Built Ford Tough

The guy just can't seem to stop.

Honestly, I'm at the point. For all of Babcock's flaws (drafting Hoffa isn't one of them as that pick was made by the Raptors scouting staff and not him), at least he was committed to a rebuild and didn't dish out ridiculous contracts to clearly undeserving players (Kleiza and Kapono) and outbid himself on free agent signings/extensions (Johnson and arguably Bargnani and Calderon). At least he didn't cripple the team financially with terrible contracts. If Babcock was the GM of this team instead of Colangelo for the past 4 years, this team would look drastically different. They wouldn't have a hollow division banner hanging in the ACC and a Dwight Howard raping to remember, but honestly, the worst case scenario is the Raptors are a terrible team, which is pretty much what they are right now while being capped out for the next 4 years.

Called it. Seriously though, what the [expletive]? Why? He won't take Beasley at $5M for one more season but he will give Kleiza $5M for 4 seasons? Both make absolutely no sense for this team but at least one of them has the potential to be more than a serviceable role player. I hate Colangelo. I'm seriously at the point where I would rather have Rob Babcock back than have this moron running the team.

The only reason why Toronto's trade demands annoy you is because they don't want to take Besley from Miami and open up $5M more in cap space for Miami. I could be wrong because I don't have inside sources, but from what I gather if Riley would stop trying to dump Beasley onto Toronto so that he has more money to play with and simply offered Toronto their first back, plus maybe Miami's first if he is feeling generous, and there would be no need to involve 2 other teams. Colangelo is being stubborn with his reluctance to take Beasley back in a trade, but Riley is being equally as stubborn with his insistence that Beasley be involved in any trade. It is pretty laughable that you play all of the blame on Toronto. With that said though, believe it or not, I actually agree with you (is this a first? I think it might be. ) in that Colangelo should just swallow his pride and accept Beasley in a trade. I have been anti-Beasley and I still stand by everything that I said, but it is pretty clear that Colangelo has absolutely no leverage at this point with Bosh saying that he is willing to just sign a 5 year max with the Heat. Beasley is a terrible fit in Toronto, has a questionable attitude and has concerns about his character, but he has potential and talent. The Raptors roster is a complete mess as it is so what the [expletive], take a chance on Beasley and hope that one of Beasley, Bargnani, DeRozan, Weems and Davis show something that makes you think that they have the potential to be a cornerstone of this franchise. I know this is basically the exact opposite of what I have said over the past two months, but I'm at the point where getting anything in return for Bosh is better than nothing. Colangelo is probably scared to deal with Riley though, especially considering how badly he was bent over in the JO/Marion trade, haha.

Nah. He should be the night club and pizza pizza leader.

http://sports.nationalpost.com/2010/07/07/raptors-jack-ready-to-move-on-without-bosh/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter#ixzz0t2CBqDnj With Bosh leaving Jack has basically become the undisputed leader of this team. There is absolutely no way that they should trade Jack this offseason. Not only do DeRozan, Weems and Johnson look up to him as a mentor of sorts, but they need a veteran leader on this team and Jack fits the bill. He may not be the long term point guard, but he is such an integral part of this team and its future that I would be absolutely furious if he was traded this summer. I know I have talked before about how I think one point guard needs to go, but with Bosh leaving and this team being so young heading into next season, I would absolutely hate to see Jack leave. I would rather start the season with both Jack and Calderon on the team than see Jack moved for the sake of clearing up this little point guard dilemma. He may not be the most talented player on the team or have the most upside on the team, but I honestly think that with Bosh leaving he will be the most important player for this team next season. His leadership and calming influence on the Young Guns will be vital next year.

