The morning after a busy day

A whirlwind day of signings and news conferences and we haven’t even spoken yet to Nathan Jawai or Roko Ukic. It really does never end, it seems.

And judging by the mail I see over in the inbox, the six or seven hours I had planned for loafing before covering the big Canada-Brazil women’s soccer match is out the window.

)Yes, your humble beat grunt is moving over to women’s soccer, and softball, baseball, men’s field hockey, men’s water polo and Lord knows what else as the Beijing gigs. Lucky, lucky readers).

But don’t fret, it seems basketball never takes a break so we’ll stay grounded over here. After all, who’s going to ridicule summer league games if not me?

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Speaking of the Summer League (and it ain’t the Celtics-Lakers of the 80s, that’s for sure), Eric Hughes serves as the Raptors head coach. It’s not unusual for veteran coaches like Sam to pass off the summer league game duties to an assistant, guess they chose Eric ‘cause it’s his turn or something.

The rest of the staff is there (they had some meeting at 7 a.m. in Vegas today to go over stuff) and Sam will coach the practices leading up to the first game.

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How ‘bout them Canadas?

Now, no one actually saw the game in Germany yesterday so most opinion is based on hearsay and reports but a win is a win is a win. And it’s never easy to win an international friendly (oops, falling into football-speak) on the road so there is some significance to the result.

But most important is the fact Sam Dalembert played because, as more than a few people who would know pointed out last week, Canada cannot beat the big boys without some sort of anchor on the defence.

And being big and mobile and quick, Dalembert’s exactly the kind of anchor that’s useful in international games.

I still think it’s going to be uber-difficult for Canadato get one of the three Beijing spots next week in Athens but I’m getting more impressed with each game.

The good thing? There’s a legitimacy to the program now, having the games on TV next week is huge (they’ll be replayed Tuesday and Wednesday night by The Score, too), Canada Basketball is doing small things like setting up post-game conference calls with Leo and a player to make our jobs a wee bit easier and I sense people out there are starting to care more.

Now, if there’s a big-hearted corporation looking to spend some money, I know the folks would love to hear from you.

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You can almost see ‘em hugging, can’t you?

Jose, yesterday, on Garbo:

"He’s my friend, that’s the first thing. I think it was the best thing for him, for everybody. He had a tough year with the injury, no one wants that, it’s bad luck but he’s happy. He’s happy, he’s doing okay. He’s my friend, if he’s happy, I’m happy, too. There’s nothing else.”

Awwwww.

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There’s a whole lot of love out there for Matt Barnes, who is one of the dozens of still-to-be-signed free agents floating around.

First off, I’m not sure where the suggestion comes that the Warriors, who are stumbling and bumbling along the free-agent path looking for a way to ease the pain of Baron Davis’s departure, aren’t going to keep him.

And, second, he made $3 million last year so unless he’s going to cut his salary by more than half, he’s not a fit here.

His game? It’s okay.

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Of course Jermaine O’Neal was asked about the 2004 brawl. Here’s what he said:

"My situation was, I saw a teammate who was having some problems with the fans, a fan was literally on top of him. And at that particular time it wasn’t about basketball, it wasn’t about anything, it was people that were really, really trying to hurt us.

"Now, we’ve got 12, 13 players there. Obviously Detroit has the biggest arena in the NBA and there was like 14,000 people still there. And it was extremely … it was chaos. People were picking up chairs and throwing them.

"At that point, you really don’t have a chance to really evaluate a particular situation, you have to make the best decision for yourself and your teammates. I made my decision, I went to court, won the court case against the NBA, won the civil, won the criminal. I didn’t lose a case. My view was the view of every juror and the proof is in the pudding.

"Being put in that position, if I had to do it all again, and if a teammate was having that … I mean, people have lives. I think that’s something that gets overlooked. I think fans and the general public think because we get paid a certain amount of money we’re not really human, but we go home to our families, we go home to our wives, girlfriends, brothers and sisters and if somebody is killed – and somebody could have got killed in that particular situation, there was no security whatsoever to help us – how do you explain to your teammates family that you could have did something to prevent that person dying.

"I’m hoping that nothing like that ever happens again and I’m damn sure hoping that nothing like that happens with any team I’m on, but if put in that position to protect my teammate, I would definitely do that again to help my teammate.”

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A quick one from the mailbag before I head off to answer mail:

Q: Doug, how can Philly trade the contracts of Carney and Booth to Minny without taking contracts of equal value back?

Barry K, Ridgeway

A: Minnesota was under the cap so they could take on salary and also had what’s known as a “trade exception” which, in the most simple explanation, is the difference in salaries of traded players, an amount that can be used in a transaction for one calendar year.

Good news for Jose, Jermaine and, I'm told, Jack Armstrong

Welcome to Jermaine O’Neal and Jose Calderon Day here in Toronto.

Couple of news conferences, some words of wisdom (or something like that), maybe a grandiose prediction or two and then maybe things will slow down a wee bit.

Or not, given how things never, ever really seem to slow down a bit.

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Cap and tax numbers are in, they’re a little bit below what many had expected and just reinforces, again, that the only move left here is to sign a minimum-value free agent, maybe someone with two or three years of service in.

The cap came in at $58.680 million, the tax at $71.150 million and the mid-level exception is $5.585 million.

The numbers, in reality, are staggering but in the world of basketball, they’re actually lower than some people expected.

And what’s going to happen is more than a few players are going to have to settle for less than they thought.

For the Raptors, the numbers don’t mean anything, actually. They still have enough to get the one guy at the one price they expected, and are willing to pay. I guess the only thing it might mean is that the pool of players available might grow a bit if some teams have budgeted X dollars and the limits are lower than they thought.

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As we sit and wait for Matt Devlin to be formally announced as the new Raptor TV play-by-play guy, whispers around the organization are that Jack Armstrong not only will be back, but that we’ll see and hear more of him on games this year than we did last.

And that’s a good thing.

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Elton Brand to Philly, what do you think of that?

The immediate reaction is, oh, oh; how much better are the Sixers going to be with a stud power forward playing next to Sam Dalembert and how will those two match up against Chris Bosh and Jermaine O’Neal?

