Pau’s had some serious injuries in his career that have kept him out of the lineup. As a center, there’s no question he’s one of the tops in the league, but to be honest, there isn’t much to write about when compared to Bargnani. Yes, Pau’s rebounding is much better that the Italian’s at this point, but Bargnani is still only a second year player, and a first year center. When they’ve been matched up against each other, Bargnani has been able to go toe-to-toe with Paul without many problems. Jamario Moon has become the best shot blocker on the team, and at a minimum salary contract to boot, and Delfino is our second best perimeter defender, and one of our best wing rebounders. It’s really not a trade that I see as being equal value for the Raptors and I’m sure Colangelo would not think even twice about shooting such a deal down.
HA: Let’s see. I think the Raptors against Washington, Cleveland, Orlando, or the Nets would do fine. With Cleveland and Orlando, the Raptors have had losses this year, but I’ve always felt the Raptors matched up well against both teams. I also don’t think that either of those teams can compete with the Raptors if we’re at full strength and haven’t beaten the Raptors convincingly yet in the past two years. The Raptors have also always played well against Washington, and I doubt the Nets are giving anyone any trouble this year.
The worst match-ups for the Raptors are Detroit and Boston, with Atlanta possibly being a horrible match. Detroit just seems to be able to attack the Raptors at every position with better players and a better system, while Boston has a lot of offensive threats and good rebounding which will hurt the Raptors immensely. Atlanta would be troublesome because they have a myriad of wing players that can turn it on, and I’m not sure the Raptors would be able to get enough defensive stops against an Atlanta team that’s clicking.
As far as trades are concerned, Bryan Colangelo stated in an interview a couple weeks back that he is looking for a rebounder who can shoot free throws. There aren’t all that many around the league, and I’ve personally thrown Nick Collison’s name out there. I’m sure there are some other prospects that Bryan’s looking at, especially unsung ones that need a change of scenery. With expiring contracts, I think the Raptors could work out a deal to get someone of value before the trade deadline. I just never know who since Bryan Colangelo is great at unearthing players that we never would have thought of.
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