A couple Toronto trade ideas

GSW gets: Leandro Barbosa, DeMar DeRozan

as fun as it is to watch, the Monta/Curry backcourt won’t ever yield a legit winner. With Curry’s pure shooting ability and being the better passer of the two, I think they build around him for the future. Wright and Lee seem to have nitched out solid roles alongside him and should continue to produce at the same or higher levels. DeRozan could really thrive on this team with Curry and Wright being shooters you can’t leave alone on the perimeter and Lee being a very good playmaker from the high post, DeMar could fit in well with his slashing ability and athleticism. He gets a lot of his scoring on backdoor cuts and running the baseline for finishes at and above the rim. He also gets to the free throw line well and with his improving mid-range game he could develop into a possible 2nd option behind Curry in a year or 2. This gives GS a dynamic young backcourt, but DeRozan’s size  upgrade over Monta could be key defensively. DeRozan has a lot of potential and could grow and blossom with this young team and completes Curry very well as a running mate. Barbosa gives them the bench scoring from the backcourt this team has been lacking and will be in the last year of his contract.

Tor gets: Monta Ellis

Toronto really needs a perimeter scorer who can consistently get their own shot and it doesn’t get much better than Monta in that regard. He has the speed, quickness, and ability to finish in traffic or on pull up jumpers that will keep him in the top 10 in scoring for years to come. He’s also proven to be reliable down the stretch and isn’t afraid of the big moment. While not the greatest on-ball defender, he forces turnovers and is a nightmare in transition. I think this could be a very good fit for him as his role would be pretty similar to the one he played in GS. He has a very reasonable yearly salary at $11 mil and he has the flare to bring excitement to a city that hasn’t had a star wing since VC left town. I’m not sure that DeRozan will ever develop into that guy here.

LAL gets:  Jose Calderon, Andrea Bargnani, (part of Chris Bosh trade exception)

I’m from LA and as well liked as Derek Fisher is, he should no longer be a starting PG in this league. The Lakers need an upgrade badly if they want to continue being that championship caliber team. He means too much to the organization to get rid of, but they need to move him to the bench and a role of maybe 15 min a game. Blake didn’t fit in well at all this year, and with the triangle gone I don’t see him fitting in the future either as he isn’t much of a playmaker for himself of others. Getting Calderon would be an instant upgrade over both. He’s had a couple sub par years in a row, but injuries and uncertainty about his role in T dot have been factors there. The guy is an above average passer who can knock down shots off the pick & roll or spotting up off others. He also has great chemistry with Gasol which shouldn’t be discountes at all. I think having a Spanish teammate around at all times would keep Pau motivated and Calderon knows his spots to get him shots when Pau is struggling. With Bynum wanting a bigger role in the offense, and Kobe not having it…he may be the odd man out in LA. They need to make some kind of move after these playoffs and I see ‘Drew as the most likely guy to go. While good 7-footers are hard to come by it’s even harder to keep them happy when you have 2 of them on the same team. Bargnani is the wild card in this trade as people are probably wondering how he’d fit in L.A. as he and Gasol are somewhat similar. This team is getting old and needs someone reliable for the future. Bargs can be that guy, and with getting him with Mike Brown coming in…he’s gonna have to play some defense and rebound if he wants ti stay on the floor down the stretch. His contract is also a lot more managable than Bynum making $15 mil to play less than 60 games every year. His ability stretch the defense from the 4/5 could really open up the paint for Kobe and Pau to attack and not have to shoot over multiple bigs. When Pau is out of the game he can also get his own shot and be the 1st post option. I think the Lakers would do this mainly for the PG upgrade, but Bargnani could be a key too

Tor gets: Andrew Bynum, Steve Blake

Bargnani doesn’t want to play in the post and will be quite content floating on the perimeter…Toronto needs someone they can dump the ball into down low and get a bucket. Bynum(when healthy) is definitely that guy. He would also welcome the expanded role in the offense as he’d probably be a 2nd option on this team. Bynum still has potential to grow as a player and has shown flashes of having ability to shoot from out to 15 ft. The injury problems are a scare, but Toronto is in a position where the gamble might be well worth it. Calderon isn’t happy there anymore and having him around for another 2 years isn’t gonna do them any good. Blake is a solid spot up shooter and proved he can play well off a ball dominant 2 in his time in Portland. He doesn’t really turn the ball over and will be helpful when Bynum faces doubles in the post. This also gives Toronto the ability to increase Bayless’ role as the year goes on and maybe allow him to take over as starter next yr. Ed Davis should continue to develop and is the 4 of the future while Amir Johnson holds down the fort til he’s ready. This would still be the young exciting Raptors, just adding some effecient scoring options and star power. If they can strike gold with a 3 in the draft over these next 2 years they could really blow up.