Jack A Rap? Roko, & New Marcus Banks Nickname

The possiblity of Jarrett Jack becoming a Raptor just keeps on adding to the amount of presents that Raptors fans are getting this offseason. Colangelo sure isn't pulling any punches huh? I wasn't too sure of the proposed 4 years/$20 million offer at first but this could end up being another steal if not a solid deal in general. The Jack man is strong, can shoot, and play decent defense, and of course, most importantly, put our worries of struggling when Jose is resting on the bench at ease.

I like Roko, I really do - I probably like him more than most people, but I can't deny that he just hasn't shown enough yet - he's shown flashes of brilliance here and there, but he's definitely not stable enough to run a team given serious minutes. Plus his two summer league games have been subpar so far. But I am confident he will get there, so until then, it's good to have a proven point guard in Jarrett Jack who could arguably start on a lot of teams. Adding Jack should motivate Roko that much more.

And as for Marcus Banks, Jarrett Jack is now his torturer - Banks must've thinking he was so close to the possiblity of seeing court time this upcoming season but the possible arrival of Jack just kills it. Marcus Banks, just infuriates me now, thinking about it - what a deadbeat, his new name is Carcass Banks. He's useless, like a dead body .

To Trade or Not To Trade

That is Miami's question. But in reality, that's every teams question and BC of all GM's is probably facing the most pressure. With the Raps sinking to second last in the conference, with the growing yet reasonable fear that Bosh has very little to stay for, pardon my French but BC has to pull some serious shit out of his ass.

In terms of the Marion trade, sources seem to indicate that the ball is in Riley's court so to say but I find that hard to believe right now. O'Neal has played two solid games stats wise but really, every game since hes been back he's played with high energy and doesn't seem to be worrying about his knee. If I was Riley I would have to believe his knee isn't the issue and it's more simply about getting conditioning and game timing back. That being the case, with Miami in the playoffs, for the Raps sake as well, it might be better to pull this trade off sooner than later and let their teams have more time to adjust. At the same time, Marion has yet to play since these rumors surfaced and if he is unfit to even suit up, while O'Neal is ready to go, how is it that Riley has the power over this negotiation. With Miller underperforming, O'Neal is definitely the best deal out there. Personally, as great a passer as Miller is, there is not enough talent or sharpshooters on Miami for him to pass to in the first place. Again, it seems the hold up is which is better, cap space now, or in two years?

From my standpoint, I think Miami is better off with making some big signing two seasons from now. Why? Because Wade has shown a much stronger commitment to Miami and winning his championships there, after all, he already has one and lets face it, Miami is probably a harder city to leave than Toronto. It's probably much safer for them to wait for the best free agency class in history and make a run at say Stoudamire or ..... yep, Bosh. From Toronto's side however, I think they have to do something this season or this offseason. They need to have talent here waiting to convince Bosh to stay, and more importantly, they have to do something with that talent.

I think from this standpoint, it's safe to say that O'Neal will not play another season as a Raptor. Even if this Marion deal falls through, the plethora of expiring deals we have and our 1st round draft pick has to be able to fetch us some valuable pieces and I think BC recognizes the importance of getting these deals done before training camp. In fact, I hope it doesn't, I'd rather see them use O'Neal to get multiple pieces from Chicago or Goldenstate and add to our depth instead of filling one spot. When next season approaches, Goldenstate may want to give up some of its long term deals to be able to play in the offseason while Chicago may decide to make O'Neal their big man, or use his cap space to finally get one. Both these teams would be able to offer two or three pieces that would play big roles on our team instead of getting one small forward, and one scrub in Banks. After all, the last thing the Raps need is another 13th man.

I for one can't wait for the trade deadline to come. Not to see what happens or doesn't happen, but just so we can stop expecting ONE PLAYER to come on a white horse and save the season for us. We need more depth, we need more than Jesus, we need his wise men too!

Raptors Should Trade Team For Derrick Rose

Of course, I am just kidding. But according to NBA.com, Derrick Rose is the most underrated player in the NBA, quietly averaging a mammoth 1687 PPG. Maybe we should take Chuck's advice after all and trade Bosh.

We Are All Waiting

The O'Neal trade is a failure. It's time to move on. Let's make the best possible move we can get and let's pull the trigger as soon as we can... and hope all the good things that have come from J.O.'s absence continues. We don't really have anything to lose at this point. We're 10 games under .500, we have no depth and we aren't exactly showing any signs that we want to compete this year, so we might as well just ride the season out and try to get some consistency to build on for the next year.

Am I giving the season up? No. It might sound like I am, but really I do feel that something can still change after an O'Neal trade. And honestly, how many really thought the O'Neal trade was actually going to tremendously improve the Raptors when all the other teams were simply getting better?

