I love Adam Morrison, but I don't know if him or JJ redick will do as well in the NBA as they did in college.

I don't think they are as suited for the type of ball they play in the NBA.

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Where Are The Tunes?
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I follow NCAA more than NBA and one thing i love is watching young player develop or flop. Both Morrison and JJ will be star players in the NBA, not superstars, but good players. JJ is like Kirk Heinrich. Look @ Kirk develop his game in Chicago. Same will be with Redick. As for Morrison, he has the most upside in this draft.

but ya i agree, since there's no LeBron in this draft, trade for a fw picks down and get someone good up front to compliment and push Bosh.

quote:

Originally posted by TO guy Sure, trading the pic for an established player would be great, but as everyone is saying this is a weak draft; who is gonna trade an established player for number one pic in this draft? Nobody. ...

sure, if it was just about the pick...

we also have 10+ million in cap room and a lot of fringe players.

the #1 pick + a fringe player (or two) with 1 or 2 yrs left on their contract in exchange for a legit player, no matter how fat and long their contract is.

the last thing the Raps need is another project who's going to take 3 years to *maybe* turn into a decent NBA player...we have plenty of young talent to build around...we need someone who can step in and help NOW (an Oakley or Antonio Davis type player or a legit point guard to either start or back up Calderon because James should be outta here)

quote:

Originally posted by MarkT sure, if it was just about the pick... we also have 10+ million in cap room and a lot of fringe players. the #1 pick + a fringe player (or two) with 1 or 2 yrs left on their contract in exchange for a legit player, no matter how fat and long their contract is. the last thing the Raps need is another project who's going to take 3 years to *maybe* turn into a decent NBA player...we have plenty of young talent to build around...we need someone who can step in and help NOW (an Oakley or Antonio Davis type player or a legit point guard to either start or back up Calderon because James should be outta here)

dude, you should be a fucking scout for the raps..... i dont think i have ever disagreed with you on any points you've made regarding the team.

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quote:

Originally posted by MarkT I bet they trade the pick. Either they trade for a slightly lower pick and still get Bargnani (or someone decent) or they package it with a player (or two) for a legit established player. With a fair bit of young talent to build around, I see a solid veteran being more valuable than a first round pick in a relatively weak draft. I wish somehow that they could turn this situation into Ben Wallace coming to Toronto...but I highly doubt that's going to happen

i concur. however i do not feel ben wallace would be a good fit in toronto....that is antonio davis all over again...ben has already reached the peak of his career...with this being his contract year he is going to demand something very close to max $$$....he would be great for the first couple of years....but after that he would be a financial burden and it would not make sense for a franchise attempting to build a solid foundation for many years to come. in order to do this they can't turn into one of those teams who just chases proven stars and throws them max money...they will not get anywhere....developement and choosing players who can fit their intended roll perfectly with the team is what they need to focus on and i believe colangelo is doing just that.

i support whatever he does in this draft. he is a smart man and finally we have someone who knows what he is doing! yay!

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I have no doubt they will draft a good player, never the problem.....the problem is keeping them in Toronto......no matter how much money they throw at the player for some retarded reason many of the players do not like it here

quote:

Originally posted by slingshot i concur. however i do not feel ben wallace would be a good fit in toronto....that is antonio davis all over again...ben has already reached the peak of his career...with this being his contract year he is going to demand something very close to max $$$....he would be great for the first couple of years....but after that he would be a financial burden and it would not make sense for a franchise attempting to build a solid foundation for many years to come. in order to do this they can't turn into one of those teams who just chases proven stars and throws them max money...they will not get anywhere....developement and choosing players who can fit their intended roll perfectly with the team is what they need to focus on and i believe colangelo is doing just that. i support whatever he does in this draft. he is a smart man and finally we have someone who knows what he is doing! yay!

Ben Wallace has peaked, but he's the best defender in the league for the last 4 seasons IMO, and that's still a long way to come down from your peak. And he sure as hell isn't an Antonio Davis like player, as he hasn't checked out with his attitude on Detroit. Granted he hasn't had reason to, but he's the heart of that franchise.

That being said, Detroit will never let the base player which their team is built around leave so you can discount him.