There is still the possibility of a sign-and-trade as Bosh can't officially sign anything until tomorrow. I can see Colangelo scrambling and trying to get the Raptors protected pick back or something like that. I still think that Bosh will push for that extra $30M and the Raptors/Heat will agree to a S&T. I think a reason why they (Bosh, Thomas, Heat) went public with this announcement today is to basically tell Colangelo that if he wants a S&T he has a day to agree to what the Heat are offering. Thomas and Bosh are going to push for the S&T because it is more money in their pockets. Thomas is going to do everything in his power for that S&T because he would get something like $2.5M more for himself. The S&T isn't the dealbreaker that I originally thought, but I still think it is a huge priority for both Thomas and Bosh. Even if he doesn't get a S&T for him, I'm really not too concerned about it. It would be nice to have a large TPE to work with, but with Colangelo's track record when he has money to spend, that could turn out to be a hinderance instead of a help. I would prefer if the Raptors could've got a TPE and some picks out of this, but at least way we know that Colangelo can't make some short sighted signing to try and compensate for losing Bosh. I have absolutely no faith in Colangelo when there is a lot of money involved. As for Bosh going to Miami, I pretty much expected it all along. I was holding out hope for Chicago or some other team that would give a better S&T, but I had Miami as the favourites from the start, just like most people. I didn't think he would actually considering signing for less than the 6 year max. It will be nice seeing Bosh finally playing alongside a legitimate star in Dwyane Wade. Playing with Wade will hide some of his faults and in turn will make him a much more efficient player. He won't be asked to create offense for himself and others in short clock situations or during crunch time. What I am looking forward to seeing the most is whether or not his decreased role on offense will mean that he will focus more on other areas of the game such as rebounding and especially defense. I know he isn't an elite defender, but I also know that he has the potential to be a much better defender than what he showed in Toronto and hopefully with Wade being the focal point he will give more of an effort in this regard. The Heat still have a lot of work to do to make this team a legit contender though. They have the 2nd best duo in the league right now (Kobe/Gasol being the best) and that is a very nice foundation to work with. Now they will need to bring in the complimentary players to turn this into more than just a 2 man band. How they spend their remaining $11-12M will be the difference between a championship contender or a 2nd round team. Bosh and Wade is a great duo but them alone aren't enough to get you to the Finals, let alone win a championship. I can't help but laugh at the irony in all of this though. Colangelo basically gave Miami everything this offseason. He made the trade that gave them O'Neal and took Banks off of their hands which enabled them the cap space that they needed and by doing that he handed Bosh over to Miami on a silver platter. How bad does that trade look for Toronto 2 years later and how great does it look for Miami now?

It is like one big game of chicken between Bosh and Henry Thomas and the Raptors and Colangelo. The latest is that Bosh is "apperantly" might just go ahead and sign a 5 year deal and not be concerned with getting the 6 year max: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/miami-heat/sfl-miami-heat-chris-bosh-s070610,0,5673066.story If you ask me, this is just Bosh and Thomas trying to get more leverage on their side. Up until now there hasn't been any sort of threat that Bosh will simply sign outright somewhere else, but now they are trying to plant a seed of doubt in the back of Colangelo's mind to make him jump and agree to S&T him to Miami with Beasley coming back to open up more cap space for the Heat. If I'm Colangelo, I don't budge. Bosh has talked about signing the 6 year max for the past year and now with one day to go before they can officially sign, he is suddenly ok with leaving that extra year and $30M on the table? I don't buy it. It is fairly obvious that it has basically come down to Miami for Bosh, which is what I had expected for a while now. The question now is who will cave first, Bosh or Colangelo? I don't think that Bosh would actually sign a 5 year deal so I think Colangelo needs to play hard ball.

Umm, yeah he did: You even posted it in that Free Agency thread in the Heat forum, but of course you won't acknowledge that he said that in this thread. Hmm... I wonder why that is?

