We've got names and we've got numbers

So what now?

I know, we’ve asked ourselves that question a few times this summer, like what would happen when free agency opened, what would happen after that four-team trade and now what’s going to happen with Jarrett Jack officially in the fold.

Wish I new. But Bryan’s still got money to spend and roster spots to fill so we’re not done yet by any means.

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Hold on to your hats, folks.

I heard the name yesterday when I was talking to Bryan after the Jack news conference.

Pops Mensa-Bonsu.

Really, I did. Was the first time I’d heard it in conversation with anyone remotely in charge of the team.

Now, before you all run out and grab up those Legend jerseys, consider this: At best – at the very, very best -- he’s the 16th man on a team that can only have 15. That means unless Bryan finds someway to make a one for none trade (maybe Ukic) there is no room for the obvious fan favourite.

(Of course, Bryan could trade Marcus Banks for no one but that would signal the apocalypse had arrived and it wouldn’t matter because there’d be no future).

So, yes, they know Pops is out there (and apparently his agent calls about a dozen times a week just to remind people in Toronto that (a) his client likes it here and (b) the other offers are flooding in). But it’s a long, long way from knowing he wants back and bringing him back.

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Here’s a Carlos Delfino fact under-reported this summer:

It’s not like it’s the NBA or bust for him; he’s still got two years and about $9 million left on his Khimki deal and the Russian franchise is apparently solvent, willing to pay all that is owed and quite ready to welcome him back.

So anyone who thinks he’s going to take some significant paycut just to return to the NBA is, I’m led to believe, dead wrong.

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Remember at the end of the season there were cries to “blow it up” emanating from the ether.

Well, let’s say the two spots remaining go to two guys who weren’t on the team last year, like, oh, Delfino and Rasho.

That would mean when opening day comes around – barring any other moves – there would be eight new faces on a 15-man roster. That includes two new starters (whoever wins the two-guard spot and Hedo); perhaps five other rotation guys (the loser of the two-guard battle, Jack, Wright, Reggie Evans and Mr. Small Forward X and Mr. Backup Centre.

Is that “blowing it up” well enough?

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So I’m looking out the window this morning and it’s cloudy and there’s no way it doesn’t rain and that makes me think there is a downside to being a golf writer, which is what I am the rest of the week (lucky golf readers, I say!)

If it rains, they play; if it rains, I’m not walking the course.

A lot of things I’ll do for Mother Star, trudge the hills and valleys of a golf course in the rain is not one of them.

Makes for long days in the press tent but at least there’ll be stories to be told.

And that’ll give me all kinds of fodder for here the next few days because I don’t imagine there’ll be much Raptors news.

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Oh, right, the number.

The reason – and I know there were many of you watching and wondering – that the Raptors didn’t hold up any jersey when they introduced Jack yesterday was pretty simple, I’m led to believe:

He’d like to wear No. 3, it’s currently taken and I presume there are some, um, negotiations taking place.

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If I was Roko Ukic, I’m not sure I’d sign any long-term leases here in the big city.

I think if some team under the cap were to come and offer Bryan a draft pick for him, he’d take the deal; if some team over the cap came and offered a guy with an expiring contract for him, they’d take that deal.

So far, no one has; so far, Bryan’s more in the “take calls” than “make calls” mode on the 24-year-old point guard, which is the right move in my opinion because I still think the kid has a chance to be good.

Whether Roko’s happy as a third-string point guard is unknown; I can’t imagine he would be after being a primary backup last year and that may lead him and his agent to seek out another home.

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Here’s a name to get some people chattering.

Johan Petro.

Seven footer. Played in Denver last season, spent time in Seattle before that. Been in the league five years and is only 23.

Why, you ask, should you be chattering about Johan Petro?

Well, his is a name that was being kicked around in conversational circles when the “what if they can’t do a deal with Rasho” talk began.

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Two or three e-mails on this issue and since we’re in the Dog Days Of News Conferences, it’s best to clear the air:

The Raptors didn’t do any big dog and pony show for Antoine Wright and Devean George for one simple reason: No one from the organization was here. Everyone bolted for Vegas and the summer league the day after the trade went down and there simply was no time.

The two of ‘em met up with the coaching staff and Bryan out in Vegas, they didn’t have to be in Toronto to physically sign contracts like Bargnani or Jack did; there was nothing nefarious in the fact they didn’t speak to the assembled masses.

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Jack and Bosh are back together again

Like a couple of kid college roommates – which they used to be, in fact – Jarrett Jack and Chris Bosh were mugging for the cameras and goofing for the media during Jack’s introductory Raptors news conference Tuesday afternoon.

Fans can only hope they stay together longer this time than they did in the first go-round as teammates, when Bosh bolted for the NBA after just one season alongside Jack at Georgia Tech.