Pretty much better, I’m thinking.

The Sixers still have to re-sign Andre Iguodala – and if they don’t, the addition of Brand simply keeps them at the level they were at last year – but with him on the wing and the two big guys under the basket, that’s a pretty formidable threesome.

Funny how a year ago now, everyone figured the Sixers were toast, in the midst of a huge rebuilding process that might take seasons.

Toss in their hot finish last season and now the acquisition of Brand and all of a sudden, there’s probably a new challenger for second in the Atlantic Division.

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You know, sometimes you’ve got to give props where they’re deserved.

Like today to The Score and Canada Basketball.

I don’t know who urged who, or who paid what, or how it exactly came together, but the decision to show next week’s Canadian games at the Olympic qualifier in Athens is a huge boost for the program and should cement The Score as the basketball leader in Canadian television.

What I’ve heard is that Canada Basketball approached FIBA a while ago, trying to manipulate global TV deals to let them be more specifically tailored to Canadian needs. Nice to know there are forward-looking people in the organization, at The Score and even at FIBA who saw the intelligence in that move.

Sure, it’s stupid early with 6 a.m. starts but what the heck; I’m up around then finishing this off every morning, it’ll give me a reason to turn on the television.

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Speaking of Canada, they’re in Hamburg today to face that iconic German athlete Chris Kaman and that Nowitzki fellow in their penultimate exhibition game before the Athens tourney.

I’m not sure the result is the most important thing to worry about today, what’s big is whether Sam Dalembert or Jesse Young plays.

Dalembert played the first game and about five minutes of the second – limping noticeably – of the four-game series here last week and Young didn’t play a minute.

Canada’s good, as deep and talented a team as we’ve had, but without those two big guys, the task of qualifying becomes exponentially more difficult.

It isn’t going to be easy, I’d rank Greece, Germany, Croatia, probably Brazil and maybe Slovenia ahead of them, but they’ve got a chance. A greater chance than some of us thought a year ago.

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Speaking of Canada, here’s Rowan Barrett on how the zillion-year-old vet’s fitting back in:

"Coming in, it could have been challenging, I haven’t really played with most of these guys and supposed to be kind of coming into some kind of leadership role and sometimes that can be difficult, especially when the team has been formed and there’s leadership there in the past but at the same time, I kind of coached some of these guys when they were younger.

"I think that love and that respect is there and I’m just trying to use my experience at this time to help whatever way, if it’s to score in tight situations, obviously that’s what I do on the court.

"My role is a little bit more than one dimensional now. And I’m excited to do it.”

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Since today’s Jermaine O’Neal day, here’s a topical question:

Q: Hi Doug quick question for you - do you feel the Ford deal for O'Neal was the best deal out there? If not what other deal would have been better.
Junior B-A, Toronto

A: Well, there were three others I know that were out there: Phoenix for Boris Diaw, Portland for Channing Frye and Martell Webster, and the ill-fated Charlotte one for Gerald Wallace that fell apart over an extra draft pick.

And all things considered, Toronto's needs for an inside defensive presence weighed against the need for an athletic wing, the long-term financial picture, what was left on the roster and what might have been available with the 17^th pick, I think they got the right one done.

Is it a perfect trade? No. None are.

But when all of them are looked at and all things considered, this was the best one.

Who's in, who's out and why

Here’s a little secret about the summer league:

It blows.

The only thing anyone generally ever learns at summer league is who can’t play, not who can.

The games are sloppy and choppy, the refereeing is generally sub-standard (it’s guys and gals learning their craft, blowing the whistle on almost every possession) and the players? Well, the players are usually looking to find jobs in Europe or the D League; maybe an invitation to a real training camp would be in the offing but that’s usually just as camp fodder and without a legitimate chance to stick.

The most interesting thing about the Raptor roster is that they’ve only invited two guys –-John Lucas and Daniel Ewing -- with even a scant chance to get that 13^th spot on the real roster.

I suspect it’s even more likely now that Bryan is going to sit back and wait to see who falls through the cracks of free agency to find that one-two, ball-handling shooter he wants for his last spot on the team.

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So, no Jamario?

The way it was explained to me is that they think Moon needs to be in a gym and a weight room, working on his ball-handling and shooting, rather than be playing five or so games against marginal competition.

Makes entire sense, actually. Over the course of his minor league career, Moon’s probably playing in 500 games against summer league-type competition, so there’s really nothing for him to get out of games that he can’t get in a gym working on his own.

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So, why Joey?

For the same reason Moon’s not there, actually.

Graham needs to work on his game skills, decision making in competition, knowing that if he gets the ball and wants to go left only to see a defender there, he should make a quick decision and go right. That’s the kind of stuff he doesn’t do in NBA games and the more times he plays, maybe the basketball instincts he lacks will improve.

I don’t hold out much hope – it’s hard to become instinctual so late in one’s career – but he needs to be in games rather than alone in a gym.

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Oh, and in case another six or seven people are tempted to write into the comments section want to know: Roko Ukic isn’t there because he’ll be in Greece playing for Croatia in the Olympic qualification tournament.

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And, yes, Andrea Bargnani is not playing in Vegas. He never was going to; he’s spending his summer working on his game on his own in Italy before heading to a training camp in Vegas later this month.

That’s where a lot of his work is going to get done, working out once or twice a day against other NBA players.

He doesn’t need to play marginally talented D League hopefuls in the summer league; his best work has to get done with intense individual instruction at something like the Grgich camp he’ll take part in.

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Let’s go into the mail, and don’t worry if you don’t see yours in the next couple of days or so, there’s about a billion in the queue:

Q: Hey Dougie...does JO have a player option after the '09 season (i.e. can he opt out & become a UFA then), like Bosh has in '10?

Trev L, Halifax

A: According to the contract list I have, supplied by a well-connected front office friend, O’Neal does have an opt-out after the 2008-09 season.

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Not sure how many of you saw the games at Ricoh last weekend (not enough of you, probably) but that’s a great little basketball venue.

