Delfino, who averaged career highs in points (9.0) and rebounds (4.4) last season for Toronto, likely will not return, even though he received a qualifying offer from the club last month. Delfino is a restricted free agent, meaning that Toronto would have the right to match any offer he receives. But the Raptors are unlikely to exceed the NBA salary cap to keep him.
The 6-foot-6 Argentine guard has garnered interest around the NBA, reportedly from the San Antonio Spurs and even his former team, the Detroit Pistons. Delfino had three inconsistent seasons with the Pistons and his trade to Toronto in June 2007 was not an unpopular move. There also is word that Delfino has been offered a huge contract by Khimik of the Russian League, for far more than anything he could get in the NBA.
Delfino’s departure and the arrival of both Ukic, who will play for Croatia at the final Olympic qualifying tournament next week in Athens, and Jawai, whose draft rights were picked up by the Raptors in the T.J. Ford-Jermaine O’Neal trade earlier this month, would bring the number of players under contract in Toronto to 12. The Raptors signed utility forward Hassan Adams to a one-year deal earlier this week.
They’ll be looking hard at 6-10 forward Pape Sow (pronounced POP SOH), 26, who is attempting a comeback of his own. A native of Senegal like Mavs center DeSagana Diop and director of player personnel Amadou Gallo Fall, the 250-pound Sow had his development with the Toronto Raptors cut short by a scary neck injury during summer league in 2006.
He played in just seven games in 2006-07, his third season in the NBA. He played for the Suns’ summer-league team last year before playing in Poland.
“It was a hard time for me coming back from my injury,” Sow said. “I’m very happy to be back playing the same way I used to play. Last year I was a little bit intimidated because of my neck, but now I’m at the point where I don’t feel any pain.”
Sow, out of Cal State-Fullerton, never played more than 42 games in a season with Toronto. His skills are raw, but his energy and aggressiveness on the boards and on defense can be infectious in spurts.
“I’m a power forward, but to be honest, you put me out there and I can guard anybody, it doesn’t matter,” Sow said. “I’m just going out there hustling, that’s my job.”
“This is a well-deserved opportunity for Joel,” said Lewis Jackson, ASU’s head basketball coach. “He spent a lot of time in the off-season working on ball handling and shooting. And now it’s paying off.”
Bosh averaged 6.6 points and 4.4 rebounds per game, while also leading ASU in steals. It was that defensive prowess that Jackson pointed to as one of Bosh’s greatest assets.
“Joel has a really long frame and he plays with great effort,” Jackson said. “He can match-up at several positions and guard almost any on the court. There are always opportunities for players who work as hard as Joel.”
At the end of his final season, Bosh received the ASU Coaches’ Award for the dedication and commitment to his team.
I’m actually more intrigued by the Raptors. I like Jermaine O’Neal’s game when he’s on the court. I’m also a Jose Calderon fan. And Toronto can get outrageously hot from deep at times.
Nathan Jawai from the Cairns Taipans is headed for the NBA in a big way after signing a two-year guaranteed deal with the Toronto Raptors.
The 21-year-old Queenslander’s trade to the Raptors was made official only on Thursday.
“We have agreed to terms with the Toronto Raptors on a guaranteed two-year deal, which is rare for a second round pick and certainly displays the promise they see in Nathan,” the player’s agent Daniel Moldovan said.
“We are thrilled that Nathan has gone to such a first-class organisation and that he will be playing behind two of the true superstars of the NBA in Jermaine O’Neal and Chris Bosh.
“What this means is that Nathan will not only be on the Raptors roster immediately, as opposed to developing further in the NBL, but he will be right in the thick of the minutes given that the team is going with a big man rotation featuring O’Neal, Bosh, (Andrea) Bargnani, Jawai and (Kris) Humphries.”
If the Raptors aren’t going to acquire or develop a high scoring swingman, they are going to meet the same fate as other teams that “look good on paper.”
Teams like the Nuggets and, Kidd/Carter, Nets had several All-Stars on the roster and should have won lots of games.
The balance of attack and deep rosters that contenders like Boston, San Antonio, and Detroit bring to the table were eerily absent for those two squads, just as they are for the Raptors.
Toronto, in an attempt to build this current team, has let go of strong supporting players and potential stars in the likes of T.J. Ford, Charlie Villanueva, and Roy Hibbert.
