I wanted to write a post-lottery follow-up regarding the Raptors and the talk around them heading into the offseason. Also, like last week, I’ll be looking at some of the league headlines and offering my opinions on them.
What lies ahead for the Raps?
The NBA Draft Lottery was two days ago now and the word spreading through Toronto is the Raptors organization could not be happier with what transpired as far as the Miami Heat dropping from the #1 pick to #2. Now, a couple days ago, I wrote an entry regarding the fact I thought the Chicago Bulls would use the top pick to draft Michael Beasley out of Kansas State and the only way I couldn’t see it not happening was if John Paxson felt he was done with Kirk Hinrich as his starter in the future. Well, it looks like that second scenario may indeed end up playing itself out on June 26’s entry draft.
Derrick Rose, a phenomenally talented point guard out of Memphis, is a Chicago boy whose agent has strong ties to the Bulls organization, according to Doug Smith of the Toronto Star. You can find the article at http://www.thestar.com/Sports/article/428481 and I’ll be making reference to it several times in this entry so you might want to give it a quick skim in order to understand everything I’m saying. If the Bulls decide to have Rose on their team next year in order to train him for the eventual starting position, that leaves Miami at the #2 spot in the draft still looking desperately for a point guard, which the Raptors just happen to have in excess.
This could play out in several ways. Both T.J. Ford and Jose Calderon would fit into Miami’s system flawlessly and be one more young piece to a solid core of Dwyane Wade and Shawn Marion. If Miami keeps their #2 pick and drafts Michael Beasley, that’s yet another great addition to continue rebuilding around. However, they may not be guaranteed to keep that pick. If Bryan Colangelo does business with Pat Riley – which so many columnists and analysts seem to believe he will – there is a chance he would make overtures regarding that draft choice. Could BC swing Ford in a deal along with an expiring contract in exchange for the #2 pick and possibly a player the caliber of Udonis Haslem? That’s a possibility. Unfortunately, it would leave Miami’s frontcourt as bare as it’s ever been. What about a sign-and-trade deal in July involving Jose Calderon? That’s another possibility.
In the end, the Raptors have a lot more flexibility and options now that Miami landed the #2 pick. Rather than having their choice of Beasley and Rose at the top of the draft, their destiny is in the hands of the Bulls. Raptors fans should really be hoping Chicago goes for the hometown guy as a result of their lost confidence in Kirk Hinrich. Even as these theories spread with Doug Smith at the Star and Eric Smith at the Fan 590, among others, I still don’t see a lot of players on the Heat I’d like to have. There’s obviously the possible #2 pick, which would be Michael Beasley in this scenario, and Udonis Haslem, which would help the Raptors up front with his size, strength, rebounding and defence. He may be undersized at 6’8 but he reminds me a lot of Antonio Davis from the Raptors’ ‘glory’ days in 2001. That’s definitely the type of scrappy guy we need and wouldn’t it be amazing to have Beasley at 6’10? They would still need an athletic swingman to score from the wing if Beasley wasn’t brought here but that’s where their #17 draft choice could come into play, assuming it wasn’t dealt to Miami or any other team. The one hang-up of this whole thing is I don’t know how much Miami wants or needs financial flexibility right now. They had a lot of D-League minimum scale contracts last season as a result of injury. I haven’t looked at the figures recently but I think Miami will be doing alright.
Just to clarify, I’m not saying any of this WILL happen, especially Pat Riley passing on a great talent at the #2 pick if Rose is gone. It’s actually pretty unlikely that pick gets moved to Toronto but what could easily happen is one of our point guards being traded there. It’s just something to consider so we’ll see how it plays out and what news and rumours surface over the next little while.
Playoff Thoughts
1. Game 1 of the Western Conference Final was amazing on Wednesday night. The San Antonio Spurs dominated for about 30 minutes of the game and then suffered the largest collapse I’ve seen from them in quite a long time – maybe ever. You would think a 20-point lead in the third quarter for the Spurs would mean a win but Kobe Bryant proved why he’s the MVP of the NBA. He had two points in the first half, followed by 25 in the second half and countless plays were facilitated by him for Pau Gasol late in the game. I know the Spurs are a veteran team and the defending Champions so this loss isn’t as bad as it would be for other teams but it is pretty demoralizing. It reminds me of when the Phoenix Suns lost Game 1 to the Spurs in double overtime in the first round because it’s about as big a loss as you can have for team morale. However, the Spurs can take solace in the fact they were down 0-2 to the Hornets and managed to climb back. I don’t think they can afford to do that this time around because the Lakers are more than capable of winning one on the road, which could leave the Spurs down 3-1 coming back to Los Angeles in Game 5. Game 2 may not be a must-win situation for the Champions but they really do need to steal that game in order to take home court advantage. This is the Conference Finals and going down 0-2 is a bit of a steeper climb than in the first two rounds. If Kobe asserts himself more throughout the series – he only took one shot in the first half last night – the Spurs will have a lot of problems, even with Tim Duncan continually proving why he is the best power forward in the history of the NBA, dropping 30 points and 18 rebounds while making Pau Gasol look like a bum. Hopefully he keeps it going.
2. Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Final is tonight and a lot of you may be reading this after it finishes but I think the Pistons really need to win this as well. I’ve stuck to my guns in saying the Boston Celtics will not finish this postseason winless on the road and I think they’ll get Game 4 in Detroit, meaning this second game is pretty important to both teams. Does Detroit want to go back home down 0-2 and does Boston want to go on the road having lost home court advantage knowing they haven’t won a game away from TD Banknorth Garden in a month? We’ll see how it plays out but I’m sticking with the Celtics tonight and I think Ray Allen will finally snap out of his shooting funk and drop around 18 points on Richard Hamilton. I also expect a bounce back game from Chauncey Billups after his horrific Game 1 showing. There’s no way Rajon Rondo should be outplaying him more than one time. Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce will obviously need to keep playing the way they have because they can’t count on Ray right now if his recent performances are any indication. It should be another great game between two amazing basketball teams. If anyone can remember a more entertaining Final Four than this in the past ten seasons after Michael Jordan’s Bulls dynasty ended, please refresh my memory.
The Headlines
“Riley Wants A ‘Major’ Free Agent”
Link: http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?story_id=8792
The Miami Heat have some financial flexibility in the summer of 2009 following the Shaquille O’Neal/Shawn Marion trade. They will be able to make a very big splash in the summer of 2010, when LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh can all opt out of their current contracts in order to become free agents. Since they will be seven-year veterans of the league, they’ll be able to sign contracts worth a greater percentage of the salary cap than their current deals allow. I can see Riley re-signing Wade if things are looking up on South Beach but we’ll have to wait and see. Hopefully two summers from now, Chris Bosh will have made a couple deep playoff runs and will be interested in re-signing with the Raptors for another five or six seasons.
“Bynum Should Be OK For Training Camp”
Link: http://www.dailynews.com/sports/ci_9341306
Andrew Bynum underwent arthroscopic surgery on his injured knee. I remember when the injury took place, there was confidence Bynum would be back around March or April at the latest – I guess he’s a slow healer. He should be ready for training camp in October, which is when we’ll see what the new-look Lakers are really capable of. I’m still skeptical that there’s enough room in the frontcourt to have Lamar Odom, Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum as well as touches but Odom and Gasol both have the ability to be low key and under the radar with the things they do. I think Odom will have to come off the bench at some point but it remains to be seen what Phil Jackson will do with those guys in the long-term. Bynum was averaging a double-double at the time of his injury in January and the Lakers were on the rise so we’ll see if he can come back at that same level next year.
“Raptors Still Fielding Calls For Ford/Calderon”
Link: http://www.thestar.com/Sports/article/428481
More and more, it seems like T.J. Ford isn’t the only player on the block and unlike popular belief recently, Ford IS drawing interest from other teams in the league. Obviously, Jose’s stock is a lot higher right now but you never know what a team will offer for Ford if they’re desperate enough for a point guard. T.J. has the potential to still be a star guard and with only $25 million left on his deal over three seasons, his contract wouldn’t be a complete albatross around a team’s neck. If T.J. is going to be moved, the Raps might be wise to wait until they can be sure Jose will be back via free agency. I would still think long and hard about who should be moved because T.J. was having a great year before his injury. He can be frustrating at times, but also very good, which is the same thing we say about Andrea Bargnani.
“Could Bulls Deal Thomas & Gooden?”
If the Chicago Bulls opt for 6’10 forward Michael Beasley with the #1 pick, that would leave their frontcourt pretty crowded. There’s not huge size or exceptional skill up front at the power forward and center positions but that would change if Beasley came in. Drew Gooden would probably be the guy most likely to be moved since his skills would then be redundant on the team. I like Tyrus Thomas’ athleticism and defence and I don’t think it’d be a good idea for the Bulls to deal him. However, if they still wanted a new point guard to replace Kirk Hinrich, maybe something could be worked out to land one of their bigs. Even then, none of them particularly interest me since we need size and girth to back up Andrea and help Bosh out. On the other hand, wouldn’t it be amazing to have Luol Deng as the starting small forward in a sign-and-trade of some sort? He has the length, athleticism and defence to fill that gaping hole and he can also take some of the scoring load off of CB4. A frontcourt of Deng, Bosh and Bargnani could end up being pretty damn good with a solid point guard. I’d still like to replace Anthony Parker at the off guard, though. He’s not bad, but if there’s something better out there, the Raps should go for it.
“Sixers In No Rush To Extend Miller”
Andre Miller represents an expiring contract worth $10 million at the end of the season and for some reason, the Sixers aren’t looking to extend him. What more does this guy need to do to get some respect in this league? He was amazing for Philadelphia down the stretch and he’s still getting no love with an extension. Unless the Sixers have some kind of plan, I don’t see a point guard waiting in the wings to take over Miller’s spot. They have a good swingman with Andre Iguodala, a good big man in Samuel Dalembert and youth with Thaddeus Young, Rodney Carney, Louis Williams, etc. but the point guard spot is imperative and letting Miller go would be a big mistake. If they plan to trade him, they better get a point guard back or the steps they took forward this past season will be for naught.
