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Masai/Leiweke Press Conference (Recap P31, Video P40)

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Re: Masai/Leiweke Press Conference Tues 11am Links Pg.8 

Post#441 » by Brinbe » Tue Jun 4, 2013 3:53 pm

SwaggWagg wrote:This will not be a complete tank or rebuild folks

I wouldn't read into anything he says today as a definitive for what he plans to do.
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Re: Masai/Leiweke Press Conference Tues 11am Links Pg.8 

Post#442 » by ghuytro » Tue Jun 4, 2013 3:53 pm

Did we learn anything here - not sure that we did
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Re: Masai/Leiweke Press Conference Tues 11am Links Pg.8 

Post#443 » by ash_k » Tue Jun 4, 2013 3:53 pm

Good, I am confident he won't just blow this team up! he knows there are some very good pieces!!
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Re: Masai/Leiweke Press Conference Tues 11am Links Pg.8 

Post#444 » by TimoCruz » Tue Jun 4, 2013 3:53 pm

syed wrote:Damn TL is one smooth mofo. It feels awesome to have him on board.



Because he said that we lost a couple games here and there because of missed calls.
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Re: Masai/Leiweke Press Conference Tues 11am Links Pg.8 

Post#445 » by galacticos2 » Tue Jun 4, 2013 3:53 pm

BrickHeads wrote:
galacticos2 wrote:
DarrylFlicking wrote:I feel like this team of Tim and Masai could grow the sport, or rather the popularity of the sport in Canada.


I think thats the priority instead of building a championship.



haha....Did you even listen to the press conference?


the goal for every team is to build a "championship" obviously not all get there.
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Re: Masai/Leiweke Press Conference Tues 11am Links Pg.8 

Post#446 » by Alfred » Tue Jun 4, 2013 3:53 pm

Rhettmatic wrote:
Q: How much in Denver was your philosophy judged by the altitutde, the roster?

A: I think it's different. My staff, and talking to DC, that philosophy will be figured out. In Denver, I think George Karl has a great basketball mind and a hall of fame coach with how he wanted to play. I think Josh Kroenke had a good vision of what he wanted. Young players, energetic, athletic, they run, take advantage of that altitude and just play and build on young players. FOr me, that's a strength. That's what I mentioned ealrier. We have to develop young players. Especially in the back of our roster where you know at least you're growing something. So regardless of what direction you take, you have those young players that you're going to rely on in the future. So again, I hate to sound repetitive, but once the staff is in place, and I talk to Dwane at length, we'll figure out. But there's a good thing going. I think Bryan has brought some good pieces with this team, and we'll build on that. Everybody sees it sometimes as negative. Guys, I look at some of the games you guys played, and there's probalby about 4-5 games that didn't go your way in terms of calls. I apologize David and Adam. But I think there are a few games here and there to be won. Training camp, building a team, from where everybody's together, some very good young players, there's something to build. I think Bryan did a good job with some of the young pieces here.


Ugh, that's not good news.
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Re: Masai/Leiweke Press Conference Tues 11am Links Pg.8 

Post#447 » by UnderdogRaptors » Tue Jun 4, 2013 3:53 pm

Surprised no1 asked about bargnani smh
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Re: Masai/Leiweke Press Conference Tues 11am Links Pg.8 

Post#448 » by syed » Tue Jun 4, 2013 3:54 pm

rapsanity wrote:i missed that...why did he apologize to tim and adam?


He said we lost 4-5 games due to poor officiating
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Re: Masai/Leiweke Press Conference Tues 11am Links Pg.8 

Post#449 » by MikeM » Tue Jun 4, 2013 3:54 pm

He was quite clearly concealing some of his strategy.

Which means.. he has a strategy.

