The Off-Season Thread

[ChongInc.]

I think they would demand OG for Bol though. I don’t think I would go that far.

[ChongInc.]

The more I think of it, I think Powell and OG are really going to have the chance to put up a lot of shots this season. I would be surprised if they didn’t both start too. Nurse isn’t afraid to let impending FA prove their worth, and I think the team overall will perform better with Freddie coming off the bench creating plays for all those 3 point shooters.

[Tg11]

Raptors starting 5 most likely come December

PG- Lowry
SG- Van Vleet
SF- Anunoby
PF- Siakam
C- Baynes

Powell will most likely come off the bench and so will Len and whoever

[bartron_44]

I'd love to see it too, but not a chance freddy comes off the bench.

I think Powell is still their 6th man. They were a 60+ win team last year with Siakam learning how to be a #1 option and a starting C who averaged 7 pts and 6 reb.

Its a different group, but one that is still going to be very good. I'm excited to see what Siakam has improved at since he left the bubble. I think the biggest leaps this year though are going to come from Boucher and Paul Watson though. I think both will be big parts of an energetic second unit who will make it rain from deep.

[smith&wesson]

Intersting, I was talking to some friends last night and they think the Raptors actually improved this offseason.

some key points

- The general consensus is that Gasol is on his last legs. Yes hes a high iq player, and still provides solid interior defence. But Len will run the floor better, and has room to improve especially that he has never been in a winning culture/enviroment. The feed back I was recieving was that Len is a player that has untapped potential and could see it come to fruition in our system. On that basis alone the guys I was talking to were excited to replace Gasol with a young Len with alot to prove.

- Ibaka will be missed. He was a versatile big that could do a bit of everything. But heres the feed back I got on replacing him. Baynes is a better floor spacer and consistent shooter. Boucher is primed to break out and will continue to impress off the bench. The combination of Baynes and the opportunity Boucher will get, could result in better over all production. The general feeling was that Boucher could have a break out season and Baynes will actually fit in perfectly with the core we have in place.

- The last thing I came away with was the fact the most important pieces in our core are still intact. Lowry/FVV/Siakam/OG will still be the main focal point on the roster. The C position is not all that important anymore and Len/Baynes/Boucher will more than suffice as OG and Siakam will still be playing the bulk of the minutes at the 4. All in all, we could be the same team, or maybe even a little better with fresh young legs and players who have a lot to work and play hard for.

After taking those points in to account, although I was already mentally ready to write this year off, I think we will have another good season. Im excited to see what Len and Baynes bring to the team and if we can get anymore untapped potential out of them. The system we have in place offers alot more to these type of players than the situations they were previously in like phx, atl, or sacremento.

[bartron_44]

Intersting, I was talking to some friends last night and they think the Raptors actually improved this offseason.

some key points

- The general consensus is that Gasol is on his last legs. Yes hes a high iq player, and still provides solid interior defence. But Len will run the floor better, and has room to improve especially that he has never been in a winning culture/enviroment. The feed back I was recieving was that Len is a player that has untapped potential and could see it come to fruition in our system. On that basis alone the guys I was talking to were excited to replace Gasol with a young Len with alot to prove.

- Ibaka will be missed. He was a versatile big that could do a bit of everything. But heres the feed back I got on replacing him. Baynes is a better floor spacer and consistent shooter. Boucher is primed to break out and will continue to impress off the bench. The combination of Baynes and the opportunity Boucher will get, could result in better over all production. The general feeling was that Boucher could have a break out season and Baynes will actually fit in perfectly with the core we have in place.

- The last thing I came away with was the fact the most important pieces in our core are still intact. Lowry/FVV/Siakam/OG will still be the main focal point on the roster. The C position is not all that important anymore and Len/Baynes/Boucher will more than suffice as OG and Siakam will still be playing the bulk of the minutes at the 4. All in all, we could be the same team, or maybe even a little better with fresh young legs and players who have a lot to work and play hard for.

After taking those points in to account, although I was already mentally ready to write this year off, I think we will have another good season. Im excited to see what Len and Baynes bring to the team and if we can get anymore untapped potential out of them. The system we have in place offers alot more to these type of players than the situations they were previously in like phx, atl, or sacremento.

