Can Brian Colangelo Build a Winner in Toronto? 5 Offseason Questions

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Raptor fans, it’s been a long season filed with numerous missteps, and speculation. So today we examine the Top 5 questions facing the Toronto Raptors this off-season.

1. What to do with Chris Bosh?

It is very apparent that losing Chris Bosh is more of a reality today than it was at this time last year. Bosh has played coy with the media, and reporters about his intentions, and has not given any indication that he would like to stay in Toronto long term. There is much to be said for “sitting back and deciding what is best for you” or “taking care of your family long term.” But the question is what does Chris really want? If Bosh wants to be a marquee head-lining player his options are limited (Memphis, New York, Charlotte) as those teams have several decent players but no true ‘star’. If Chris truly wants to win a title then he would have to take a pay cut and a shorter contract to play with a contender. If he doesn’t want to be a leader or go-to player there are several teams (Portland, Atlanta, Phoenix) that have other stars that can take the ‘pressure’ off of Bosh. Naturally there isn’t a team in the NBA that would like to lose their marquee player however the time has come where Bosh needs to state his intentions to management. Personally I do not believe Bosh is a franchise player but more of a second tier-star like Carlos Boozer, or Ray Allen. While the trade speculation heats up the likeliness of a comparable package being received by the Raptors decreases. Whether Bosh is traded or chooses to go will ultimately shape the face of this franchise for many years to come.

2. Who will backup Jose Calerdon?

Calerdon was outstanding in his first half year as the starting PG when TJ Ford was out with an injury. However Calerdon possibly after a grueling schedule complete with the Olympics could not remain healthy over the course of the season. This off-season with no international tournaments, or qualifiers to play Calderon should be healthier this season as there is no doubt the team plays better when he is healthy. Last year Calerdon broke down under the strain suffering numerous groin pulls, and hamstring problems throughout the year due to a lack of a reliable backup. There weren’t great options last year and unless Anthony Parker takes a pay cut (which he said he would) to come back as a backup PG this upcoming year looks incredibly bleak. Wil Solomon was horrible upon his return to the NBA and struggled mightily, Roko Ukic was a rookie learning the game last year from Europe, and Quincy Douby was given a contract extension as his was the best out of the three. (Frankly I think anyone would have been better than Ukic and Solomon last year). So this year we hold out hope, Anthony Parker ran the team well when Jay Triano switched him from SG\SF to PG. Parker has always been an intelligent player and this trait serves him well in an off-season where the Raptors do NOT have much cap space to use on a backup. An open request to GM Brian Colangelo: PLEASE bring back Anthony Parker if the price is right, or else we may have to petition the NBA to make Raptor games 30 Minutes this year.

3. Will the Raptors ever be able to defend anyone?

While the Raptors are far from ‘Golden State North’ over the past 3 years we have been subjected to some of the lackadaisical, softness defense in the league. We haven’t had anyone to intimidate since the days of Charles Oakley. I am reserving judgment on the hiring of new assistant coach and defensive expert Marc Iavaroni until game 60 of the new season. The acquisition of Reggie Evans, gives us a rugged defender and hopefully someone who will give the Raptors a sense of belonging, of pride in their defense. There were multiple times last year where the players didn’t seem to care about stopping the other team. (The blowout in Denver that sealed Sam Mitchell’s fate comes to mind). Now I understand that every NBA team gets blown out at sometime or another but the Raptors just seem to go through stretches where non-descript players are looking like all-stars (Eddie House, Ronald Murray, Jared Dudley are not suppose to conjure up images of Ray Allen, Wade, and Duncan). Ideally some toughness and some offensive rebounding should cure some of the defensive woes this year however I believe the Raptors will be at the bottom of the standings in most defensive categories next year.

4. Who to Draft?

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