Three Team Blockbuster Trade Rumor

[MyMomLovesMe]

There is an old saying in the NBA, you don't trade size away. A lot of GM's will pay a premium to get bigger/taller. Andrea is one of the tallest players in the league.

[Faux-ID]

There is an old saying in the NBA, you don't trade size away. A lot of GM's will pay a premium to get bigger/taller. Andrea is one of the tallest players in the league.

What's the point of having size if all you're using it for is shooting over smaller players?

[Tim W.]

I am not entirely clear if its just team related rights, or all NBA merchandising rights. Raptors TV, did turn into NBATV Canada and curiously those are Raptors zoning rights, so its entirely possible. Also my understanding was that Raptors invested large money in HD cameras to spice up the content on that channel. From what I recall this was entirely a team investment, so this NBA Canada, wrapping may be there so that it draws ALL Canadian basketball fans, even the ones that do not like the Raptors.

(This one will be fun to look into)

THe Raptors do seem to be in a more advantageous position than most NBA teams because of their bigger "local" market. It's a big reason why anyone who thinks the Raptors might leave Toronto has no idea what they are talking about.

[Tim W.]

There is an old saying in the NBA, you don't trade size away. A lot of GM's will pay a premium to get bigger/taller. Andrea is one of the tallest players in the league.

That goes out the window when you're trading for a better player. Just look at the draft. Oden over Durant. Bogut over Chris Paul (and Deron Williams). Bibby over Olowakandi. Hell, Bargnani over Rudy Gay. If The Raptors had taken RUdy Gay in the first place, they wouldn't have been in this position. Gay is simply a better player. And despite being shorter, he rebounds at about the same rate and is a better shot blocker than Bargnani. So what does getting 3 more inches really do for the Raptors?

[Apollo]

What's the point of having size if all you're using it for is shooting over smaller players?

We shouldn't assume the league has the same opinion of Andrea Bargnani as we do. The guy is only 25 and he's a seven footer who just posted 21PPG while playing through defenses running their scheme around stopping him. He can score anywhere on the court. He's exclusively been coached by inexperienced head coaches. There is lots that could suggest he's a player who's failed to round out his game due to his situation. I don't agree with it but that doesn't mean the league doesn't agree as well.

[Faux-ID]

That goes out the window when you're trading for a better player. Just look at the draft. Oden over Durant. Bogut over Chris Paul (and Deron Williams). Bibby over Olowakandi. Hell, Bargnani over Rudy Gay. If The Raptors had taken RUdy Gay in the first place, they wouldn't have been in this position. Gay is simply a better player. And despite being shorter, he rebounds at about the same rate and is a better shot blocker than Bargnani. So what does getting 3 more inches really do for the Raptors?

I'm not fan of Bargnani, but to be fair, coming into the draft, Bargnani was quite heralded and many had him as the next Dirk. Albeit nowhere near as talented, but for a 7-footer with a shot like his, I'm not surprised he went first.

[Faux-ID]

We shouldn't assume the league has the same opinion of Andrea Bargnani as we do. The guy is only 25 and he's a seven footer who just posted 21PPG while playing through defenses running their scheme around stopping him. He can score anywhere on the court. He's exclusively been coached by inexperienced head coaches. There is lots that could suggest he's a player who's failed to round out his game due to his situation. I don't agree with it but that doesn't mean the league doesn't agree as well.

I get your point, but that was the problem when we drafted Bargnani. We saw him the way the league may see him now and that is a talented 7-footer who has 3-point range and could still round out to be a better rebounder than he is now. He's capable of scoring from all over the court, but his unwillingness to drive and draw contact should be worrisome to some teams. I understand having a 7-footer with his range is a great asset, but not if that's all he's able to do. You can't really blame his situation on his lack of effort on the defensive end and on the glass.. But I definitely see your point.

[Apollo]

I disagree. Bargnani looked just as talented at Dirk when comparing both as rookies. No one knew Dirk was going to amount to a all-star, let alone a future hall-of-famer when he entered the league.

[nubreed000]

How can you not be?

