What are the different suggestions for the perfect off-season in your opinions. IMO I would possibly do this: 1) Sign Magloire with the MLE. I read somewhere that Magloire wants to come home badly and is willing to come for cheap. 2) realgm jus reported that AK47 will demand a trade this summer because he was unhappy this whole season in Utah. His offense tends not to be that strong but his defense is amazing. If you think about it, he would be the perfect SF for the raptors. We have Bosh/Ford and Parker to carry our team offensively and AK47 can help us with our defense and guard opposing all-stars such as T-Mac, VC etc. His contract is an issue and I dont know what Utah would want from the raptors. But if we can possible pull a trade of: rasho/Graham and a first round pick--that would be amazing 3) Sign and trade Mo-Pete for a veteran such as Bonzi Wells maybe. With this offseason the 2007-08 raptors would be: Bargs/Magloire Bosh/Humpries/Bargs AK47/Garbo/Wells Parker/Dixon/Wells/FA?? Ford/Jose/???
<div class="quote_poster">PlaTsanity Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">What are the different suggestions for the perfect off-season in your opinions. 2) realgm jus reported that AK47 will demand a trade this summer because he was unhappy this whole season in Utah. His offense tends not to be that strong but his defense is amazing. If you think about it, he would be the perfect SF for the raptors. We have Bosh/Ford and Parker to carry our team offensively and AK47 can help us with our defense and guard opposing all-stars such as T-Mac, VC etc. His contract is an issue and I dont know what Utah would want from the raptors. But if we can possible pull a trade of: rasho/Graham and a first round pick--that would be amazing </div> 2007/08 $13,709,375 2008/09 $15,080,312 2009/10 $16,451,250 2010/11 $17,822,187 Not sure you can justify paying Ak47 that much especially when it means couple with Bosh's max contract and TJ's new extenstion the raptors will never be able to sign another free agent again unless its with the mid level exception or in sign and trade deals. For me Darko is an interesting player -- as long as they don't get into a crazy bidding war i wouldn't putting in an offer towards him. Sleeper wise I like Travis Outlaw. Also wouldn't mind seeing them trading either TJ. Ford of Jose Calderon. Calderon is a free agent after next season and given the type of money the will likely command 5-8 mil a year - there is no way a team can have that amount invested in two players playing the same position. One of them will have to go - wouldn't be a bad idea exploring that option this offseason.
Raptors Need a few things to really improve: 1. A legit SF. They have no one. Joey Graham, is a bust and has not lived up to expectations. He has his moments, but showed less in the playoffs then Raptor fans would of liked. With Morris Peterson most likely leaving, or put in a Sign & Trade deal, we need a guy who can bring the stats, and who can play with the best of them. 2. A better SG back-up then Juan Dixon. I hear rumors of Sarunas Jasikevicius coming in a trade, he is more of a PG, which we have 2 of already. Anthony Parker, being as good as he is, needs a break. So to find a good back-up SG who can shoot the 3, pass and rebound would help alot. 3. Trade Rasho. This guy, while he had some good moments, is not needed anymore. With Bargnani coming into his own, and Rasho's over 7 million dollar contract hunting us. He can be traded for possibly a back-up SG, or a back-up Centre so, Bargnani can take a rest every once and a while. My answers to what the Raptors need: 1. Gerald Wallace. This can fill up the stats sheets like no ones business. He can block, steal, rebound, score, run, dunk. He is exciting, and and most of all, Consistent. He is a major upgrade and can play up to 38-40 minutes a game. He isn't a superstar and I'm sure would love to play with a couple of great passing PG and a All-Star PF. It would be a great fit for him, because he can run the floor, and play a loose type of game, that he is so good at. Other options can be guys like Ruben Patterson, Matt Barnes, Quinton Ross or even Jerry Stackhouse. All free agents, all good SF. 2. Matt Carroll. This guy can light it up from 3 point land and can play some solid defense. He is cheap at just over 1 million, and will be a big upgrade off the bench instead of Dixon. Another guy can be someone like Ronald "Flip" Murray. He is an exciting player and can shoot the 3. He can dunk, pass and shoot. He is used to an off the bench roll, and I'm sure he'll much like the Sam way of offense instead of the Flip Saunders way. Other FA include; Eddie Jones, Desmond Mason, DeShawn Stevenson, Devin Brown and even make an offer on Mickael Pietrus who is restricted, but still good to make an offer. 3. Trade Rasho to the Warriors along with Graham for Pietrus and Jasikevicius. The contracts might not match up, but a Sign & Trade could work. Even if the Raptors can some how pull off that trade, their are lots of FA PF, who can play the Centre position for 10-15 minutes a game. A few FA that come to mind are Antonio McDyess, P.J. Brown, Austin Croshere, Brian Skinner, Kurt Thomas and Jamaal Magloire. These are all suitable guys who play limited rolls on their teams, and will be coming to a team on the rise. These 3 things the Raptors can work on, I think will make them that much better and take them deep into the playoffs.
