Raptors Off-Season Thread

[L K]

I think for me this is three drafts in a row that have been underwhelming from Masai.  Caboclo is still just 20 and made a lot of strides last year but he's likely at least another year from being able to be a role player for the team.  Last year he drafted a 4-year PG and then acquired a PG and didn't play him all year.  This year he drafted a big backup center and a defense only PF. 

The Raptors can't shoot well enough to win.  I'm not sure that replacing Biyombo and Scola in the rotation was the right approach.

Derozan - 15.1M (Cap Hold)
Valanciunas - 14.4M
Carroll - 14.2M
Lowry - 12.0M
Ross - 10.0M
Joseph - 7.3M
Patterson - 6.0M *Last year
Poetl - 2.2M
Noguiera - 1.9M
Caboclo - 1.6M
Wright - 1.6M
Siakam - 1.0M
Powell - 0.9M

The Raptors don't have the cap space to sign anyone good in free agency.  They don't have the cap space to resign Biyombo (hence drafting a backup C and PF defensive combo).  If they renounce Derozan they could sign one max player but that is going to be rotating deck chairs.
Pretty sad state of affairs when the cap goes up by a projected 20+M dollars and you can't do anything.

[Coco-puffs]

The Ringer has us as one of the Draft's Losers which is pretty hard to argue with. Their reasoning is pretty solid:

Loser: Toronto Raptors
Someone should've told the Raptors that even though they owned New York's pick, they didn't actually have to draft like the Knicks. One of the classic James Dolan–era transactions is acquiring a player who was really good five years ago (hey, Derrick Rose!), and the Raptors might've just one-upped the Cablevision scion: They drafted a guy who would've been a nice centerpiece ... in 1996. Now, there was plenty of draft-night chatter about how Utah's Jakob Poeltl was the safest pick, but when a top-tier NBA team lands a lottery pick, does it really need a likely bench guy who can be legitimately described as Tyler Zelleresque? Unlike most franchises in the top 10, an already-good team like Toronto can afford to take a high-variance player. After winning 56 games, you almost never get chances like this, and the Raptors cashed in their ticket on a back-to-the-basket center with athleticism issues. — R.O.

https://theringer.com/nba-draft-winners-and-losers-24249a04abb7#.5skhzi7ad

Nowhere else have I heard that Poeltl has athleticism issues.  Everyone says he has good foot speed and mobility, but lacks a bit of leaping ability.  When you're 7 ft tall with a huge wingspan, leaping ability is the least of concerns. 

Counterpoint:

Toronto Raptors
Round 1: Jakob Poeltl, C, Utah (9); Pascal Siakam, PF, New Mexico State (27)
Round 2: N/A
Grade: A-

With the almost certain departure of Bismack Biyombo in free agency, the Raptors needed front court depth, and they got it with these two picks.

While Poeltl is a different player altogether from Biyombo, he should come in and be able to provide offense from Day 1.

Siakam meanwhile eventually could take on more of a Biyombo role as an "energy and hustle" guy, after averaging almost 12 boards a game in college last year.

http://www.foxsports.com/nba/story/2016-nba-draft-grades-winners-and-losers-062416

[Nik]

Nowhere else have I heard that Poeltl has athleticism issues.  Everyone says he has good foot speed and mobility, but lacks a bit of leaping ability.  When you're 7 ft tall with a huge wingspan, leaping ability is the least of concerns. 

I think the thing is with regards to athleticism is that it's relative. Having good footspeed/mobility within the context of being a back to the basket center is not quite the same as being a terrific athlete. I mean, to be real a second, if he had any sort of explosive athleticism there's almost no way a guy of his size would last until #9.

And while I think there's probably some truth to the idea that the team needed front court depth, you really have to ask yourself if that's what you want to use a top 10 pick on vs. swinging for the fences and landing someone with a better chance of being an all-star type.