Ric Bucher (not exactly the most credible source, I know) has reported a deal of Chalmers + TPE + 2 picks for Calderon and Bosh. I know that Calderon isn't exactly a Riley style of player, but considering Colangelo's reluctance to agree to a S&T with the Heat, I can see him insisting that the only way he will agree to a S&T with Miami is if they take Calderon back in the trade, and if Riley wants Bosh he may not have much of a choice otherwise. I can definitely see a scenario unfolding where Colangelo tells Riley that the only way he will send Bosh to Miami through a S&T is if Calderon goes with him, and with Bosh's insistance on getting the 6 year max above all else and Amare signing in New York and LeBron not going to go to Miami, it would either be Riley giving in or pairing Wade with David Lee or Carlos Boozer which I don't think Wade would be all that impressed with considering the talk before free agency was supposed to be about building a dynasty in Miami. A Boozer or Lee/Wade duo isn't exactly the makings of a dynasty (neither is Bosh/Wade but it is a much better start than Boozer or Lee). I could be wrong though and Riley would tell Colangelo to shove it, but I can definitely see Colangelo only agreeing to a S&T with Miami if he can dump Calderon's contract on them. If a package of Chalmers + draft picks + TPE was enough to get Bosh to Miami, don't you think he would be in Miami already? It seems to be pretty obvious that Wade and Bosh is a package duo and I think it is pretty obvious that Wade's first choice is Miami. At least that is the way that I look at it.

You are right, he doesn't need a sign and trade to any of those teams, but it sounds like he absolutely wants that extra year and $30M or so. He isn't going to sniff a max contract again during his career unlike LeBron, and he isn't nearly as marketable as Wade (or LeBron) so that $30M seems to be an absolute necessity for him. Factor in the question mark about his knees (those braces seem to get bigger and bigger every season and he always seems to miss about 10 games a year due to a knee injury) and it makes that extra insurance even more criticial for him. You are right when saying that he doesn't need the S&T to go to any of those teams, but from everything that has been said, reported, speculated and, of course, tweeted, it seems like Bosh is just as concerned about that extra year and $30M than he is about anything else.

Heat new lineup: PG: Calderon/Chalmers SG: Wade SF: ??? PF: Bosh C: Haywood/Anthony Go out and get a defensive minded shooter like a prime James Posey and use whatever cap space you have left to fill out the roster. If you are getting Bosh, which will most likely happen like expected all along, there is no point in keeping Beasley on the team. His future in the NBA seems to be a stretch 4 and I think putting him at the 3 would just be a waste. Beasley clearly has more talent than Haywood but Haywood is an ideal fit on a team like this. Chalmers and Calderon is a nice compliment of offense and defense from the point. Wade's help defense should compensate a bit for Calderon's lack of defense as well. I still don't think this is a championship team, but they could make some noise in the East if they are able to convince some good players to take paycuts to play alongside the Wade/Bosh duo. EDIT: On second thought, Chalmers would probably be involved int he S&T, so scratch him off of the rotation. I'd imagine it would be Chalmers + Toronto's pick + Miami's pick and a huge TPE.

It is pretty clear what is going on with Bryan Colangelo and Chris Bosh right now. Colangelo wants to trade Bosh to Cleveland, Houston or Chicago if he is able to get Noah but Bosh doesn't want to go to Cleveland and wants to be traded to a big market to play with LeBron/Wade. Bosh wants a sign and trade to New Jersey, Miami or Chicago but Colangelo is unimpressed with what these teams are offering for Bosh. So it begs the question, who will crack first? Will Colangelo cave into Bosh's demands of a trade to Chicago or Miami despite not liking the return he is getting? Or will Bosh cave and agree to go to Cleveland or Houston despite wanting to play in a larger market?

This is the Orlando Summer League, the Vegas Summer League (the one that the Raptors are in) is the one that starts on the 9th.

