Masai Presser Live @ 11am

[PushDaRock]

Even if we land Cooper Flagg...there is zero chance we see massive roster changes going into next season.

At earliest we see trades to address roster issues at the trade deadline or summer of 2026.

This front office will take their time to evaluate.

If we land Flagg he will be the clear first option and the teams franchise player.....Depending on how Barnes and him mesh on the court that could potentially make Barnes a trade option....Yeah i agree it won't happen fast but over time it would change the trajectory of where the team is headed...

I also think more so Barrett could be on the trade block this offseason because he will also want a big pay day and idk if we want to pay Barnes/Ingram 40 mill a year, Quickley 32 mill while Barrett potentially asks for 35ish mill....If you want the best value out of Barrett you trade him now rather than let his contract dwindle and move him on a contract year....

If RJ's head is in the clouds like this, i'd trade him today. He's overpaid for his current production, asking for a raise would get him on the block fast. I'd be looking to pay him less and be a 6th man and if he's not ok with that, he should be moved.

What are you expecting to pay someone averaging 21/6/5? How much is he overpaid by and who's a comparable to him that's being paid fairly?

[Tha Cynic]

Read on Twitter

Wonder who he's talking about

All or some of KD, Giannis, Trae, Zion, Ball, Sabonis, Ja could be available this summer who he could be talking about multiple people.

most likely referring to the past. Lillard nixed going to Toronto so thats why POR took the other deal

Yeah this is what I thought of as well. OG actually reached out to Lillard to play a prank on him saying he was traded here, and in order for it to be a prank, he must have known Lillard didn’t want to come here.

[Tha Cynic]

He all but said their names lol it’s clearly gonna be one of Maluach or Queen.

Huh? He said they clearly need a big, but that they will go best player available.

You can do both separately. If you draft a player that you already have an influx of players in that position, you can always make a trade.

Heck, I would trade Dick for some of the players available in the mid lottery area this year.

What he clearly identified is that they focus on two way guys. I think Queen will need to show that he can be taught to play better defense.

[Tha Cynic]

Even if we land Cooper Flagg...there is zero chance we see massive roster changes going into next season.

At earliest we see trades to address roster issues at the trade deadline or summer of 2026.

This front office will take their time to evaluate.

If we land Flagg he will be the clear first option and the teams franchise player.....Depending on how Barnes and him mesh on the court that could potentially make Barnes a trade option....Yeah i agree it won't happen fast but over time it would change the trajectory of where the team is headed...

I also think more so Barrett could be on the trade block this offseason because he will also want a big pay day and idk if we want to pay Barnes/Ingram 40 mill a year, Quickley 32 mill while Barrett potentially asks for 35ish mill....If you want the best value out of Barrett you trade him now rather than let his contract dwindle and move him on a contract year....

We could look for a big man using Barrett as the trade chip and draft BPA this draft.

I mean if we draft Flagg, we will basically have a much more offensive potent version of Orlando. I doubt we would trade Barnes. It would be a dream scenario for Masai imo.

We all know Masai and that he is patient to a fault.

He will want to see what works and what doesn't before he makes moves.

That is why I say...there will be no roster clearing trades even with Flagg.

I can't even count how many times Masai referred to Scottie as the leader of the team during today's press conference. 19 year old Cooper isn't coming in and changing that.

Words are words....Production on the court will talk the talk....And i think Flagg will be better than Scottie....In a perfect world they can both coexist but if not you have to choose one....For me personally im picking Flagg in that scenario and trading Barnes. But yeah no reason to rush that if that happens to be the scenario because Barnes is under contract for 5 years and Flagg for 4....Lots of time to see if they can play together.

If we get Flagg I am looking to move Barnes almost immediately, maybe in a Booker type deal?

IQ/Booker/Ingram/Flagg/Poeltl is intriguing

Somehow I doubt they will trade Barnes for a guy who will be 29 when the next season starts, without even seeing what Flagg can do on the court. I think the front office thinks much more highly of Barnes than some of our posters here.

They will most likely try to make Barnes/Flagg work and it could work because Barnes prefers to be a defensive minded player who sets up his teammates. This would be a great problem to have. If Orlando can run Banchero and Wagner together, there’s no reason why Toronto can’t eun Flagg and Barnes out there.

