Toronto Raptors: Could Sonny Be Worth the Money?

Sonny Weems was supposed to be spearheading the "Young Guns" of the Toronto Raptors alongside Demar DeRozan and Amir Johnson. Weems was acquired with Amir Johnson after a trade which sent Carlos Delfino to the Bucks.

Sonny Weems wasn't expected to bring much to the Raptors but turned out to be a pleasant surprise.

In his first year as a Raptor, Weems averaged 7.5 PPG, 3 Rebounds, and shot 52 percent from the field. He played only 20 minutes nightly, but saw great improvements in all statistical categories from his rookie season.

Weems finished the season starting over Hedo Turkoglu and averaging 14 PPG and 5 rebounds in the month of April, and 12 PPG as a starter overall.

Weems and DeRozan represented the athletic youth movement Toronto was trying to build around, and things looked bright for the kid.

This season Sonny was expected to take another step forward, which he did... Sort of. In the month of November, Weems had played very well, starting multiple games in replacement of the injured Kleiza.

Weems had his best statistical month in November, scoring 13 PPG on 47 percent shooting. Surprisingly November was DeRozan's worst statistical month (next to the two games in October), where he averaged 11.9 PPG.

There was a point where Weems and DeRozan were viewed upon equally when it came to how much upside they had.

In the summer league the two friends tore apart other teams, and completed a five-game sweep. DeRozan scoring 21 PPG and Weems scoring 18 PPG the two both looked like they were in position to have breakout years.

As DeRozan improved, however, it seemed as though Weems played worse and worse. Instead of progressing, Sonny saw his numbers and minutes drop in all but one month throughout the season, finally getting some playing time in April when Jay Triano benched multiple starters.

It seemed as though Toronto had given up on Weems after they traded for Chicago forward James Johnson, and named him starter. Johnson started in 25 games as a Raptor and finished the season with averages of 9.2 points and four rebounds as a starter.

Comparing Weems' averages of 11.8 ppg, 3.3 rpg as a starter to Johnson's numbers; one could argue that aside from defense, Johnson wasn't a major upgrade over Weems.

Sonny wasn't perfect himself, lacking any real shooting game, Weems struggled to produce unless his shots were going.

It seemed Weems only shot well with confidence, but as his role shrank, it only added to the problem. Because Weems lacked any real scoring threat from outside, he was played loosely and chose to shoot instead of attacking the basket on most occasions.

With Dwane Casey's defense, Toronto will look to see more fast-break situations which will directly help Weems anytime he is on the court. Many argue James Johnson has more upside than Sonny, and while that may be true, keep in mind they're both 24.

Overall, two things turned out to be clear about Weems: 1. He thrives with a better role, and plays better while motivated and confident. 2. He has been overshadowed by DeRozan ever since the two stepped on the court together, and half way through the season, everybody was ready to flip the page on him.

This summer, Weems is a Restricted Free Agent. Toronto joyfully picked up his team option of $850k last season, but now we're at a crossroads. If we snub Sonny and move forward with Johnson, it is possible that Weems heads over to a new team and enjoys a break-out season elsewhere.

I used looked at the DeRozan and Weems duo as a crappier version of the Carter-TMac duo. Weems' value is pretty low at this point, would Toronto be smart to lock him up?

If we could lock up Weems for 3-4 years at around $3 million per year, Colangelo will finally have a signing to brag about. The only downside is the small chance some other team offers him something we would rather not pay, in that case it's fair game if Colangelo lets him walk.

Sonny Weems still has a chance to be a good, but it doesn't look like Toronto is willing to give him another opportunity. What do you think? Will Sonny pull a Dorell Wright and break out, or leave us hanging like Joey Graham?