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There should no longer be a debate about whether or not Jarrett Jack should be the Raptors' starting point guard. After he began this season with a dismal 12-game stretch, Jack has been rock-solid in his last 14 games, averaging 11.9 points and 5.4 assists while shooting 50.9 percent from the field and 39 percent from three-point range. Yesterday, Jack was the best player on the floor as the Raptors earned a much-needed victory at home over the Houston Rockets.
Call the man "Jack of all trades" because he did it all on Sunday. He scored 17 points, grabbed eight rebounds, dropped eight dimes, played tough defence on Rockets point guard Aaron Brooks (who went six-for-20 on the day) and got in Trevor Ariza's face when Ariza tried to decapitate DeMar DeRozan with his elbow. I know you're not supposed to lose your starting job because you're injured, but I just like this team more when Jack's running it.
At this point, the challenge is finding a team that would be willing to trade a package that includes a half-decent backup point guard and an expiring contract for Jose Calderon. Previously, I had suggested the Lakers might be willing to part with the expiring contracts of Jordan Farmar and Adam Morrison for Calderon, but it might be wishful thinking to assume that any team would be willing to pay him $29 million over the next three seasons. His stock has fallen so far that it might be next-to-impossible to basically give him away.
If Jose's terrible defence didn't render him untradeable, his propensity for injuries may have been the tipping point. Speaking of which, is anyone else perplexed that he's suffering from a sore hip? Is he secretly 78 years old? Anyway, it seems like he's been constantly nursing boo-boos the past two seasons and that contract extension — which seemed like a decent value when it was signed — now looks like a huge mistake.
Finding a trade partner that covets Calderon won't likely result in any tangible short-term improvement to this team, but this season is essentially a write-off so the sooner Bryan Colangelo starts trying to undo his contractual errors, the better. Unfortunately, I doubt Colangelo will be willing to pack in this season just yet. Sadly, his bosses would prefer the Raptors to win 39 games and earn some extra revenue from a couple of playoff home games so that's probably the fate that awaits us.
Sorry for being such a Debbie Downer but I can't help being bummed out by this sad mess Colangelo has created. I'd seriously rather be a Nets or Timberwolves fan right now because at least they can look forward to the opportunity to acquire a franchise player in the next draft. If the Raptors make the playoffs, they have to give their 2010 first rounder to the Miami Heat. Since nobody in their right mind believes this team is good enough to beat anyone they would face in the first round, what's my motivation for even rooting for them to win anymore?
It's going to be a real grind looking for bright spots over the remaining two-thirds of the season if Colangelo doesn't find a way to shake things up. If he figures out a way to unload Calderon's ponderous contract, I could almost forgive him for the awful Hedo Turkoglu signing. Ugh... who am I kidding? I'll never forgive him for that. 
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