Raptors Discussion: v52 | Yep...

[Giuseppe Sallo]

Looks like Ujiri is gonna blow it up I assume, Casey being back is just asinine. I don't get it.

Why not Mark Jackson? I thought he did well with GS. Might as well get Aubrey Graham to Coach this team since he's everywhere.

 

[Hyperglide]

Don't want General Sieveus back at any cost. Guy is a scrub. Need a better back up that doesn't chuck. Amir and TRoss need to GTFO too. Then get a better coach then Casey. Those were our weak points if you ask me. Also, need to get James Johnson more involved in the game and 2Pat needs to play less. Guy is a good stretch 4 but is pretty soft just like Amir. We get beat badly down low cause of our PF's and Centers who are soft too..

I wish we had a guy like Oaktree. Man those were the days. Him and Willis were boss.

 

[Joey24]

Crazy lucky shot by Pierce... talk about a horse shoe up his @ss.

Lebron imo saved the Cavs season with that buzzer beater. That could be a dagger for the bulls, though I have a lot of faith in that team bouncing back.

Clippers finally look like they are legit, If they stay healthy they will be hard to beat, even Golden state will have problems with these guys. The clips seem hungry and it's about time.

 

[hockeywiz542]

 

[HEAVY DUTY]

wow, raptors are taking the randy carlyle treatment route eh? lol.

 

[Joey24]

wow, raptors are taking the randy carlyle treatment route eh? lol.

In all honesty casey did coach them to the best season in team history. I see his flaws also but i see the reasons to bring hom back. The pressure is all on masi to improve this team through fa and trade over the summer.

 

[Swervin81]

This has 2009 written all over it. Now to wait for the equivalent of Jermaine O'Neal trade, Smitch getting fired 20 games in, and O'Neal being flipped for Shawn Marion who helps us win when we're too far behind.

 

[Del Preston]

I don't understand bringing Casey back. Is it possible ownership isn't allowing Masai to fire him this quick into Casey's contract, which iirc was worth quite a bit? I don't know how MLSE operates.

 

[Dr.Funk]

Very disappointng

 

[William Hylander]

As I said before a good ole singing of "Fire Casey" in the ACC. That's how you get rid of him. I'm not down for giving Casey a second chance, his minute distribution is laughable and for a defensive coach he wasn't able to reproduce results of last years good defensive team.

 

[Cor]

Masai's first mistake, and it's seemingly detrimental to the team contending.

We have a good core, but changes need to be made.

- Lowry needs to not have the ball off the final inbound when we need a bucket to tie/win.
- James Johnson desperately needs to be used more
- Amir needs to go
- JVal needs to play late in games. He has the ability to dominate in the paint offensively. I get he has issues d wise, but he'll only improve by playing the minutes. Having JJ on the court more, will help as well.
- Ideally, we upgrade at the 4. Use TRoss as bait if we need to.

 

[Swervin81]

Our assistants might go? Keep Sterner, get rid of the rest

 

[Radiohead]

Ideally, we upgrade at the 4. Use TRoss as bait if we need to.

You're not gonna catch much fish with him as bait.

 

[KapG]

Honestly all I can do at this point is shake my head...

 

[Stats01]

In all honesty casey did coach them to the best season in team history. I see his flaws also but i see the reasons to bring hom back. The pressure is all on masi to improve this team through fa and trade over the summer.

Well keeping Casey guarantees that this team is getting some massive changes because if it doesn't...then we basically have the same team heading into next season and we all know that's both unacceptable and not happening. You absolutely cannot have the same coach and basically the same team together after getting embarrassed in the playoffs..Changes somewhere have to be made. I'm disappointed Casey is coming back but he probably has 1 more chance to get this team where it needs to go or he's out the door too. Can't wait to see what kind of changes are in store. Let's go Masai, let's see what you got.