Rather than adding another low post scorer, it seems the more logical approach would have been to seek out a high-scoring shooter or deepen the reserves with role-players and attempt to shore up the Raptor’s abysmal defense.
Without a stronger bench and an explosive guard, this squad will continue to make the playoffs.
They will likely be contending for the Atlantic title with Boston, but will continue to get pummeled in the playoffs when they match-up against the deeper teams that dominate that conference.
Not since Tracy McGrady was a young star playing with Vince Carter have the Raptors had that kind of dynamic duo, and that one only lasted a year with one just fresh out of high school, so it wasn’t much of a trial. Bosh and O’Neal, who claims his knee problems are finally behind him, will give it an honest go together this year and the degree to which they can make headway will go a long way to determining whether Triano is ever going to get consideration as a head coach in the league.
Triano is in Las Vegas right now with the Raptors’ summer-league team, but when that breaks up, he stays on to join the U.S. Olympic team preparations in the city so favored by NBA stars. His job is to work with the young players or “next wave” of U.S. Olympians while showing them the differences between the NBA and international basketball.
“Last year when I did it, we had players like Andre Iguodala, Al Jefferson, Jason Kapono and J.J. Reddick, and our job was to play against the big team every day and give them an international look, to give them some idea of what they could expect,” said Triano, who always seems to be on the road gaining coaching experience and insight during the summer. “It was a great experience last year, and it was total basketball immersion from early in the morning until late at night with coaches like Jim Boeheim, Mike D’Antoni and Mike Krzyzewski. I have to say I really enjoyed it and I learned a tremendous amount. We’re doing it again this year, and then right after, that I’m on to Beijing for CBC, and then back to run our rookie camp, and then training camp.
“It’s funny how it’s worked out [since his firing and the subsequent hiring of now national coach Leo Rautins], but sometimes things work out for the better.”
Triano is looking forward to the NBA season as well, given the trade which gives the Raptors a different look and some promise that’s been missing a long while.
“We tried Bargnani a little bit in the three spot during the playoffs and he had a little trouble guarding, so there may be times we try to have all three big guys on at one time,” Triano said of a decision Mitchell will ultimately have to make.
“The way we’re looking at it for the most part is that we’ll have two outstanding big men in the game at all times, and all three will play two-thirds of the game. It may not work out exactly that way, but in theory, that’s the way we’re thinking, and we think this is going to be a solid team.”
The Raptors have a few roster spots open right now … so the Summer League could be a chance for guys like John Lucas, Rod Benson, or others to strut their stuff and maybe earn a contract on the big club.
Assuming Primoz Brezec and Carlos Delfino (free agents) are elsewhere next season, Toronto’s roster sits at 12 right now (including Ukic). There are rumblings that T.O. may only add one more body and not carry a full 15-man roster. But you’ve got to assume that they’ll add at least one more player and go with 13. If that’s the case, the Summer League could prove to be very important … unless the Raps dip into the free agent market with the little (VERY little) amount of money they have to spend.
the breathless promo on WTHR-13 forced me to prop open my eyes through the end of the broadcast: “Trashing Our Town” it read, referring to Jermaine O’Neal’s comments at his introductory news conference with the Toronto Raptors. And since I spoke with him for a half hour about anything and everything on draft day, I wondered, “What did he say to Toronto-area reporters that I didn’t hear a few days ago?”
And then the TV played an incredibly innocuous clip of O’Neal saying, in essence, that the last couple of years with the Indiana Pacers wore on him emotionally and that the atmosphere around the team had become increasingly toxic.
I wondered, “When does he start trashing the Pacers?” Or “our town”?
The promo was less accurate than the daily weather forecast, which is in an 0-for-86 slump.
Let’s get this much straight: O’Neal loved it here. He immersed himself into this community. On a team of players who didn’t always care about anybody except themselves, O’Neal was a treasure, continually spending money and, more important, time in this community.
O’Neal needed to go. Not because he’s a bad guy or a lousy teammate, but because it was time, both for him and for this franchise.
And he will prosper.
O’Neal, who has spent the past three offseasons rehabbing after surgery, is finally healthy and concentrating this summer on conditioning.
