The Raptors and Pacers have swapped point-guards once more, but this time with the Pacers getting diddly squat in return. The Raptors signed Jarrett Jack to a four year, $20 million deal using up the final parts of their salary cap to back up Jose Calderon off the bench. Jack averaged 13.1 points and 4.1 assists last season, and was the team’s starter towards the end of the last season.

The move for the Pacers is certainly a big hit, as Jack’s presence was comfort for the often injured T.J. Ford. Though Jack stands as a restricted free-agent, the Pacers will likely not match the offer due to financial constraints. The team remains high on the combination of Hansbrough-Granger-Ford heading in to this season and holds no high hopes of making playoff noise this coming season. They’re rebuilding.

The Raptors on the other hand, are making a push to retain Bosh with the signing of Jack. The two were teammates at Georgia Tech, where Bosh averaged 15.6 points and 9.0 boards and was complimented by Jack’s 15.5 points and 4.5 assists in college. Certainly it seems that Jack’s transition to the NBA has not affected his decent production.

Bosh has silently, and continually, made pushes for the Raps to sign his friend throughout the years. With the lowered salary cap coming in 2010, and subsequent seasons, the Raptors will be in the best position to re-sign the superstar power-forward who is regarded as one of the game’s best at the position. Retaining the services Bosh has been the number-one priority of the Raptors who have also sought to get tougher.

Now Toronto, a distant underdog in the Eastern Conference Championship betting odds, have the backup guard to amend for Calderon’s short comings. El Calderon, as talented and beloved as he is in Toronto, is a glamorized back-up guard at best. He is an assist monster, racking up nearly nine assists per game last season. It’s his role as a defensive and scoring liability that have him chastised in limited circles. Jack’s presence may force Calderon to the bench. To be honest, backing up Ford when the hot-handed guard was in Toronto, was when Calderon was at his best.

The Raptors betting faithful know all too well that a big hole in the offense last season was from a serious lack of backcourt production. Jack adds another 12-15 points off the bench per game, and will go a long way in making the Toronto much more athletic given that DeMar DeRozen can improve his game to NBA standards.

The starting line for Toronto now features Bagnarni, Bosh, Turkoglu, DeRozen and Calderon/Jack. That is certainly a line that could cause some upsets in the betting pools across the NBA, but to say its championship worthy is far fetched. However, if the $20 million deal goes through, the Raptors will have added an integral piece to the team that may cause Bosh to stay north of the border. If that happens, then it will be well worth the money.


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