How 'bout that comeback?

Okay, that was far too much drama for before 8 am. I can handle writing buzzer beaters at night, or even on Sunday afternoons, but before the morning trip to Starbucks? Not so much fun.

Helluva game, though, wasn’t it?

Not sure how many of you were watching but that was a rather stirring comeback from 18 down in the third quarter.

And, yes, that’s exactly why they needed Rowan Barrett on this team. Those 22 points and that clutch three-pointer were vintage Rowan.

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So, where’s it rank?

Big win, no doubt, but all it really did was get them right where they were supposed to be, in Friday’s quarter-finals.

I’d rank it third, maybe fourth, of the international games I’ve been at or know about, and I can’t go back to the Olympic medal-winning performance in ’36 because I’m old but not that old.

I’d put the 2002 Sydney win over Yugoslavia first probably, with the 1999 win over Puerto Rico in Puerto Rico that got them to the 2000 Olympics second.

Then, there’d have to be the ’83 win in the World University Games in Edmonton over an American team stacked with the likes of Karl Malone, Charles Barkley and Kevin Willis.

After that? Yeah, a big comeback against Korea in a must-win game would be next, maybe. You’ve still got the wins over Australia in Sydney and that final game in 2000, overtime over Russia when they showed some heart after having it ripped out by France to put in the conversation.

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Best move of the game? Without question, it was shortening the rotation.

I know they crow about depth and all that, but in a 40-minute game, I’m not sure you can be shutting nine or 10 players in and out. Eight’s about the right number, maybe even seven if there’s no serious foul trouble and that’s something that helped turn the game in the second half.

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Oh, and Jermaine Anderson is certainly not Steve Nash, never will be even close, but that jumper took some stones.

Good to see the kid make a big shot.

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Moving on, for the moment …

It hasn’t been announced yet – which is why you folks are so darn lucky – but Carlos Delfino, I’m told, is heading to Russia.

I’m guessing he’s getting something in the neighbourhood of $5 million a season over there, which is far more than any legit offer he got from the NBA.

What’s it mean for the Raptors? Nothing, really.

They retain his rights for as long as the qualifying offer (about $2.7 million) is on the table (a year) but it’s not included in the calculation of the NBA’s tax.

I heard Carlos had a couple of offers in the NBA – the most significant coming from Detroit – but that the money wasn’t close to what he wanted.

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One left over from the mail:

Q: What do you think is stunting Joey Graham. Is it the style of coaching or is it all in his head? He seems to have all the tools (decent jump shot, NBA body). I have a feeling the light bulb will go on if he is released or traded.

Andrew A, Mississauga

A: I think, and people in organization concur, is that the game is just a bit too fast for Joey to process sometimes. He’s as athletically gifted as anyone on the team but his decision-making process and court awareness is lacking too often.

Maybe he gets it this year, there are people in the organization who think he will, but I’m skeptical.

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Remember last week when we suggested that Jay Triano would get another gig with the American “select” team that will practice, using international rules, against the American Olympic team next week?

Well, the official announcement comes today that the Raptor assistant will once again work with P.J. Carlisemo on the team that trains against the real team.

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Here’s one that’s very topical

Q: Doug, quick question. How were the Clippers able to acquire Marcus Camby without taking back any salary in return?
Alex H, Oakville

A: The Clips can do it because they’re far enough under the cap to assume Camby’s contract.

And, to answer all those who’ve asked, NO, NO, NO, the Raptors could not have had Camby for such a bargain-basement price.

They didn’t have the money to take on his salary and I know they feel more comfortable with two years of Jermaine O’Neal than they would have with two years of Marcus.

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A lot of concern about Rod Benson out there and why he hasn’t played a minute for Toronto’s summer league team.

He had a bit of a sprained knee that kept him out of the first two games and he might be able to go tomorrow when they play again.

But don’t get too excited. Spies in Vegas tell me the Raptors really aren’t that high on him, even if they were looking to fill their 13^th roster spot with a big, which they aren’t.

He’s a good blogger, though.

