Power Ranking the Toronto Raptors’ Six General Managers

#5: Bryan Colangelo (2006-2013)

Bryan Colangelo is a complicated case for the Raptors, since his career with the team spanned seven years. He made a few great decisions, but unfortunately he also made a heaping of bad ones. One of his moves was so bad that it can be crediting with facilitating the deals that led to the creation of one of the NBA’s strongest teams in recent memory.

In 2008, Colangelo traded Raptors starting point guard TJ Ford and the rights to the 17th pick in the 2008 draft (Roy Hibbert) for Jermaine O’Neal. Obviously, we know now that O’Neal at the time was not worth what Hibbert has become. Regardless, Colangelo brought O’Neal to town to be a strong, veteran influence for the team. Sadly, O’Neal played just 41 games for the Raptors in an injury plagued season.

Colangelo tried to make O’Neal worth something, and opted to trade him to the Miami Heat for a package that included Shawn Marion’s expiring contract. Colangelo used the extra salary cap space opened up by the deal to sign Hedo Turkoglu. This has gone down as one of the worst signings in team history.

The next year, the Heat used the money from O’Neal’s expiring contract to bring LeBron James and Chris Bosh to town. The Heat went on to become absolute powerhouses in the league for four seasons. Thanks Colangelo.

On a positive note, Colangelo did draft DeMar DeRozan and Jonas Valanciunas. Plus, he brought Amir Johnson and Kyle Lowry to town. Unfortunately, he also drafted Andrea Bargnani.