Hooped Up

The Toronto Raptors select 9th overall in the 2009 NBA draft. Listen to who Fantasy Sports Girl Brittany thinks the Raptors are picking and then check out her selections vitals, strengths, 08-09 stats and draft demo reel after the jump.

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Yesterday on the FAN 590, Raptors GM Bryan Colangelo explained why Argentine Carlos Delfino left Toronto to play in Russia all of a sudden last year. In short, Delfino left the Raps for a bag of money he is likely never to see in the NBA if he returns to North America — EVAH!

“He basically got 2.85 million net Euros, at the time, that was the equivalent of about $8.5 - $9 million US deal, so, you can see where there’s a discrepancy in dollars of about $5 million US gross and it was too much for him to walk away from.  Now, he’s been there a year, he’s played under those circumstances, and he’s said, ‘You know what?  I wanna be back in the NBA.’  He’s gonna leave a lot of money on the table… I’ve been kinda putting him on my roster depth charts with semi-removable ink.  He’s a guy that I think we can get the deal done if we want to get it done.”

That’s a lot of planetary credits to walk away from, could playing in Russia be that bad?

Via Sports Radio Interviews

Today the Toronto Raptors introduced Reggie Evans as the newest member to their squad and as it turns out Chris Bosh never liked playing Evans and Reggie Evans never liked playing Bosh. Now that they’re teammates, they can get along by hating Dwight Howard and Kevin Garnett.

“That’s a good thing, that lets me know I’m doing something good. When Chris says he doesn’t like me, I don’t like Chris,” Evans said, laughing. “I like him now because we’re teammates, but I didn’t like him either. There’s nothing bad about it, it’s a good thing.”

Reggie Evans was acquired in a trade with Philadelphia for sharp shooter Jason Kapono last week.

Watch his introduction to the Toronto media after the jump.

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Out of all the guys on the Raptors that stand around waiting for a clear shot because they can’t put the ball on the floor to create one. Jason Kapono was maybe the best of the bunch which may or may not be a bad thing for Toronto. So today, Bryan Colangelo decided to shake things up by trading sharp shooting Kapono to the 76ers for hard nose rebounder Reggie Evans.

“We are too nice, we are too nice as a group. Collectively, the group is too nice,” the Raptors president said last month. “That’s not to say you’ve got to go out and get bad guys [but] when you step on the court, you better have some fight. I think some of the guys were saying you better have some dog in you … in terms of what we’re looking to do when we’re addressing personnel this summer, we’re going to be bringing in perhaps players with a different mentality.”

With this deal the Raptors will save $1.2-million in salaries this season and $1.5-million next year. It’s a good thing Reggie Evans is already familiar with Toronto’s offense thanks to Vince Carter.

Via Globe & Mail

I’m not crazy about Jay Triano as a head coach anywhere. However, if Triano hires Alvin Williams as an assistant coach it would be a near genius move.

“Alvin Williams played an integral part in the greatest success the Raptors have known and he wants the chance to help return the franchise to that level. The iconic point guard – whose clutch deciding-game jumpshot clinched the only playoff series Toronto has ever won, a five-game set against the New York Knicks in 2000 – is in line to join Jay Triano’s staff as an assistant coach for skills development, bridging the Raptors’ past and future. “It’s just a great opportunity,” the 34-year-old Williams said in a telephone interview yesterday. “I just feel like I’ve been away from the game so long and I want to get back involved in NBA basketball.” 

It’s really too bad Williams’ body broke down on him to early in his career, but with his basketball IQ he should have a job on an NBA coaching staff. Lets hope he gets hired.

Via Toronto Star

Next Summer Chris Bosh will be signing a new deal somewhere in the NBA, but today Chris Bosh signed a deal with Warner.  

Bosh has inked a deal with Warner Music Canada to produce a CD and DVD, with an expected release date in the fall of 2009. While the CD will be a compilation of the six-foot-10 star’s favourite songs, along with tracks from new artists, the DVD will have a distinctive Bosh flavour. Hopeful artists can submit tracks through Bosh’s website with a chance to appear on the CD.

