Trades and Transactions 2025 V

[spree2kawhi]

I hope we keep him.

Yabu + ? + some 2nd rounders for Brook Lopez?

I think Lopez got nothing left in the tank and I'd rather get more athletic and longer on the wing... Saddiq Bey anyone?

I don’t know… Yabu has sure looked bad, but in terms of immediate upside, he might still be the best of them.

[spree2kawhi]

We're not trying to replace OG ... we're trying to add another OG so we can have two players with his skillset.

Really, OG is not doing anything miraculous.......it's why he isn't an All Star, All NBA defense, or getting DPOY or MVP votes etc. The Raptors readily traded him.

His archetype, however, is PERFECT for the makeup of this Knicks team and substantially raises our ceiling.

He is a role player whose skillet complements our two All-NBA players' skill sets perfectly like a puzzle piece. He is long...plays very good defense, doesn't need the ball, hits spot up 3's, drives occasionally(can't dribble)......cuts and finishes. He will likely never get an All-Star nod, but that doesn't mean he isn't vital for THIS team's success.

Yet, since there's many role players like that in the league, including young ones and up-and-comers.... Leon has to get us another that is being underutilized or their team doesn't want to pay them.

Put a long, athletic defensive wing on this team who can hit the 3 at a respectable clip next to OG(and insurance in case OG is injured)...And when you see the impact it has, you'll forget Mitch ever existed.

You like the lineup of:

Mitch
KAT
OG
Mikal
Brunson

Imagine if it were:

KAT
OG
OG (similar length/skillset)
Mikal
Brunson

The defense would be 2x better and 5-out would still be there.

The Raptors only traded him for financial reasons, same with Siakam

I think financial reasons, ala Wolves and KAT, may be oversimplifying it. The Raps wanted to rebuild, get a PG, etc.

Siakam was long in the tooth and they were ready to take the keys to the franchise from him and give them to Barnes; They wanted to rebuild around their young franchise player.

Based on roster needs, they happily paid Quickley like $32 mil per year because they found his skill set to be more valuable than a 3&D role player.

They could readily move on from OG because they didn't feel what he brought to the team was that difficult to replace; if they did they would have paid him.

Were the Raps right or was OG an irreplaceable defensive star? Well they traded OG while they had a losing record with him playing...they "rebuilt" and tanked for one season ....and now without OG they are #2 in the east on a crazy win streak.

The way the Knicks are constructed....any starting caliber 3&D wing at the 4 would level up the team in a similar way. If any teams are underperforming, rebuilding, or whatever, and Leon could get us one in a trade he needs to go for it.

We were very fortunate to get him. He has vastly improved since the trade and even from last season already. You cannot just go and find another one.

Personally, I really liked how Mitch has dominated the offensive board. Those are championship intangibles imo. I would’ve traded him and McBride for Kessler and Sexton, but I’m not even sure if that would’ve been a real upgrade. Mitch is good (and intense) and there’s no second OG out there.

[3toheadmelo]

Glad to see KAT raised his trade value against the Nets and Hornets. Maybe we can trade him for Sabonis now.

[Iron Mantis]

The Raptors only traded him for financial reasons, same with Siakam

I think financial reasons, ala Wolves and KAT, may be oversimplifying it. The Raps wanted to rebuild, get a PG, etc.

Siakam was long in the tooth and they were ready to take the keys to the franchise from him and give them to Barnes; They wanted to rebuild around their young franchise player.

Based on roster needs, they happily paid Quickley like $32 mil per year because they found his skill set to be more valuable than a 3&D role player.

They could readily move on from OG because they didn't feel what he brought to the team was that difficult to replace; if they did they would have paid him.

Were the Raps right or was OG an irreplaceable defensive star? Well they traded OG while they had a losing record with him playing...they "rebuilt" and tanked for one season ....and now without OG they are #2 in the east on a crazy win streak.

