STOP THE PRESSES!!!

The Raptors are open to trading Jose Calderon! The Raptors are open to trading Jose Calderon!

Shockingly, the team that already traded Calderon in the summer of 2010 (only to have the trade fall apart at the thirteenth hour) is open to trading Calderon in 2012. Sometimes news is just too big to take in in one sitting. 

Following an interview that Jose Calderon conducted with Marca, a Spanish newspaper, where he confessed that he would “like to have the opportunity to compete for something,” ESPN followed up with ‘sources with knowledge of Toronto’s thinking’ that intimated that Toronto is open to a move. Again, try and contain your shock at all of this brand new information. 

The fact of the matter is that the Raptors have spent years open to moving Calderon. It’s not that they don’t appreciate his game or the benefits to having such a tremendously efficient point guard teamed with their not-ready-for-prime-time players, it’s just that he’s only going to take them so far. He’s not a stand-out defender, he can’t create his own shot and his shooting percentages are not what they once were at his peak. Plus, Toronto’s GM Bryan Colangelo has always preferred more dynamic options at the position (while in Phoenix he went from Kevin Johnson to Jason Kidd to Stephon Marbury to Steve Nash). Looking at the makeup of Toronto’s current roster, too, the team could probably use more of a scoring threat at the position than Calderon will ever offer. 

All that said, though, the team isn’t really in a position to trade Calderon right now. Ignore for a second how difficult it would be to move his $9.7-million salary (with a 10% trade kicker) and consider what this team would do if Calderon wasn’t there. Without Calderon the Raptors would have no true point guard on the team at all. The Raptors are playing make believe that Jerryd Bayless has any point guard instincts in his game, and Anthony Carter is a much better practice player than in-game player at this point in his career. The Raptors rank 18^th in the NBA in assists per game (20.1 apg), and Calderon accounts for 8.7 of them. If you think that the team’s offense looks broken today, take away the club’s one true point guard and see how easy it is for them to get quality shots. 

Why does this matter, though, if the Raptors are in a developmental year? You could argue it matters more because they are in a developmental year. This club needs someone who can make the game easier for the seriously struggling DeMar DeRozan and Ed Davis, they need someone who knows how to run the plays and get guys the right looks. It would be one thing if the Raptors had tremendous individual talent in the young corps, but they don’t. They have a second-tier and third-tier talent (outside of the injured Andrea Bargnani) that need as much help from the team’s system to get them going as they can get. Calderon may not be at Steve Nash’s level of turning water into wine, but he’s a whole lot better than what this team would have to work with if he wasn’t around. 

 The Raptors only move Calderon this year is if they can replace him, and it’s very hard to think of a team with a point guard they are looking to trade that would have any interest in Calderon. The only swap that might make sense is with Portland for Raymond Felton’s expiring deal, but with Portland looking to re-up both Gerald Wallace and Nic Batum this summer it’s unlikely that they’d take the $10.5-million Calderon is owed next season just to sorta upgrade their point guard position.

The fact of the matter is that while Toronto may not be enamored with the thought of keeping Calderon around, doing so is probably in the team’s best interest. Going forward he would be an ideal backup if they do find a superior starter, and his low-mistake brand of basketball will only help the club as they compile more talent in the coming seasons. It’s easy to say that the organization is keen to move him along, and that Calderon himself is open to a new home as well, but until there is a way to make such a move more sensible for the Raptors he’s going to continue to suit up for this lottery-bound club.