I love the idea of bringing Wallace in. I think that he could make some noise in Toronto. He would be a perfect replacement for Mo-pete with his fast-break style of play. Not sure who we would trade to land him though.
<div class="quote_poster">Iggy Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">I love the idea of bringing Wallace in. I think that he could make some noise in Toronto. He would be a perfect replacement for Mo-pete with his fast-break style of play. Not sure who we would trade to land him though.</div> No, one. He is a free agent. All the guys I listed, with the exception of Pietrus are free agents. I listed only those becuase those are realistic ideas for the team, and whose salaries are in our range. Here is a link of Free Agents: ESPN
<div class="quote_poster">Ford_11 Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">No, one. He is a free agent. All the guys I listed, with the exception of Pietrus are free agents. I listed only those becuase those are realistic ideas for the team, and whose salaries are in our range. Here is a link of Free Agents: ESPN</div> Oh okay! Wow, he'd be such a great addition to this team. He brings energy and some scoring power to us. BC MAKE IT HAPPEN! If we can land him and maybe get Magloire for cheap we could have a strong team coming in to next year. Maybe acquire a backup SG through S&T with Mo-pete, or package Graham/Rasho for someone like Mike Miller. A possible lineup of: PG: Ford/Calderon SG: Parker/Miller SF: Miller/Garbo PF: Bosh/Hump/Bargs C: Bargs/Magz
<div class="quote_poster">Iggy Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">Oh okay! Wow, he'd be such a great addition to this team. He brings energy and some scoring power to us. BC MAKE IT HAPPEN! If we can land him and maybe get Magloire for cheap we could have a strong team coming in to next year. Maybe acquire a backup SG through S&T with Mo-pete, or package Graham/Rasho for someone like Mike Miller. A possible lineup of: PG: Ford/Calderon SG: Parker/Miller SF: Miller/Garbo PF: Bosh/Hump/Bargs C: Bargs/Magz</div> That would be crazy, but I'm not sure if Miller would take a second role, because he has started. But, I still think there are plenty of good free agents out there, who wouldn't mind coming off the bench. I would really love to get rid of Rasho and Graham, because Rasho's contract is huge, and with Bargnani becoming the player that he is, we won't need Rasho to much. I do hope we can get a guy like Mydeyss or Murray or Wallace. Those guys, IMO would be great additions to the team.
I think one thing we learned this season is that we can't afford to have undersized shooting guards. Both Fred Jones and Juan Dixon were ineffective at times mostly because, coupled with Ford/Calderon, they'd leave our backcourt far too small. I wouldn't mind making a run for DeShawn Stevenson, although I'm not sure if we'd have enough money to pursue him. I thought Rasho was valuable this year and will be next season, but if we get the chance to get rid of him I would jump on it just because of his huge contract. Rasho's still a good rebounder and our best interior defender, though. He didn't fit in well against NJ, but if we faced Cleveland or Miami he would've been real valuable.