I think with this season especially, the Raptors are overburdened with the loss of Mitchell, the failed trade, the injuries and the lack of consistency. I feel once Colangelo deals with the O'Neal situation, at least some of that burden will be gone and there will be less pressure.

The Matrix Situation: It's pretty much a safe trade between the two clubs. Neither team has anything to lose. And in terms of salary situation, there isn't any safer deals out there that Colangelo could dive into.

Should the Raptors deal with other Losers? Is "playing it safe" that best we could muster? What if Colangelo can use his reputation to tempt other teams to give up something we can actually build on? What if the Kings are willing to give up Brad Miller, John Salmons (someone B.C. once coveted) and a vet. guard, Bobby Jackson for O'Neal and Kapono? I am very anxious to see what Colangelo does in the next couple of days.

Rumors, Rumors, Rumors.

Any fool who watches the raptors lose time and time again can all agree on one thing. Jamario Moon as the starting small forward is barely acceptable on a D League level. In fact, our perimiter play in general is perhaps one of the most lacking in the NBA. As the raptors tumble through the standings and as the 76'ers pull it together in the absence of Brand, the window of opportunity to claim a playoff spot is dwindling and the pressure to deliver a trade hightens.

During this economic recession, basketball and all pro sports take an interesting turn. How valuable is it to make the playoffs? Teams like Miami, New Jersey and Milwaukee, currently in the playoff hunt have to evaluate and wonder, is it worth it? With salary cap killers, Carter, Marion, Jefferson and Redd, an owner must be wondering whether a first round exit is worth all this money in troubled times. In my opinion, this recession makes trade talk all the more interesting as financial motives begins to take a higher precedence in trade motives.

What does this mean to the Raptors? Despite our famous stingy ownership, the Raptors are one of the few teams in the NBA who can afford to have salary busters. Being in a strong market, filled with corporate sponsorship, and a historical NHL franchise, they are one of the few teams who don't have to worry as much about breaking even and can contemplate taking on heavy contracts.

For the Raptors, we can discount a trade with the Bucks simply because, as I believe, our best trade bait is ONeal and with Bogut signed to a long term deal, they don't need Oneal there. But we can look at other teams looking to cement their core, give playing time to the young and shed some contracts. So who do the Raptors have a shot with? Just by looking at team situations, salary situations, and young talent, and players the Raptors may actually want, I think we can fairly easily narrow down possible trading partners to the Chicago Bulls, Charlotte Bobcats, Dallas Mavericks and the Miami Heat. These teams made the cut mainly because these teams would be interested in Oneal and have viable players to sendback and help clog up our deficiencies.

These four seem to be the most viable deals for the Raptors to do in return for Oneal, so lets take a deeper look into the benefits of each deal.

Dallas: Gets a great low post player to complete Dirk. In my opinion has a much better chance of working over the Bosh Oneal duo. Before he came I always felt that Oneal had a better shot of coexisting with Bargnani because that three point threat needs to be there.Not to mention this deal lets them dish their publicity nightmare Howard and also gives him the fresh start he needs. To make this deal viable, the expiring contract of Stackhouse would have to be thrown in as well. Given that he has seen a reduced role with Dallas given the emergence of Barea, they are also helping to solve their minute and chemistry issues. It is also of importance that in the west, they are going to need a solid defensive bigman to contain almost every team in the West. Dallas also doesn't lose any financial flexibility as the length of the contracts are the same.

Raptors: Giving the abundance of minutes at their positions, and Stackhouse's leadership off the bench, this may look like a simple financial inclusion, but his effect could be extremely influential on the rest of the bench. Both these players will look at this team as an opportuntiy, a fresh start and a chance to still be on a team that has a chance. In Howard we will find a solid all around sf, who more importantly, can create his own shot and be given the ball in late game situations. Having the team option for Howard may prove important in keeping Bosh with the Raptors if this trade works out.

*Note: For this trade, another player may have to be involved, possibly a Moon for Green swap.

Heat: Oneal round two. This duo may not be as powerful as the Superman Flash combo but it certainly would be a scary duo to face. With Wade unstopabable this year and able to get to the rim at will, he could be the perimiter play Oneal needs to regain his touch. Without any other credible bigs on the floor, this could also give him the room he needs to operate down low. An understated aspect of this trade could be the minutes it opens up for Beasley to have a more prominent, stable role and gain some valuable minutes to learn and get back into ROY contention. Again we see the immense cap relief in 2010 to keep wade and who knows what else.

