KP, Do you know what you are doing? Turkoglu agrees to deal

Kevin Pritchard, you better know what you are doing!

Update: From NBA.com’s David Aldridge, “A league source divulged late Friday that Portland’s offer to Turkoglu was actually $57 million over five years, not the $50 million that has been reported.”

That would have been insane. Toronto saved Blazers GM Kevin Pritchard from himself. For that, I thank you, Raptors GM Brian Colangelo.

Update: Turkoglu is flying to Toronto to sign a deal. I’ll believe it when a press conference is held and he’s wearing a Raptors jersey, considering Portland thought he’s leave town signed as a Blazer.

Update: According to ESPN.com, Hedo Turkoglu has broken off talks with the Portland Trail Blazers. The Toronto Raptors can apparently offer $6 million more (not per season, but total), and that appears what he will take. What a turn of events! To me, it’s a blessing in disguise.

I’ll keep you updated if the teams confirm this report.

Hedo Turkoglu agreed in principle to a 5-year, $50 million deal with the Portland Trail Blazers. He gives a young team experience, and a scorer that can create for himself and others. He’ll take the pressure off Brandon Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge. With his passing ability, he can defer to both, or, with his scoring ability, can take over, especially late in the game. He’ll also force the Blazers into a bind.

General Manager Kevin Pritchard has been a genius when it comes to drafting. This is his first bold move via free-agency, so with it comes questioning and risks. He just signed a 30-year old for five years, someone who may or may not fit into their system. Prior to this agreement, the Blazers were already a force to be reckoned with. Now, they will need to spent time incorporating him into the offense, and it may cost them early in the season. This move could pay huge dividends, and make Pritchard, once again, look like a genius, but time will tell.

There are varying opinions on this signing. Mine has already been made (here, here, and here), so I’ll let others voice their opinions on the signing of Turkoglu.

Henry Abbot of Truehoop on 95.5 The Game in Portland: “It’s an interesting move… you never love free agency because you take a whole bunch of money and are choosing from a limited menu… given their options, it makes all kinds of sense to me… it makes a ton of sense to me… you’re already spreading the floor with shooters… now Turkoglu can be a second option to take some pressure off Brandon Roy… He has wanted 5 years and 50 million dollars… Portland has agreed to get there or darn close to there…You’ve got to be a teammate, you’ve got to be a winner, you’ve got to be a shooter… almost alone among NBA players that you can plug into the Blazers team and run the same things they’ve been running and just get more efficient scoring.”

The Oregonian’s Jason Quick: “Pritchard and Blazers coach Nate McMillan both rave about Turkoglu’s basketball intelligence, and his ability to run the pick-and-roll. Pritchard said Turkoglu can aptly play three positions – small forward, power forward and some point guard – and that his biggest asset is he makes teammates better.”

Dwight Jaynes: “But I’m surprised that there hasn’t been some concern about his loyalty. His motivation. He’s always been known as a good guy to have on a team but why would a player so quickly seem to want out of a situation like that one [in Orlando]? Is this a team-first guy? What, exactly, are his values?”

Before the agreement, Jaynes had this to say: “But just from the comments in the last few days about Hedo Turkoglu, I have a feeling a lot of Trail Blazer fans are pretty conflicted. Is this really the player who is going to put Portland over the top? Is small forward the position where you felt the most need? Is this a guy you want to see $50 million invested in?”

NBA Roundtable: “I loved the idea of Portland adding Hedo’s passing and playmaking abilities to their side. The combination of Hedo Turkoglu and Brandon Roy together, and with a steady point guard, would allow Portland’s offense great versatility. They’d be able to create and score from anywhere on the court. Very difficult to defend against. Also, Hedo gives good service to his big men, something the Blazers need. They don’t feed Greg Oden anywhere near well enough, and are only mediocre at getting Aldridge good shots.”

John Hollinger, ESPN Insider: “What Portland needs instead is another player who can create off the dribble and take some of the burden off Roy offensively, and that player needs to be able to defend either the 3 or the 1 to fill in the Blazers’ softest lineup spots…Because he is big and can shoot, his game should age well — he’s not overly dependent on his athleticism. Additionally, he allows the Blazers to line up in a way no other free agent does. Because he handles the ball so well, he and Roy can do the ball-handling and allow the Blazers to play large chunks of the game without a true point guard.”

Pritchard may have disgruntled a portion of the Blazers fan base, but at least he vowed not to make any other drastic moves by specifically saying an upgrade at the point guard position “will not be our highest priority.” As Hollinger states, with Turkoglu, they don’t necessarily need a true point guard (though Blake will still get his minutes). Because Turkoglu is so versatile, Kevin Pritchard can stray away from making another risky move and going completely crazy.

Blazers depth chart with Turkoglu, including possible lineups:

• Projected starting lineup: Point Guard-Steve Blake, Shooting guard-Brandon Roy, Small forward-Hedo Turkoglu, Power Forward-LaMarcus Aldridge, Center-Joel Przybilla

• Bench: Point Guard-Jerryd Bayless, Shooting Guard-Rudy Fernandez, Small forward-Nicolas Batum, Power forward-Travis Outlaw, Center-Greg Oden

Or, Fernandez could possibly start at point guard, making Steve Blake his backup, and Jerryd Bayless Roy’s backup. I think this lineup would be the most effective, intriguing, and fun to watch.

Whatever starting lineup the Blazers boast, a team that won 54 games last year and reached the playoffs for the first time since 2003 will have to adjust, all because of Turkoglu.