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Game #47(?) Toronto Raptors @ Detroit Pistons - 8pm Eastern

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  • golden wrote: View Post

    I'm perfectly fine with the tank, since I embraced it 3 games in to the season... glad to see everybody else is coming around. It was pretty clear that building around the OG/FVV/Siakam core was going to be middling... at best. Classic 7-11. If not for Boucher and Norm massively over-performing, we would probably be bottom 3 in the league overall.

    What does bother me, though, is that one of the organizations strengths used to be locating undervalued talent and developing those guys into rotation players, or at least playable depth bench guys. Those depth guys also become low-key trade pieces. Since we don't have access to decent FAs, that needs to be a high priority core competency. I love Nurse and everything he brings, but I'm still not sold on his approach to getting guys to crack the rotation for the first time. Casey's "role cards" seem to be the better approach there.

    For this year, though, it's great.... I said early on that we had a built-in excuse to tank and people pushed back saying we had waaay too much talent to even consider that a possibility. But here we are.... 32% chance at a top 4 pick...with fingers crossed. Hope they don't screw it up.

    BTW... go back and visit the Knicks & Sixers gamethreads. Some posters were way ahead of the curve on calling this season. Shout out... Mixx & T-Rex.














    I think we underestimate how much having the 905 so close does for this exact thing. These guys are around the practice facility. The end of benchers are being sent down more often. Guys are getting their reps in- in actual games. Not having a real G-League setup for over a year now, really is starting to show it's head.

    I think the "Tampa Tank" could be our year to pull a Spurs like rebuild. Moving Lowry for something this summer in a S&T, a decent draft pick, hopefully moving back to Toronto and actually playing in front of fans could speed up a rebuild faster than we all thought.

    Hey and if you get your tinfoil hat on, maybe the Draft is rigged and Toronto gets gifted a top 4 pick for having to relocate for the year.

    Maybe Denver needs that last veteran piece to get them over the hump. Maybe they take Lowry in a S&T for Bol and some filler.

    Maybe we start next season with:

    PG FVV, and Flynn
    SG Trent, Green (top 4 pick)
    SF OG, Bembry
    PF Siakam, Green (from denver to help with the S&T)
    C Bol, Boucher, (some othe FA C)

    Still flawed, but a hell of a young core.

    If it's not Bol, maybe another team with a decent young centre needs a quality Vet to get them over the hump. But we need, in my opinion, a go to scorer (high end wing draft pick) and an actual centre. Preferably a younger one to more align with our core, and hopefully he would be able to get up and down the floor quicker than Baynes. Siakam is not one and if he is going to play out of position, he should be a 3 not a 5.

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    • golden wrote: View Post
      Well, if they really are playing out the string and don’t give AF, then so much for the so-called winning culture and high character players we brag about here.
      lol, well thats an overreaction. This won't affect the culture at all, they all know whats on the go.

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      • The Raptors are going to make the playoffs guys. I feel a lot better about this now because of the LaVine injury. The Bulls have now lost 4 straight and LaVine hasn't been the same player(not even close) since the injury. Their schedule the rest of the way is also pretty rough.

        Your hope if you're pro tank is the Wizards to surpass the Raptors in the standings. The Wiz and Raps are currently tied in the standings.
        Mamba Mentality

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        • slaw wrote: View Post

          Part of the problem is the use of the word 'tanking'. Toronto is not tanking. Raps are just plain bad right now cause key guys are underperforming, plus they have some serious roster issues. This is not the Rockets where they are in complete tear it down mode looking 5 years out to be competitive. The Raps, I imagine, will look be seriously competitive next season one way or another. That's not tanking.

          In the big picture, whether this season is a blip or the start of a downward trend will depend on how well their key guys play and what they do the next couple of off seasons to add players.
          Last year was truly a mirage and, unfortunately I think the roster was constructed with a sincere belief that the talent level displayed last year was real with room to grow even further. They never tried to tank. They thought this team could compete. Everybody thought the Baynes signing was great and were calling him Gasol-lite. Len is a fine NBA backup center, as he's proving with the Wizards (actually even better, because he's starting and closing games now). Management thought this year's team would be competitive, for sure.

          After Kawhi left, we were supposed to fall off the map, like Sam Mitchell, Dennis Scott and a whole lotta others predicted. But there was just too much pride, heart and veteran savvy left over from the championship team to allow that too happen. They were motivated to play balls-to-the-wall team defense... night-in and night-out. They played the right way, unselfishly and committed. They shared the ball and generated great shots, to overcome the lack of a closer to win tight games. We even had tons of injuries and plugged in scrubs and still won.

          But in hindsight, last year was truly an unprecedented scenario.... with the reigning Finals MVP bolting and it resulted in an unprecedented title defense season. It now looks like Bobby overestimated the new core's development and capacity to elevate this year's team to winning.... and Lowry's drop-off (which is in part due to the ball being in Fred's hands like 90% of the time, as a clear passing of the torch season.)

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          • JawsGT wrote: View Post

            lol, well thats an overreaction. This won't affect the culture at all, they all know whats on the go.
            Not sure I agree with that. Spurs always play pretty hard in their down years. They never throw in the towel.

            I mean, sure that's bad because they always end up being the classic 7-11 treadmill team and never get a really high pick, but Pop and the players aren't accomplices in the tank (nudge, wink). That's crazy to even suggest that. That would definitely be an indictment of character and culture.

            I thought Masai was trying to turn us into Spurs North, right?

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            • Well all that culture stuff is nonsense anyway
              Only one thing matters: We The Champs.

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              • MixxAOR wrote: View Post
                Well all that culture stuff is nonsense anyway
                lol. Stop quoting me. So the only conclusion is that the young core is way over their heads and Lowry has finally declined to the point where he can't save us anymore.

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                • golden wrote: View Post

                  lol. Stop quoting me. So the only conclusion is that the young core is way over their heads and Lowry has finally declined to the point where he can't save us anymore.
                  Yeah sometimes simple answer is correct one.
                  Only one thing matters: We The Champs.

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                  • golden wrote: View Post

                    Not sure I agree with that. Spurs always play pretty hard in their down years. They never throw in the towel.

                    I mean, sure that's bad because they always end up being the classic 7-11 treadmill team and never get a really high pick, but Pop and the players aren't accomplices in the tank (nudge, wink). That's crazy to even suggest that. That would definitely be an indictment of character and culture.

                    I thought Masai was trying to turn us into Spurs North, right?
                    Dude, i have no idea what youre getting on with. I watch the games and I dont see the same type of play and effort lately that we are used to seeing. The players might not be trying to lose, they dont need too, they just dont need to try so hard to win. Thats what I see now when I watch them play. The cohesiveness isnt there, lots of minutes for the younger players, the D or O just isnt crisp...not like they are capable of. If they were really serious about winning, that Detroit game would have looked alot different. The hill is too large to climb, and does anyone think they have a real shot at upsetting the nets, 6ers or Bucks? Without an NBA center? They have no one to play that position, except 3 guys who could probably play the 3 spot better. It would be ridiculous to even try and make the playoffs now IMO. Actually, Ive fully flipped to the dark side, at least as far as this season is concerned. Making the playoffs would probably be the worst case scenario at this point. So the strategy going forward should be dont play too hard, dont get injured, rest some guys here and there, get the kids some minutes, try some different lineups and plays, and hopefully get a top 5 pick. I think we may agree on that point anyways. But this has nothing to do with culture or anything the spurs have done past or present.

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