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In the wild and wacky world of international basketball, the buyout and contract closure that will allow Roko Ukic to sign with the Raptors had to go through two federations (Italy, where played this year; and Spain, where his rights were actually held) as well as FIBA and then the NBA has to take a look at it.

It might get done today, it might be tomorrow, but it’s going to get done, not to worry.

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Gonna clear up one more piece of mail before I get into the many that are waiting in the queue to be answered:

Q: Knuckleheadism (not sure if that's a word) aside do you think Colangelo would ever consider a Bargnani & filler for Ron Artest deal to give the Raps a legitimate shot at the Eastern conference.  Worst case, he's moved at the deadline or off the books next summer?

Rob V, Waterloo

A: Can’t see that happening in a million years.

Couple of reasons: I fully expect Artest to be traded before the season starts, the knuckleheadism factor is huge and, while you and a thousand others may not see it, I don’t think strengthening the wing spot is a good idea at the expense of weakening the front line and leaving a big man rotation of O’Neal, Bosh, Hump and the unproven rookie Jawai.

Comments

[Alex]

I realize this is off topic, but is the Canada/USA basketball game on July 25th going to be televised in Canada, and if so, on what channel?

Blogger's note: Yup, told the Score will have it at 10 p.m.

[J.R. Beaudrie]

Doug

1. Is it time for Canada to dump Leo? Come on, no Dalembert...he owes it to everyone to provide an explanation. Dalembert was the best player on the team, so it better be a good reason to let him go and not just egos.

2. How much do you think Shaun Livingston is going to get on the market? Is he a minimum or close to minimum contract player? Would Raptors be interested in him as the thrd point if that was the case?

3. Also, throwing it out there, Gerald Wallace and Sean May for Bargs, Parker and Graham? What do you think? I think it would put Raps among the elite. Also, the Cats need someone next to Okafor - maybe they might fall for it. Plus, if Wallace was up for grabs in the TJ Ford sweepstakes and Colangelo was interested, then why not now?

Blogger's note: I'm going to move these over to the mailbag, where they really belong. Thanks

[jr]

why in the world would clippers trade for camby if they already have kaman , what a waste of a trade ...

[Rob]

Doug, based on Denver trading Camby for a 2nd round pick - as part of a salary dump, I wonder whether Denver would have accepted Rasho's expiring contract and perhaps this year's 1st round pick for Camby. Couple that with the TJ Ford for Gerald Wallace trade and I wonder whether the Raptors would have been a better team with Wallace and Camby - addressing all of their needs at the wing position and their defensive/rebounding needs at the centre position - rather then the trade for O'Neal. What are your thoughts?

Blogger's note: I don't know what Denver was thinking before the draft so I can't answer. But I think they were looking to shed the entire contract, not just part of it.

[Bram]

Arroyo stinks and plays behind Nelson who isnt much better

[Matt]

Doug I need you to finish this once and for all so I can show everyone, the Adams/Ukic/Jawai deals cut into the MLE and we no longer havet he full MLE correct? We do not have the full MLE to spend on whatever free agent-of the minute people want regardless of their crying over MLSE not going over the luxury, correct?

Blogger's note: The Ukic deal cuts into the mid-level exception; Adams and Jawai are minimum value contracts that don't. And, you're right, they don't have the full mid-level left and it doesn't matter anyway for, as you put it so well with the "free agent of the minute" because they are up against the tax level and won't exceed it. They have one minimum value deal for a combo guard left to do.

[Edgar]

J.R. Has a seemingly legitimate trade inquiry there - both teams satisfied? check. Salary match? check. No fiscal implications beyond mlse reality? check. Good chemestry and roster fit? check.

I cant see how this wouldnt be a virtually perfect match. Toronto takes on 4 years of Wallace's contract and possible short term injury problems off a club struggling financially. If its not ideal from either end cash and/or 2nd rounders either way should be enough to even it out. Also worth noting is the possibility of moving Kapono instead of Parker. At the end of the day its a firm "Yes" from this fan because Gerald Wallace is only approaching his prime.

http://games.espn.go.com/nba/features/traderesult?players=2987~2759~635~2776~1026&teams=30~30~30~28~28&te=&cash=

Can anyone think of a reason it wouldnt work?