The way the Knicks are constructed....any starting caliber 3&D wing at the 4 would level up the team in a similar way. If any teams are underperforming, rebuilding, or whatever, and Leon could get us one in a trade he needs to go for it.

We were very fortunate to get him. He has vastly improved since the trade and even from last season already. You cannot just go and find another one.

Personally, I really liked how Mitch has dominated the offensive board. Those are championship intangibles imo. I would’ve traded him and McBride for Kessler and Sexton, but I’m not even sure if that would’ve been a real upgrade. Mitch is good (and intense) and there’s no second OG out there.

There's no tall 3&D wings out there on any NBA roster besides the one on the Knicks?

That's OG's skill set and his value to this team is just that: playing gritty defense and making assisted baskets... whether off of cutting to the basket, running in transition, or spotting up. Occasionally he tries to create his own shot, but he's not good at it. 77% of his made shots are assisted; The only players with less are Diawara, Dadiet, Yabu, Shamet.

Folks see how catalytic a very good 3&D is alongside elite shot-creators and scorers who can't defend..... and are so astounded by the impact it has as a complete unit that they think in a vacuum OG is a superstar whose skill set is not found anywhere else in the league.

If that's the case, we should offer him straight up for Giannis.

But seriously, we need another long 3&D wing on the roster. It has to be a priority if we're seriously going for it all this year.

[spree2kawhi]

I think financial reasons, ala Wolves and KAT, may be oversimplifying it. The Raps wanted to rebuild, get a PG, etc.

Siakam was long in the tooth and they were ready to take the keys to the franchise from him and give them to Barnes; They wanted to rebuild around their young franchise player.

Based on roster needs, they happily paid Quickley like $32 mil per year because they found his skill set to be more valuable than a 3&D role player.

They could readily move on from OG because they didn't feel what he brought to the team was that difficult to replace; if they did they would have paid him.

Were the Raps right or was OG an irreplaceable defensive star? Well they traded OG while they had a losing record with him playing...they "rebuilt" and tanked for one season ....and now without OG they are #2 in the east on a crazy win streak.

The way the Knicks are constructed....any starting caliber 3&D wing at the 4 would level up the team in a similar way. If any teams are underperforming, rebuilding, or whatever, and Leon could get us one in a trade he needs to go for it.

We were very fortunate to get him. He has vastly improved since the trade and even from last season already. You cannot just go and find another one.

Personally, I really liked how Mitch has dominated the offensive board. Those are championship intangibles imo. I would’ve traded him and McBride for Kessler and Sexton, but I’m not even sure if that would’ve been a real upgrade. Mitch is good (and intense) and there’s no second OG out there.

There's no tall 3&D wings out there on any NBA roster besides the one on the Knicks?

That's OG's skill set and his value to this team is just that: playing gritty defense and making assisted baskets... whether off of cutting to the basket, running in transition, or spotting up. Occasionally he tries to create his own shot, but he's not good at it. 77% of his made shots are assisted; The only players with less are Diawara, Dadiet, Yabu, Shamet.

Folks see how catalytic a very good 3&D is alongside elite shot-creators and scorers who can't defend..... and are so astounded by the impact it has as a complete unit that they think in a vacuum OG is a superstar whose skill set is not found anywhere else in the league.

If that's the case, we should offer him straight up for Giannis.

But seriously, we need another long 3&D wing on the roster. It has to be a priority if we're seriously going for it all this year.

Name one. I think you’re underrating him. Most of the available players at that position are 1) not worth giving up Mitch for and 2) not even close to OG level. I mean, you may disagree and that is only fair, but again: if not for Kessler, I wouldn’t really know who to trade Mitch for. He’s a keeper imo

[Iron Mantis]

We were very fortunate to get him. He has vastly improved since the trade and even from last season already. You cannot just go and find another one.

Personally, I really liked how Mitch has dominated the offensive board. Those are championship intangibles imo. I would’ve traded him and McBride for Kessler and Sexton, but I’m not even sure if that would’ve been a real upgrade. Mitch is good (and intense) and there’s no second OG out there.