 

[Budsfan]

Potential Trade Targets

http://www.raptorsrepublic.com/2015/05/12/potential-trade-targets/

TYLER ENNIS (Milwaukee)

The Raptors were famously set to draft Ennis last year at 20 before Phoenix snatched him up two spots before that. Ennis was basically an insurance policy if Eric Bledsoe ended up not re-signing, but then the Suns went out and signed another insurance policy in Isiaah Thomas, pushing Ennis even farther down the depth chart.

A trade to Milwaukee at mid-season did give Ennis a little more playing time, but he was still stuck behind a young point guard who was entrenched in the starting lineup, as well as the more experienced Jerryd Bayless. It didn’t help that Ennis struggled.

To be honest, there’s not a whole lot in his advanced stats to point to in order to make a case for Ennis. He shot poorly, turned the ball over a lot and struggled adjusting to the speed of the NBA. You really have to go back to what you saw before this season to see why Ennis might be a good gamble.

When Ennis started his season at Syracuse, he was not a heralded prospect and not a whole lot was expected of him. But despite being a freshman, Ennis lead Syracuse to a 28-6 record, which included a 25-0 start to the season, and was a semi-finalist for the Naismith College Player of the Year. He plays with a maturity beyond his years (his father is a coach) and is the rare pass-first point guard who understands how to make his teammates better.

Ennis would be a good gamble because he likely wouldn’t cost a whole lot (maybe Terrence Ross, who would be insurance for restricted free agent, Khris Middleton), and chances are good he will make big improvements once he adjusts to the league.

Possible Trade:
Terrence Ross for Tyler Ennis (and possibly Miles Plumlee)

 

[Shimso]

Masai's first mistake, and it's seemingly detrimental to the team contending.

We have a good core, but changes need to be made.

- Lowry needs to not have the ball off the final inbound when we need a bucket to tie/win.
- James Johnson desperately needs to be used more
- Amir needs to go
- JVal needs to play late in games. He has the ability to dominate in the paint offensively. I get he has issues d wise, but he'll only improve by playing the minutes. Having JJ on the court more, will help as well.
- Ideally, we upgrade at the 4. Use TRoss as bait if we need to.

Also:
-Don't use the same end of quarter play in every single quarter
-Call timeouts to stop opponent runs, not to give the opponents a break because they've gotten tired from up and down the court scoring so much
-Force other teams to matchup against you instead of constantly chasing after what they're doing

 

[Joey24]

Potential Trade Targets

http://www.raptorsrepublic.com/2015/05/12/potential-trade-targets/

I have a feeling they are going to keep Ross, play him off the bench backing up Demar.

Some of the free agents I wouldn't mind seeing:

SF:
Draymond Green - high energy does everything well type player. Will have lots of interest in him and will get paid.

Jeff Green - Jeff has solid size, he's athletic, can shoot and keeps the defense honest. would be a solid option for anyone.

Tobias Harris (My favorite) I just love this guys game, he doesn't excel at anything really but he does everything so well. He's still young and brings a lot of what Toronto is looking for to the table. Solid rebounding, shoots the 3, good passer, can handle the ball well, plays with effort, solid defensive player. great length at 6'9. I hope Harris is a Toronto Raptor next season.

Luol Deng - Loul is what he is, he's not the player he once was but he's still has a lot to offer. He may be more suited in coming off the bench now in a 6th man roll but for a team like Toronto who has nothing in the SF spot he would still be an easy upgrade.

Demarr Carroll - Carroll is probably the hardest working player in the league. good size, good rebounding numbers and can shoot the lights out. Plays both ends of the floor with high energy (would be my 2nd option).

For a starting SF spot these are the legit targets. I have a feeling we will end up with someone like Deng, but hopefully Harris is the guy we can sneak out of Orlando.

PF:
Aldridge - rumors are starting to creep up he's open to a move from Portland after this latest melt down. Would defiantly be my 1st option but the chances are slim at best imo.

Millsap - Paul is probably the most likely of the big name players we could potentially sign. Does everything well and would be a big improvement over anything we have had since Bosh.

Smith - Josh Smith may have found his way in Houston, but if he signs with a team like the Raptors would he revert back to the player that Atlanta got fed-up with. At the right price he could be a alright option but it depends on what Josh Smith you get. The guy who was so bad he almost found no body who wanted to have him on their team. Or the guy who does everything well, and looks a lot more team orientated now.