[Raptorfan2012]

He all but said their names lol it’s clearly gonna be one of Maluach or Queen.

The more I think about Queen, the more I think he makes sense; he is probably the best big prospect in this draft. His floor on this team will be to replace Boucher as a back up PF with some time at C.

[ItsDanger]

pro tip: you don't need to waste your lottery pick on a bench player

Pro tip. Unless you get Flagg or Harper, the player you draft is almost certainly coming off the bench next year.

You really missed my point here. It's not about drafting a player who has to start because he's a lottery talent, but if you're drafting a big just because you need to shore up back-up minutes for Poeltl, you're doing it wrong by wasting our best pick on that.

Ideally in this scenario you would trade down and gaining another asset in exchange like a future draft pick maybe. But it depends on other teams wanting to trade up at same time.

[rapsincr]

Even if we land Cooper Flagg...there is zero chance we see massive roster changes going into next season.

At earliest we see trades to address roster issues at the trade deadline or summer of 2026.

This front office will take their time to evaluate.

luka was traded this year. the isnt a zero chance at anything anymore lol.

[ciueli]

He all but said their names lol it’s clearly gonna be one of Maluach or Queen.

Huh? He said they clearly need a big, but that they will go best player available.

You can do both separately. If you draft a player that you already have an influx of players in that position, you can always make a trade.

Heck, I would trade Dick for some of the players available in the mid lottery area this year.

What he clearly identified is that they focus on two way guys. I think Queen will need to show that he can be taught to play better defense.

Trades are tough if you're looking to move a player like Gradey Dick after he's had a down year and isn't doing any of the things he was supposed to be good at (shooting) while being as bad as advertised at the things he wasn't supposed to be good at (defence). That's the type of player very few teams will gamble on with only 2 years left on his rookie deal, we certainly wouldn't get a mid lottery pick for him, not in a good draft like this one.

If they draft Maluach or Queen they won't say something like "we liked Jeremiah Fears better but we don't want to spend years developing a Scoot Henderson type PG project when we are happy with IQ and Shead", whoever they draft will be touted as BPA, they won't admit they're drafting for need even if that's a component of what they wind up doing.

[PD28]

Masai: I challenged Scottie and he challenged himself to be a leader.

Bro, can you challenge him to do something where we can measure improvement? Let's start with 3pt shooting first.

[Clutch0z24]

Even if we land Cooper Flagg...there is zero chance we see massive roster changes going into next season.

At earliest we see trades to address roster issues at the trade deadline or summer of 2026.

This front office will take their time to evaluate.

If we land Flagg he will be the clear first option and the teams franchise player.....Depending on how Barnes and him mesh on the court that could potentially make Barnes a trade option....Yeah i agree it won't happen fast but over time it would change the trajectory of where the team is headed...

I also think more so Barrett could be on the trade block this offseason because he will also want a big pay day and idk if we want to pay Barnes/Ingram 40 mill a year, Quickley 32 mill while Barrett potentially asks for 35ish mill....If you want the best value out of Barrett you trade him now rather than let his contract dwindle and move him on a contract year....

We could look for a big man using Barrett as the trade chip and draft BPA this draft.

I mean if we draft Flagg, we will basically have a much more offensive potent version of Orlando. I doubt we would trade Barnes. It would be a dream scenario for Masai imo.

Words are words....Production on the court will talk the talk....And i think Flagg will be better than Scottie....In a perfect world they can both coexist but if not you have to choose one....For me personally im picking Flagg in that scenario and trading Barnes. But yeah no reason to rush that if that happens to be the scenario because Barnes is under contract for 5 years and Flagg for 4....Lots of time to see if they can play together.

If we get Flagg I am looking to move Barnes almost immediately, maybe in a Booker type deal?

IQ/Booker/Ingram/Flagg/Poeltl is intriguing

Somehow I doubt they will trade Barnes for a guy who will be 29 when the next season starts, without even seeing what Flagg can do on the court. I think the front office thinks much more highly of Barnes than some of our posters here.

They will most likely try to make Barnes/Flagg work and it could work because Barnes prefers to be a defensive minded player who sets up his teammates. This would be a great problem to have. If Orlando can run Banchero and Wagner together, there’s no reason why Toronto can’t eun Flagg and Barnes out there.

