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Toronto Raptors: Grading The Offseason

By Gerald Bourguet

Jan 16, 2015; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Atlanta Hawks forward DeMarre Carroll (5) and Toronto Raptors guard Kyle Lowry (7) battle for the ball during the first half at the Air Canada Centre. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 16, 2015; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Atlanta Hawks forward DeMarre Carroll (5) and Toronto Raptors guard Kyle Lowry (7) battle for the ball during the first half at the Air Canada Centre. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports /
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Toronto Raptors
Mar 11, 2015; Charlotte, NC, USA; Charlotte Hornets center Bismack Biyombo (8) shoots a free throw during the second half against the Sacramento Kings at Time Warner Cable Arena. The Kings defeated the Hornets 113-106. Mandatory Credit: Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports /

Bisblock Biyombo

We all know that Jonas Valanciunas doesn’t play good defense. That was abundantly clear in the fourth quarters of close games last season when head coach Dwane Casey would bench him outright to help the Raptors try and get stops. But with the departure of Amir Johnson, Toronto’s frontcourt was really in need of another serviceable big.

Bismack Biyombo isn’t the steal of the summer by any means, but signing him to a two-year, $6 million deal is a tremendous bargain for a lengthy rim protector who’s still only 22 years old.

During his time with the Charlotte Hornets, Biyombo never blew anyone away and at 6’9″, he’ll never be an elite shot-blocker. But he still averaged an impressive 1.5 blocks in only 19.5 minutes per game last season. Per 36 minutes, Biyombo has averaged 7.5 points, 10.4 rebounds and 2.7 blocks in his four-year NBA career.

When the Charlotte Hornets didn’t extend a qualifying offer to Biyombo, the Raptors were ready to capitalize on that mistake. In fact, they essentially swapped Tyler Hansbrough for Biyombo when the Hornets agreed to a deal with Psycho T. I’m thinking the Raptors got the better end of the deal.

This isn’t a huge steal, mostly because Biyombo is virtually incompetent on the offensive end of the floor. But for a team that’s trying to batten down the hatches on the defensive end, Biyombo represents another step in the right direction and unlike the two preceding moves, the Raptors didn’t have to overpay to make it happen.

Grade: A-

Next: Signing Scola

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