I can absolutely see the D League team playing there whenever it gets here and it’d be cool for a WNBA team, too. Trouble is, even my good friends who are ardent supporters of the women’s game don’t think they could average even 5,000 fans a night for a WNBA franchise.

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Yes, that was Matt Bonner hanging around the Canada game on Saturday night, chatting up Canada Basketball CEO Wayne Parrish and a raft of other ne’er-do-wells Matt met during his time with the Raptors.

And yes, he made a joking comment about getting himself a Canadian passport and playing for the national team.

I have no idea how immigration really works in this country but I’m sure someone in the upper echelons of Canada Basketball will see if the move is possible.

That’d be very cool. Too bad he couldn’t be with the team now; he could check that German basketball legend Chris Kaman in exhibition games this week.

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More mail:

Q: So I've read that cap's gonna be around 59 and tax 71 or something close to that, but what is the penalty for being over the cap but not over the tax level, say 65 or something like that?
Thanks,
Bryce F, Markham

A: No real penalty, except that a team over the cap can’t sign free agents to anything other than various cap exceptions that exist.

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Big night tonight.

We should get a look at the official cap and tax numbers sometime this evening, maybe as late as midnight, and that’s going to determine more than a few salaries out there since the mid-level exception number will become official.

It’s not going to have a huge impact here but it might in one subtle way.

There is a chance, after the tax number comes out, that the Raptors withdraw their qualifying offer to Carlos Delfino, which will make him an unrestricted free agent.

(And before the hooting and hollering starts again, the Raptors ARE NOT going to re-sign him, they don’t have the money, don’t really want that kind of clutter on the roster again and it’s not going to change).

Anyway, I’m told Delfino has had at least one very financially lucrative offer in Europe but that he wants to remain in the NBA if at all possible and there are a couple of teams sniffing around and perhaps willing to pay him close to what he wants.

I’m not sure what his salary goal is but he made about $1.8 million last year so I’d think a three-year deal for around $7 million might be around his asking price.

Joey's in, Jamario's not with Summer League team

A wee bit of a surprise, maybe, that Joey Graham is on the Raptor summer league team that's just been announced and that Jamario Moon isn't.

The thinking behind Moon, I'm told be people in the organization, is that he's played more than enough summer league-calibre games in his career and he needs to be spending the time working on technical aspects of the game, which he can get on his own and working with various Raptor coaches and conditioning gurus than he can playing five or six games in Vegas.

Graham, though, needs games, he needs to make better, quicker decisions when he gets the ball in the heat of action and that's why he'll be out there.

The roster also includes Hassan Adams, who I'm now told won't officially sign his Raptor contract until tomorrow.

Oh, and there's a Bosh on the team, as you'll notice. And John Lucas III gets his chance to impress enough to get an invite to the real training camp in October. It'll be he and Daniel Ewing who'll be handling the point guard duties in Vegas.

One name that's not on the list is Nathan Jawai, but not to worry. He's not officially a Raptor until July 9 when the trade with Indy goes down and he'll be added to the summer league team as soon as he's officially Toronto's property, I'm hearing.

Here's the roster we just got:

Player                      Pos.       Ht.       Wt.      Birth Date       School/Country

Hassan Adams           F          6-4       220      06/20/84          Arizona

Deji Akindele               C         6-10     240      04/03/83          Chicago State

Sean Banks                F          6-8       210      01/20/85          Memphis

Rod Benson                C         6-10     235      10/10/84          California

Joel Bosh                    F          6-7       185      03/11/86          Alabama State

Coleman Collins         F          6-9       236      06/22/86          Virginia Tech

Daniel Ewing               G         6-3       185      03/26/83          Duke

Thomas Gardner        F          6-5       213      02/08/85          Missouri

C.J. Giles                    C         6-11     240      09/25/85          Oregon State

Joey Graham              F          6-7       225      06/11/82          Oklahoma State

John Lucas                 G         5-11     165      11/21/82          Oklahoma State

A busy week awaits

Well, now that we’ve got Grampa Grunt’s 80^th birthday done and gone (and a fine fete it was, replete with cake and cocktails, a dangerous mix indeed), I can return to my regularly scheduled days.

Like early morning with here, days at the office and, perchance, a night or two of rest and relaxation.

But first, entertaining and informing the masses:

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Big week ahead for the lads and the various people who cover them.

Think we’ll get official word on Hassam Adams and his two-year, minimum-value deal today, believe it’ll be finally time to officially unveil Matt Devlin as the new play-by-play guy on Tuesday and then the big day with both Jermaine O’Neal and Jose allegedly coming to town on Wednesday to do all kinds of fun stuff, including speaking with us.

Busy, busy, busy.

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FILE PHOTO

Raptors could use the guy on the right; especially if the guy on the left isn't around.

Speaking of this week, while all the shenanigans are going on at the ACC, the summer league team convenes in Vegas tomorrow for a couple of days of practice before starting to play at the end of the week.

We still haven’t seen a roster (I expect that’ll be out there today sometime) but am told by Someone Who’d Know that it looks like Joey Graham will be out there, trying to do something to resurrect his game after spending most of last season at the end of the bench or the inactive list.

Graham’s the enigma, of course. Good Joey, Bad Joey and all that. No one has any real idea whether he can be a major contributor this year or not (I suspect history holds and it’s more “not”) but there are those in the organization who still think he can be a major player here and they’re giving him every opportunity to prove it.

Oh, and one name I didn’t hear around the summer league team was Jamario Moon. There seems to be some question of whether or not he’ll play. I can’t see why he wouldn’t (it’s not like his game is entirely polished) but it’s not 100 per cent yet that he’ll be there.

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So, I’m watching Canada drill Lebanon on Saturday and it’s Rowan Barrett’s 120^th game as a member of the senior national team. Nice touch to have a little ceremony for him.

And it brings to mind a good one about a very good guy and an excellent ambassador for Canadian basketball.
It’s in Sydney, after the loss to France that denies them a chance to play for a medal, still one of the most crushing losses in Canadian basketball history.

A handful of players, who’ve taken the defeat rather hard, are hanging around the athletes village visiting with a gaggle of women sprinters, I’m told.

