Euro Basket era done... For now at least...

There is and will be plenty of things to talk about in the next day or so including Chris Bosh, Lebron James, Collusion, trade exceptions and legacies but for now lets get to the news of the day.

After being locked up like a coiled spring during the Chris Bosh '3 Kings' fiasco, all of general manager Bryan Colangelo's thoughts, permutations and internal science experiments have been released.

The result? Essentially Turkoglu and Calderon gone. Leandro Barbosa, Boris Diaw and Tyson Chandler in, dramatically reshaping the roster and philosophy of the team once again.

All the details still need to be finalized due to the complexity of the trades but they breakdown somewhere in this neighbourhood:

Toronto trades Turkoglu to Phoenix for Leandro Barbosa and a small portion of Poenix's trade exception ($2 million roughly) or Dwayne Jones.

Toronto Trades Jose Calderon and either the trade exception acquired for Chris Bosh or the combination of Marcus Banks, Reggie Evans and Dwayne Jones/small trade exception from Phoenix to Charlotte for Boris Diaw and Tyson Chandler.

Obviously these moves all have to be ironed out and approved by the league but a quick analysis:

Barbosa

A scoring combo guard that will likely come off the bench for Jarrett Jack or spot start at either guard positions. Barbosa would fit in well with the 'young gunz' because of his willingness to run the floor and incredible quickness. He also gives the Raptors the change of pace point guard they have been looking for now for a few years.

The downfall is that he has suffered through injuries that may limit his strengths.

Boris Diaw

A versatile forward that will most likely fill the void Turkoglu left at the starting small forward position. Diaw can play multiple positions and despite superficial differences is a very similar player to Turkoglu. He can shoot with range, pass the ball, rebound and score. He is not as good as Turkoglu at any of these things, and is more of a post player but has some similar skill sets.

Diaw, much like Turkoglu has had a problem staying in shape and in turn has lead to some consistency issues.

Tyson Chandler

The type of legitimate starting center the Raptors have never had. His rebounding and shot blocking ability combined with his proficiency at the pick and roll and athleticism make him a perfect compliment to Andrea Bargnani.

Injuries have always been Chandlers downfall, he has limited offensive game which may hurt Toronto now that they only have a few offensive threats.

The Outlook

The Raptors have essentially traded 1 1/2 starters for 2 1/2 which when you get down brass tacks is never bad. Let's look at the projected depth chart:

Jack/Barbosa
DeRozen/Weems
Diaw/Kleiza
Bargnani/Davis
Chandler/Johnson

A lot will depend on what type of system they use offensively but there is no doubt that at this point Toronto has a glut of big men. Four man big rotations rarely work and when considering Diaw is more of a power forward then a small forward, coach Jay Triano will have to be very creative with his sets. Using Diaw as a point forward at the 3 spot would open up playing time for all parties.

Offensively the Raptors have diminished since losing Bosh, Calderon and Turkoglu, while some of the offense can be made up from Barbosa and Diaw there is no doubt that the offence could sputter at times this coming year.

Defensively Toronto has the potential to improve exponentially especially on the back end. Chandler, Davis, Alabi and Johnson are all capable shot-blockers and compliment Bargnani well who better excels as a one-on-one defender. While Diaw and Barbosa are not the best defenders either it will be an addition by subtraction by nixing the deficiencies of Calderon and Turkoglu.

The financial implications are the key however. Chandlers deal expires this year, which makes him easily movable at the deadline and should spark a great on-court performance from him in a contract year.

Both Diaw and Barbosa have two years left on their deals as opposed to 3 and 4 years for Calderon and Turkoglu respectively. This gives Colangelo the financial flexibility he covets.

If it turns out that the deal includes Evans and Banks, and does not include our trade exception, this could be a home run for Colangelo.

More to come.

- J.Moore

Bosh to Miami

To Sign and Trade or Not

Call it a high stakes game of poker, a chicken match or staring contest to see who will blink first.

It's a game that at times has to be played in the NBA fraternity and while Bryan Colangelo is not a regular proponent of these games, with so much on the line he has been forced to go all in.

Euphemisms aside, were talking about Chris Bosh joining Dwayne Wade in Miami. That we know is going to happen, at this point it is much more about which conduit will be chosen.

Reports out of Miami last night and this morning state that for the first time Bosh is seriously considering signing outright with Miami and thus forfeiting an extra year on his contract and roughly an extra $30 million that he could receive by working with Toronto on a sign and trade. It has long been reported that both the Raptors and Bosh would work together to benefit both sides.

Time will tell whether Bosh is serious about giving up the money, security and status a max deal would provide but this sudden change in direction likely stems from a deteriorating relationship between the Raptors and Bosh.

The Raptors have been unimpressed with the way Bosh has conducted himself throughout the free agent process. Keeping a vigorous and undying commitment to his twitter account Bosh has seemed to let everyone in accept his soon to be former franchise.

Bosh and his camp likely feel as if they owe the Toronto franchise in which he is the franchise leader in almost every statistical category nothing and feels put off by comments coming out of Toronto.

If spite is all that stands between a sign and trade or not then you have to think one will get done. Bosh has said all along that he is a max player and will accept nothing else. The status alone seems to be a key to Bosh and his ego would probably not allow him to sign alongside Dwayne Wade for less then his counterpart.