There's no tall 3&D wings out there on any NBA roster besides the one on the Knicks?

That's OG's skill set and his value to this team is just that: playing gritty defense and making assisted baskets... whether off of cutting to the basket, running in transition, or spotting up. Occasionally he tries to create his own shot, but he's not good at it. 77% of his made shots are assisted; The only players with less are Diawara, Dadiet, Yabu, Shamet.

Folks see how catalytic a very good 3&D is alongside elite shot-creators and scorers who can't defend..... and are so astounded by the impact it has as a complete unit that they think in a vacuum OG is a superstar whose skill set is not found anywhere else in the league.

If that's the case, we should offer him straight up for Giannis.

But seriously, we need another long 3&D wing on the roster. It has to be a priority if we're seriously going for it all this year.

Name one. I think you’re underrating him. Most of the available players at that position are 1) not worth giving up Mitch for and 2) not even close to OG level. I mean, you may disagree, but again: if not for Kessler, I wouldn’t really know who to trade Mitch for. He’s a keeper imo

Forget about OG, because it seems you don't understand my point.

I just know we need another long 3&D wing to contend. And Mitch is nice, sure, but I feel having another versatile wing defender who can hit a 3pt shot will have a greater impact than what Mitch can bring. His availability and contract are a concern, and IDK if his free throw shooting will get back to normal (52% career avg) but he's shooting less than 25% from the line so far. That's extremely important in the playoffs.

He has value right now because he is healthy (for now)...So, In light of the aforementioned, I say sell high.

There's 255 players in the league who've spent time at the F position this season, many of which are good defenders.....the FO is getting paid millions to do their due diligence in seeing which one we can get for Mitch, who's the best fit, whose contracts are eligible to be traded, etc. Trades often surprise us after the fact and we say "Wow, I didn't even know he was available!". I'm hoping we can see one of those types of trades.

[pieguyxx]

We were very fortunate to get him. He has vastly improved since the trade and even from last season already. You cannot just go and find another one.

Personally, I really liked how Mitch has dominated the offensive board. Those are championship intangibles imo. I would’ve traded him and McBride for Kessler and Sexton, but I’m not even sure if that would’ve been a real upgrade. Mitch is good (and intense) and there’s no second OG out there.

There's no tall 3&D wings out there on any NBA roster besides the one on the Knicks?

That's OG's skill set and his value to this team is just that: playing gritty defense and making assisted baskets... whether off of cutting to the basket, running in transition, or spotting up. Occasionally he tries to create his own shot, but he's not good at it. 77% of his made shots are assisted; The only players with less are Diawara, Dadiet, Yabu, Shamet.

Folks see how catalytic a very good 3&D is alongside elite shot-creators and scorers who can't defend..... and are so astounded by the impact it has as a complete unit that they think in a vacuum OG is a superstar whose skill set is not found anywhere else in the league.

If that's the case, we should offer him straight up for Giannis.

But seriously, we need another long 3&D wing on the roster. It has to be a priority if we're seriously going for it all this year.

Name one. I think you’re underrating him. Most of the available players at that position are 1) not worth giving up Mitch for and 2) not even close to OG level. I mean, you may disagree and that is only fair, but again: if not for Kessler, I wouldn’t really know who to trade Mitch for. He’s a keeper imo

Mitch for Herb Jones

[Iron Mantis]

There's no tall 3&D wings out there on any NBA roster besides the one on the Knicks?

That's OG's skill set and his value to this team is just that: playing gritty defense and making assisted baskets... whether off of cutting to the basket, running in transition, or spotting up. Occasionally he tries to create his own shot, but he's not good at it. 77% of his made shots are assisted; The only players with less are Diawara, Dadiet, Yabu, Shamet.