After some good-natured chat, Rowan makes the claim he’s quicker than the sprinters and would win a race right there and then (I’m not entirely sure if there was any kind of incentive in a wager, or whether any liquid bravery was involved but I imagine there might have been). Much chatter back and forth, the gun goes off, Rowan wins the race and general hilarity ensues.

Until it’s discovered he’s tweaked a muscle in his leg that forces him to miss Canada’s final, relatively meaningless, game of the Olympics.

I’m pretty sure if the team gets to Beijing, that kind of extracurricular racing would be off the agenda.

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Here’s one from the mailbag, which is still pretty full

Q: Why Hassan Adams and not Gerald Green?
I'm confused. They both signed for the same amount of money and years. Green is younger and seems to have more upside than Hassan Adams.
Did BC just miss this one or was Green never even on the radar?
Solomon O, Nigeria

A: Green’s had three opportunities in the NBA and has washed out of all of them.

Adams was a tax-casualty in his one year in the league. I’d debate the “more upside” part of your argument.

I’m not sure Green was ever on their radar, he wasn’t when he was free last year and they took Linton Johnson and don’t imagine he figured into their plans this summer.

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Hey, remember last year when Jay Triano was hired by USA Basketball to help coach of a team that would scrimmage the Olympic team under international rules because his extensive background and coaching abilities were too good for the Americans to pass up?

I’m betting that happens again this year right after summer league so he can help this USA team get ready for Beijing.

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For all those who’ve asked, I have yet to find any place that will have live TV of the Olympic qualifier next week in Athens. I know NBA-TV and RaptorsTV will be concentrating on the summer league so I can’t imagine they’d show it. I’m sure it’s somewhere deep, deep, deep on some satellite but I’ve yet to find out where.

Looks like we’ll be tracking it on the internet.

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More mail:

Q: Doug, we know you travel a lot, but which city is duller - Billings or Des Moines? On to the real question, isn’t it refreshing that a player actually kept their word and stayed where he said he would ie: Agent Zero

Eric P, Mississauga

A: Actually, I’ve been to Billings, to watch these guys play Minnesota in a pre-season game, and if Des Moines is worse, I don’t ever, ever, ever, ever want to go there.

Agent Zero? Good on him for staying and taking less money. I think the team made a mistake with the offer but that’s just my opinion.

But when he said he took less money because he could do as much with $111 million as opposed to $126 million or whatever the exhorbitant numbers are, it was sort of refreshing in an otherworldly kind of way.

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If you were at that game at Ricoh on Saturday and were paying attention, you saw one of Canada’s best referees at work and you’ll see more of her if you pay attention to the Olympics, too.

Dawna Townsend will be among the referee pool at the Beijing Games next month and it’s good to see good things happen to good people.

It has to have been a tough slog working up through the ranks of the CIS and FIBA to get such a prestigious gig and it’s a huge accomplishment to get a Games gig.

Oh, and it’ll give some of us another reason to check out the basketball in Beijing. And if you see games on TV, check out the refs to see Canada’s representative.

Special weekend delivery, and a correction about diabetics

A little light reading for a perfect Saturday morning. Get the coffee and sit outside, enjoy the day and what’s in here. The deck looks mighty inviting for a few hours before the Canada-Lebanon tilt.

Q: With free agency being here and contracts getting thrown at players left, right, and center, it got me thinking. Since I'm only 21, can you bestow your wisdom and knowledge unto me and tell me what it was like back in the old days? The 60's, the 70's, even the 80's? Was money the main focus of the players like it seemingly is for most today? And how did their contracts compare to today’s. Were some of them way overpaid like they are today? I mean, I love KG, but $23 million a year?

Amanda F, Barrie

A: Well, sit down, my young friend and let an old codger help out.

Way back in the day (like the 60s, 70s and even into the 80s) the money was, um, small. In the mid-80s, for instance, the average salary was about $320,000, now it’s close to $6 million.

I don’t think anyone could consider anyone in the 60s or 70s “overpaid” since a guy like Bill Russell, who was simply the greatest winner in the history of the game, never made a seven-figure salary. A lot of players in the 60s and 70s actually had summer jobs back home to keep earning.

Did they play just for money? No more or less than the players today look for the money first before the love of the game, I don’t think.

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Q: Hi Doug, quick question regarding free agency and the CBA, as I am new to the basketball scene. I have seen on your blog and other places, that teams are free to speak to players about contracts, but are unable to make them official until July 9. I’m guessing that this is a direct result of the CBA, so I’m wondering what the logic behind such a rule is. Thanks.

Adeel A, Markham

A: It all has to do with accounting. Starting July 1, a team of league accountants visits each team to officially determine the Basketball Related Income (BRI) that was generated in the previous season because that’s what sets both the cap and tax levels.

I guess they’ve sped up the process because just a couple of years ago, it took two weeks for them to count the money and that was an eternity not only for us to wait but for teams and fans, too.

In that beancounting period, teams don’t know for sure, to the exact dime, how much they’ll have to spend so they can’t officially sign contracts that may be dependent on the cap level and such things as the exact amount of the mid-level exception.

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Q: Hey Doug, this is my first time writing in, but I've been a long time reader. Now I have 2 questions for you.  1. You mentioned what the Cap may be and what the Tax Level may be, but you have not stated what would happen if the Raps spend over that limit? Do they have to pay the NBA money back? or do they get a smaller Cap/Tax limit next season?  2. This question is non-raps related or at least I think it is, but I was wondering, me being a Diabetic are there any players in the NBA who are Diabetic and if so who are they?

Vijay C, Toronto

A: For every dollar a team exceeds the cap, it has to pay a dollar in tax. The total amount of tax is then split among the 30 teams on a percentage basis.

And I know of no diabetics in the league but I imagine there have to be some because it’s a large number of people and the percentages would suggest one or two at least.

As only a couple of dozen people pointed out, Charlotte's Adam Morrison is dealing with diabetest while he plays.

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Q: Out of curiosity, are you into fantasy basketball at all?
If so, who are your top 10 picks for next season?

Aaron P, Toronto

A: Sorry, I have no knowledge and, frankly, little interest in fantasy basketball, reality basketball occupies too much of my time as it is. And my top 10 would be the usual top 10 players in the league.

