Chris Bosh and NBA Draft Present Opportunities For Colangelo to Right Wrongs

While no one would suggest that Bryan Colangelo is in any way on the hot seat, this summer should give him some space to right some wrongs of the past two seasons.

Colangelo, a former two-time executive of the year has seen the glory of his inaugural season dissipate following some extremely questionable trades, signings, and draft picks.

Among these numerous errors was the terrible decision to extend the contract of former Raptors coach Sam Mitchell, the coach he fired last season. In fact, the majority of his moves last season were made in order to correct past mistakes.

He traded TJ Ford, Rasho Nesterovic, Maceo Baston and a mid-first rounder to the Indiana Pacers for the oft-injured Jermaine O’Neal to rid the team of Ford’s lengthy contract, after he prematurely gave the guard an extension the summer before.

He then ridded the team of Jermaine O’Neal’s contract by trading for Shawn Marion’s expiring contract, while throwing in bargain-forward Jamario Moon and a first round draft selection, which will likely see the Raptors missing out on a mid-first rounder in the loaded and promising 2010 NBA Draft.

When he’s not busy handing away first round draft picks, he is selecting second round busts like, PJ Tucker and Nathan Jawai. Neither player was able to crack the rotation on a Raptor team starving for interior toughness.

Today, the Raptors face an incredibly grim situation. They are starved for youth, have exactly two noteworthy prospects in Bargnani and Bosh, and the latter reportedly wants to head south for greener and warmer pastures.

The Raptors have wasted draft picks and spent money on players like Marcus Banks and Jason Kapono when they should have been trying to get younger. They have squandered numerous opportunities to rebuild while staying relatively competitive due to Colangelo’s impulsive management.

One problem with Colangelo’s management of the Raptors to date has been his reactionary approach. Following the first-round exit after being eliminated by New Jersey, Colangelo decided the team needed outside shooters to prevent opposing teams from triple-teaming Bosh. He followed by making Jason Kapono one of the most overpaid players in the NBA.

Following the first round exit against Orlando, he promptly added Jermaine O’Neal to combat the Dwight Howards of the league. Perhaps he forgot for a moment that there is only one Dwight Howard, and mortgaging your future while paying over twenty million dollars for an over-the-hill, injury prone Jermaine O’Neal was probably the worst way to go to remedy such a small problem.

However, his numerous failures thus far have been compounded by one man’s failure to be what he was supposed to be. How good would a Jason Kapono look next to a franchise big man who knew how to pass? How much better does re-signing Jose Calderon look if the big man behind him averages more than a pathetic 1.3 blocks per contest and actually has an ounce of toughness?

Colangelo’s biggest mistake wasn’t trading for O’Neal, trading away first rounders, trading for Shawn Marion, or re-signing Jose Calderon. His biggest error has been in reading Chris Bosh, and failing to realize that he simply isn’t the type of player who can lead a good team.

Great players make other players better. They do so because they are creators, leaders, or superb defenders who allow their teammates to play more freely. Bosh does none of these things, and yet he has remained mum on a potential contract extension this summer. Considering he’s hardly worth it, his rejection or lack of commitment to the Raptor’s maximum contract offer may be Colangelo’s biggest blessing.

While the majority of Raptor fans cringe at the thought of Chris Bosh heading south via trade or free agency, someone who truly knows Bosh’s limitations as a player and a leader may cringe even more at the idea of paying him thirty percent of their cap space.

In fact, any team which decides to ink him to such a deal will likely regret it towards the middle of his contract, due to his durability issues, combined with the fact that when players like him slow down with age, they become relatively useless.

After much thought regarding Bosh’s situation, I have come to the conclusion that it is in the Raptors best interests to deal Bosh for some youth and expiring contracts to a team he makes a commitment to sign with. Instead, the Raptors should look to rebuild around Bargnani and the youth acquired in the deal.

Bargnani is no more or less capable of leading a team than Bosh, and as an added bonus, he has the potential to be better suited for the role. As it stands, he is already a better passer, defender, and is far tougher mentally. Three thing, which happen to be Bosh’s biggest weaknesses.

In regards to the draft, the Raptors should be looking to get younger at the wing positions by acquiring one of the many prospects available, including Demar DeRozan of USC and Austin Daye of Gonzaga.  

Sadly, Colangelo’s impatience may see him trade the pick or take a more NBA ready prospect. If this happens, one must question his knowledge, considering that his team itself is not NBA ready as it is currently structured.  One must also question if the Raptors are actually delusional regarding Bosh’s true value, or if they are simply scared stiff of attempting to sell the trade to their fan base. As the old line goes, the NBA is a business.