Rumor Mongering: Bottom of the Barrel

Posted by Rob Mahoney on August 20, 2009 under Rumors | 12 Comments to Read

Doug Smith of The Star’s Raptors Blog:

According to a couple of league sources and I can’t corroborate this with any of my most trusted Toronto folks, Raptors GM Bryan Colangelo’s got another deal bubbling, one that would send guard Marcus Banks to the Dallas Mavericks for Matt Carroll…I’m warned — and therefore so are you — that the proposed transaction remains in its relative infancy and if this summer’s proven anything it’s that nothing’s done until it’s done…Banks? Well, Banks never really worked out after being obtained in the Shawn Marion trade last season. He hardly played, was mediocre when he did and then got hurt and missed about the last month of the season. He didn’t take the team’s suggestion and play in the summer league last month – although he was in Las Vegas to meet with the staff and work out – and the GM’s been trying to deal him for months.

The Mavs intentions seem purely financial, as Carroll’s deal extends two years longer (and $7.4 million over that span) than Banks’.  That I don’t mind, especially with the way Mark Cuban was willing to tack on extra payroll earlier in the summer.  I am a bit concerned by bringing in the illusion of a point guard, though; I have a history of being more confident in Banks than most, and I’ll still be the first to tell you that he isn’t worthy of a rotation spot.  He’s failed to live up to his potential at almost every turn in his career, and could muck up the point guard rotation by denying minutes to Rodrigue Beaubois.  Even if Banks is marginally better than Beaubois, the kid needs to get his reps.  I’ve got no qualms with Marcus Banks provided he doesn’t squeeze into the point guard rotation, but I’m still harboring the sneaking suspicion that he might.