And with all the palaver about Bosh’s future when he can become a free agent at the end of the next NBA season, his new/old teammate figures it’s time to start the recruiting process right now.

Jack said:

“As soon as I pretty much got the call that Indiana wasn’t going to match, I said, 'we’re going to take this year, make the most of it as possible' and hopefully we’ll try to get him around here for a few more years.”

Bosh, of course, has never committed to either staying or going when he might be able to flee the only franchise he’s ever played for but he sounded at least a little bit like a guy who’s happy with the moves the Raptors have made and someone who’s glad to have another close friend as a teammate.

“I’m really happy to see him. He’s a really good friend to me, and that’ll make it easier, and he can play ball, too. It’s like killing two birds with one stone, he’s a good dude, a good locker room guy and he can ball. Any time you can have that, it’s a good thing.”

So, does that mean Bosh is coming back?

Yeah, right.

“For sure, I’m really excited about next year. Not too excited to the point I was last year (when he and Jermaine O’Neal were supposed to terrorize the East) but just looking at it, I think we have the chance to have a good team if we do the right things.”

Jack, a 6-3 guard, was termed “an ideal fit for this roster” by Raptors president and general manager Bryan Colangelo, who stole the restricted free agent away from the Indiana Pacers with a four-year, $20-million contract.

Jack started thinking about the Bosh factor right after his agent called with news of the Toronto offer.

“Soon as I got off the phone with him, I called Chris and he thought I was playing a prank on him … I told him it was serious and the next day it hit the media,” he said.

“It’s unbelievable, not many times in this league do you get the chance to play with someone you really call a friend. Me and him were talking about the last time we played each other, it would be something to be teammates again and it came to pass now.”

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If this is Tuesday, it must be hoops

Fore!

STEVE RUSSELL/TORONTO STAR

Raptors working on re-opening the doors for Rasho.

Never mind. It’s basketball today. I can’t keep the sports straight these days.

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Yes, today is Jarrett Jack Day here in the big smoke and we all knew that was coming for about a week.

But I was talking to a couple of Bryan’s Henchmen yesterday trying to get a read on what else is going on and, frankly, it’s about as earth-shattering as the Jack deal.

Negotiations with Delfino and Rasho are continuing but quite aside from the money issue – and there’s always a middle ground on money issues – things like length of contract and number of guaranteed years are factoring into things. Not unexpectedly, either, because we all know that whatever Bryan’s doing, he’s doing with one eye on potential tax troubles a year or two down the road.

Not sure where the snag is and I don’t get the impression the talks are anywhere close to breaking off but it’s a sticking point they have to work through.

Me?

I’d probably draw the line at a three-year deal worth about $15 million total for Delfino but I’m not sure I’d fully guarantee that last year and for Rasho I’d give him two years at the biannual exception.

I will also say this:

If push came to shove and I could only get one, with the roster as it’s presently constructed, I think it’s far more important to get a backup centre than another swingman and I’d get Rasho on board – or someone like him – pretty quickly.

Remember last year? With Will Solomon and Roko Ukic as the only backups to Jose Calderon and how bad that turned out? Well, it’s not exactly the same but starting the season with Reggie Evans and Patrick O’Bryant as your lone backup bigs simply isn’t good enough.

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Here’s one from the mail bag (remember that?), which is pretty darn near empty, by the way:

Q: Hey Doug, today someone was wondering about the Toronto reporters being scooped by an Indiana scribe about a Jarrett Jack press conference on Tuesday. A few weeks ago, another commenter wondered about the value of scoops, which got me to think about the question, too.

I can understand if you break something that would otherwise stay under wraps, but what is the value in being the first to announce something that's going to be announced anyway, be it a press conference, signing, trade or firing? We're all going to hear about it in time, so what good does it do?

Is it just that some readers might eventually just start using you and your paper as the sole source? Is it bragging rights? Personally, it doesn't matter to me one bit who gets it first. In this age of instantaneous news, as soon as one gets it, the other reports on it seconds later.

Thanks.

Guy M, Vancouver

A: It gets to the competitive nature of the reporters a lot of times. We’ve got four newspapers here that cover this team, a gaggle of radio and TV outlets and if you’re first with something newsworthy (and I don’t count the announcement of a long-expected news conference to be all that newsworthy, to tell you the truth) it makes a guy feel good… That’s the “something that would otherwise stay under wraps” stuff you’re talking about.

The one thing that bugs a little bit is when I have to have a story out there under my name crediting some other news organization (like ESPN or Yahoo or M. Grange TM) with information, although I do think I’m pretty good at doing that. I’ll put it out there, sure; but then I start working the phones to get independent confirmation so it’s “our” story as well.

