Official Toronto Raptors Thread.

[BOSS]

I wouldn't mind neither but rather before a big man now and ya'll know LaMarcus can play. Morrison is good and wouldn't mind him like I said but you guys no we need a big man.

Hell no we ain't trading CV31 man. You see him play this year ? That's all I gotta say.
And there is no chance that we will get two lottery guys iKe7in.
Fuck Sam Cassell, that alien is staying a clipper.
Bosh is gettin his money this summer and I ain't worried bout it.

[j.23]

get a fucking big man. no more wingplayers or guards, there's enough to go around and dispose of.

[[L3]1101]

I heard a lot of crap on realgm. People were talking about signing Sam Cassell. That doesn't fit anywhere on our rebuilding process. We need someone young, not a 40 year old. I see a high possibility that we are gonna trade down. #1 pick for a good PG and their draft pick. One choice is seattle, Ridnour. Duhon is also possible, but since Chicago is drafting 2nd, i don't see that happening. Or we could just draft Aldridge, which isn't bad, but i feel that we need a PG more than a center right now, though we are pretty desperate at the C. I think that the FA market is a better place to find a suitable C than the draft. The FA market players are more experience, but we are more sure what we can exepect from them.

EDIT: We can also get GAY but he's not worth the #1, so we can trade down to about 3-5 and add a filler from the team. We can still draft a good player at #3-5.

[iKe7in]

Well Aldridge has had one year in college against NCAA centres in power forward bodies. I don't doubt he can play in the league, but he's not a good fit, especially if Charlie stays. 2 power forwards playing together is one thing, but three is ridiculous.

And it's not that I don't like Charlie, I think he can be a star in this league, but I'd rather have Magloire. And I doubt Milwaukee would trade him for Andre Barret and Loren Woods. You have to give up something good to get something good....unless you're New Jersey.

And the issue with Bargnani is that Toronto has hired Benneton Treviso's GM as their assistant GM, the team Bargnani played for. And now his agent has mentioned that if he is drafted by any team besides Toronto, he will stay in Europe, a la Fran Vasquez. Teams are going to avoid this guy, esecially the lottery teams who need help now.

Yes, Cassel is an alien, but he is a greedy alien who wants cash, which we have to spend. The Clips however, already have a contingency in Livingston, and I think they are more likely to spend their cash on Radmanovic.

I think that the FA market is a better place to find a suitable C than the draft.

Ya, if you want to pay for sure things like Jerome James, Adonal Foyle, Raef Lafrentz, Mark Blount, Erick Dampier, Scot Pollard and Brian Grant.
Big men are always overpaid and screw up team's caps for years. The only way to get a legit center is to either draft one or trade for one from a team thats not in contention.

[Ty-Land]

6. Trade Charlie V and a conditional pick/and/or a second player (Eric Williams/Pape Sow) for Jamaal Magloire

I think the Bucks would consider that trade. Magloire is definately leaving so Bogut moves to the 5 spot, and Larry Harris has said that he want's a PF that can spread the floor.

I would trade Magloire for CV + Sow plus a conditional first down the track. You could even have another player with Magloire, maybe Mo or Jiri. If it was Mo we would probably need your second this year though

[J@3]

Bucks fans would eat that up, most of them at RealGM seem to love Villanueva. Actually, their trade proposal is generally Magloire + Mo Williams for Charlie.

he obvously meant 'austin'

you just gave me Road Trip flashbacks.

[air gordon]

The Raps aren't going to awesome, there's no LeBron's in this draft.

well yeh since there is that age limit rule in effect

this probably won't happen but i'd like to see Colangelo roll the dice and pick Tyrus Thomas- he allegedly has the most 'upside'. If his basketball skills were to ever match his athleticism, he'd be awesome

Aldridge may end up as the pick but i think he'll be a strange fit for Toronto... at least offensively. Neither him and Bosh are true low post players (well maybe Aldridge but that may take a while) so I wonder how that would work out. Then there's Charlie V to factor in.

[cyanide]

Personally, I wouldn't want this pick to be traded. I'd love to see this young team pick one more young player and grow its core from there. I'd be happy if they pick either Aldridge, Thomas or, my personal favorite atm, Bargnani. We need a big guy, for sure.

