When the curtain is drawn on October 29, it will not only mark the beginning of another Raptors campaign, but also the start of the Jose Calderon era in Toronto.
The departure of TJ Ford via a mid-June trade has officially made Calderon the number-one man at the number one position—and while optimism is high in the T-Dot, there may because for concern. The point guard spot for the Raptors hasn't exactly been the most steady position since the franchise's inception—and if you want proof, look no further:
Damon Stoudamire
The man known as Mighty Mouse was the Raptors fans' first glimpse at an NBA star—and subsequently, the first chance to have our collective hearts ripped out and trampled on while they ran out of town. (No, I'm not bitter!)
After lighting things up in Toronto during his first two seasons (averages of 19 and nine with a Rookie of the Year award in '95-'96), Stoudamire would ask for a trade in his third year, after then-GM Isiah Thomas left the team due to an ownership dispute.
While traditional thinking would say that losing your team's best player and the face of the franchise would actually be a small price to pay for ridding yourself of Isiah Thomas, the trade was a major setback for the Raps.
Stoudamire ended up in Portland, along with Walt Williams and Carlos Rogers—while the Raps received a package that featured Kenny Anderson, Alvin Williams, Gary Trent and a slew of draft picks.
If there's a silver lining in this deal, it's that Stoudamire insisted on pulling off a travelling Cheech and Chong routine with Rasheed Wallace for the next fove years, and his stats declined.
Nevertheless, Stoudamire was arguably the best PG we've ever had, and the whole situation seemed to start a long string of problems at the point=guard position.
Kenny Anderson
The aforementioned Anderson—who was the main player coming back in the Stoudamire trade—would refuse to report to Toronto, and was shipped to Boston shortly thereafter.





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