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The Raptors and the 2014 Draft

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  • "Jonas Valanciunas has been playing like a maniac at times lately. Full of energy, swinging his elbows, attacking the glass. The result has been a bunch of double-doubles and, it appears, a few peeved opponents. Valanciunas said a few Pelicans told him to watch his elbows – some more forcefully than others. Greg Stiemsma actually jumped on his head and elbowed him at one point. Valanciunas got a technical for a retaliatory shove and said he also made sure to tell Stiemsma he wasn’t impressed with the tough guy act. Valanciunas is evolving into a confident pro and with the increased confidence has come an uptick in his performance.

    After competing in the rookie sophomore challenge on Friday night in New Orleans (where he says he’ll teach Charles Barkley how to properly say his name), Valanciunas will take a brief trip to Mexico to relax on a beach."

    I'm loving it! Last season he looked like a boy among men.

    EDIT: Wrong thread, sorry!
    Last edited by rocwell; Tue Feb 11, 2014, 01:54 PM.

    Comment


    • Axel wrote: View Post
      Yeah, I wonder if Self's own frustrations with the team and Wiggins lack of "chosen one" production are getting to him. Yelling can motivate a player to improve an effort based task (boxing out, running in transition) but is proven to be negative in regards to mental aspects (free throws).
      Bill Self should simply bench Wiggins if he is not giving full effort. Self must be frustrated with Wiggins lack of production and consistency.

      Comment


      • rocwell wrote: View Post
        "Jonas Valanciunas has been playing like a maniac at times lately. Full of energy, swinging his elbows, attacking the glass. The result has been a bunch of double-doubles and, it appears, a few peeved opponents. Valanciunas said a few Pelicans told him to watch his elbows – some more forcefully than others. Greg Stiemsma actually jumped on his head and elbowed him at one point. Valanciunas got a technical for a retaliatory shove and said he also made sure to tell Stiemsma he wasn’t impressed with the tough guy act. Valanciunas is evolving into a confident pro and with the increased confidence has come an uptick in his performance.

        After competing in the rookie sophomore challenge on Friday night in New Orleans (where he says he’ll teach Charles Barkley how to properly say his name), Valanciunas will take a brief trip to Mexico to relax on a beach."

        I'm loving it! Last season he looked like a boy among men.
        Now we just need him to get minutes in the fourth quarter.

        Comment


        • psrs1 wrote: View Post
          Bill Self should simply bench Wiggins if he is not giving full effort. Self must be frustrated with Wiggins lack of production and consistency.
          I'm not convinced it's an effort thing though. Wiggins is simply trying to "fit" with the team. He doesn't naturally want to take over the game a la Kobe (that was a big knock on LBJ early in his career too) and is something he will have to work on to achieve superstar status. It's almost like Wiggins is too nice or something.
          Heir, Prince of Cambridge

          If you see KeonClark in the wasteland, please share your food and water with him.

          Comment


          • rocwell wrote: View Post
            "Jonas Valanciunas has been playing like a maniac at times lately. Full of energy, swinging his elbows, attacking the glass. The result has been a bunch of double-doubles and, it appears, a few peeved opponents. Valanciunas said a few Pelicans told him to watch his elbows – some more forcefully than others. Greg Stiemsma actually jumped on his head and elbowed him at one point. Valanciunas got a technical for a retaliatory shove and said he also made sure to tell Stiemsma he wasn’t impressed with the tough guy act. Valanciunas is evolving into a confident pro and with the increased confidence has come an uptick in his performance.

            After competing in the rookie sophomore challenge on Friday night in New Orleans (where he says he’ll teach Charles Barkley how to properly say his name), Valanciunas will take a brief trip to Mexico to relax on a beach."

            I'm loving it! Last season he looked like a boy among men.

            EDIT: Wrong thread, sorry!
            This could get interesting
            Mamba Mentality

            Comment


            • I still think whoever has the #1 pick will be making a serious mistake if they don't take Wiggins.