Which is a step in the right direction.
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Re: Masai/Leiweke Press Conference Tues 11am Links Pg.8 

Post#450 » by 22haytham22 » Tue Jun 4, 2013 3:54 pm

ghuytro wrote:Did we learn anything here - not sure that we did


He kept saying patients and hard times and we have a few young pieces....seems like a rebuild
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Re: Masai/Leiweke Press Conference Tues 11am Links Pg.8 

Post#451 » by Inevitable » Tue Jun 4, 2013 3:54 pm

ghuytro wrote:Did we learn anything here - not sure that we did


Agreed need to wait till he starts making moves.
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Re: Masai/Leiweke Press Conference Tues 11am Links Pg.8 

Post#452 » by syed » Tue Jun 4, 2013 3:54 pm

LeBronNextMJ wrote:Surprised no1 asked about bargnani smh



Yes, I was waiting for that question. I think we need a RealGM rep at these press conferences.
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Re: Masai/Leiweke Press Conference Tues 11am Links Pg.8 

Post#453 » by aselvana » Tue Jun 4, 2013 3:55 pm

SwaggWagg wrote:This will not be a complete tank or rebuild folks


totally agree, that last part of pc was most news worthy.

raptors have some good pieces, we can grow and build upon that. sounds like re-tool
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Re: Masai/Leiweke Press Conference Tues 11am Links Pg.8 

Post#454 » by pbj » Tue Jun 4, 2013 3:55 pm

LOL Fan 590 guy says "Calling Mike Toth an idiot.. is an insult to idiots everywhere"
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Re: Masai/Leiweke Press Conference Tues 11am Links Pg.8 

Post#455 » by galacticos2 » Tue Jun 4, 2013 3:55 pm

LeBronNextMJ wrote:Surprised no1 asked about bargnani smh


he'll just deflect it and say we need to analyze.
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Re: Masai/Leiweke Press Conference Tues 11am Links Pg.8 

Post#456 » by galacticos2 » Tue Jun 4, 2013 3:56 pm

pbj wrote:LOL Fan 590 guy says "Calling Mike Toth an idiot.. is an insult to idiots everywhere"


Why did he get fired from the Fan again?
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Re: Masai/Leiweke Press Conference Tues 11am Links Pg.8 

Post#457 » by Brinbe » Tue Jun 4, 2013 3:56 pm

pbj wrote:LOL Fan 590 guy says "Calling Mike Toth an idiot.. is an insult to idiots everywhere"

truth
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Re: Masai/Leiweke Press Conference Tues 11am Links Pg.8 

Post#458 » by MikeM » Tue Jun 4, 2013 3:57 pm

aselvana wrote:
SwaggWagg wrote:This will not be a complete tank or rebuild folks


totally agree, that last part of pc was most news worthy.

raptors have some good pieces, we can grow and build upon that. sounds like re-tool


Well I'm not sure that Masai will trade all 15 players so it's certainly possible he keeps Jonas, Ross, Acy and maybe Lowry?

Or should every single player be amnestied?
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Re: Masai/Leiweke Press Conference Tues 11am Links Pg.8 

Post#459 » by Rhettmatic » Tue Jun 4, 2013 3:57 pm

Here's the full transcription.

Leiweke:
Thank you. Well first off since this is my first encounter and first activity in Toronto, I want to thank everyone for the warm welcome, tell everyone how honoured I am to be here, to be part of this great organization, and how excited I am about not just the organization but all the teams. But today is about the Raptors. And I'm excited about the news and the progress we've made within that organization. When we began this road about a month ago, Larry, Bell and Rogers, we all saw the vision the same way, which is, this is not an organization that wants to make the playoffs, this is an organization that would like to win championships. And we understood that we needed fresh new thinking, dynamic thinking, and leadership in order to get us to where we want to go to. And we clearly understood that we have not had the success that the owners, the fans, or this team deserves. And so we set our sights on bringing in a new leader, a new chemistry and culture for the organization. And when we set our sights, we decided to set our sights high. We were very fortunate, there were a lot of people who were interested. In fact we were overwhelmed by the interest we received. But there was one person we focused on. And many people in the league said you'll never get him. He's the NBA EOY, there's no way someone like that will leave an organization that good and come to Toronto.

Well, that's a myth. People want to come to this organization, people want to come to this city, and if you don't believe it, look at the two guys sitting at this podium. We both wanted to be here and we're both over the moon to be part of this organization. (Thanks all the Denver people. Who cares. I'm not transcribing this part). So today, on behalf of MLSE, it gives me great honour and pride to introduce the future of this Raptors organization, the president of basketball operations and the general manager, Masai for me, I couldn't be more thrilled that you're here based on not only your experience and your reputation but your commitment, passion and enthusiasm for what we need to do as organization. So I welcome you back to Toronto. For me personally, I am extremely excited about being your partner about building the Raptors into a championship organization.

