Raptors GM Bryan Colangelo slams Chris Bosh

[Andrew]

Not quite as vitriolic as Dan Gilbert, but there were still a few parting shots.

Colangelo intoned that Bosh took a long time to return from injury even though he had been medically cleared and that he started thinking ahead to his future to the detriment of the Raptors.

"Despite limited swelling and any excessive damage on an MRI, he felt like he needed to sit for six more games ... I'm not even questioning Chris' injury. I'm telling you he was cleared to play subject to tolerance on his part, and the tolerance just apparently wasn't there and he chose not to play," Colangelo said.

"The fact that our season was spiralling downward and we were hoping he'd come back sooner and we were also dealing with a few other things at that point ... we were really struggling there."

"Whether he was mentally checked out or just wasn't quite into it down the stretch, he wasn't the same guy. I think everybody saw that, but no one wanted to acknowledge it."

"At the same time, I never felt we were quite in the game (in terms of signing Bosh to a new contract). There was too much out there, too much built up for him to take an easy out here, and he decided to do that."

[Oznogrd]

my only question is were the statements issued in comic sans?

otherwise i have no interest lol

I like Bosh and certainly if he could have played he should have for the money they make, but maybe he saw some other big men who kept coming back too early (see yao thread) and constantly getting hurt so he wanted to insure his longterm healthy for his longterm paycheck?

Dwade pulled something like this a couple years ago where he got a knee injury with 30 games left to go but "decided to rest" because the playoffs were so out of reach.

[Andrew]

No Comic Sans this time around, unless he prepared some notes before the interview.

If that's the way it went down then Colangelo and the Raptors have every right to be disappointed, though I doubt the Heat will have to worry about him being mentally checked out or giving up on a team in the face of impending free agency, at least for five years. Probably not his proudest moment as a professional.

[NovU]

I really hope to see Toronto doesn't walk the path of the Clippers. The city deserves better unlike Vancouver, who were just hockey fanatics who didn't even care Grizzlies leaving.

Well... Best of luck to Colangelo on rebuilding the team. They sure need to find better ways to keep the stars in their city.

[Rip32]

I don't know if you can compare Bosh's situation this past year to the one Wade was in. Wade's injury was actually bad, not a sprained ankle, and the fact that the Raptors at the time of Bosh's "healing" period were like 2-3 games out of the eighth spot trumps the fact that the Heat were closer to the No. 1 pick in the draft than the playoffs. Bosh should have played if he wanted to boost his sparse post-season resume.

I don't think the idea that Bosh kind of checked out at the end of the season is that far out of the realm of possibility though. Maybe he was a realist and knew that the Raps weren't going to stand a chance in the first round, so he decided to just get everything over with and start planning his summer vacation.

Kind of off-topic, but I think the Raptors are going to be absolutely terrible this year. Like, Minnesota will be on a whole other level of bad, but the second worst team in the L could very well be Toronto. They have no defense and unless their goal is to shoot 1500 three-pointers this season, the players they do have really don't match together at all.

[Its_asdf]

I really hope to see Toronto doesn't walk the path of the Clippers. The city deserves better unlike Vancouver, who were just hockey fanatics who didn't even care Grizzlies leaving.

Please don't talk about things you don't know about. Thanks.

Anyway, this is just Colangeo doing what he does best. I don't recall a single season where he didn't blame "outside" or "uncontrollable" factors for the team losing, and this is just another excuse for another failed season.

[benji]

Anyway, this is just Colangeo doing what he does best. I don't recall a single season where he didn't blame "outside" or "uncontrollable" factors for the team losing, and this is just another excuse for another failed season.

Ahh, he's learning to be a Canadian.

[Andrew]

Bosh refutes the claim. For what it's worth, Kelly Dwyer disagrees.

[Its_asdf]

I think both parties to an extent are at fault, and it was a pretty big fail from both Colangelo and Bosh this season.

I mean you'd have to be kidding yourself if you believed that Bosh didn't tank the latter half of the season. Bosh has a well documented history for racking up injuries mid season and letting them severely affect his play significantly down the stretch. His "improved" body was pretty much non existant during that stretch, and he became somewhat of a black hole. Injury or not, if that was truly 100% from Chris then I seriously think that it was the right move to let him go.

I have to admit, Colangelo had me fooled for about 2 seasons consecutively that he had put a competitive ball team out there for Toronto. He's a great salesman and knows how to get fans overhyped on their ball club, but I think people are starting to see that he's not exactly the GM that won Executive of the Year when you consistently underachieve and then proceed to place the blame on anything you can get your hands on.