Raptors Discussion: v97 Raptor's 2024-2025 - Training camp begins Oct. 1
- Thread starter The Nemesis
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Leaf Rocket
Leaf Fan Till I Die
Are we gonna get a player like Jimmy Bulter anyway ? Because holy man..this guy is making me love on him more
Gary Nylund
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- Oct 10, 2013
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As hard as it's been to be a Leaf fan over the last 50 years, being a Boston sports fan today is probably worse. First the "historic" Bruin team goes down to the 8th seed, and now the Celtics who were perhaps even bigger favorites is getting eviscerated by another 8th seed. Instead of possibly winning two titles, they're facing historic upsets for both teams.Are we gonna get a player like Jimmy Bulter anyway ? Because holy man..this guy is making me love on him more
I love it! Jimmy Butler is da man!
A1LeafNation
Good, is simply not good enough!
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Leaf Rocket
Leaf Fan Till I Die
He is probably one of the very few people or players that can talk smack and ill be good with around because that man speaks from the heart and gives it all on the floor.
Been watching since his Bulls day and man did I love it when he called out the entire T-Wolves organization saying "YOU NEED ME" and you aren't good enough. They didn't like it, he got traded, and they are still in mediocrity and he's just balling going for it again in the finals.
Playoff Jimmy is real and there are very few who play clutch like this man. Just awesome to see.
God i would love that guy here...but we offer peanuts compared to what the Nuggets have with Jokic, Gordon and Porter Jr.
Gary Nylund
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I remember some story about near the end of his time with the T-Wolves where in a practice, he played with the 2nd stringers and beat the crap out of the starters. Something like that anyway and yeah when you walk the walk, you can talk all you want.
Gonna be interesting to see what they can do in the finals. But as long as they finish off Boston (which they obviously will do), I'm already a winner.
Oh yeah, one more thing. LOL Boston! No make that LMAO Boston.
Surely there are much better candidates??
Leaf Rocket
Leaf Fan Till I Die
I would laugh so hard if Nurse gets hired in Philly...only because of how Embiid literally ripped on him
Leaf Rocket
Leaf Fan Till I Die
Yeap thats the places where he was like YOU GUYS f***ING NEED ME! YOU CAN'T WIN WITHOUT ME.I remember some story about near the end of his time with the T-Wolves where in a practice, he played with the 2nd stringers and beat the crap out of the starters. Something like that anyway and yeah when you walk the walk, you can talk all you want.
Gonna be interesting to see what they can do in the finals. But as long as they finish off Boston (which they obviously will do), I'm already a winner.
Oh yeah, one more thing. LOL Boston! No make that LMAO Boston.
Will wildest NBA coaching cycle in recent memory include Celtics' Joe Mazzulla?
It has become normal for coaches to wear the brunt of failed postseason expectations, but the Celtics could show patience with Mazzulla.
sports.yahoo.com
This is not a standard offseason in the NBA coaching world. Maybe it will mark a true turning point, an era with player salaries soaring so high, the adage of “easier to change the coach” than overhaul a roster reaches new limits. But this rare number of high-profile jobs to lead win-now situations in Phoenix, Milwaukee and Philadelphia has stalled plenty of personnel movement around the league, before factoring in two interesting vacancies in Toronto and Detroit. Not to mention Houston already tapping Ime Udoka as its next bench leader.
It has become so normal for coaches to wear the brunt of failed postseason expectations, with former champions getting axed from the franchises they brought to the promised land so recently, that Boston’s collapse and 3-0 series deficit against Miami in the Eastern Conference finals has sparked plenty of speculation about the future of Celtics rookie head coach Joe Mazzulla.
Boston staffers have shown unwavering support for Mazzulla, a personal favorite of Celtics president Brad Stevens who leap-frogged from behind Udoka’s bench to the first chair after Boston suspended Udoka for the entire 2022-23 season. The sentiment around Boston as recently as last week’s NBA Draft Combine in Chicago, sources said, was that the Celtics would afford Mazzulla, 34, quite a bit of runway to grow into an elevated role on the team’s sideline. Stevens himself was 36 when Danny Ainge anointed the former Butler head coach as Boston’s steward, to the tune of a six-year contract that awarded Stevens all the support and opportunity to develop. If the Celtics suddenly reversed course on Mazzulla, it would be a stark change of direction from the franchise’s original intent to allow Mazzulla similar time to flourish in the position, sources said, even considering Boston’s contending roster as opposed to the rebuild Stevens once inherited.
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The Raptors’ slow search has involved bringing back several candidates for second interviews, sources said, including Kings assistant Jordi Fernandez and Grizzlies assistant Darko Rajaković. Much of the Raptors’ initial meetings have taken place over Zoom, while Toronto sent president Masai Ujiri and general manager Bobby Webster to visit former Raptors assistant Sergio Scariolo in Italy, sources told Yahoo Sports, where he currently serves as the head coach for Virtus Bologna. Atkinson is another name to monitor in the Raptors’ decision-making, sources said.