But, and I’m sure I’ve said this before, an old friend who’s been on a beat for years once told me: 90 per cent of the stories are ties, you win five per cent and you lose five per cent and you can’t get too high when you win or too low when you lose.

You’re right, in this age of instant dissemination of information, as soon as something’s out there, everyone gets it and it’s how you react to it, or advance the original information, that makes the good ones stand out.

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Ready for some more early mornings?

Maybe not but if you are, the next installment of Canada Basketball Goes Global begins Thursday in the wee hours.

This time it’s the women’s under-19 world championships from Thailand and if I know the folks at Canada Basketball, they’ll be on top of it like they were the men.

My knowledge of international junior women’s basketball – and this Canadian team in particular – is not what it should be but people whose opinions I respect tell me this is a very good team of very talented young women and should be a top-8 team in the world.

So we’ll start following them. Just a bit of a heads-up for you, it’s an 11-hour time difference or something so here’s the best place to find out how they’re doing.

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Michael Jordan hits a golf ball a very, very long way. And mainly straight. Not sure what he shot yesterday at that Mike Weir Charity Classic out at the Abbey but if I had his swing, my friends’ wallets would be an awful lot lighter.

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We can now, finally, put to rest for a couple of years all the speculation about Steve Nash and Toronto, right?

As Paul Coro tells us here, he’s got the new gig in Phoenix that should keep him there until practically the end of his career.

The angle Paul took is pretty interesting, no?

The draft where Nash was chosen by Phoenix way back in the day – and I remember it pretty vividly, it was when Vancouver was sure Toronto would screw ‘em up and take Shareef Abdur-Rahim rather than Marcus Camby that night in Jersey – included Iverson and Marbury and you would have gotten some long, long, long, long odds if you’d bet Nash would have had a better, more productive career than either of those two.

And seeing how Nash has those two MVPs, is still playing at an incredibly high level on a good team and neither of those other two have a job yet, you cannot tell me he hasn’t had a better career.

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Speaking of MJ and the golf, my man C Young makes reference to it here in today’s missive from the paper but the little byplay between Jordan, Anthony Kim and Fred Couples was pretty much worth the price of admission to the range at the Abbey. (Of course, the price was free so take that for what it’s worth).

But Kim’s a huge Laker fan and byplay was pretty fascinating.

It was like me and you (if me and you were one of the great young golfers of the era and one of the greats of all time) casually hitting balls and picking the mind of an NBA GM/owner/president/icon as we went about our business.

You get that kind of access a few places – around the batting cage and in the dugout before ball games, sitting on the bench a couple of hours before tip off of an NBA game – and it’s very cool.

As Chris says, Jordan’s big on San Antonio, thinks Portland makes a run at Lamar Odom and thinks the West is stacked. Smart man. Of course, Kim did not mention Kwame Brown, Adam Morrison or Leonard Hamilton.

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Spent about 90 minutes with the good folks from Canada Basketball last night at this reception thingy that included players and coaches from the cadet, junior and senior national teams in this kind of team-building social exercise that lets the three groups mingle and get to know one another.

Now, we’ll have more on this in the next couple of days – this is long enough as it is right now – but I’ve been on the fringe of the national team program for a large number of years, like 20 or so and I can honestly say I don’t remember a similar event ever. I don’t know what the ultimate outcome will be but getting the groups together and letting them know it’s one program, not three separate teams, cannot be a bad thing at all.

And you thought I'd forgotten about you

Miss me?

STEVE RUSSELL/TORONTO STAR

Georgia Tech teammates come together again in Toronto.

Thought so.

Well, being refreshed after a week of deck washing and weed pulling, ball games and barbecue hosting, looks like there’ll be some basketball work in the next little while.

Which is good for basketball writers but it might also mean I’ll miss a day or two in my next gig: Golf scribe.

Yep, the weekly foray to the Canadian Open begins today; not sure how we’re going to cover it or what makes it into this space each morning but it should be a hoot. I seem to know there’s a difference between a niblick and V-grooved gap wedge, let’s see what else we can come up with.

But first, the hoops …

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My man Mike Wells of the Indianapolis Star got in touch with Jarrett Jack late last night for this story that says the deal’s done and it seems I’ll have a news conference to attend tomorrow.

I don’t think anyone’s the least bit surprised that Indiana isn’t going to match the offer, there are some financial issues at play with the Pacers that made it a virtual impossibility for them to pony up that kind of cash for Jack.

This was a pretty good move by Bryan Colangelo, no question. M. Grange ™ and I were discussing this while pretending to be baseball writers on Sunday night and it’s the kind of relatively quiet signing that could have a major impact on how the team does next season.

Jack’s big, tough, and – according to everyone I’ve talked to in Indy and Vegas last week – more than okay with the role that’s laid out for him here.

