Official Toronto Raptors Thread.

If Boston can turn any of those players into Allen Iverson, then they were winners, but if all they end up with is Sebastian Telfair, instead of Brandon Roy or Rodney Foye, then they were big losers of the draft.

NOOOOOOOO ChARLIE GOT TRADE .... WHY???????????????????????????????????????????????????????? i liked this guy al ot, as a player on the court and off. I mean after I saw what this guy did for the community (the kids and adult with the same diseases as him) I had a lot of respect for him. Bad trade....

No its not, it was a numbers game in the froncourt, and Charlie gets us a legitimate point guard for years to come. It would have been nice to see Charlie develop in this city, but it would have been hard with no one to get him the ball.

Wow, I thought that Charlie was going to stay. I was really looking forward to seeing Charlie V. develop with Chris Bosh into something special. hipn, I know how you feel, but on the whole, I think it was a bold move by Colangelo. We get a young, pure point guard that we need. TJ Ford is one of the fastest point guards in this league right now. There's only a few guys who are as fast as he is (Tony Parker, Devin Harris, Allen Iverson). As sad as I am to see Charlie go, I'm alright with the trade.

NOOOOOOOO ChARLIE GOT TRADE .... WHY???????????????????????????????????????????????????????? i liked this guy al ot, as a player on the court and off. I mean after I saw what this guy did for the community (the kids and adult with the same diseases as him) I had a lot of respect for him. Bad trade....

You're focusing on the less important negatives of the trade but you obviously don't see the gignatic positives this brings to the team.

This is a good indicator that Mike James is taking a hike. Good riddance.

I have a question.. what if the team BC put together turns out a failure? Not sayign I want that to happen, I want them to make the playoffs and everything, but just saying, what if all these new players and style is not going to help? Most of these guys have either only played with eachother for 1-2 season and some of them have never played together in the pros.

No ones expecting a quick fix and for Toronto to make the playoffs next season (well, maybe some are, but everyone knows that even if they make it, they won't go far). Colangelo has made a lot of moves that really help solidify the biggest areas of need (defence, a point guard, a big man). Right now, it looks like Colangelo is living up to his executive of the year award. This organization certainly can't get much worse with the acquisitions that he's made, especially now that the Raptors have a legitimate centre and an up-and-coming point guard.

I'd take the roster that the Raptors currently have over the one that they had last season anyday of the week.

Last edited by Its_asdf on Sat Jul 01, 2006 2:20 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Thats every team not named Detroit or San Antonio. Teams change key players and playing styles every single year. This team I think could make the playoffs, maybe as a 7 or 8 seed, but they're 3-4 years away from contending, assuming they can lock up Bosh, Ford and Bargnani, and if they can find some better depth. Then again, as Miami showed, you only need two superstars and 10 fillers to win a championship.

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hey offtopic but iKe7in im also in mississauga :p
on topic,
wow i also thought charlie was gonna stay. He was great on the offensive end(shooting some big 3s, driving in, big slam dunks, and alley oops...

so what do you think the raptors lineup will be? i think bc should have picked denham brown for 35...that way he could have had..
barnani
bosh
brown
peterson
ford

but now whats the roster gonna be?
bargnani
bosh
graham
peterson
ford
??

Maybe you forgot but they traded for this guy Rasho Nesterovic?

The lineup will probably be:

Nesterovic/Sow
Bosh/Humphries
Bargnani/Garbajosa/Tucker
Peterson/Graham
Ford/Calderon/Barrett

Personally I think they'll still need to pick up another front court guy, preferrably a backup center, and maybe one more backcourt veteran. Other than that, I'd rather just let that lineup play and see what they can do.

Yes but I cant see bargnani playing sf...he can only be like dirk nowitzki playing pf..but thats bosh's only spot...rrrgh if they knew they were gonna trade charlie v they should have drafted a sf in the draft...oh how i regret some things...

There's no rule that says you have to play with these five different positions. When Bargnani, Bosh and Nesterovic are all on the floor at the same time, they are just three players, they can go anywhere they want, and play any style they want. On the offensive end, Bosh and Nesterovic will probably play inside, with Bargnani on the mid range/outside. On the defensive end, Nesterovic and Bargani will probably play more inside, as they're bigger and can block more shots and pull down more rebounds, and Bosh is fast enough to guard smaller players.