Folks see how catalytic a very good 3&D is alongside elite shot-creators and scorers who can't defend..... and are so astounded by the impact it has as a complete unit that they think in a vacuum OG is a superstar whose skill set is not found anywhere else in the league.

If that's the case, we should offer him straight up for Giannis.

But seriously, we need another long 3&D wing on the roster. It has to be a priority if we're seriously going for it all this year.

Name one. I think you’re underrating him. Most of the available players at that position are 1) not worth giving up Mitch for and 2) not even close to OG level. I mean, you may disagree and that is only fair, but again: if not for Kessler, I wouldn’t really know who to trade Mitch for. He’s a keeper imo

Mitch for Herb Jones

[dukeknicksirish]

Read on Twitter

?s=46&t=SEW8jaGBHSXy6n30nQhvnQ

[WaltFrazier]

We're not trying to replace OG ... we're trying to add another OG so we can have two players with his skillset.

Really, OG is not doing anything miraculous.......it's why he isn't an All Star, All NBA defense, or getting DPOY or MVP votes etc. The Raptors readily traded him.

His archetype, however, is PERFECT for the makeup of this Knicks team and substantially raises our ceiling.

He is a role player whose skillet complements our two All-NBA players' skill sets perfectly like a puzzle piece. He is long...plays very good defense, doesn't need the ball, hits spot up 3's, drives occasionally(can't dribble)......cuts and finishes. He will likely never get an All-Star nod, but that doesn't mean he isn't vital for THIS team's success.

Yet, since there's many role players like that in the league, including young ones and up-and-comers.... Leon has to get us another that is being underutilized or their team doesn't want to pay them.

Put a long, athletic defensive wing on this team who can hit the 3 at a respectable clip next to OG(and insurance in case OG is injured)...And when you see the impact it has, you'll forget Mitch ever existed.

You like the lineup of:

Mitch
KAT
OG
Mikal
Brunson

Imagine if it were:

KAT
OG
OG (similar length/skillset)
Mikal
Brunson

The defense would be 2x better and 5-out would still be there.

The Raptors only traded him for financial reasons, same with Siakam

I think financial reasons, ala Wolves and KAT, may be oversimplifying it. The Raps wanted to rebuild, get a PG, etc.

Siakam was long in the tooth and they were ready to take the keys to the franchise from him and give them to Barnes; They wanted to rebuild around their young franchise player.

Based on roster needs, they happily paid Quickley like $32 mil per year because they found his skill set to be more valuable than a 3&D role player.

They could readily move on from OG because they didn't feel what he brought to the team was that difficult to replace; if they did they would have paid him.

Were the Raps right or was OG an irreplaceable defensive star? Well they traded OG while they had a losing record with him playing...they "rebuilt" and tanked for one season ....and now without OG they are #2 in the east on a crazy win streak.

The way the Knicks are constructed....any starting caliber 3&D wing at the 4 would level up the team in a similar way. If any teams are underperforming, rebuilding, or whatever, and Leon could get us one in a trade he needs to go for it.

Saying the Raptors are #2 in the East now, ignores 2 and a half miserable years of losing till now. And they won't end up that high.

I was there. They wanted to reduce payroll. They later overpaid IQ because they felt the need to justify the trade.

The value of OG is shown by our drop in defense currently. But if you mean Leon could get another 3nD PF in addition to OG yes that'd be great. That should have been Yabu but he's a bust

[Iron Mantis]

The Raptors only traded him for financial reasons, same with Siakam

I think financial reasons, ala Wolves and KAT, may be oversimplifying it. The Raps wanted to rebuild, get a PG, etc.

Siakam was long in the tooth and they were ready to take the keys to the franchise from him and give them to Barnes; They wanted to rebuild around their young franchise player.

Based on roster needs, they happily paid Quickley like $32 mil per year because they found his skill set to be more valuable than a 3&D role player.

They could readily move on from OG because they didn't feel what he brought to the team was that difficult to replace; if they did they would have paid him.

