Everything Trade Chatter

[DanH]

I actually agree with Rashidi for once:

https://twitter.com/KevinRashidi/sta...82699951951878

Nah. Team is injured, and their biggest issue besides that is stupid rotations/playcalls.

Yes, I'd love for an all-in move for a big name PF. But the team is really really good as is.

[JimmyGetsBucketss]

I get the argument of not going all in, but then I ask myself what does the future look like for this team with a declining Lowry? All the teams in the Atlantic division, except for Brooklyn will get better and better but we will still be stuck in the 2nd tier.

[The Great One]

Nah. Team is injured, and their biggest issue besides that is stupid rotations/playcalls.

Yes, I'd love for an all-in move for a big name PF. But the team is really really good as is.

Who's injured? Patterson? lol

If this is all because we're missing Patterson then we're really in trouble.

[Scraptor]

Is this a guy a member of the press? Pretty gutsy if he is.

No he's a former RealGM poster who started a twitter account parroting Raptors news/opinion to try and become a media personality. He had a bunch of fake twitter followers early on, but has probably gained traction since he's so committed to the gig.

His opinion isn't wrong, but it holds no more weight than anyone's here (maybe less so, because he's sort of a boob).

[JamesNaismith]

Nah. Team is injured, and their biggest issue besides that is stupid rotations/playcalls.

Yes, I'd love for an all-in move for a big name PF. But the team is really really good as is.

What??? lol

This team is "really, really good as is" but can't handle missing Patrick frickin Patterson from the line up?!

Come on, let's be serious here. If you're a team that can't handle being down a player the level of Pat then I'm sorry you're not even remotely close to being a "really, really good team". The guy was a bench player in Sacramento of all places and was never good enough to solidify the starting spot here. That has to be the biggest scapegoat of the year.

Not sure how you can even disagree with Rashidi to hold Masai accountable for not getting a starting quality PF in FOUR years. That's insane and goes to show how brainwashed this fanbase is that we can't even be remotely critical of our GM. He's not some atrocious GM like Babcock but he shouldn't get a pass for every shortcoming he makes. 4 years is a lifetime to figure out how to fill a position in your starting line up.

[jimmie]

What??? lol

This team is "really, really good as is" but can't handle missing Patrick frickin Patterson from the line up?!

Come on, let's be serious here. If you're a team that can't handle being down a player the level of Pat then I'm sorry you're not even remotely close to being a "really, really good team". The guy was a bench player in Sacramento of all places and was never good enough to solidify the starting spot here. That has to be the biggest scapegoat of the year.

Not sure how you can even disagree with Rashidi to hold Masai accountable for not getting a starting quality PF in FOUR years. That's insane and goes to show how brainwashed this fanbase is that we can't even be remotely critical of our GM. He's not some atrocious GM like Babcock but he shouldn't get a pass for every shortcoming he makes. 4 years is a lifetime to figure out how to fill a position in your starting line up.

To be fair, a different starting PF isn't the missing piece, either; trying to put this on Masai is crazy. This team won a ton of games last year and is poised to... not win a ton of games this year. It's the same roster with the same coach, for the most part. Running the same offensive sets, for the most part. Defense has changed, but not enough from last year to this year to make THAT much difference without other factors in play.

Last year they were out to prove something. Now it looks like they're resting on their laurels. I think this is mental, and it's mainly on the players.

If they get Pat back soon, they'll be better. But they still won't be as good as last year unless they collectively start playing both ends harder and smarter. They miss Biz on D, and as a group, they seem to have lost a good chunk of the mental toughness and mutual trust that they had last year. Casey could be better, but he's not the only problem. Masai is definitely not the problem.

[Scraptor]

To be fair, a different starting PF isn't the missing piece, either; trying to put this on Masai is crazy. This team won a ton of games last year and is poised to... not win a ton of games this year. It's the same roster with the same coach, for the most part. Running the same offensive sets, for the most part. Defense has changed, but not enough from last year to this year to make THAT much difference without other factors in play.

Last year they were out to prove something. Now it looks like they're resting on their laurels. I think this is mental, and it's mainly on the players.

If they get Pat back soon, they'll be better. But they still won't be as good as last year unless they collectively start playing both ends harder and smarter. They miss Biz on D, and as a group, they seem to have lost a good chunk of the mental toughness and mutual trust that they had last year. Casey could be better, but he's not the only problem. Masai is definitely not the problem.

If you're not trying to improve, you're falling behind others who are.

With the same roster, same coach, and same offensive sets, how can you expect a better result?

That is most certainly on Masai. But we should probably wait for the trade deadline before passing judgment. There's still a good chance he does something.

[DanH]

What??? lol

This team is "really, really good as is" but can't handle missing Patrick frickin Patterson from the line up?!

Come on, let's be serious here. If you're a team that can't handle being down a player the level of Pat then I'm sorry you're not even remotely close to being a "really, really good team". The guy was a bench player in Sacramento of all places and was never good enough to solidify the starting spot here. That has to be the biggest scapegoat of the year.

Not sure how you can even disagree with Rashidi to hold Masai accountable for not getting a starting quality PF in FOUR years. That's insane and goes to show how brainwashed this fanbase is that we can't even be remotely critical of our GM. He's not some atrocious GM like Babcock but he shouldn't get a pass for every shortcoming he makes. 4 years is a lifetime to figure out how to fill a position in your starting line up.

Well, we've had a starting quality PF on the team since the Gay trade. Our coach just won't start him. It's one of the main reasons we've had a dominant bench the past few years - we don't start our best PF.

