Darko is the right coach for this team.

[WuTang_CMB]

It is like some of you had the audio on mute when Bobbi said he had given his best trade package for Lillard! Dame time was on the verge of being a Raptor. Darko was hired to be the coach of another team (and to try to replicate developing while winning that Nurse had just stopped doing)..after that 6-12 disaster despite having 2 all-stars and a DPOY type .....Masai had to make and made the right decisions

Yeah, yeah, and Ainge with the Celts was in on all those disgruntled superstars before he went to Utah to ... trade away disgruntled superstars.

Raptors may have wanted to "steal" Dame if they could. But they were never going to give away core pieces, and were happy to be used as negotiation leverage with their Eastern Conference rivals the Heat and ultimately the Bucks.

In other words, Dame had as much chance of being traded to Toronto as Kawhi had of re-signing here, or Ohtani of signing with the Jays. All for the same reasons.

Lillard said he would not play in Toronto. For Lillard to say no, there had to be a trade in place for that to happen. Five minutes later he went to the Bucks. For likely the lesser offer.

God Bless he said no

[Johnny Bball]

Yeah, yeah, and Ainge with the Celts was in on all those disgruntled superstars before he went to Utah to ... trade away disgruntled superstars.

Raptors may have wanted to "steal" Dame if they could. But they were never going to give away core pieces, and were happy to be used as negotiation leverage with their Eastern Conference rivals the Heat and ultimately the Bucks.

In other words, Dame had as much chance of being traded to Toronto as Kawhi had of re-signing here, or Ohtani of signing with the Jays. All for the same reasons.

Lillard said he would not play in Toronto. For Lillard to say no, there had to be a trade in place for that to happen. Five minutes later he went to the Bucks. For likely the lesser offer.

God Bless he said no

Pretty much. Or they just trade him not even a year later. Given what the Bucks traded away, we probably would have done better. Who knows, but it probably ends up close to the same. We might be having to still pay off that FRP to SAS though.

[djsunyc]

Watch on YouTube

real recognize real
start at 8:22

[raincityraptors]

Watch on YouTube

real recognize real
start at 8:22

Thanks for posting this.

An endorsement from Pop or Coach Spo are the ones that matter most to me.

[Badonkadonk]

Watch on YouTube

real recognize real
start at 8:22

Thanks for posting this.

An endorsement from Pop or Coach Spo are the ones that matter most to me.

Thanks for sharing. Just gonna transcribe for ppl who can't watch the vid right away since it was a short but very praiseworthy clip:

I've known Darko for a while. I've always been... super impressed with him. He's been long deserving to get his opportunity. You know, the record doesn't show the work that he's doing right now. They're definitely building the right, appropriate habits with that young team. They play hard.

[tecumseh18]

Lillard said he would not play in Toronto. For Lillard to say no, there had to be a trade in place for that to happen. Five minutes later he went to the Bucks. For likely the lesser offer.

God Bless he said no

The team was in an usual place, and could have gone in either direction. If Masai could have stolen a superstar talent for basically nothing (Dick, salary and picks), then fine. But he couldn't. I'm not sure Dame's opinion mattered. It didn't with Kawhi.

[WuTang_CMB]

God Bless he said no

The team was in an usual place, and could have gone in either direction. If Masai could have stolen a superstar talent for basically nothing (Dick, salary and picks), then fine. But he couldn't. I'm not sure Dame's opinion mattered. It didn't with Kawhi.

He told cronin he didnt want to go which is why they chose the other deal.

[bballsparkin]

It is like some of you had the audio on mute when Bobbi said he had given his best trade package for Lillard! Dame time was on the verge of being a Raptor. Darko was hired to be the coach of another team (and to try to replicate developing while winning that Nurse had just stopped doing)..after that 6-12 disaster despite having 2 all-stars and a DPOY type .....Masai had to make and made the right decisions

You in DeNile bro. Development and cashing in on a nice 2025 draft pick that's the goal. Save your energy for next season.

[dTox]

If you truly wanted this team to rebuild then you would be ecstatic with the job Darko has done. Young players are improving, style of basketball is fun and the players play hard.

He’s not someone I want coaching game 7 of the NBA finals. But he is a guy I want coaching a young, rebuilding team.

What he said

Sent from my Pixel 6 Pro using RealGM mobile app

[ash_k]

It is like some of you had the audio on mute when Bobbi said he had given his best trade package for Lillard! Dame time was on the verge of being a Raptor. Darko was hired to be the coach of another team (and to try to replicate developing while winning that Nurse had just stopped doing)..after that 6-12 disaster despite having 2 all-stars and a DPOY type .....Masai had to make and made the right decisions

You in DeNile bro. Development and cashing in on a nice 2025 draft pick that's the goal. Save your energy for next season.

riight , Bobbi and Masai were about to get Lillard to then lose and develop players?! ..talking about being in denial and that tankfantasy..the coach they actually wanted is in Houston right now(remember!?)And y'all are confusing NBA with G-league: 3 Key players have missed all season due to injuries so far thus Jonh, Shead getting any PT ..Ja'Kobe would be in the G-league right now with those aforementioned 2, had it not been for injuries(now add Gradey)..We have seen this picture before with Pascal & FVV in the G-league . Now Darko needs to develop his coaching on the Road.

