butr

http://www.torontosun.com/Sports/Bas...41117-sun.html

Raps have the right to match, so this hardball is good. The Raps should not be the one out there with a huge offer. If a value offer is signed they match. It is good business. Pay as little as you have to.

djmyte

Is Babcock the anti-Grunwald? He "may"(yet to be determined) be bad at drafting and making trades but he won't overpay for mediocre talent. Heck, based on talent even Rafer's contract is decent, it's just too bad he's such a headcase.

I can see Bonner and his agent jacking up there demands due to the whole "fan favorite" thing. They probably feel the Raps are desperate to keep anyone that's liked by the fans. Good to see the Raps aren't just giving in for once.

lucky777s

All this talk means nothing until a team steps up and signs an offer sheet for Matt that is above what the Raps are willing to match. Until then it is just posturing by the agent.

Babs is almost inviting offers though by saying publicly he has a price he won't exceed. Usually you say you will match ANY offer to discourage teams from making an offer at all. Even if you don't mean it.

The big mistake was not having an option year or two on Bonners rookie deal. How could that have hurt the team? And why wouldn't Bonner have jumped at an option for 1 mill per year when he was signing a 385k contract? Just stupid not to have an option year or two in there.

trick

restricted free agency is the greatest thing since sliced bread

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AirBonner

If he goes i have to figure out a way to change my name.

I don't think this will really get interesting until another team makes out an offer sheet. Until then the agent and management don't have any pressure to make a deal.

butr

I'd say that only works with max-type players.

Junkyard Dog13

from 385 k he should not get a hefty pay increase a deal like 4 years 6 mill 2 mill bonus seems fair to me.

I dont want him to go b/c he seems like if he stays the first raptor rnd 2 draftee that will pan out to be something of cource the sdame can be said about pape.

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Raps fans since Day 1
Steelers fan since 97
Leafs fan since 88
Mets fan since 98

charlz

Bonner is going no where


he will be back - bonners agent is using the media to pressure Babs in to a deal. The fact is that he has not recieved any offers and when he does it will be matched - just like mo pete.

It is all part of letting the league set his value.

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“I may be wrong... but I doubt it”
--Charles Barkley

speedythief

We didn't draft him, JYD, for the record.


I think the strategy they are using is a good one. Make him think that the Raptors want him only at their price. Then he negotiates a little bit of a better contract with someone else and we match it.

Matt Bonner is not going to get the same amount of money per season as Rafer Alston. I contend that he should make well under $3M to start.

Unknownone

Fiscal responsibility (= sensibility) is crucial; you do not want to sandbag any franchise w/ contracts that prove to be fairly unmanageable (see Jalen Rose) nor preclude the franchise from offerin' reasonable deals to players on the open market...

Spendin' FOOLISHLY and lavishly doesn't always guarantee championships - unless it's a lopsided league like the British Premiership where it's a clear division b/w haves and havenots...

Bonner's a good player, not great - you don't want to end up payin' him great player salary for good player performance...

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That is an important point to remember. Anyone who says they know for sure that Villanueva is going to be a horrible pro, or a great pro, is lying, quite frankly. It's impossible to know.

"The way Tim Duncan plays and the way he is off the court is what any mother or father would love. It doesn't sell in this society of quick gratification, titillation, instant thrills and chills, and that's not what Tim Duncan is."
Gregg Popovitch

foul_balls

Just throwing out a random idea, but why not let Bonner go and use the leftover MLE(after Sow and Ukic) on Steven Hunter of the Suns?

It is a calculated risk since you are potentially adding jsut another mediocre C. However, you are easing the logjam at power forward and getting someone who is a year younger that has potential to be our starting centre. TO will definitely miss Bonner's outside shooting and he is a good energy guy off the bench, but he has no remaining upside other than bench contributor.

The Raps are thin at C, and overloaded at PF. Hunter gives us shot-blocking which we don't have. With Joey Graham in the fold, it lessens Bonner"s need at backup SF. Hunter is still not great but he showed alot of improvement last year on defense. Plus, instead of defending the good C's out West, his numbers would improve just by being in the Centre depleted East. Would a 3-year contract starting at around 2 mil be out of line, with a 4th year team option(assuming we have that left from the MLE)? Does anyone know if Calderon's contract would be coming from the MLE?

Hunter
+ points: More Shot-blocking, athleticisim, couldn't find any "soft" comments like Woods gets, led the league in FG% (alot of this could do with Nash, though)
- points: poor FT shooting, low basketball IQ (when he joined the league -don't know if he has improved this)

The Mad Viking

CBA specifies that option years can only be at the specified increases - a max of 10% or 12.5% in the old CBA.

So Bonner didn't want to agree to an option for only $430,000 for year two. Because for sure the Raps would have suggested it.

The NBA reality is, that Bonner would either be worth more than that, or he have not been worth excercising the option. So no benefit to Bonner at all in accepting the option.

Remember, he turned down more money from Europe to try the NBA.

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With the first pick in the 2010 draft, the ... select, Ricard Rubio of Spain.

Minstrel: There's no such thing as a "proven loser." Teams win and lose, not individuals.

Unknownone

He was a highly prized recruit @ DePaul under Pat Kennedy (who had left Florida State to head up to Chicago and resurrect a moribund Blue Demons program that had fared poorly in the wake of legendary coach Ray Myer's son Joey in the head role) and a teammate of Quentin Richardson, who emerged from as one of the most acclaimed from the Chicago high school ranks...

That said, his career is what you've described - another mediocre player - he was maddeningly inconsistent and really displayed little or no passion for winnin'; he reminds me of Vince in that respect: he enjoys what basketball affords him, but isn't committed wholesale to the game as a profession or towards winnin' a championship...

I wouldn't think that Babcock and company are interested in pickin' up someone of his questionable character and habits...

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That is an important point to remember. Anyone who says they know for sure that Villanueva is going to be a horrible pro, or a great pro, is lying, quite frankly. It's impossible to know.

"The way Tim Duncan plays and the way he is off the court is what any mother or father would love. It doesn't sell in this society of quick gratification, titillation, instant thrills and chills, and that's not what Tim Duncan is."
Gregg Popovitch

MentalPowerHouse

The fact is we don't need Bonner, we have Villa to back up Bosh and Sow can play minutes there too. He is a nice bench player but that's all and signing him will only eat into our future cap room.

AirBonner