Toronto is not afraid to make an unconventional hire. The Raptors have already met with former player and current broadcaster JJ Redick and interviewed former Nets head coach and two-time MVP Steve Nash last week during the combine, sources said. While it’s unclear how seriously Nash will be involved in the Raptors’ process moving forward, multiple people familiar with the Hall of Fame point guard have indicated Nash is determined to learn from his shortcomings in Brooklyn, with a strong desire for another opportunity to lead an NBA bench in the future.
Toronto Raptors don't appear to be in any rush to hire a new coach
They Toronto Raptors have interviewed far and wide and expect to have meetings with at least a couple of more coaching candidates before they narrow their list. Don't be surprised if this drags out until the middle of next month.
The Raptors, who think they can win now but still want to take a long view, are by all accounts in no rush. They’ve interviewed far and wide and expect to have meetings with at least a couple of more candidates before they narrow their list.
Yes, former Brooklyn Nets head coach and Canadian men’s national team star Steve Nash did get a formal interview recently and impressed both with his preparation and his apparent determination to get back on an NBA bench after a weird two-plus year run with various mixes of Kyrie Irving, Kevin Durant, James Harden and Ben Simmons to draw up game plans for -- a task made more difficult because none of the stars on the ‘super team’ Nash was hired to coach could stay healthy for any significant length of time.
No, Las Vegas Aces head coach Becky Hammon did not formerly interview with Toronto, though there were conversations. Ultimately the sense was the coach of the defending WNBA champions wasn't in a rush to leave her current role. She is starting a season with a hand-picked team, the richest coaching salary in the history of the league and working for an organization that had just invested $40 million in a world-class practice facility. A recent feature in Time confirmed as much, with Hammon saying: “My happiness is most important … I love being here … I love being back on the women’s side. I don’t need the stamp of approval from the NBA.”
Hammon has denied that she bullied a former player who was pregnant, but she was suspended two games by the WNBA -- though it’s believed both sides had agreed to move on before that news became public.
Yes, the Raptors will consider coaches with current NBA experience, with recently fired Suns head coach Monty Williams on Toronto’s radar.
Yes, long-time Raptors assistant Adrian Griffin remains the leading internal candidate.
No, head coaching experience -- or even coaching experience -- is not required: 15-year NBA veteran and current broadcaster and podcaster JJ Redick remains in consideration after he predictably impressed in his interview.
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If a hire was made in the second or even the third week of the month, it would still leave time for a new coach to get up to speed on the roster-building possibilities heading into draft week.
There are a couple of ways to interpret that: one is the Raptors are zeroed in on some assistants on teams that are still playing – Chris Quinn on the Miami Heat’s staff and David Adelman with the Denver Nuggets have each been linked to the Raptors' opening. Presuming the Heat join the Nuggets in the NBA Finals, that would conceivably leave a decision on either of those candidates until after June 18, if the Finals go seven games.
The other possibility is that Toronto doesn’t feel that one of its preferred candidates is likely to land with one of the other teams looking for coaches, which would lend some credence -- and we are literally reading tea leaves here -- to the idea that the Raptors are thinking outside the box with their next hire.
The one thing that rings true is that the Toronto is determined to hire someone who can be a long-term solution. Ujiri’s patience is perhaps his most identifiable trait during his 13 years as front-office decision maker, and it’s perhaps most evident in how he’s dealt with coaches.
The Iceman
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LaPlante94
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Tbh idk if I want him coaching here but I would like to see him coach somewhere that doesn't include the players he had in Brooklyn. He might be a good coach at least on the offensive side who would need an assistant who can do all the defensive stuff. Would be nice to see him coach some coachable players.
GoonieFace
Registered User
He might actually succeed here where we need a coach, Brooklyn basically needed a babysitter
I mean, he was basically asked to coach a team with multiple known headcases on it...
Leaf Rocket
Leaf Fan Till I Die
saska sault
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Suntouchable13
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Celts are probably the one team that can be the first team to come back from 0-3 down. Talented teams like that usually don't go down 0-3 in the first place, and they can rattle off 4 straight. I say, they at least force game 7
Gary Nylund
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After last night, I'm already paranoid about this happening. Gonna check out the Boston board later, I imagine they're a bit happier today. I didn't read much but I did read a few comments, my favorite was where one guy thought the Celtics were done and he said that the Bruins had a better chance of being reinstated to continue in the NHL playoffs.
Someone else said something about doing a double parade for the Bruins and the Celtics, that was pretty funny too.
Leaf Rocket
Leaf Fan Till I Die
Tatum did do it last series...he was crap first 3 then he was like okay my bad guys its on me I am the best.
This is a fun series.
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