Masai:

Wow. I'm overwhelmed. I don't even know where to start. I don't have anything written. I'm going to speak straight from the heart. I'm home. I came home. It was a tough decision to leave Denver. It was an easy decision for me to come here. I'm really, really honoured and humbled that this organization would give me this chance. I met TL, heard so many things about him, and he gives me this huge opportunity and I'm going to go to the guys that I've known here, with Larry and Rogers and Bell -- they pinpointed me and given me this opportunity to come to this organization is huge for me. BC gave me a chance here, he gave me a chance to start working in the front office, and think about management, and think about running a team, and taught me how to run a team. And then I really want to thank the Kroenke family for giving me the opportunity in Denver. They took a shot at it, gave me a chance, I tried to do my best for the organization. They were unbelievable during this process and great to me. Guys, I'm home. I love Toronto. I love this place. It's been such a whirlwind the last couple weeks. I thank my wife, who's here and who's been unbelievably supportive of this. Just happy to be back. We spent two good years here together when we first started, and for me, that's unbelievable. Friends, I see everywhere. I'm pumped. I'm excited. This is a stage that I've always wanted in my life. I know some people say, hey, you take a job because of money, why do you take a job? Guess what? Someway, somehow, this was meant to be and I'm here and I'm going to try to help this organization to get where we are. It's going to take patience. It's going to take will. We're going to instill a passion to win. The overall goal in the NBA is to win a championship. That has to be the overall goal. It's not playoffs. It's to win a championship in the end. TIm has those goals and he's told me what his vision is of this place, and I know the people that worked here, and how great they were. It's just unbelieveable even to see some of the changes here. It's vision. It's creativity. And that's kind of what I'm about. But at the end of the day, I'm a basketball guy and I want to put a product out there that's going to compete one day for the championship.

Sometimes it's going to be tough, sometimes it's going to be hard, but overall guys I think we're in a good place. I thought BC, I know it's been tough, I'm close to him, he's been a good mentor to me, and hey, I'm here. I'm on the hot seat now. And I know what it takes to be on the hot seat. That's life. If you choose to be in this position, you have to go out there and attack. That's the way it should be. And championship is what the goal should be here. I don't care what people say about Toronto, Canada, all that stuff. It's a beautiful place here. You've got beautiful fans, great ownership, great resources, so it's left to us to do our job and to do it very well. And when we do, we're going to put a product on the field there that has to produce. That's our responsibility. I really thank this organization for giving me a chance, because I know yes, people talk about again, I'm going to mention it, money. It's put me on the stage. I'm from Africa. I have to be on the stage to represent my continent. Being the first African GM, being EOY, all that stuff is on the side. I have to create an opportunity for people over there. And the only way you create an opp for people over there is to win, and to build culture, and to do things the right way, and to treat people the right way. I really appreciate everyone coming out today. This is very overwhelming for me. Guys, I'm home.

Q: You both mentioned championships. Is this a roster that can be built upon, or is it a roster that might have to take a step back?

A: Well, I'm in the process of hiring a staff now, who are going to analyze the situation and evaluate the whole situation in the next few weeks. At a certain time, I think we'll be able to tell where this roster can go. I think there are good pieces on this roster. There are phenomenal players on this roster. And then, we have some things that we have to correct. The ways of doing it, I think, are different ways. We will meet and figure out which way we are going to do it. But I think there's some good things going, and whatever needs to be corrected or however it needs to be done, after I've hired the staff, we'll be able to put that together.

Q: What's the first order of business with this lineup?

A: When I look at the Raptors lineup now, once I put my staff together, I think we'll be able to pinpoint. I don't think there's one thing or two things. An identity is what we need. And I've talked to Dwane Casey, I know that question is coming. I've talked to DC a couple times. We are going to sit down and I will understand what his philosophies are, and I'll tell him what my philosophies are, and what I think needs to be changed. For me, this organization is going to be like this now. We will all be on the same page. And have the same goal. So once I put my staff together, I'll be able to tell you guys what direction we are going, and how we intend to go forward with this team.

