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Masai and Bobby are Asleep at the Wheel

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Re: Masai and Bobby are Asleep at the Wheel 

Post#61 » by Johnny Bball » Tue Mar 16, 2021 3:21 pm

Y'all are crazy of you think Jones for Baynes would move the needle in any way shape or form and isn't just change for the sake of change.

As for not hearing enough from exec... maybe it's because they aren't sitting there after games that are being played in Tampa, while the media is still in Toronto and don;t see them during or post game anymore... or I dunno, just ignore the reality of the situation instead I guess. :roll:
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Re: Masai and Bobby are Asleep at the Wheel 

Post#62 » by Basketball_Jones » Tue Mar 16, 2021 3:21 pm

Yeah, I'm good with losing games and missing the playoffs. Gimme a top 10 pick.
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Re: Masai and Bobby are Asleep at the Wheel 

Post#63 » by ATLTimekeeper » Tue Mar 16, 2021 3:29 pm

ruckus wrote:However, I do agree that in a down season such as this one, our front office seems kinda quiet. Maybe they're trying to run a stealth tank - don't make any moves to actively get worse but also, don't make any moves to actively get better - and let the record fall where the record falls whether its low playoffs or lottery.


There haven't been many trades at all. The Harden blockbuster, which was a carryover from the off-season.

And then a few prospects shuffles from bad teams (Detroit getting Diallo, Houston getting Porter), and then the DRose trade to the Knicks.
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Re: Masai and Bobby are Asleep at the Wheel 

Post#64 » by ItsDanger » Tue Mar 16, 2021 3:30 pm

Giannis extending with Bucks should have moved Raps to Plan B. Is there a Plan B? If there is no major acquisition through UFA/RFA, this season should be a transition year especially given the circumstances. In a transition year, you trade assets not relevant to the future (Lowry). You also give opportunity to younger/cheaper players to see if they can be useful role pieces for bottom of rotation or the bench (this hasn't happened except for last few games).

From a business standpoint, management not communicating with the disconnected fanbase is not a good look here. Its been a full year away from ScotiaBank Arena. This isn't a big brain opinion, its marketing 101. They're taking you for granted.
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Re: Masai and Bobby are Asleep at the Wheel 

Post#65 » by Carter_Kobe » Tue Mar 16, 2021 3:34 pm

If we are going to stick with Vanvleet OG and Siakam, our time to contend and win is the first half of this decade. I'm not sure what we can muster up to add a star this core.

We've got 7 fringe NBA guys on our team. If we trade Lowry, does that improve our depth issue? I'm not really sure the plan is to get back contention. Siakam OG and FVV are guys who's skills translate well for teams to become great. We need a star or # scoring option type guy bad.
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Re: Masai and Bobby are Asleep at the Wheel 

Post#66 » by ATLTimekeeper » Tue Mar 16, 2021 3:35 pm

Webster spoke to the media like 2 weeks ago. They don't owe the fans constant updates on how hard they're working and how everything is going to be just fine.
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Re: Masai and Bobby are Asleep at the Wheel 

Post#67 » by djsunyc » Tue Mar 16, 2021 3:48 pm

fbalmeida wrote:I've picked up on a little detail here that seriously irks me and leaves me concerned that Masai and Bobby are asleep at the wheel, while other teams are taking care of business.

The Lakers, following AD's calf strain, tried playing a few games with what they had. AD's last game was February 14th vs Denver.

So they beat the Timberwolves.
Lose to the Nets.
Lose to Miami.
Lose to the Wizards.
and Lose to Utah.

And so on February 26th, they pick up a recently waived Damian Jones on a 10-day contract.

He's nothing special.
25 years old.
6-11.
245 pounds.
An able bodied Center.

And he then plays 8 minutes vs the Warriors.
7 minutes vs the Suns.
A start and 14 minutes vs the Kings.
A start and 15 minutes vs the Pacers.
A start and 21 minutes vs the Warriors again.

And they pick their game back up to a point where they start playing better, and winning more games than they would have.