Yeah its not a bad problem to have just if it really doesn't work out for lets say 2-3 years i think Flagg will still be the player we keep in that situation as i see him being the better player long term. But ofc they will wait and see if they can co exist.

[MiamiSPX]

There is NO scenario where Flagg is not starting right away for a team that has 55 wins over the last 2 seasons. The overwhelming, and I mean overwhelming, majority of #1 picks start right out of the gate. There is no chance even Masai would be so arrogant as to not start him right away.

He would start immediately for any of the 14 lottery teams. Any team that would be so stupid not to do so would never have a CAA client on their team ever again. The agency would see to that.

I’m not saying a trade would have to happen right away, but one of IQ or RJ is definitely moving to the bench, likely the latter. And if he asks out as a result, Masai will accommodate that request expeditiously, given his relationship with Rowan and to do right by the Canadian kid.

He's going to Utah anyway.

[mademan]

If we land Flagg he will be the clear first option and the teams franchise player.....Depending on how Barnes and him mesh on the court that could potentially make Barnes a trade option....Yeah i agree it won't happen fast but over time it would change the trajectory of where the team is headed...

I also think more so Barrett could be on the trade block this offseason because he will also want a big pay day and idk if we want to pay Barnes/Ingram 40 mill a year, Quickley 32 mill while Barrett potentially asks for 35ish mill....If you want the best value out of Barrett you trade him now rather than let his contract dwindle and move him on a contract year....

If RJ's head is in the clouds like this, i'd trade him today. He's overpaid for his current production, asking for a raise would get him on the block fast. I'd be looking to pay him less and be a 6th man and if he's not ok with that, he should be moved.

What are you expecting to pay someone averaging 21/6/5? How much is he overpaid by and who's a comparable to him that's being paid fairly?

An on ball guy on a bad team is capable of putting up numbers, albeit ineffeicently. A tale as old as time in the NBA. These guys cant scale up to be 1st options on a good team but also cant defend and shoot well enough to be complimentary players. He is overpaid as every single impact metric for every single season he's been in the league rates him out as a negative player. He's a much worse Demar Derozan

[YogurtProducer]

Words are words....Production on the court will talk the talk....And i think Flagg will be better than Scottie....In a perfect world they can both coexist but if not you have to choose one....For me personally im picking Flagg in that scenario and trading Barnes. But yeah no reason to rush that if that happens to be the scenario because Barnes is under contract for 5 years and Flagg for 4....Lots of time to see if they can play together.

If we get Flagg I am looking to move Barnes almost immediately, maybe in a Booker type deal?

IQ/Booker/Ingram/Flagg/Poeltl is intriguing

I can guarantee if they get Flagg they will not be trading Barnes in the near future

Sure, then we can waste a few years while we find out that Barnes/Flagg is an even worse fit than Siakam/Barnes.

OR, we can be proactive and trade Barnes at what is likely the peak of his value (23 years old, start of a 5-year deal) and get back a haul and be competitive immediately. Have we already forgot Booker led a team to the finals as the best player?

If you can get Booker for Barnes you are automatically a title contender and can build around Flagg when you have him on a cheap deal before you gotta give him a max.

Not to mention you would still have the ability to use some combo of Barrett/Ingram/Quickley + all our picks to possibly grab a co-star for Book/Flagg to run with.

[Jerry Lucas]

If we get Flagg I am looking to move Barnes almost immediately, maybe in a Booker type deal?

IQ/Booker/Ingram/Flagg/Poeltl is intriguing

I can guarantee if they get Flagg they will not be trading Barnes in the near future

Sure, then we can waste a few years while we find out that Barnes/Flagg is an even worse fit than Siakam/Barnes.

OR, we can be proactive and trade Barnes at what is likely the peak of his value (23 years old, start of a 5-year deal) and get back a haul and be competitive immediately. Have we already forgot Booker led a team to the finals as the best player?

If you can get Booker for Barnes you are automatically a title contender and can build around Flagg when you have him on a cheap deal before you gotta give him a max.

Not to mention you would still have the ability to use some combo of Barrett/Ingram/Quickley + all our picks to possibly grab a co-star for Book/Flagg to run with.

