Ick-Snay on the Edo Turkoglu-Hay: Who Should Portland Go After?

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In only two days, the city of Portland went from having an emotional high to an energy-drink induced crash.

It was reported that the Portland Trail Blazers and free agent small forward Hedo Turkoglu had agreed to a five-year, $50 million deal in principle.

Then, Turkoglu made an about-face and sprinted for Canada.

By renouncing the rights to Shawn Marion, Anthony Parker, and Carlos Delfino, the Toronto Raptors were able to offer Turkoglu about $3 million more than Portland had originally offered.

Portland could have matched this offer had Kevin Pritchard renounced the rights to the Trail Blazers' two Euro-stash players: English power forward Joel Freeland and Finnish point guard Petteri Koponen.

However, the reason Turkoglu decided to sign with Europe was not solely because of money.

The city of Toronto has a much larger Turkish population than Portland.

The flight from Toronto to Istanbul is much shorter than the flight from Portland.

Also, Turkoglu's wife made it perfectly clear that she preferred Toronto over Portland.

There is also the economic factor to consider due to Canada's economy being much better than the United States'.

But, when you're making $50 million, why would that economy matter so much?

I personally was looking forward to seeing Hedo Turkoglu in a Trail Blazers' uniform.

I was looking forward to seeing Kevin Pritchard dispose of either Travis Outlaw or Martell Webster to make room for him.

I was looking forward to having another scoring option in the starting lineup to help take the pressure off Brandon Roy.

Tough cookies. What's done is done.

The silver lining on this cloud is that Portland still has around $9 million to use this free agency ($10 million if Pritchard releases his Euro-stashes).

With Turkoglu out of the picture, who should Portland focus on signing?

It certainly hurts the Blazers that players like Ron Artest and Trevor Ariza have found new homes. It was reported that Portland had some interest in Ariza.

Looking at the small forward class, a few notables are still up on the board.

Lamar Odom, Shawn Marion, Marvin Williams, Linas Kleiza, and Grant Hill are all currently unemployed.

Odom could be an option for the Blazers. He's looking for $6-8 million per year, so the Blazers could afford him. Odom doesn't need to start, and he can play both the three and the four.

If Portland does not move Travis Outlaw or Martell Webster this offseason, Odom could be signed to backup LaMarcus Aldridge. I'm just not certain if the fans would approve of a Laker coming to Portland.

Marion is getting older, along with Odom and Hill. His numbers are dropping, which is expected for a player his age. He also has a reputation for being difficult. I'll mark that as a negative on Kevin Pritchard's check-list.

Williams has as much raw talent as any other forward on Portland's roster. Like Outlaw, he has been inconsistent throughout his career.

I don't think Portland would gamble on him.

The Blazers drafted Kleiza in the first round of the 2005 draft, but traded him to Denver. Kleiza's stock rose tremendously around the deadline. He's physical, which is one thing the Blazers desperately need. He can also score.

The Blazers could go after him as he would help take scoring pressure off of Roy and Aldridge.

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