[BOSS]

Raptors send coach and senior adviser to Italy to scout Bargnani
By ROB GILLIES, Associated Press Writer

TORONTO (AP) -- A day after winning the top pick in the draft lottery, the Toronto Raptors dispatched coach Sam Mitchell and senior adviser Wayne Embry to Italy to scout forward Andrea Bargnani.

General manager Bryan Colangelo and team owner Larry Tanenbaum have already scouted Bargnani, a 7-footer who plays for Benetton Treviso.

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

The Raptors (27-55) jumped four spots in the pingpong ball lottery to snag the first pick in the June 28 draft to be held in New York.

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

He said the draft lacks a franchise player like LeBron James or Tim Duncan.

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 Chris Bosh and Charlie 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.

He said is open to trading the pick. One team has already expressed interest, he said.

Toronto's most pressing need is an interior presence. The Raptors have about $10 million in cap space.

Colangelo was hired in February to replace the fired Rob Babcock. He was voted the NBA's 2005 executive of the year for retooling the Phoenix Suns, who won a league-high 62 games. He left Phoenix after not getting a contract extension.

[fgrep15]

this probably won't happen but i'd like to see Colangelo roll the dice and pick Tyrus Thomas- he allegedly has the most 'upside'. If his basketball skills were to ever match his athleticism, he'd be awesome

A 6'9 PF, who's kinda like Stromile Swift. I like the upside, but at least Aldridge is a PF/C, while Thomas is really just a PF, we're not really doing much to help ourselves by getting him.

[iKe7in]

From what I've read now about Aldridge, I can see that he will develop into a legit 5, and would be a great addition to a developing front line. I like his size and rebounding skills, and he doesn't have to be a big scorer.

Tyrus Thomas may be a good player, but he would be a waste of a pick. Unless Bosh puts on 25 pounds of muscle and develops into a center, then drafting him would be a waste of a pick. With Bosh and Charlie, there aren't enough minutes to go around at the 4, and it would be too hard to delevop him, and he would turn into another Stro.

[hipn]

We need to draft a good player, but a player willing to play on this team.

[Its_asdf]

We need to draft a good player, but a player willing to play on this team.

Wow, really? I thought we should just draft the first guy that shows signs that he doesn't want to be here.

Anyway, I'm up for Aldrige. An Aldrige/Bosh/Villaneuva frontcourt could be interesting if they're utilized correctly.

[J@3]

Trade the #1 to Chicago for #2 and Duhon... they'd probably do it since Aldridge works better for them than Thomas.

[[L3]1101]

Trade the #1 to Chicago for #2 and Duhon... they'd probably do it since Aldridge works better for them than Thomas.

I think that's a great idea, but the thing is chicago is right after ours. Unless we show a lot of signs that we will draft Aldridge, they might not do it. Besides Aldridge may not be worth the #2 and Duhon. But i really like this trade, i hope it happens. Then, we can even trade down #2 to about 5-7, and still get Gay or that italian guy.

[iKe7in]

I don't see why either team would make that deal. Tyrus Thomas doesn't fit with Toronto, so they probably won't take him, and Chicago would get him anyways, and wouldn't have to give up Duhon.

[J@3]

I don't see why either team would make that deal. Tyrus Thomas doesn't fit with Toronto, so they probably won't take him, and Chicago would get him anyways, and wouldn't have to give up Duhon.

Tyrus Thomas isn't what the Bulls need, it's been Aldridge all along. If Toronto takes Aldridge, Chicago is left with a guy who makes Tyson Chandler look like Kevin McHale offensively.

[frenchy]

There is a lot of big guy but no great guard, It will be difficult to select this n°1 pick.
A trade is maybe a better way.(just keep charlie V and CB4)

[BOSS]

Bosh Thinks Raptors Need A Banger
25th May, 2006 - 10:27 am

Toronto Sun - As the Raptors send a group to Europe to scout Andrea Bargnani, Chris Bosh went on the air and expressed his opinion on what the Raptors need.

