B.C's Flexibilty Equals Uncertainty For Many Raptors

One of the goals of Bryan Colangelo was not to use any cap space and enter into this off-season with the ultimate amount of flexibility. In terms of that it has been mission accomplished. It does leave some question marks for a number of players heading into this off-season. At the top of that list is Jerryd Bayless who had a frustrating season in which injuries robbed him of opportunities especially down the stretch of this season, in which like last year Jose Calderon was not being used. Bayless turned heads with that chance at the end of last season. He had impressive numbers down the stretch as the Raptors starting point guard by default. An early season ankle turn  cost him a great deal of time right at the beginning of the season. Not exactly ideal when you have a new coach in place attempting to create a new identity for the franchise. He came back and was playing catch up with everyone else in a season that offered few chances to practice that made getting up to speed even more of a challenge. Then another injury to his oblique muscle and the end of his season opened the door for Ben Uzoh to walk through it and get a chance to play as a 10 day contract guy and earn ultimately a position with the team for the remainder of the season. Even Bayless admits he is still searching for his role and game at this point. He also could be searching for a new team to play for. The Raptors passed on the chance to extend him and he ultimately he could end up a RFA or even a free gent if the Raptors choose not to pick up their rights to him as an RFA. It made for a bit of an awkward exit interview with so much uncertainty on his future with this team. That said he still expressed his desire to remain in Toronto and that is something that has been consistent in since he has arrived.

The Raptors once had a similar type player in Chancey Billups. There was the same questions on what he was. Is he a point guard? A combo guard or a under sized shooting guard. Ultimately the answer was not found in Toronto but in Detroit were "Mr Big Shot" was born playing at the point for a championship team with the Pistons. While you would like to believe and hope that Bayless could find a path to his true identity as a NBA Player, you also have to wonder how long you are expected to wait. Watching Bayless can be a truly frustrating experience at times. He can make a true great spectacular play and the next time up the floor a totally unexplainable turnover. "His Gift" as Dwane Casey refers to it is his ability to score and get into the paint. It can also be his curse at times. He sometimes will call his own number and end up with a highly difficult attempt instead of making the simple pass and the smart play to a open player.

What makes this all the more frustrating and puzzling is I would venture to say Bayless is one of the most intelligent people in just terms of brains in that locker. Taking that to the basketball court, that intelligence is sometimes clouded by his competitive fire. He absolutely hates to lose and gets personally disgusted by the experience. On top of everything he is a nice young man that truly has embraced Toronto and legitimately loves the city. We would kill for more people who felt that way in the NBA that want to play and live in Toronto. Yet it really seems like a hard choice to make based on basketball alone.

In addition to Bayless there are other guys like Maglorie, Aaron Gray to decide about. I am not sure there is anyway you can see both Aaron Gray and Jaamal back. It would seem to make little logic to do so. There is already lots of speculation that Maglorie will return and he is even making playoff guarantees on behalf of the team. I would see this has a slap in the face to Aaron Gray if he ends up out and Jaamal in. Gray has done more in terms of on the floor and seems the perfect fit to play back-up 5 minutes behind Jonas Valanciunas. It is not like Aaron Gray is going to be worried about minutes. Although unlike Jaamal he can log major minutes if required. So, if you have Valanciunas having troubles adjusting to NBA game in terms of picking up fouls, Gray is able to plug in and fill those minutes. If Aaron Gray was from Toronto and Jaamal was from Charlotte this is not even a conversation. People will deny it, same as they did with Jay Triano but the Canadian passport that Magloire has gives him added value as the organization might view it from a PR point of view. He is well spoken and many respect what he has accomplished making it to the NBA out of the Raptors home town. Still numbers don't lie and the Raptors attendance did not trend upwards by bringing home the hometown hero. The simple fact as I have stated many times is the hometown hero stopped being an effective or at least significant NBA talent in 2003. I find his song and dance about his pride for playing for his hometown team to be somewhat hypocritical, as he likely had several chances to come here sooner than he actually did. Ultimately ask yourself this question. If Aaron Gray or Jaamal Magloire is cut loose by the Raptors who likely is still in the NBA next season. The answer is Aaron Gray who always seems to find a landing spot despite not being able to find a long term home in the NBA.

