Raptors rest hopes on O'Neal, not draft ... for now
Thursday, June 26, 2008 | 04:16 PM ET
Tonight’s NBA draft just got a lot less interesting for fans of the Toronto Raptors, as it appears Canada's only team in the league has cashed its chips and will be sitting this one out.
The Raptors appear poised to trade their first-round pick, along with point guard TJ Ford and centre Rasho Nesterovic and someone else (possibly Maceo Baston) to the Indiana Pacers for Jermaine O'Neal and a second-round pick.
In trading for O'Neal, a six-time all-star who has been hobbled by injuries the last four seasons, Toronto appears to be swinging for the fences in a high-risk, high-reward move. But in all likelihood the trade is neither as bad nor as good as it sounds.
It is clear though that the Raptors had the Boston Celtics in mind when they made the deal.
First of all, the champion Celtics present the Raptors most formidable obstacle to winning another division title, let alone competing in the playoffs, and as the Lakers found out, if you want to beat the Celtics you better bring a big, bruising frontcourt.
O'Neal a huge plus on D
Teaming O'Neal with Bosh (with Andrea Bargnani and Kris Humphries coming off the bench) gives the Raptors the length and muscle to fight with Boston. And though O'Neal is a pale shadow of Bosh on offence, he is, when healthy, a better rebounder and shot blocker and one of the few post players in the league (Kevin Garnett, Marcus Camby, Tyson Chandler are the others that come to mind) capable of making an entire defence better. Certainly the Raptors could use that, and adding O'Neal to the starting lineup might pave the way for Jason Kapono to return to a role as a starter, knowing O'Neal and CB4 have his back on defence.
Of course, O'Neal hasn't been healthy very often, and Bosh too has missed a few weeks a year of late, so if you set a gambling book on the number of games the two towers might play together next season, the over/under would charitably be set at 41 games.
Then there is O'Neal's reputation as something of a malcontent, the kind of player who thinks he is better than he is. Will he be willing to mesh with Bosh and Bargnani and the rest of the Raptors? That concern pales however, to the bonus of trading Ford, a player who had already established himself as a chemistry experiment ready to explode.
Again, the Raptors are no doubt hoping a little of that Celtics magic rubs off on them: recall last year the doubters who wondered if Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen could submerge their egos and win a championship. Perhaps O'Neal too will see the allure of a championship as too enticing too squabble over. But then again, even with Jose Calderon, Bosh and now O'Neal, are the Raptors really a championship team?
So things might not be as rosy as they appear. But what if O'Neal gets injured opening day and his career is over? Have the Raptors scuttled their chances of ever winning another playoff series? Again, things aren't as bad as they seem and again, the Celtics provide some guidance.
Recall, if you will, how Boston was able to acquire Kevin Garnett in the first place: the Celtics happened to have an overpaid, underperforming big man named Theo Ratliff in the last year of his contract. Since the expiring contract would be cleared off the payroll the following season, it was an attractive quantity to a cost-cutting team like the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Colangelo has a plan
Similarly, O'Neal's whopping contract expires in two seasons, and will pay him something like $23 million in the 2009-2010 season. Coincidentally, the summer of 2010 is also the summer Bosh, LeBron James, Dwayne Wade and a host of other talents will all be free agents.
Maybe the Raptors won't be competing for James or Wade, but should another team (the New York Knicks and New Jersey Nets come to mind) be looking to shed payroll and players to make a run at LeBron, you can expect Raptors GM Bryan Colangelo's Blackberry will be buzzing, since he'll be sitting pretty with O'Neal's fat contract ready to play kingmaker to whoever is willing to sell him the farm. As worst-case scenarios go, it doesn't sound that bad.
So lament, if you must, the Raptors decision to trade away its first-round pick in the draft for a player who may not have one good leg to stand on. But keep an eye on the draft anyway, particularly the players the Knicks and Nets draft, and ask yourself: two years from now, would they look good in Raptors red?
« Previous Post | Main | Next Post »
This discussion is now Open. Submit your Comment.
