3 In the Key - Toronto Raptors Game-Day Preview vs. Clippers

Totally off topic - but Simmons at ESPN.com is proposing this trade:

Gasol and Juan Carlos Navarro for Bargnani, Rasho Nesterovic's expiring deal, an unprotected 2008 No. 1 and $3 million.

Any thoughts?

YES! I hated the fact that I decided not to pick him up in my league when he ws playing good thinking he would slow down! I've watched clippers game and he does a good job on the post.

Gasol's another powerforward amd navarro's another shooter. We would be giving up a true centerfor an undersized bargnani type of player and another powerforwar.

OK, to comment on the above commentary from Franchise, I have Kaman in my fantasy Hoop league...how can you not?? Just shows that Brand was garnering most of the touches so Chris gets to nplay a different role. The paint and the D are going to be the tell tale stories in tonight's game. The Boston game reminded me of practice back i high school when my Junior squad would take on the Senior squad ....we'd be game and up to it but we were basically deer in the headlights! Get over the "aura" and how "envogue" Boston is this year and they are beatable.

As for this trade possibility you just posted utes....BC won't go for that. (Why would he want 3 point guards????) We'd be takin it on the chin. Gasol is good and legit, although I think he has lost a little lately, but the remainder of the deal is crazy. Simmons needs to stop throwing out these ideas just to gie us topics in blogs like this one?

Hey, Franchise, why do guys do this? Like i keep telling you guys, I bet Barg's knee is still sore and give him some more time.

I'm out!

Fresh 1

utes - I'd take it in a heartbeat. Gasol is being criminally underused in Memphis this season - for my money he is the best at drawing the doubleteam and finding the open man from the post in this league. And he could totally be our centre - he plays the 5 for Spain and dominates the world.

The trade proposed by Simmons is not even worthy of discussion.

Proposal idea was directed at the Americans audience who think that BC is so enamored with European players that he would consider a cutesy trade by bring together a group of Spanish player and Raps would have one big happy family.

It shows a lack of respect by sports writers for the Colangelo vision to building a team focused on team goals with no regard to a player’s nationality.
Americans just don’t get it.

Hey guys, calm down! I just finished reading the Simmons article. It was mostly tongue in cheek stuff. Bosh being the most overrated young star...real funny.

Maybe Bargnani will be able to turn it around this game. Maybe he needs to get away from the pressure of the fans of Toronto and just focus on his game.

I remember, it was around this time last year, the end of December in 2006 when Bargnani started to get his game going. Bargnani also showed a lot of resilience last year in terms of development. Didn't he hit a game winner against the Clippers last year/I can't remember..

What happened to his good composure during rough times of the game? It seems like he's getting frustrated too quickly in games.
He just needs to remember who he is and what his game is to be a solid player.

Otherwise, he'll just be a bust.

I just realized something. I think we all owe Dallas and San Antonio our gratitude. If it wasn't for them, we would be facing the Celtics in the 2nd round of the playoffs for years to come. Thanks to the playoff format changing after the Mavs and Spurs, the best two teams in the NBA in 2005-2006 faced each other in the conference semi-finals, we are not locked into 4th, we can be seeded higher based on our record.

If Sam has the patience Bargnani will be back. He's got the skill set and from all accounts is a hard worker. It takes a good three seasons to develop the big guys, more if they need to get acclimatized to Canada and North American culture.

This team will make the playoffs discounting any major injuries to CB4, gain some valuable experience, and make a really big leap next year.

Then watch out in 2009 when they have a bunch of cap space available. I hope BC finds his aggressive SF and hard banging PF by then. Whether they come from inside the team as is or come aboard through FA doesn't matter.

Disparaging comments from Bill Simmons on Bargs (who is rated 47 on Simmon’s pics for top 50 in the NBA)… but right now, can you really argue with him?

"Didn't you expect him to be further along this season? What happened? We're three more uninspiring months away from lowering his ceiling from "maybe the next Dirk Nowitzki" to "a fiestier and slightly more talented Memo Okur, only if Okur could make his own marinara sauce."

Honestly, I have had Okur thoughts in my head for the last week or so.

You can't disagree with Simmon’s (or anyone else’s) remarks about Bargs. I don't think that this has anything to do with him needing time to develop or having hit his ceiling; he has already shown us what he can do. He had ice in his veins against NJ in the playoffs last year and was one of our better players (remember that Bosh didn’t fare as well in his first playoff appearance). Bargs has simply lost his confidence and is second and third guessing every move that he makes. Instead of letting the game come to him, he is trying to force the issue every time he has the rock. He just needs to slow things down and let his game flow...maybe play some defence while we are at it. Because right now, I would much rather have Humph coming in off the bench instead of Bargs...just my thoughts!

For the record - I wouldn't make the trade cause I like Bargs too much. I have him in my pool even though he's killing - I'm holding on to him.

I didn't mean to start a heated discussion about this - I just thought it was an interesting trade scenario.

I also have Gasol in my pool too ;)

I think simmons was just kidding with that proposed trade, but he does make a serious comment about Calderon in that same article:

"Calderon's monster stretch of starts after two separate T.J. Ford injuries recently (10 games, 107 assists and 15 turnovers until a subpar game against Boston on Sunday) makes him a summer free-agent target for anyone who wants to emulate Phoenix's run-and-gun offense. It also opens the door for a very logical question: Why the hell was Jose Calderon backing up T.J. Ford???"

Which just reminds us that Jose's potential contract value keeps going up and up...

Got suckered...it won't happen again.

Glad your back, OldSchool.
Bargnani will figure things out, hopefully sooner rather than later.

"It also opens the door for a very logical question: Why the hell was Jose Calderon backing up T.J. Ford???"

A fair question. The debate will go on forever but I'll say it again, Calderon is, at this point in both his and TJ's career, the better point guard. I feel that is an obvious statement having watched just about every game the past two seasons. This is no knock against TJ, WHO WILL BE A GREAT POINT GUARD, and already is good but Calderon is one of the best point guards in the world. Period. So Marcia, lighten up. We are extremely fortunate, they complement each other well, seem to truly like and respect each others game - and we are very fortunate that Jose seems to accept coming off the bench. I am not sure if TJ would accept being the best back up PG in the league.

With the injuries piling up with TJ, there is NO WAY that BC allows Calderon to walk. Unfortunately we may have to jettison Delfino who is now my favorite Raptor, but thats the price you pay in a cap system.

Other thing that bothers me about Bargnani is those psychological tests that were supposedly "off the charts" and how this guy was a stone cold killer..if that is the case, he should have been able to shake off a bad game or two, not remain in a season-long funk..