Q: Do you see yourself using BC and Embry as resources, and how will that difficult relationship play out?

A: I don't think it's a difficult relationship. Bryan brought me here, and Bryan believed in me. I know there have been tough times, that he's gone through, and I know this is a tough transition. I've been in contact with Bryan. Guys, I'm on the seat now, and I'll take Bryan's input when I feel it's necessary. Wayne has always been a great mentor to me, but at the end of the day, I'm going to put my staff together and we are going to figure this all out collectively. But hey, my decisions, like Tim said, basketball decisions are going to be my decisions. So it doesn't matter who tells me what or how it's done, at the end of the day, I'm sitting right here on the hot seat. SO it really doesn't matter.

Q: Is Casey the coach?

A: Casey's under contract for one more year. I'm going to discuss and talk to Casey. We've already had some good conversations. We'll see how those conversations go. For me, DC has done a great job, but I need to sit down with coach and figure out what his philosophies are and what he's thinking for the future of this team. He has to explain, or maybe even tell me what his evaluation is of our players, and what he thinks of our players, and then I can give my part of what I think the evaluation of our players is. We go from there. I need this two-three weeks where coach and I are going to figure out whether this thing is going to go forward for the next year. Right now I don't see any reason why not.

Q: How are you similar or diff't from BC?

A: Tough question. I think I'm very different. I'm Masai. I'm me.

Q: (Unheard)

A: It depends on what team. I haven't really discussed with Bryan yet on what he thinks. I think when that time comes, I will. But I have my thoughts here. Those thoughts will stay in here for now.

Q: You were going on about how great a place Toronto is, one of the problems with the Raps over the years is keeping players, attracting free agents. Can Toronto be a destination for players to want to play here, top-level players?

A: I have no doubt. I have no doubt. I think you have to create that culture. We have to create that atmosphere here where players want to be here. And that starts with the team, it starts with the culture. I don't believe in all this stuff they're saying in the NBA> I don't want to mention Denver and talk about Denver, but when we got Andre there, everyone was saying we can't get players like that. So when you create, you bring players, and you create an atmosphere where there's a great philosphy, there's great culture, there's' a great style of player, you have a good coach. I think all the other stuff is in place. It's an unbelievable city, unbelievable people. What else do you need? What do people complain about? I'm not going to go into immigration, taxes. Well if you want to complain about every city, they have tons of bad things to say or tons of good things to say. I don't pay attention to all that. We have to create a basketball environment to attract basketball players.

And the other thing I want to say, one of my philosophies too is to grow young kids here. When you grow young kids,Canada's in a great place, with great young players coming up. I talk to Jay Triano all the time. He's coaching Canada now with the youth teams and all the young players coming up. I can't mention names right now. But it's a good place. It's a good place for basketball here. We have to build on it. So one of my philosophies is to develop young talent. And maybe the back of our roster has to be young guys that grow. We continue to develop and get better and the opportunity will come.

Q: Is there a player who's so valuable he's unmovable?

A: I think we'll analyze all that and figure it out. The way a GM looks at it, you love every player and you hate every player. That's the way we look at it. For me, coming into Toronto right now, I have to love every player. For me, if you play in the NBA, there must be something you are doing well. And there has to be something that you are good at. That's why you are in the NBA. I'm not here to knock anybody. If you make the NBA, there's a reason why.

Q: What do you look for in a player, particularly in a market like Toronto, where you may not look at a cornerstone or a franchise player?

A: I think coming from the philosophy we had, and I'm not saying that has to work here, or it will work here, we are going to -- once i build my staff and talk to coach -- we'll figure out what the philosophy and what the direction of the organization is going to be. We do have to create an identity with the team. You say, hey, what do you do well? What is it that when teams com here, they know they're going to be punished for? What is that makes your team great? Why does your team compete for a championship and create a winning environment? That's something I'm going to talk about with the staff and we'll build from there.

