And Then There Was One: Thank Nation 2. Raps pick 23rd

[CoachJReturns]

Which teams would potentially trade a pick 10-15
For our two picks and maybe a player?

Feel like that range will have the under the radar dudes that could be just as good as top 5

Picks 24 + 27 aren't going to move us into the 10-15 range. I would say the best we could do is 18-20. I suppose it all depends on who's still on the board. But for reference, in 2014 the Bulls dealt picks 16 (Nurkic) and 19 (Harris) to the Nuggets for 11 (McBuckets).

We would need to include a player. We have a backlog of point guards and shooting guards, so Masai has options if he feels someone is worth it. I think 2 picks plus one of Cojo/Powell/Ross/Delon should move us up, although those guys all have different value.

[Kevin Willis]

Which teams would potentially trade a pick 10-15
For our two picks and maybe a player?

Feel like that range will have the under the radar dudes that could be just as good as top 5

Picks 24 + 27 aren't going to move us into the 10-15 range. I would say the best we could do is 18-20. I suppose it all depends on who's still on the board. But for reference, in 2014 the Bulls dealt picks 16 (Nurkic) and 19 (Harris) to the Nuggets for 11 (McBuckets).

We would need to include a player. We have a backlog of point guards and shooting guards, so Masai has options if he feels someone is worth it. I think 2 picks plus one of Cojo/Powell/Ross/Delon should move us up, although those guys all have different value.

Agreed. It would depend on who the organization values more and who has the best potential. Right now Powell and Delon are the odd men out but there are a lot of teams where they could look good. Trade to a team with too much youngsters like Philly, Minnesota, Milwaukee. All of them could use a good, young, experienced PG or SG.

[CoachJReturns]

Picks 24 + 27 aren't going to move us into the 10-15 range. I would say the best we could do is 18-20. I suppose it all depends on who's still on the board. But for reference, in 2014 the Bulls dealt picks 16 (Nurkic) and 19 (Harris) to the Nuggets for 11 (McBuckets).

We would need to include a player. We have a backlog of point guards and shooting guards, so Masai has options if he feels someone is worth it. I think 2 picks plus one of Cojo/Powell/Ross/Delon should move us up, although those guys all have different value.

Agreed. It would depend on who the organization values more and who has the best potential. Right now Powell and Delon are the odd men out but there are a lot of teams where they could look good. Trade to a team with too much youngsters like Philly, Minnesota, Milwaukee. All of them could use a good, young, experienced PG or SG.

I think there are probably 3-5 teams where Powell could challenge for a starting shooting guard spot and a bunch more where he'd get solid minutes off the bench. He still doesn't have a mid-range game, but he's an intense defender who's become a knock down 3 point shooter(on limited usage of course). If he played with a point guard and small forward who did most of the scoring, he'd be an ideal compliment. I think he'd be perfect on New Orleans playing between Holiday and Evans.

[Kevin Willis]

UCLA and Kentucky on right now. Some really good draft prospects in that game - everyone is looking pretty good too.

[Undefeated]

UCLA and Kentucky on right now. Some really good draft prospects in that game - everyone is looking pretty good too.

Big win for UCLA on the road. Lonzo was a little bothered by De'Aaron Fox's and Briscoe's full court pressure early in the game (couple of early turnovers) but thought he adapted well after to run the offense. But my god UCLA needs to practice inbounding the ball in late game situations. Nearly gave the game away. T.J. Leaf was probably the best player this game - had a nice baseline drive and dunk on Bam.

[Undefeated]

Also, I used to be high on Malik Monk but man he relies way too much on his outside shooting (got hot near the end there to keep UK in it) and in transition to score. Athletic freak and all and he struggles to finish inside. See a lot of 3+D potential in him with his length and quickness to be disruptive defensively.

[Kevin Willis]

UCLA and Kentucky on right now. Some really good draft prospects in that game - everyone is looking pretty good too.

Big win for UCLA on the road. Lonzo was a little bothered by De'Aaron Fox's and Briscoe's full court pressure early in the game (couple of early turnovers) but thought he adapted well after to run the offense. But my god UCLA needs to practice inbounding the ball in late game situations. Nearly gave the game away. T.J. Leaf was probably the best player this game - had a nice baseline drive and dunk on Bam.