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Q: I was reading about New Jersey (Not because I'm a fan of course, just to see how Thorn is further sinking their club) and I read the Nets made a $2.7M qualifying offer to restricted free agent Nenad Krstic. Is a qualifying offer simply securing their right to match another team's offer? Surely he will fetch more than $2.7M. I would guess he gets closer to the full mid-level, Yeah?

K J, Toronto

A: That’s indeed all a qualifying offer is and I would think something close to the mid-level would be what he gets somewhere. And while Rod Thorn keeps saying he’ll keep Krstic, I’m reading my boy Dave D suggest he’s a goner.

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Q: Some short snappers.
1. Ukic, if he is decent and Jose is good, can Ukic play the "2"?
2. Anyone from team Canada good enough for the end of the Raps bench? Or any ex-Raps have a chance to come back?
3. How about Leo's Lions? Team Canada could have a coach related name.

Bruce M, Winnipeg

A: Interesting question about Ukic and the 2. He is 6-5 so maybe, but I think they’ll want him to get proficient at the point before they give him more to handle.

I don’t think there’s an NBA-ready player on the national team at the moment and the trouble with putting a coach’s name on a team is what happens when that coach retires?

More mail than you can imagine; and more to come

I remember back in the day, maybe it was February, and someone asked me when things would slow down around here. I told ‘em for sure it’d be crazy through the playoffs and maybe up until the draft but then, surely then, things would ease and life would become more, um, normal.

Wrong. Wrong. Wrong.

So, here’s about 4,000 words worth of questions and answers and I’ve probably got that much left to put up later tonight or tomorrow.

You people, as perhaps I may have mentioned, are over the top.

Fun. Exasperating. Persistent. Odd. Nice. Intelligent. Not So Intelligent. A whole gamut.

But over the top first and foremost.

Here ya go:

Q: Do you foresee a time when the suits at MLSE will be a tax paying team?  Can you give us lazy fans a sense as to how luxury tax paying teams have fared vs. non-luxury tax paying teams.
Borys C, Toronto

A: No, I don’t see them becoming a tax team any time in the near future.

By the last figures I have, nine teams paid tax last year. It ranged from New York paying about $20 million to Phoenix paying about three. Boston ($6 million) and the Lakers ($4) paid into it, too.

Of the nine, the Celtics, Lakers and Cleveland were the only teams to win a playoff series.

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Q: Doug, it's interesting that both Roko Ukic and Nathan Jawai were both drafted at 41 but one was left in Europe to develop for three years while the other looks to make the team his first year.  I'd like your take on why the Raptors took two very different developmental approaches to players they drafted at the same number.  Thanks in advance.

Jason K, Ajax

A: Different drafts, with different depths, of course, is the main reason. Point guards need more seasoning than big men; Ukic had somewhere to play in Europe and hone his game and I’m not sure Jawai would.

And, of course, Ukic was originally drafted in the Babcock era.

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Q: I am a loyal reader and really enjoy your articles and your blog.  While I usually agree with your views I have to ask the following questions to ensure that I am recalling your viewpoints correctly.
Only 6 months ago or so when there was the Calderon and Ford debate you used to say that Ford was #1 as he had more upside and could do things Calderon couldn’t.
Ford can still do things Calderon can’t but you seem to have changed your mind along the way – am I recalling your former viewpoint correctly?  By the way, I am a big Calderon fan.
Last fall when asked about Ukic you felt that he would not be able to come over as the backup point guard without a fair amount of time as the 3rd guard.  Now it seems that you are penciling him in as a 14 – 16 minute a night backup.  Have you lowered the standards or just had a change of heart?

Carl M, Codroy Valley, NL

A: The more I watched Ford and Calderon, the more it became apparent to me (and this is not a universally-held opinion around here) was that Calderon had emerged as the right kind of point guard for this team. And as I’ve mentioned a billion or two times, on this roster, at this time, I saw Ford as a better backup, but that was never going to happen.

Last fall, Ukic wasn’t nearly ready, I didn’t think. After another year in a good Italian League and the Euroleague, he’s probably ready to take on a great role than I would have thought before 2006-07. It’s just that he matured as a player, nothing to do with my standards.

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Q: Calderon's our #1 guy, Ukic to spell him off and wouldn't it be lovely to see ol' Darrick Martin on the bench? What happened to DMart?  And would they? Could they resurrect his contract?

Akiko C, Barrie

A: Darrick is not in their plans at all. I presume he’s living a pretty good life wherever he is these days.

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Q: Love the blog and keeps us going during the offseason! Quick question. The Star reported that the province is considering having sports betting at the Casinos, namely Niagaraand Rama with Woodbine TBD.
Does this violate the policy the NBA has whereby no franchise is allowed to operate in a city where sports gambling occurs? I'm not sure if they still enforce it but I remember before we got the Raps, the province had to take NBA betting off Proline.
Could we get away this given the casinos being mentioned aren't actually in Toronto?

Shachin G, Toronto

A: That’s an interesting question. And when the league office opens up again after the July 4 long weekend, believe you me, I’ll be asking.

My initial feeling is that the government will run sports books that don’t have basketball available, if indeed they go ahead with this plan to get further into the bookmaking business.

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Q: On the topic of nicknames for our national team how about something from our anthem ... like the Glowing Hearts ... or the Strong (or Glorious) and Free?  Either way I'll be checking them out at Ricoh.  I hope they are selling jerseys as the web store seems to be out.
On to my question. You've been saying for the last year, and I'm paraphrasing here so don't be offended if I get it slightly wrong, that Toronto fans might need to get used to the fact that we are not a serious contender at present. How do you feel the JO trade has increased our chances in terms of A) contending in the conference against the big dogs like Boston(gross) and Detroit? B) contending for the league title?
Also, do you know if there are any plans to have some Euro teams come visit us this preseason?  It would be cool to see Kalise Gran Canaria or other teams represented by prominent Canadian players.
One final question, do you see a Rod Benson type player fitting in well with the Raps?  Would he be too pricey?  I like his moxie.

