Offseason Fantasy

I know it's early to be talking about it considering the raptors still aren't eliminated but one can still wonder about what changes are coming. Mind you, my hopes are really based on just that, what I want to happen so here it is, a list of changes that I think can really help us turn us into contenders.

Personally I feel that doing a trade for a powerhouse player like the Marcus Camby trade is very unlikely to happen. If we only have to give up Kapono or graham to get a Michael Redd or a player of that caliber, I find it really hard to believe they can't get a better offer than that. But as with the Camby trade, you really never know. As such, a lot of the moves I'd like them to do are based on their 10 million cap space and basically just negotiating with free agents.

So here are my list of offseason priorities for 2009.

1. With Iverson being unable to fit into the Detroit system, his value has certainly diminished. I don't really understand the shock however. Detroit was famous for being a system without a star, yet now you bring in one. What did you really expect? I still think he has a lot of game left and is still one of the best at playing angles, and getting his own shot. I can only imagine how good he'll be playing the passing lanes and a run and gun system instead of the bogged down half court set of Detroit. If we can get him to a 3/4 year deal for around $7 million, to me thats a great bargain, a chance for Iverson to prove something to the rest of the NBA and a nice fit. To me the only problem is with jose, we have a very weak defensive guard rotation but that will probably only help speed up the tempo of the game.

2. Resign Graham to a deal similar to his current one, 3 years 2.5 million. What this season has proved is this boy can play. He may not be the smartest but his power speed and around the rim play are a good spark off the bench for our new style of play. He is definitely not an appropriate fit as our sixth man but he can be a strong solid 7th man for us.

3. Resign Delfino to a 3 year 3 million deal. He has expressed a desire to get back to the NBA and has always had an appreciation for Toronto. Of all the moves that are possible, this definitely seems to be the most likely of all moves to happen. BC has expressed an interest many times throughout the year in bringing back Delfino. With his improved play over seas, he can be a high quality 6th man for us. With his addition we finally get a VETERAN as our leader off the bench. Something that this franchise has taken for granted.

4. Finally, with all the cap used up, we can resign Marion making use of bird rights. As my previous article pointed out, his impact on the game after just a few practices has been undeniable. His knowledge of the game, athleticism, fast break ability, quick second jump and strong short passes are invaluable to anyone's fast break game. To me it's very likely that he'll resign simply because he knows he has to go to a system that runs, it makes him better, it makes his team better. Unfortunately for him, the warriors, knicks and raptors are the only teams going in that direction and the raptors are the only team with the money to resign him.

5. Finally the last move is to use our veteran minimum, or perhaps biannual exception to bring in a veteran big who can play off the bench, but fill in incase of injuries. For me, the best move is to bring back our beloved Rasho. One of the few NBA players who loves Toronto as his family still lives here. He can be a solid calming presence on the bench, and more importantly, step into the starting lineup if injuries demand it.

The best part of these moves is that they are not costly. The Raptors are one of those few buyers out in the market and lets hope they can capitalize on the abundance of sellers. These moves are all affordable and attainable and gives us a very solid, fairly deep rotation

Calderon/Ukic/Banks
Iverson/Delfino/Kapono
Marion/Graham
Bosh/Humphries/Jawai
Bargnani/Rasho

If that lineup can't get you far in the post season, then the Raptors really are doomed to be Mediocre Forever.