Ford May Drive Lane at MSG

The Toronto Raptors have a problem on their hands that most NBA GM's would love to deal with: they have two starting point guards. T.J. Ford, the perennial starter, has seen his position threatened by his up and coming backup, Jose Calderon.

2007-2008 was not only a breakout season for Calderon, but it was a contract year as well. Calderon becomes a restricted free agent this summer and if the bidding heats up, it seems unlikely that Toronto can afford to keep both of their talented young point guards.

Calderon has made it known that if he stays in Toronto, he wants to be a starter, and he seems to have the support of his teammates. In a recent interview at the NBA Finals, Chris Bosh, Toronto's leading scorer and rebounder supported the Raptor's leading assist man saying, "We definitely need to get Jose back." Bosh went on to say that the Raptors would have to do whatever it takes to make that work indicating that trading T.J. Ford may become a necessity.

Bosh also said that the Raptors need help on interior defense, and director of player personnel Jim Kelly has been open in stating that the Raptors have been, "a fairly active team on the trade market."

Speculation is that the Raptors have found between four and six suitors interested in Ford, including the New York Knicks, a team that the Raptors have a history of dealing with. Since Stephon Marbury's tumultuous season, both on and off the court, last year, the general feeling has been that the Knicks need to look beyond Marbury for their future at the point. Marbury is in the final year of his contract and is set to earn over $20 million this season. Though Marbury may play up to his capabilities this season in an effort to build up his market value, the Knicks may not be willing to take that chance since last summer he declared that he would move to Italy following the 2008-2009 season. Marbury is also a shoot-first point guard, which is not what coach Mike D'Antoni needs to make his up-tempo style of offense successful.

Though the Raptors would have no interest in Marbury, the Knicks do have a few pieces that the Raptors may be interested in. The Raptors have a young nucleus of talent and would love to build through the draft, but hold only one pick in this year's draft. The Knicks, however, hold the sixth overall pick, and team president Donnie Walsh has expressed a willingness to part with it in the right deal. The sparingly used Malik Rose could provide the Raptors with some of the defensive intensity that Bosh is hoping the team will acquire this summer. In addition to that, Rose, the two-time NBA champion, could provide great post-season leadership for a young team on the rise. Rose also holds a contract that is set to expire at the end of this season. This would give the Raptors some more mobility on the free agent market next summer should they choose not to extend his contract. With both Rose and Ford set to earn roughly the same salary next year, the Knicks may be able to get Ford by offering Toronto Rose and the sixth pick in this month's draft.

Should that work, the Knicks still have the problem of what to do with Marbury. Conventional wisdom would suggest that the Knicks use him as a backup and let his contract come off the books next summer. Perhaps Marbury will get fed up with sitting on the bench and accept a reasonable buyout.

The only other factor in this equation for the Knicks is that they would have Ford's contract on the books during The Summer of LeBron. That's a chance the Knicks will have to take; LeBron won't come to the Big Apple anyway if they don't have the right pieces surrounding him.