Despite reports Toronto GM Bryan Colangelo would refuse to help star forward Chris Bosh out of town, the Raptors will reportedly aid Bosh's quest for maximum salary by agreeing to a sign-and-trade with the Miami Heat, according to Ken Berger of CBSSports.com.There's something in it for the Raps, too: Berger reports Toronto will get back the team's own 2011 first-round pick (initially sent to Miami in the 2009 Shawn Marion-Jermaine O'Neal trade) and the compulsory $16 million trade exception created by the imbalanced trade. The Raptors can use all or part of that trade exception in an unbalanced trade of their own any time in the next year, even as the team is over the salary cap.
For Bosh, the sign-and-trade agreement allows him to ink a six-year contract for upwards of $120 million. New teammate LeBron James won't likely be so lucky; the Cleveland Plain Dealer's Brian Windhorst reports that while the Heat have asked for the Cavaliers' cooperation on a sign-and-trade for James, it remains unlikely the jilted franchise will take part.
If Bosh gets a sign-and-trade and LeBron does not, it'd be likely -- depending on what salary each player signs for -- James would end up being the least expensive member of Miami's star trio from next season until their contracts end. Bosh and incumbent Dwyane Wade would be eligible for annual raises equivalent to 10.5 percent of their first-year salary; James' annual raise would be limited to 8 percent of the starting salary. For James, the situation is nothing new: throughout his seven-year career, he's never been the highest-paid player for the Cavaliers. That distinction has fallen to Zydrunas Ilgauskas (2004-05), Larry Hughes (2006-7), Ben Wallace (2008-09) and Shaquille O'Neal (2010).
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