Aside from those mentioned you have Solomon Alabi, Ben Uzoh and Alan Anderson all without contracts heading into next year. In terms of Solo it was kind of nice to see him finally get a chance to play, but in reality there is little chance he has a future with the Raptors or in the NBA. The Raptors have consistently failed to find gold in the second round of the NBA Draft and he is just the latest example of that. He seems like a great person and is well liked by everyone but ultimately is like the last kid that is picked in a pick up game on a school yard in NBA Terms. Both Alan Anderson and Ben Uzoh to a lesser extent have made claims that they belong in the NBA. That said given the high expectations for this off-season if it is with the Raptors it would be viewed or should be viewed as failure on Colangelo's part to upgrade the talent on this roster.

Just because you have a contract that doesn't leave you safe either as the Raptors do have some attractive contracts they could easily move if they so desired to do so, on guys like Gary Forbes and others. Even Amir Johnson's deal is not unreasonable by the standards of what a solid power forward is going for these days in free agency. Colangelo's flexibility gives him options, but it also gives most of this roster insecurity. Aside from Calderon, Bargnani and perhaps DeRozan it is easy to see anyone being moved. Even under the right circumstances these 3 could be moved as well but it would be highly unlikely based on the comments of Colangelo today in his press conference.

Raptors Give Houston Problems

Houston with some nice passing getting an easy 2 points and Calderon a nice jumper in the paint and were off and running tied at 2, which will be more scoring that 40,000 plus likely see at the TFC game down the street. Teams continued to trade buckets and were tied at 6. Raptors would take the first real advantage of the night with a James Johnson slam, followed by a Houston turnover, that led to DeRozan being fouled and making two at the line making it 10-6 Raptors. Amir Johnson was back in the line-up and starting and he finished off a Johnson to Johnson play with a basket. Not long after we were one Johnson shorter as James picked up his 2nd foul early on. Raptors were making good passes and turning it into points up 16-10 with 6:33 to play in 1st. Demar DeRozan with a basket and one with 5:05 to play, but left the and one short, still the Raptors lead 20-13. This was an important game for the Rockets though as they were hanging on to last ticket to playoffs in the ultra close Western Conference. So the Rockets would make a push and with 2:24 left had this back to a one possession game trailing 24-21 to the Raptors. Raptors had let the Rockets get to even at 28 but got a little good luck as Bayless nailed a buzzer beater 3. Still the Raptors deserved better than a 3 point lead based on how they played. Some solid ball movement had their offense clicking.

Well hold the phone the replay would disallow the the Bayless three so make it 28-28 as we start the 2nd. That might have motivated Bayless as he hit another 3 early in the 2nd to give the Raptors a 31-30 lead. Still the momentum in this game had shifted to Houston. Jaamal Maglorie would do something. What was it? Dumb foul? Nope something good actually an offensive rebound and passed it to Jose for an open 3 giving the Raptors 34-31. It would spark the Raptors to make a push and go on a 10-1 run and lead 41-32 book-ended by another 3 by Barbosa with 7:30ish left in the half. After a time out the Rockets would cut the lead down to just 3 points causing Casey to call for a time out with 6 minutes to play in the half. Good time out from Casey and it stops the bleeding with it 47-40 and Raptors shooting and insane percentage at 63% and rising, but only up 7. Raptors had a 9 point lead with 2:36 to go. Could they close out this quarter and go into halftime feeling good? James Johnson took a knee to the thigh from Sammy D and made one of two at the line on the foul. Sammy was motivated perhaps by seeing his "friend" Leo Rautins calling the game and got a score on the other end. Amir Johnson had answer for that but then picked up a foul after his slam with 1:22 to play. Raptors were actually extending the lead up to 13 with score 56-43. Next possession after that they commit the basketball sin of fouling a three point shooter. Lowery made them all and it was 56-46 with 34.2 to go and time out for the Raptors. Raptors would add two and go to the half with a 58-46 halftime lead.

