Raptors Offseason 2022

[TrueTorontoFan]

I like Shaq, Kenny and Charles for the entertainment value but they are not team builders and can change their opinions depending on which way the wind blows.

They are totally discounting Scottie as a potential star…it might take a few years but Siakam is young enough for there to be overlap of them leading the franchise together. this team will come together. We are at the start of or trajectory….

Ya, we barely made the playoffs (without the play in) but we were also just 5 games from the top spot and 2 from the 2nd. Were we contenders? Nope… but we are starting to build towards that. This isn’t a franchise like Orlando, Charlotte, or Atlanta… this team will not slide, we’ll keep growing and challenging until we’re ready to make that step. (Like 2019)

Chuck doesn't Shaq and Kenny are

[TrueTorontoFan]

That's a truly butt ugly off-season and I hope we do significantly better than that.

lol yeah it would be pretty depressing

[Demographic Shift]

All in all it was a good season.
Barnes was everything and more than advertised.
Pascal after wandering in the wilderness for a season is back as a bona fide all nba player (2nd or 3rd team) up front.
Gary Trent is as good as the departed Norman Powell He makes a pretty good share of his 3s and while he isn't a power drive to the rim player that Norm was he is as good as or better than Norm from my cheap seat.
Achiuwa has put himself in the top 6 core of this team. Freddy, Gary, Scottie, Pascal, OG and now the aforementioned Achiuwa.
Don't see any of these guys moving on for a while.
But as good as the future looks.. and it looks good... We are still are another impact player away from being a legit contender.

Where is this player going to come from ?

Can Barnes blow us away again next year with his improvement ?
Do we once again find a diamond in the coal mine that is the 2nd round of the NBA draft ?
Free Agency ?
Incredible TenForTheWin seismic Trade ?

After a couple of weaker performances at the offseason and trade deadline this year Bobsai WebJuri could use a solid offseason in both the draft and pro personnel sides of the business. .
Harder to get better as you raise the bar from "in playoffs" to "making a run in playoffs"

Go Raps.

[Kagemusha]

Who is a good SG prospect right now in your mind which we could trade for? Just trying to gauge how good of a player your are thinking.

Trent Jr. has shown a lot of promise with his ability to get his own shot off and effort he's put into defense. He's also able to fit seamlessly with the other starters without getting lost in the scheme. Those are big starting points for a young player. He has a lot of upside, but it doesn't seem like a lot of Raps fans are really all that supportive of being patient with him.

Lots to improve on, but it was far from a bad season.

I like Trent too.
He IS a Raptor.

We need to move up to draft Sharpe, but it would be worth it.
He's the one I'm eyeing on for now.
Haven't really looked at the other prospects yet.

[planetmars]

That's a truly butt ugly off-season and I hope we do significantly better than that.

Sometimes you don't have any moves to make. And we don't really have a lot of assets to work with. I think the off season is going to be boring again, unless you expect Masai to trade someone like OG or Fred.

[Yuri Gagarin]

Sorry i forget who think it was primer that said give up on kofi cockburn but its hard to ignore his numbers. And he reminds me of bismack but 7’, 280. This guy isn’t a lump have a feeling he’ll be healthy and strong for a long time.

[Dr Hannibal Lecter]

Chuck doesn't Shaq and Kenny are

Honestly without Chuck, that show is garbage. I can't stand Shaq and Kenny is annoying as F^$$.
Chuck said two more years and that's it..

[Primer]

Honestly without Chuck, that show is garbage. I can't stand Shaq and Kenny is annoying as F^$$.
Chuck said two more years and that's it..

When I was in college in Atlanta, probably 2003, I saw Chuck at the club a few times. Nice guy, was surprised he gave me the time of day when I said what's up. TNT might as well give up when Chuck leaves. They need someone like him. Maybe Draymond can be that guy when he retires. Reddick would be good if they could steal him from ESPN, another guy who just says it like it is, no bullshit. Shaq is fucking clueless and Kenny is annoying, I agree.

[Yuri Gagarin]

Shaq mumbles. Youd figure someone would tell him to speak up. Cant hear half his shit

[JawsGT]

This is a 55+ win team next season, as is, don't care what the rest of the league does this off-season. Get boucher and thad back. Move scottie to full time PG, Fred to SG and start Precious. Fuck the center. We did alright against Embiid, a 7' MVP candidate. What a joke, never saw a boy his size spend so much time on the floor. Isiah thomas is tougher. Trent can chuck off the bench. Flynn deserves more minutes, I don't get why some of you guys think he sucks. He never had a role on this team all year, very inconsistent playing time...few can perform well like that. He can be a decent shooter IMO if given regular minutes. Give him the PT. Sure, if you can trade Flynn for a better player then duh...no brainer. I'm curious as well about Jalen Harris. Has he sniffed himself out of the league? There was potential there.

Precious, Pascal, og, Fred and scottie start. If Precious and Barnes make even marginal improvements to their shooting that would make a huge difference. And I bet they will. More ball handling for scottie should lessen the demand on Fred, and more catch and shoot opportunities for Fred would be money in the bank. Precious and Barnes are just getting started. All the starters can run, shoot, dribble, pass and make a play. That is what the Raps are aiming for, and if everyone is long, athletic and tall then all the better.

Trent for 6th man, juice the stats and trade him if he continues to chuck. I really dont like these gunners that many seem to think every team needs to have come off the bench. Overrated. Let's continue to roll with the team players. Siakam is just beautiful to watch, such a willing playmaker and passer, and rarely forces it. Trent doesn't seem comfortable unless he is forcing it. I do like him though, lots of potential but a lot to learn IMO. I'd like to see him back, just to see if he can fit better into the team concept. Maybe off the bench it wouldn't matter. But I don't want to judge too much based on the Philly series, he clearly wasn't well early on and I doubt he was at 80% even in Game 6. See what he can do in a different role and maybe he works out or maybe he generates some interest around the league and a decent trade comes up.

