Chris Bosh To Miami Heat: Sign-and-Trade Remains an Option for Toronto Raptors?

Before lighting up those torches and heading to the Toronto Raptors front office, take a deep breath, and don't let your emotions to cloud your judgment.

Just remember, no player is bigger than a franchise and no player is irreplaceable.

It is as official as it gets before July 8th—Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade just announced on live TV that they are going to team up in Miami.

I think someone should ask Bosh that, if he does want to be the man, why wouldn't he just recruit Wade to Toronto?

Stan Van Gundy has a take on this, too. When he was asked about Bosh going to Miami, he said, "Well, he has (Chris Bosh) been following him (Dwyane Wade) around for two weeks like his lapdog. So that does not really surprise me."

Bryan Colangelo shouldn't be blamed for this. He stayed strong and tried to use whatever leverage he had during this period. He acted with dignity and refused to be the man who does what Chris Bosh tells him to do.

After all, it is all about what Bosh would decide and what could Bryan Colangelo take for him.

While a sign-and-trade remains an option, I don't think it is a possibility for both teams, unless Pat Riley is really keen on making Bosh as happy as possible.

Any scenario that makes the Raptors happy does not work for the Heat, and vice versa. Current situation suggests that Pat Riley has the better hand, since Bosh already made his decision.

Reports state that Bryan Colangelo doesn't have Chris Bosh's ears. On the other hand, it is very likely that Bosh is more willing to accommodate his new GM (and his new team).

Any offer that Miami would throw in would start with the Raptors taking on Michael Beasley. That would allow Miami to clear out cap and get rid of a problem player.

It is unknown how Beasley would react to be getting very little player time behind the five-time All-Star power forward Chris Bosh. He is scheduled to be paid almost $5 million next season.

On the other hand Toronto Raptors have no shortage of power forwards—they just re-signed Amir Johnson to a starter level contract, and they drafted talented rookie Ed Davis.

Therefore, signing Micheal Beasley would not just steal minutes from fan favorite Amir Johnson, but also could hinder the development of the defensive minded big man Ed Davis.

Assuming Andrea Bargnani will continue to play center this year, the last thing the Raptors need is adding a front court buddy who also a below-average defender.

Finally, I am sure Bryan Colangelo does not prefer enabling the Miami Heat to be the preseason champions, by allowing them to clear up enough cap space to sign another big free agent, if the Raptors were to take Michael Beasley.

The best case scenario for Raptors is to take a huge traded player exception (TPE), so that the Raptors would acquire assets via sign-and-trade or get talents from teams who are looking to dump salary, such as New Orleans Hornets.

It would be unlikely for Pat Riley to make a move that doesn't benefit his team though. He would much prefer to sign Chris Bosh to a five year deal and save his team $30 million cap space.

Another incentive for Bryan Colangelo to agree on a sign-and-trade would be attaching Jose Calderon to the deal.

Jose Calderon is a very talented pass-first point guard who played with Bosh for the last five seasons. He has a very high field goal percentage for an outside shooter and makes no mistakes at the charity stripe.

However, Calderon and Hedo Turkoglu did not work well together last season, mainly due to both being dominant playmakers and needing the ball to operate efficiently.

If the Raptors send Calderon to Miami, they would be willing to take Michael Beasley along with a large TPE, which might also work for Miami.

Miami would also get the consistent three point threat to complete their offense and would solve their point guard issue immediately, with money to spend on a decent center and a defensive small forward.

In any case, Bryan Colangelo will prefer taking nothing back, instead of getting something that doesn't work for the team. Losing your biggest asset may be tough, but not as undesirable as a bloated roster.

The Toronto Raptors now have young prospects who never had to chance to shine or improve their game. But they proved that they can step up their game when needed.

I would highly prefer them to play more minutes than some overpaid underachiever who the Raptors get in a sign-and-trade, just because the franchise sought something in return for Bosh.

Do I think Bosh's expected depature a blessing in disguise? Only time will tell, but I have a rekindled confidence in Toronto Raptors.