I think whoever these friends are they should get off the crack..lol Baynes is a better floor spacer and more consistent shooter than Ibaka? That is a joke if i ever heard one. Baynes just started shooting last year ffs. He normally sticks to put backs etc. But this year he took 4 shots from deep per game to keep people honest. He is a back up 5 imo.

The guy i think should start is Len tbh. He shoots it just as well from deep as Baynes, and the last time he was a starter he averaged over 13 ppg ( in 24mpg) and shot over 37% from 3 and just under 49% from the field.

Baynes is all energy. I want him and Boucher coming off the bench and giving our energy a lift like the old bench mob used to.

[ChongInc.]

Intersting, I was talking to some friends last night and they think the Raptors actually improved this offseason.

some key points

- The general consensus is that Gasol is on his last legs. Yes hes a high iq player, and still provides solid interior defence. But Len will run the floor better, and has room to improve especially that he has never been in a winning culture/enviroment. The feed back I was recieving was that Len is a player that has untapped potential and could see it come to fruition in our system. On that basis alone the guys I was talking to were excited to replace Gasol with a young Len with alot to prove.

- Ibaka will be missed. He was a versatile big that could do a bit of everything. But heres the feed back I got on replacing him. Baynes is a better floor spacer and consistent shooter. Boucher is primed to break out and will continue to impress off the bench. The combination of Baynes and the opportunity Boucher will get, could result in better over all production. The general feeling was that Boucher could have a break out season and Baynes will actually fit in perfectly with the core we have in place.

- The last thing I came away with was the fact the most important pieces in our core are still intact. Lowry/FVV/Siakam/OG will still be the main focal point on the roster. The C position is not all that important anymore and Len/Baynes/Boucher will more than suffice as OG and Siakam will still be playing the bulk of the minutes at the 4. All in all, we could be the same team, or maybe even a little better with fresh young legs and players who have a lot to work and play hard for.

After taking those points in to account, although I was already mentally ready to write this year off, I think we will have another good season. Im excited to see what Len and Baynes bring to the team and if we can get anymore untapped potential out of them. The system we have in place offers alot more to these type of players than the situations they were previously in like phx, atl, or sacremento.

You make some good points here.
Baynes definitely isn’t the shooter Ibaka is, but he is definitely a better defender at this point in their careers. Baynes shot it with a lot of confidence which I like to see - doesnt over think it like JV used to.

Len definitely could be sneaky good signing. He’s never been in a good system, and has proven he belongs in the league.

I have a lot of confidence in boucher. I want him to get the most minutes out of the young bigs other than siakam.

But yeah we basically lost RHJ, Gasol, Ibaka. The only loss that we will feel is Ibaka, but we have pieces that want those shots.

Watson could be an Xfactor.

[smith&wesson]

I think whoever these friends are they should get off the crack..lol Baynes is a better floor spacer and more consistent shooter than Ibaka? That is a joke if i ever heard one. Baynes just started shooting last year ffs. He normally sticks to put backs etc. But this year he took 4 shots from deep per game to keep people honest. He is a back up 5 imo.

The guy i think should start is Len tbh. He shoots it just as well from deep as Baynes, and the last time he was a starter he averaged over 13 ppg ( in 24mpg) and shot over 37% from 3 and just under 49% from the field.

Baynes is all energy. I want him and Boucher coming off the bench and giving our energy a lift like the old bench mob used to.

Well first of all, it wasnt crack. It was some high grade indica, that goes by the name of green crack lol.

I didnt get in to who should start or come off the bench. like you said, Len had some nice numbers as a starter. If we can get that type of production out of him, Im def happy. I also think Boucher will do well with the opportunity that will present itself. He had great numbers in the bubble as a small sample size of what he could become.

Obviously Ibaka is the best player of all the names mentioned. I was simply saying that who weve replaced him with could suffice and if these players tap in to some untapped potential that it could work out favourably. Alot of people think that were going to take a few steps back. I would argue that the players we lost are the least important to our core and are the ones that can be replaced the easiest in the era of basketball we are in.

[smith&wesson]

You make some good points here.
Baynes definitely isn’t the shooter Ibaka is, but he is definitely a better defender at this point in their careers. Baynes shot it with a lot of confidence which I like to see - doesnt over think it like JV used to.

Len definitely could be sneaky good signing. He’s never been in a good system, and has proven he belongs in the league.