Raptors were shooting 64.9% and had a 12 point halftime lead. If not for a lot of fouls it could be more. Houston has not been a good road team and it was showing so far in this one. Unfortunately the Raptors started the second half with more of same fouling Kevin Martin. He would make both and was 5-5 on the night, Houston as a team were 18-22. But the Raptors keep on rolling and Demar DeRozan got to the line and made a pair of his own and gave Raps their largest lead so far at 62-48. Raptors were slowly building on this lead. It was a shame with 40,000 plus down the street at Rogers Centre this was likely one of smaller crowds of the season. Houston was coming off an OT loss and got into Toronto late and it was showing as the ever growing Raptor lead got up to 17. Lowery nailed a three trying to get his team going and Scola got a score on break which was enough for Casey to call for a time out. Still with a comfy dozen point lead 71-59 but wanted to stop the momentum for the Rockets. Houston was starting to lose it's cool as he gets a technical foul. Raptors still up a dozen with score 73-61 with 6 to play in 3rd. Aaron Gray MVP march rolls on with a rebound that he taps to himself and scores. Amazing happens still in the NBA and Raptors led 75-63. Some slippage as the Rockets were slowly cutting into the Raptors lead. Fouls kept coming and Rockets kept making most of them. Raptors lead was down to 79-74 with just 1:34 to play in 3rd. Linas Kleiza interrupts his quiet night with a big three to push lead back to 8. Raptors 17 point lead at one point had been trimmed to 6 with score 82-76 at end of 3rd.

Pace of this game was fast and intense. Normally that would not be a good thing for the Raptors but given circumstances for the Rockets it might be on this night. Two teams were trading buckets early and DeRozan hooked up Barbosa in the corner for 3 making it 89-80. Still Houston needed this game and kept coming as Courtney Lee hit a big triple to make it 89-85. DeRozan was trying to get the crowd up looking to throw it down but he would get blocked but Kleiza would get the ball and put it in despite the block and it was 95-87. Raptors answer the Houston energy with some of their own as Demar Derozan was fired up and finished up with a lay up to make it 99-89 with 5:22 to play and time out for Houston. Things went from bad to worse for Houston as Lowery had to leave the game injured and the Raptors were charging hard. Raptors had built lead back to 106-89 with under 4 minutes to play. This was one of the better efforts of the season from the Raptors. They had a few bad moments but for the most part a consistent and solid effort. The Raptors had come all the way back and restored and surpassed their 17 point lead and now led by 19 with score 110-91. A Kleiza three would make the lead 22 as the Raptors had an 18-2 run and were on the way to win number lucky 13. It might have been the most impressive win of the season as the Raptors smash the Rockets 116-98.

The Raptors now will not see action till the weekend where that guy from Italy that some claim as a three point master could be back. The Raptors didn't need Bargnani tonight but will be happy to welcome him back be it on road Saturday vs Pistons or at home vs Bucks on Sunday. Shame more didn't get to see this one but it was their loss cause this was a great effort from the Raptors perhaps the most complete one of the season to this point.

Superman Is Not Afraid Of Raptors.

Not surprisingly no Amir Johnson tonight. Andrea Bargnani ? You kidding right? Nope he isn't playing either. Solomon Alabi is active and if he plays tonight the Raptors or Magic, more likely the Magic, will be up by about 20 points or more. Dwight Howard is playing and still for Orlando with 10 days to the trade deadline. Hedo Turkoglu returns to the scene of the crime as well. But no one put a gun to Colangelo's head when he signed him that we are aware of. You often wonder how things might be different if Hedo had not screwed over Portland (Or So we thought) and signed there as he apparently had agreed to do and than changed his mind. That is water under the bridge of failure now. Magic should have little trouble dusting off the Raptors as they did on New Year's Day to start 2012.