He’ll back up Jose, play some two, not complain and work hard.

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What’s left?

Well, according to everyone I talked to last week, Carlos Delfino and Rasho remain very much in play and I have a feeling that both situations – or at least both roster spots – will be taken care of in the next week.

And then what are we going to do? Loaf all of August? Sounds good to me.

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Okay, let’s for the sake of argument say the Raptors and Delfino can’t come to terms on a new contract, or that Toronto changes its mind and thinks having him might be too much duplication in the two-three spot.

What then?

Well, here’s one to put entirely out of your mind:

Just because there are suggestions – legitimate according to sources I’ve talked to – that the money is somewhere north of $4 million per, it doesn’t mean they’ll have the same money to spend on someone else if Delfino falls through.

Can’t happen. Won’t happen. The only reason Toronto can offer that kind of cash to Delfino is because he is their own free agent; and because they’ve tied up almost all, if not all, of the $5.9 million mid-level exception on Jack (and we haven’t found on the absolute particulars on the contract but it’s close to that number) they have no more money to spend.

What they will have is the so-called Biannual Exception (which starts at about $1.9 million) and veteran minimum contracts to offer.

They could, I guess, do some kind of sign-and-trade for Delfino but, trust me, every source I’ve spoken to thinks it’s virtually impossible that any other team wants to throw that kind of money at him.

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You watch those contrived in-house ad ESPY awards last night?

You’d think Michael Phelps could have worn a tie, no?

Maybe he traded it for some munchies back stage or something.

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What I find really interesting is that there seems to be a lot of questions right now on who’ll be in the starting lineup around Halloween when the ’09-10 season gets under way.

Antoine Wright? DeMar DeRozan? Carlos Delfino?

How about we do this: We worry about that once (a) the team has had a chance to, you know, get on the court together; and (b) everyone’s signed that’s going to be signed.

Suffice it to say that Calderon, Turkoglu, Bosh and Bargnani are locks; the other spot will likely depend on who looks best with who on the court, something we’re not going to find out until October.

We know DeRozan is going to play and I presume Wright gets some time, too. (Check the last post, a 10-man regular rotation includes the four dead-bolt starters, Jack, Evans, a backup centre, a backup three and one of Wright or DeRozan).

But who’s on the court to start opening night is not going to become clear for months.

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This just in:

People were impressed with DeRozan last week in Vegas, Douby did all right making decisions with the ball, Ukic was just okay and the Raptors won three of five games.

Now, please forget that summer league ever happened.

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So I’m a Seamhead on Friday night, filling in for our baseball triumvirate who were off doing more important things, I guess.

I go to the dugout before the game and interview Cito Gaston.

We go up for dinner and say hello to Pat Gillick and Gord Ash, who are dining at a table across the room.

And I’m thinking: Yeah, this is Flashback Friday for sure.

Made a guy feel like it was ’93 all over again and I was just a pup starting out in the bigs.

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I believe there were quite a few moments last season when I got letters or comments from fans killing the Raptors for the lack of productivity from their starting wings.

Hmm.

Now Cleveland’s got AP and has signed Jamario Moon to an offer sheet.

What’s it all about, Alfie?

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I know, I know, I know.

I’m a crotchety old codger who doesn’t quite get things.

But I’m going to say this: The passing of Walter Cronkite on Friday was every bit as significant to the world as any in the last month – and, yes, I’m talking about that crooner out in L.A.

Of course, people won’t be clamouring for tickets to this memorial but people of a certain age – like, say, my age – grew up with Walter giving us all the news. I remember the day Kennedy was shot, and being sent home from kindergarten to watch Cronkite; it was his reporting of bodies returning from Viet Nam that lend a certain credence to the anti-war movement in the United States, a movement that created a societal sea change. He was there talking to us when Neil Armstrong walked on the moon 40 years ago today.

Cronkite’s impact on the world as we know it was hugely significant; you kids should go read more about him today.

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What's that? Vacation, you say? Don't mind if I do

I know tens of you will be crushed to hear this but this is going to be such a slow week that yours truly is going to try to get – gasp! – a week of vacation in.

There’s a deck that’s calling, a golf game that needs some work, a baseball team that needs some love and attention, I’m pretty sure I could be convinced to while away a few hours on a patio daily if need be and some rest and relaxation that’s long overdue.

Of course, if something happens we’ll be back here (and I’m pretty sure I just jinxed the whole vacation idea by talking about it) and I’ll probably get on here once or twice a day to see if there are any comments but this whole get-up-at-six-in-the-morning-to-feed-the-beast thing is going on hiatus.

Those who know how to reach me know how to reach me and it’ll be nice to hear from you.

Other than that, though, it’s a week of taking calls and e-mails, not making them.

