The Toronto Raptors have reason to feel Gay today, by which we mean happy, because they acquired forward Rudy Gay in a 6-player, 3-team trade on Wednesday. Gay, a career 18 point-per-game scorer and Hamed Haddadi, the first Iranian NBA player ever, were moved from Memphis to Canada's largest city for Ed Davis and Jose Calderon, who was in turn delivered to Detroit for Tayshaun Prince and Austin Daye. Prince was the last player left from the Pistons 200-304 championship team.
For Memphis, the athletes acquired were inconsequential; it was all about shedding salaries, like what pudgy people promise to do this time of year. Memphis had given Gay a max contract, but that was under old management, and the present penny-pinching personnel, who include ex-ESPN numbers nerd John Hollinger, were determined to dump Gay to avoid paying the luxury tax. A little over a week ago, the Grizzlies gave away satisfactory substitute Marreese Speights and 2 other player to the Cavs for a guy who puts the 'chump' in "chump change."
The Grizzlies new owner, Robert Pera, was wealthy enough to purchase a franchise last year at the age of 34, so why has he chosen to tighten his man-purse strings now^? Just because the Grizzlies play at the FedExForum doesn't mean you have to ship guys out of there constantly. If Pera keeps this up, he'll leave the cupboard bare for these bears.
*Trade, that is
^Our theory is that the former Apple engineer is having Siri make all his basketball business decisions.
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