Dwight Howard starts it off with a pretty move in the paint making Aaron Gray frozen or so it appeared. Ed Davis would score on a put back and Raps would get another basket, before a Nelson three pointer would make it 5-4. Raptors were doing a good job hanging around early and in fact nosed out to a 12-9 lead on an Ed Davis bucket taking it at Dwight Howard. Magic would tie it at 12 then the crowd would enjoy a pretty stupid pass by Hedo Turkoglu that would go out of bounds. Ball Control was a problem for the Magic and that is a good joke but it was also the truth with a lot of unforced turnovers. You got the feeling Dwight Howard could score as many as he wanted, but the Magic were more content to take shots. It was tied at 17 on James Johnson open 3. Big Baby with a nice big to bigger pass to Dwight Howard. Then we had a J.J three ball and the Magic were up 22-18. Magic would lead 23-20 after one and Superman had 10 points and 7 rebounds and I honestly think he could have had more than that if Magic wanted him too.

Magic got a basket from Ryan Anderson in the paint using some nice old school pump fakes. Raptors would respond with a break and a nice drop off from Calderon for DeRozan to get the easy lay-up. Magic were starting to assert themselves a little taking a 32-26 lead in the early going of the 2nd. Magic got it to an 8 point lead, but Demar DeRozan unafraid to take it to the paint made a couple nice baskets attacking the hoop making it 36-32. Howard got another easy score in the lane but Demar would get back in the paint too with a nice spin and score back to a 4 point point ball game. Raptors gave a good effort but were still as Jack Armstrong says, stuck five at halftime trailing 43-38.

Aaron Gray with a rare two for two effort at the line is what opens up the scoring in the 2nd half. Magic would get a couple baskets to answer that and it was 47-40 Magic. Raptors looked pretty disorganized on offense. Jose Calderon was 1-7 and you could add a turnover to that but the Magic would return the favour as they led 49-42. But the Raptors would get on a nice 6-0 run before a time out was called and it was a one point game. Raptors would take the lead on Barbosa three pointer to lead 51-49. Magic out a time out get an easy score and tie the game at 51. Dwight Howard soon after picks up his 3rd foul. It was a back and forth affair as Big Baby hits a jumper to give the Magic a 58-55 lead with just over 3 to play. Dwight Howard got the basket and made a free throw as he was fouled and the score grew to 61-55. A big dunk by Dwight Howard caused the crows to gasp and it was a sweet finish. Magic had been the dominant team all night when they wanted to be but still only had a 68-63 lead after 3.

Raptors were not going away and were in this game for one simple word and it is effort. They had it and the Magic only had it when they decided to have it. James Johnson swatted Big Baby and it lead to Jerryd Bayless being fouled in transition he made both and it was a one point game again. Ryan Anderson with a hugely needed three pointer for the Magic. Bayless with an ill advised chuck at three to answer. Anderson a basket and foul which he makes the and 1. Bayless decided to shoot another 3.....No what are you doing? I meant to say nice shot as he makes it. Raptors after falling behind seven get another basket and again were knocking on the door down just two.

Magic again decided to bring it and Dwight Howard made a great move that 3 years ago was not in his tool box in the paint. However Demar DeRozan who didn't have a 3 in his tool box does have one on occasion now and he used it to get the Raptors to within 2. Magic would push back to 5 up but a Bayless three would make it 80-78. But a silly foul by Jaamal Magloire and Magic got the lead back up to 83-78 with just over 4 to play. Magic started to pull away and had a 87-78 lead with 2:58 to play. But the Raptors would keep coming as they had all night long. DeRozan got a bucket to cut the lead to 4. Some questionable calls along the way were getting the fans and Jack Armstrong upset. But the foul on Calderon actually helped the Raptors as it turned out as Howard missed both at the line keeping the score at 87-83 Magic. Raptors had a chance at an easy hoop in the paint and could not make it and that would look to be costly with just a minute to play. Another foul on Calderon for getting run over by Dwight Howard and he again missed both but Magic got the rebound and still could not score. Bayless was fouled by Hedo and sent him to the line with 31.8 to play. He makes both and again it was a 2 point game. But a dagger 3 by J.J Redick would look to be the death blow giving the Magic a 5 point lead with 9.7 seconds to play. But Magic allow the Raptors to get an open Calderon three that he nail....Like Really? Magic now only up 2 again with 6.3 seconds left. J.J Redick gets fouled and that is last guy you want to foul with 95% on season but on the night was 2-4. Made both like he did back in the days at Duke and that would do it. Magic take it 92-88.

