Bargnani extension looks even better now

Thank you Bryan Colangelo.  As this season has progressed, one player's game has really stood out.  Il Mago play over the last 3 weeks has been playing extremely well.  Minus the one bad game against the Indiana Pacers where the team blew a huge lead and pretty much every player played poorly, he has put up at least 15 points 10 of the 11 games.  Here's the look at what Bargnani has done since Dec 23, 2009.

What's more impressive is that the Raps have a record of 8-3 in those 11 games and Bargnani's average during this stretch is a respective 20.2ppg, 7.2 rpg and 2bpg.  He's putting up these numbers as a second and often third option on the team.  Aside from the low rebounding number (more a product of his offensive game as his perimeter play leads to weaker positioning on the offensive end), he has been playing like a man possessed.

I all of the sudden don't feel bad if Bosh leaves and what he can bring back for the Raps either at the trade deadline or at season's end.  I wonder if Colangelo had thought about this possibility during the past summer when he signed to him to what many people thought was a ridiculous contract.  I was also one of those who really questioned this extension but as the season has progressed and the way that Bargnani has played, I think that when (and not if) Bosh leaves, there will be a player waiting at the side ready to step in and become the man to lead the team.  In comparison to our last 2 superstars who were paid like max players, Bargnani would be coming at a reasonable 10 million a year. 

The best part about this signing is that he's not even close to his prime and the type of player he can become down the road with another two or three years under his belt...he should be flirting with the same type of numbers at least what Bosh is producing in points and with some more work on defense, he can bring his rbg to modest 8-9 per game. 

No wonder Colangelo signed his so quickly this summer, he wasn't just preparing for some insurance in the case Bosh does leave, but also in the type of player that Bargnani can become with more touches and becoming the primary key point of a team on offense.