We will miss you, Anthony

It seems that Anthony Parker is moving to Cleveland. Although not a super star, he will be sorely missed in Toronto. I met him once in person - he was a very nice and classy person, with the sweetest smile. I get he will be teaching LeBron now how to behave. Some lessons on modesty and classiness can also go to Mo Williams.


If Andy Varejao got a dollar for every flop, how much would he earn? The answer is here. 50 mln for Hedo or Bargnani doesn't sound that crazy anymore? Right.

S&T Marion with Dallas is on its way. We still need another team to complete our threesome and let us grab some dollars for adding players to our bench, which will definitely not include Pops nor Delfino, as we renounced the rights to them. If we have luck, it might also be our chance to get rid off Kris Humphries or Marcus Banks.

Zaza Pachulia goes back to the Hawks, Spurs sign Haislip and McDyess, Jennero Pargo heads to Chicago, Dahntay Jones to Indiana.

More signings here. And here.

The Rockets get exception for injured Yao Ming. Hey, what about Tracy McGrady? Every team that ever had him on a roster or even thinks about trading for him should get exception, too. Just like that.

I might have forgot: Free Jordan Crawford! #freejordancrawford

It's nice to cash your check...

... especially in these hard times for the economy.

As we all expected, the salary cap fell down, luckily only about 2 mln, but is expected to get a full hit for next season. Yeah, THAT season, when the Free Agent Bonanza of 2010 hits the market.

First news, we hear after that is our GM offering the extension to Andrea Bargnani, worth roughly 50 mln for 5 years. Yes, 50 mln, Andrea, good job, you can close your mouth now.


This is definitely a bold move and yet another cocky reassurance, that Raptors mean their business. It brings a sense of security over our frontcourt, securing the Center and Small Forward position for next 5 years. And if the economy was thriving, nobody would question any of these contracts. In reality we're wondering if it's not too much money.

So, the ball is on your court, Andrea, and all our eyes are on you. Are you gonna be our doom? Or you will become such a superstar that you'll have Man In Black following you around, deleting the memories of you being dunked on and stealing the video footage?

The interesting fact, I noticed previous season, our Magician seemed to play better, while unshaven. Hope he won't celebrate his contract extension by buying new razors.


Other news:

Ron-Ron becomes an official entertainer for Lakers' fans. The contract is signed, sealed and put into fire-proof safe-box. Shannon Brown also stays in LA.

Birdman will be still in Denver, the place, where his tattoos are the most appreciated.

San Antonio Spurs are flirting with Antonio McDyess. Seems that Big Baby Davis is still the wallflower. Don't worry, your time will come, Cinderella.

The Hedo-gate in T Dot & LeBron's big mouth

The Hedo-gate is reaching dangerous levels in Toronto. Soon Bryan Colangelo will have to make his decision about renouncing (or not) the rights to the free agents: Shawn Marion, Carlos Delfino and Anthony Parker. Soon we will learn.

Are we gonna have Hedo and none of 3 above? Are we gonna sign & trade any of them? Are we gonna send an apologize card to Hassan Adams begging him to come back?

There is an interesting rumor about sign & trade Shawn Marion with the Mavericks, which will give us Jerry Stackhouse and our MLE back (or not). Yeah, don't ask me. 'The CBA is really fucking complicated', by the words of @scottcarefoot. I completely agree. As soon as I understand it, the new, more complicated CBA will come. It's like deja vu allover again. If I was capable of catching up with CBA on the first read, I'd apply for a job of a first female GM in NBA.


Hence, I hope our man Bryan Colangelo gets what it needs to be a good GM, understands the rules and has a huge ace to pull out of his sleeve. He looks clever, no?



While BC is tactfully silent and let our minds wonder, LeBron just wouldn't shut the fuck up. About year ago, he told to the media, that he will be playing in New York. Now, he tries to lure Trevor Ariza to Cleveland, promising him, that he's an Ohio man through an through. Surprisingly, when asked, the King calls Ariza a liar. How will he shake Trevor's hand after this? Oh, I forgot. He's a witness. I mean a winner. Winners don't shake hands.


Other news:

The ugliest tattoo of NBA stays in Hotlanta.



Avery Johnson decided he doesn't want to take part in the Motown Experiment, without job security. Pistons will hire John Kuester as a coach. Kuester was an assistant coach in Cleveland. Cavaliers had an assistant coach? How many coaches do you exactly need to call one play: 'give the ball to LeBron 35 feet away from the basket and get the hell out of the way'?

Free Agency Day 5 - I believe we'll be fine

So Sheed is going to dress green next season. And the Celtics are reaching the All Star starting 5, while trying to put themselves into a winning position not only for the next championship, but also for breaking the record of technical fouls per one team. Doc Rivers is also talking to Grant Hill.

Mark Cuban broke the piggy bank to seduce Jason Kidd with 25 mln 3 year contract (WOOT!). Guess is he doesn't want to admit the mistake he made by trading Devin Harris for Kidd. Or he's simply afraid, that JK will drink from a Fountain of Youth as soon as he kicks into New York.

So the big market teams are spending. The small market teams are trembling.