[CarltonTheBear]

And while I think there's probably some truth to the idea that the team needed front court depth, you really have to ask yourself if that's what you want to use a top 10 pick on vs. swinging for the fences and landing someone with a better chance of being an all-star type.

So this is basically selecting Frederik Gauthier but 10+ picks earlier?

[Nik]

So this is basically selecting Frederik Gauthier but 10+ picks earlier?

Kind of. It's a little weirder than that as at least with Gauthier you could legitimately say the Leafs really had a need up the middle whereas here the Raps are pretty set for starting C. It's probably a little less like that in the sense that a pretty compelling case could at least be made that there wasn't an obvious better pick. The Raps were just unlucky to fall outside of the top 8.

[Coco-puffs]

And while I think there's probably some truth to the idea that the team needed front court depth, you really have to ask yourself if that's what you want to use a top 10 pick on vs. swinging for the fences and landing someone with a better chance of being an all-star type.

So this is basically selecting Frederik Gauthier but 10+ picks earlier?

Nope.  That's the 27th pick Siakam who's pretty raw offensively and good defensively.  I'd say thats a more apt comparison to Gauthier.

Poeltl has a great offensive game, similar to JV's back to the basket game.  And Poeltl looks fantastic in Pick-and-Roll offenses... he cuts hard to the basket, something everyone wishes JV did a little more.

[Nik]

Lowry and DeRozan got officially introduced as Team USA members today. Best of luck, fellas. Don't come back with Zika.

[Heroic Shrimp]

So, is Jared Sullinger any good...?

[L K]

At eating?  Yes.  He has a motivation problem but his skill is there and if he has the right offseason he could become the Raptors starting PF.

I actually really like the signing. 

[Nik]

So, is Jared Sullinger any good...?

Going into the 2011-2012 season there was some real thought that he might be a top 3 pick in the NBA draft. That didn't happen, as his last year in college was largely seen as a disappointment and when they started the whole measuring process for the draft Sullinger didn't really do well on any of the physical/athletic tests. He's not particularly tall for the position, doesn't have great athleticism and as a result is kind of a limited player.

But he seems to be a pretty good basketball player. He's got pretty solid rebounding numbers, positions well defensively and doesn't need touches to be effective.

He's another in the Tyler Hansborough/Luis Scola/Amir Johnson mold of not realistically being an "answer" at the 4 but he's probably a decent option in terms of fitting in and contributing.

[Sarge]

Sorry but he looks like he might have played basketball one day.

[hockeyfan1]

Sullinger signs for one year @6M. 

Basically a replacement for Scola, and in some ways, Byombo:

Sullinger is a legitimately talented low-post scorer, capable of carving out space with his body and find angles that make him difficult to defend. His wide body also helps him fight for position and makes it easier for him to grab rebounds, despite being slightly undersized height-wise for his position.

Additionally, Sullinger has a bit of a face-up game where he can make use of a his decent midrange jumper and surprising quickness against defenders who may not be comfortable guarding a big outside of the paint.

Essentially, should Sullinger work out the way the Raptors hope, he will end up looking like a clear upgrade over Scola from last season with a little more offensive grit to his game.

More:
http://www.sportsnet.ca/basketball/nba/person-interest-new-raptors-forward-jared-sullinger/

[L K]

Raptors go 4-0 to start Summer league and then lose on a horrendous blown call to end their summer league season.

Poetl got the JV treatment averaging 5 touches a game.  Good job Raptors.

[Nik]

Good article about Bargnani, who signed in Europe:

https://sports.vice.com/ca/article/the-confounding-case-of-andrea-bargnani-who-was-impossible-to-figure-out

It's unfair to judge Bargnani on his draft position, as the article states, but still...

[hockeyfan1]

Something not quite Wright...

Raptors guard Deion Wright out four months (until December) due to shoulder surgery.


http://www.sportsnet.ca/basketball/nba/raptors-guard-wright-four-months-shoulder-surgery/