This is the part where you say the Raptors fought hard and deserved a better fate. But everyone else will do enough of that. I will say that it was a great effort but it was still a case of team that can not find a way to get over that hump in close games. I will also be the guy that will point out if you had Andrea Bargnani playing you might win some of these games. The fact he remains out with a calf injury seems odd even if it is the 2nd time he injured it. I hope it is because the Raptors are just trying to keep him out to play it safe in a season that doesn't mean much. If it is not that this really does not speak well to his ability to recover from injuries and is a concern as you go forward. But the Raptors are giving a tremendous amount of effort on defense and in general and you have to give credit to Dwane Casey for that. It is night and day from the efforts we saw under Jay Triano.

Raptors Reach Double Figures.

The Raptors came out all business on this night. Demar DeRozan leading that charge. He would have about as perfect a first quarter as you could going 4-4 from the field and 4-4 at the line to lead all scorers with 12 points in the opening stanza. He was also doing a better job on defense as well, something that was missing against the Bobcats. Raptors as a team were bringing it on the defensive side of ball holding the Pistons to just 36% shooting from the field. The Raptors were shooting a blazing 57.9%. Yet despite all of this it was just a 28-24 lead after one. Part of the reason for that was the Pistons getting on the offensive glass as they had 5 offensive boards 3 of which came from Jason Maxiell.

Raptor would keep things rolling on the right path in the second. They had some nice ball movement in this game with with 19 assists in the first half and 9 of those coming from Jose Calderon. Raptors had 19 bench points to go with those 19 assists as everyone that came off the bench to this point has points lead by Barbosa with 8. Raptors had the lead into double figures and looked dominate at times or like the only team not already on All-Star break. However the Pistons would show signs of life before the end of the half cutting the lead to 8 with a halftime score of 53-45. They had also slightly improved their shooting percentage to 40.5% while the Raptors were still hot at a 57.5% clip.

Raptors came out in the second half and picked up their effort on defense which had been pretty good to begin with. They would hold the Pistons to just 15 points in the 3rd. They had won every quarter in this game and had a 74-60 lead to show for their efforts. The fact they were the rested team and had many days to prepare for this one was showing through on the floor.

Raptors had done a fair job keeping Greg Monroe in check with 13 points and 8 rebounds for him through 3 quarters. He would have a strong final quarter scoring 17 points and having 6 rebounds. Still, the Raptors would find a way to hang on in this one. It was a real team effort in the end. Perhaps the best symbol of that team win was Aaron Gray, having 12 points and 12 rebounds. His efforts did not go unnoticed by the 17,125 that were in attendance. Late in the game the ACC rang out with MVP chants for Aaron Gray. It was a moment for sure and one that you likely never expected to see this season. The Raptors in the locker room after 103-93 win were in good spirits. While Gray was talking with the media post game James Johnson on the other side of the locker room was chanting MVP. Demar DeRozan later in talking with the media also approved of the fans showing Gray some love. DeRozan led the Raptors in scoring with 23 points and 7 rebounds.

Jose Calderon had just 5 points in this game but 15 assists of the Raptors 30 on the night. Casey had praised Jose pre-game and acknowledged the fact the phone has been ringing with many teams inquiring about Jose Calderon. That said Casey seems fine with Jose staying right where he is and after his performance last night likely nothing changes in that regard. Jerryd Bayless was back at full strength backing him up with 7 points and 4 assists off the bench in 20 minutes.