Resign Bouch and Thad, play champagnie. That's Flynn, trent, bouch, Thad and Justin as main bench guys. Banton might be useful, maybe Harris too if he's off the powder.

I like that team, might lack shooting, which would be a problem, but I believe Barnes, Precious, and pascal will all be better distance shooters next season. The bench has shooters, just no real good ones, depending on how you feel about Trent. But they are all willing shooters at least. Lots of D too. Don't care about the lack of size. Let's give it another season before making major changes.

[Puffer]

Where are the Raptor's improvements going to come from? They can't sign free agents and you can't draft a Sottie Barnes or a Pascal or Fred every year.

Clearly, Scottie will continue to improve. And Precious. For both of them, improvements will come from an increased skillset and a better understanding of the NBA level game. I expect both of them will show improved three-point shooting as well as better decision-making during play. I don't know what Gary Trent's improvement trajectory has been like since he entered the league. A larger role is his for the taking. Given his work ethic and a Father who is likely to get on his case I will expect more consistency from him next year.

One would hope Fred has learned that he can't physically handle as many minutes next season without having it compromise his health.

If they can bring Harris over from France or wherever he is playing, that might help with the shooting. I don't remember what his D was like. I can't remember what role the Raptors played in his being banned for a year. Maybe he doesn't want to play for the organization, but I believe they hold his rights.

[Mindlessness]

Doncic (Not happening, but imagine him playing with Barnes)
SGA (That's when pretty much anyone not named Barnes is up. I would say the second tier is probably off limits here too)
Barrett (I think a Tier 3 guy and combination of some other players are up here, but probably not enough to get it done)
Turner (for the right price)

Decent list, well other than Doncic. Some more (semi-)realistic targets:

1. Jamal Murray - I'm sure Denver likes him a lot, however from what I saw I thought what Jokic needs is some defense to insulate him a bit plus shooters. I'd try to offer a deal around Fred and/or GTJ. They may like him too much to accept but I think it's a good offer. Moist likely they'll try to move MPJ for those types of players though.
2. Dejounte Murray - I can't imagine he fits the Spurs timeline, though tbh, I'm not quite sure what the Spurs are doing, I guess they're hoping to draft their next star. I dunno what I'd offer but I imagine it's not much less than an offer for Jamal.
3. Porzingis - very flawed but good player. Doesn't really create his own shot, is sort of Trent but in big man form, also injury-prone. Interesting pickup for this team imo, went cheaply enough at the deadline. Zero idea what Washington would want.
4. Poeltl - weren't there rumours we wanted him. Very good defensive impact stats... for whatever those are worth, which is at least a little.
5. Christian Wood - doesn't seem to fit Houston's timeline. I'll leave it there.

All of this said, this FO won't move until they get a guy they want. They'll hold their cards close until that time comes. I am sure they like some of these players, probably others as well, but they need to be at a value they like too.

Issue I (everyone) saw with this team was a lack of a good shot creator/playmaker outside of Siakam, it's why our half-court O is this bad. Scottie can't create his shot well enough, Fred isn't a playmaker at all, OG is OK but not great at both (also read as not good enough - Scottie is already better).

A good/great centre world be great, I dunno how likely we can get one of those. Precious is very good, but I would like a guy who is a good rim protector/runner and sucks up defensive rebounds.

And then just some shooting, aside from not having enough playmaking, this was the other reason the half-court O was crap, as everyone knows.

Anyway, haven't posted in a while, I think last time was just after Scottie got drafted. Man oh man that was a hilarious time, fanbase was pissed, but we all ate crow. Even me, I liked Scottie, but damn is that boy good. Better be great though.

[Bonus Jonas]

The player we decide to use our MLE on is gonna be the key factor this summer imo.

Knowing how Masai has operated for the last 8 years, the odds of one of Pascal/Fred/OG/Scottie/GTJ/Precious leaving this summer are probably negligible. Boucher and Thad were two of the best pieces on a weak bench so you’d assume we try to keep them with the bird rights.

Past that anyone could be gone. But bringing in a 4yr/44M player on MLE could be huge, and if it’s the right player it could be boosting that core even more.

Internal growth and some upgrades around the edges, I think we’re looking at 50+ wins next season if we can get luckier with the health.

[TrueTorontoFan]

Where are the Raptor's improvements going to come from? They can't sign free agents and you can't draft a Sottie Barnes or a Pascal or Fred every year.

Clearly, Scottie will continue to improve. And Precious. For both of them, improvements will come from an increased skillset and a better understanding of the NBA level game. I expect both of them will show improved three-point shooting as well as better decision-making during play. I don't know what Gary Trent's improvement trajectory has been like since he entered the league. A larger role is his for the taking. Given his work ethic and a Father who is likely to get on his case I will expect more consistency from him next year.

One would hope Fred has learned that he can't physically handle as many minutes next season without having it compromise his health.

If they can bring Harris over from France or wherever he is playing, that might help with the shooting. I don't remember what his D was like. I can't remember what role the Raptors played in his being banned for a year. Maybe he doesn't want to play for the organization, but I believe they hold his rights.

they can may be go after an MLE if they don't take chris and look at a guy like Gary Harris.

[Bonus Jonas]

Do we own Jalen Harris’ rights still or is he a complete free agent?

If it’s the second I assume we don’t even bother knowing the impetus we put on culture, but if we own his rights and there’s interest around the league maybe we can capitalize?