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Not that it hadn't been said by head coach Sam Mitchell. Not that it wasn't the most likely course to take, anyway.
But just to make sure, Toronto Raptors point guard T.J. Ford made it clear he's all right with coming off the bench and playing with the second unit for the rest of this season.
He's really all right with it.
"No, it doesn't bother me," Ford said yesterday of the prospect of backing up Jose Calderon. "I'm satisfied with my role. Jose did a good job, he's doing a good job as a starter, he should continue to start probably for the rest of the year."
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Ford's comments came the day after a sterling performance in Indiana, where he scored 16 points and added seven assists in 26 minutes as the Raptors won for the fourth time in five games. The night before, he danced around on the floor for 15 points and five assists in 19 minutes against the New York Knicks.
His health is returning and his game sharpness, too, and doubtless he'll be looking to keep finding slow-footed Jason Kapono for layups — the clearest sign possible that Ford makes his teammates better — again tonight when the Raptors play host to the Minnesota Timberwolves.
But ultracompetitive Ford is at peace with his role for the simple reason that he watched the Raptors like everyone else while he was hurt and recognizes that his backcourt counterpart carried the mail and then some.
"At the end of the day, I have been out most of the season," said Ford, who has been the starter since last season before missing 26 games this year with neck, wrist and abdominal injuries. "And where respect is due, it's due. [Jose] played well, he earned [the starting job], he can keep it."
Ford was the last player on the Raptors' practice court after a gruelling individual workout when he addressed the often tiresome topic of which of the Raptors top-flight point guards should be designated the starter, so it wasn't a platitude offered for show — not that Ford is prone to them in the first place.
And Ford's team-first stand will have some immediate benefits — now and in the near future.
The most obvious is that as the clear first-option on the second unit Ford is free to do what he does best — use his other-worldly quickness to push the ball for easy baskets, create open spaces for his teammates and look for his own shot.
Other teams will need two game plans — one for the more structured offerings of Calderon and another to contain the unpredictable attacks by Ford. And since most NBA teams can barely execute one game plan, let alone two, the Raptors can catch teams out.
Consider the Pacers. With Calderon in the game, they trapped him over centre and forced him to give the ball up before he could get the Raptors into their offence. This is an approach that simply doesn't work against Ford, who turns traps and double teams into scrambled eggs.
"Indianapolis definitely tried to make Jose pass the ball early before he could use the pick and make a lot of plays," Ford said. "And then when I was in the game, I'm really not sure what they were doing. They didn't trap early and if they did I got by them. It caused a lot of confusion. It definitely was to our advantage."
With the Raptors playing 19 games in the next 35 days, being able to distribute the minutes will allow both point guards their best chance to be fresh and sharp during the most competitive stretch of the NBA season.
But the real payoff for Ford's sound outlook may come in the off-season and beyond. Whether the arrangement is permanent, Ford's nod of respect to his teammate is a gesture that should resonate with Calderon, who has never chaffed while backing up Ford, as he signs a free-agent deal with the Raptors in the off-season that could come close to matching the four-year, $34-million (U.S.) deal Ford has.
Whatever number Calderon gets, the Raptors will be tying up a lot of money in the point guard position with the belief that 48 minutes of all-star-level play — presuming good health for Ford — at the position will justify the expense.
And it just might. But not if the two men splitting the time struggle to accept the notion that they'll each have to sacrifice to make the platoon approach work.
It's a lot to ask of two proud players entering the prime of their careers. The betting has always been that if Calderon were paid fair value, he'd accept such an arrangement. Ford's comments are the best indication yet that he will, too.