Yogurtproducer...

If you think Masai is going to move Scottie if they land Flagg, you are going to be in for disappointment. Let me remind you of what Masai said again:

As soon as we get those two phenomenal, incredible players, and we already have one in Scottie Barnes, or two and a half of them, or three of them, whatever it takes.

[YogurtProducer]

I can guarantee if they get Flagg they will not be trading Barnes in the near future

Sure, then we can waste a few years while we find out that Barnes/Flagg is an even worse fit than Siakam/Barnes.

OR, we can be proactive and trade Barnes at what is likely the peak of his value (23 years old, start of a 5-year deal) and get back a haul and be competitive immediately. Have we already forgot Booker led a team to the finals as the best player?

If you can get Booker for Barnes you are automatically a title contender and can build around Flagg when you have him on a cheap deal before you gotta give him a max.

Not to mention you would still have the ability to use some combo of Barrett/Ingram/Quickley + all our picks to possibly grab a co-star for Book/Flagg to run with.

Yogurtproducer...

If you think Masai is going to move Scottie if they land Flagg, you are going to be in for disappointment. Let me remind you of what Masai said again:

As soon as we get those two phenomenal, incredible players, and we already have one in Scottie Barnes, or two and a half of them, or three of them, whatever it takes.

The fit is simply awful with two guys that are literally the same strengths and weaknesses. Siakam at least had isolation scoring chops but Scottie/Flagg would have very very little of that.

I would guarantee that if we got Flagg that Scottie would be moved within 24-36 months at most. And that quote means nothing. If Scottie is a phenomenal incredible player, what do we call Booker? Booker is simply just a better player and there is next to no evidence that Scottie will ever reach his level.

Y'all acting like I am saying give Scottie away. I am saying trade him for an all-nba player ffs


You can go back and find some Masai quotes about Derozan that are similar in belief. However, when a better player in Kawhi was available he was shipped out immediately. Masai wouldn't hesitate for a second to upgrade from Scottie if it made us a contender.

[PushDaRock]

If RJ's head is in the clouds like this, i'd trade him today. He's overpaid for his current production, asking for a raise would get him on the block fast. I'd be looking to pay him less and be a 6th man and if he's not ok with that, he should be moved.

What are you expecting to pay someone averaging 21/6/5? How much is he overpaid by and who's a comparable to him that's being paid fairly?

An on ball guy on a bad team is capable of putting up numbers, albeit ineffeicently. A tale as old as time in the NBA. These guys cant scale up to be 1st options on a good team but also cant defend and shoot well enough to be complimentary players. He is overpaid as every single impact metric for every single season he's been in the league rates him out as a negative player. He's a much worse Demar Derozan

You said he is overpaid for his "current production". Telling me he is overpaid isn't saying much if you can't come up with an example of someone who is fairly paid in the same role he is in now.

[Jerry Lucas]

Sure, then we can waste a few years while we find out that Barnes/Flagg is an even worse fit than Siakam/Barnes.

OR, we can be proactive and trade Barnes at what is likely the peak of his value (23 years old, start of a 5-year deal) and get back a haul and be competitive immediately. Have we already forgot Booker led a team to the finals as the best player?

If you can get Booker for Barnes you are automatically a title contender and can build around Flagg when you have him on a cheap deal before you gotta give him a max.

Not to mention you would still have the ability to use some combo of Barrett/Ingram/Quickley + all our picks to possibly grab a co-star for Book/Flagg to run with.

Yogurtproducer...

If you think Masai is going to move Scottie if they land Flagg, you are going to be in for disappointment. Let me remind you of what Masai said again:

As soon as we get those two phenomenal, incredible players, and we already have one in Scottie Barnes, or two and a half of them, or three of them, whatever it takes.

The fit is simply awful with two guys that are literally the same strengths and weaknesses. Siakam at least had isolation scoring chops but Scottie/Flagg would have very very little of that.

I would guarantee that if we got Flagg that Scottie would be moved within 24-36 months at most. And that quote means nothing. If Scottie is a phenomenal incredible player, what do we call Booker? Booker is simply just a better player and there is next to no evidence that Scottie will ever reach his level.