Which one of them are we? I know, Raptors, being the only Canadian team don't get the serious attention from American media. But does it make us a small market team? Can you seriously call the only basketball Canada can cheer for a small market team? Yeah, there are most people obsessed with hockey here, but the young basketball fan base is big and growing. Check here.

So maybe it's time to stop wailing that we're spending too much on Hedo.
- We have a thin bench? We do, but we didn't even have legit starting 5 previous season.
- You're afraid it's going to hurt us in 2/3 years? I think it will hurt us more when Bosh shows us his middle finger next off-season, because we didn't give him any supporting cast.
- He's going to be overpaid underachiever. He's no Stephon Marbury. Also, he wanted to come here. Yes, he chose Toronto as his next home over Portland. The fact, that we offered him 3 mln more? It's 3 mln over 5 years with higher taxes, I don't think this changes his quality of life that significantly.
- You think that he's another 'soft Euro'. Rewind your memory to last year playoffs, when we met with Orlando Magic. Remember this ugly white dude who threw your franchise player into the second row of fans watching the game? Here's the 'soft Euro' for you.


I'm not a huge expert on salary cap, but if you see, how much so called serious teams spend on their players, you have to believe that there are enough exceptions to work out some plan to get at least one reasonable backup wing man. Not a superstar, not Hassan Adams, but a decent shooter/defender.

So, Toronto, enjoy. You have a first star player in your team history that comes here willingly. A player who played in NBA Finals recently. Didn't sit on bench, played as a starter. Shot several clutch shots, dished more than a few sweet assists. If this doesn't convince you, check Cuzoogle. End of rant.

I wonder

1. Why Raps made a qualifying offer to Pops Mensah-Bonsu. We're securing another big man in the rotation. We already traded Jason Kapono for Reggie Evans, we also have Bosh, Bargnani, O'Bryant, Hump. And the hole in the wings is growing bigger and bigger. We drafted DeRozan, but who else is gonna be there? Are we gonna teach Bargnani how to dribble? Or can we somehow trade O'Bryant and Hump for a SG/SF.

2. When O'Bryant is going to change his avatar. Man, Celtics don't love you anymore. Deal with it.

3. Why everybody is so concerned about Brandon Jennings trash-talking. NBA players get to earn millions when they are young and stupid, they trash-talk, they have huge egos... That's why we love them.

4. What could have happened if BC traded up in the draft to get Ricky 'Franchise' Rubio to play in Toronto.


Would his Mama become another Vince's Mama for us?


5. When Yao Ming is gonna catch a break. The big man suffered enough injuries for at least 3 players. He's broken his foot now, which can spell the end to his season, before it even started.

6. What's gonna happen to Charlie V. Something sad about the fact, that the Bucks wouldn't extend the qualifying offer to him. The biggest heart on the team, he tried to carry this bunch of losers on his back to get to the playoffs while Michael Redd ended his season; and he nearly made it. I'd say - Raps, go for him, but we cannot have a roster containing only big men [nearly].

7. Is the Thunder really going after Ben Gordon, and where the logic is in that plan. There's only one rock to play with and only certain amount of available shots.

8. Why on Earth Mehmet Okur wants to opt out of his contract in Utah. Is he scared of Mormons? Or is he another player that wants 10 mln? everybody seems to want to get 10 mln now.

9. How to survive the off-season. Plans include:
- reading all these books I gathered in last few months. The pile is at least NBA-player high.
- watching all the basketball movies ever made.
- finally unpack after the moving.

How much nervous are you?

It doesn't really matter how much you're thinking about the free agency and trades your team should/might do. This dude definitely is biting his fingernails way more than you'll ever do.

NBA Free Agency for Dummies

Here's the list of some NBA free agents 2009, described in short Twitter-like fashion and non-scientific language. The order is random.

Marcin Gortat - Polish Hammer, he can block the King in the name of Polish Democracy.

Glen Davis - known for crying, and killing little boys after shooting a winning shot.

Anderson Varejao - man, he flops.

Chris Andersen - his blocks are as colorful as his tats.

Linas Kleiza - having him won't hurt you when Melo is hurt.

Wally Szczerbiak - his abilities of playing ball are only a little better than your abilities to spell his name.

Eddie House - he'll defend you so much that you'll want to slap him.

Nate Robinson - don't be cheated by his size, he can dunk.

David Lee - Mr Double-Double, he makes sure to follow every shot he misses.

Grant Hill - aging like a good wine, still capable of giving you a kick on some nights.

Mike Bibby - his 3pointer looks way better than his tats.

Trevor Ariza - Mr Hustle, he follows every loose ball and steals inbound passes.

Allen Iverson - best crossover in the league, but is he the answer?

Shawn Marion - as ugly as his shot looks, it usually goes in.

Jason Kidd - triple-double for me please.

Hedo Turkoglu - he can both dribble and shoot really well.

Rasheed Wallace - big mouth and big shot.

Ron Artest - fantastic defender and entertainer, he's been in the stands before.

Lamar Odom - good force on the team providing he gets his candies.

Ben Gordon - you will love and hate him multiple times on each possession.

Carlos Boozer - power forward with a power.