More important, though, he has been given an emotional jump-start, a chance to compete for a long-shot championship, an opportunity to play with a solid point guard (Jose Calderon) and an established forward (Chris Bosh).
I’ll make this prediction: O’Neal will be an All-Star in 2008-09.
Jermaine O’Neal goes to Toronto, while T.J. Ford gets swapped to Indiana.
On paper, this seems like a wash for the East. Not if both teams end up stronger than they were. O’Neal, oft-injured and so sensitive, is at the put-up-or-shut-up stage of his career; if he has it in him to complement and draw defenders away from Chris Bosh, now’s the time to do it.
Equally important, the Raptors can flip the keys full time to Jose Calderon, in whom O’Neal saw a toughness, a “swagger,” when they had dinner Tuesday night. That clears up the muddle at point guard that, at one time last season, had Calderon voluntarily taking a seat on the bench because Ford was less comfortable as a sub. It was a classic stop-hitting-yourself-in-the-head-with-the-hammer-because-it-feels-good-when-you-stop moment.
The Raptors were part of the deal that sent T.J Ford and Roy Hibbert to the Pacers. However, the deal worked out just as well for them.
They are still able to be strong at point guard, keeping Jose Calderone who, despite only averaging about 11 ppg, is an instrumental part in distributing the ball, averaging 8.3 assists per game.
Also, Jermaine O’Neal is going to help the Raptors tremendously in the paint. The duo of O’Neal and Chris Bosh is going to make opposing teams scared to come in the paint.
Overall, this team is improved on the team that went to the playoffs last year, and they are likely going to at least make the second round this year.
While the Vegas league officially gets underway today, Toronto’s first game is against Sacramento tomorrow. After that, the Raptors will face Denver on Monday, Philly next Thursday, the LA Lakers next Friday and finally Golden State a week from tomorrow.
As we’ve previously touched on, this year’s Summer League roster contains a few well-known names in addition to some interesting players with NBA upside. We’ve talked at length already about guys like Benson, Lucas Jr, Adams and of course Joey Graham, so let’s take a look at the rest of the roster:
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Anyone else a little bit scared by this quote by Triano?:
“The way we’re looking at it for the most part is that we’ll have two outstanding big men in the game at all times, and all three will play two-thirds of the game. It may not work out exactly that way, but in theory, that’s the way we’re thinking, and we think this is going to be a solid team.”
Bargnani should be coming off the bench until he finally gets comfortable, and Kapono should be starting. Maybe Bargnani’s development is coming along, and it’s not just an idealistic plan ala the “100 shots a night.”
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who else we got???
Colangelo has screwed up this roster beyond belief.
Better hope this Devlin guy has some hops, because we might need him.
I took it originally as a sign that they planned to have 2 of O’Neal, Bosh, and Bargs on the floor at all times. That makes sense to me and I think it’d work well, because Andrea’s versatility makes him easy to insert in the lineup off the bench.
If Triano was hinting at playing Andrea for extended time at the 3-spot, then I’d be worried. However, I’m skeptical about that given how he assessed his ability to defend small forwards.
I found the way Indianapolis tried to demonize JO into their own version of VC was hilarious.
i say sign benson, dude is a funny blogger.
between what triano said, and what o’neal said in the press conference, i think everyone is aware that the kid shouldn’t be pushed into things. he needs to toughen up, and bang in the paint.
why we didn’t make a move for jefferson with bargnani as a center piece is beyond me….rj would have been nice on this squad…sigh…
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The way it is written/said can be viewed a few different ways…but no matter which way you choose, having Bargs as a big part of your 2/3 of the game is…..worrisome.
I’m convinced we will see CB, JO, and Jose play 38-40min a game. Mitchell will say “well, the Celtics did it”. Media will buy in. Colangelo will giggle.
Roko will be worse than Bargs.
I’m pretty sure he meant that 2 of the 3 will always be on the court.
If it meant all 3 would be playing at the same time for 2/3 of a game, then who would be playing the other third? Jawai, Humphries and Kapono?
again, who else we got?
so… would you rather have last year’s lineup?
at least we now have a good (and possibly very good) center on the team, and have resolved the PG situation (which I believe played a huge role in this year’s crumble).
