On Rudy Gay and the Raptors

Tweet It is seeming more and more likely that Rudy Gay will be a Toronto Raptor in the very near future. Multiple sources (including ESPN and Yahoo) have leaked details about the trade and if these details are correct, Raptors fans should be outraged. Before getting into it, here is the breakdown of the trade:

Toronto Gets

Rudy Gay (and his 18 million dollar per year contract which runs for two more seasons after this one)
Darelle Arthur (maybe, the details are dusty on this one)

Toronto Loses

Jose Calderon (for who Memphis is trying to find a third team, more on this later)
Ed Davis
1st Round pick
Another player likely to be a throw in to make the salaries match

So Memphis sheds Rudy Gay and his crazy contract, gets a draft pick, and a young player who has emerged as a solid contributor on the Raptors. For them this is a great trade as it gives them some flexibility, while allowing them to keep the Gasol-Randolph-Conley core for the next few seasons. For the third team that will likely be involved (and my money is on the Lakers, if any team can luck into Calderon and Pau Gasol off of the bench its them) they get a very good offensive player whose contract expires at the end of this season. The Raptors? They cement Colangelo's reputation as an overrated GM who only made Phoenix a contender because it was his dad calling the shots there. Here are some reasons why.

This trade is a panic trade, plain and simple

The Raptors have (over the past few seasons) managed to assemble some young exciting talent (Val, Ross, Derozan, Ed Davis) through the draft. Remember all those "fans" who were mad at the Terrence Ross selection? Where are you now? Anyways, the key point here is that the Raptors were on he right track going forward. This trade will cost them yet another first-round pick, a young player, and could hinder Derozan's development as he and Rudy Gay have similar games. By constricting their ability to draft, the Raptors would have to rely on trades and signings (cut to Kapono, O'Neal, Marion, Turkoglu, Aaron Gray, and Pietrus sharing a laugh) to improve, and Colangelo's track record there is certainly nothing to be hopeful of. The bottom line is that this season would have a completely different outlook if the Raptors would have had some (pick one of at least 12 games that was blown in the last 2 minutes) results go their way earlier in the season. This is a young team that will struggle to win close games, but they are very competitive and despite their poor start they sit about 5 games out of a playoff spot. That does not sound like a team that needs to make a panic trade, it sounds like one that has to be patient.

The Bargnani Conundrum

By making this trade, the Raptors PF spot will be shared between Bargnani and Amir Johnson. Is there any Raptor fan alive who is happy about this? How many more chances will Andrea get here? It is very clear that he needs a change of scenery and fast! The Raptors have played much better basketball without him and keeping him here will be counterproductive to all parties involved.

Expiring Contracts are a GOOD thing BC!

Jose Calderon's contract (around 10 million per year) is set to expire at the end of the season and with it the Raptors would have much more financial flexibility. Being under the salary cap is a really good thing in the NBA. It enables a team to take on unwanted but talented players, and it helps them stockpile draft picks when other teams (like the Raptors in this case) panic. Keeping Calderon and letting him sign elsewhere would have been a far more logical move than shipping him mid-season so one team can get the benefit of his expiring contract.

Another note about this, why exactly are contenders not lining up for Jose? He is a more than capable offensive player and would be a fantastic back-up PG for a contending team. Also if he doesn't work out guess what? Just let him become a free agent. It is literally a no-lose situation. You're telling me that Western conference teams wouldn't be furious if he went to the Spurs? the Lakers? Thunder? Come on.

The Art of Negotiation

So Memphis is the team desperately trying to dump salary. Memphis is putting in the effort to make this trade happen, Memphis, Memphis, Memphis, it is all on them. So why then are the Raptors giving up a first round pick? How does BC let the Grizzlies management bully him like this? Thankfully he had the sense to make Ross "untouchable" but giving up that first-round pick just seems insane to me. What is even more troubling is that this trade would really not change much. Sure the Raptors could maybe sneak into the playoffs but what then? Are they beating Miami or New York? Answer: NO. It seems like BC feels that giving up the next two years of the draft is also an option because of the potential Val and Ross can exhibit. At this point, he is risking his career on that.

The Sad Case of the Memphis Grizzlies

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Earlier this season when Zach Randolph went down in a heap with, what turned out to be a torn MCL, the first two words I thought of were: Chris and Webber. Why the hell would I think of him? Because this Memphis squad reminds me a lot of the old Kings teams, and how a little bit of bad luck can ruin an opportunity to win a title. If we were to compare this version of Memphis with that version of Sacramento we would see some similarities. The defensive prowess of Tony Allen and Doug Christie, the bench impact of O.J. Mayo and Bobby Jackson, the passing skill of Divac (a big man from Europe) and Gasol (a big man from Europe), and of course; a star power-forward with a good inside-out game who struggled before finding the right team (for Webber it was Sacramento, for Randolph it was Memphis). Obviously there are differences as well: Conely and Rudy Gay are vastly different then Bibby and Stojakovic but the fact remains that (when healthy) both teams had arguably the best starting five's in the league. Notice I did not say best player (LeBron) or best one-two punch (Durant/Westbrook), but F-I-V-E, Memphis has arguably the best combination of players and a sixth-man in the league. But their inherent problem has not been choking (they have several players who can hit big shots), or lack of talent (see above) it has been bad luck (refer to the word in bold above).


Last season, Memphis came out of the gate struggling, but as the season progressed it became clear that this team was a lot better then people thought. Once everything started to click (the Grizzlies had a 12-3 record in the period of Jan 21 - Feb 21 of last season) it seemed like this could be a team to contend. Then Rudy Gay was proclaimed out for the year. Memphis still finished the season on a decent 15-10 run but could only muster an eight seed. We all know what happened next, they thoroughly outplayed San Antonio and only a 3OT loss in game 5 to OKC on the road could stop them. Does a healthy Rudy Gay make the difference for that team? Could the 2011 Grizzlies have won the title if they stayed healthy? One could certainly argue that they would have had a much better chance, just like the 02' Kings (Peja-ankle), 03' Kings (Webber-knee) and 04' Kings (Jackson-abdomen) probably would have. Which is exactly why I was so disappointed when Zach Randolph was injured. Although news has come out that he has progressed fantastically and will not be done for the year (as coach Hollins told SI the other day) will this Memphis team that had no training camp (lockout be damned), and few prolonged stretches of playing together be able to get things together for a title run? If last year's Mavericks squad taught us anything its that defense, teamwork, and execution down the stretch go a long way towards winning. Memphis can do all of those things, whether they will catch a few breaks remains to be seen.

A team gets very few opportunities to win a title before the window closes. Having seen that happen to my favorite team, i hate seeing it happen to a team that is so similar. Here is hoping that Memphis can pull it together and take their chance before time runs out on them.