Toronto cannot afford to let Bosh go for nothing. They have enough salary obligations that they are not in a full rebuilding mode and would gain no cap relief by letting Bosh go for nothing. The Raptors need any assets they can get to save face and assist the rebuilding process quicker especially when you consider Miami owns the rights to the Raptors 2011 first round pick.

By extrapolating all the factors my educated guess is that this is the snag: Miami wants Toronto to take Beasley not Chalmers because Beasley plays the same position as Bosh and Miami like Chalmers fit-wise with Bosh and Wade. It has been reported that Colangelo has no interest in Beasley and wants to play hardball with Miami after the way they have been recruiting Bosh seemingly much longer then the Collective Bargaining Agreement would allow.

So who blinks first; Colangelo or Riley?

Stay tuned over the next 24 hours, also check my twitter feed for quick updates- @jefmoore

- J.Moore

Player Profile: Amir Johnson

5 Years, $34 Million

Free agency started not with a boom but a sparkle as the first shoe too drop was not Lebron James, Dwayne Wade or Chris Bosh but none other then Drew Gooden. Needless to say shockwaves were felt all over the vast NBA landscape. The trend continued with career back-up big men such former second overall pick Darko Millicic signing a deal that would net him a $5 million salary annually and Channing Frye re-upping in Phoenix for $30 million over 5 years.

The local rubber-ballers were not too be shut out on the action by re-signing their own free agent back-up big man Amir Johnson to a $34 million deal that would in theory keep him in Toronto for the next 5 years. The signing of Johnson was not a surprise, it has been long been anticipated with both sides showing a strong commitment to each other in recent months.

What is somewhat surprising is the timing and financial implications. As recently as last week Johnson stated he didn't expect to sign a deal with any team right away, rather he would wait for the dust to settle amongst the big free agents and then make his decision. What may have changed his tune is the fact that the Raptors outbid themselves by offering Johnson $7 million annually.

Strictly from a player personnel move it was the right one. Amir had continued growth all season and seemed to be finding a starting calibre groove towards the end of the season. An excellent compliment to Andrea Bargnani because of his strength on the defensive end, rebounding and blocking shots and offensively getting most of his points in transition, put backs and alley-oops, Johnson doesn't take touches away from Bargnani or Turkoglu (presumed to to have a good shot at returning now).

The money is certainly the problem. Most fans or professional Toronto pundits will try to justify it because they like Amir as a player and the fact that without Chris Bosh Toronto had very little depth in the front court. The fact remains though that Colangelo has once again gambled with house money. Betting that Amir Johnson can be a consistent starter or at the very least play starter minutes even though he has had a penchant for committing fouls at a high clip over his career.

At 23 years old Johnson could still continue to grow and possibly be in the perfect situation to maximize his talents in the pick and roll with either Jose Calderon or Jarrett Jack. The problem right now is that this deal reeks too me of Dan Gadzuric and if you just said 'who?' then that should say it all.

I like the player, I don't like the financial commitment.

The Outlook

So from a bigger perspective, what does this mean for the Raptors? Well at the very least they now have the makings of a front court rotation with Johnson and Bargnani starting and Ed Davis coming off the bench. Athletically at least it matched the combination they had last year with Bosh in the mix and they have the potential to be better defensively but overall will be no comparison to a front court with Bosh.

The interesting angle to look at from this point on is how this signing and Amir fit into the master plan, if Colangelo has one. Conventional wisdom and the talent available always suggested that if Bosh were to be involved in a sign and trade it would involve a big man coming back from the other team. Names such as Andrew Bynum, Taj Gidson, David Lee and even Luis Scola have all been linked to the Raptors.

This now begs a few questions, with the signing of Amir and the drafting of Ed Davis, does that not make some of these names redundant? Can you have a back up making $7 million a year?

We should find out the answer to these question Monday or Tuesday of next week, it is believed that is when Lebron will make his decision with the other (including Chris Bosh) to follow suit.

- J.Moore

Players to Watch

Looking a few weeks ahead

The Toronto Raptors can't and won't be active on the free agent market until the big players make their decision but when they do here are a few names to watch for:

Travis Outlaw

An athletic veteran small forward that can slash to the basket, defend and shoot a bit. Still young enough to warrant potential but been around the league enough to be a true professional. If is Turkoglu is moved, he would be a good player to pair with DeRozen and Weems.

Udanis Haslim

More then likely out of our price range however with so many high profile free agents on the market, especially at the forward position bargains are there for the taking. He would be a solid presence beside Andrea Bargnani providing defence and rebounding. He however will be sought after by other more established contending teams and may even be willing to take a pay cut to come back to Miami.

Ryan Gomes

Traded multiple times and just waived by the Portland Trailblazers, Gomes is a guy that could be had for cheap and is more valuable then his resume suggests. With the ability to play both forward positions and defend he would be a valuable player off the bench for Toronto.

Luke Ridnour

Another player that has been undervalued throughout his career that could be a a great back-up option to either Jose Calderon or Jarrett Jack. He can shoot the ball and while not a dynamic defensive player he competes and plays hard.

Matt Barnes

Should be targeted and offered the full mid-level exception by the Raptors yesterday. The exact type of player the Raptors have loved and need. An excellent defender, can shoot the ball and has a knack for rebounding at his position. With or without Turkoglu Barnes would be a great fit.

Other notable players Toronto should have interest in: Steve Blake, Devin Brown, Kyle Korver, Craig Smith, Chris Wilcox