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So, where are we?

Not much different from where were on Friday, except for that whole offer-sheet-to-Jarrett-Jack thingy that happened Saturday night.

Regardless of that offer, the Raptors still have a great interest in Carlos Delfino – the Jack deal should have no impact on that, according to one of my higher placed Toronto sources – and I would imagine the phone lines between Toronto (or Vegas) and Ljubljana, Slovenia, will be crackling even more this week.

I’m sure there are fallbacks in all three cases (I know Kleiza would be Plan B if the Jack thing unexpectedly falls apart) but, in their perfect world, they do Delfino, Rasho and the work is done for now.

Remember: They have 12 guaranteed contracts right at the moment and Jack, Carlos and Rasho bring ‘em to 15 and then they’re done. And I’ll say this right now: Training camp will be about teaching the guys they’ve got what they want them to do; there will not be any competition for roster spots it appears at the moment.

That should make those five days on the lovely campus at Carleton very stress-free. Just as we like it.

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Okay, let’s say they get the three guys they want and the roster is as we expect.

How’s the depth chart?

Well, going on the assumption that they play 10 regularly (and it could very well end up being nine), my 10 would be:

Jose, DeRozan, Turkoglu, Bosh, Bargnani, Jack, Delfino, Evans, Nesterovic and the only place there’s competition is to see who plays some backup three. Could be that Wright sneaks in there and Delfino’s a three two. Or Douby gets some time at the two and Delfino’s a three for parts of games.

That would leave Roko, George, O’Bryant, Douby or Wright, and Banks as the odd guys out of the regular rotation.

The starting two-guard’s the only question mark of note in this scenario and it will depend on how the kid develops.

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Hey, they’re 0-2 at Summer League and no one has suggested today’s a “must win.”

Good job, people.

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We know there are probably two things left for Toronto to do, right?

Make the final call on Delfino and Rasho or some reasonable facsimile.

So, when?

Well, to inconvenience me – and it’s all about me – it would be this week but there’s another reason to think these things might get wrapped up in the next little while.

Surely to goodness, Bryan Colangelo has to get some vacation, right? The dude’s been working harder than I have in the last five weeks, he needs some R and R.

And, if you recall over the course of time, the NBA generally shuts down for almost all of August, with the exception of maybe some minor signings. That’s when everyone seems to sit back and take much-needed deep breaths.

Them and me.

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Oh yeah, they finished it all at the Under-19 worlds in Auckland and the Americans ended up winning the gold meal, which will be greeted by some as ho-hum, expected news.

Except, that is, when you consider the last time they won it was in 1991.

Canada? Well, they beat France to finish seventh, which is far from a bad result.

Next up: The Under-19 women’s worlds start July 23 in Thailand. We’ll stay on top of that one, too.

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Looks like we’re going to have to wait a wee bit to meet up with Antoine Wright and Devean George.

The usual thing to do would have had them come to Toronto to get their physicals and they could have had a nice dog-and-pony show for the media.

Well, I’ve heard the physicals portion of the trade requirements was waived and if the two do anything, it’ll be to jet out to Vegas this week sometime to meet up with the Raptors coaches and get summer marching orders from them.

First time we might see them here will be in September when the players start dropping back in for those well-scheduled “informal workouts” that precede training camp.

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Okay, told you it’d be short and sweet. I’m off to let the chiropractor work her magic and check out the first part of the long to-do list around the house.

Talk to you when I talk to you.

Cleaning out the mailbag to wind up the weekend

Let’s see, played some golf with Super Son, did some barbecuing, got some quality couch time and now finished a long overdue mailbag? Yeah, turned out to be quite a day.

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Q: Wondering where this year's training camp will be held. Moving to Ottawa in August so would love to see them up there.

Garth S, Toronto

A: We’re coming to Ottawa. Maybe I can get to all the places this year that I missed last year.

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Q: Got another one for ya. Can a team absorb their mid-level exception with more than one player? For instance, two players salaries combined to equate to the exception (in rapz case it would be 5.7M).

Amar T, Thornhill

A: Teams can split the mid-level as many ways as they like, on as many players as they like.

And I presume rapz is Raptors?

(I truly fear for the future of the written word)

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Q: Why not offering Herrmann a 1-year contract? He would take it. he doesn’t require that many minutes, and can totally shoot the ball. But aside from that, why do you think teams don't offer him a contract? Even for a minimum? It seems weird to me.

Tobias R, Thornhill

A: You seem pretty sure you know how a guy would think without, you know, talking to the guy. Maybe there’s a two- or three-year deal at a lot more money in Europe out there. Maybe he wants to retire. Maybe the thought of being the 10th man or so in Toronto isn’t particularly appealing.