The DVD will feature characters Bosh has experimented with during online comedy postings and also take fans into his life in his native Texas.

The only way this can go south is if in a few years Warner signs Andrea Bargnani to do the same thing . Zing!

Canada.com

The Raptors have found their man to coach them for the next three years and he’s been with the organization since 2002. 

 ”Despite some difficult circumstances this past season, Jay Triano never stopped coaching, teaching and leading this team which resulted in a very strong finish,” president and general manager Bryan Colangelo said in news release. “After undertaking a thorough evaluation process, it is clear that Jay is the right coach to guide this team in the future.”

Terms of the contract were not immediately available but speculation was that it would be a three-year term with, perhaps, options on the third year.

Is Triano the man the Raptors need to stay relevant in the east? Only time will tell, but you gotta respect Colangelo’s willingness to roll the dice on this one. Jay Triano now becomes the seventh head coach the Raptors have had in the last 15 years. 

Via Toronto Star

The Toronto Raptors have agreed to pass Quincy Douby another 10-Day contract on the left hand side and have sent Nathan Jawai to the Idaho Stampede of the D-League. Look on the bright side Nate, at least you’ll finally have Potatoes in abundance.

Before signing with Toronto, the six-foot-three Douby averaged 18.0 points, 3.6 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 28.6 minutes in five games with the D-League’s Erie BayHawks this season.

Jawai was previously assigned to Idaho on February 26, appearing in 10 games with the Stampede, starting nine. The forward averaged 12.2 points, 6.5 rebounds, 1.2 blocks and 25.0 minutes. He was recalled by Toronto on March 23.

Jawai, 22, has appeared in six games with the Raptors. He has recorded two points and two rebounds in 19 minutes.

I’m sure after every contract Quincy Douby signs, he tells management “this is some real good sh*t”.

Via Press Release

Great majestic wings of Pegasus!!! I didn’t even know Chris Bosh had a kid! If this crazy Maury Povich like story turns out to be true, I’ll be really — really shocked. Continue »

Recently, team USA third baseman and poutine face Chipper Jones sounded off on Toronto during his stay for the World Baseball Classic this week and said:

“We stayed in Toronto for a week and played three games. I don’t know if you ever stayed in Toronto, but it’s not exactly Las Vegas,” the Braves star told the Atlanta Journal Constitution. “To say that we were plucking our eyebrows out one at a time would be an understatement.”

Chris Bosh who has “survived” Toronto for more than 6 seasons as a member of the Raptors, then chimed in on Chipper’s comments saying.

“Me and Chipper should have hung out,” Bosh said at the Raptors’ practice on Wednesday. “He should have called me. I’d have shown him a good time.” [...] ”I have fun. I have a blast every day,” Bosh said. “You have got to feel good to go outside. If you’re going to go somewhere, the clouds kind of make you lazy.

“He’s in Atlanta, and [baseball players] do spring training down there [in Florida and Arizona], and it’s colder here. They’re not used to that.” [..] ”You have got museums, restaurants, clubs if you want to go out at night,” Bosh said. “There’s anything you want to do, shopping. That’s what I like to do.”

Eric Smith from the Fan 590 who covers the Raptors might have said it best. “You have to be a social invalid to not be able to find something to do in Toronto” and I so agree. Unless your some kinda gentlemen club hatin’, multi-ethnic food dodgin’, no arts havin’, low down pub hater — the experience of visiting Toronto can be like plucking out your eyebrows — for you and the sisters of your congregation Father Jones.

Anyway, Chris Bosh will be celebrating his 25th b-day this weekend in the Big Smoke and knowing Chris, (which I don’t) he’ll probably be nice enough to talk to the common folk in attendance.  Sadly, Chipper Jones won’t be able to make it because he’s busy getting a spray tan, and frosting his tips to go along with his freshly plucked eyebrows.

Via National Post + LA Times