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OT: The Official Toronto Raptors Thread

Booker should get some credit for using his body to create that play too. Looked like a hard pick he laid out for his size.
 
Lost in blaming Paul George for missing 2 free throws...and he should be blamed. How in the fuck is Zubac not protecting the rim on that play? Why is he all the way out there forcing himself to chase Ayton? Wanna know why you dont see this play alot to end a game? Because it's literally the first thing any coach says to not let the fuck happen.
 
MindzEye said:
Yeah, there's no generational type prospects in this draft, but a lot of really good prospects. Reminds me of 2014 (in retrospect, I'll admit that I was on the Wiggins is a fucking stud prospect train) where 5 of the top 7 had some level of All-Star type talent or 2010 where 6 of the top 10 turned into really good starters or better.

The guy I'm seeing at the 4 in most mocks is Suggs and I don't know how to feel about him. I usually want to see elite shot making out of a guard who isn't an elite athlete and Suggs is a good shooter but just good. But after watching 2 undersized guards turn into little monsters over the last bunch of years, it's hard to not see a lot of FVV in Suggs. Do you take a 6'3-6'4 version of FVV at the 4 spot knowing that his ceiling is probably limited to "just" being an all star? Has eye popping analytics....but so do 3 of the other Gonzaga starters.

Scottie Barnes might answer the age old question of what OG would look like if he was a fluid athlete with handles (also known as an athletic Draymond Green) but I think he'll be a somewhat limited scorer at the NBA level that just makes every team he's on better. Don't know if I could take him with the better offensive (and still profiling as plus defensive) Suggs on the board, or the hyper athlete with every physical tool in Kuminga.

Kuminga is really easy to get excited about, probably the best athlete in the draft. Jumps clean out of the gym, fast, 7 foot wingspan. Has some handles and the ability to beat players 1 on 1. Shooting is a major concern right now but he's really similar to what Pascal was at 23 if Pascal was a top tier, dunk all over your face athlete. Young as hell, doesn't turn 19 until October. If we're trying to hit a home run, this is the guy.

If for some reason the draft doesn't go Cade-Mobley-Green, you take Jalen Green then scream and clap like a small child who just got offered ice cream. Same thing if it's Mobley who drops to #4, turn your phone off, take no calls from any other front office to the league and push Adam Silver onto the stage immediately.

Suggs left on the board and this gets way more complicated imo. Trade down and get Kuminga and trust your development program (top 3 in the league easy) to turn this kid into a stud?

Best/Likeliest case scenarios:

Cade - The modern game's version of Ray Allen if he was 6'8 and played defence/6'8 Devin Booker
Mobley - Skinny Anthony Davis/relatively well fed Chris Bosh
Green - Bradley Beal with 40 inch hops/Zach Lavine
Suggs - CJ McCollum but actually defends things/ 6'3 FVV
Barnes - Athletic Draymond/OG
Kuminga - Better in every way than the best Pascal we've ever seen/Aaron Gordon
Click to expand...

Great post as usual

I will be shocked if Suggs moves in the top 3

Cavs have a loaded backcourt, Mobley goes there IMO

Kuminga might be the Raps pick the way they value high ceiling talent

I have no issue with Suggs either , a bigger Lowry / Billups type

The thing is whoever we draft is in the best position of all the top picks , no pressure to come in and be a saviour or produce immediately .

Top notch draft/development machine , combined with a vet core gives player X the right path to success .
 
The Athletic has a split decision

Suggs getting to No. 4 would be a home run for the Raptors. His mixture in between Fred VanVleet in the backcourt and OG Anunoby on the wing would be tremendous due to his athleticism and creativity. He can put legitimate pressure on the rim in a way that few others in this class can, which is something the Raptors could use. He also has the high-energy defensive mindset that Nick Nurse loves when he’s locked in. And while he keeps working out his jumper — which isn’t bad, it just needs some time to work its way into consistency — the Raptors would really be able to space the floor around him. All around, a really good spot for them. If Suggs falls, it’s a win. If Green falls, he’s a similar high-level athlete who can attack. If it’s Mobley at No. 4, it fills their biggest positional need at center. Great night for the Raptors.


with the local beat writer opting for Barnes
Barnes projects as a hyper-versatile defensive weapon who fits beautifully with the Raptors’ existing core. Hollinger went so far as to say he “could easily end up the best player in this draft.” My hesitation with Suggs over Barnes — I would have taken Mobley or Green if they’d fallen — is that the playoffs continue to highlight how event-creation on the perimeter is at a premium. But Barnes projects as a monster defensively, and he’s shown enough offensively in the open court and with strong finishing that you can get past the limited explosiveness.

Yeah, it’s slightly off-board relative to consensus, but when have the Raptors bent to dogma?
 
Can't take Barnes at the 4 spot man. He's very strong offensively in transition, but in the half court he's not much and without what I see as the tools to become much. Something that we should have learned from our story arc is that you win in the playoffs in the half court, transition buckets are harder and harder to come by. You need to be able to execute in the last 5 minutes of games against very good defensive teams. They're not giving you run outs like that. It was the real difference between us with Kawhi (both before and after) and without. We had someone so efficient in the half court that it left FVV and Kyle open more often up top, it allowed Pascal to never see a double team in his face up isolation game. Just made everyone better.
 
They all kind of scare me tbh.

But i have to remind myself that this is a rare case where every single one of those guys is still a teenager.
 
It feels like Suggs to me, unless Houston takes him, cause with Sexton there the Cavs aint taking Suggs. Cleveland fits so well for Green.

I lean not getting cute with anyone outside of the top 4. If in year 5 you get burned and Kuminga is a beast so be it, but that kid is so raw.
 
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