Bam is a good prospect. Kentucky is an all-star team again so they have to sacrifice some of their game. Malik does love his perimeter game but his shot looks good. He is a scoring pg for sure like a poor man's Irving.

[CoachJReturns]

It looks like there are going to be some quality players in the 10-15 range. Would be nice to trade up by using both our 1st rounders and one of our role players. Ivan Rabb, Miles Bridges etc...

[CoachJReturns]

Any time frame on Harry Giles return from injury?

[Splinter]

Any time frame on Harry Giles return from injury?

I haven't heard anything, but hoaly would he be the perfect PF of the future. Top-5 talent that DX has already dropped to 13th because of his injuries. if he keeps dropping to maybe late teens, I wonder if we could trade up for him.

[CoachJReturns]

Any time frame on Harry Giles return from injury?

I haven't heard anything, but hoaly would he be the perfect PF of the future. Top-5 talent that DX has already dropped to 13th because of his injuries. if he keeps dropping to maybe late teens, I wonder if we could trade up for him.

That's why I'm curious. Could be a buy low candidate, particularly with how deep this draft appears to look early on. He might return to college to improve his stock if he doesn't like where he's projected to be taken, but if he's concerned about the injury, he may be better off declaring regardless to get some guaranteed money at least.

[Wraps_fan]

You gotta believe 1, if not both picks will be used on draft and stash players.

We really don't need any more low-mid tier prospects on our NBA team. Wright, Siakam, Poeltl, Bruno, VanVleet.

If a guy like Jaron Blossomgame or Dwayne Bacon drops to us, sure, get them but if not, I'd rather draft Kostja Mushidi or Alpha Kaba and keep them overseas for a couple years. Kaba is especially intriguing. Long wingspan, solid defender, has a bit of a jump shot. He's also sort of like a Julius Randle as he can handle the ball a bit and score in iso.

[CoachJReturns]

You gotta believe 1, if not both picks will be used on draft and stash players.

We really don't need any more low-mid tier prospects on our NBA team. Wright, Siakam, Poeltl, Bruno, VanVleet.

If a guy like Jaron Blossomgame or Dwayne Bacon drops to us, sure, get them but if not, I'd rather draft Kostja Mushidi or Alpha Kaba and keep them overseas for a couple years. Kaba is especially intriguing. Long wingspan, solid defender, has a bit of a jump shot. He's also sort of like a Julius Randle as he can handle the ball a bit and score in iso.

We're still very weak at both forward positions. Patterson is a backup stretch 4, Sully is a temporary fix(who still hasn't played a game), Siakam is a hustle big who is not the type of guy teams start unless short on options. At small forward we have Carroll who isn't getting any younger and Bruno who's looking less and less likely to ever be a rotation player. So while there are quite a few bench prospects already, there is room for one more, though I'd be happy to stash one in Europe. I'd prefer Masai trade up somehow with the 2 first rounders(possibly include a player) to go after someone he really likes, but in any event it's a deep draft for point guards and forwards. Someone good will be available in the 20s range. As for the guys you mentioned, Bacon is currently slotted at 24th in draft.net to us and 43rd on draftexpress.com. Draftexpress also has Blossomgame going 26th, so one of the two looks likely to be available to us so far and that's in addition to other interesting prospects like Beachem.
I wouldn't be surprised at all if both picks were on the roster next year, playing for the 905. There are expected to be changes made to the number of players who can be on an NBA roster with the new collective bargaining agreement, so there should be room.

[Wraps_fan]

You gotta believe 1, if not both picks will be used on draft and stash players.

We really don't need any more low-mid tier prospects on our NBA team. Wright, Siakam, Poeltl, Bruno, VanVleet.

If a guy like Jaron Blossomgame or Dwayne Bacon drops to us, sure, get them but if not, I'd rather draft Kostja Mushidi or Alpha Kaba and keep them overseas for a couple years. Kaba is especially intriguing. Long wingspan, solid defender, has a bit of a jump shot. He's also sort of like a Julius Randle as he can handle the ball a bit and score in iso.