He's been super efficient at the dunker spot. 90.9 FG%. Reliable from the FT line. Protects the rim.
And again, nothing special. 5.4 points, 2 rebounds, and 1 block per 13.4 minutes

And yet, Damian Jones is better, bigger, younger, and cheaper than Aron Baynes.

A simple, quick, and easy roster solution to a clear and evident roster problem.

So in the spirit of my "Trade for Willy Hernangomez thread" (viewtopic.php?f=32&t=2056485), In which I defend that a small and precise set of minor transactions is likely more important at this point than making some big splash, I respectfully ask...

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What the **** are Masai and Bobby doing?!

Because if we're certainly not in the callow, antithetical, and plainly non-serious business of tanking, they have also provided precisely zero indication of concern for making necessary and frankly, simple, obvious, perfectly accessible improvements to the roster.

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what if masai and bobby came out and said, we are in tampa this year. we are going to ride with our guys away from home and let them develop, good or bad - how would you feel then?
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Re: Masai and Bobby are Asleep at the Wheel 

Post#68 » by TdotRap4Lyfe » Tue Mar 16, 2021 3:53 pm

We can still Salvage the season and get a decent draft spot.
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Re: Masai and Bobby are Asleep at the Wheel 

Post#69 » by fbalmeida » Tue Mar 16, 2021 3:58 pm

ATLTimekeeper wrote:
fbalmeida wrote:
I suspect a lot, if not most of the defensive breakdowns are due to overthinking about help defense into the paint. Norm missed Snell because he was overplayed the cut while looking at Trae driving into the paint.

Whatever the cause, I think it's fairly uncontroversial that the team needed one more center from the moment we let go of Len. Despite Ellenson's 11th hour call-up, for most of the season we had gone from:

Gasol / Ibaka / Boucher to
Baynes / Boucher / nobody.


Norm said he didn't see Lowry. Baynes wasn't even on the floor.

They were missing Gasol for big portions of last season, too. Boucher's been great. Easily replaced Serge. Maybe the team was waiting for the trade deadline, or the Kyle situation to materialize, or the didn't want to send out picks or young players for a stop-gap solution.

They were getting beaten with Len, too. I think you're overrating the impact of this one position player. Baynes has been bad, but the reason the Raptors were losing so many games early is that Siakam was atrocious and OG and Norm were also quite bad. When everything normalized, they were a good team again.

What's controversial is the notion that it's due to negligence or laziness. I've already figured out many rationalizations for why they didn't make a bigger move, but none are as dramatic as an attack. And given the recent nature of some of these criticisms of the FO, including needing to hear their sweet voices, or needing to hear Baynes face the music in the media, it's important to remember that these are the same guys that stared down all the panac voices of the past and just made strong trades and solid draft choices. They won't ever be perfect, but there's a growing trend to put them on blast for strange reasons.


Fair points all around. But I will say that I'm certainly not accusing them of laziness. I'm accusing them of being excessively patient. Their competence and diligence mandates me to say that the C position hasn't been upgraded or added to, purposefully, and not out of neglect. Were they so inclined, they could've easily brokered a deal by now to add one of the many 3rd or 4th string centers starving for minutes to the team, likely one that could out-compete Baynes for minutes. Yet they haven't.
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Re: Masai and Bobby are Asleep at the Wheel 

Post#70 » by Pooh_Jeter » Tue Mar 16, 2021 3:59 pm

The Lakers won the title and added Gasol, Harrell and Schroeder.

The Raptors won the title and have gone 750+ days without making a trade. The biggest FA acquisition was Aron Baynes.

Even the best executives make mistakes and there is no question these past two years have been a run of bad decisions by the brain trust. It's unfortunate that a lot of people are unwilling to allow for any type of criticism around this team. Raptors fans have a right to be upset and they should be able to vent the frustrations.
alienchild wrote:Again, I hope the basketball gods give us the 14th pick in the draft. I hope OG asks for a trade, Birch signs elsewhere and GTJ signs an offer sheet and Raptors don't match. Frankly Masai is dead to me.
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Re: Masai and Bobby are Asleep at the Wheel 

Post#71 » by And1+2 » Tue Mar 16, 2021 4:00 pm

Masai and Bobby are on Team Tank, just like the rest of you should be.
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Re: Masai and Bobby are Asleep at the Wheel 

Post#72 » by And1+2 » Tue Mar 16, 2021 4:03 pm

Pooh_Jeter wrote:The Lakers won the title and added Gasol, Harrell and Schroeder.