West - David is still a great leader, can still drain the mid-range as good as anyone.
He's old tho, has a history of injury and imo may be suited best coming off the bench. IMO that's not likely to happen and I think he could be a legit target for Toronto. who knows how long he's got left tho, 1 year 2 at the most?

Young - Thad played some good ball for Philly and the Wolves. A little undersized but strong. Not what Toronto should be looking at tho, he will have a lot of interested parties around the league.

Thompson - Trist looks ready to break out, he's a solid re-bounder, is a enthusiastic shot blocker and can score. If the Cavs sign Love Thompson will be ripe for the picking, missing out on Milsap would probably make Tristan Toronto's 2nd target imo.

Bass- Probably not the first option for most Toronto fans, but Bass has one of the best mid range shots among PF's in the league. at 6'8 he's undersized but he's a well rounded player, not the strongest re-bounder tho and imo Toronto needs a strong rebounding presence.

Hill - Jordan is one of my favorite players in the league. plays at 100% all the time, not the most gifted player but everything he does is through hard work. Good rim protector, solid re-bounder and decent low post scorer.

C:
Brandan Wright: good rebounding big man, knows his limits offensively, and is an intimidating defensive player. would be a great backup for JV and a great player to learn from.

Kosta Koufos - a great backup center. everything he does kinda goes under the rug, meaning he is effective without really getting noticed. one of the best backup big men in the nba imo.

Kevin Seraphin - pretty decent all round backup. Better then anything Toronto has probably ever had in the backup position.

Emeka okafor - The man of glass. He would have had a great career if not for all the injuries. A defensive beast an elite rim protector a good re-bounder but injury prone. If he's cheap, real cheap he's a great option giving you have enough to sign another capable backup Center for when he goes down. If he stayed healthy you got a amazing player, but chances are he won't. if you could get Okafor for 1.5 or so that would be a big signing, but you would also need to spend on one of the above mentioned backups because chances are...


My ideal roster would be:

C: J-Val - Brandan Wright ( Wright, is imo everything this team has been missing, He's been around, played with some great players and is a good player.)

PF: Millsap/ Patterson ( I would love Aldridge but realistically probably not)

SF: Tobias Harris/ J-Johnson
SG: Demar/ Ross/ Traded player. ( I think moving ross to SG in a backup roll would do him a world of good.)

PG: KL/GV / traded player/ FA signing ( I think GV was limited because of Lou this season. He never had the same control he had the year before, that being said his defensive game is probably more negative to the team then his offense is positive. but what else is out there that they could potentially get via trade that is better? Ride him out for another season and take another look in the summer of 2016.

 

[Joey24]

Well keeping Casey guarantees that this team is getting some massive changes because if it doesn't...then we basically have the same team heading into next season and we all know that's both unacceptable and not happening. You absolutely cannot have the same coach and basically the same team together after getting embarrassed in the playoffs..Changes somewhere have to be made. I'm disappointed Casey is coming back but he probably has 1 more chance to get this team where it needs to go or he's out the door too. Can't wait to see what kind of changes are in store. Let's go Masai, let's see what you got.

I agree, I didn't want Casey back either but I understand why it happened. Like I said all the pressure is now firmly on Massy. He's going to have to work some magic or his adoring fans are going to quickly turn rabid. He's in Toronto now luring free agents consist of overpaying and usually past their prime type signing.

That's why I have a feeling our big signing is going to be David West, good player but not the same guy he once was. Massi is realy going to have to hit a home-run and not leave any room for Casey to say I never had the players I needed to win.

It will be an interesting summer. I also have the feeling it's going to be a frustrating summer.

 

[Suntouchable13]

I agree, I didn't want Casey back either but I understand why it happened. Like I said all the pressure is now firmly on Massy. He's going to have to work some magic or his adoring fans are going to quickly turn rabid. He's in Toronto now luring free agents consist of overpaying and usually past their prime type signing.