We're still very weak at both forward positions. Patterson is a backup stretch 4, Sully is a temporary fix(who still hasn't played a game), Siakam is a hustle big who is not the type of guy teams start unless short on options. At small forward we have Carroll who isn't getting any younger and Bruno who's looking less and less likely to ever be a rotation player. So while there are quite a few bench prospects already, there is room for one more, though I'd be happy to stash one in Europe. I'd prefer Masai trade up somehow with the 2 first rounders(possibly include a player) to go after someone he really likes, but in any event it's a deep draft for point guards and forwards. Someone good will be available in the 20s range. As for the guys you mentioned, Bacon is currently slotted at 24th in draft.net to us and 43rd on draftexpress.com. Draftexpress also has Blossomgame going 26th, so one of the two looks likely to be available to us so far and that's in addition to other interesting prospects like Beachem.
I wouldn't be surprised at all if both picks were on the roster next year, playing for the 905. There are expected to be changes made to the number of players who can be on an NBA roster with the new collective bargaining agreement, so there should be room.

Honestly, there's a very slim chance the PF position can be improved with yet another 20-30th overall pick. To me it looks like the Raptors will stick with Patterson/Siakam for years to come, unless Siakam doesn't progress the way they want and then they will probably make a trade.

I wouldn't call our SF situation "very weak". Ross/Powell aren't prototypical SFs but since the Raptors play a lot of KL/DD, KL/CJ and CJ/DD, Ross and Powell are basically SFs.

At some point you need to stop bringing in low level prospects. All they will do is take up roster space. Plus, low end prospects basically have a ceiling of a good role player, which we already have enough of.

Imo it would be absolutely idiotic to use both our picks on more D-League guys that will take up extra roster spots without playing important minutes.

Trying to trade up for a mid-round pick like Rabb, I'd be fine with that, or draft Blossomgame who fits right in with the "good attitude two-way player potential, smart 22-23 year old" direction the Raptors love.

I guess the counter-argument is that there's examples of guys picked late 1st/early 2nd that are now all-star caliber players like Draymond Green, Jimmy Butler etc but it's very rare, and even still those guys were able to progress because they got important/consistent minutes in their 2nd years.

Idk, to me there's only 3 good options for what to do with the picks

1. Get draft and stash players
2. Trade both picks (maybe one of our lower end prospects as-well) to move up for a pick in the 13-17 range
3. Trade one (or both) picks for an established player

[CoachJReturns]

You gotta believe 1, if not both picks will be used on draft and stash players.

We really don't need any more low-mid tier prospects on our NBA team. Wright, Siakam, Poeltl, Bruno, VanVleet.

If a guy like Jaron Blossomgame or Dwayne Bacon drops to us, sure, get them but if not, I'd rather draft Kostja Mushidi or Alpha Kaba and keep them overseas for a couple years. Kaba is especially intriguing. Long wingspan, solid defender, has a bit of a jump shot. He's also sort of like a Julius Randle as he can handle the ball a bit and score in iso.

We're still very weak at both forward positions. Patterson is a backup stretch 4, Sully is a temporary fix(who still hasn't played a game), Siakam is a hustle big who is not the type of guy teams start unless short on options. At small forward we have Carroll who isn't getting any younger and Bruno who's looking less and less likely to ever be a rotation player. So while there are quite a few bench prospects already, there is room for one more, though I'd be happy to stash one in Europe. I'd prefer Masai trade up somehow with the 2 first rounders(possibly include a player) to go after someone he really likes, but in any event it's a deep draft for point guards and forwards. Someone good will be available in the 20s range. As for the guys you mentioned, Bacon is currently slotted at 24th in draft.net to us and 43rd on draftexpress.com. Draftexpress also has Blossomgame going 26th, so one of the two looks likely to be available to us so far and that's in addition to other interesting prospects like Beachem.
I wouldn't be surprised at all if both picks were on the roster next year, playing for the 905. There are expected to be changes made to the number of players who can be on an NBA roster with the new collective bargaining agreement, so there should be room.