Bargnani is by no means a Nowitzki like player already, and probably won't be for several years. But for now, he can play however he wants, it doesnt matter what position he plays.

Wow, Charlie's gone. I liked the guy a lot, but bringing in TJ Ford really helps our holes big time. I'm happy with the trade overall, but a little sad to see Charlie go.

The thing is, Bargnani might not be ready to play the center position, let alone power forward. He could be a monster at SF, given his playing style and ability to play both outside and inside, though he might rely more on help defense when defending quicker SFs on defense. Besides, Tskitishvili is seven feet and he plays SF I believe, but Bargnani better not end up like Tskitishvili.

Bosh got his "banger" in Nesterovic, and that's better than what Bosh had to play with last year. Adding Bargnani in the same line-up, it's going to help Bosh even more. I can see the starting lineup at this point to look like:

Nesterovic
Bosh
Bargnani
Peterson/Graham
Ford

It's a young, fast, exciting team. There are similarities with Phoenix Suns, assuming Kurt Thomas plays in center instead of Stoudemire. Let's check it out:

Nesterovic - Thomas
Bosh - Stoudemire
Bargnani - Marion
Peterson - Bell
Ford - Nash

I know I left out Diaw from the lineup, but I'm only making comparisons with a lineup they could use. The only glaring exception is comparing Bargnani and Marion. Marion's a rebounding freak, and Bargnani's not; however, Bargnani's seven feet tall and his height is an advantage.

Nesterovic - Thomas
Bosh - Stoudemire
Bargnani - Marion
Peterson - Bell
Ford - Nash

Do you really think that Bargnani will play at the same position as Marion ?

Possible lineup:
Bosh
Bargnani
Graham
Peterson
Ford

You could be right, frenchy2k3. Bargnani might be out of place at SF, but then again, Marion is out of place at PF. Colangelo is definitely looking at trying to acquire Peja through free agency, so it looks like Bargnani would play at PF, though I know this guy could play at either of the three top positions.

Anyone think the Raptors should give Allan Ray a summer league invite or even a training camp invite?

There's talk that Boston are going to sign him to a contract outright.

http://www.torontosun.com/Sports/Basket ... 4-sun.html

With Mike James talking with teams and now out of the picture, Colangelo is looking for an athletic shooting guard/small forward and Parker, 31, would fit that bill beautifully. A former first-round draft pick (21st overall by the New Jersey Nets) in 1997, Parker has been touted by many for years to be the best player outside the NBA.


Four other NBA squads reportedly are going after Parker, including the Indiana Pacers and Cleveland Cavaliers, but Toronto is said to have the upper hand given the fact that the Raps have sufficient cap room and the team's new assistant GM, Maurizio Gherardini, has such extensive contacts in Europe. Parker is said to be asking for $10-12 million over three years. His agent, Henry Thomas, who also represents Chris Bosh, did not return phone calls yesterday.

I don't see why not. It doesn't seem likely that he'll be TOO bad, and his contract would only be 4 million tops.

Man this whole thing about BC only looking at european players is starting to piss me off

Anyone think the Raptors should give Allan Ray a summer league invite or even a training camp invite?

Man this whole thing about BC only looking at european players is starting to piss me off

...Why? Is there any specific reason that is relevant to building a good team?

The European players that he's trying to acquire seem cheaper than most players that are currently in the free agent market and should be worth the money they've been signed for. Colanelo is obviously intent on bringing in Europeans that shown that they can play because this year's free agent market doesn't really fill any needs for the Raptors, plus most of the players that he's brought in seem to fit into the offensive system of the Raptors' run and gun style anyway, so I don't really see a problem in acquiring a whole roster full of Europeans if it means that it will bring a winning atmosphere to Toronto again.

I don't see them being a huge acquisition to the team, but they certainly don't look like liabilities either.

Just to add to that, Anthony Parker is an American.

Like Jae said, Anthony Parker is an American, and other players such as Antonio Davis played in the Euroleague before making the jump to the NBA so don't hate on Euro talent. Also Garbosa and Calderon are Spanish, hence the Raptors currently have ONE Euro player, which is their draft pick Andrea Barganani

More on Anthony Parker, that guy can play ball (there's some movies of him on youtube), and his resume includes 2 time MVP of the Euroleague. I would love it if he makes the jump to the NBA (again, since he was drafted in the NBA in 1992) and joins the Raptors. (Afterall, they did hire Maurizio Gherardini as their Assistant GM who has links with Euroleague talents)

Also there's some rumours as to BC looking into Rasual Butler, and Eddie House as possible PG/SG bench players. Also with the ownership disaster in Atlanta, they are pretty much done for this season w/ free agency, and only teams left with big cap spaces are Toronto and Charlotte. And by the looks of it, Charlotte probably won't spend a lot of their cap space this offseason. So big FAs like Bonzi Wells and Al Harrington will probably be approached by the Raptors and can be signed at a cheaper contract.