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Q: Do you ever follow ex-Raptors around the league? Any particular favourites? I see Luke Jackson (who I liked) is on the Mavs summer league team, and Hassan Adams (who I didn't) is on the Rockets team.

Chris D, Leeds

A: I wouldn’t say favourites but guys I’ve liked, like Marcus Camby, now AP, Damon when he was still playing, maybe a couple of others I’ll look for in the season. In the summer? Hardly any. In fact, I would never have known about Jackson and Adams until you mentioned them; if I’d scoured the summer league rosters closely, I might have raised an eyebrow when I saw the names but I sure wouldn’t have done anything like look to see how they’re doing.

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Q: Well, since there've been so many questions about free agents and Bryan's next move(s), I'll go with something not Raptors-specific. When people have ripped on Bosh, you've always maintained that one player, no matter how great, could not win it by himself. So, my question is, what kind of team does? Throughout basketball history, it seems as though having a "Big Three" is pretty effective, but what other kind of team makeups can make for a championship caliber team? Two greats, a bunch of role players? A team without a superstar, but a solid eight-man rotation?

Raymond C, Scarborough

A: It’s impossible to say with certainty but teams with more than one good player always prevail. But do they all have to be superstars? I don’t think so and cite Detroit as an example. Do they have to have three? I don’t think so and cite Miami as an example. Do they have to be all bigs? No, and cite San Antonio as an example.

It’s chemistry, health, luck and matchups. Or a combination of those.

Can Toronto win a title with this roster? I don't think so. It is entirely out of the realm of possibility that they could win the East given a combination of chemistry health, luck and matchups? No. Which is why they play the games.

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Four years on Jarrett Jack offer sheet

It didn’t take Bryan Colangelo long at all to make his next free agent move.

The Raptors president and general manager will, if he hasn’t already, extend a four-year contract offer sheet to free agent guard Jarrett Jack.

There’s no financial terms available right now but Jack made $2.2 million last season with the Indiana Pacers and it’s unlikely the Raptors wouldn’t make an offer that at least includes a marginal raise in the first year.

The four years is the interesting point. Colangelo said he was looking mainly at short-term contracts to avoid future tax penalties but if the salary is low enough, he must feel comfortable that it won’t have any long-term implications.

Jack, a college teammate of Chris Bosh at Georgia Tech, averaged 13.1 points and 4.4 assists per game with the Pacers last year, when he started 53 of 82 games, beating out former Raptor T.J. Ford for the starting role.

At 6'3, he’s also more than able to play a little two-guard and would be the kind of combo guard Colangelo likes.

Because the 25-year-old Jack is a restricted free agent, the Pacers will have seven days from the time the offer sheet is signed to decide whether or not they’ll match it. Team officials there have given no public indication before today what they would do in the event of an offer to Jack but have said they want to avoid any chance at crossing the tax threshold of $69.9 million.

Three spots and plenty of options

Relatively short and sweet today because it was a night of decompression and a morning filled listening to violent thunderstorms and – at this moment – Super Son committing some kind of musical mayhem on Rock Band.

Heckuva day ahead.

But, there were some questions asked Friday that I said I’d answer Saturday so what the heck.

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Okay, who now?

Three spots, all kinds of money and – most important – playing time at the two, three and backup five.

That’s what Bryan’s got and the one quick dispatch I got from Vegas last night suggest that he’s likely to sit back for a couple of days before getting back into the signing mode. After all, why be in a rush? There doesn’t seem to be a lot of action league-wide except for suggestions Utah’s trying to move Carlos Boozer somewhere so they can match a big offer sheet to Paul Millsap, who, to my everlasting credit, I haven’t called Ronny in months.

Guess it now comes down to prioritizing the names and I’m sure the braintrust is working on a list that they aren’t quite ready to share with me, lest a guy who’s four or five be hurt because he’s not No. 1 or No. 2.

Personally, given circumstances like chemistry, roles, finances and the like (all of which have to figure into this), here’s the list I would make. And I bet it doesn’t surprise.

Carlos Delfino

He knows the team and most of the players, has a great relationship with Jose, respects Jay, can pretty much play three spots in a pinch and isn’t that bad a defender. Sure, the year he was here he had some inconsistencies to his game but he’ll tell you that was because he never really got a defined role from Sam. Might have been a wee factor but that is a troubling history.

Rasho Nesterovic

Another guy who wants to be here and fits perfectly into the locker room. And, I tell you, that’s a big a thing as anything. Think back to the 47-win team. Great chemistry. Think to the 41-win team a year later? Not so great, there was some disconnect between T.J. and Bosh (I’m not entirely sure why, but it was there), Bargnani wasn’t nearly as outgoing as he was in the locker room last year and as he was with Rasho, who’s a good friend and mentor.