Were the Raps right or was OG an irreplaceable defensive star? Well they traded OG while they had a losing record with him playing...they "rebuilt" and tanked for one season ....and now without OG they are #2 in the east on a crazy win streak.

The way the Knicks are constructed....any starting caliber 3&D wing at the 4 would level up the team in a similar way. If any teams are underperforming, rebuilding, or whatever, and Leon could get us one in a trade he needs to go for it.

Saying the Raptors are #2 in the East now, ignores 2 and a half miserable years of losing till now. And they won't end up that high.

I was there. They wanted to reduce payroll. They later overpaid IQ because they felt the need to justify the trade.

The value of OG is shown by our drop in defense currently. But if you mean Leon could get another 3nD PF in addition to OG yes that'd be great. That should have been Yabu but he's a bust

The Raptors had a crap record WITH OG when they traded him away. Now they're #2. Either way I don't care to debate about the Raptors.

I've left no room for confusion about my position: I want to trade Mitch for an ADDITIONAL wing.

[WaltFrazier]

I think financial reasons, ala Wolves and KAT, may be oversimplifying it. The Raps wanted to rebuild, get a PG, etc.

Siakam was long in the tooth and they were ready to take the keys to the franchise from him and give them to Barnes; They wanted to rebuild around their young franchise player.

Based on roster needs, they happily paid Quickley like $32 mil per year because they found his skill set to be more valuable than a 3&D role player.

They could readily move on from OG because they didn't feel what he brought to the team was that difficult to replace; if they did they would have paid him.

Were the Raps right or was OG an irreplaceable defensive star? Well they traded OG while they had a losing record with him playing...they "rebuilt" and tanked for one season ....and now without OG they are #2 in the east on a crazy win streak.

The way the Knicks are constructed....any starting caliber 3&D wing at the 4 would level up the team in a similar way. If any teams are underperforming, rebuilding, or whatever, and Leon could get us one in a trade he needs to go for it.

Saying the Raptors are #2 in the East now, ignores 2 and a half miserable years of losing till now. And they won't end up that high.

I was there. They wanted to reduce payroll. They later overpaid IQ because they felt the need to justify the trade.

The value of OG is shown by our drop in defense currently. But if you mean Leon could get another 3nD PF in addition to OG yes that'd be great. That should have been Yabu but he's a bust

The Raptors had a crap record WITH OG when they traded him away. Now they're #2. Either way I don't care to debate about the Raptors.

I've left no room for confusion about my position: I want to trade Mitch for an ADDITIONAL wing.

Raps got worse for two years before getting better this year.

I agree we need another wing, because Yabu is a bust .But if you use Mitch to get one we're really short at center

[Iron Mantis]

Saying the Raptors are #2 in the East now, ignores 2 and a half miserable years of losing till now. And they won't end up that high.

I was there. They wanted to reduce payroll. They later overpaid IQ because they felt the need to justify the trade.

The value of OG is shown by our drop in defense currently. But if you mean Leon could get another 3nD PF in addition to OG yes that'd be great. That should have been Yabu but he's a bust

The Raptors had a crap record WITH OG when they traded him away. Now they're #2. Either way I don't care to debate about the Raptors.

I've left no room for confusion about my position: I want to trade Mitch for an ADDITIONAL wing.

Raps got worse for two years before getting better this year.

I agree we need another wing, because Yabu is a bust .But if you use Mitch to get one we're really short at center

The Raptors were 12-18 when they traded OG in Dec 2023 of the 2023-2024 season: they sucked WITH OG ..... They traded Siakam a month later. They already sucked and blew the team up to tank and build around Scottie.

Immediately before the beginning of the next season (2024-2025), Jakob Poeltl made public comments that were clearly understood as the Raptors tanking the coming season: and they did.....

The next season, 2025-2026, they are suddenly #2 in the east and have the best Net rating in the east.... WITHOUT OG.

I'm not even sure what you're railing against....no one is against OG on the Knicks... what I'm saying is we need another player like him to make our team better: a 3&D wing.

