Jose Calderon appears to be staying in Toronto as the Raptors' starting point guard. (Adrian Wyld/Canadian Press)Jose Calderon is poised to remain a Toronto Raptor for the foreseeable future.
Calderon became eligible to entertain offers from other teams as a restricted free agent at 12:01 a.m. on Tuesday, but the Spanish point guard quickly dispelled any notions of leaving his first and only NBA team with a succinct statement on his personal website, josemanuelcalderon.com.
"Early this morning, through my agents, I reached a preliminary agreement with the Toronto Raptors," the statement said. "I want to thank Bryan Colangelo, Maurizio Gherardini, Sam Mitchell and all of the Raptors family for the confidence that they have placed in me. I am sure that together we are going to achieve big things in the future."
Terms of the deal were not disclosed and the signing itself can't be made official until July 9, when next year's salary cap is set.
Toronto is expected to make another significant move at point guard on July 9 as T.J. Ford along with Rasho Nesterovic, Maceo Baston and Roy Hibbert, the 17th overall pick in this year's draft, will be sent to the Indiana Pacers for six-time all-star Jermaine O'Neal and Nathan Jawai, the 41st overall pick.
That deal, agreed to in principle, paves the way for Calderon, 26, to take over the starter's role at point guard for Toronto.
Calderon had a breakout season in 2007-08, with averages of 11.3 points, 8.3 assists, 2.9 rebounds and 1.1 steals in just over 30 minutes per game.