I think Rudy Gay is pretty good but this quick-fix trades are a BC staple. It'll put us back into first round cannon fodder.

[Faux-ID]

I disagree. Bargnani looked just as talented at Dirk when comparing both as rookies. No one knew Dirk was going to amount to a all-star, let alone a future hall-of-famer when he entered the league.

Fine, but year 3 Dirk is better than any year Bargnani has had in his 5 year career. And when Bargnani was drafted, they were comparing him to the Dirk we see today, not rookie Dirk. After 5 years, Bargnani has steadily improved his scoring and very little else, while Dirk's 3rd year, he was one of the top players at his position. Bargnani is one of the best centres by default.
Also, Blake Griffin had a better rookie year than LeBron, does that mean he'll be better? Probably not.

[Tim W.]

I'm not fan of Bargnani, but to be fair, coming into the draft, Bargnani was quite heralded and many had him as the next Dirk. Albeit nowhere near as talented, but for a 7-footer with a shot like his, I'm not surprised he went first.

I, for one, was emphatically against drafting Bargnani because of his lack of defense and rebounding, which was a problem even back then. I was a Aldridge guy, myself, and would have taken him #1. To be honest, I was weary about Gay, at the time of the draft, because the big knock against him was that he never achieved the level at college many expected considering his skills. That's still a bit of a concern, but I'd still take him in this trade in a second.

[mcHAPPY]

I think Rudy Gay is pretty good but this quick-fix trades are a BC staple. It'll put us back into first round cannon fodder.

Gay is 24 (25 in August) and a really good all around player. 40% from three is a huge bonus.

Combine Gay with continued development of DD and ED with a signing for PG/C and drafting of PG/C, this team could be very good in 2 years.

I still don't believe the trade though.

[Apollo]

Fine, but year 3 Dirk is better than any year Bargnani has had in his 5 year career.

After 5 years, Bargnani has steadily improved his scoring and very little else, while Dirk's 3rd year, he was one of the top players at his position. Bargnani is one of the best centres by default.

This is irrelevant when talking about five years ago.

when Bargnani was drafted, they were comparing him to the Dirk we see today, not rookie Dirk.

I remember very clearly people saying he looked a lot like Dirk did when he was around that age and because of that they felt he might have Dirk-like potential. No one said he was the next Dirk, they said he might be the next Dirk because both players had similar starting points at pros.

[Tim W.]

I think Rudy Gay is pretty good but this quick-fix trades are a BC staple. It'll put us back into first round cannon fodder.

Now, I've been a big opponent of quick fixes, but I don't see this being one. Someone like Iguodala is a quick fix, or Danny Granger, or one of the other guys mentioned around here. They're all 27 or older and would all be declining assets that would help the team immediately, but less and less as the rest of the team got older. Gay, on the other hand, is only 24 years old and will only get better. If he's not a future All-Star I'll be surprised. The best part of this rumour/proposal is that the Raptors don't give up one member of what I consider their core to get him. Including the 5th pick. There are a lot of people who think the Raptors would have trouble trading Bargnani and Calderon, and the Raptors get a 24 year old future All Star for them. Quite frankly, I just don't see how you could turn this deal down.

I also don't think this trade automatically thrusts the team into the playoffs next year. They'd still be incredibly young, so another lottery trip and high draft pick would be probable.

[Faux-ID]

This is irrelevant when talking about five years ago.

How is it irrelevant? Comparing two players involves comparing similar points in their careers. Dirk just so happen to start his career 6 years before Bargnani. Dirk started out playing for a Mavericks team that finished 11 in the conference and helped (with assistance from Cuban's wallet) bring them to almost .500 the next year and then 53 wins in his third year.

I remember very clearly people saying he looked a lot like Dirk did when he was around that age and because of that they felt he might have Dirk-like potential. No one said he was the next Dirk, they said he might be the next Dirk because both players had similar starting points at pros.

No one said he will definitely be the next Dirk, but a lot of people were mentioning that he had a Dirk-ceiling, which in hindsight is pretty immense pressure seeing as how he came off a season averaging 27ppg and 9rpg.