[WaltFrazier]

The Raptors had a crap record WITH OG when they traded him away. Now they're #2. Either way I don't care to debate about the Raptors.

I've left no room for confusion about my position: I want to trade Mitch for an ADDITIONAL wing.

Raps got worse for two years before getting better this year.

I agree we need another wing, because Yabu is a bust .But if you use Mitch to get one we're really short at center

The Raptors were 12-18 when they traded OG in Dec 2023 of the 2023-2024 season: they sucked WITH OG ..... They traded Siakam a month later. They already sucked and blew the team up to tank and build around Scottie.

Immediately before the beginning of the next season (2024-2025), Jakob Poeltl made public comments that were clearly understood as the Raptors tanking the coming season: and they did.....

The next season, 2025-2026, they are suddenly #2 in the east and have the best Net rating in the east.... WITHOUT OG.

I'm not even sure what you're railing against....no one is against OG on the Knicks... what I'm saying is we need another player like him to make our team better: a 3&D wing.

I'm not railing just pointing out you are simplifying. Van vleet was gone, new coach, Schroeder struggled, they had injuries. They weren't going anywhere it's true but OG and Siakam were both in the last year of contract and they couldn't afford to pay them, everyone knew they were getting traded. And they were terrible the rest of 23-24, as well as the tanking year last year. Two seasons of terrible ball to watch. Yes they've done a nice job of rebuilding this year, but it's early to call them #2. And we'll see where they end up and where their ceiling is

[Iron Mantis]

Raps got worse for two years before getting better this year.

I agree we need another wing, because Yabu is a bust .But if you use Mitch to get one we're really short at center

The Raptors were 12-18 when they traded OG in Dec 2023 of the 2023-2024 season: they sucked WITH OG ..... They traded Siakam a month later. They already sucked and blew the team up to tank and build around Scottie.

Immediately before the beginning of the next season (2024-2025), Jakob Poeltl made public comments that were clearly understood as the Raptors tanking the coming season: and they did.....

The next season, 2025-2026, they are suddenly #2 in the east and have the best Net rating in the east.... WITHOUT OG.

I'm not even sure what you're railing against....no one is against OG on the Knicks... what I'm saying is we need another player like him to make our team better: a 3&D wing.

I'm not railing just pointing out you are simplifying. Van vleet was gone, new coach, Schroeder struggled, they had injuries. They weren't going anywhere it's true but OG and Siakam were both in the last year of contract and they couldn't afford to pay them, everyone knew they were getting traded. And they were terrible the rest of 23-24, as well as the tanking year last year. Two seasons of terrible ball to watch. Yes they've done a nice job of rebuilding this year, but it's early to call them #2. And we'll see where they end up and where their ceiling is

The Raps are # 2 right now.... They've won 9 in a row and are 13 of their last 14. until that changes, you can't take that away from them. They're #2 in the east....

We're not trying to replace OG ... we're trying to add another OG so we can have two players with his skillset.

Really, OG is not doing anything miraculous.......it's why he isn't an All Star, All NBA defense, or getting DPOY or MVP votes etc. The Raptors readily traded him.

Why they traded him is irrelevant....The point is that they readily traded him for a bare minimum trade package. He is not a superstar. He's a 3&D role player which is just what we need. So I feel we can find another 3&D role player similar to him to add to the roster and give us a championship level defense.

[WaltFrazier]

The Raptors were 12-18 when they traded OG in Dec 2023 of the 2023-2024 season: they sucked WITH OG ..... They traded Siakam a month later. They already sucked and blew the team up to tank and build around Scottie.

Immediately before the beginning of the next season (2024-2025), Jakob Poeltl made public comments that were clearly understood as the Raptors tanking the coming season: and they did.....

The next season, 2025-2026, they are suddenly #2 in the east and have the best Net rating in the east.... WITHOUT OG.

