barnes as the No. 1 [overall] Draft Pick next summer
Yes, the roster above without Bargnani … and with Tyson Chandler [who is frequently injured], instead … has a better chance of finishing lower in the league standings than a roster with him on it, in Toronto.
In the NBA Draft, you really don’t know exactly how things will play out until, at least, the mid-point of the NCAA campaign, when the majority of players have begun to solidify their positions relative to their peers.
e.g. At one time … approx. in the fall of 2005 … Rudy Gay was considered to be the consensus No. 1 [overall] selection in the 2006 NBA Draft. 5 months later, after a mostly underwhelming campaign, he was dropped in the Lottery while a relative newbie like Andrea Bargnani was suddenly elevated to the No. 1 [overall] position.
Moral of the story?
If the Raptors can get themselves into the Lottery for next season they just might be able to collar a real “stud” like Harrison Barnes.
The 2nd way for them to go about increasing their chances of finding a real “stud” in next year’s NBA Draft is by accumulating as many 1st Round picks – and/or moveable assets who they can then trade for 1st Round picks – as possible, from potential trade partners who might find themselves towards the bottom of the league standings next season.
And, IMO, it’s a myth that you have to get the No. 1 [overall] Draft Pick to end up with a real “stud” when selecting somewhere in the Low Lottery positions [e.g. #1-5], since almost every year there are all sorts of mistakes made by mediocre-to-poor GMs in the NBA, who don’t really know what they’re doing when it comes to correctly identifying the top grade NBA talent.
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Unfortunately, however, I also happen to agree with your observation which says, in this current situation, Bryan Colangelo is most likely going to do everything possible to ensure that the Raptors have a solid shot at contending for a playoff position next season, which in his mind means keeping Andrea Bargnani on-board, at all costs.