<div class="quote_poster">Chutney Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">I think one thing we learned this season is that we can't afford to have undersized shooting guards. Both Fred Jones and Juan Dixon were ineffective at times mostly because, coupled with Ford/Calderon, they'd leave our backcourt far too small. I wouldn't mind making a run for DeShawn Stevenson, although I'm not sure if we'd have enough money to pursue him.</div> I was thinking that, when I was posting my ideas. We need a bigger back court. DeShawn Stevenson is under 1 mill., and would be a great pick-up. The main reason I thought Fred Jones failed was his not driving to the basket mentality. He started shooting 3's which killed him. It's not his game. He should be slashing and getting calls.
I doubt Magloire would fit in well with our system. I mean, Rasho struggles with it and he at least has somewhat of an outside shot. Magloire every trip down the court would have to set up down low. Might take up too much room for Bosh to drive IMO, and with Bargnani coming to his own Bosh could get much easier offensive matchups with Bargs stretching the floor. I really like Travis Outlaw though. A guy with his athleticism will find it hard to fail and unlike Fred Jones I think he will actually stick to driving. He's also got the length and quickness to hopefully be a decent defender. Think about TJ or Jose running the break with Outlaw on one wing and Bosh on the other. I'd take him over a guy like Bonzi Wells.
As someone else has said I would love to have Darko on this team. I still have some hope for the guy. Even without his mega skill set that was lost in the shuffle he's physically imposing and provides inside protection for Bosh. side note: -I think it was mentioned before that we can't package anything with a Mopete sign and trade, he has to be traded 1 for 1.
C: Magloire/Ratliff/Bargnani PF: Bosh/Bargnani SF: Jorge Garbajosa/Shane Battier SG: Anthony Parker/Shane Battier PG: Jose Calderon/Jasekevicus/Alston 1. Trade Dixon + filler (if needed) + 2nd rounder (if needed) + cash (if needed) for Sarunas Jasekevicus 2. Trade Rasho + Joey Graham for Ratliff(expiring) 3. If Houston would do it, Trade TJ Ford + Kris Humphries for Shane Battier and Rafer Alston 4. Sign Magloire to MLE for 4 years (underrated and only 29, and wants to be here) 5. If Portland would do it, trade Bosh for LaFrentz and #1 pick.
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">With this offseason the 2007-08 raptors would be: Bargs/Magloire Bosh/Humpries/Bargs AK47/Garbo/Wells Parker/Dixon/Wells/FA?? Ford/Jose/???</div> Wells wouldn't sign here to become a third string SG/SF, that's no incentive to come to Toronto, especially since he wouldn't be making much if we're giving Magloire the full MLE. I don't want Magloire though, but I'm just saying. AK47 can't be gotten for Rasho, Graham and a 1st round pick, so that's really not an option. He also makes too much money, he has a max contract, and Parker and Garbo have 2 more years on their contracts, we'll be way over the cap getting everyone back. Also what happened to Luke Jackson? <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">1. Gerald Wallace. This can fill up the stats sheets like no ones business. He can block, steal, rebound, score, run, dunk. He is exciting, and and most of all, Consistent. He is a major upgrade and can play up to 38-40 minutes a game. He isn't a superstar and I'm sure would love to play with a couple of great passing PG and a All-Star PF. It would be a great fit for him, because he can run the floor, and play a loose type of game, that he is so good at. Other options can be guys like Ruben Patterson, Matt Barnes, Quinton Ross or even Jerry Stackhouse. All free agents, all good SF.</div> I'm not big on Ruben Patterson, he's a nice player, aggressive on defense, but offensively he's better in the block, and he'll clog things up a little when he's on with Bosh and them. He's also not a young player anymore, and isn't as quick as he was on the perimeter. Golden State will not let Matt Barnes go, and the Raptors shouldn't give him the money to make that happen, so no there. Gerald Wallace will be too expensive, he can't be gotten for the MLE, and will get at least $8 million/year on his contract. There's really no way for the Raptors to get that done, I don't think Charlotte will S&T him for just an expiring contract like Rasho. I've never seen or heard of the solid defense