“I was most impressed with his preparation and the work he put into this leading up to the practices and competition,” Colangelo said of Bosh, who was on the court with Chris Paul, Dwyane Wade, Kobe Bryant and LeBron James in the tense, dying minutes of the gold-medal win over Spain sans Calderon. “I’m really very happy for him. This experience should propel him to another level.”

What that level is remains to be seen, but Bosh showed in the eight U.S. games a tenacity on defence that would be the next step in his evolution as an NBA all-star. Bringing that level of intensity for 38 minutes a game, over an 82-game season, may be asking too much of most NBA players. But the 24-year-old did demonstrate skills he hasn’t shown in his career so far.Colangelo was in close contact with Spanish federation officials from the time Calderon was hurt late in his team’s quarter-final win over Croatia and has been assured the injury should not have any impact when NBA training camps begin late next month. The Raptors have yet to announce their camp dates, but word on the street has them opening drills on Sept.30 at Carleton University in Ottawa.

“Roko played well overall and I received a lot of positive feedback from basketball types that saw the games,” said Colangelo, who didn’t see as much of Ukic as he did Bosh and Calderon.

- Toronto Star 

During his three-year run in the NBA, Calderon has handled the press beautifully, sidestepping a potential controversy with former teammate T.J. Ford over the starting point guard spot. Until recently, his conduct on-and-off court had been exceptional.

Something chaned at the Olympics, though. During Sunday’s final, Calderon and his teammates protested every call, which led to two fourth quarter technical fouls. Jay Triano, an assistant coach with Calderon’s own Raptors and game analyst with CBC, criticized Spain’s poor sportsmanship on-air.

Hopefully, the Jose that Toronto knows and loves returns –and soon.

- HoopsVibe 

I don’t care what anyone says, but Humphries is not a viable backup forward (8-10 player) on a team that has 50 win aspirations. I don’t care what anyone says, Moon/Graham are not starters in this league, full stop. I don’t care what anyone says, but Moon/Graham are not viable backup fours on any team in the league. Seriously, to even suggest it exposes your love for the kool-aid.

Many claimed that Bargnani NEEDED time to adjust to the NBA/North American style of play. To that, I say bullocks! IF you take someone with the # 1 overall pick, that person MUST be able to hit the ground running, as in, they get drafted, go through summer league/training camp, play a couple regular season games, and BOOM…tangible results. Anything less, and you made the wrong decision.

Can we expect more of the same from Bargnani? I think so. Is there hope for the guy? Sure, there is hope. Will we see a surge in production? Maybe, but I don’t know, no one really does, and that is the unfortunate part of this. After picking him over other better players, and spending millions of dollars in training, salary, lost opportunities, the Raptors still don’t know what they have in the guy, and from this view, they don’t know what to do with him.

- RaptorsTalk 

While winning a gold medal and helping the U.S. regain its lustre on the international stage should be applauded, they mean very little when it comes to the NBA and the Raptors.

This notion that Bosh will somehow benefit from playing at a high level is utter nonsense.

The international game, from its coaching, culture and competitors, is as far from the NBA experience as the distance from Toronto to Beijing.

He’ll say all the right things, but no one is going to remember his role in helping the U.S. defeat Spain.

No one is going to confuse Roko Ukic for Jason Kidd, Will Solomon for LeBron James or Hassan Adams for Kobe Bryant.

When surrounded by great players, Bosh continues to show that be belongs on the same floor.

What Bosh needs is to get mean, get his elbows in a defender’s face, make the right decision out of double teams and learn from Jermaine O’Neal, who means more to the Raptors franchise player than any Spanish conquest or Olympic glory.

Assuming he stays healthy and assuming he accepts being the second option, O’Neal will take Bosh’s game to that all-important next level and perhaps the Raptors will get out of the first round.

- Toronto Sun 

Meantime, here’s an All-USA Five, courtesy your faithful correspondent:

F — Dwyane Wade

F — LeBron James

C — Chris Bosh

G — Kobe Bryant

G — Jason Kidd

Bosh showed a defensive hunger and all-court presence that had Toronto Raptors assistant coach Jay Triano, who was working the Games for CBC Television, wondering where that side of Bosh had been and delighting in its unveiling.

- Sports Illustrated 

imagine that everyone has seen the game and I expect that you all enjoyed it. I think that we played a great game but I was left with a bittersweet taste thinking that we could have won, that we can win. We played head to head against the best players in the world, and they had to play as a team to defeat us.

There were a few moments in the second half that I thought we could take the lead and that the game could be ours. It didn’t turn out this way but I think that this impression wasn’t only mine; I am convinced that many others shared these feelings.

Now is not the time to discuss the referees, injuries, absences… but yes, I want to reiterate some things in which I believe: Spain is a team; it has a defined style of playing; whoever plays, plays, in the end everyone brings positive aspects, no cycle has come to an end, but rather we are going to be there fighting for the titles for a long time to come.

Thank you all for your support and your confidence.

- Jose Manuel Calderon