Ironically, the Raptors are right on pace with what I predicted here in the DNB as they sit 10-23 heading into the All-Star break with half of their 66 game sked in front of them. If they get a healthy Andrea Bargnani back after the All-Star break they should have no problem surpassing the modest 20-46 prediction we made at the start of the season. This was just the 4th win of the season without him as the Raptors are 4-16 minus the Primo pasta spokesman. You could make a case this team would have a decent chance at the playoffs had they had a healthy Bargnani for the full season. Even though the playoffs are still a mathematical possibility they are likely not a logical reality. The Raptor longest home stand of the season is in the books and they only manage to go 2-5 and 5-11 at home on the season. But you can feel confident that in the 2nd half the Raptors should improve on that home record and overall record if they can be healthy in the second half of the season and have the same Andrea Bargnani we saw in the 13 games he did play in during the first half of the season. That won't improve their draft stock but it will improve the individuals that will be part of this team moving forward.

Raptors also were in talks with Wilson Chandler, who is looking to return to the NBA after signing in China during the lockout. He is a restricted free agent of the Denver Nuggets. He paid a visit to Toronto to meet with the Raptors. But before people get carried away with excitement this very well could be a leverage move on the part of Chandler to get a longer term deal with his former team Denver. They would have 4.6 Million to bring him back if they so choose to do so. The Raptors could not go beyond that number with out making some sort of roster moves to do so. Chandler has till Match 1st to sign an offer sheet with another team. If not he could only re-sign with the Nuggets or sit out the rest of this season and be a RFA again in the upcoming off-season. Aside from the Nuggets and Raptors his agent says there are 3-5 other teams that his client is considering.

There is No O in Ugly

What can you say about last night in Boston and still have Santa bring you presents? The answer is not a lot. The Raptors could not register a basket in the first four and half minutes of the game. It would only slightly improve from there. At times you wondered if the Raptors indeed had any offence in place at all. Other times they seemed to be in such a hurry to play defence they would just chuck it up in a hurry. I mean glad they have bought into playing defence but that is a bit extreme. That new and improved Bargnani....Forget about it! Back to the Bargnani we all have become accustom to. Only 4 rebounds for him. That improved defence had a lot of leaks in it and did not travel well. Bargnani did have 20 points and was 7-17 from the field. Aaron Gray continues to depress with 0 points and 5 rebounds. DeRozan and Bayless struggled as well with Double D going 4-13 from the field and having 16 points he did have 10 rebounds to lead the team. While Bayless was 4-16 and had just 12 points with only 2 assists. Calderon wasn't any better with 6 points and just 2 assists.

You can look up and down the boxscore and be hard pressed to find anyone that you could consider had a good night. The Raptors once again looked much like a Raptor squad in the Kevin O'Neil Era. In fact maybe worse as they shot as a team 24-74 for 32.4%. It is pretty ugly and it sure isn't entertaining. The Raptors may make all those people that want them to lose happy. But the NBA Lottery has no guarantees and the damage a season like this could do to individual players could be significant. For those waiting on Jonas Valanciunas to arrive the kid no matter what you think of him is not a Savior. Raptors will have an opener on Boxing Day that you have to consider a winnable game for them. An effort like we saw in Boston and no game for this team will be considered winnable.

Dwane Casey has 5 days to convince us he really has an offence to install because to this point there is no evidence that he does. Coming out of this mini pre-season it is hard to feel encouraged about anyone at this point really. Boston is not going to be the world beaters they have been in past season and Paul Pierce didn't even play in either game for them.

The long season that everyone has been warning you about is on the verge of beginning. My suggestion is go enjoy the holidays and hang on to those good memories because you will need them to get through this season. No matter what uniforms the Raptors plan on wearing the guys in them are going to be challenged to remain competitive at best. The entertainment value on most nights will be non-existent. If you want entertainment catch a lot of Clipper games after the Raptors have probably lost.

For the record the Final Score read 81-73 Boston but it was not really that close. It is an allusion like the Raptors funky 3-D logo.

