2012 Draft Thursday, June 28th: Raptors select Terence Ross

[ReubenJRD]

The Twitterverse is on fire with all sorts of "experts" claiming knowledge that Portland won't let Lillard slip past them at 6.

Well....so much for that plan....

Than that means we take a risk at PJ3, draft the Lamb, or draft Austin Rivers.

[CalgaryRapsFan]

The Twitterverse is on fire with all sorts of "experts" claiming knowledge that Portland won't let Lillard slip past them at 6.

Well....so much for that plan....

Time to bring on the discussion/debate over which player WILL fall, at least to #7... so help me god if that coin flip screws us out of a player we want! haha

1. Davis - no question

2. Robinson, MKG or Beal - I hear a different expert opinion every day, but sounds like one of these 3 will go 2nd overall for sure

3. Beal if available, otherwise Robinson, MKG or Drummond - sounds like Beal is their ideal fit after the trade, as Robinson and Drummond would be destined to be backups behind Okafor & Nene for a few years

4. Barnes - Beal seems to be the only other guy in play for Cleveland, but now I highly doubt Beal falls past Washington

5. MKG or Drummond - I can't see them being interested in Robinson, given that they have Cousins at PF, so it would probably come down to these 2, with MKG being the likely choice (assuming Robinson goes #2 and Beal goes #3)

6. Lillard - if indeed Portland is set

7. MKG, Robinson or Drummond - they apparently would love to get MKG or Robinson, but haven't heard much interest from them for Drummond, so they could go for a guy like PJII, T.Jones, Sullinger, Henson or Waiters (per today's CNNSI mock draft)

--> if Davis (1), Beal (3), Barnes (4) and Lillard (6) are all indeed set, it would seem that Drummond would be the most likely prospect to fall beyond #7. If I was BC, I would start taking trade offers, with the ideal scenario being for Toronto to pickup an asset (either a solid top-8 rotation player or additional mid-late 1st round pick) while moving down 5-7 spots in the draft, where they could still grab a player like Rivers.

In a Drummond scenario, I can't help but think that a deal with Houston for Lowry & #14/16 would be fantastic for both sides. Houston would finally get a good, young, defensive big to replace Yao Ming and would be able to lure Dragic to re-sign with the starting PG role. Toronto could address their need for a PG-of-the-future (Lowry), while moving down to also address their need for a backup SG / 6th-man scorer (Rivers). I'm sure Toronto would need to sweeten the pot with more than just the #8 pick, but they have #37 and #56, in addition to Davis/Amir, JJ and Forbes, to do just that. Houston was also rumored to be wanting to swap one of their 1st round picks this year for a 2013 1st round pick (since they don't have one), so perhaps Toronto could pickup #14 AND #16, by trading their 2013 1st round pick to Houston as part of the deal.

[ReubenJRD]

@Perry_Jones1: Toronto is dumb nice

http://blog.raptors.com/raptors-draft-workouts-day-5/

[Nilanka]

Rumours are swirling that Houston has placed Dalembert on the trading block. He seems like a good player to hold onto if they do end up drafting Drummond.

[Nilanka]

Perry Jones:

“That was the nicest hotel that I’d ever been to,” Perry Jones said of his stay in Toronto. “I mean, touch key cards, just slide the key in the side of the wall and the lights turn on. It was real nice.”

LOL, he just described every 3-star hotel in the province.

http://sports.nationalpost.com/2012/...medium=twitter

[CalgaryRapsFan]

Rumours are swirling that Houston has placed Dalembert on the trading block. He seems like a good player to hold onto if they do end up drafting Drummond.

Maybe they prefer to try and re-sign Camby to mentor whatever big they sign. I could see Drummond becoming the exact type of long & lanky, game-changing shotblocker that Camby was.

I think Dalembert on the trading block is as much for the fact that he's a very attractive asset, given the fact that only $1.5M of his $7M contract is guaranteed for next season. With such a cheap buyout, trading him is almost as attractive as a $7M TPE.

[blackjitsu]

Today's workout interview link:

http://www.nba.com/raptors/video/ed-...i-june-21-2012

Terrence Jones seems like a cool guy, Sullinger seems fiery, Perry seems like a smart kid -- well at least he seems like he thinks about what he says.

[Nilanka]

Scott Machado

But throw on the tape of Machado at Iona, and you won’t believe your eyes. You’ll see him bounding up and down the court, lacing pinpoint passes to the perfect guy at the perfect time. He was the Steve Nash of the MAAC last season, playing a level that few in college basketball could reach.