Nicholas C, Toronto

A: I think this is a better team than last year because of O’Neal’s presence, the lack of uncertainty around the guard spot and a tighter rotation of swingmen. I still don’t think they’re as good as Boston at all, but let’s wait and see what the other East teams do before we think about ranking them. There are still lots of moves to be made.

And I’m told there will definitely be a Euroleague team here for a pre-season game next fall, I’m just trying to find out officially which one it is.

Rod Benson may have moxie but he’s not the kind of guy they’re looking for in that 13^th spot. That’s going to be a guard.

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Q: Two questions: can you break down how you get to $70M in existing salaries? I am having trouble getting anywhere near that number with the existing players. Secondly, the Raptors appear to be top heavy with big men. Are they looking to move someone like Hump for a swing man and could they package Hump with Graham or Parker (expiring contracts) for one more serviceable player?

Ray N, Toronto

A: These are rough numbers only and most are rounded down:

O’Neal, $21 million; Bosh, $14 million; Jose, $8 million; Kapono, $6 million, Bargnani, $5 million; Parker, $4.5 million; Humphries, $3 million; Joey, $2.5 million; Moon, $711,000; Adams, $711,000; Ukic, $1 million (maybe $711,000, it’s quibbling); Jawai, $427,000; Garbo, somewhere north of $2 million. That gets it to around $69 million.

And, actually, they’ve got five bigs, five wings, two point guards. That’s about the right break down.

Of mid-level exceptions and the worst trades ever

Deck’s looking better, if not great; grass a manageable length so we don’t find wayward sheep coming to graze and a nice piece of grilled Cajun catfish finished off a not bad day.

Oh, and the comments section over there sort of kept me in tune with what some of you were thinking, asking, commenting on. Nice way to stay in touch.

Okay, let’s get to this whole mid-level exception obsession that’s running rampant and throw cold water on any of the Corey Maggette, Mickeal Pietrus, Ron Artest, James Posey, I don’t know who else stuff that’s out there.

Every team that’s over the salary cap, as the Raptors are, can make use of the mid-level exception every season. If they want. So, yes, Toronto had it.

But here’s the deal: It’s an exception to the CAP, not to the TAX, which is a rather huge difference. And it turns the whole “use the mid-level to sign someone” argument moot.

Now, these are estimates, not absolutely correct but not far off, and it will show you why they are NOT going to use that money.

Right now, with 12 players under contract or about to be, the Raptors have right around $70 million committed. The CAP will be about $59 million and the TAX level is going to be about $71 million, maybe slightly more.
And Torontois NOT GOING TO SPEND OVER THAT. Not going to happen. Put it out of your mind.

So, with those numbers in mind, about the most they can offer to the 13^th guy would be a veteran minimum contract, which runs from about $700,000 to about $1.2 million depending on how long the guy’s been in the league. And that’s exactly what they’re think they’re going to do at the moment.

So, please, no more Maggette, no more Pietrus, no more Artest, no more anyone of that ilk.

Thanks

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So, who?

Well, that’s a tough one to answer because there are a lot of issues at play.

But, there were a handful of names floating around in conversations I had yesterday, mostly of guys who might fall through the free agent cracks this month and be looking for work in August at a minimum value deal.

Here’s four to kick around who fit the bill of combo guards who can make a shot or do something that might help steal a game or two in the season: Eddie House, Tony Allen, Roger Mason and, believe it or not, Juan Dixon. I’m sure there’s more out there but that’s a jumping off point.

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I’m sitting there watching Canada play the Tall Blacks the other night in Hamilton, that’s the New Zealand basketball team and, let me tell you, the Tall Blacks aren’t the Tall Blacks without Sean Marks, if for no other reason that he once bought a round for a table of grunts at the finals one year after giving us the restaurant recommendation

Anyway, I digress.

So, I’m watching Canada-Tall Blacks and I’m thinking (a thought echoed by The First Lady Of The Beat earlier in the exhibition tournament) that we really need a nickname.

After all, you’ve got the likes of the Black Stars, the Indomitable Lions, the Canaries, the Boomers and a host of others. Team Canada? Borrrrrrring!

The Canadian Shield ? Nah, maybe not. The Maple Leafs? No, too trite. Prairie Oysters? Not so much. I dunno.

What do you think?

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How much, I ask you, does the now-completed trade of Seattle for Oklahoma City suck?

That much. And more.

And it brings us to list time:

Four worst trades in NBA history

Vancouver for Memphis.

Let’s see, Stanley Park or Beale Street? The Pacific Ocean or the Mississippi? Duh!

Pau Gasol for, um, garbage

Maybe if Marc Gasol wins a ring before his brother does, this one moves down the list.

Oklahoma City for Seattle.

The Kells, Metropolitan Grill and Pike St.Market for, oh, I dunno, dust!

He Who Shall Not Be Name for a bunch of guys

This one hits close to home still, doesn’t it?

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Of all the cockamamie, dopey, idiotic things I’ve heard this week, the whole notion of the Raptors playing a regular season game in Buffalo would top the list.

Exhibition games? Maybe. And, having seen 60 or so exhibition games over the years, they can play ‘em all in Buffalo for all I care.

Regular season? Not a chance.

Go back to saving the Bills.

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Here’s three things to think about concerning the newly-constructed roster and “depth.”

It defines more clearly the role for Bargnani, who is now a backup four and five. No more questions about whether he should start or Rasho should, no more jerking him around and maybe that helps his confidence.

The swingman position has been narrowed. There were legitimate questions last year about whether Delfino should play more or Kapono should play more or Moon should play less or, yes, even whether Joey should get on the court. And we haven’t even touched on Juan Dixon. This way, there are three – Moon, Parker, Kapono -- with legitimate claims on playing time – and two – Graham and Adams – who can fight for a fourth position. But if they don’t do anything, there won’t be people saying they should get on the court.

The point guard position is settled.

You may not like the way things are shaking out because there is no question they didn’t address the lack of athleticism on the wing and that’s going to bite them in the ass more often than not, but that’s some of the logic behind the moves.

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Matt Devlin probably gets announced as the new Raptor TV play-by-play guy today.