Of late, it's not just Pat missing - it's the fact that when Pat is missing, Casey goes even more insane than usual and panics with his rotations and play calling, because his security blanket do-it-all guy is not there to make everything click on both ends.

[Bendit]

Oh, when times were good and the team was winning...smiles all around...

[JamesNaismith]

If you're not trying to improve, you're falling behind others who are.

With the same roster, same coach, and same offensive sets, how can you expect a better result?

That is most certainly on Masai. But we should probably wait for the trade deadline before passing judgment. There's still a good chance he does something.

Problem is that it isn't the same roster, the roster has regressed.

We lost Biz's energy in the lockerrooom and on the court plus his defence and rebounding in game. We also had JJ and Ross playing the majority of the minutes at SF versus the corpse of DeMarre Carroll who we've now handed the lion's share of minutes despite being painfully obvious he's washed up and while Scola was useless as a defensive player his shooting has been missed and in place you have a rookie that doesn't give you much more than effort running up and down the court. The team has regressed, running the same sets etc isn't a good thing when they don't work and even worse when your roster actually is missing some key pieces to make it work properly.

It is the GM's job to recognize that and make the necessary changes to the roster as needed to fill in those voids which he hasn't. Then yes to top it off you have had 4 frickin years to try and get a starting PF and still nothing?! How the heck does Masai even get a pass for that is beyond me, its pure homerism at it's best. You can't snap your finger and make JV a defender or Bebe a good rebounder, just as you can't do that and suddenly Carroll has his legs back to at least play at a respectable level like JJ and Ross did and you can't do that to give Siakam a good jump shot like Scola had last year. All of that has changed and all of that should at least at minimum be noticed by your GM and addressed...then improving on it by FINALLY adding a PF for which he has had YEARS to find is just the cherry on top.

[JamesNaismith]

Well, we've had a starting quality PF on the team since the Gay trade. Our coach just won't start him. It's one of the main reasons we've had a dominant bench the past few years - we don't start our best PF.

Of late, it's not just Pat missing - it's the fact that when Pat is missing, Casey goes even more insane than usual and panics with his rotations and play calling, because his security blanket do-it-all guy is not there to make everything click on both ends.

Patterson is the ideal back up PF, not starter sorry.

Unless you have an all-star level C than you need a better player at PF. That position is also probably the most critical to this team because of how our team needs to use it and the major key alert is spacing. Kyle and DeMar need space to operate, one shooter on the wing isn't enough and more importantly Lowry needs another person to distribute the ball.

Millsap (if younger) would be by far the most ideal PF because he checks the list for everything we NEED from the spot. The rebounding and defence is a given but Kyle and DeMar simply don't look to pass the ball in the post. Everything they do is out of the PnR and on the perimeter. They need a PF that can step out and nail a jumper (Pat is very inconsistent) and also one that can pass out of the PnR to hit them or others with an open jumper or that can actually create (Pat is very limited at both). Not to mention given that they seem to simply refuse (or apparently be instructed) to feed the post they NEED a guy that can be that guaranteed 3rd option to keep defences honest on Kyle and DD, that's even more needed with Kyle aging and overplaying.

If you have a Marc Gasol or DMC in the post sure Pat is more than enough as a starter. But when your C is used like an average one like JV is then this team personally needs much more than what Pat can do.

[Chr1s1anL]

What??? lol

This team is "really, really good as is" but can't handle missing Patrick frickin Patterson from the line up?!

Come on, let's be serious here. If you're a team that can't handle being down a player the level of Pat then I'm sorry you're not even remotely close to being a "really, really good team". The guy was a bench player in Sacramento of all places and was never good enough to solidify the starting spot here. That has to be the biggest scapegoat of the year.

Not sure how you can even disagree with Rashidi to hold Masai accountable for not getting a starting quality PF in FOUR years. That's insane and goes to show how brainwashed this fanbase is that we can't even be remotely critical of our GM. He's not some atrocious GM like Babcock but he shouldn't get a pass for every shortcoming he makes. 4 years is a lifetime to figure out how to fill a position in your starting line up.

Masai is my guy but, I agree with this. 4 years is a long time. When there has been options like Markieff Morris for example.

Sent from my LG-H831 using Tapatalk

[KeonClark]

Something tells me Masai is gonna have a busy all star break

[blackjitsu]

For some reason, James Johnson was a lot less disposable than the Raps assumed. If 2 Pat was hurt last year there was no rush to bring him back because they had Johnson. He was a flawed player, but he was an actual NBA player. Siakim is probably a season or 2 away from being ready for the NBA on a playoff team, and putting a band aid on the PF issue instead of going after, say an undersized C (Sullinger) was probably a better option.

There were PFs that were playing in Europe that were available. Delon being hurt didn't help, that meant that they needed a third PG. Not that I could have done better, but after a year with Scola as the starting PF, PF should have been more of a priority. The Raps have 4 Centers, 4 PGs, 3 SGs, 1 SF, 1 PF, and Bruno. That's not a good distribution of talent.

Easy to hide when your winning, but when you're only PF, or one of your 2 stars gets hurt the roster imbalance becomes easy to exploit.

[Mapko]

If you're not trying to improve, you're falling behind others who are.

With the same roster, same coach, and same offensive sets, how can you expect a better result?

That is most certainly on Masai. But we should probably wait for the trade deadline before passing judgment. There's still a good chance he does something.

Hopefully continuity & familiarity - see SA success (marginal to moderate changes year yo year, steady results).