Grange: Raps discussed Bargs trade; Plenty of suitors

[Rhettmatic]

I recommend reading the whole story, but a couple highlights:

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/f ... le1985621/

Moving Bargnani is not a core strategy, according the NBA sources; but it's been discussed and there's a sense that Bargnani's potential and his pay cheque would have other teams on the phone in significant numbers. "There are 29 other teams out there who think they could help them," said one source.

Which is why the most important move Bryan Colangelo – or whoever ends up running the Raptors for whatever ownership group is in place – can make is trade the player he drafted as a bigger, more athletic Dirk Nowitzki.

But if the Raptors bring him back Bargnani would no longer be the person to blame for his status as one of the league’s official enigmas; a tease of a talent unable to harness it.

If he comes back the fault would lie with the person – whoever that might be -- who didn’t turn him into assets that will be able to help what will be infant core again next year.

[Duffman100]

Great News. Deal him...

[suntzuballin]

[Live Free]

And so it begins...

[Dr Positivity]

I do think there's a high chance he has value around the league more than we know

I wrote a little while ago one of the reasons Hedo got traded twice for neutral value, is that the SF position is so shallow. Hedo is actually a borderline top 20 starter. This is a league where Moon, James Johnson, Outlaw, Ariza, etc. are starting. Meanwhile Baron Davis who is the PG Hedo and paid less, needed a lotto pick to dump. I think it's because EVERYONE has PGs. Same thing for Jose. On the surface Baron and Jose are better than Hedo, but they have less value because there's hardly 20 legit starting SFs in the league and there's maybe 40 guys who can put up start caliber stats at PG

The reason this is important is because there's no position more shallow than C. Teams throw whoever they can get at that position. Then there's the fact that Bargs can play PF making him a 6th man fit for whomever...

I still think we end up with Marvin Williams but we'll see

[Comeatme_Bro]

Bargnani:

[MinnyMo]

LMAO...best line ever, kudos to Grange

"There is no threat of him leading a preschool class across the street, let alone an NBA franchise deep into the playoffs. "

[J-Roc]

Moving Bargnani is not a core strategy, according the NBA sources

If he comes back the fault would lie with the person – whoever that might be -- who didn’t turn him into assets that will be able to help what will be infant core again next year.

[Thesachman]

This just means the same thing as before... he's not untouchable- doesn't mean he's going anywhere... Colangelo did adopt him after all

[MEDIC]

I like this quote:

If he comes back the fault would lie with the person – whoever that might be -- who didn’t turn him into assets that will be able to help what will be infant core again next year.

So true.

Gonna be hard to keep the guy when pretty much 100% of the media & 80% of the fans are wanting/ expecting to see him moved.

[Schad]

The one saving grace of professional sports management: everyone thinks that they're smarter than the next guy, and thus will succeed where others have failed.

[JamesNaismith]

I'm not sure which will have me happier...having a top 3 pick or watching Bargnani get traded.

[DG88]

And so it begins. That one nail in the coffin I expect many more coming today and tomorrow.

[sonn]

With that quote I wonder if the source is Maurizio or BC. I have a hard time believing every other team in the league wants Bargnani.

[J-Roc]

I don't doubt that Bargs could be a good piece on a good team. But that would take a team building properly around him, and protecting him on defence. It's too late for us to try any of that here. We have two better options at PF. And even Barbosa makes a better 6th man.

[J-Roc]

With that quote I wonder if the source is Maurizio or BC. I have a hard time believing every other team in the league wants Bargnani.

Yeah we heard that for so long about Jose.

[Michael Bradley]

All we can do is hope at this point.

[Gold Chain]

Well, duh.

[Live Free]

With that quote I wonder if the source is Maurizio or BC. I have a hard time believing every other team in the league wants Bargnani.

Yeah we heard that for so long about Jose.

well we almost did get Chandler & Diaw for Jose

[dagger]

The issue is always the return you get for him. If a player has multiple suitors, there is no need to rush a deal for the sake of dumping him. But, as Dr Mufasa points out, the league's shallowest position is C so there is no C coming back in a trade, which leads to the obvious question of who plays C for us if Bargnani is traded? We know our power forwards aren't physically strong enough to handle many larger opposing big man in the low block, so whats the answer?

Sign a free agent? We don't have the cap space to outbid teams for the likes of Gasol or even Chandler. Trade for a bad contract C like Haywood? Or draft Enes Kanter. I suspect if we draft Kanter, that would facilitate a Bargnani deal, but if we draft Irving, Williams or Barnes, much less so.

That's why I believe trading Bargnani is an option for this summer, more likely a priority in the summr of 2012.