It has officially been made official. Luis Scola signed his one-year deal with the Toronto Raptors, the team announced on Wednesday. The Argentinian big man was never the Raptors top target but he became the perfect plan C or, D or, E. It does not really matter. The fact is Scola is exactly what the Raptors needed for the short-term. Let’s just call him the perfect plan C+.

Plan A was the obvious: LaMarcus Aldridge. When it was announced at the beginning of July that the Raptors were part of Aldridge’s list of teams to meet with it had people smiling and nodding their heads. The newly signed San Antonio Spur was one of the rare, maybe the first ever big name free agents to grant the Raptors a free agent meeting. Aldridge was always a long-shot to sign with the Raptors but just receiving permission to meet with the big man was a victory for the franchise. It was short-list of free agent big men this summer and Aldridge was easily the perfect fit to fill the Raptors void at the power forward positon. The meeting reportedly went “well” but Aldridge was a great fit for many other teams as well.

Plan B was probably a veteran like David West. Though, West’s intentions became clear to everyone when he too signed with the Spurs. As an experienced veteran West turned down $12 million only to get $1.4 million with the Spurs and a chance at an NBA Championship ring.

After Aldridge and West the Raptors options were limited. Kevin Love seemed to show no interest in leaving Cleveland, and if he did his love would be towards his hometown Los Angeles Lakers or another big market team. Other big name big men in this year’s free agent class were centers and with Jonas Valanciunas already in the picture the Raptors showed no interest towards those players.

Then the possibilities come to the next tier of players such as, Tobias Harris and Paul Millsap. Those were two guys that seemed to have never made the Raptors list. Which could be due to their asking price and the Raptors being tied up in salary cap, or simply lack of interest on both ends.  Then it gets even uglier for Masai Ujiri and the Raptors. Amar’e Stoudemire became an option but with an already lack of front court depth on the roster the Raptors could not risk anything with Stoudemire’s past health issues. Carlos Boozer is another veteran option but he still being a free agent speaks to his value in the NBA.

With the list small and many names crossed off the list (or never even on the list) Ujiri had to look somewhere the rest of the league was not. Making Scola the perfect short-term solution. He has played 82-games in five of eight NBA seasons, two of which came prior to this past season where he fell one game shy of that mark. The 35-year old has proven throughout his career he can stay healthy which will be pivotal for the Raptors lack of front-court depth. Scola has also played in 37 career playoff games so his leadership and experience will be similar (just not quite as great) to what Paul Pierce brought the Washington Wizards this past year. His grit and willingness to do whatever it takes to win will make up for his lack of offense.

Ujiri could have made the simple phone call to Amir Johnson. The 10-year veteran had spent six seasons with the Raptors before signing his off-season contract with the Boston Celtics. Johnson adores the city of Toronto and he was a clear fan favourite. To both sides it became clear a divorce was needed. It was not Toronto’s fault, nor was it Johnson’s that the perfect relationship had to end. Simply, the Raptors needed to go in a different direction.

Head coach Dwane Casey has not named Scola the starting power forward for the upcoming 2015-16 season. Patrick Patterson could be the one to fill that void for a season with Scola coming off the bench. Stretch four big men are becoming a beloved commodity in the NBA and Patterson certainly fits that role. Casey could also play top free agent signee DeMarre Carroll at the four or James Johnson, who saw limited time there last season when the Raptors went small, which was rare. Casey only used one small-ball lineup on the court this past season and it was for all of 29-minutes over the span of 10-games. It was a lineup of; Kyle Lowry, Greivis Vasquez, Lou Williams, James Johnson and Patrick Patterson. Even the Atlanta Hawks never used Carroll at the four this past season. That all may need to change with the Raptors.

Entering this summer change was needed for the Raptors. Ujiri went out and got defensive players to help the 23rd ranked defensive team. Scola on a one-year deal is fine for now. Next summer Ujiri can try again to find the long-term power forward for this franchise. He’ll have two first-round picks and the 2016 class of free agents is better than this years. This summer was only a small challenge for Ujiri. Next year Valanciunas and Terrence Ross become free agents, along with the reports that DeMar DeRozan plans to opt-out of his current contract. Ujiri could have more holes to fill than just finding himself one big man.

The moves made Ujiri this summer, on paper, look fantastic. The team’s defense looks to be heading in the right direction. Ujiri didn’t panic when the power forward list got thin. He made the most of what he had and Scola, for now, is the perfect plan C+.