“Knicks Could Deal Pick With Big Contract Player To Shed Salary?”
Again, like the Miami Heat, the Knicks are setting their sights on the summer of 2010 to make a pitch at either LeBron James or Dwyane Wade. Who knows, maybe they’ll try to court both of them. New York has the #6 pick in the draft and is looking to possibly package it with Eddy Curry or Zach Randolph to get something in return that wouldn’t have the same financial repercussions. I like the move for New York because they’d be taking a proactive approach to rebuilding rather than just letting their bad contracts expire each year. It’s not like there’s a lot of “to die for” talent at the top of the draft in that #6 spot so if they can shed a horrible contract like Eddy Curry’s, they should do it. But on the other side, who in their right mind would take Curry on? I can understand them wanting Randolph because he’s one of the few consistent double-double guys when he’s on a decent team so maybe he’s the guy that gets moved. Either way, 2010 will be an amazing year in free agency. I won’t be surprised to see the King in Manhattan with the Knicks or Brooklyn with the Nets and Jay-Z.
“Raptors’ Anthony Parker and Andrea Bargnani Have Surgery”
Link: http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3407116
AP had surgery on Wednesday at Toronto Western Hospital, repairing a tendon in his middle finger on the shooting hand. Maybe this will explain why AP was reluctant to shoot at times this season and when he did, it wasn’t as smooth as last season. Everything was successful, so he’ll be back next year and hopefully better than ever. Also, Andrea Bargnani had his nasal surgery performed in Milan, Italy on May 13 and I’m sure he’ll take a couple weeks off before heading to the various camps the Raptors have planned out for him this summer. I have no doubt Andrea will be back next year with a huge season to vindicate himself from 2007-2008. He’ll prove his doubters wrong and find his shot again. I can’t wait for the 2008-2009 season to begin in October.
“Will Raptors Make A Blockbuster Trade?”
Link: http://blog.canoe.ca/courtside/2008/05/20/nets_raptors_rumours_making_the_rounds
The New Jersey Nets and Denver Nuggets seem to be in the news daily with rumours, especially surrounding Carmelo Anthony, Marcus Camby and Richard Jefferson. I think RJ will definitely be moved before the season begins, but the destination is unknown right now. He’d be a good fit here in Toronto at the shooting guard position to replace Anthony Parker but the Nets don’t need a point guard now that they have Devin Harris. Perhaps a draft pick and expiring contracts would be enough but I just don’t see the pieces in place to make it happen.
There you have it. I hope you all enjoyed this entry and you can look forward to my 24 Second Rapid Fire Q&A with the Dino Nation Blogger, James Borbath, tomorrow. We’ll be back with our 24 questions and I may add in some other things depending on what news breaks between now and tomorrow night. As I’ve been reminding you for a while now, I’m still working on that 2009 Free Agent Report so stay tuned because it’ll be an interesting accumulation of information. Also, here are some NBA mock drafts for people to keep an eye on for an idea of who the Raptors will take if they still have that 17th pick on June 26:
Real GM: http://realgm.com/src_feature/1241/20080521/2008_nba_mock_draft_version_80_(post_lottery_edition)/
NBA Draft.Net: http://nbadraft.net/
Hoops Hype: http://hoopshype.com/draft.htm
Inside Hoops: http://insidehoops.com/nba-mock-draft.shtml
Draft Express (also on Yahoo): http://www.draftexpress.com/nba-mock-draft/2008/
-Mark R.
[The Raptor Core]
Filed under: Toronto Raptors Offseason News & Analysis | Tagged: 2008, Andre Iguodala, Andre Miller, Andrea Bargnani, Andrew Bynum, Anthony Parker, Boston Celtics, Carmelo Anthony, Chauncey Billups, Chicago Bulls, Chris Bosh, Denver Nuggets, Derrick Rose, Detroit Pistons, Draft, Drew Gooden, Dwyane Wade, East, Eddy Curry, John Paxson, Jose Calderon, Kevin Garnett, Kirk Hinrich, Kobe Bryant, Lamar Odom, LeBron James, Los Angeles Lakers, Lottery, Louis Williams, Luol Deng, Marcus Camby, Miami Heat, Michael Beasley, mock draft, NBA, New Jersey Nets, New York Knicks, Pat Riley, Pau Gasol, Paul Pierce, Philadelphia 76ers, Ray Allen, Richard Hamilton, Richard Jefferson, Rodney Carney, Samuel Dalembert, San Antonio Spurs, T.J. Ford, Thaddeus Young, Tim Duncan, Toronto Raptors, Tyrus Thomas, Udonis Haslem, West, Zach Randolph
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