“Scott is a game player,” said his trainer, Ross Burns of Pro Hoops, Inc. “He does so many things to help his team that don’t necessarily show up in a workout.”

Asked if his workout performances might hurt his Draft stock, Burns said, “Teams know that… if they did their homework.”

When asked to describe his game, Machado said that he considers himself a playmaker.

“I think ahead of the game like a possession before,” he said. “I’m a point guard. I like to be what a point guard is. If we’re playing one-on-one then I like to create my own shot, but [otherwise] it’s creating, being a playmaker.”

http://www.slamonline.com/online/nba...l-game-player/

[Apollo]

Perry Jones:



LOL, he just described every 3-star hotel in the province.

http://sports.nationalpost.com/2012/...medium=twitter

And a bunch of other provinces.... That said, was this the thing that stood out most to him about Toronto? The visiting accomodations? I guess he's looking forward to visiting when he gets drafted after #8?

[Nilanka]

As per Alex Kennedy:

The Trail Blazers continue to shop #6 and #11. No deal is imminent, but Portland is weighing their options and seeing what's out there.

Maybe we end up with Lillard after all....

[CalgaryRapsFan]

As per Alex Kennedy:



Maybe we end up with Lillard after all....

Seems like smokescreen is the theme of the day, which will likely continue right up until draft day. The one thing I like about BC is that he always seems to keep his options open, with various avenues to go down, depending what happens leading up to and on draft day. Some GMs seem to get fixated on a particular decision and don't adapt well, but that hasn't been the case with BC (ie: when he drafted Davis after not even having worked him out, just based on where he was on their overall big board).

[Apollo]

I'd be more interested in the #11 because valuewise it's going to br better for the Raptors. It might come easily. Maybe Ed? Yeah I realize they already have Aldridge but they need depth in the paint badly.

[CalgaryRapsFan]

I'd be more interested in the #11 because valuewise it's going to br better for the Raptors. It might come easily. Maybe Ed? Yeah I realize they already have Aldridge but they need depth in the paint badly.

Are you thinking in addition to their #8 pick, to use both on draft picks? If so, I had been thinking about making that type of deal with Portland (#11), New Orleans (#10) or Houston (#14/16). Davis/JJ & #37 might be enough to do a deal with NO/Por, while swapping their 2013 1st round pick for #14/16 might be enough for Houston (per the Houston rumor and if Toronto is confident of making the playoffs next season - lottery this year vs non-lottery next year).

As much as I like the idea of going after a second later lottery pick, it would seem to fly in the face of what BC/DC have been saying about not wanting to have too many rookies next season. I would personally be excited to add a couple good young players, who would come off the bench next season anyway; likely a SG (ie: Rivers, Lamb) and PG (ie: Lillard, Marshall), or possibly a safe pick (ie: Lillard or Rivers) and a risk/reward pick (ie: Waiters or PJIII).

Can you see the Raps drafting 2 guys in the lottery, to bring in 3 rookies next season?

[Apollo]

My thoughts are that this is a deep draft and somebody is going to fall. At #11, in addition to #8, the Raptors can land a steal... One the fits better than Ed Davis long term. Heck, they might be able to land Rivers and Waiters with those two picks. There's you PG and SG of the future to add to JV's presence. Alternatively, they could package both picks and then move up without having to deal JV, Bargnani or DD.

[CalgaryRapsFan]

My thoughts are that this is a deep draft and somebody is going to fall. At #11, in addition to #8, the Raptors can land a steal... One the fits better than Ed Davis long term. Heck, they might be able to land Rivers and Waiters with those two picks. There's you PG and SG of the future to add to JV's presence. Alternatively, they could package both picks and then move up without having to deal JV, Bargnani or DD.

I'm all for it. Given the depth and uncertainty in this year's draft lottery, I am all for stockpiling as many picks as you can get. The team can draft or trade the picks, before, during or after the draft. If the Raps can turn some of their assets (Davis, JJ, #37, #56 and even 2013 draft picks) into solid young players, especially if a few really good ones drop, those new draft picks would likely wind up being much more valuable (as players or trade bait) than what Toronto would need to give up to get them.

Who knows, if Portland grabs a guy like MKG/Drummond @ #6, maybe they'd even be open to trading #11 for Calderon. So many options out there for BC to consider.