Hedo Turkoglu’s shorter than expected and particularly unsuccessful stay in Toronto looks like it will be over very soon. A deal is currently being made that would send the unhappy forward to Phoenix, and in return Toronto would get the guard Leandro Barbosa and possibly the journeyman guard Dwayne Jones.

Turkoglu, who recently turned 31, was on television in his home country Turkey last month, and he talked about how desperate he was to leave Toronto after completing only a single season of the 5 that was originally agreed to in his $53-million contract that he put his signature to last summer.

In fact, Turkoglu is apparently so eager for this deal to go through that he is not only prepared to waive more than $5 million of a trade kicker inherent in his contract, but also to lower the earnings which he is guaranteed on the final and fifth year of his deal ($12 million in 2013-14).

Last season the giant 6 foot 10 inch forward averaged just 11.3 points per game. This was a poor performance considering that he scored 16.8 points a game in the previous season with his former club Orlando Magic. In contrast, he had had some fantastic moments in Orlando, such as his last second winner against the Celtics when the basketball scoreboards showed 93-93.

Many Raptors fans are supporting the move. As one fan explained, the Turk’s attitude throughout the season really seemed to drag the team down, and his lack of form was a big reason why the Raptors flopped last season. Also, giving a 5 year contract to a player who is over 30 was perhaps not the best idea.

However, even Raptors fans still recognize that he is a great player, but for one reason or another Toronto is just not the place for him. “He probably didn’t like 5 months of snow,” one fan commented. “I do still think he is worth a lot of money, and I reckon that he will do great in Phoenix.” If all goes through, the Suns will have at their disposal a combination of the play-making ability of Turkoglu and the athleticism of Childress, who is also making his way to Phoenix next year, on a 5 year $34 million deal. With the Phoenix Sun’s star Steve Nash ageing, Turkoglu will take some of the pressure off him to be the attacking playmaker.

Barbosa, 27, had problems with injuries last season, and he averaged just 9.5 points, which is a big drop from 2008-09 when he averaged 14.2 points. The Brazilian guard hit a career-high of 18.1 points per game in 2006-07, but since then his scoring average has steadily declined each season. As part of the deal they could get the playmaker in Barbosa with only a one-year commitment, which would be financially advantageous for the Raptors.

For more information about Hedo Turkoglu go to: wikipedia