The Raptors won the title and have gone 750+ days without making a trade. The biggest FA acquisition was Aron Baynes.

Even the best executives make mistakes and there is no question these past two years have been a run of bad decisions by the brain trust. It's unfortunate that a lot of people are unwilling to allow for any type of criticism around this team. Raptors fans have a right to be upset and they should be able to vent the frustrations.


Well, we can't get star quality free agents. This has been a thing since forever.

We were also holding out for Giannis. A foolish gamble, especially now that we have some hindsight... But a gamble that could have also of payed off.

This year? There's no way we can add anyone to this team before trade deadline and seriously compete for a title. It's just not happening.

Might as well just trade Lowry and hope we finish in the 11-13th range.
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Re: Masai and Bobby are Asleep at the Wheel 

Post#73 » by fbalmeida » Tue Mar 16, 2021 4:06 pm

ruckus wrote:Theres a big difference between us signing a player to a 10-day vs the Lakers signing someone to a 10-day. We need to remember that there are only 10 players on the court at any single time so having the best player among those 10 makes a huge difference. Whenever Lebron is on the floor, the Lakers unequivocally have the best player on the court during those minutes. The Raptors have no such luxury. I don't say it as a slight to Lowry or Norm or anyone else on our team but the fact of the matter is, the Raptors success is built through teamwork not individual play. The margin of error when you have the best player on the floor is so much greater vs the team that kinda needs to hit on all cylinders in order to win.

However, I do agree that in a down season such as this one, our front office seems kinda quiet. Maybe they're trying to run a stealth tank - don't make any moves to actively get worse but also, don't make any moves to actively get better - and let the record fall where the record falls whether its low playoffs or lottery.


I really don't get this argument that many others have put forward as well.

If they are spoiled by the luxury of having Lebron, and specifically Gasol and Harrell at C, and a bulky Morris at PF, wouldn't that only lessen their need of balancing their roster while AD is absent, with a Damian Jones?

If you'd argue we don't have their depth... all the more reason to take a zero risk chance on an extra body.

Is there a fault somewhere in my reasoning that I'm overlooking?
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Re: Masai and Bobby are Asleep at the Wheel 

Post#74 » by VanWest82 » Tue Mar 16, 2021 4:12 pm

Given everything we've witnessed from this front office over the last 7+ years I think they've earned benefit of the doubt.
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Re: Masai and Bobby are Asleep at the Wheel 

Post#75 » by Inevitable » Tue Mar 16, 2021 4:15 pm

Oakvillehoops wrote:
WuTang_OG wrote:
Oakvillehoops wrote:Masai and Bobby are absolutely MIA this season.

You hear nothing about them, they haven’t even made a statement on the position and direction of our team. This season has be losing huge respect for Masai.

When you go back through history, Kyle is responsible for our chip. Not Masai

Masai traded Kyle to NY
Kyle made the organization keep rookie FVV
Kyle forced Masai to trade for Ibaka, when Masai wanted to “stand Pat”
Kyle and Kawhi pushed for a Marc Gasol type trade

Bobby made the kawhi trade. Just a brief history of details people may have forgot

Truth is, all Masai ever wants to do is evaluate and say nothing, unless he’s positive he’s ripping someone off.


lol pls stop troll


Which of the facts I mentioned are trolling? Research all the known details on those transactions. Ibaka was the first trade ever that Lowry demanded the team make. And fact FVV didn’t get cut because of Kyle.


