Toronto Raptors Jose Calderon of Spain reacts to a call against the Phoenix Suns in the third quarter of an NBA basketball game in Phoenix, Arizona, November 15 2009.
ORLANDO, FLA. —
That was the year that T.J. Ford, in his second season as Toronto's starting point man, hit the deck hard in Atlanta in December – this after Ford had played some beautiful basketball in a promising campaign's early days. In the wake of Ford's scary injury, Jose Calderon stepped into Ford's place as the starting point guard and offered some impressive contributions.
And as easy as it should have been to root for Ford once he returned to the floor – he was, after all, at increased risk of a life-altering spinal injury on account of a congenital condition – he soon became a locker-room disease. He couldn't seem to view himself as anything but the starting point guard. He wouldn't view Calderon as anything but in his way. And the tension ruined everything.
Fast-forward a couple of seasons to now, when Calderon has been out of the lineup with a sore hip for all but seven ineffective minutes of the past 13 games, and this edition of the Raptors, for all their obvious weaknesses of collective will, haven't enjoyed a more prosperous stretch. With Jarrett Jack as the starting No. 1, the Raptors, for various reasons not excluding a favourable schedule, have carved out a win-loss record of 8-5.
True, their grasp on near-respectability is tenuous. But Calderon, if he made the moment about himself, could make the argument, as Ford did, that he shouldn't lose his starting gig on account of an injury, and he'd have a point. He didn't make the point. Jay Triano, the Raptors coach, said he won't start Calderon in Wednesday's game against the Magic – "I'm not going to disrupt the unit that we have right now," the coach said – and Calderon wasn't exactly fuming."It's Jay's call. I'm ready to help the team, and keep winning games," said Calderon on Tuesday, after he participated in his first full practice with his teammates since his injury. "If I've got to be coming from the bench the first two, three, four, five games, or whatever, it's Jay's call. He's the coach."
Both Calderon and Jack spent Tuesday saying all the right things, that it's the coach's decision, that they'll do what's required. Far more telling, of course, will be the on-court performance of the group as Calderon works his way back into the fold. Certainly the coach's job is easier this time around because neither Jack nor Calderon have Ford's intractable streak.
"It's not like Jose and I haven't played together ever. We played together (earlier this season), and we co-existed well, I thought," Jack said. "So I'm sure however coach feels he's going to fit (Calderon) in, or however the strategy is, I'll be ready for it."
If the Raptors are going to claim above-average strength at point guard, maybe it'll be in numbers. A platoon will work here in the short term, even if it can't in this league in the long term. Calderon, though he makes $8.2 million (U.S.), has never proven himself as an elite-level player over a full season. He needs help in a big way. And heck, if Marcus Banks has his way, Triano will spend some game nights playing three point guards. Banks, considered dead weight at the season's outset, proved himself a serviceable contributor during Calderon's outage.
Every NBA squad, of course, has its cries of self interest. But on Tuesday, Jack's calm reason resonated. A team that has its share of problems doesn't have to worry about another point guard controversy just yet.
"I'm sure we'll make it work, however it's going to," said Jack. "We'll be able to make it work. I'm not worried about it. I'm not worried about it at all."
Posts