That's why I have a feeling our big signing is going to be David West, good player but not the same guy he once was. Massi is realy going to have to hit a home-run and not leave any room for Casey to say I never had the players I needed to win.

It will be an interesting summer. I also have the feeling it's going to be a frustrating summer.

I don't think so. 2 straight playoff appearances, they still appear to be on the rise, great fan base (I am sure other players have noticed), and a great city. Toronto is more of a destination now than it ever was for NBA players, or at least it should be. Toronto has a lot of things going for it.

 

[Joey24]

I don't think so. 2 straight playoff appearances, they still appear to be on the rise, great fan base (I am sure other players have noticed), and a great city. Toronto is more of a destination now than it ever was for NBA players, or at least it should be. Toronto has a lot of things going for it.

You think it's more attractive now then the exposure it had with Vince Carter? Carter at one time was pretty close to elite of NBA Stars, and they couldn't entice any big names to come to Toronto then, I personally don't see much changing unless they get paid or are at the end and still get paid..

Here is a question how would people feel if we came away from free agency with:

1: SF -Luol Deng
2: PF - David West

would you guys be excited or disappointed? Both are still good players and there is lot's of experience there but West has 1 maybe 2 years left. Deng is tailing off and probably at this stage will be a good roll player off the bench but a fringe starter imo.

These are the two guys I realistically see us having a shot at. Toronto never seems to be able to land the big fish, newish GM, completive team for the most part, lots of cap space but at the end probably still unable to entice elite talent to come here.

I am not trying to be negative but you see people bring up guys names like Aldridge, Love etc over the course of the season, Al Horfort, Paul Millsap etc etc. the reality of it is we haven't landed a true star free agent ever have we? I just can't really recall and that's probably a pretty good indication. I will give Massy a shot tho, but I won't hold my breath and I hope the rest of u raptor fans don't either.

 

[KapG]

West and Deng? Flop of an off season if that's all that happens.

 

[Suntouchable13]

You think it's more attractive now then the exposure it had with Vince Carter? Carter at one time was pretty close to elite of NBA Stars, and they couldn't entice any big names to come to Toronto then, I personally don't see much changing unless they get paid or are at the end and still get paid..

Here is a question how would people feel if we came away from free agency with:

1: SF -Luol Deng
2: PF - David West

would you guys be excited or disappointed? Both are still good players and there is lot's of experience there but West has 1 maybe 2 years left. Deng is tailing off and probably at this stage will be a good roll player off the bench but a fringe starter imo.

These are the two guys I realistically see us having a shot at. Toronto never seems to be able to land the big fish, newish GM, completive team for the most part, lots of cap space but at the end probably still unable to entice elite talent to come here.

I am not trying to be negative but you see people bring up guys names like Aldridge, Love etc over the course of the season, Al Horfort, Paul Millsap etc etc. the reality of it is we haven't landed a true star free agent ever have we? I just can't really recall and that's probably a pretty good indication. I will give Massy a shot tho, but I won't hold my breath and I hope the rest of u raptor fans don't either.

Is it the city or the team? What's wrong with the city? Sure, the weather is chilly in the winter, but so what? Why is it less attractive than any other US city? It's a great city. If rich players can't see that then I am very disappointed. It's just as good as any northern US city, and probably better.

 

[Swervin81]

Is it the city or the team? What's wrong with the city? Sure, the weather is chilly in the winter, but so what? Why is it less attractive than any other US city? It's a great city. If rich players can't see that then I am very disappointed. It's just as good as any northern US city, and probably better.

Just complete misconceptions, falsehoods, and stereotypes are why nobody comes here. They believe that crap. They probably legitimately think people live in igloos here, among all the other crap thrown around. Any and nearly every player that's ever played in Toronto knows it's a world class city, too bad more players don't listen.

 

[Shimso]

Why is why I have no idea how league think they can expand to Mexico and England in the future. If Toronto, a city that is so similar to most big American cities, has so much problems like this, what'll happen to a team in Mexico City or London where the differences are greater?