Masai patience and discipline will pay off huge!

[TGM]

It’s tough being a Raptors fan the past few weeks refreshing your screen and hoping that a deal has just happened. I’m sure some of us almost want to see 9th pick traded just to have that what if euphoria. Making trades early in the off-season is typically not the smartest. Things always start with a boom where a deal that is lopsided happens. Then you have the panic knee jerk reactors. Once the dust settles things become a lot more sensible.

Bane was the boom deal of the off-season
Then came KD to Rockets for less than expected.
Followed by the salary dumps of Jrue, Porz and Poole.

This is where Masai plays 4D chess with the best of them. Let’s take a quick look at market dynamics as of today.

1. Overpaying Euphoria is gone. Less assets to go around and market prices are now more established. They are still many teams needing to make changes to their rosters or salary. Boston I think is blowing it up and willing to trade anyone not named JT, Payton and White.

2. Several teams have full rosters and have too many picks. These teams don’t have great leverage and will need to move picks. Brooklyn I think tries to offer Philly three firsts to go to 3.

3. Lots of top talent still available at the right price. The ones that have moved are mediocre or have flaws. Jrue age, KD age and contract, Porz age, Poole overpaid, CJ old and injured.

4. Masai now has less competition but lots of flexibility. He has moveable players that are productive in decent contracts, age, has picks and most of all roster space.

5. Masai is operating smartly in the new CBA and with upcoming expansion the smart thing to do is consolidate assets to 9-10 quality guys as to have 15. You will lose 3-4 in the expansion draft coming in two years.

6. For those that play NBA fantasy sometimes the best value surfaces late in the game and despite people joke it’s the nba is not fantasy basketball. Market dynamics work the same way. When you have a sellers market. Once the early buyers are gone, the sellers cut price.

[WuTang_OG]

Let him continue to keep adding young talent and Darko to execute on it

[LoveMyRaps]

Masai been playing chess all this time

[Tor_Raps]

Its a results based industry so we will see how the offseason ends. His patience was what got him into this mess with the delayed rebuild but hopefully he can work his magic to get us 1 more major peice.

[RaptorPride]

[Tripod]

Add a backup C and draft at 9 & 39 and I am happy.

Throw in a sneaky good trade to top it off!

[Kingsway_fan]

Add a backup C and draft at 9 & 39 and I am happy.

Throw in a sneaky good trade to top it off!

Patiently awaiting the Giannis add....

[ArthurVandelay]

Masai is going to do what he always* does: value shop and buy at significant discounts


*exception to every rule and this one is Poeltl

[Los_29]

We all criticized Masai for his inactivity at times but those decisions have aged very well. We are one of very few teams that have both good players and all of our picks.

He’s turned over this roster and it’s very likely we compete for a playoff spot next year. Would anyone want to be the Wizards? Or Nets? Or Jazz? Or Hornets? All these teams stink and those bad teams in the East are going to have to sit back in a year where the East has never been weaker. I think the playoffs taught us a lot. The best teams in the league built their teams through trades with nice draft picks later in the draft. That’s ultimately the key in this current climate.

[CPT]

I don’t really disagree, but there’s a logical flaw here.

There can’t really be a “bad time” to make trades. If some teams are making bad trades, that usually means other teams are making good ones.

There are, of course, bad times for specific trades… but let’s not get into that.

[TGM]

I don’t expect a trade to happen till draft time. Masai knows some guys will be there at 9 and some teams as the draft unfold will just pay up to get their guy.

I Presti wants Queen, Malauch or Essengue probably quite similar to Toronto’s draft board. But 15 you probably don’t get either of those 3. Essengue could be the draft and stash guy given their are at their roster limit. Dieng, 15 and 24 for Ochai and 9 is very possible.

I would probably opt for Cam and 3 picks from the Nets. Maybe RJ, 15 and 39 gets you Cam, 18, 22 and 27. Nets can flip 8 and 15 to get Bailey.

Raps probably take Sorber or Newell at 18 and then grab Cedric at 22 and whoever drops at 27.

The Fomo starts kicking in after the first 3 picks go.
Q3.

[Prestige]

This week is likely the climax of this summer’s activity. If nothing happens we’re probably going into camp and seeing how the team goes.

[DelAbbot]

Masai doesn't know the meaning of the word patience

[Tofubeque]

I saw RJ brought up in the thread for Jordan f’n Poole for CJ McCollum, a trash for trash trade. People really just want a trade for the sake of one, huh.

[ItsDanger]

Reads like someone who's desperate for playoff revenues right now.

[TorontoBarneys]

Masai been playing chess all this time

This picture and the lack of an opponent is apt considering the unnecessary IQ overpay.

[Scase]

Masai been playing chess all this time

This picture and the lack of an opponent is apt considering the unnecessary IQ overpay.

What's even better is that he's lost some of his own pieces, despite playing no opponent

[Godaddycurse]

Masai been playing chess all this time

This picture and the lack of an opponent is apt considering the unnecessary IQ overpay.

What's even better is that he's lost some of his own pieces, despite playing no opponent

he could be playing against himself

[Tacoma]

Masai isn't all that patient lately. He was patient waiting 5 yrs to break up the Lowry/DD/JV core inherited from Colangelo, flipping DD for Kawhi & then JV for Gasol. But since 2020, he's tried to reproduce his Kawhi deal by attempting shortcut trades for older vets like Lillard, Giannis & KD.

He preached patience last summer saying we need to give BBQ a chance to play together and now trying to trade RJ and IQ even though they've hardly played together due to injuries last season. He once deemed Barnes untouchable but allegedly willing to trade him now for 37 yr old KD.

Overall, he's exhibited less patience over the past 5 years with 3 of those years ending as tank years as the payoff. His playing 4D chess reputation has turned into 1D chess playing against himself as LoveMyRaps' picture shows.

[LoveMyRaps]

This picture and the lack of an opponent is apt considering the unnecessary IQ overpay.

What's even better is that he's lost some of his own pieces, despite playing no opponent

he could be playing against himself

He is playing against himself.

For those that don't know him - he's Bumpy Johnson from the show Godfather of Harlem (highly recommend).