[Grange] The expectation around the league is that this time around [the Raptors will] actually choose a path and pursue it, rather than engage in the extended tire-kicking that was the story last winter and this past off-season.
by Cheechers23
@Toronto Raptors
29 Comments
> I suspect we all know what will happen if the Raptors continue to meander along at or below .500 for the next 20 games: The front office will have little choice to not only explore the trade market for Pascal Siakam, O.G. Anunoby and Gary Trent Jr. â their three rotation players on expiring contacts â but actually make deals they have been pushing down the road for nearly a year now.
> Whether the Raptors will sell, stand pat or even be buyers at the Feb. 9 trade deadline is still unknown, but the expectation around the league is that this time around theyâll actually choose a path and pursue it, rather than engage in the extended tire-kicking that was the story last winter and this past off-season.
> Which is why there is a certain amount of urgency for the next 20 games. By the mid-point of the schedule â the 41-game mark â the die will likely be cast. Whatever the Raptors end up doing will have been decided. So if the current iteration of the team is actually significantly better than .500 and capable of being more than a scrappy play-in team â their current ceiling as projected â itâs time to show it.
Basically the front office has put themselves in a position where (assuming a miracle doesnât happen and we turn up over the next month or 2) they wonât have much of a choice at the deadline, and thatâs the worst position to be in from a negotiating standpoint.
Edit: I also wonder if theyâll look into trading Dennis. Know heâs been good for us and stuff but sometimes you gotta sell high. If he can net us a first in this years draft (not certain weâd get that for Pascal, given the FO seems to prefer players to picks), we should look into that. Obviously thatâs also dependent on what we get in other trades. Dennis can also be traded on draft night/in the offseason.
It’s kind of their last possible chance to do so
Not the headline you want for the Grange kiss of death
The raptors did choose a path last season, it was just the wrong one.
(X) doubt.
Sorry but they DID choose a direction last year. They doubled down on the then-current core, and traded future picks for Jakob.
What is meant here I assume is that they will choose a DIFFERENT direction, and either nab a star or shift to a tear down.
If we tank then thank goodness we have our pick next year! Oh wait…
My guess is even if they tank they’ll probably end up in the 7-9 range and lose that protection.
Is it said and done that OG doesn’t eant to return? I don’t understand why we would be trading him away since he fits well om the scottie timeline and we are going to have to be maxing out someone under the CBA anyways.
Heard this exact same thing last year
Sell high on Dennis and Poeltl. Get whatever you can for Pascal. Build around Scottie the right way
I mean, the alternative is to let the team’s two stars walk for nothing (which I strongly believe is still a possibility).
The ultimate case of procrastination.
What paths in purals? Tf assets we have for trade
Just sell these guys off weâre mid
Masai tire-kicking makes me picture [this sketch](https://youtu.be/gg6Bmo950zk?si=yVUiUCSuifrPKiJK)
Fool me onceâŠ
The FOâs backs are against the wall. There is no more time for evaluation. Letting 3 core players hit free agency and walk would be disastrous for the organization. Letâs just hope some value can be salvaged for our expiring players when we eventually have to trade them.
Weâre buying babayyyyy đ€đ€
I guess so as Grange basically reporters on team PR releases. Although, doesn’t this contradict what Masai just said about still evaluating and teaming Pascal and OG?
Fucking obviously. Theyâre not gonna pay the tax for this team.
OG, Pascal, and to a lesser extent Garyâs expiring contracts are going to force them to do something.
Theyâre gonna find a trade for Pascal, unless someone wants to drastically overpay for OG. Iâm not sure if Gary has any trade value right now, though someone might take a flier based on past performance.
Iâll believe when I see it
In Masaiâs defence he wasnât kicking tires the summer. He went hard after Dame. Got close but just couldnât get it done.
The issue is⊠last yearâs price tag isnât going to be this yearâs. The market may not be there in the same way for expiring contracts if they decide to be sellers.
Weâre all hoping Masai can redeem himself. Its been a rough few years for him.
Isn’t this a fancy way of saying Masai is pissed off? Like, tons of talent and paycheques in that locker room just not getting the job done?
This is a warning shot across the bow sort of thing?
This âexpectation around the leagueâ thing is so horse shit. Itâs people not really in the know, postulating about what the Raps might do. Tells me nothing about what the Raps are actually wanting to do.
Pascal to Pacers for Mathurin, Nembhard, picks and fillers.
Raptors get their SG, and combo bench guard ( Mathurin is Haitian grew up in Montreal) that has to be Masaiâs wet dream. Nembhard is Canadian.
Indiana gets an All Star added to the core of
-Haliburton, Brown,Turner, Hield.
I need some cap gurus to make it work but what this does is allow Mathurin and Scottie to grow together kind of like Middleton and Giannis. We would need to add a PG in the draft hopefully we are bad enough.
So by next year we have 3 foundational players to build around plus OG,Schroeder, Poetl to be our Vets.
Long overdue except now the market will dictate whatâs possible
Wonât believe it till I see it
They decided it was Nick nurses fault the bench sucks lol