              Comment


              • I don't think Wiggins at 1 is a mistake, but I do see him slipping to 2-4.

                You never know, come March he could dominate and perform well at the combine

                Comment


                • psrs1 wrote: View Post
                  Bill Self should simply bench Wiggins if he is not giving full effort. Self must be frustrated with Wiggins lack of production and consistency.
                  Axel wrote: View Post
                  I'm not convinced it's an effort thing though. Wiggins is simply trying to "fit" with the team. He doesn't naturally want to take over the game a la Kobe (that was a big knock on LBJ early in his career too) and is something he will have to work on to achieve superstar status. It's almost like Wiggins is too nice or something.
                  Quick read that ties into this whole idea:
                  http://college-basketball.si.com/201...-12/?eref=sihp

                  Simply put, Wiggins needs to play more selfishly to satisfy the hype.
                  Heir, Prince of Cambridge

                  If you see KeonClark in the wasteland, please share your food and water with him.

                  Comment


                  • I don't know about anyone else on this board, but I would love to see draft Wiggin or Ennis also, but it ain't gonna happen .. there draft ranking is too high or rising..Tanking is long gone.. therefore if the Raps gets the the SAC + OKC pick which could be 40th or 60th choice .. I really think we should take a flier on Mississauga Nick Stauskas as a 2nd rounder. this guy is deadly from three can replace Novak and we could make him into a 3 + D guy with some good coaching from Casey + team.. let me know what you guys think . a little Cdn content on the Raps!!!

                    Comment


                    • Stauskas will get owned by other wings in the NBA. He's not a good defensive player at all in college. Imagine in the NBA.

                      I don't think you're looking at a 3 and D guy. Best case, he's a bit like Redick and Korver, in that he plays smart and can do some other things offensively. Worst-case, he'll be a totally one-dimensional player who is somewhere in the 10-12th man area on your bench as a specialist who can't find a regular rotation spot. Either way he'll get totally destroyed by so many players at the NBA level.

                      If the Raps take him with a 2nd rounder, I won't be upset, but I won't really care either. Wouldn't be surprised to see him wash out of the league or never be anything but a bench warmer.

                      I don't care about Canadian content. The reason I would want Wiggins or Ennis is that they look like they could be legit starters and possible gamechangers at the NBA level. Wiggins is still the best physical prospect to me, and has raw, but pretty good fundamentals. Ennis to me is the best PG in college basketball from a mature game perspective, but I'm not sure he outclasses Smart or Exum in the draft. Ennis is still the prospect I hope for the most given the Raps likely position. A lot of teams are set at PG, and Ennis may not look as good in individual workouts (which may only slightly affect his stock, but still). If he slides out of the top 10, he may also get within range that the Raps can trade up for.

                      Comment


                      • white men can't jump wrote: View Post
                        Stauskas will get owned by other wings in the NBA. He's not a good defensive player at all in college. Imagine in the NBA.

                        I don't think you're looking at a 3 and D guy. Best case, he's a bit like Redick and Korver, in that he plays smart and can do some other things offensively. Worst-case, he'll be a totally one-dimensional player who is somewhere in the 10-12th man area on your bench as a specialist who can't find a regular rotation spot. Either way he'll get totally destroyed by so many players at the NBA level.

                        If the Raps take him with a 2nd rounder, I won't be upset, but I won't really care either. Wouldn't be surprised to see him wash out of the league or never be anything but a bench warmer.

                        I don't care about Canadian content. The reason I would want Wiggins or Ennis is that they look like they could be legit starters and possible gamechangers at the NBA level. Wiggins is still the best physical prospect to me, and has raw, but pretty good fundamentals. Ennis to me is the best PG in college basketball from a mature game perspective, but I'm not sure he outclasses Smart or Exum in the draft. Ennis is still the prospect I hope for the most given the Raps likely position. A lot of teams are set at PG, and Ennis may not look as good in individual workouts (which may only slightly affect his stock, but still). If he slides out of the top 10, he may also get within range that the Raps can trade up for.
                        I've never seen a comparison for Stauskas that suggested any D or anything other than Kyle Korver. If he can shoot as well as Korver, he'll have a successful career. If he can't, he better do something else or risk becoming Jason Kapono. I think anything higher than 25th is likely too high for him.