I have a lot of confidence in boucher. I want him to get the most minutes out of the young bigs other than siakam.

But yeah we basically lost RHJ, Gasol, Ibaka. The only loss that we will feel is Ibaka, but we have pieces that want those shots.

Watson could be an Xfactor.

def agree, and thats reason enough for some optimism. Too many people are writing the raptors off. I think weve actually opened up our window by a few years with flexibility to further improve on what we have in the next year or two.

I truly believe that Lowry made Serge better, as Serge was no where near the same player in Orlando. The combination of Lowry and the culture here made Ibaka a better over all player. Whos to say the same cant be done for Len for example.

[ChongInc.]

I worry about Lowry taking a step back. First time in his long career that the timing of his preparations has changed.

[smith&wesson]

I worry about Lowry taking a step back. First time in his long career that the timing of his preparations has changed.

I think he will be vital to the development of younger players and set the precedent of what our team culture is about.

At some point I do think its possible we trade him based on a few things.

1. if Lowry expresses that he intends on testing the market as a free agent, that will signal Masai to move him for something, rather than lose him for nothing.
2. if Lowry indicates he wants to retire a raptor and his next contract will be team friendly, he could essentially be a raptor for the rest of his career.
3. If Philly offers a good package, maybe we send him home as a thank you.
4. If the Cippers or Lakers offer a decent enough package, maybe we send him to one of those teams as a thank you and allow him to compete for another ship.

I think Lowry will determine what Lowry will do, but if he communicates his intentions to Masai, it could help both sides.

[bartron_44]

Well first of all, it wasnt crack. It was some high grade indica, that goes by the name of green crack lol.

I didnt get in to who should start or come off the bench. like you said, Len had some nice numbers as a starter. If we can get that type of production out of him, Im def happy. I also think Boucher will do well with the opportunity that will present itself. He had great numbers in the bubble as a small sample size of what he could become.

Obviously Ibaka is the best player of all the names mentioned. I was simply saying that who weve replaced him with could suffice and if these players tap in to some untapped potential that it could work out favourably. Alot of people think that were going to take a few steps back. I would argue that the players we lost are the least important to our core and are the ones that can be replaced the easiest in the era of basketball we are in.

I was just foolin....but apparently I was close...haha the green crack will def mess you up...gotta love it. lol


I actually agree with most of the original post, just not the Baynes being a more consistent shooter than Ibaka part.

I am not as much concerned with us getting worse, we just didn't improve as much as some other teams. Luckily we were ahead of most of the teams that got a lot better in the East. Mil got better. Brooklyn picks up KD. Atl picked up Gallo, Bogdan and Rondo. Bos and Miami are both still really good. It is going to be hard to finish 2nd in the reg season.

[smith&wesson]

I was just foolin....but apparently I was close...haha the green crack will def mess you up...gotta love it. lol


I actually agree with most of the original post, just not the Baynes being a more consistent shooter than Ibaka part.

I am not as much concerned with us getting worse, we just didn't improve as much as some other teams. Luckily we were ahead of most of the teams that got a lot better in the East. Mil got better. Brooklyn picks up KD. Atl picked up Gallo, Bogdan and Rondo. Bos and Miami are both still really good. It is going to be hard to finish 2nd in the reg season.

Yeah I agree. The east has improved. Especially in the Atlantic division. Im still banking on contenuity with our core to carry us some but yeah, finishing 2nd is not a realistic expectation. I see the East shaping out like this

Bucks
Nets
Heat
Celtics
Raptors and 6ers fighting for that 5th spot
Pacers
Hawks

Another interesting convo we were having is the possibility of the Raptors playing in the South East division with Miami, Orlando, Charlotte, & Atlanta since they will be in Tampa. Then Washington play in the Atlantic division as they will be much closer to Philly and New York. If that happens it could make a big difference because NewYork is the only team in the Atlantic that isnt a playoff contender, where as Miami is the only contending playoff team in the South East.

[pebloemer]

Ah then guess that wont work.

In a perfect world he should be on a 2 way deal. He's basically 2 years removed from last playing regularly.

Looks like Hernandez is in fact being waived to free up a roster spot.

[ChongInc.]

Looks like Hernandez is in fact being waived to free up a roster spot.

I’m shocked because masai has been acting like he sees something in the kid.
I didn’t. I’m not disappointed.