Y'all acting like I am saying give Scottie away. I am saying trade him for an all-nba player ffs

Here's what you already missed from that Masai quote I posted: he's not arbitrarily stopping himself at 2. So in this "Trade Scottie for Booker if Flagg" scenario you provided, if Scottie Barnes is 1 phenomenal incredible player, Flagg would be 2. What Masai would actually try to do, instead of what you want to do, is try to get Booker without having to give up Scottie, so he could then have 3 phenomenal incredible players.

[YogurtProducer]

Yogurtproducer...

If you think Masai is going to move Scottie if they land Flagg, you are going to be in for disappointment. Let me remind you of what Masai said again:

The fit is simply awful with two guys that are literally the same strengths and weaknesses. Siakam at least had isolation scoring chops but Scottie/Flagg would have very very little of that.

I would guarantee that if we got Flagg that Scottie would be moved within 24-36 months at most. And that quote means nothing. If Scottie is a phenomenal incredible player, what do we call Booker? Booker is simply just a better player and there is next to no evidence that Scottie will ever reach his level.

Y'all acting like I am saying give Scottie away. I am saying trade him for an all-nba player ffs

Here's what you already missed from that Masai quote I posted: he's not stopping himself at 2. So in this "Trade Scottie for Booker if Flagg" scenario you provided, if Scottie Barnes is 1 phenomenal incredible player, Flagg would be 2. What Masai would actually try to do, instead of what you want to do, is try to get Booker without having to give up Scottie, so he could then have 3 phenomenal incredible players.

You read way, way, way to much into "GM-speak". What else is he supposed to say about Scottie? That he is not really a star?

IMO - Ingram is our best player starting next year until Scottie takes leaps. There is a good chance Flagg is a better player in year 1 than Scottie is right now as well. Once you are in contender status, fit matters. And no team whose 2nd/3rd option is Scottie and rookie Flagg is a serious team. Now, if Booker is your 1st, Ingram is #2, Flagg/IQ are 3a/3b, and Barrett is a 6th man... you have a legit chance at making noise in the East.

Go even further and trade Barrett/Dick/Picks for another stud? Sheesh. You are in legit legit legit contender mode.

But hey - or we can wait and see if Scottie becomes a good offensive player and maybe he will one Ingram is 31 and Flagg needs $60M a year. Then we can cap ourselves out and start again.

[WuTang_CMB]

If we get Flagg I am looking to move Barnes almost immediately, maybe in a Booker type deal?

IQ/Booker/Ingram/Flagg/Poeltl is intriguing

I can guarantee if they get Flagg they will not be trading Barnes in the near future

Sure, then we can waste a few years while we find out that Barnes/Flagg is an even worse fit than Siakam/Barnes.

OR, we can be proactive and trade Barnes at what is likely the peak of his value (23 years old, start of a 5-year deal) and get back a haul and be competitive immediately. Have we already forgot Booker led a team to the finals as the best player?

If you can get Booker for Barnes you are automatically a title contender and can build around Flagg when you have him on a cheap deal before you gotta give him a max.

Not to mention you would still have the ability to use some combo of Barrett/Ingram/Quickley + all our picks to possibly grab a co-star for Book/Flagg to run with.

it's a pipe dream. Masai isn't trading Scottie after acquiring Flagg. If you are trading a 23 year old all-star locked up, you better get Giannis. That's a true difference maker, not Booker, who didn't even make the playoffs.

[mademan]

What are you expecting to pay someone averaging 21/6/5? How much is he overpaid by and who's a comparable to him that's being paid fairly?

An on ball guy on a bad team is capable of putting up numbers, albeit ineffeicently. A tale as old as time in the NBA. These guys cant scale up to be 1st options on a good team but also cant defend and shoot well enough to be complimentary players. He is overpaid as every single impact metric for every single season he's been in the league rates him out as a negative player. He's a much worse Demar Derozan

You said he is overpaid for his "current production". Telling me he is overpaid isn't saying much if you can't come up with an example of someone who is fairly paid in the same role he is in now.

What role? Third option on a bad team? Net negative player his whole career? He was drafted for potential and then paid for potential and he's still a negative player. That is overpaid. A guy like Ochai will be making 10ish mill per year and he's a more impactful player in his role than RJ is in any role