Sweet Seventeen?

On June 26th Bryan Colangelo and Maurizio Gheradini will sit in a green room in New York, sipping macchiatos, listening to 16 teams draft amateur basketball players. Then it will be their turn. What are their prospects and precedents?

In 2001, the last time the Raptors picked 17th, they chose Michael Bradley who, last I heard, couldn't make a German league team. In 2005, Indiana got Danny Granger, and the year before that the Hawks chose Josh Smith. Rasho Nesterovic (1998) and Doug Christie(1992) were 17s, as was Jermaine O'Neal (1996) and Shawn Kemp (1989). But never forget about former 17s Zarko Cabarkapa (2003) and Leo Rautins ((Pictured above) 1983).

Below are several sources' narrowly educated guesses at who the Raptors will select with their 17th pick. I expect most mock drafts to change over the next month of private workouts and draft camps (All links to player profiles are from Draft Express):

Draft Express, NBADraft.net and Yahoo!: Nicolas Batum, SF, Le Mans Sarthe Basket (France) - 6' 8", 214 lbs, Age: 19

ESPN.com (Chad Ford): Robin Lopez, C, Stanford - 7' 0", 245 lbs, Age: 20

RealGM: Javale McGee, C, Nevada - 7' 0", 237 lbs, Age: 20

Sports Illustrated: Donte Greene, PF/SF, Syracuse - 6' 10", - 220 lbs, Age: 20

And out of nowhere, Anthony Parker had surgery on the middle finger of his right hand.

Rasho Nesterovic Makes Easiest Choice of His Life

I saw Rasho Nesterovic at the bank today and he was doubled over in laughter. When I asked him what was so funny he told me he picked up his player option for the 2008-09 season. Nesterovic will make $8.4 million next season, making him the second-highest paid Raptor, and while he was, sadly, the Raptors' second-most reliable player over the final 20 games of the season, even his baby son, Nikola, is wise enough to admit that Rasho's overpaid.

What's most interesting about this move is that it comes very early in the offseason. Nesterovic had until June 30 to pick up the option, a deadline which falls after the NBA draft (June 26). Toronto has been rumoured to have interest in moving up in this year's draft and Nesterovic's contract might be an attractive addition to any trade package.

Now let me tell you everything that's wrong with the above paragraph from the bottom up. First, I dislike it when sports writers use the word "attractive" to explain an expiring contract. It sounds like the equivalent of masturbating to a comic book. Second, expiring contracts are generally dealt closer to the trade deadline, when a franchise has at least given the illusion of making an effort that season. Even Colangelo's famous Marbury-Hardaway dump came in January of 2004. Also, any possible trade that the Raptors could make would be hugely contingent on the order of the draft (which will be decided on May 20) and would probably involve either Jose Calderon or TJ Ford. Problem is, TJ Ford can't be traded until July 1 because of his base-year compensation status. Finally, if you were Rasho Nesterovic and you were given the choice to make $8.4 million or explore free agency wouldn't you avoid putting it off?

Jamario Moon No Longer Lowest Paid Player In NBA

The Raptors shocked no one on Wednesday by picking up Jamario Moon's option for next season. The former Harlem Globetrotter and Albany Patroon will make just over $700,000 in '08-09, which I considered making fun of before looking at my pay stub today. But, just for perspective, consider that Darrick Martin made nearly double that last year in 17 games and he didn't even make the 2008 T-Mobile NBA All-Rookie Second Team.

Inexcusably, Moon started 75 games for the Raptors last year. This isn't a slight against Moon's talent, but rather a comment on the paucity of talented wingmen on the Raptors. Moon also broke a team record by recording at least one block in twelve consecutive games.

STATS!: Moon averaged 8.5 ppg, 6.2 rpg, 1.0 spg, 1.4 bpg, 48.5 FG%, 32.8 3P% in 27.8 mpg.

Thanks, Chuck

Best of luck, Chuck. See you in Chicago. You gave moments like these part of their magic:

Oh Right, Basketball!

That's me in a genuine London phone booth, in London. It was all part of a study to find out if Raptors losses hurt as bad if you don't actually watch them. My research has shown that, yes, they do (hence the middle digit), particularly when those losses come against the Nets and the Plopcats. I could have dashed off a few thoughtless, vitriolic lines about my disappointment, but there would've been no point as I didn't see the games and I was surrounded by people whose idea of sport begins and ends with soccer.

So, as the Raptors say they have no excuses for this year before pointing to Bosh and TJ's injuries, I have no excuse for the hiatus except for being off the continent in a country that probably doesn't even know who native son John Amaechi is, or his importance to the NBA.

Wanna know how excited I am for the post-season? I'm actually watching the Raptors-Bulls game right now. And there will be a preview of the Raps-Magic series posted soon. Hopefully somebody other than me and my girlfriend reads it.

Seventh Place!!

Earlier this year I referred to the Philadelphia 76ers as "middling," which may still be true, but the Raptors are now officially more (less?) middling. With their win over the Celtics last night the Sixers moved one spot ahead of the Raptors for the sixth seed in the playoffs. If the playoffs started today, the Raps would play the Pistons who would sweep over us worse than ex-Raptors coach Gene Keady did his hair.

In the meantime, the Raps play - oh shit - the Pistons tomorrow night. Considering the only team that Toronto's managed to beat in all of March (and remember this is the 25th) is the Chris Quinn-led Miami Heat, the Raps should have no trouble getting ground into 'Sheed snacks.

After that nightmare, however, nine of the Raptors' final 11 games are against teams with sub-.500% records. The absolute best that the Raps can do this year is equal last year's total of 47 wins. More realistically they'll get 43 wins. But if the Raptors have shown us anything this year it's that they're adept at underperforming.

Without Chris Bosh I Am Nothing

You might have guessed the reason(s) for the dormancy lately. After a hardy month of convincing myself that the Raptors are well-alligned for the future they started sucking the fat bag, losing five straight and eight of their last ten. I still believe that the team's salary flexibility over the next two seasons is a massive asset, but some of the personel, including a coach or three, might be doing a less-than-adequate job. And at some point the future has to become the present, which has shown no signs of happening in Toronto.

Most disappointing has been the play of T.J. Ford and Andrea Bargnani. It's getting more difficult to have confidence in the potential of Bargnani when he's passed up, or just plain flunked, his opportunity to contribute at his natural position while Bosh is out with a knee boo-boo. Meanwhile, as evidenced by the above clip, T.J. Ford has gone apeshit. He's eschewed passing in favour of taking inscrutable circus shots, ignoring his teammates and handing the ball to opposing teams.

A friend and I have been dreaming up possible trade scenarios involving Ford and, sadly, a suggestion from a Blazers fan on a Yahoo! board seemed most realistic: Pryzbilla + Jack + filler for Ford. It leaves me breathless. Remember, the Raps only gave up Charlie V for the Little Engineer of Doom.

On the positive side, Washington's only one win away from tying Toronto for fifth in the East. The Raptors would be much happier dropping to sixth to face the Magic in the playoffs than staying in fifth and drawing the Cavs. Chris Bosh loves playing the Magic.

Here's a great piece by Tim Chisholm for TSN which is a bit discursive - since it begins by questioning the basis of the NBA's Coach of the Year Award - but makes some nice points about how Sam Mitchell is failing, and the challenges of making a good team an elite team.

Oh, and Rogers Sportsnet won't be televising Raptors - or any NBA - games next year.

Bosh is back tomorrow!