I'm not sure what his contract obligations are over in Europe or what his intentions of coming back to the NBA are, but I wouldn't be surprised at all if this player is Linas Kleiza. The Raptors were very interested in him last season but ended up using their MLE on Jack and Kleiza wouldn't accept the LLE (which they then used on Rasho I believe), so it wouldn't shock me at all if they tried to lure him back to the NBA with a partial MLE deal. I would hope that they wouldn't use the whole MLE on him as he is not worth it, but who am I kidding, it is Colangelo so obviously the entire MLE would be used. Out of the players that Doug Smith mentioned, I wouldn't mind JJ Redick and Ronnie Brewer though. I would hate to see them use the full MLE on Shannon Brown and I'm not too fond of Matt Barnes. Redick would be a nice backup for the Raptors and provide stability as the first shooting guard off of the bench, which they won't have with Belinelli. Redick may not have the talent that Belinelli does, but he is reliable and you know what you are going to get from him, unlike Belinelli who may give you 20 points on great efficiency one night, and the next night he puts up 0 points and 5 turnovers. His shooting would be welcome off of the bench considering the Raptors don't exactly have that great of shooters next season at the wings with DeRozan and Weems not being 3 point threats and Belinelli and Turkoglu being inconsistent/streaky. Also, he could definitely help out DeRozan and Weems with their shots as well as he is one of the best pure shooters in the game. I don't know exactly who is out there, but I don't really see many centers that would come to Toronto that would be worth the MLE. If they can get a Brendan Haywood type of player for the MLE then I would love it, but I don't think that is realistic. I'd rather just see them give those minutes to Amir Johnson and Soloman Alabi (if he proves worthy of them, if not, send him to the D-League and sign somebody cheap and serviceable). I don't really want to get a big minute center because it would take away developmental minutes from guys like Johnson, Alabi and Ed Davis. EDIT: Another name I have heard being thrown around is Ryan Gomes, but I sure as hell don't want him for the MLE.

Dee Brown has been added to the Raptors Summer Leage team. I remember watching him, Deron Williams and Luther Head run that three guard offense back when they were at Illinois and I absolutely loved watching that team. Brown was my favourite player to watch on that team and I actually thought he would become a pretty good point guard in the NBA, but that didn't turn out to be the case. I'm pretty excited to see him play during the SL, although I doubt he gets any sort of consideration to actually make the Raptors considering their depth at PG already. Another name that I have heard mentioned is the former Clipper Bobby Brown. I don't think that he is officially on the team but it is sounding like he will be playing with the Raptors SL team. I'm curious as to who the backup center is going to be. If Patrick O'Bryant was still on the team I would assume that it would've been him, but I think he is on the Timberwolves SL team. Also, still no word on who the coach will be. If I had to guess, I would say Alvin Williams, but that may be more because I actually want to see him as the coach, haha. I do think that he would do a good job of relating to what these players are going through as he wasn't exactly gift wrapped his NBA career.

I'd almost rather send Bosh to Beasley so at least they get a TPE of around $10M and don't have to commit to a long term contract. David Lee is better, but can you imagine the revolving door to the basket that opposing teams will have with a Lee/Bargnani starting front court? I'd much rather have Lee than Bargnani, but we all know that as long as Colangelo is running the show Bargnani is probably not going anywhere. On second thought, I might actually want to see this trade just because of how hilarious it would be trying to watch this team defend. If you thought the Raptors were bad defensively last season, could you imagine how much worse it would be if the traded Bosh for Lee? How awesome would it be to watch a lineup of: Calderon Belinelli Turkoglu Lee Bargnani try to defend? Plus, it would be pretty awesome to see the Raptors trot out the all-white lineup. Another plus is that the Raptors could throw out the all-power forward lineup: Lee Bargnani Evans Davis Johnson That would be pretty nice as well. EDIT: Lol, that wiretap article that RealGM is linking to was from an NY Post article written on May 23rd. 2nd EDIT: They just changed it and it is now linked to an ESPN article now.

http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/38085378/ns/sports-player_news/ Overrated? Check. Overpaid? Check. One-Dimensional? Check. Colangelo's style of player? Check.

Why? That was the best card of the year and one of the best UFC cards in a long, long time. I can't remember a card within the past 2 years that was as good as this one was. It had basically everything you could hope for when ordering a UFC card. I honestly don't see how anybody could complain about this card unless you are only specifically refering to the main event. It would be completely retarded to order a card because of one fight though, especially one that was basically guaranteed to not last past the 2nd round like this fight was. As an entire card though, this has been the best card in a long time. This was probably been the best card that I have seen since I started following the UFC though. It was absolutely amazing.

