Can Danny: New Year's Bosh
Well, it looks like Chris Bosh is back in the news and that Bryan Colangelo might have finally awoken from his dream of CB4 staying in Toronto. ESPN is reporting that Bosh could be headed to Houston or Chicago. But are those the best deals? Probably not but they are the most likely since the team acquiring Bosh faces a major risk of giving up talent for a guy who could leave this off-season.
I've thrown out trade options a few times before already but why not do it one more time. Here are the top 10 trade "options" that the Raptors have. In most cases, the trades are 99.9% unlikely but I think both teams should consider them.
1. LA Lakers: Gasol and Bosh together in the frontcourt with Kobe? It's possible. The Lakers can deal Andrew Bynum, Lamar Odom, and DJ Mbenga for Bosh and Sonny Weems. The Raptors aren't going to get a better offer than very talented young center to team with Bargnani along with a versatile forward in Odom who should fit Colangelo's gameplan. (Some teams like the Warriors could match that offer talent-wise but I doubt they would since the odds of Bosh re-signing with them are slim-to-none.) The question is: would the front runners for this year's NBA title want to mess with what they've got going? I'd say yes because Gasol, Bosh, Artest, and Kobe is a dynasty in the making.
2. Oklahoma City Thunder: Bosh re-signing in OK City is a major question mark so this deal is very unlikely, however Jeff Green. James Harden, Etan Thomas, and Matt Harpring for Bosh and Marcus Banks is a damn good offer and not the biggest of risks for the Thunder. I think the sticking point would be that the Thunder might want to offer Thabo Sefalosha instead of Harden. Maybe Thabo and a pick makes it work. Still, it's a solid risk because the reward of Bosh, Durant, and Westbrook is too enticing. As for the Raptors, they get two young prospects who fit their gameplan and expiring contracts. Not too shabby.
3. Orlando Magic: This one is completely unrealistic because of the way it shakes up a team that is one of the favorites to get to the Finals out of the East but the possibility of Dwight Howard and Chris Bosh might be too good to pass up. The Magic would have to give up Rashard Lewis and Marcin Gortat for Chris Bosh, Marcus Banks, and Reggie Evans. The Raptors re-team Rashard Lewis and Hedo Turkoglu and also get a legit big man to back-up/play with Andrea Bargnani. The other scary possibility is that, if the Magic could re-sign Bosh, they might be able to work a sign-and-trade for Dwyane Wade as well (shipping Vince Carter to Miami). That's an even bigger longshot than the Bosh deal but the Magic should be asking themselves if they want to ride it out with their current team or risk it in order to go after a dynasty.
4.Detroit: The Pistons have an arsenal of players to offer and, honestly, they don't have to worry that much if they can't re-sign Bosh because they probably need to cut some weight anyway. The first deal that sprung to mind was Rip Hamilton, Charlie Villanueva, and Austin Daye for Bosh and Marcus Banks. Of course, Ben Gordon or Tayshaun Prince could be substituted in there as could Jonas Jerebko. Detroit should make a move for Bosh but I'm just not sure if they actually will.
5. Miami: The Heat could offer an interesting package, including Toronto's own #1 draft pick this year (which they gave up in the JO/Marion deal). O'Neal, Beasley, Chalmers, Toronto and Miami's #1 picks for Bosh, Jarrett Jack, and Marcus Banks. The Raptors clear out a couple of contracts, get a solid backup PG and young PF prospect as well as a couple of first round picks. The Heat would probably go for even less (if the Raptors aren't interested in trading Jack) because they could easily re-sign Bosh. And to be honest, I don't think Wade likes playing with Beasley that much so I don't think he'd miss him either way.
6.Knicks: Bosh and Rasho Nestrovic for David Lee, Danilo Gallinari, Jared Jeffiries, and Marcus Landry? Not too shabby. A Lee/Bargnani/Gallinari frontcourt would be pretty interesting. Of course, Hedo's still in Toronto but I think they could probably move him for a decent shooting guard. Of course, if Lee leaves via free agency then all they got for Bosh was Gallinari and Jeffiries, which doesn't make the deal all that much better. If this deal went down, it would have to open up a fire sale with Jose Calderon and Hedo going as well and I'm not sure if Colangelo is ready to admit that this team needs to be blown up.
7.Houston: I don't think that the Raptors faithful would take kindly to dealing Bosh for ex-Rap Tracy McGrady. My guess is that any deal would have to include Trevor Ariza. Ariza, Scola (or Carl Landry), Lowry, and Brian Cook could work and that, realistically, might be the best offer Toronto will see. With limited cap space, it's not like letting Bosh walk will allow the Raptors to go after another free agent. And who would sign there? If they can get that offer, or anything even close to it, they'd probably have to make it happen.
8.Charlotte: Boris Diaw and Raymond Felton. Bryan Colangelo brings in former Sun Boris Diaw up to Toronto as well as Felton. They might want to swap Felton somewhere else (or, better yet, try to find a taker for Jose Calderon) but the deal brings in a guy who can play uptempo and handle the center spot while Andrea Bargnani moves to PF. The Bobcats could also offer DJ Augustin, Derrick Brown, or swap out Diaw for Tyson Chandler. Maybe they even try to sell high on Gerald Wallace. There are a lot of options but the main question is: can the Bobcats get Bosh to re-sign? Then again, adding Bosh could guarantee their first ever playoff appearance so that could be worth it.
10.Chicago Bulls: Yes, they have the pieces but I just don't think Tyrus Thomas is that appealing, especially since he has contract negotiations coming this offseason. Kirk Hinrich is nice but not somebody that would entice me to make a deal. The Bulls would probably reject any offer including Joakim Noah so I'm just not seeing this trade working out unless the Raptors either really like Ty Thomas or have no other even halfway decent options on the table.
10.Nets: The Nets have a lot of young talent and a great pick in next year's draft (although, one would assume that it wouldn't be as good if Bosh arrived) but are they really willing to part with the pick or Brook Lopez in order to go after Bosh? My guess is no which is why the Nets aren't in the hunt.