Honestly, there's a very slim chance the PF position can be improved with yet another 20-30th overall pick. To me it looks like the Raptors will stick with Patterson/Siakam for years to come, unless Siakam doesn't progress the way they want and then they will probably make a trade.

I wouldn't call our SF situation "very weak". Ross/Powell aren't prototypical SFs but since the Raptors play a lot of KL/DD, KL/CJ and CJ/DD, Ross and Powell are basically SFs.

At some point you need to stop bringing in low level prospects. All they will do is take up roster space. Plus, low end prospects basically have a ceiling of a good role player, which we already have enough of.

Imo it would be absolutely idiotic to use both our picks on more D-League guys that will take up extra roster spots without playing important minutes.

Trying to trade up for a mid-round pick like Rabb, I'd be fine with that, or draft Blossomgame who fits right in with the "good attitude two-way player potential, smart 22-23 year old" direction the Raptors love.

I guess the counter-argument is that there's examples of guys picked late 1st/early 2nd that are now all-star caliber players like Draymond Green, Jimmy Butler etc but it's very rare, and even still those guys were able to progress because they got important/consistent minutes in their 2nd years.

Idk, to me there's only 3 good options for what to do with the picks

1. Get draft and stash players
2. Trade both picks (maybe one of our lower end prospects as-well) to move up for a pick in the 13-17 range
3. Trade one (or both) picks for an established player

I'll have to agree to disagree because I don't think there is any guarantee Masai will do any of those things. This team is locked into it's current level unless Masai breaks away from his very conservative approach, which to be fair has worked quite well for him so far. He has no reason to consolidate assets and go after a star. I know many of us, including myself, want to see him try and move up, but I think it's more likely he stands pat. He may draft and stash one player, but I expect with Bruno basically being done in 1 or 2 more years barring some revelation in his play, Masai will just add someone else to the roster who has the size to actually defend small forwards. That was the reason for drafting Bruno wasn't it? To get a poor man's Giannis who looked to be a potential 3 and D wing. We still need one of those because Ross and Powell are both too small to go up against the LeBron's and KDs of the league. Of course most are.

Only way this team moves forward in my opinion is by lucking out and finding a stud like Draymond, Parker, Arenas, Butler etc. who is under valued and falls to a late pick. It's not a highly likely scenario, but I suppose if Masai continues to accumulate additional picks in the future, he has a better chance than most.

Besides, I already responded to your scenario of Bacon or Blossomgame being available. 1 will almost certainly be available and both may in fact be there to pick.

[Wraps_fan]

We're still very weak at both forward positions. Patterson is a backup stretch 4, Sully is a temporary fix(who still hasn't played a game), Siakam is a hustle big who is not the type of guy teams start unless short on options. At small forward we have Carroll who isn't getting any younger and Bruno who's looking less and less likely to ever be a rotation player. So while there are quite a few bench prospects already, there is room for one more, though I'd be happy to stash one in Europe. I'd prefer Masai trade up somehow with the 2 first rounders(possibly include a player) to go after someone he really likes, but in any event it's a deep draft for point guards and forwards. Someone good will be available in the 20s range. As for the guys you mentioned, Bacon is currently slotted at 24th in draft.net to us and 43rd on draftexpress.com. Draftexpress also has Blossomgame going 26th, so one of the two looks likely to be available to us so far and that's in addition to other interesting prospects like Beachem.
I wouldn't be surprised at all if both picks were on the roster next year, playing for the 905. There are expected to be changes made to the number of players who can be on an NBA roster with the new collective bargaining agreement, so there should be room.

Honestly, there's a very slim chance the PF position can be improved with yet another 20-30th overall pick. To me it looks like the Raptors will stick with Patterson/Siakam for years to come, unless Siakam doesn't progress the way they want and then they will probably make a trade.

I wouldn't call our SF situation "very weak". Ross/Powell aren't prototypical SFs but since the Raptors play a lot of KL/DD, KL/CJ and CJ/DD, Ross and Powell are basically SFs.