Jack was arguably the leader last season, and if he is still on the team at the start of next season he will definitely assume even more of a leadership role than what he had this past season. I don't think there is any question that Jack will be the leader of the team next year Bargnani is going to be the number one option and best player on the team, but he is not really a leader. He doesn't have the personality of a leader at all and is the kind of player who just likes to have the attention on others so that he can do his thing with minimal expectations of him. With Bosh gone he will be the best player on the team next season, so it is going to be interesting to see how he adjusts his game and how he reacts. DeRozan is still too raw and young. Unless he does a complete 180 personality wise, he won't be ready for a leadership role next season. This past year he was really complacent and defered to everybody so much. I think he will improve in this regard as he will have a full year of experience in the NBA and will have an increased role on the team, but he isn't ready to assume the leadership role just yet. Turkoglu is the wild card in this scenario though. If he comes into camp motivated, in shape and ready to work, it will basically become him and Jack's team in terms of who call the shots. He has the experience that will be very valuable to the rest of the team considering how young they will be and I think his teammates won't care all that much about last season if he works hard this year. If he doesn't work though, I can see his teammates shutting everything that he says out. So to answer the question, Jack will be the leader (possibly Hedo as well), Bargnani will be their best player (shoot me now!) and DeRozan will be groomed as the future leader.

I was just using that as an example. Nobody really knows what the offer was (it has been speculated that it was Scola, Ariza and Battier, but who really knows). All we know is that the Raptors didn't think it was worthwhile for them to make the trade, which is what my main point was with that post. From what I gather, teams have been trying to lowball the Raptors with their offers. Colangelo is floating the idea that he isn't completely concerned about moving Bosh in a S&T out there so that not only do the teams who want Bosh have to make better offers, but if Bosh himself wants the 6 year max, he is going to have to convince these teams that it will be in their best interest to move pieces that they may not be willing to move if it means that they get him. For Chicago this probably means Noah, for Houston this probably means Brooks and the Knick picks, for New Jersey it would probably mean Favors etc... I think it ultimately comes down to Colangelo and the Raptors taking a stand and demanding legitimate value in return for Bosh while opposing teams, and even Bosh himself, figured that the Raptors would just cave in and accept any offer to whatever team Bosh wanted to go to. Good on the Raptors for not caving in.

The report never said that the Raptors weren't willing to do a S&T, it just basically said that they aren't going to do one for the sake of doing one. For example, I doubt they would do a S&T to Houston for Trevor Ariza and Louis Scola, but I have no doubts that they would be interested in doing one that centered around Aaron Brooks and the Knick draft picks. I think teams figured that the Raptors would bend over and take it in the [expletive], but that isn't the case. If they want Bosh through a S&T they are going to have to make it worthwhile for the Raptors

The Raptors will help Bosh out if they receive an offer that makes sense for them. Colangelo isn't going to just hand Bosh the max and let Bosh dictate what Colangelo is able to do. Colangelo will listen to S&T offers for Bosh, but if he doesn't like what he is receiving then he will tell Bosh to simply sign elsewhere. For instance, if Chicago wants Bosh, BC will tell them that it is Noah (or Rose) or bust. If Houston wants Bosh it is the Knick draft picks and Brooks or bust. If Chicago or Houston won't bite, then I think Colangelo would tell Bosh to either convince them to change their minds or sign for a 5 year max. I could be wrong, but I highly doubt that Colangelo and the Raptors management are completely shutting the door ona S&T. This is just posturing to create more leverage on their part. They are making it known that if you want Bosh you are going to actually have to give the Raptors something that they want.

More of a casual fan. I follow them and watch their games, but not nearly to the extent that I do the NBA or NHL. If a game is on I'll usually have the TV on, but I'll do other things as well. But yeah, I can't really complain about anything though. I was expecting the Blue Jays to be where Baltimore is right now, so I can deal with an [expletive] kicking here and there considering I was expecting a lot more this season.

I was watching it but after the 8th run scored in the inning I decided to switch to the Spain/Paraguay soccer game. I couldn't handle anymore, haha.