I'm not even sure what you're railing against....no one is against OG on the Knicks... what I'm saying is we need another player like him to make our team better: a 3&D wing.

I'm not railing just pointing out you are simplifying. Van vleet was gone, new coach, Schroeder struggled, they had injuries. They weren't going anywhere it's true but OG and Siakam were both in the last year of contract and they couldn't afford to pay them, everyone knew they were getting traded. And they were terrible the rest of 23-24, as well as the tanking year last year. Two seasons of terrible ball to watch. Yes they've done a nice job of rebuilding this year, but it's early to call them #2. And we'll see where they end up and where their ceiling is

The Raps are # 2 right now.... They've won 9 in a row and are 13 of their last 14. until that changes, you can't take that away from them. They're #2 in the east....

We're not trying to replace OG ... we're trying to add another OG so we can have two players with his skillset.

Really, OG is not doing anything miraculous.......it's why he isn't an All Star, All NBA defense, or getting DPOY or MVP votes etc. The Raptors readily traded him.

Why they traded him is irrelevant....The point is that they readily traded him for a bare minimum trade package. He is not a superstar. He's a 3&D role player which is just what we need. So I feel we can find another 3&D role player similar to him to add to the roster and give us a championship level defense.

I agree with getting another defensive wing, but how? I think Mitch is too much to give, because Hukporti isn't ready. As I posted elsewhere the killer is we did sign a big wing, albeit not a defender, but he's a non productive bust

[sol537]

We have Yabu's salary plus the salaries of several young guys to get close to $8-$10m to try to bring back a 6'8" 3&D wing at the deadline. We also have the WAS protected 1st (essentially 2nd rounders) and other 2nd rounders to use to get it done. There's gotta be someone out there that will be come available to us.

[B8RcDeMktfxC]

We have Yabu's salary plus the salaries of several young guys to get close to $8-$10m to try to bring back a 6'8" 3&D wing at the deadline. We also have the WAS protected 1st (essentially 2nd rounders) and other 2nd rounders to use to get it done. There's gotta be someone out there that will be come available to us.

No. Every time you put a rookie or vet min in a deal you need to get one back to keep the squad numbers up to 14. The Knicks have Yabu's salary and about 0.6m if they trade Dadiet. You have to find someone making 6m or less

[Iron Mantis]

I'm not railing just pointing out you are simplifying. Van vleet was gone, new coach, Schroeder struggled, they had injuries. They weren't going anywhere it's true but OG and Siakam were both in the last year of contract and they couldn't afford to pay them, everyone knew they were getting traded. And they were terrible the rest of 23-24, as well as the tanking year last year. Two seasons of terrible ball to watch. Yes they've done a nice job of rebuilding this year, but it's early to call them #2. And we'll see where they end up and where their ceiling is

The Raps are # 2 right now.... They've won 9 in a row and are 13 of their last 14. until that changes, you can't take that away from them. They're #2 in the east....

We're not trying to replace OG ... we're trying to add another OG so we can have two players with his skillset.

Really, OG is not doing anything miraculous.......it's why he isn't an All Star, All NBA defense, or getting DPOY or MVP votes etc. The Raptors readily traded him.

Why they traded him is irrelevant....The point is that they readily traded him for a bare minimum trade package. He is not a superstar. He's a 3&D role player which is just what we need. So I feel we can find another 3&D role player similar to him to add to the roster and give us a championship level defense.

I agree with getting another defensive wing, but how? I think Mitch is too much to give, because Hukporti isn't ready. As I posted elsewhere the killer is we did sign a big wing, albeit not a defender, but he's a non productive bust

True, I like Mitch but I don't trust his health or free throw shooting during a finals run, and I don't trust his next contract.

We were 41-24 without Mitch last season. We were running guys like Sims or Precious or who we as the backup C.

Mitch is a helpful player, homegrown and all, but based on this team's makeup, a wing who can get defensive stops would raise this team's ceiling further than Mitch.