Of course, some talent on the wings would help immensely, and I totally agree with the RJ post as above – BUT, would the nets really have wanted anything with only Bargs as the centerpiece? doubtful to me, even throwing in rasho for salary relief (which then would have made the JO trade impossible). I just don’t think both trades were possible – we didn’t have the assets to grab both RJ and JO. But we’d have been nice then…
A starting lineup of Calderon, Parker, Moon, Bosh and JO is solid, although I would prefer more of a shooter in Moon’s role. Kapono is probably best coming off the bench in an “instant offence” role where he has free rein to fire. I think Kapono and Bargs will give us some firepower off the bench, and Adams and Humph can give a little hustle as well.
As for Roko… being worse than Bargs is hard to imagine. I think he’ll be okay. Signing a combo guard who can shoot would be a great move. Maybe Joe D will give us a mulligan on the Primoz trade so we can get Dix back.
there are a feww buts, althoughs and the like up there Scott.
We are an older team with no depth. I will say that until proven wrong.
Kapono was weak off the bench last year, what changes this year? It’s not like he had a defensive blanket over him, so don’t say with JO being here, he will be more open.
Adams is worthless.
Roko is worse than worthless. I saw 3 games worth of film on him and I just cannot see him fitting in here. If anything, he will be as good as Jose in his first year, but that is a stretch. You honestly think he has been left over there because he is great and just needed fine tuning?
Jermaine is a sweet player. Is he worth his salary, even if healthy? Not at the cost of having no bench.
Riddle me this: 2 guys get hurt, lets say…Bargs and Parker. Your 13 is now 11. You are at the tax threshold you refuse to cross. You happy with this squad now?
It’s a nightmare.
ok, you got me there – we ain’t the celtics quite yet.
Maybe I’m just a raps optimist, but I think we’ll be better this year than last – no? If so, then why the pessimism?
If, however, you honestly think that we are now worse off than this past year, I can understand your pessimism.
As for your having seen 3 games on tape of Roko – the NBA is a far different beast than any league on earth, including it’s own summer league. I’m willing to believe that if they’re bringing him over, they think he can handle it. If he really sucked, I’m sure they could find someone else, rather than buying him out… (there seem to be a bunch of re-tread PGs who would be fine as backups – jason hart, mighty mouse, etc or maybe pulling off something more optimistic like getting boobie gibson) Only time will tell…
As for Adams, I actually thought he deserved more time than he got with the nets. I love his hustle — he’s like a tougher jamario, albeit minus the blocks. I think he’ll help us.
Either way – last year was a nightmare – I’m just happy BC has the gumption to shake things up!
You call it gumption, I call it….
Hey, I know I get the pessimistic tag in these here parts, but I readily admit to having a tough time wrapping my head around how we (or any professional basketball team) can enter training camp with either a few holes on the roster or such a big drop off in talent.
Here are my real honest to God feelings:
Adams: joey graham with upside
Bargs: any reason to believe he will be significantly better in his third year after showing little/no overall improvement in year 2?
Bosh: keeper
Calderon: still hasn’t played 72 quality games in the span of his NBA career. If his dropoff late season last year is any indication, his game after the allstar break this year could resemble an 89 year old having an asthma attack
Graham: well, at least he won’t have to worry about hitting up Tip Top Tailors for suits this season
Humphries: you know I love him, but Mitch underused him last year..why will this year be any different?
Jawai: hope and a prayer
Kapono: see humphries
Moon: be interesting to see if an ego emerges and, if it does, will it improve his game or weaken it.
O’Neal: even though he is a Pacer, I welcome him, but eating up that much cap room annoys me and will really piss me off when he is on the sideline.
Parker: hell of player, hell of a guy…but an impact player? Far from it. He’s a sixth-seventh man on most teams.
It surprises me that the same fan base that lauded our depth last year is now ecstatic at this squad, which is far from deep. Jermaine is a physical upgrade. Jose getting the keys is a mental one. Exactly what other upgrades have happened to this .500 ballclub?
What upgrades do you want, other than physical and mental?
Sure, we had lots of depth last year, but depth doesn’t win in the NBA. This isn’t a pressing & running your opponents into submission league. Stars win. That’s I, among many others, suggested packaging some of our decent talents together to get a single stronger talent, thereby sacrificing depth for starting 5 talent. Let’s be honest – depth in the NBA is not all that hard to come by – last year around training camp time, I think the Celtics had about 10 players under contract, including pruitt/davis/etc. Pieces can be had — it’s the stars that are hard to come by.