[HiJiNX]

Funny yall keep bringing up Spo and seem to forget that Lebron and Wade almost ran him off the team in his rookie season. He wasn’t good yet. But Miami stuck with him and let him develop.

Darko is clearly doing a much better job than he did last season. We have had a hellish schedule with terrible injury luck and have been competing with castoffs, rookies, and g-league guys. I keep saying this, but it’s easy to say his in-game management has been poor because of our record but when you look at the tools at his disposal and the way games have played out, I’d argue his in-game management has been great. This isn’t a team that has gone down by 15+ much at all this season and when they do, they make a game of it. A lot of that is Darko noticing when lineups need to change or who is having a good game that night versus who is not, running good plays out of timeouts, etc. But again, the narrative on him was written last year even though if we look closely there have been huge strides. The players just aren’t good enough (or available enough) to maximize what he’s been doing. We’re probably a .500 team if the guys make more FTs or don’t throw awful passes late. How is the coach supposed to prevent those things from happening?

[GoRapstheoriginal]

Funny yall keep bringing up Spo and seem to forget that Lebron and Wade almost ran him off the team in his rookie season. He wasn’t good yet. But Miami stuck with him and let him develop.

Darko is clearly doing a much better job than he did last season. We have had a hellish schedule with terrible injury luck and have been competing with castoffs, rookies, and g-league guys. I keep saying this, but it’s easy to say his in-game management has been poor because of our record but when you look at the tools at his disposal and the way games have played out, I’d argue his in-game management has been great. This isn’t a team that has gone down by 15+ much at all this season and when they do, they make a game of it. A lot of that is Darko noticing when lineups need to change or who is having a good game that night versus who is not, running good plays out of timeouts, etc. But again, the narrative on him was written last year even though if we look closely there have been huge strides. The players just aren’t good enough (or available enough) to maximize what he’s been doing. We’re probably a .500 team if the guys make more FTs or don’t throw awful passes late. How is the coach supposed to prevent those things from happening?

Amen Brother! Preach!

[sbsat]

once its realized he is not a long term coach, he should be promoted to head of player development or similar.

[bballsparkin]

riight , Bobbi and Masai were about to get Lillard to then lose and develop players?! ..talking about being in denial and that tankfantasy..the coach they actually wanted is in Houston right now(remember!?)And y'all are confusing NBA with G-league: 3 Key players have missed all season due to injuries so far thus Jonh, Shead getting any PT ..Ja'Kobe would be in the G-league right now with those aforementioned 2, had it not been for injuries(now add Gradey)..We have seen this picture before with Pascal & FVV in the G-league . Now Darko needs to develop his coaching on the Road.

lol, the tank probably is a fantasy. I'm interested in a high value pick not so much a tank. Of course they wanted Udoka he's a top notch coach. But they never got him. Udoka looked at that roster and said, nah, I'll go to Houston where they are ready to compete, the winters are nicer, and my taxes will be much less. And thankfully they never got Dame. His defence was putrid even when he had young legs. The goal is not to lose clearly. It's to prioritize development not at the expense of getting every possible win NN style while leaving players to rot on the bench. That's why they picked Darko. Which you conveniently ignore. Can he take his in game coaching to the next level? I don't know. To me that's a concern for next season. As long as the team keeps playing hard, moving the ball, and young guys like Ja'Kobe, Dick and especially Barnes keep making strides I'm good with that. I'll be happy with a top 10 pick too.

[djsunyc]

damn darko!

[sbsat]

he should run our entire development program not coach the team!

[Merit]

I imagine next season the staff gets reworked and an assistant or two with HC experience is hired. Darko will get the Casey treatment and every opportunity to succeed.

Yeah they can always expand the staff but Darko has earned his stripes every step of the way.

The leap Ochai has made was one that surprised me. We were speaking of his defense and his needing a corner 3 to be consistent so it opens things up. Not only has he made that leap, but his cutting and driving are vastly improved.

Gradey has been amazing (offensively) as well. His defense being passable is a huge step forward too.

Plus RJ staying consistent and playing more point forward, and Jak taking a massive leap by being used exactly how he should be has made me feel quite content with where we are right now, win or lose.

[Appostis]

He's the right coach *right* now.

There's a chance he won't be the guy when this team is ready to compete again(as early as near year) but he's learning/improving as a coach..he could still be their guy.

[WuTang_CMB]

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