"He can really shoot the ball, but like I said before, I think we have plenty of talented big guys who play the finesse four spot," Bosh told the Fan 590 AM on Thursday. "I think we need to get more of a banger."

Colangelo has said that Bosh will be allowed to give input in the process.

"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," Bosh said.

[iKe7in]

I listened to that yesterday and he also kept saying they should draft a point guard, so maybe Bosh's new sense of power is confusing him.

[air gordon]

this probably won't happen but i'd like to see Colangelo roll the dice and pick Tyrus Thomas- he allegedly has the most 'upside'. If his basketball skills were to ever match his athleticism, he'd be awesome

A 6'9 PF, who's kinda like Stromile Swift. I like the upside, but at least Aldridge is a PF/C, while Thomas is really just a PF, we're not really doing much to help ourselves by getting him.

a little early to say Thomas is going to be Swift. especially when some draft boards say he has a better feel/intangibles for the game and is certainly not as dumb as rocks as Swift.

also Thomas may still get taller. in high school he was 6-6/190lbs, and is now listed at 6'9/219 and still has that big wingspan. can't wait for the draft measurements/drill scores

Trade the #1 to Chicago for #2 and Duhon... they'd probably do it since Aldridge works better for them than Thomas.

Tyrus Thomas isn't what the Bulls need, it's been Aldridge all along. If Toronto takes Aldridge, Chicago is left with a guy who makes Tyson Chandler look like Kevin McHale offensively.

agree on all accounts but i do believe that Duhon cannot be traded until August and he has to give his approval on any deal

the Bulls could use Thomas. if they do end up with him, my guess is that Paxson would focus on getting someone who can score in the post (i.e- Gooden or Al harrington) via free agency/trade. Probably 'Chandler being traded' rumors will start but Thomas is still a project player so they can bring him along slowly/not put pressure on him immediately to produce.

[BOSS]

Hey air gordon

ill give ya

1st Pick ( TOR )
35th Pick ( TOR )
Sign & Trade Mike James


for

2nd Pick ( CHI )
Kirk Hinrich

[BOSS]

http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sports/columnists/cs-060524smithonnba,1,1897458.column?coll=cs-home-headlines&ctrack=1&cset=true

I believe Toronto adding a piece like Aldridge would give the Raptors a strong young front line to grow with. The talk is they will let go shoot-first point guard Mike James as Colangelo tries to build in the Phoenix-European-style open-court model. Not having Steve Nash will make it more difficult. Not having any point guard makes it impossible.

Because neither the Bulls nor Bobcats at second and third seem a threat to take Bargnani, the speculation is Toronto could trade down to No. 4 and get a point guard from Portland. The problem with this scenario is I'm not much of a fan of any of the Portland point guards. And because there isn't a sure star at the top of the draft, it's not like you're going to be offered that much for one of the top picks.

You would guess Portland would want Aldridge as it figures to lose Joel Przybilla in free agency, possibility to the Bulls.

[[L3]1101]

anyteam below the bobcats don't have a good point guard untill seattle. So our choices is pretty limited to Chicago, Charlotte, and maybe Seattle.

Another way of looking at this is, if we can't get trade the #1 for a pg and another draft pick, we can trade the #1 for a C and another draft pick. We can use that pick to get a pg like Marcus Williams. It's a bit of risk because we can get a decent C via the free angency. There are less FA PG this offseason than Cs. We've only got Terry, Claxton, Cassell to choose from. But i believe in BC... let's hope we have a good offseason, cause if things go right, we'll have a very good team next season.

[fgrep15]

a little early to say Thomas is going to be Swift. especially when some draft boards say he has a better feel/intangibles for the game and is certainly not as dumb as rocks as Swift.

also Thomas may still get taller. in high school he was 6-6/190lbs, and is now listed at 6'9/219 and still has that big wingspan. can't wait for the draft measurements/drill scores

I didn't say he's Swift, I said a 6'9 who's kinda like Swift, which was in relation to body type. They're the same type of player except Stromile has been said to not have a very good work ethic, and doesn't always put enough effort, so obviously he doesn't have those things. When you talk body type (Swift is bigger even), athleticism etc, they're very similar.