We here at the Dino Nation Blog will be taking the next few days off for the holidays and will be back on Monday for the Season Opener in Cleveland. Enjoy the time with friends and family and I wish all of you that support the Dino Nation Blog a very Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays which ever applies to you.

I will be showing up for our DNB Fantasy Draft tonight though. So best of luck to all that have signed up to take part in that. If you want to sneak in and join the draft you will need to find a buddy to join you. When you have a pair of people that want to join contact me @Dinonationblog and I will send you both the info to sign up. Reason for the buddy system is so we maintain an even number of teams and it does not mess up our draft from happening.

Weekend Of Little Excitement

If you were expecting a ton of excitement in terms of the Raptors signings you were not listening to Bryan Colangelo or thought he was lying. It is not that the Raptors moves were horrible but they were far from headline grabbing.

First on of the reported Pietrus trade with the Suns that is now not happening. The trade that would have seen Pietrus come over for the Suns for a conditional 2nd round pick is dead. Raptors had Pietrus in and he apparently is not healthy, some issues with his knee that Raptors medical staff felt could take a month or so to get right. So that was that in terms of that deal. Down the line if Pietrus gets healthy it would be no shock if Raptors re-visited this move. But in the short term it is dead and done.

Another deal still in the waiting to happen mode is for Gary Forbes. The Raptors have signed him to an offer sheet as a restricted free agent and with the new CBA rules an answer from Denver should be coming by today or tomorrow on if they will match or not.

Jamal Maglorie was all done and signed sealed and delivered. He was saying all the right things about being the first Canadian to suit up for the Raptors. It would be some solid PR if you forget the fact he consistently has turned his back on team Canada. That takes some shine off the feel good story of the hometown guy finally coming home. In simple basketball terms he will be a help to the Raptors maybe more as a teacher than a player in terms of defence. As I said his play peaked in about 2003 when the Hornets left Charlotte for New Orleans and went to the Western Conference. He was a little used Center for the Miami Heat. He will get more use here but one wonders if he can last under the grind of this gruelling lockout schedule.

If he can't never fear the Raptors signed Aaron Gray. Yes Aaron Gray. I will wait for you to collect yourself. Gray is every bit the journeyman Center that has had to many teams to mention. His most recent stop was in New Orleans. If the first adjective used to describe a guy is he is 7 foot whatever that is usually a warning sign. You can't teach height. But you also can't teach talent and Gray has very little of it. He is another body in the mix. But what this means combined with Maglorie is it looks like Andrea Bargnani has finally got his way. Yes Andrea Bargnani you get to play your natural position at the four. So now let's hear what the excuse will be if he can't do any better there?

The Raptors attempted to address another concern with signing Rasual Butler. He is a decent defender that can make a three point shot. The Raptors despite the likes of Calderon, Barbosa and Bargnani had one of there worst seasons from beyond the arc in the history of the franchise. Butler should help out with that as well as this defensive makeover.

There is talk that Raptors are still one of four teams in mix for Reggie Evans but it is hard to see where Reggie would fit in this group. The Raptors did also add Anthony Carter who would be the 3rd point guard. That has yet to be made official but whoever the third point guard is makes little difference especially if they go the veteran Derek Martin route.

It is hard to say that any of these signings change the Raptors outlook as individuals. Even as a collective group they do little to shift the bottom line. It will be the impact they have on the existing roster that will determine their worth. If they help establish a better overall team defence and get players to buy in. If Andrea Bargnani is able to thrive with the move to the 4 spot. But ultimately Bryan Colangelo said he was only looking for guys for the short term and that is what he got. Nothing flashy but the hope would be the Raptors added some substance. That remains to be seen.

I don't think you can be all that critical of the moves made. But at same time if any of these signings do much for interest in the Raptors I would be stunned. It also likely will not mean a major difference in terms of the team's ultimate outlook. When teams are lining up to fight for the likes of Dwight Howard and Chris Paul, the Raptors are signing Aaron Gray and Rasaul Butler it just doesn't measure up on the excitement scale does it.