|
If there's one universal truth about the typical sports fan, it's that he overrates the value of his own players and underrates the value of players on other teams. For example, I recognize that many of you think that I underrate Chris Bosh. But I can assure you that I don't underrate him nearly as much as fans of every other NBA team in the league — not to mention most NBA commentators in the mainstream media.
Based on my research on blogs, message boards, columns and podcasts, I bet if you add up all the Raptors fans who think Chris Bosh can and will be a first option on a championship team, they would overwhelmingly outnumber the number of non-Raptors fans who feel that way. In my mind, this means it's a reasonable assumption that many NBA GMs will feel that way too.
This is why it rings false when so many Raptors fans assume a.) that any other team would gladly give Chris Bosh the maximum amount for his next contract, and b.) that Colangelo is definitely going to receive an offer for Bosh that will make most of us feel good about trading him. This second point is the one that inspired this post. I can't think of a single Bosh trade proposal where I'm convinced that both teams would definitely do it.
Check out this comment thread on a Knicks blog where they respond to my previous RaptorBlog post with their own trade proposals to bring Bosh to New York.
"Would Nate and Harrington for Bosh work?" ... "Maybe a package of Nate, Q, and Chandler." ... "You are right about having to part with either wilson or galo if we want bosh. I don't think that is worth it unless we can ship out either Jeffries or Curry as well."
Can you believe that shit? Well, guess what? Don't be surprised if these are exactly the kind of offers made by Donnie Walsh and other GMs across the NBA. You think we can get Anthony Randolph and Andris Biedrins from the Warriors in a trade (as I've seen several of you suggest)? Think again. Warriors fans think he's the next K.G. How about an Aldridge-Fernandez combo from the Blazers? No dice. Blazers fans are convinced Aldridge is almost as good as Bosh already.
In his latest podcast, Bill Simmons suggested that Houston would be an ideal destination for Bosh. It makes sense on a couple of levels because it's a contending team in Texas (Chris is from Dallas) so he'd probably gladly sign an extension — plus, he would be a significant upgrade at power forward and would be a great fit next to Yao.
Here's the problem. What would the Rockets be willing to give up in a trade? From what I understand about the players that Rockets GM Daryl Morey truly values on his team, Yao, Shane Battier and Chuck Hayes (a premier big man defender who makes $2 million per season) are all untouchables. So that leaves us with Luis Scola, Carl Landry, Kyle Lowry, Aaron Brooks and Ron Artest (sign-and-trade) as the remaining players that I would actually want on that roster.
I could theoretically live with a return of Artest, Scola and one of either Brooks or Lowry in a trade — Artest would be a huge defensive upgrade, Scola's a serviceable replacement at PF and either point guard would be an upgrade over Ukic. What complicates things is that, by my calculations, you'd have to sign Artest to a contract at around $10 million per year for the salaries to work. I hope none of you think that's a good idea. So even with the most logical trade destination for Bosh, it doesn't seem likely to me that a reasonable transaction could actually be worked out.
Looking elsewhere, I haven't read a single trade proposal for Bosh on any blog or message board that didn't make me want to puke. And I'm starting to wonder if this is why Colangelo needs to stock up on anti-nausea pills from all the sickening offers he's about to get.
If you're Bryan Colangelo, what do you do if you can't bring yourself to trade Bosh for any of the offers you receive? Well, you probably say, "Fuck it, let's roll the dice" and you keep Bosh and try to work some magic to make this team a playoff contender in 2009-10. So if Chris Bosh is a Toronto Raptor next season, it probably won't be for lack of trying to move him. It's simply because the economy, the shrinking salary cap and outside perceptions of Bosh's value could all conspire to make a palatable trade unworkable.
But hey, I could be wrong. Fire away with your Bosh trade proposals in the comments and, unless one of you surprises me, I'll tell you in each case why one or the other team wouldn't make the deal. 
|