What I'm worried about is that if the raps do trade for a solid vet or two, is the meshing with the rest of the players on our team. We're still weak at the one spot and thin at five. Those two positions are traditionally the hardest positions to fix. So what are our real solutions? Trade? Who are we gonna pick up and for what cost? Who's a free agent? Who's in the draft?

Trading is tough because apart from cap space, we have very little to offer, as it is a weak draft and our roster is a bit thin by itself, and no one wants to give up centres or point guards for cheap.

Another issue is that if a team is willing to dump a highly paid player for virtually nothing, it usually means the player has had some kind of issues with the team they're on and are not playing up to their capability. That always raises a huge question of character, and for Toronto fans having to endure Vince's whining, it doesn't appear to be the way to go.

Another thing that is probably danging in front of the raptors right now is a deal for Magloire. I'd think that'd be a mistake. From what we've got right now, we're built somewhat to be a run and gun team, and Magloire is a halfcourt player. He couldn't cut it in Milwaulkee, so how the hell is he gonna run the floor with the average raptor age of 23? Not a good idea.

Are there any solid players at those positions in free agency that are realistically gonna be looking to change teams?

Are we willing to wait another 3 years to develop another young player from the draft, and if so, which one? And is the rest of the team gonna stick around and wait another 3 years for development?

To be honest, I'm still holding back on what I think of the raps until I see what our new GM will do in this draft. A #1 pick can never hurt, but there are still too many questions and too many vacancies at key positions to make any kind of predictions or even hope for optimism at this point. The raps right now are in a great position for change, but change for the better, or screwing ourselves for the next 5 years, that's up to management.

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I think the Raptors best bet for this year is to draft a player who would compliment their current roster, who that would be, well your guess is as good as mine. Then try to pick up a decent center and point guard in free agency, no big contracts are needed. For the first time in years I have trememdous faith in our gm, Colangelo is a proven gm and good things are gonna happen.

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Raptors have many options at number one



TORONTO (CP-AP) - Toronto Raptors general manager Bryan Colangelo is a man with a host of options now that he owns the No. 1 pick in the June 28 NBA draft.



Sifting through the choices with the media Wednesday afternoon, a day after the Raptors won the draft lottery, Colangelo left the door open to all of the possibilities - from using the pick to trading it outright.

''In this particular draft, which is lacking a No. 1 pick that's what I call a program changer, someone like a LeBron James, Tim Duncan or a Shaquille O'Neal, you have to look it and say regardless of what number is attached to that pick we have to take the player that's right for this team and this program right now,'' said Colangelo.

''There may be a situation or two that we entertain where we move down and acquire something else, maybe it's a player and a pick. Maybe there's someone who wants No. 1 more than we want No. 1.''

It will all play out in the coming weeks. Colangelo said he heard some GMs talking about wanting to move up in the draft before the lottery was even held.

The Raptors are likely to be at the centre of trade talks thanks to the fortunate lottery bounce and the over $10-million US in salary cap space generated by the February trade of Jalen Rose to New York.

''Now that we walk into this process with not only the first pick, but also with the ability to take on a fairly large contract, you never know what to expect,'' said Colangelo. ''There may be an all-star calibre player that a franchise is looking to move, maybe they want to move in a complete different direction and we decide to take on an all-star calibre player in place of the No. 1 pick.''

One team has already expressed interest in trading for the pick, he said.

Colangelo wants to add some toughness and some interior presence but feels that none of the top prospects are likely to step in and contribute right away.

He likes the club's young core, which includes all-star Chris Bosh, Charlie Villanueva and Joey Graham, and is playing things close to the vest with regards to free agent point guard Mike James.

There has been speculation that Colangelo is intrigued with Andrea Bargnani, a seven-foot power forward who plays for Benetton in Treviso, Italy.

The Raptors dispatched coach Sam Mitchell and senior adviser Wayne Embry to Italy to scout the forward Wednesday. Benetton is still in the Italian playoffs.

General manager Bryan Colangelo and team owner Larry Tanenbaum have already scouted Bargnani.

''I'm not certain we would be sending Sam and Wayne to Italy if we had the No. 5 pick,'' Colangelo said.

Bosh, who said he wanted to sign a long-term deal with the Raptors, doesn't seem as keen on the Italian prospect.