Q: You leave a team that has 57 wins, and come to a team that's never won 50 games. Why do you say this is home and this is where you want to be, when you have an 18-year disaster here?

A: For me, why can't I change it? I've known these people. I know there's good people to work with. I know there's things that have been built. For me it's not all bad. There's plenty good about it. It's almost like when I went to the Denver situation too, people always say: it's dysfunctional, it's this, it's that. It's our job to make it better. It's our job to make it good. It's our job to create a winning environment. That's why I'm here. Guys I'll tell you this: I try to focus less on the negative and be as positive as I can. It's easy to make excuses. I can come here and say he didn't want to come here because it's Toronto, he didn't want to come here because of this or that. Guess what? That's an excuse to me.

Q: How much effect should analytics have?

A: It's a strong part of it. I think there's a good system here and I intend to build on it. We had a good system in Denver too. The year I left, we had one of the best in Dean Oliver who went to work with ESPN. It's a good part of the game. We use it the best that we can. At the end of the day, it's all talent, and it's all here, and there's no numbers that can calculate what's right in here. You have to go out and play. I know when those big-time players come and they want to play and they want to kick butt, there's no numbers there. It's kick butt.

Q: A lot of GMs seem to build a team through the draft or they rely on veterans. Which fits your philosophy?

A: I'm going to work through that with my staff. I hate to sound repetitive. There are ways to do it. You can add pieces to the roster you have, you can break it down totally, you can just go with the roster you have and see what you can create around the league in terms of value. But there are many ways to go about it. I think once I get everybody in place and we discuss and analyze the whole situation, then I think we'll be able to figure it out.

Q: If you find the players you think can make this team become a contender, is luxury tax going to be an impediment to building a team?

A: I've been reassured here that we're going to have no issues whatsoever. And I believe in Tim. I believe in Larry and Rogers and Bell. Guys, we are going to build a team the right way. If it takes doing that, it's what we have to do. But we will build a team the right way. Sometimes it's going to take patience. We'll go through hard times. After we've analyzed this team, I think you guys will figure out the direction we're going.

Q: How are you different now than when you left Toronto?

A: I think I was fortunate to learn from four different GMs who had four different styles. First of all, John Gabriel in Orlando, and then Kiki Vandeweghe, Mark Warkentein and BC. For me, scouting is my background so finding talent is what I know. My wife won't like this much but I'm always out on the road, I'm always trying to figure it out, regardless of who's seen teh talent or which of our scouts see the talent. That's my background and that's what I know. In terms of learning, you learn from situations that you're in. Obviously the situations in Denver I was in were sometimes tough situations. You learn from that. You learn how to manage people, you learn how to deal with people, you learn how to compromise in many ways. Hey. Do I think I'm better? Yes. Do I think I'm still learning? Yes. Do I think I can do it? Yes.

Q: Masai, you've talked repeatedly about your staff. We know Stefanski is no longer here. Can you update us on the rest of staff?

A: I'm going to keep a small staff. I believe in small. I think all the other stuff is kind of in-house for now, and as it goes along, some people I'm still evaluating and some people are obviously no longer here. We're going to create the office that we want. But I'm going to keep a small staff.

Q: Tim, BC isn't here in a public way to welcome Masai. What about the public optics to that and does it feed into what people are saying, it's a bad position to put Masai and Bryan in? Secondly, can you separate fact and fiction for the Raptors rebrand? Are we looking at a new name?

Tim: Bryan and Masai spent time this morning. Bryan's here. This was not meant to send a message. I know there's a lot of controversy about our reporting structure, but there's no confusion from within. It's simple. Masai is GM and pres of bball operations. Bryan is going to be president of team and business ops for the Raptors. There's a whole list of things Bryan is going to lead the charge on to grow this organization. Someone with his knowledge, experience and relationships in the NBA and Canada Basketball, you don't throw that out. So he's not only going to lead the charge on a lot of initiatives including branding, but he'll be there to advise and give input when Masai asks for it. But I've been involved for four or five days with Masai on working through his staff and his hires, and there's never been any confusion. There's never been any misdirection. That is more talk and speculation. I can tell you the reality of the situation is we have one guy who's in charge of basketball that's making all the decisions, and he will lead the charge. On BC's side, he has a scope of activity, and we have defined that and he knows where we're going.