And do this math: There are 96 minutes a game to split between the fours and fives. If you’ll have Bosh and Bargnani for, say, 37 a game (and that’s maybe even a bit low), that’s 74 and even my math skills tell me there’s 22 a game left over.

If you can’t get 22 good minutes out of Reggie Evans, who wasn’t obtained so he could sit on the bench, and Rasho, you’re in trouble.

Now, the third spot’s the tough one.

If you get Delfino, does he satisfy the need for a 2 and a 3 and therefore send you looking for a combo guard who can play some 1 and 2?

Or do you like Douby on the court with Turkoglu and Turkoglu running the offence?

Same thing with Roko. Can you play him with Turk and take that penchant for over-dribbling away from him?

What are you going to get out of DeRozan, who now doesn’t have to score?

Does Antoine Wright get a shot at starting and would he be okay as a backup?

And there’s Bryan’s statement that he doesn’t want to give out longer deals to all of these three so he can protect himself against a tax hit a year from now.

A tough call.

Me?

I’d see if I could Jarrett Jack on a one-year deal, although I know that might stunt Roko’s development a bit more and it would take Indy renouncing him and I don’t think that’s going to happen.

If you can’t get him, here’s a name that came up in a comment yesterday and one I have heard around the team, although not for a month or so.

Bostjan Nachbar.

Can do a few different things on the court; I am told he’s one of the all-time good guys so he wouldn’t be a locker room problem and he might take a one-year deal to re-establish his bonafides in the NBA.

I know there will be people in the organization who like him.

Anyway, only after that would I go looking at guy like Kleiza (I’m not a huge fan because I’m not sure what he does well enough to make a difference) and, perhaps, take a quick look at Josh Childress, who Atlanta could very well match on.

One other thing to think about:

To make an offer to a restricted free agent with a full qualifying offer from his current team that deal has to be for at least three years and I honestly don’t see Bryan offering anyone a three-year contract.

That could change for the right guy but that would surprise me.

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Tough times in New Zealand for the Canadian Under-19s, as you can read here.

A two-point loss to Puerto Rico at the buzzer leaves them to play for seventh and eighth.

As we’ve been saying, when they went down there, a top-eight finish was the logical goal with a shot at a medal not out of the question.

I’m sure there’ll be some disappointment but I think they got where they should have and, had they had a better draw in the quarters, we might be talking medal.

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Remember the mail bag?

Well, I’ve been trying to get one together for a while but stuff like free agent signings and news kept getting in the way. Just checked the inbox and there’s a billion questions there but they’ve pretty much all been asked and answered over the course of the last couple of days.

So …

I’ll leave it up to you fine folks to find some others and send ‘em in and we’ll get to one sometime tonight or tomorrow. After all, looks like a miserable day here, the barbecue plans seem to be dashed so Super Son can goof on his Rock Band and I’ll sit and type.

A quick one before the weekend starts

I presume this is out there somewhere, probably lots of places, but what the heck.

Just got word that Anthony Parker is definitely going to Cleveland and all they have to do is clear up some language issues the deal will be signed.

Not really newsy -- Brian Windhorst of the Plain Dealer had it all but done a couple of days ago -- but just wanted to get it on the record that he'll be missed.

I know not a whole lot of you would care because what matters most is on-court stuff but AP was one fo the all-time good Raptors and he'll be missed. When he did interviews he gave carefully-considered answers that were on the verge of being boring but I'll tell you, private he was funny and insightful and if you hung around his locker before a game, it was pretty entertaining.

He sat next to Hump and Jamario and the three of 'em couldn't have been more different, which made the conversation more lively.

And, although we never got to see it 'cause it wasn't his style, we're told he did a Sam Mitchell imitation that was dead on. Not sure how many times M. Grange (TM) tried to get him to do it, but he wouldn't.

Regular readers here will know what I think of the guy when I say he was like Dell Curry in the way he handled himself as a pro and a guy.

Okay, I see a handful of comments to post and then I'm pretty sure there's a patio in my immediate future if I can find one.

Time to take a deep breath? Yeah, right

Know what I would love to tell you?

I would love to report that you can take a break and sit back and enjoy the nice fall weather in Toronto or enjoy whatever it’s like wherever you are because the frenzy’s over and things will calm down until training camp.

Sorry.

With three roster spots and up to $12 million to spend to fill them, I’ve got a feeling the Raptors are going to be in the news for the next little while, too. All of a sudden, they’re the team with practically the most cash available – if they want to spend it and there’s more on that later – and that makes agents drool.

So you’ll hear a lot of names over the next few days and a lot of speculation. You know, just like the last week or so. Be careful, though. Just because there’s a name linked to them doesn’t mean there’s mutual interest.

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Okay, that said, let’s get on with speculation.