''He can really shoot the ball, but like I said before, I think we have plenty of talented big guys who can play the finesse four spot,'' Bosh told Toronto all-sports radio station the Fan 590. ''I think we need to get a banger.

''If we can get a big guy who is not going to look for many shots, who just wants to set screens ... and control the paint, that would give us a lot of flexibility.''

Colangelo mentioned Texas centre LaMarcus Aldridge, Gonzaga forward Adam Morrison, Washington guard Brandon Roy, Connecticut forward Rudy Gay and LSU forward Tyrus Thomas as candidates for the No. 1 pick.

But he's clearly high on Bargnani and is even considering hiring Benetton GM Maurizio Gherardini as Toronto's new assistant GM.

Bargnani averaged 11.2 points and 5.2 rebounds in his first 22 games in Italian league play. The 20-year-old often gets compared to Dirk Nowitzki because of his versatility and smooth jumper.

And though the Raptors already have power forwards Bosh and Villanueva, Colangelo says he'll take the top player no matter the position.

''We're not good enough to draft around positions right now,'' Colangelo said.

With the expected departure of point guard Mike James, who said recently that he'd like to return to Houston, the Raptors will have another hole to fill. Bosh seemed to take a shot at the trigger-happy guard during his radio interview.

''I think it's very important to have a pass-first point guard, somebody who can make plans down the stretch of a game,'' he said. ''When I say make plays, I don't mean making shots for themselves because I don't think that makes anybody better.''

There is, however, finally a sense of optimism long missing from the franchise.

Colangelo, who was hired in February to replace the fired Rob Babcock, says he feels it too. He's hearing fewer concerns from players about coming up to play in Canada, less complaints about the taxes and the market.

''All of that seems to be diminishing quite a lot,'' he said. ''I also think the word on the street is they kind of like the direction of the franchise right now.''

Bosh agreed.

''We had a pretty tough season last year,'' said Bosh. ''Ever since Bryan got hired things have been falling into place.''

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quote:

Originally posted by Floorwhore dude, you should be a fucking scout for the raps..... i dont think i have ever disagreed with you on any points you've made regarding the team.

from your mouth to the GM's ears, lol...getting paid to watch b-ball is something I could definitely get used to doing

quote:

Originally posted by slingshot i concur. however i do not feel ben wallace would be a good fit in toronto....that is antonio davis all over again...ben has already reached the peak of his career...with this being his contract year he is going to demand something very close to max $$$....he would be great for the first couple of years ...

Antonio was one of the best thing to happen to this franchise the first time around. Last year was a business move, not meant to benefit the team on the floor much at all...everyone knew he'd be outta here the moment the season ended.

I do see your other main point though...Ben isn't a kid and is likely a bit past his prime...but the guy is still a *beast*. He'd automatically become the best rebounder in team history...has rarely been injured in recent years...and is clearly is wicked shape to still dominate at his position while being under 7' tall. yeah, his #s are declining...but that could, in part, also be due to the fact that he plays as part of perhaps the most talented starting lineup in the last decade or more, no?

In Toronto, with Bosh and Charlie V...I really think he'd continue to dominate for years to come...certainly for enough time for the Raps to draft/trade for a younger C in the coming years and let him learn from one of the best. I'd take him for max money for 4-5 years over some "maybe" in a heartbeat


I dunno...this Bargnani guy, from the media, appears to NOT be a big rebounder. As Bosh himself says...get a guy who bangs. We don't need scoring...we need rebounding and defense at the C position (badly!)

quote:

Originally posted by MarkT I do see your other main point though...Ben isn't a kid and is likely a bit past his prime...but the guy is still a *beast*. He'd automatically become the best rebounder in team history...has rarely been injured in recent years...and is clearly is wicked shape to still dominate at his position while being under 7' tall. yeah, his #s are declining...but that could, in part, also be due to the fact that he plays as part of perhaps the most talented starting lineup in the last decade or more, no? In Toronto, with Bosh and Charlie V...I really think he'd continue to dominate for years to come...certainly for enough time for the Raps to draft/trade for a younger C in the coming years and let him learn from one of the best. I'd take him for max money for 4-5 years over some "maybe" in a heartbeat

For sure, I'd certainly love to see big ben in a raptors uniform. It's wishful thinking, but I'd love to see it.