Don’t know much about him, actually. But he’s worked in Charlotte and around the league for quite some time.

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A mailbag question:

Q: Maybe I missed it but I was wondering if the Raptors are planning on having a summer league team this year?

Derik F, Moncton

A: Oh, yeah, they sure are. In Vegas and here’s the schedule: July 12 vs. Sacramento, July 14 vs. Denver, July 17 vs. Philadelphia, July 18 vs. L.A. Lakers, July 19 vs. Golden State.

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Over in Spain, the national team’s getting ready for the Olympics already, minus one of its top players. For now.

Jose’s sitting out camp until after he signs a new deal with the Raptors next week. He’s training on his own because it doesn’t make sense to go to camp without the security of a newly-signed deal.

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You’ve probably noticed a dearth of mail in here. Lots of questions were of the “why don’t they sign this un-signable player” so I sort of glossed over them. But we need some legit queries for the mail bag tomorrow, don’t forget.

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Speaking of tomorrow, it’s the first time in like half a decade that the national team’s playing in Toronto. Ricoh Coliseum, 7 p.m. Oh, and the junior team’s playing a collection of area college kids at 4 if you want to get there extra early and that wouldn’t be a bad idea.

The Hassan Adams story, and other tales

TORONTO STAR FILE PHOTO

Hassan Adams will have to go a little more easy on Anthony Parker during practice.

A couple of days of no Canada games and likely no Raptor news? What’s a guy to do? Guess that calf-high grass in the backyard will get some attention.

But that doesn’t mean there aren’t items, ‘cause we’ve got items.

You know who was responsible for Hassan Adams bouncing out of the NBA?
Jamaal Magloire.

When the Nets decided to lavish Magloire with a $4 million contract a year ago, it meant someone had to go to avoid paying luxury tax and that someone was Adams, who got waived along with Clifford Robinson.

That sure worked out well for the Nets, didn’t it.

There was much hue and cry down in Jersey when that move was made. My man Dave D’Alessandro still thinks it’s one of the most egregious roster mistakes the Nets have made and there’s a rather long list of them.

Here’s how John Hollinger in the New York Sun panned the move:

To cut Adams in order to pull this move off seems shortsighted at best. I don't want to overstate things here — he wasn't going to be the next Dr.J or anything. But he was primed to be a very effective energy guy off the bench, essentially a 6-foot-4-inch version of the Knicks' Renaldo Balkman. In his rookie year after he was New Jersey's second-round choice in 2006, Adams shot 55.6% from the field and averaged an impressive-for-a-guard 6.1 rebounds per 40 minutes. He can't shoot from outside, but his running and energy were effective enough that he still averaged a point every three minutes, which is decent production for a reserve.

All told, his Player Efficiency Rating (PER, my per-minute rating of a player's statistical effectiveness) of 12.8 was solid for a reserve, especially one in his rookie season — and especially one competing with the likes of Wright (8.2) and Bernard Robinson (7.8) for playing time.

But don't feel bad for Adams — some smart team will nab him real fast, probably for much more than the Nets were scheduled to pay him. Instead, feel bad for Kidd and Carter, who just lost one of the few potentially productive supporting players for this coming season.

And most of all feel bad for Nets fans, who now must lament that their team gave up their remaining space under the luxury tax to sign a fading backup center and effectively traded up one of their most promising young players to make the deal. It's just the latest glaring example of Thorn's inability to surround his stars with the talent necessary to return this team to the conference's elite, and I'm not sure he can make enough big-picture moves to undo the damage.

Oh, and Dave chimes in with this note:

The secret to Hassan Adams’ success is that he cheats.

Or, let’s just say he has an unfair advantage that any player would want – the advantage of ambidexterity.

You may have noticed that the Nets wing has as strong a left hand as any rookie to come down the pike in a while – those right-baseline-drive-and-reverse finishes against Boston were a good example – and it’s because he is actually a natural southpaw.

He just happens to play basketball right-handed.

"I don’t even know how that happened – I really don’t,” Adams said. “I don’t even remember (consciously) switching, even though I’m a true lefty at everything. I write lefty, I eat lefty. But I can write righty, too.”

What else does he do with his right hand? Almost everything pertaining to athletics – hitting baseballs, golfing, throwing a football.

"It’s just not as natural for me to shoot left-handed for some reason,” he said. “But put me on the foul line and tell me to shoot lefty, and I’ll hit eight out of 10 that way.”

I don’t know how Adams will eventually do in Toronto – one NBA assistant coach told me his team had Adamsin for a long look and passed on him – but if he can become the fourth man in the wing rotation, that’s not a bad thing.

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Speaking of Roko Ukic, and I feel we will be speaking of him often over the next few months, this being Roko Ukic Love Central and all, I was able to talk to a couple of people who know him quite well yesterday.

Gord Herbert, one of Canada’s most accomplished coaches (the most accomplished international coach, as a matter of fact) coached Aris TT Bank of Greece and the Euroleague last year and he said Ukic has more than enough game to thrive in the NBA.

And old friend Peter Guarasci, still one of the all-time good Canadian players, played in Italy against Ukic last season. He says the kid’s got some big game in him, and may not look like the greatest shooter in the world but he’s not afraid to take a big shot.

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Speaking of Canada – and check back here tomorrow for lots more on how the team’s shaping up – a very nice sight unfolded at McMaster yesterday.

A couple of hours before the game, Herbert was out on the court teaching Guarasci and Greg Francis, who’s the head coach of the national junior team, some post defence moves.

It’s the kind of trickle down coaching effect this country needs to improve from top to bottom.

Not sure how it all unfolds in the future but that was good to see.

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Baron Davis to the Clippers?

Man, not too many people saw that coming.

If the Clips can get Elton Brand to re-sign (he’ll have to take a tiny pay cut to do it) I think they become a playoff contender in the West for sure. Put a motivated Davis with a healthy Brand next to a guy like Al Thornton and a centre like Chris Kaman and all of a sudden the Clips are relevant again.

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Gilbert Arenas maybe to the Warriors?