Blogger's note: Keep in mind the fact they are not at all interested in trading Bargnani before you get going on that one, okay. That's simply a fact, Bargnani is NOT on the market at the moment.

[AJ]

ye honestly, the clipper trade for camby doesnt make too much sense to me...its a risk as both camby or kaman are not good interior scorers (and the clippers need one)... its a risk and looks like clippers are just waiting to see how this team plays for 2 years and going for their free-agent target in 2010

[Kalson]

Problem with Joey Graham is that his basketball IQ is really low. Some players just "get it" and make the smart plays. Joey is the opposite.

[Rob]

Doug, thanks for the response. Following up on my last question, if the Nuggets would have accepted Rasho and a 1st round pick for Camby and the Raptors could have traded TJ for Wallace, would you prefer to have Wallace and Camby over O'Neal.

Seems to me that would be a better series of trades for the Raptors addressing all of their needs and there likely would have been a little money left over to sign a back-up PG - since O'Neal's contract is more than Wallace and Camby. What do you think, would you prefer Wallace and Camby over O'Neal.

Blogger's note: Yes, if, and it's a moot point, really, Denver had been willing to do that and the Wallace trade could have gone through, I'd absolutely prefer Camby and Wallace (two starters) over O'Neal (one starter)

[Geeve]

"Also, throwing it out there, Gerald Wallace and Sean May for Bargs, Parker and Graham? What do you think? I think it would put Raps among the elite."

That has to be the most boneheaded move ever! I don't even know if Babcock would ever do that deal considering he actually had an ace up his sleeve with Jose, and maybe another one coming with Roko.

After finally getting rid of one possibly permanently injured player in TJ (no offense to him, but I know as much as he knows that he is one bad knock away from a KO), why would you trade for one constantly injured player, and one more who's a concussion away from retirement possibly? Even if you had Charlotte include 3 first round picks in that deal I would not take it. Charlotte would be laughing if the Raptors did, just as the Magic laughed at the Warriors for years after taking Webber for Penny and 3 first rounders ('96, '98, 2000).

[Thane]

DougG, Toronto is the fifth biggest city in North America, not the fourth.

Mexico City is #1, followed by NYC, LA, and Chicago. We'll probably be #4 in a decade when we pass Chicago, and #3 a couple of years later, when LA falls into the ocean. ;)

[Tim W.]

Jr,
Denver traded for Camby because without Brand, they have Tim Thomas as the probable starter at PF. Camby will obviously be playing PF.

[Jason]

Johathan you obvoiusly don't get my point. As for the knowledge part, I have forgot more about the CBA than most people will ever know. CBA are my line of work and I've read it top to bottom several times.
As for what you say, you are missing my point.
What I am trying to express is the fact that there is no way the Camby deal was done to improve the Denver team so how is that right?You say its the teams fault and you are correct but you forget the guy who laid down some serious bread for tickets. Does the ticket holder think its all good?

Heres your points,
1) to keep the playing field more level between the richer teams and the poorer teams,
Really??? Suppose the Knicks had a quality GM and spent that much over the tax, would you still make this bogus statement? Theres no way there is a level field if one team can spend twice as much as the small market team. Soft or flexible caps do not make level fields my friend, they only penalize the violators.
2) to keep salaries relatively under control.
Yeah thats working well isn't it?

The Clippers are a team with alot of cap and I pointed out there will be no teams with alot of cap in a couple years. I was to try and point out that in a couple years, there will be no more places to send these guys so the only option is buyouts. So now you have the above average players not playing in the league because a team needs tax relief. To me thats a problem. Doug added the fact that this problem has already begun with teams trading guys and then they get bought out.

So with a team like the Raps, how do you explain there cap issues? They can't improve because they can afford anyone else and to me as a fan, thats a problem. Just in case you want to counter with the fact they still can make a trade, who could they deal that would improve the team? Only a star player like Bosh or Jose has value because no other team has any room to take on salary either. Thats a problem.