Q: Did you ask Bryan to be here? Wouldn't it have been a nice look?

Tim: Nope. This is about Masai.

Q: What about rebranding?

Tim: We're definitely going to take a look at it. It doesn't mean we're committed to it, but it's a good conversation. I saw the generic uniform in the paper. That won't be the uniform, by the way. I think we need to have this conversation. We need to have it with Masai, BC, the owners. We have to honour the traition and history of what the Raptors are but we also need to hear the fans. We have a very important anniversary coming up, and we have some events we want to win. And that'll be part of what we do to celebrate our 20th anniversary. we're committed to changing the culture here, on and off the court.

Q: Unheard

Masai: there's no issue with BC. None, whatsoever. I don't know how to help you guys if there's something you want to create. There's zero issue. None. OK? I'm on the hot seat here and it doesn't matter what BC tells me, input, whatever he says, at the end of the day, I'm on the seat here. Let's move on from it.

Tim: How patient are you? You gave him a five-year deal. How do you get to be a championship contender without patience?

Tim: You know, Masai and I have never had one conversation about, you gotta do this or you gotta do that, here are the steps. I don't think our organization is going to measure him that way. It's not the way he sees it or we see it. What we wanted is the best and the brightest. What we wanted is young, energetic, driven, focused leadership. We want to change our day to day energy in this organization. We want him to go build a staff to do the best and brightest for the NBA. We want him to create a culture for the NBA about the enthusiasm and excitement for where we're going. What I agree with him on, and the only thing we see as success, is winning hte NBA championship. We both agree that having this concept of if we make the playoffs, that's all we need to do here? Neither of us is interested in that. This ownership, Masai and his staff, is focused on one thing: the NBA championship. We're not going to direct the road, just the destination.

Q: Masai, do you feel pressure representing Africa?

A: I do feel pressure there. For a continent that big and that great, I have no other choice but to be successful. That comes from putting the organization I work with first. That comes with winning. That's going to help over there. For me, financially, that really helps me in Africa, because I can go and do more. I can go and help more people. We can build more courts. We can do more camps. We can help more kids come to school in the States, and I can continue to help with the NBA and the platform they've created for basketball without borders. They gave me the opportunity to be director of basketball without borders 10 years ago, which has grown exponentially. (OK I'm taking a break.)

[b]Q: Masai, have you communicated with any of your new players?


A: I have with a couple and I'm in the process of communicating with the rest. I think all of that will be done today. There's good excitement. I'm in a good place where I feel like I can give these guys a lot of confidence. I've put them in a good place. This is the team for now, and that's where you want it to be.

Q: How much in Denver was your philosophy judged by the altitude, the roster?

A: I think it's different. My staff, and talking to DC, that philosophy will be figured out. In Denver, I think George Karl has a great basketball mind and a hall of fame coach with how he wanted to play. I think Josh Kroenke had a good vision of what he wanted. Young players, energetic, athletic, they run, take advantage of that altitude and just play and build on young players. FOr me, that's a strength. That's what I mentioned ealrier. We have to develop young players. Especially in the back of our roster where you know at least you're growing something. So regardless of what direction you take, you have those young players that you're going to rely on in the future. So again, I hate to sound repetitive, but once the staff is in place, and I talk to Dwane at length, we'll figure out. But there's a good thing going. I think Bryan has brought some good pieces with this team, and we'll build on that. Everybody sees it sometimes as negative. Guys, I look at some of the games you guys played, and there's probably about 4-5 games that didn't go your way in terms of calls. I apologize David and Adam. But I think there are a few games here and there to be won. Training camp, building a team, from where everybody's together, some very good young players, there's something to build. I think Bryan did a good job with some of the young pieces here.
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Just Win Baby
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Re: Masai/Leiweke Press Conference Tues 11am Links Pg.8 

Post#460 » by Just Win Baby » Tue Jun 4, 2013 3:57 pm

I liked his focus on development in the interview. Seemed like BC mainly hired mercenaries to fill out the bottom of the roster.

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