As of today, the chances of Turkoglu staying outweigh the odds of him being traded.
That could change tomorrow if the right offer comes along and it helps the Raptors.
But as of today, the Raptors have a starting frontcourt of Turkoglu, Andrea Bargnani and Amir Johnson.
By eliminating Bosh, someone will be asked to shoulder more of an offensive burden, someone will be asked to take more shots and that someone is Turkoglu.
By eliminating Bosh, the Raptors have no post presence to speak of, unless Bosh gets used in a sign and trade that nets a back-to-the-basket player, which aren’t exactly available.
As much as you want to believe Turkoglu, you can’t because the damage he created and can’t be repaired by words or by giving assurances that he was somehow misquoted or felt like he was unjustly and inappropriately used in Toronto.
The next time this guy shows his face in Toronto, fans should boo him and give him the Carter treatment for being me-first.
Chris Bosh, one of the marquee free agents in the NBA, had one of his last private chats with prospective suitors on Friday and there is a growing sense that the major players are near decisions that could shake up a handful of franchises.
Bosh — who, along with LeBron James and Dwyane Wade, has been driving much of the free-agent agenda — met with representatives of the New York Knicks on Friday and sources say he’s almost done with his round of due diligence.
Having met already with the Raptors, Houston Rockets, New Jersey Nets and Chicago Bulls, only the Miami Heat remain as viable candidates to sign the power forward.
“Like a kid at Christmas” was how Bosh told reporters he felt after the two-hour meeting with Knicks brass.
Bosh showed up at the same hotel where Miami Heat star Dwyane Wade met with the Knicks earlier Friday. Bosh tweeted that his “shirt is starched and I’m ready for more business. NY Knicks are next.”
After seven seasons in Toronto, Bosh has been one of the busiest players in the free agency bonanza. He met with Rockets in his hometown of Dallas early Thursday, then flew to Chicago for sessions with the Heat and New Jersey Nets.
As he headed into his meeting with the Knicks, Bosh told reporters: “It’s going good, it’s going really good.”
Now, I like Amir Johnson. Great teammate, plenty of potential. But if you hand US$7-million a year to someone who has averaged 15 minutes per game — and 2.7 fouls in those 15 minutes — in his career, you should perhaps face the possibility that you’ve overpaid.
"This is not an easy choice for anybody. They’re going to have their patience and do what’s best for them," D’Antoni said after the meetings with Wade and Bosh. "It takes a little while, they have a lot of people advising them, so they aren’t going to just jump into it.
"They’ve been waiting as long as we have for this moment, and I think they’ll see it through, make sure they cross all the T’s, dot all the I’s and then make a decision based on each one’s needs," D’Antoni added. "We can’t look in the future, look into people’s minds, after all the presentations, they’ll make a decision when they make it."
The length of the Bosh meeting was a surprise.
"You’ve gotta enjoy this," Bosh told reporters staked outside the hotel afterwards. "I always feel like a kid on Christmas."
One of several marquee free agents on the market, the Raptors power forward tweeted afterward: "Finished with the Knicks. Another impressive one."
