The Raptors have acquired 23-year old forward Julian Wright from the Hornets for 24-year old shooting guard Marco Belinelli. Wright played in 68 games (14 starts) for the Hornets last season and he averaged 12.8 minutes, 3.8 points, 2.1 rebounds and 0.6 assists per game. He has now played in 179 games (34 starts) in his three years in the NBA and he has averaged 12.8 minutes, 4.0 points, 2.3 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game. The Raptors are hoping that a change in scenery will spark Wright who was a first round pick not too long ago. Belinelli played in 66 games (1 start) in his only year with the Raptors and he averaged 17.0 minutes, 7.1 points, 1.4 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game.

The Raptors have traded 31-year old small forward Hedo Turkoglu to the Suns for 27-year old shooting guard Leandro Barbosa, 27-year old power forward Dwayne Jones and a trade exception. Turkoglu played in 74 games (69 starts) for the Raptors in his only year in Toronto and he averaged 30.7 minutes, 11.3 points, 4.6 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game. The Raptors are doing cartwheels for getting rid of Turkoglu and getting a nice return for him. Leandro Barbosa played in 44 games (5 starts) for the Suns last season and he averaged 17.9 minutes, 9.5 points, 1.6 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game. He has now played in 466 games (109 starts) in his seven years in the NBA and he has averaged 25.1 minutes, 12.6 points, 2.4 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.0 steal per game. Dwayne Jones played in 2 games (0 starts) for the Suns last season and he averaged 3.5 minutes per game, didn’t score and he had 1 rebound. The Raptors also got a trade exception in this deal. I love this move for the Raptors as it allowed them to dump Turkoglu.

UPDATE: (8/13/2010) - The Raptors have released Dwayne Jones.

The Raptors have agreed to sign and trade Chris Bosh to the Miami Heat in return for their own first round pick in 2011 (the Heat had acquired it in a previous trade), the Heat’s first round pick in 2011 and a trade exception. This trade will allow Bosh to sign for a sixth season with the Heat instead of only five years. I think the Raptors did o.k. in this trade as it’s better than letting him walk away for nothing.

The Toronto Raptors have signed 25-year old forward Linas Kleiza to a 4-year, $20 million dollar offer sheet. The Nuggets will have seven days to match the contract or Kleiza will be on the Raptors. Kleiza played last season in Greece but he opted out of his contract to return to the NBA. Kleiza has played in 301 games (36 starts) in his four years in the NBA and he has averaged 19.0 minutes, 8.3 points, 3.5 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game. Don’t judge him on his career numbers as he has the potential to average double what he has in the past, with more playing time.

UPDATE: (7/16/2010) - The Nuggets have declined to match the Raptors offer to Linas Kleiza.

The Raptors have re-signed 23-year old power forward Amir Johnson. Johnson played in 82 games (5 starts) in his first year with the Raptors last season and he averaged 17.7 minutes, 6.2 points, 4.8 rebounds and 0.6 assists per game. He has now played in 217 games (29 starts) in his five years in the NBA in which he has averaged 15.2 minutes, 4.7 points, 4.2 rebounds, 0.5 assists and 1.0 blocked shot per game. Despite Johnson being a backup player to this point in his career, he still has a huge upside and the Raptors are glad to have him back on a 5-year, $34 million dollar deal.