Chris Bosh wants to stay in Toronto, but the Raptors just aren't giving him enough reasons to do so.

Raptors president and general manager Bryan Colangelo signaled to Bosh the franchise's desire to compete by trading for Jermaine O'Neal and signing Hedo Turkoglu the past two summers, but the moves turned out to be underwhelming. 

"With Hedo," said Bosh in his exit interview, "looking back at it, who wouldn't have thought that signing Hedo and signing Jermaine wouldn't bring instant success? But it didn't work out like that."

Colangelo has already shown that he's serious about contending; he just hasn't shown whether he has the ability to build a team that does that. Bosh was on board with Colangelo's decisions, but now that they've turned out to be mistakes, his faith in the GM's and ownership's ability to put a winning product in Toronto is dwindling. Bosh is at the point in his career where winning is starting to matter more than personal glory, and whether the Raptors can provide that fix is questionable. 

"I want to play in the postseason. I want to advance. I've been playing seven years. It's time to start thinking about stuff like that for me, because I don't know how many years I have left. I know I'm still a young player, but I remember when I got drafted guys were 25, 26, and now they're on their last deals," Bosh said.

If there's one thing to come out of this season, it's the realization that the defensively challenged starting core of Andrea Bargnani, Hedo Turkoglu and Jose Calderon (all tied to long-term contracts) is grossly inadequate, and Bosh is smart enough to know it. If Colangelo decides he wants a shot at keeping Bosh, he must offload at least two of those contracts, bring in nothing short of an All-Star caliber player, and administer a fix to the attitude around the clubhouse.

Perhaps bringing in a head coach who commands immediate respect based on a certified résumé, not just tenure with the organization, will also help.

The deeper question is whether the Raptors should bother applying more quick-fixes or enter an honest rebuilding process. If the latter is the case, Bosh has no reason to stick around and can provide Colangelo with the mutually-beneficial safety net of a sign-and-trade. The rabid Raptors fan base appears to be tired of false hope and would be willing to accept a rebuilding process as long as there's a light at the end of the tunnel, even if it means parting with Bosh.

Bosh is a man who is averse to change and has a comfortable life in Toronto that includes business interests, a vast social circle and the adoration of the fans. 

"To stay or go is a life-altering situation," Bosh said. "I've only changed my life twice. That was going to college and declaring for the league. And now I'm at this point."

He'd much rather win here while being the face of the franchise, but if the GM fails to do enough, he'll be forced to leave in order to win, even if it means playing second fiddle.

Unlike Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady, if Bosh leaves, he won't be seen as the bad guy. Colangelo's got that honor all sewn up.

• For more on the Raptors, check out our TrueHoop Network blog Raptors Republic.

A cap as high as $56.1 million comes as a complete surprise. It still represents a drop of about $1.6 million from the current cap, which translates to a 0.5 percent drop in revenues from last season. But it makes a huge difference for teams that were hoping to use the huge 2010 free-agent market to reverse their franchise fortunes.

Teams that were a little short of being able to offer the full maximum salary to premier free agents will now find themselves with sufficient cap room to do so. Teams that were resigned to letting go of their own free agents to create cap room now have the ability to hang on to a player or two -- signing a free agent and preserving some of their depth at the same time.

Even the capped-out teams benefit from the April 16 announcement. With a higher-than-expected salary cap comes a higher-than-expected luxury-tax threshold. Teams firmly entrenched in luxury-tax territory, such as the Los Angeles Lakers, just saved about $3 million. These teams might now be more willing to spend their midlevel exceptions this summer.

• Larry Coon breaks down the teams that will benefit the most with the higher cap number.

James

1. LeBron James, Cavaliers
The ongoing buzz surrounding LeBron's foray into free agency this summer has been the loudest in NBA history. Several teams have focused their entire strategy on having a chance to sign him or another superstar on this list.

But will LeBron actually leave Cleveland? The Cavaliers did their part in trying to convince him to stay when they pulled off a deadline deal for Antawn Jamison, who should help give LeBron his best shot at an NBA title.

Still, other teams will make a run at him, offering him a bigger market or more talented teammates.

The New York Knicks and New Jersey Nets were thought to be his biggest suitors, and they'll both have the money to pay him. But both teams are so depleted from a talent standpoint that he might not want to join them. A couple of other teams, including the Miami Heat and Chicago Bulls, also will be far enough under the cap to pay him if he wants to go to a team that already has a superstar (D-Wade) or potential superstar (D-Rose) on the roster. And don't count out the Los Angeles Clippers, who have a lot of talent and the cap room to pay him after their deadline moves.

While I think LeBron ultimately will stay in Cleveland, he will create some thrills and some very worried Cavs fans if he shops around this summer.

Wade

2. Dwyane Wade, Heat
Wade's potential departure hasn't had nearly the same hype as LeBron's, for two reasons: (1) most people in the league believe Wade wants to stay in Miami, and (2) he turned 28 in January, so he's not the young franchise cornerstone LeBron is.

Still, there will be plenty of teams interested in Wade, especially the Chicago Bulls, who will try to court him back to his hometown. But the Heat will use Wade as a recruiter in an attempt to get one or more of the top free agents to come to Miami instead.

• To see all of the top available free agents, check out Chad Ford's complete list.