FanHouse Amir Johnson

Every Tuesday this offseason, two of our NBA experts will go at it with a Debate in the Paint. This week, the topic is the Toronto Raptors, and whether they are moving toward being contenders in the East.

The Raptors have been the summer's most active team, with Bryan Colangelo moving from high-profile moves like Jason Kapono-for-Reggie Evans to trade-Tourette's yawners like Marcus Banks-for-Matt Carroll. (That last one is still a rumor.) As of today, Toronto will begin 2009-10 with exactly three players who began last season on the roster (Chris Bosh, Andrea Bargnani, Jose Calderon).

But not all change is good change. Is this change good change? In my opinion, yes ... and it will vault Toronto toward the East's upper strata.

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Follow the logic train on this one.

Toronto needs defense and rebounding, since Andrea Bargnani, as talented as he is, lacks the toughness of say, an ostrich. They also need to clear 2010 space since The Big Twittermental, Chris Bosh, is going to have his share of offers. The Bucks have Amir Johnson, with $3.6 million expiring contract.

Milwaukee needs some flexibility at the wing, since Michael Redd spends more time on the shelf than Gigli. They also need some cheap backup point options, in case this whole Ramon Sessions thing doesn't go down. Toronto has Carlos Delfino (in a sign-and-trade possibility), and Roko Ukic.

Let's make a deal! Eventually!

Detroit has been rumored to be interested in a few power forwards to back up big free-agent signing Charlie Villanueva, all odd ducks with some flavor of a wacky game. There was "Big Baby" Glen Davis, a thick shooter with a personality vacillating between child and swag. Or Drew Gooden, the ultra-confident post player with a million bizarre hair decisions.

But according to ESPN's Chad Ford, the Pistons went with 26-year-old dunker Chris Wilcox, who spent last season between Oklahoma City and New York. Ford reports Detroit will pay Wilcox $6 million over two seasons, which tells me the Pistons don't really want to wait around on Eastern contention, despite the relatively young core of the team.

The last time Ersan Ilyasova ran about in a Bucks jersey, he served as the youngest member of Milwaukee's power forward hydra under Terry Stotts and Larry Krystowiak in the 2006-07. A slender 19-year-old straight out of Munch's The Scream, Ilyasova shared time with Charlie Villanueva, affable Brian Skinner and the laughable Dan Gadzuric, all along with then sophomore Andrew Bogut. The Bucks were not good, and frankly Ilyasova was not good.

After that two-year NBA stint (with the first year being spent entirely on the roster of the D-League Tulsa 66ers -- yes, a great international teenaged player spent a formative year barnstorming Fort Wayne and Albuquerque; it truly is a credit to the D-League that no one laughs about this, and puts into perspective how little Fort Wayne is different from, say, Bloomington), Ilyasova took a two-year contract in Spain.

He did well there, and always maintained a relationship with the Bucks, even though the front office of the Bucks underwent a power shift. And lo! the Bucks and Ilyasova have decided they were meant for each other, and Ersan (now a mature 22) will play in Milwaukee next season.

Just hours after being traded from the Spurs to the Bucks, Fabricio Oberto is reportedly on the move yet again, this time going to the Detroit Pistons in exchange for Amir Johnson. The deal has yet to be officially announced by either team, but multiple outlets, including Sean Deveney of Sporting News, who broke the story, and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, cite unnamed sources within the Bucks organization confirming the deal. (Update: It's official.)

As if being traded twice in one day wasn't enough, Oberto should probably wait by the phone; his contract is only partially guaranteed, meaning the Pistons have the option of waiving him before July 1 and only be on the hook for $1.9 million of the $3.8 million he'd otherwise be owed.

Every night there are some stupendous, silly, stupid, or downright outlandish individual lines from around the "lig." Doing Lines lets you know which one tops the list.

Vinny Del Negro needs to stop watching X-Files before games. How little does the Notorious V.D.N. trust his bench? He basically played a six-man rotation Tuesday against the Pistons, with seventh man Lindsey Hunter and burning man Tim Thomas each getting four minutes off the bench beyond Brad Miller's 23.

Derrick Rose missed his first game of the season with a bruised wrist. Kirk Hinrich filled in well, scoring 24 points (on 23 FGAs) and totaling eight assists. Tyrus Thomas was a beast for Chicago, with 18 points, 12 rebounds, five assists, a block and a steal.

A report from the Palace of Auburn Hills, where the Pistons faced the Rockets on January 25.

As the Pistons muddle along trying to figure out how best to use their surplus of perimeter players, an unfortunate consequence has been the mishandling of their talented frontcourt.

Rasheed Wallace's numbers have taken a dive after he's been overused and left on an island defensively, and players like Amir Johnson and Jason Maxiell have had their roles change drastically from one game to the next.

A report from the Palace of Auburn Hills, where the Pistons faced the Mavericks on January 23rd.

When Michael Curry went from smallball (featuring three guards and Tayshaun Prince playing out of position at power forward) back to a more traditional lineup, the question on everybody's mind was how Rip Hamilton or Allen Iverson would handle being bumped to the bench.

Everyone, that is, except Curry himself. "I wasn't worried about if Rip wanted to come off the bench or Allen wanted to come off the bench. We just made a decision on what gives us the chance to be at our best," Curry said while announcing the move earlier this week.

Michael Curry announced the end of smallball in Detroit, revealing to reporters following today's practice that he's decided to replace Rip Hamilton from the starting lineup in favor of a traditional power forward. Amir Johnson will get the nod on most night, but Kwame Brown will be used against bigger opponents.

Rasheed Wallace will continue to man the middle, while Tayshaun Prince, who had been playing out of position at the four, will be allowed to shift back to his natural position of small forward. Rodney Stuckey and Allen Iverson will start in the backcourt. The move should reap immediate benefits for the Pistons, who have struggled to adequately rebound and defend with the undersized three-guard lineup.

Elie Seckbach, the Embedded Correspondent, brings his exclusive video reporting to FanHouse. Check back regularly for more videos.

Trevor Ariza is one of six NBA players who have come out of Westchester High School in Los Angeles. In this video, he talks about his days at Westchester, where he won two state titles. We also learn that teammate Kobe Bryant visited the school when Trevor was a student, and talk to longtime coach Ed Azzam.

Check out the video after the jump.