Idk about the FVV stuff but this was Kyle two days before the Ibaka trade. Certainly sounded like he wanted Masai to do something.
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Re: Masai and Bobby are Asleep at the Wheel 

Post#76 » by Childs » Tue Mar 16, 2021 4:18 pm

Some posters here need Xanax. Likely badly.
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Re: Masai and Bobby are Asleep at the Wheel 

Post#77 » by WaltFrazier » Tue Mar 16, 2021 4:22 pm

fbalmeida wrote:It would just be nice and reassuring to my endocrine system to have something remotely resembling a mission statement from Masai or Bobby's mouth regarding this season.

The closest thing we have to that was Grange having reported a Masai "We’ll be okay" text message, following Serge Ibaka's unexpected signing with the Clippers.

Well then, OK I guess? :dontknow:


This. Besides the almost total lack of activity, this. Say something Masai, throw us a bone as fans, what are you planning, something. Speak to the fans.
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Re: Masai and Bobby are Asleep at the Wheel 

Post#78 » by Son Goku 25 » Tue Mar 16, 2021 4:26 pm

Danny1616 wrote:
Oakvillehoops wrote:
WuTang_OG wrote:
lol pls stop troll


Which of the facts I mentioned are trolling? Research all the known details on those transactions. Ibaka was the first trade ever that Lowry demanded the team make. And fact FVV didn’t get cut because of Kyle.


The part where you said Kyle was responsible for resigning Vanvleet, trading for Ibaka and the Gasol trade...please provide evidence/sources that these moves were because of Kyle.

Was Kyle responsible for the Bargnani trade?

Was Kyle responsible for the Gay trade?

Was Kyle responsible for drafting Siakam, Norm, Delon and finding gems like Fred and TD undrafted?


He has something personal against Masai
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Re: Masai and Bobby are Asleep at the Wheel 

Post#79 » by Badonkadonk » Tue Mar 16, 2021 4:26 pm

Pooh_Jeter wrote:The Lakers won the title and added Gasol, Harrell and Schroeder.

The Raptors won the title and have gone 750+ days without making a trade. The biggest FA acquisition was Aron Baynes.

Even the best executives make mistakes and there is no question these past two years have been a run of bad decisions by the brain trust. It's unfortunate that a lot of people are unwilling to allow for any type of criticism around this team. Raptors fans have a right to be upset and they should be able to vent the frustrations.

That's a completely disingenuous comparison.

If you want to make it apples for apples, you'd have to ask the hypothetical question: what would the Lakers have done if Lebron decided to walk after the Laker's chip?

That's what Kawhi did to the Raps, and it put them in a different place. In fact, adding Gasol, Harrell and Schroder happened in large part BECAUSE Lebron (and AD) aren't going anywhere.
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Re: Masai and Bobby are Asleep at the Wheel 

Post#80 » by fbalmeida » Tue Mar 16, 2021 4:28 pm

And1+2 wrote:
Pooh_Jeter wrote:The Lakers won the title and added Gasol, Harrell and Schroeder.

The Raptors won the title and have gone 750+ days without making a trade. The biggest FA acquisition was Aron Baynes.

Even the best executives make mistakes and there is no question these past two years have been a run of bad decisions by the brain trust. It's unfortunate that a lot of people are unwilling to allow for any type of criticism around this team. Raptors fans have a right to be upset and they should be able to vent the frustrations.


Well, we can't get star quality free agents. This has been a thing since forever.

We were also holding out for Giannis. A foolish gamble, especially now that we have some hindsight... But a gamble that could have also of payed off.

This year? There's no way we can add anyone to this team before trade deadline and seriously compete for a title. It's just not happening.

Might as well just trade Lowry and hope we finish in the 11-13th range.


About Giannis, part of my impatience with the team's current situation is fueled by the FO's strategy of explicitly managing cap space for the 2021 free agency.

Supposedly, had Giannis not signed the supermax with the Bucks, he'd now be contemplating his present life and contrasting it with a potential future as a Maverick, Heat, or Raptor, based on these team's current outlook and his potential fit.

That 2021 free agency well has since dried up, but our chess pieces were already in position when that occurred.

I find it extremely difficult to accept that the front office was banking on this team, with its level of performance, inconsistency, and wavering identity, deriving directly from the roster's flaws, to be the sales pitch as a landing spot for potential free agents thirsting for championships.
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