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OT: The Official Toronto Raptors Thread

MindzEye said:
I've been fucking saying, this whole fucking time about this tanking bullshit.
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It’s a lottery and your teams balls are controlled by ping pong balls

Like you said before the team with the previous core ran its course and changes had to be made

Injuries derailed any attempt to see what we have to work with .

The real test starts this summer
 
MindzEye said:
And yeah, there was no one other than maybe Flagg in this draft who were program changers and I'm not even convinced Flagg is. The difference to this team's future between drafting 7th, or 9th is nothing. It's the difference between Maluach or Queen.

Fwiw, I want Asa Newell at the 9 spot I think. He's this year's Kel'el Ware imo.


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQ9ALI7-OEE
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Bingo 7th to 10th take your pick , but the Raps do an excellent job of drafting and developing

Flagg is the top pick but he isnt changing your program overnight like a Wemby , Bron , etc…

Flagg is changing your teams hype machine and will sell tickets which helps for a few years

I am convinced 5 years from now he won’t be the best player in this draft
 
MindzEye said:
The misunderstanding is that they weren't tanking until freak injuries turned it into a tank. I said this shit during training camp, no starting 5 with Jake, Scottie, RJ and IQ on it is a tanking 5. That was a middle of the road starting 5 even with an unknown at SF and that's more or less how it turned out. Masai said what he said during training camp, but that was about managing expectations, no putting pressure on the young guys, etc.

We've seen for the second year in a row how hilariously dumb it is to tank. Atlanta moves up 13 spots and now Dallas 10...fucking San Antonio moves up 6 spots to get the only other franchiseish level prospect in this draft. Philly probably going to find out if Ace Bailey is a bust or not (I lean yes) at the 3. Imagine being Washington bad, on purpose, and adding Kon Kneuppel to your core and thinking that this wasn't a waste of everyone's time?

Take Asa Newell, he's probably going to be a decent or better starter eventually, add a POA defender and a veteran shooter either by trade or free agency, and let's fucking go. I have no problem with some good, free range organic year over year organizational improvement to get where we're trying to go.
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Excellent post , this is a reboot on the fly with younger players
 
Fwiw, here's my board for the #9 pick

I'm going to leave out the 7 guys I'm seeing as consensus to be gone by the 9 pick. None of these guys drop in a single mock that I've seen: Flag, Harper, Bailey, Edgecombe, Johnson, Fears, Knuppel.

I'll probably reshuffle this board a bit after the combine measurements come in, and keep in mind that one of these guys is likely to go 8th:

1) Asa Newell
Good: Long, fairly good athlete for 6'11, good motor, good jump shot mechanics and FT% that suggest a stretch big is in there.
Okay: The defensive tools speak louder than their in game impact so far
Bad: A little light for the 5, the rebounding suffers at times
Upside Comp: Bigger Nic Claxton with a spot up 3

2) Jase Richardson
Good: Super high IQ combo guard who can shoot from everywhere.
Okay: Not a POA defender, but probably profiles as an average or better defender overall
Bad: Okay but only okay athleticism despite his father being a legendary dunk off champion
Upside Comp: A 2-way Lou Williams

3) Kasparas Jakucionis
Good: Before a forearm injury cratered his shooting in the 2nd half, he was a lights out shooter. Big Euro lead guard with great handles, good size, good IQ
Okay: He's an average athlete at best, but very fluid, strong, coordinated. Kind of makes up for the lack of explosiveness
Bad: Incredible passer who needs to calm the fuck down with the ball. Very turnover prone.
Upside Comp: Austin Reaves

4) Khaman Maluach
Good: Fucking massive. Like, similar proportions to Wemby massive, but at 250. Could easily turn into a legit defensive anchor around the rim a la Gobert
Okay: Offensive game is limited. He's maybe a roller and finisher on the PR at most. There's not a lot of feel for the offensive side of the ball
Bad: Life is good as a Duke seal clubber, but when he ran into better competition he struggled a lot. Got pushed around under the rim a lot despite being huge
Upside Comp: Gobert with less rebounding

5) Derik Queen
Good: Incredible hands and feet, crazy passing for a big. Legit potential for a jokic/sengun/sabonis style offensive engine big here
Okay: The shooting form is fine from 15 feet in, so he has a middy....but I don't see any shooting coach adding a stretch element to his game. B
Bad: His physical projection is just not good. Seems a bit clumsy despite having spectacular footwork. Have a hard time seeing what he's going to defend in the modern NBA
 
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