Rapcast #167: Training Camp and Pre-Season Review

Say hello to the Rapcast! William joins me for the Rapcast and we cover the host of topics:

What’s Blake doing tonight? Take a guess.
Tommy Heinsohn and Don Cherry – similar or completely apart, or not the same, or same but different? You decide.
Homerism – have the Raptors produced anything even close to Heinsohn? (Spoiler: no)
Preseason and it’s correlation with the regular season – what to focus on and what not to
Quincy Acy and his role as a stretch four and whether he has the shooting ability to make the leap
Casey’s coaching – has he shown any change to his substitution patterns relative to last season (remember JV being benched vs San Antonio)?
Will this be the year where Casey will be allowed to coach without intervention?
Where’s the optimism form this season coming from? We give two different takes on it.
Williams gives some advanced stats about spot-up shooting and something about 22% – I’m sure he has a point.
What DeMar DeRozan is doing different this pre-season – hint: it’s not his handle
Benefits of having Gay on the floor with DeRozan: the weaker defender covers DeRozan
Is DeRozan’s post-game real?
Has Rudy Gay improved this pre-season – we examine his play thus far, including post-usage and drop and NBA comparison with the initials of RL
Seven years into a career, how much of a shift can a player make? We talk in context of Rudy Gay and Casey’s desire to bring him closer to the basket
How realistic were Bill Simmons and Jalen Rose’s comments about Rudy Gay being traded at the deadline?
Is Rudy Gay part of the “core” or a remnant of the Bryan Colangelo era? If the former, why not extend him at the cheap right now?
How is Masai Ujiri going to handle Rudy Gay?
Ujiri’s comments about wanting to see if DeRozan and Gay show “growth” before making a decision
We discuss back-up depth, especially at the center with the role of Aaron Gray
The Aaron Gray type of player – how different is it from 10 years ago
Joint surprise at none of the three training camp invites were for a center
Is Dwane Casey planning on using Austin Daye as a stretch 4/5 role to open up the court, similar to what he tried with Bargnani?
Or maybe, maybe, just maybe the lack of depth at center is Ujiri’s ploy to force Casey to play Valanciunas extended minutes!!
Casey’s ask of Terrence Ross – how is he handling it?
Looking at Ross’s performance so far and focusing on his demeanor
Kevin Garnett and Terrence Ross used in the same sentence
Is William old enough to remember who Chris Jefferies was?
RR gives an open update on its financials and what that ad money goes to, good news for readers
Landry Fields analysis – what William noticed when watching him shoot in the shootaround prior to a game (wasn’t broadcast on TV)
Looking back at the circumstances under which Landry Fields was signed
In praise of Kyle Lowry – is he underrated?
Improvements Lowry has displayed this pre-season and why he’s a perfect fit for Dwane Casey’s style of coaching
Lack of PG controversy benefiting Lowry – best believe
Extend Lowry right now? If you believe him in as a PG, do it
Jonas Valanciunas comments – thoughts from the summer tournament and what he’s shown so far
Hoping for the playoffs – enough of that tanking nonsense