The lineup will probably be:

Nesterovic/Barganani/Sow
Bosh/Barganani/Humphries
Garbajosa/Peterson/Tucker
Peterson/Graham/Tucker
Ford/Calderon/Alvin Williams

Obiously thats only 10 players (Andre Barrett does not have a guranteed contract for next season!), and they will most likely sign atleast 2-3 FAs with the remaining 13 million capspace. I'm guessing BC will pick his 2-3 FAs from the following list: Bonzi Wells, Al Harrington, Anthony Parker, Eddie House, Rasual Butler, Fred Jones.

Along with the free agency signings, expect BC to make 1 or 2 trades to get rid of Alvin Williams and the future looks bright for the Raptors

Some of that made sense.

Also Garbosa and Calderon are Spanish, hence the Raptors currently have ONE Euro player, which is their draft pick Andrea Barganani

So have I been misinformed somehow about Spain being part of Europe?

More on Anthony Parker, that guy can play ball (there's some movies of him on youtube), and his resume includes 2 time MVP of the Euroleague. I would love it if he makes the jump to the NBA (again, since he was drafted in the NBA in 1992) and joins the Raptors. (Afterall, they did hire Maurizio Gherardini as their Assistant GM who has links with Euroleague talents)

I think he would be a pretty good NBA player, probably capable of 10-12 points a noght off the bench, but for at least a year or two, he probably should not start.

Also there's some rumours as to BC looking into Rasual Butler, and Eddie House as possible PG/SG bench players.

I heard the House rumour mentioned along with the Parker rumour, but nothing about Butler has been mentioned.

So big FAs like Bonzi Wells and Al Harrington will probably be approached by the Raptors and can be signed at a cheaper contract.

Umm, they got this new thing called the mid level exception. That means that good free agents can still sign big stupid contracts with teams that are already well over the so called salary cap. Wells and Harrington will both find teams willing to give them big long term stupid contracts.

The lineup will probably be:

Nesterovic/Barganani/Sow

1) Bargnani is no center yet, and they won ever have him out there without Bosh or Nesterovic, both of which would be playing center when the other is not. And Sow might be out for the entire season with his neck injury.

Bosh/Barganani/Humphries

Bargnani is going to start, and play quite a bit, so he won't be playing behind the two bigs who are going to get a lot of minutes. He'll be starting at the other forward spot.

Garbajosa/Peterson/Tucker

There is no chance on earth Garbajosa will be starting, even IF he is signed. Bargnani will be starting here, unless he struggles early, then he would probably split time with either Peterson or Graham, depending on who is starting at the 2.

Peterson/Graham/Tucker

Yup, that one sounds right.

Ford/Calderon/Alvin Williams

You don't need to list Alvin there, he isn't going to play. Even if he is "healthy," which I can't see as being possible, he won't be used. He hasn't played in basically almost three years. Even if he was healthy, he's lost too much, and he was never great to begin with.

Obiously thats only 10 players

Nope, you just named 12.

(Andre Barrett does not have a guranteed contract for next season!),

Nope, he has a contract. Every contract in the NBA is guarenteed.

and they will most likely sign atleast 2-3 FAs with the remaining 13 million capspace.

If he does, it would only be one of the euro guys, probably not both, unless Sow really is out for the whole year.

I'm guessing BC will pick his 2-3 FAs from the following list: Bonzi Wells,

That's not gonna happen. If he doesn't resign with the Kings, which I think he will, he'll find a team closer to contending to give him the MLE.

Al Harrington,

Seriously doubt it. He's all offense, and that's not what we need. Plus, I doubt he'll want to be a backup.

Anthony Parker, Eddie House, Rasual Butler,

Maybe one of those, definitely not two.

Fred Jones.

He's restricted, and unless they offer him big money, whic they won't, Indiana will match it.

Sam Mitchell already said Bargnani ain't gonna start but eventually if he will.