My EOTY point is this: The best executive does not assemble the best team possible, the best GM is the one who can get the best talent for the money available. Disagree? Have a look down the bench next time your at the game and when you see the 2nd round picks, think to yourself, "If I was GM would I want these three 2nd round players who should be in the D-league or would I want Camby?"
Feel free to sub in any guy who has been bought out,traded or not picked up strictly because of salary cap issues (Hassan Adams, Delfino, Howard, Horry, Barnes etc..)

Anyways, I appreciate all you said except the lack of knowledge part because I'm very knowledgable. I don't agree with your points one bit because you can blame all the teams for the salary problems but when the product on the floor suffers thats a huge problem for the league. You have glossed over this fact and your only reason is that no team is forced to overpay so you must think they overpay just for fun.

[Jonathan]

Jason, our opinions may differ, but you could at least get my name right and spend less time on comparing qualifications. Those with experience/know-how don't need to boast about it, but simply speak from it. Let me try to address each issue you brought up (correct me if I get any of them wrong):

1. The CBA causes some teams to make moves that lower their on-court product, thus hurting ticket holders.

Yes, Denver's current on-court product suffered. but obviously the team felt it would benefit in some way, regardless of how fans may feel. Last I recall, there were only two sides to the CBA talks, and fans weren't one of them. Is it possible for all teams to always improve? Seems to me that one team's improvement is almost always at the expense of another's, and that has more to do with economics and limited talent than it does with the CBA.

2. There's no way to level the playing field as long as one team can spend twice the amount of another team.

Except to somehow limit a team's expenditures, which would require some kind of cap. Hmm, sounds a lot like the salary cap to me, and yet your solution is to *not* have a cap? Maybe you should examine MLB, because that's the system they basically have, where a payroll of ~$200 mil can exist in the same league as a payroll of $30 mil. How does that help ticket holders of all the teams not the Yankees? You bring up the Knicks, and yet the salary cap has done exactly what it should: reduce the poor decision-making Knicks into the cellar of the league. Without the cap, you know full well that instead of only being able to acquire talent by further trading away future financial flexibility, they would just sign whomever they wanted every year. If you fail to see how the cap hurts teams that make bad decisions with their money (i.e. Knicks) while allowing smart teams like the Spurs and the Pistons to succeed, then there's really no basis for debate here.

3. In a few years, no teams will have significant cap space remaining and teams will be forced to buyout players it can no longer move.

Sorry, but not mathematically possible. As long as contracts continue to expire, and the cap is pegged to league revenues, then there will always be some team with cap space. Of course, some teams will still have to buyout players if they can't find a taker, but that has little to do with teams not having cap space. Some players will inevitably have undesirable contracts that make it harder to find a trade partner given that salaries must match or be within 25% of each other, plus or minus $100,000, unless you think demolishing that is a good idea too. Even then, as long as some player's production doesn't justify his price tag, a buyout may result as long as it benefits both sides (except in the case of the Mourning buyout, of course).

4. Because of #3, players who should be in the NBA will no longer be.

Sorry, but it's called supply and demand. If a player is bought out, all teams are free to sign him. If he isn't signed, then his asking price is too high. If a player like Delfino leaves the NBA, it's not because of some injustice. The Russia league is offering him more money than anyone in the NBA wants to spend, and he's free to go wherever he wishes. It's not like teams didn't have the MLE to sign him with, if they really wanted, so the problem wasn't so much that they couldn't offer more money, but that they didn't want to, and how is that bad, unless (again) you are arguing for a system that doesn't limit salaries?

Since you brought it up, for all your talk of CBA experience you have yet to bring up a remotely viable alternative. Simply stating you're very knowledgeable doesn't make it so, and usually, people who have the experience don't need to boast about it, and simply speak from it. Obviously the CBA isn't perfect, but nothing ever is. Your concern with the overall on-court product suffering in the league should be directed instead to the constant expansion that the league seeks, resulting in talent dilution.