Raptors: Of all the possible options, this may be the easiest to do, but the least helpful. In Marion we certainly get someone to address our needs of a defensive stop, but the question is what can he bring to the offensive table. Do the raps really want another player who can't create his own shot. I can't imagine any team at any time giving the ball to Marion to make the last play. However, his knowledge and ability on the fast break may be what the Raps need to learn how to actually run effectively. I think the success of this trade hinges on Bargnani's ability to keep this run going. If he maintains himself as a 20 point threat, it may not matter what Marion brings to the offensive table and his offensive putbacks and few fast break points may be all we need. I dont think the Raps really will be getting anyone else of value to make contracts match. With the emergence of Roko, do we really want Banks to clog up pg minutes? Getting Wright may be valuable if he can provide a consistent role.

Charlotte: They may be able to get rid of the NBA player with what I assume must be the record for most concussions. They get a great defensive and offensive low post weapon in ONeal who will definitely fit in well with Larry Brown's System. The availability of this deal however has dwindled in my mind as they already made moves to acquire Boris Diaw and recently Diop. With Okafor on the roster, they may be reluctant to add another big and may be in fact more keen on acquiring a strong guard. I would think that if a player of Oneal's stature was acquired, it could mean another big is on the move in Charlotte or they may just like to keep Diop and Diaw incase Oneal's injury history follows him. I do think however with the acquisition of Oneal, Charlotte could boast perhaps one of the best post defenses in the NBA and with Raja on the wing, it may not matter how difficult it is for them to score.

Raptors: For this deal to be a success, I think a lot of it hinges on who the second peice is. If we were to receive Felton, this could be a steal. We would garner a solid pg/sg rotation and our whole at Sf would certainly be filled but at the same time let's not forget however that charlotte struggled to score with these two players as key weapons. I think it would be safe to assume they would be no better for Toronto's offense. As Raptor fans cringe when Solomon and Moon take their jump shots, do we really want two more players who have a penchant for bad shots? This deal to me is the riskiest of the possible ones out there, these players could thrive, or it could be the beginning of the end.

Bulls: The final deal to discuss. It's almost definite that one of the pieces involved will be Nocioni, and the success of this deal will largely depend on who those second and third pieces are. With Rose claiming the spotlight, Hinrich's days as the pg could be numbered. As the Bulls have searched for a low post threat for years, and after missing out on Gasol, this could be their chance to add that missing piece. A core of Rose, Gordon, Deng, Oneal and with the progress of Noah and Thomas, this would be a scary team for anyone to play. If I was Paxson, I would have to consider this deal greatly.

Raptors: I think perhaps the most important element of this trade is the fact that we would be getting three players back. With Hinrich, Nocioni and perhaps a thrown in Sefolasha, although their are no stars, we would be contributing greatly to our depth, our bench, and I believe our attitude. Nocioni is one of the most hard nosed players in the NBA and in all three of those players, we would be getting players with defensive mind sets. To build on my last article, I think they would be great leaders for our bench as well. With Calderon, Parker, Nocioni, Bosh, Barganin and Hinrich leading our bench, I think that's the biggest improvement our roster could see by only losing one player. We solve our SF and backup PG/SG holes in one swift move. Who knows, maybe we could sucker Paxson into taking Will off our hands as well.

I love the Bulls and Dallas the deals the most, but I think the best part of all of these deals, is that everyone's a winner. Here's hoping GM's agree with me!

Back To The Matrix

The Raptors are all over HoopsHype with the same Marion-O'Neal trade rumor. And it looks like both teams are willing for the swoop, with the Raptors possibly also acquiring Marcus Banks and maybe Dorell Wright to match the salaries.

I want to just get back to the discussion of Marion's role with the Raptors if this deal were to be sealed. As Malin has mentioned, Marion is more of a fastbreak guy, who relies heavily on a good pointguard. Calderon will need to really work on his alley-oop skills to get this guy going or else he might just end up settling out in the perimeter and we all know how frustrating that could be. However, we do get an incredible rebounder.

But with the possible acquisition of Marion, is Colangelo already planning a swoop for Steve Nash as well? Could these be counted as long-term moves or is he trying to make us believe that this could change the mediocre Raptors into contenders? I don't think so...

Bulls, Heat Interested In J.O.

J.O. doesn't fit with the Raptors and I just can't see any way in which he could. I hate to say it, but after waiting three years for Bargnani and seeing what he's accomplished in the last month, I guess I will have to cease my daily routine of putting him in the trading block.

And if this is the definite direction the Raptors are willing to go, then I don't see Colangelo trading J.O. for other short term solutions. So forget dealing with the Bulls, unless we really want to crowd our team with contract problems. I could see Marion with the Raptors, but only because it gives the team an option to let him go or resign him in the Summer. But isn't Marion another short term solution? Yes and No. But the fact is Marion fits and J.O. doesn't. With Marion, the Raptors get a much-needed wing player, who could also rebound (9.2 RPG this season).

I mean, come on! Who wouldn't love to have "The Matrix" in their team?