At some point you need to stop bringing in low level prospects. All they will do is take up roster space. Plus, low end prospects basically have a ceiling of a good role player, which we already have enough of.

Imo it would be absolutely idiotic to use both our picks on more D-League guys that will take up extra roster spots without playing important minutes.

Trying to trade up for a mid-round pick like Rabb, I'd be fine with that, or draft Blossomgame who fits right in with the "good attitude two-way player potential, smart 22-23 year old" direction the Raptors love.

I guess the counter-argument is that there's examples of guys picked late 1st/early 2nd that are now all-star caliber players like Draymond Green, Jimmy Butler etc but it's very rare, and even still those guys were able to progress because they got important/consistent minutes in their 2nd years.

Idk, to me there's only 3 good options for what to do with the picks

1. Get draft and stash players
2. Trade both picks (maybe one of our lower end prospects as-well) to move up for a pick in the 13-17 range
3. Trade one (or both) picks for an established player

I'll have to agree to disagree because I don't think there is any guarantee Masai will do any of those things. This team is locked into it's current level unless Masai breaks away from his very conservative approach, which to be fair has worked quite well for him so far. He has no reason to consolidate assets and go after a star. I know many of us, including myself, want to see him try and move up, but I think it's more likely he stands pat. He may draft and stash one player, but I expect with Bruno basically being done in 1 or 2 more years barring some revelation in his play, Masai will just add someone else to the roster who has the size to actually defend small forwards. That was the reason for drafting Bruno wasn't it? To get a poor man's Giannis who looked to be a potential 3 and D wing. We still need one of those because Ross and Powell are both too small to go up against the LeBron's and KDs of the league. Of course most are.

Only way this team moves forward in my opinion is by lucking out and finding a stud like Draymond, Parker, Arenas, Butler etc. who is under valued and falls to a late pick. It's not a highly likely scenario, but I suppose if Masai continues to accumulate additional picks in the future, he has a better chance than most.

I agree with your Bruno point, that's basically why I wouldn't mind drafting Blossomgame.

[Troubadour]

There will be three new roster spots opening up this coming year. Having extra picks isn't necessarily a bad thing.

[CoachJReturns]

I'm loving how deep this draft is. Hassan Martin may not even be drafted. He'd be a nice signing for the 905.

I'm also very interested in Jonathan Jeanne as a swing for the fences kind of pick. 7'2 rail thin big man with fluidity who even has a bit of a jumpshot. Clearly a project, but an interesting one.

[BoyzNTheHood]

Obi Enechionyia is a name to keep an eye on.

This kid is a 6'10" 220 lb Junior on Temple. This year he's averaging close to 20 ppg and 8 rpg on 48% from the field.

But what really sets him up as a potential NBA talent is the fact that he takes over 6 3's per game and hits at 48%, plus he averages 3 blocks per game!

...with that said, last season he wasn't on this level. But maybe he has developed. We're only 8 games into the season for Temple, so it'll be interesting to see how he plays moving forward.

[dalton749]

We would need to include a player. We have a backlog of point guards and shooting guards, so Masai has options if he feels someone is worth it. I think 2 picks plus one of Cojo/Powell/Ross/Delon should move us up, although those guys all have different value.

Agreed. It would depend on who the organization values more and who has the best potential. Right now Powell and Delon are the odd men out but there are a lot of teams where they could look good. Trade to a team with too much youngsters like Philly, Minnesota, Milwaukee. All of them could use a good, young, experienced PG or SG.

I think there are probably 3-5 teams where Powell could challenge for a starting shooting guard spot and a bunch more where he'd get solid minutes off the bench. He still doesn't have a mid-range game, but he's an intense defender who's become a knock down 3 point shooter(on limited usage of course). If he played with a point guard and small forward who did most of the scoring, he'd be an ideal compliment. I think he'd be perfect on New Orleans playing between Holiday and Evans.

I think that there's a good 5 teams that Powell is guaranteed to start for. Miami, Brooklyn, philly, New Orleans, Memphis, lakers.
After that there's another handful where he very likely does like, especially if they are looking to develop players like ny, sac, orl, atl, Indy, mil.