Colangelo Needs to Prove His Worth and Shake Up Raps

Change is all around us. Both Bushes have finally been relegated to the status of ex-president. 2009 is a year of promise that so many have been waiting for...

But for the Toronto Raptors and their fans, it's already been a long and arduous 20 days.

The team's performance in January has been symptomatic of the entire season, if not a more dramatic version.

After a mostly encouraging 4-1 run to begin the month, the Raptors have currently been suffering through a season-high six game losing streak. While the quality of opponent has varied significantly during this latest downturn, one constant has emerged: a propensity to allow victory to slip away in the late stages of games.

Now, having just passed the mid-season mark, the Raptors find themselves 11 games below .500. They will have to win at a roughly 62 percent clip to reach the 40-win milestone they need to even consider contending for the playoffs. 

If this improbable run does occur, the Raps face the overwhelming likelihood of losing in the first round for the third straight season; a prospect that would be a marked disappointment for a franchise that entered the season with such high hopes.

There is certainly not a lack of excuses to explain the current state of dis-affairs between the injuries and a poorly timed coaching change. But more so, it's time for GM Bryan Colangelo to acknowledge the failings of a roster he assembled by abandoning the Raptors in their current incarnation.

While certain pessimists may have predicted the uneven health of the newly-acquired Jermaine O'Neal, it's difficult to think anybody could have overstated the extent of the importance of a healthy Jose Calderon.

Without Calderon's presence on the court, the roster's lack of an effectual playmaker has been evidenced by the fact that the Raptors are losing games by an average of less than 2.5 points. For all his perceived shortcomings on the defensive end, Calderon has been the glue that has bonded the offense and allowed for any sustainable consistency of half court execution to be maintained.

The first half of the season has shown, if nothing else, the Raptors often struggle to get into their offensive sets and move the ball to players in places they can score without their starting point guard at full health. This seemingly basic task is further complicated by the absence of numerous players who are able to create their own shot.

Swing players such as Anthony Parker, Jason Kapono, Joey Graham, and Jamario Moon, while serviceable, are not exactly frontline starters at the NBA level.

In recent years, 'the League' has become more about imposing the will of one's star players on the opposition and less about a team's collective talent rising above the sum of the individual parts. The lack of such an impact player at the shooting guard and small forward positions leaves a very small margin of error for decision-making and team play.

The Raptors' inability to create high percentage shots is adversely affecting the group, particularly Chris Bosh's ability to function without overdue defensive attention. As Raptor fans are all too familiar with, this is a problem that has some serious long term ramifications.

Before this season can be called a complete write off, it would be difficult not to mention the mid-season emergence of Andrea Bargnani as a best case scenario for Colangelo.

The Raptor GM is inextricably tied to his former No. 1 draft pick, and it could be theorized that bringing in O'Neal had the residual benefits of allowing more time for Bargnani's development. However, the month of January has reinforced that Bargs can become the player that Colangelo has always envisioned with consistent minutes as long as he plays those minutes as a big and not as a three.

The recent play of Bargnani has made Jermaine O'Neal the expendable piece; his value for the Raptors was in the short term and clearly that time has passed. It will not be easy to pawn off a player like O'Neal in light of his ongoing health issues, despite a massive contract that expires after next year.

Colangelo must make every effort to flip JO and address the glaring flaws weighing down the current roster; as it stands, there's no denying his ability, the issue will be convincing teams he can still play.

With a lack-luster draft looming, the Raptors will have no guarantees of acquiring an impact rookie in the offseason. Colangelo's only currency for making roster additions will be to clear enough cap space in order to either directly sign or indirectly peddle for the sort talent that can help the team.

After repeated close losses, morale in the locker room is dangerously low.  If the dynamic doesn't change sooner than later, this roster could implode causing irreparable damage to any remaining functioning team chemistry. And the Raps' lack of competitiveness will only serve to further alienate Bosh.

As big a disappointment as this season has become, it is absolutely necessary an immediate move is made to keep the current state of malaise from spilling over to future seasons. Maintaining the status quo could lead to a downward spiral that may be impossible to recover from for an organization that once held such a promising future.