                        I agree with you about the Canadian content. It's a non-issue. We have enough Canadian content in the stands, we just need to build a winner on the court.
                        Heir, Prince of Cambridge

                        If you see KeonClark in the wasteland, please share your food and water with him.

                        Comment


                        • I figured it out! Wiggins is tanking so he falls to us!!
                          If we can't get to Wiggins, then he'll come to us. Love this kid!.. Lol

                          Comment


                          • Axel wrote: View Post
                            I've never seen a comparison for Stauskas that suggested any D or anything other than Kyle Korver. If he can shoot as well as Korver, he'll have a successful career. If he can't, he better do something else or risk becoming Jason Kapono. I think anything higher than 25th is likely too high for him.

                            I agree with you about the Canadian content. It's a non-issue. We have enough Canadian content in the stands, we just need to build a winner on the court.
                            Just responding to @15strong who said "...and we could make him into a 3 + D guy with some good coaching from Casey + team". I've also never seen anything good ever said about his D. Korver/Redick type player is absolute best-case...and yeah, could easily be a Kapono....

                            Comment


                            • John canada [via mobile]

                              Is this draft still as good in your opinion as it was before the season?

                              Chad Ford
                              (1:32 PM)


                              No. But I say that every February. We've analyzed and over analyzed players and right now it's their weaknesses that are coming to the forefront. But we will hit March and a few of these guys will shine. And then we will get into workouts and teams will start talking themselves into players. But is this draft loaded with transcendent talent? Maybe, but it's no longer the sure thing we thought it would be in July.

                              http://espn.go.com/sportsnation/chat...ider-chad-ford
                              I think RR would have to agree..... 1319 posts and 66 pages in to this thread

                              Comment


                              • Everything Smart

                                Shane (Atlanta, Georgia)


                                Do you see Marcus Smart falling (because of his play, not this latest "outburst") to that 10-14 range? Wouldn't he be a perfect second 1st round pick for ORL?
                                Chad Ford
                                (1:36 PM)


                                I don't. In fact, I spoke with a ton of GMs and veteran scouts following the incident. None of them. I mean none of them actually thought it would hurt his draft stock long-term. Yes, in the current media cycle, he's taking hits. It will come again when he declares for the draft. But that's the media. The NBA guys want talent. Smart has a great reputations minus the past few weeks. No one thinks he's turned into Ron Artest suddenly. He's super competitive and he's been frustrated. The bigger concern is about his jump shot and whether he's a pure point guard. He's struggled on both accounts this year. Some GMs don't like him as a prospect. At all. But that was BEFORE the incident. And even they didn't think it changed their evaluation of him. For the teams that already were in love, none of them felt that this incident warranted dropping him from their boards. I think he goes somewhere between 6 and 10 which is where he's been slotted all year.
                                Paul (SC)


                                Did Smart make a mistake staying in school?
                                Chad Ford
                                (1:38 PM)


                                No. Not at all. Because he went back for the right reasons. He knew he's be a Top 2 or 3 pick. He had the correct intel. He wanted to go back because he liked school, liked his teammates, wanted to help OSU win a title and he wanted to work on his game. Some of that hasn't worked out, but no one is a fortune teller. He went back for the right reasons and actually shows you the character of the young man. Basketball was more important to him than money. I think the media narrative about him right now couldn't be more off. Everyone makes mistakes. You have to look at the track record.

                                JA (Pittsburgh)

                                Even after Marcus Smart's incident, how would any GM feel comfortable taking Exum over Smart?

                                Chad Ford
                                (1:38 PM)


                                Exum was always ahead of Smart on our Big Board. So nothing changes there. I think the bigger question is whether someone chooses Tyler Ennis of Syracuse over Smart.
                                http://espn.go.com/sportsnation/chat...ider-chad-ford

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