that Matt Carroll plays, but he can definately shoot very well. Defensively, I'm not a fan of anything he does on that end, unless I've been missing something. Quinton Ross is on a team option, I don't think the Clippers will not pick it up, so I won't add him. <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">I really like Travis Outlaw though. A guy with his athleticism will find it hard to fail and unlike Fred Jones I think he will actually stick to driving. He's also got the length and quickness to hopefully be a decent defender. Think about TJ or Jose running the break with Outlaw on one wing and Bosh on the other. I'd take him over a guy like Bonzi Wells.</div> I was just about to mention Travis Outlaw, and I saw your post. Yes, this is a guy I would like to see on Toronto. I wouldn't give him the full MLE or anything, no way, but I'd give him about what Fred Jones was making. He's not a shooter, but he has improved his shot a lot where he can hit them. He took 80% of his attempts as jumpshots (that's a little worrying I suppose), and he made a 41.0% eFG, and that's with only 27% 3PT shooting. He's still only 23 years old, and he's a nice big, long and athletic SF the team needs. He is a restricted FA though, but I don't think he's a priority with Portland, but he should be an upgrade over Joey and Mo, and I'd think he's the best option in the available guys. Here are all the per 40 min numbers for the swingmen, though not pace adjusted: <div class='codetop'>CODE</div><div class='codemain'>Outlaw: <br/>16.8 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 1.4 APG, 1.6 SPG, 1.9 BPG, 1.7 TPG, .499 TS%, 15.3 PER<br/>Mason:<br/>16.0 PPG, 5.4 RPG, 1.8 APG, 0.8 SPG, 0.3 BPG, 3.0 TPG, .493 TS%, 10.8 PER<br/>Graham:<br/>15.3 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 1.3 APG, 0.9 SPG, 0.1 BPG, 1.5 TPG, .564 TS%, 12.9 PER<br/>Patterson:<br/>19.0 PPG, 7.0 RPG, 3.7 APG, 1.8 SPG, 0.4 BPG, 3.2 TPG, .578 TS%, 18.5 PER<br/>Carroll:<br/>18.5 PPG, 4.4 RPG, 1.9 APG, 1.1 SPG, 0.2 BPG, 1.6 TPG, .580 TS%, 14.6 PER<br/>Stackhouse:<br/>19.9 PPG, 3.6 RPG, 4.6 APG, 1.3 SPG, 0.2 BPG, 2.9 TPG, .537 TS%, 16.8 PER</div> Outlaw needs to improve his scoring efficiency, it's never good to be under .500 TS%, because that means you're less likely to miss than to score with the ball, but he's very close to .500 TS%. Still, it would be good to see that improve, Joey and all the other guys, Stack, Carroll, Patterson are over ~.540 TS%. Stackhouse and Patterson have the highest PER, but they're 33 and 32 years old respectively, and I think they'd rather be on more experienced/veteran teams. I also like the ideas of going after Darko, but I don't see why the Magic won't want him back for a reasonable contract (over the MLE a little), and how the Raptors can pry him away from them. This is what I would like to see: I don't think the team needs to make too many moves this season. Use part of the MLE on Travis Outlaw, something like 3-4 years $10-14 million (might have to be more) with an option for the 3rd or 4th year, and bring back Slokar and possibly Sow on their minimum contracts. Rasho's value as an expiring contract will come more during the season than it will right now, so I don't think we'll end up trading him. MoPete isn't going to go for too much money, so I can't see how we can sign and trade him, so just letting him go is fine. I heard Deshawn, but he's not really a big SG, he's a guy who is a big 6'4, so about 6'5 with shoes. Also the Washinton system and players around him helped him a lot, he was horrible in the playoffs without Arenas and Gil, but obviously he won't have to be more than a 4th option in Toronto. I'd rather use the MLE amount that could go to Stevenson on a SF as we already have Anthony Parker as the starting SG. Also a team can't trade draft picks two years in a row, so I don't know our situation with trading draft picks. Guards: TJ Ford / Jose Calderon / Juan Dixon Swingmen: Anthony Parker / Travis Outlaw / Luke Jackson / Joey Graham Big Men: Chris Bosh / Andrea Bargnani / Garbajosa / Rasho / Humphries / Slokar / Sow Rotation: PG: TJ Ford / Jose Calderon SG: Anthony Parker / Luke Jackson - Juan Dixon SF: Travis Outlaw / Joey Graham / Jorge Garbajosa / Luke Jackson F/C: Chris Bosh / Jorge Garbajosa / Kris Humphries F/C: Andrea Bargnani / Rasho Nesterovic / Kris Humphries Not much change except for adding Outlaw, and then the improvement of Bargnani, and Luke Jackson could improve too.