« Previous Post | Main | Next Post »
Post a Comment
Shoot the J »
About the Author
Paul Jay has been writing about basketball for seven years, working as a basketball columnist for Rogers Sportsnet and writing for CBC Sports, Raptors Insider, Dose and appearing on air with Sportsnet and Raptors TV. In his 12 years in journalism, Paul has written features for some of the best publications in the country, including the Globe and Mail, the Ottawa Citizen, Saturday Night, Canadian Lawyer and This magazine. He first joined CBC.ca during the 2004 Athens Olympics and currently writes online for CBCNews.ca as a technology and science writer.
Recent Posts
- The Redeem Team will win gold
- Friday, August 8, 2008
- Where does Canada Basketball go from here?
- Friday, July 18, 2008
- Raptors rest hopes on O'Neal, not draft ... for now
- Thursday, June 26, 2008
- Celtics reign with size, defence
- Wednesday, June 18, 2008
- Kobe Bryant remains a mystery
- Friday, June 13, 2008
- Subscribe to Shoot the J
Archives
- August 2008 (1)
- July 2008 (1)
- June 2008 (4)
- May 2008 (2)
- April 2008 (4)
- March 2008 (4)
- February 2008 (4)
- January 2008 (3)
- December 2007 (4)
- November 2007 (4)
- October 2007 (1)
Comments
jeff
niagara
A trade that suits both teams needs. Colangelo against has masterminded his strengths by trading Ford(indy drastically dersires a good point guard)who has now become expendable with the emergence of Calderon, to obtain a quality big man like Oneal. Now we have Bosh Oneal and Calderon versus Garnett, Pierce and Allen...Bring on the Celts!!
Posted July 8, 2008 06:53 AM
B-Rod
NL
yes everyone would trade Bargnani for Ginobili but why would the Spurs do this. They have competent management.
A swingman would be great for the raptors to come by, but realistically, they don't have the assets to get an all star/borderline all star. The only realistic target would be mike miller who might be had for a pick, (next years) and expirings, but I'm sure Minny could get more than that. Another option could be a risky overpaid injury prone player like bobby simmonds. He has 2 years 20 mil left on his contract and has been injured the past couple of years. When he signed that big contract he was an excellent player. If he's healthy now, I would definitely look at him, because that would be a lot of money coming off the books for 2010 with his large contract
Posted June 30, 2008 03:01 PM
KDawg
The trade is actually not bad. But the 17th pick that the raptors got actually looked pretty good. if raptors had given someone else instead of the 17th pick.. mightve been more beneficial to the team
Posted June 28, 2008 06:18 PM
steve
hamilton
this is a good trade for the raps,it sure's up the rebounding & defensive problems what they need now is a shooting gaurd who's not afraid to shoot the ball in the playoffs other than kaponno.
Posted June 28, 2008 03:37 PM
akil
Toronto
i think this was a great move by Colangelo. this gives the Raptors 2 of the best big man in the NBA an this gives them the oppurtunity to trade Andrea Bargnani, since he is not needed anymore. I think they should trade Bargnani for Manu Ginobly. Ginobly can put up 20 points per game and he brings the team nba finals experience.
Posted June 27, 2008 04:54 PM
Andy Bruinewoud
I don't know if the Celtics were really the model used by Colangelo. This isn't a complete overhaul of the team and trading the future for the present.
T.J. and Nesto were not part of any long-term championship plans, so trade for somebody who hopefully can win now and, at worst, will be off the cap in two years. Losing the 17th draft pick? I doubt the Raptors needed another slow big man trailing behind every transition play like Georgetown's Higgins.
Posted June 27, 2008 03:58 PM
causaubon
Toronto
I don't trading Ford for J.O., but i think it is a HUGE mistake to give up Hibbert. this decision will haunt us.
Posted June 27, 2008 03:31 PM
emac
wpg
good article, I think what is missing is the fact that O'Neal's two years in Toronto will give Bargnani a chance to develop. Afterall O'Neal was a late bloomer and did not find his game until his fifth year. By the end of O'Neal's contract, we should know if Bargnani will take his game to another level.
Posted June 27, 2008 07:07 AM