Now, we have 2 1/2 stars, so it’s up to BC to find the pieces to fit around them.
Look at the bench of the best teams in the east, and it’s not like anyone is knocking your socks off – it’s a collection of re-treads who know how to play (eg lindsey hunter, james posey, eddie house, theo ratliff, pj brown, etc), and young guys who play their asses off, even if they aren’t very talented (maxiell, powe, glen davis, afflalo, etc).
I think Adams could fall into the latter category for us (I’d describe him as Graham with Desire (Graham has plenty of upside… it’s the desire/bball iq holding him back). Jawai could fit in here too, but who f-ing knows about him. Hopefully he’ll be willing to throw his weight around. Maybe a slightly crappier version of Kendrick Perkins? Humph could be this too, if he stopped focusing on his tan and his jumper, and started focusing on hurting a member of the opposing team every time he got on the floor.
I also think Parker would be good in the former category, provided someone steps up to handle starting duties. But that’s about it in terms of experience…
but how are we an “older team”? we have one guy over 30!
we are older than we were last year, just literally. We have added no promising young talent. If Adams was so great, he wouldn’t have been passed over. He might turn into another Moon. That got the team far, yeah?
Boston had cap room.
We don’t.
It’s all well and good for bloggers and fanboys to keep believing that BC is going to pull off a magical play for an impact player. It ISN’T going to happen. It CAN’T happen. Jose had to give back money this year just so we could tender a legit offer to Adams and Jawai, hardly impact players nor big contracts. So, short of trading away 2 or 3 players for one (again) and even further depleting our roster….
Unless there is a player that falls through the cracks and is willing to take the minimum to play for a team that has little to no shot at getting past the first round again, what you see now is what we have. 2 1/2 stars and 10 foggy patches.
Adams = 24
Bargs = 23
Bosh = 24
Calderon = 27
Graham = 26
Humphries = 23
Jawai = 22
Kapono = 27
Moon = 28
ONeal = 30
Parker = 33
Where are the young building blocks? Bosh….check…stop. Maybe Bargs (please God).
We just have to hope, I guess, that we get somebody great for O’Neal in 2 years. We better.
Ok I really do not get this BC guy. He’s a fancy dresser but it appears his game plan changes yearly. Why tie 50% of your salary up in 2 players. Both players are not know for playing a full year and if they are hurt they better hope the Aussie/Hump has a good day. The Italian (hope I’m wrong) is just going to take the money and run. Two years from now everyone is talking about the group of free agents who will be available but what they fail to mention is every team in the league is out to get them.
Basketball is played by young people. So I ask the readership why does he keep trading away the first round pick. This is not football and first round picks do make a difference. In fact they have some kind of rule that they can not trade away their first round pick 2 years in a row. So this year they waited to the 9th and then did the trade. Toronto fans deserve a team that is better then 500. They pay big money in strong Canadian dollars to see the team play.
Another point that really makes me wonder is the lack of bodies the team has. Man if it was not for the league minimum of 13 they probably would have only signed 9/10 players. So they are forced to have at least 13 signed and that is what they will have. Last year I worked in Miami and was forced to endure the Heat. But at least they had 15 signed and a couple working out in the D league. Wait and see the Heat will stay healthy this year and will fight for a playoff spot in the East. Now if you consider the moves other teams have made it could be a very long year for Toronto. If by chance they become a lottery team (think injuries) then how do they clear space for a high lottery pick. So again they would trade it away or pick a Euro player they can leave in Europe for a few years (forever).
Another way to think of BC’s skill level is, he’s the only GM (I’m not very learned) that has to negotiate buy outs of second round draft picks from two continents.
Personally think being a 500 club in any sport is only good for the parent company. MSLE makes money off the Raptors and next year will be no different. I predict 40 wins and a trip to the lottery, with little or no chance of getting a decent pick. The East has improved to the point that a sub 500 team is going to have a very hard time avoiding the lottery.
Very well said, John. You provide a welcome dose of reality.
Scott.
that we’ll miss the playoffs? reality?
file that one away for next april.