The Raptors turned an old, small guy they weren't going to use into a young, big guy they might.
If nothing else, the minor trade they made yesterday looks good on paper. On the court?
That's up for debate.
Discarding Will Solomon, who wasn't going to see any more minutes this season, the Raptors picked up 7-foot centre Patrick O'Bryant from the Boston Celtics in a three-way deal put together just before the NBA's trade deadline expired.
Solomon, who lost his backup point guard job to Roko Ukic and slid further into oblivion with the acquisition of Marcus Banks, is off to Sacramento, which moves cash and a future conditional second-round pick to the Celtics, who shaved some money off their luxury tax commitments.
While the deal won't shift the balance of power in either NBA conference and probably won't enhance Toronto's chance of making the playoffs, it does address a huge disparity on the Raptors' roster.
Before the deal, Toronto had four point guards and a distinct lack of depth up front. At least now they are down to a manageable number of guards, and the 22-year-old O'Bryant provides some depth behind Chris Bosh and Andrea Bargnani.
O'Bryant, who went to college at Bradley and can discuss alumni affairs with former Brave Anthony Parker, has made little impact since being picked ninth in the 2006 draft, eight selections after Toronto took Bargnani.
He spent two uneventful seasons in Golden State, never averaging more than seven minutes or two points a game. With Boston this year, he has only seen mop-up minutes in 26 games.
The financial considerations in yesterday's deal won't cost the Raptors any salary cap flexibility in the future. Solomon's deal ends after this season, and while O'Bryant has another year and $855,189 (U.S.) left, only $500,000 of it is guaranteed.