My god, some of you people's idea of a perfect off season is my worst nightmare lol. AK47? Good god, the guy is more often injured then not, and has a ridiculous contract. My perfect off season: I'd like to see TJ and Jose STAY as Raptors. Sign and trade Mo Pete for Matt Barnes Those are my realistic possibilities. If BC was interested in taking on a big contract in a big name player I'd be interested in Gerald Wallace or Rashard Lewis, but I'm quite sure BC wouldn't do that.
Rafer Alston ftw. 1st Quarter 11:45 - Alston 3 point shot made 11:43 - Alston steal 11:40 - Alston layup made
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting og15:</div><div class="quote_post">I heard Deshawn, but he's not really a big SG, he's a guy who is a big 6'4, so about 6'5 with shoes. Also the Washinton system and players around him helped him a lot, he was horrible in the playoffs without Arenas and Gil, but obviously he won't have to be more than a 4th option in Toronto. I'd rather use the MLE amount that could go to Stevenson on a SF as we already have Anthony Parker as the starting SG.</div> If Outlaw is available, then he's definitely a much better option than Stevenson. I just threw his name out there, because I didn't see very many options at our price level and he seemed to be a good role player: does a lot of things well. We would most likely have to move Parker to the 3, although I always thought he could play that position. The problem is it doesn't really address our lack of athleticism and dribble penetration (outside of our PG's) in our backcourt. I saw Outlaw's name, but immediately assumed that the Blazers would do all they could to keep him. They've been high on him for a while, so do you think we have a chance of luring him away?
Og15, I liked your analysis, Outlaw seems like a good choice, and I know very little about him (I always think of Bo Outlaw when I see that name). Matt Carroll has a better TS%, but not as good PER. I think Rasho isn't expiring next season, according to hoopshype.com salaries on the Raptors, Rasho makes 7.8 mill next year, and has a player option for 8.4 mill (which he most likely would take)
<div class="quote_poster">hustler Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">Rafer Alston ftw. 1st Quarter 11:45 - Alston 3 point shot made 11:43 - Alston steal 11:40 - Alston layup made 11:30 - turns ball over 11:20 - misses ill advised shot 11:00 - sub for Calderon 10:00 - fights Sam Mitchell </div> That looks about right. In the short time he was with the team Raefer is still one of my all time favorites, but i don't think we'll ever see him again up here.
I hope Rafer never visits Toronto. He is one of my least favourite players, not becuase of what he did in Toronto, but just because he isn't, IMO, a very good PG. I'll give a list of Free Agents, The ones think we should pursue: Matt Carroll Gerald Wallace Andres Nocioni Sasha Pavlovic Anderson Varejao Jerry Stackhouse Antonio McDyess Flip Murray Matt Barnes Bonzi Wells Quinton Ross Luke Walton Devin Brown Desmond Mason Jamaal Magloire DeShawn Stevenson All these guys can help our team, without giving up anyone. Trades are different, but there are some quality players in this list, who can really help us.