WINSLOW TOWNSEND/AP

It doesn't hurt to do a little window shopping.

Who’s out there? Well, they like Carlos Delfino, for sure. They like Rasho at the right number and when I was talking to him yesterday, I got a feeling if the number makes something remotely close to sense he’ll take it and they like a handful of other guys.

There are, as we’ve said all along, going to be some bargains out there.

And now that they’ve got the big ones taken care of, they can start specifically looking at holes.

They need help at the four and five.

They could use help at the two and three.

And if they remain unconvinced that Roko’s the guy and they are more comfortable with Douby not handling the ball an awful lot, there’s a point guard spot, too. Although with Turkoglu sure to initiate offence and if they get Delfino, that’s not a big worry.

Here are a few names I know have been discussed among members of the braintrust, some quite seriously.

They still like Linas Kleiza a little bit and there are those who have at least mentioned guys like Von Wafer and Matt Barnes and, yes, Josh Childress, but I think they’ve got less support than the others.

I have no idea if they’d make a call about Marvin Williams, although I’m not sure where he fits at the moment.

Here’s one that’s pretty intriguing given the way things have unfolded. There wasn’t a lot of interest before in him but I think they should absolutely give Jarrett Jack a call and see what it’ll take.

Of course, it may not be a matter of them making calls because they’re going to get hundreds.

Especially after this Bryan quote gets in circulation.

“I’m going to be looking to possibly do some short-term deals, I would love to sign a couple of guys to one-year deals even if it means paying a premium. That’s something that’s being discus.”

Seriously. You’ve got a GM talking about “paying a premium?” How popular is that going to make him?

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Tough day for Canada down in Auckland and an old friend’s family got them.

Check out this story on the Under-19s losing to the Americans in the quarter-finals of the world championships see that Seth Curry hit a gaggle of three-pointers in the barrage that killed Canada.

Yes, Seth Curry. Stephen’s brother. Dell’s other kid. He used to have a pretty sweet stroke when they’d be goofing in the practice gym before and after Raptors workouts way back in the day.

Anyway, tough loss but I don’t think entirely unexpected. And if you give up 11 three-pointers in a half, that’s a big hole to get out of.

Canada can still finish fifth, which is nothing to sneeze at but this group – if the kids don’t get sidetracked too much by promises of untold riches and the influence of people who may not have their entire interests at heart – is a pretty solid foundation for Canada Basketball to build on.

The odds of even one of them getting so much as drafted by an NBA team are astronomical – and that’s being charitable – and playing for the national team in global events will enrich them far more than some North American camp will and it will open them to more exposure basketball wise than they’d ever get simply staying home.

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So, how did all of yesterday’s shenanigans play out around the league?

Here’s Eddie’s take down in Dallas.

Here’s how Brian explained it to all his readers in Orlando.

And in Memphis, Ron set it up this way..

Seems everyone, everywhere, is happy.

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Here’s one word of caution that we got from Bryan after the formal part of the news conference yesterday. Yes, they have a $12 million buffer between the cap level they’re at and the tax level they will avoid and that’s a lot of money to fill three backup roster spots. But they are also going to be worried about drops in the tax level in the coming years and how that hits them in the pocketbook.

Said Bryan:

“It is not only what implications will be there next year, there are concerns about what might happen in the future with potentially negative BRI growth, it’s going to get tighter and it’s something to contend with.”

Hmm, “potentially negative BRI growth.” I never figured I’d type words like that.

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Hedo: No. 26.

Why? His first daughter, Ela, was born Feb. 26, 2009.

Awwww.

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I’m sure I’ve told this Hedo story before but what the heck, I’m too tired to check and it’s not a bad one anyway.

It’s the 2002 world championships in Indiana and Hedo and his Turkish teammates all show up with their hair dyed white or platinum blonde as a sign of solidarity or something like that.

It is not, trust me, a particularly good look.

A friend and I are talking to Peja Stojakovic in hallway of the arena one day (Peja’s a teammate of Hedo’s in Sacramento at the time) and we ask him if he’s seen his buddy and his teammate:

“Oh, you mean N’ Sync?”

Relayed that story to Rasho yesterday on the phone and he says:

“That was not Hedo’s finest hour.”

Then, chatting with Turkoglu after the news conference, I reminded him of the look and Peja’s shot:

“Yeah, that was bad. I got killed for that for a long time.”

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Okay, that’s got to be enough for now, right? Probably going to be a bit slow today so don’t expect many, if any, updates because I’m going to decompress for a few hours, revel in glorious Yankee victory (16-13 or something like that and we’re squishing bugs like nobody’s business at the plate) and get the wonky body worked on by the magical doctor.

But, if there’s news, we’ll do something. I just don’t expect any today.