That’s out there and I’m thinking the Wizards should probably let it happen,

Been saying for months that I think Washington was a better “team” without Agent Zero and with Antawn Jamison. Maybe we’ll get to see now.

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Let’s just finish with one from the mail so I can get into the day.

Q: Ever notice that Colangelo always acts quickly... very quickly.  Do you seen any benefit/disadvantage to such a method?

PH, Toronto

A: It has been two summers in row where he’s done all his major business right off the bat – Kapono a year ago on July 1 and Calderon, Ukic and Adams this year on the first possible day.

The benefits are that he gets things settled quickly so there’s no negotiation to drive up prices. He identifies what he wants and gets it. That’s good because it lets the players know he’s serious about doing contracts rather than dithering to see what else is out there.

The disadvantage, of course, is that maybe those bold moves don’t work and he might have missed other options by having such singular focus.

But the fact is, this year, he’s got a wee bit of wiggle room financially (a small amount that we still don’t know ‘cause the cap and tax figures aren’t out yet) and he’s left himself a roster spot or two to fill if someone intriguing – and cheap – falls through the cracks.

Ole, Ole, Ole. Jose's deal is done

STEVE RUSSELL/TORONTO STAR

Jose Calderon and his signature moves are staying in Toronto.

Got the flags out? Fireworks ready? Beverages cooled and the barbecue have lots of propane?
Happy Canada Day!

Well, that sure didn’t take long.

Jose’s coming back.

"Early this morning, through my agents, I reached a preliminary agreement with the Toronto Raptors,” Calderon said in a message posted on his website Tuesday.

"I want to thank (president and general manager) Bryan Colangelo, (assistant GM) Maurizio Gherardini, (coach) Sam Mitchell and all of the Raptors family for the confidence that they have placed in me. I am sure that together we are going to achieve big things in the future.”

Getting Calderon under contract was the biggest task Colangelo faced, as well all know.

He was going to call over to Spain right after midnight last night and that call was obviously expected and welcomed.

"When two parties want to reach an agreement, you can reach an agreement very fast," Calderon's agent, Alvaro Tor said this morning in a telephone conversation from Spain.

Of course, Jose wouldn’t say on his blog how much the deal’s worth or how long it’s for but I’d be shocked if it was for less than $8 million a season and if it didn’t run for four years with maybe an option of a fifth. But that’s just deductive reasoning, no one who’s in a position to know has ever mentioned those terms.

Guess we’ll find out soon, though, ‘cause that’s what we do.

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What’s it all mean?

Not much that hasn't been said, given that we all expected it forever.

It does, as we’ve mentioned, oh, about a billion times over the last five or six days, take the Raptors out of any significant role in the rest of free agency.

So that means, given the tax concerns and the current payroll that all those questions about Mickeal Pietrus, Bostjan Nachbar, Ron Artest, Chris Duhon, Corey Maggette are answered easily:

No. No. No. Not going to happen. Isn’t possible. Put it out of your mind.

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Told you to check back.

Not only have the Raptors reached an agreement with Roko Ukic, according to a league source, they've also got Hassan Adams to agree to a contract. Adams, who had a cup of coffee with New Jersey in 20006-07 and played in Spain last year, was discovered at the free agent camp in June, making him this year's version of Jamario Moon.

So, all the wheeling and dealing is done for now. All that's left to do is make all the moves official, sign Nathan Jawai and the summer's work is done.

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Here’s one from the mail that’s pretty topical:

Q: Hey Doug, how helpful will Jose Calderon be as a mentor to Roko Ukic this upcoming season seeing as they share similar paths getting to the NBA, playing the same position and making the transition from the Euroleague to North America. What are the hardest things Ukic will need to adjust not only personally but just as a young point guard making the jump to the NBA. Also wondering if you could shed some light or your thoughts on the recent wave of European teams seemingly trying to lure players back with more money. Is the NBA concerned about this? Thanks for your insightful coverage.

Zack R, Etobicoke

A: Calderon is going to be invaluable to Ukic, absolutely. You can see a lot of similarities between what Ukic is going to have to go through and what Calderon’s already dealt with, although the one major difference will be that Ukic is much more fluent in English than Calderon was and that’s got to help.

What Calderon does that’s under-rated is have a good sense of the game, he knows what weaknesses to exploit, how to handle an offence so everyone gets involved and if he can impart some of that to the kid, it’ll be huge.

Ukic’s biggest adjustment is going to be handling the speed of the game and the overall calibre of the competition. European basketball is a lot of things but two that it isn’t are quick like the NBA or as deep in talent. That’s going to be the measure of Ukic, how he handles those two things.

As for the European clubs luring players back, I have to say I’m not surprised. With the exchange rate, the creature comforts they can offer (most deals include housing and transportation) and the fact they want to “strike back” at the NBA for taking its best young players as one executive told me recently, teams over there are being more aggressive.

I think what you’ll see is marginal NBA-talent Europeans heading back earlier than they might otherwise and you’ll see good North American-trained NBAers maybe extend their careers by a year or two living the high life in some gorgeous European locale.

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A word about Canada, by the way.

We’re a nice people, generally. Too polite at times. Like last night in Hamilton.

Amid a couple hundred or so flag-waving, drum-banging, wildly-cheering, passionate fans from Lebanon sat about 800 Canadians, cheering only in reaction, rather than in action.

Don’t get me wrong, it was a somewhat surprisingly large turnout and it was nice for the national team to have a crowd to play in front of but, really, you’ve got to do better tonight and back here on the weekend.

It’s been forever thus, of course, visiting teams are treated to raucous cheers, Canada gets support but nothing over the top.

But just because it’s been that way forever doesn’t mean it has to be that way in the future.

End o’ rant.

Happy Canada Day.

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We’ll check into the mail real fast

Q: I was reading up about Nicholas Batum, and it says that he hasn't missed a game in two years. What kind of injury and/or flaw could he have had that made Toronto completely stop considering him?

Thomas N, Milton

A: It wasn’t an injury, per se. It was an abnormal result to one of the myriad tests they put people through that put a red flag from the team’s medical staff, I’m told.

And maybe it turns out to be nothing but it certainly wasn’t something the Raptors wanted to take a risk on.