Found money paying off for Raps
LOS ANGELES — It’s that time of year again, the fifth in a row for the Raptors, when thoughts turn from playoffs to next year — more precisely who will be back next year in a Raptors uniform and who won’t.
Already the stories have started trickling out, led, of course, with everyone’s best guess as to whether there is another year left in Andrea Bargnani’s tenure in Toronto.
That’s a debate that will be played out ad nauseum from here until a decision is made and, frankly, it’s one we’ve long since tired with.
But there is a name that has been on many of those already published lists that just doesn’t sit right: Alan Anderson.
In terms of a value find, Anderson has no equal on the Raptors. Only Quincy Acy, presently in the D- League, makes less than the $885,120 Anderson made this season.
He came out the development league at (comparatively) next to no cost to the Raptors.
There is no draft pick that should have been taken instead of him because Anderson was not drafted by the Raptors.
He is found money and he has been paying dividends since he arrived.
He even arrived NBA ready. Having played most of five years in Europe following a short stint in the NBA and with a nice collegiate career at Michigan State behind him, Anderson had already grown into his body when he arrived in Toronto. There is no waiting for him to bulk up.
But , more i mportant l y , Anderson arrived knowing how to play the NBA game. As basic as that sounds, compare him to any rookie who quite properly needs time to adjust to the speed and strength of the NBA game and the rigours of the NBA schedule. At the age of 29 (when he arrived), Anderson didn’t need to adjust to any of that.
You would think all of that would be an advantage and one that would push him up the ranks but, as it turns out, it’s likely more of a disadvantage because on the management side, Anderson really doesn’t have anyone fighting for him. It’s not that Anderson is not appreciated. It’s just that no one at the management level has anything invested in him.
Sure, he has his faults — there are nights when the ball is not falling for him and he stubbornly launches three-point after threepoint attempt regardless — but for every night like that there are nights where those threes fall.
But Anderson brings more than streaky shooting to the table. His toughness as a defender, his refusal to back down to any opponent and his veteran savvy when it comes to positioning are the kind of talents that don’t show up on a stat sheet.
But even the fanbase seems to have turned the page on Anderson seeing him more as an obstruction standing in the way of Terrence Ross’s development or Landry Fields’ minutes.
But Anderson does have one man in his corner who has taken some shots across his bow by going with Anderson over others.
Head coach Dwane Casey rarely singles out a player for criticism in his talks with the media, but he does not shy away from heaping praise on those he feels deserve it. For large chunks of this year, Anderson was that guy on the receiving end of that praise.
Casey knows a team needs more than just scorers to compete. Even if no one else sees the value of a guy willing to mix it up and stand his ground in a league full of fake- tough guys, Casey sees it.
The problem is in a numbers game where the Raptors have room for six or seven wing players next season, Anderson seems to fall somewhere in line behind Gay, DeRozan, Ross, and Fields.
As a restricted free agent coming off a year in which he has averaged 11.2 points a game in just over 24 minutes a night while giving his team better than average defence at the opposite end, someone is going to offer Anderson a job.
At which point the Raptors will have to decide whether to match or let him go.
If it does come down to having to let him go, the Raptors will be a lesser team because of it.