GM Colangelo has several options at his disposal after Bulls land top selection in draft
May 22, 2008 04:30 AM
Doug Smith
SPORTS REPORTER
Now that the NBA draft lottery is out of the way, the shopping can start in earnest for the Raptors.
And from the school of "one team's misfortune is another team's opportunity," there are those within the organization who think things worked out just swimmingly Tuesday night.
Chicago winning the right to the No.1 pick in the June 26 draft, knocking the favoured Miami Heat down to No.2, was "not a bad thing," according to one voice within the Toronto hierarchy.
The scenario the Raptors envision is:
The Bulls, who have soured completely on Kirk Hinrich as their point guard, take Memphis' Derrick Rose, a Chicago product represented by an agent with close ties to the Bulls organization, with the No.1 pick.
That leaves the Heat to decide whether they want Kansas State power forward Michael Beasley and, if they do, Miami will still be in the market for an accomplished point guard, something Toronto has in T.J. Ford and Jose Calderon.
No one from the Raptors was talking in specifics yesterday, but the chance to move either Ford or Calderon could net someone like power forward Udonis Haslem in some kind of package deal.
And with the way general manager Bryan Colangelo likes to think, there's even a likelihood he'll ask about the availability of the No.2 pick in some kind of blockbuster trade.
There is no doubt teams covet Calderon, a restricted free agent, in some kind of sign-and-trade transaction and there's also no doubt the Raptors have fielded several calls about him. And Ford, according to league sources, has plenty of marketability around the league as teams see him as a starter with a manageable contract that pays him slightly more than $8 million a season for the next three.
The rest of the lottery held pretty much true to form, which again leaves the guard-rich Raptors, who also have a collection of players with expiring contracts to add to any deal, anxious to see what opportunities present themselves.
The Seattle SuperSonics, already among the youngest teams in the league, may be enticed to deal the No.4 pick, but there will be several teams chasing that pick if it's available.
It's impossible to predict now how the rest of the lottery will unfold – teams haven't even started working out prospective picks – but the thought is Minnesota may need a centre to go along with power forward Al Jefferson, and look to Stanford's Brook Lopez. Or the T-Wolves could opt for USC's O.J. Mayo to improve their backcourt.
Memphis at No.5 is an uncertainty. The Grizzlies seem set at point guard and on the wings but could use a big man.
The immediate speculation is that the Knicks, with the No.6 pick and a point guard (Nate Robinson) who has the kind of quickness new coach Mike D'Antoni likes, would be intrigued by Italian forward Danilo Gallinari.
If D'Antoni is enamoured of Robinson and Jamal Crawford as a potent offensive backcourt, the likelihood of drafting Gallinari increases.
But even if the Raptors are able to get nothing accomplished by trading with a lottery team, they have all kinds of options with their own pick, No.17 in the first round.
Colangelo and his staff are whittling down an extensive list of potential selections to a manageable number.
There are about a dozen big men and an equal number of wings and guards who are likely to be available at that choice, giving the braintrust plenty of names to consider.
All of this is dependent on what transpires ahead of them, but Toronto could have a choice of big men like JaVale McGee of Nevada, Mareese Speights of Florida, France's Alexis Ajinca or Georgetown's Roy Hibbert.
