Today has already been a pretty busy day in the Atlantic division. With the Knicks and Raptors underway, let's continue to monitor all news coming out of the division here:
- Toronto head coach Dwane Casey says that Rudy Gay is the exactly the weapon that the Raptors were lacking in crunch time of tight games, writes Sam Amico of Fox Sports. Through 11 games in Toronto, Gay is averaging 20.1 points per game, many of which, Casey says, are coming when it matters most. Steve Kyler of HoopsWorld tweets that Gay has been a "great fit" since coming over in the deal from Memphis.
- In a separate report, Amico adds that the Raptors will trade Andrea Bargnani in the offseason unless they absolutely cannot find a taker for the two years and $23MM remaining on his deal. Amico hears that the Sixers are very interested, and lists the Mavericks, Rockets, Spurs, Bucks, Jazz, Hawks, Suns and Blazers as other potential destinations.
- Following Doug Collins' rant last night, sources tell Ric Bucher that should Collins resign or be let go, Sixers assistant Michael Curry will not only take over, but be considered a legitimate candidate to coach the team for the long term. Curry was last a head coach in Detroit, where he was fired in June of 2009 after a one-year 39-43 stint with the Pistons.
I am a big Bargnani fan, but he has been clueless since coming back from injury. He has no interest in shooting, hardly grabs rebounds, and doesn’t use his big body in the post to take up space. With his skill, he should still be able to drop 3-4 buckets per game, even with the booing. If he continues playing like this, and the coach and GM feel that he can’t contribute anymore, than that amnesty provision is looking mighty fine.
I think it’s all but a done deal, if they can’t find a trade partner. With Lowry/Derozan/Gay it’d make sense to clear up that salary and go after a productive player. They’d likely make the playoffs in the East with some rebounders.