Who Would Have Thought

[007]

Toronto vs Atlanta ECF. Book it.

[NoPropsneeded]

Toronto vs Atlanta ECF. Book it.

Unless LeBron tears his ACL that is never ever happening lol

[Machine]

But then again, that wouldn't steel our guys in any way, given their lack of playoff experience. They would simply have beaten teams that they are capable of beating.

I might be alone on this, but Im glad we are taking the tough route to the championship. Whether we get knocked out by the Nets or Heat, our young players are getting a chance to duke it out in the bullpen with some of the rowdiest fighters around. Im already proud to see that the Raptors have held their own against the Nets. I want to see them face the Heat, because that would be the ultimate field trip.

Im smiling because I know that this summer, the Raptors roster will get stronger, and we will have new additions to a core that now has playoff experience against some of the greatest players in the game. Its good to know that this team has developed a winning pedigree, and they can only go higher from here.

This is certainly not a given. They could just as easily go down from here. See article: http://www.raptorsrepublic.com/2014/...4-echoes-2001/

I think its a little early to say that we have developed a winning pedigree. I think that is something that is built over a couple years at least.

[enlightenment]

This is certainly not a given. They could just as easily go down from here. See article: http://www.raptorsrepublic.com/2014/...4-echoes-2001/

I think its a little early to say that we have developed a winning pedigree. I think that is something that is built over a couple years at least.

I disagree with that article. Remember we have a pretty high draft pick coming soon (NYs), our core is still very young, the only one we have to worry about signing is Kyle Lowry, and even then all the signs point to him resigning

[Machine]

I disagree with that article. Remember we have a pretty high draft pick coming soon (NYs), our core is still very young, the only one we have to worry about signing is Kyle Lowry, and even then all the signs point to him resigning

I think you missed the point of the article.

All im saying tho is that we aren't quite THERE yet where we can be as confident as the post I responded to. Things could easily go south. I'm not saying I believe they will, but they could.

[phiLLy]

It's true, things could always go south.

PP could not resign, Lowry could not resign. Ross could continue his piss-poor playing in the playoffs next season and essentially regress, and then, well, that's about that.

[Machine]

It's true, things could always go south.

PP could not resign, Lowry could not resign. Ross could continue his piss-poor playing in the playoffs next season and essentially regress, and then, well, that's about that.

Yep. Or we could resign everyone for too much and have too much money tied up in role players and be stuck with a team that isn't ready to contend and is bound for 1st round disappointments for a couple years, injuries to key players, and have players get disgruntled and ask for trades. As the article says, the same thing happened in 2001 when everything on the horizon looked so glorious.

[JawsGT]

I'm surprised with the Bulls/Wiz matchup. I didn't expect the Wiz to be so good, and I really thought the Bulls defence would carry them through the first round. I guess I forgot to consider that the Wiz's defence would also improve in the playoffs (as most teams do) and given the Bulls offensive shortcomings, they were just too much. Wall/Beal are playing great, Gortat/Nene are also playing great, and the starting line is meshed together with former champion Ariza, who is also playing well. They are a dangerous team right now, and I am happy the Raps didn't meet them in the first round, as I was hoping for before the playoffs started. I think they would be harder to knock off than the Nets are.

[mcHAPPY]

Wizards to finals. Calling it now, book ur ticket. They are strong where Heat is weak (Centre + PG)

That is a bold prediction!

Not sure I agree but love the testicles behind it!

Oh wait. Did I just say i love your balls?

Oh dear.

[Nilanka]

Who's to say we would've beaten Washington had we matched up against them? They've proven to be a very tough out.

[Letter N]

If (when!) Raptors win, the Heat will have the easiest road to the Finals of any team in my basketball watching history. Even the Nets had some pushback from a couple of teams.

They could actually go 12-0 to get to the Finals.

[Pill]

I understand what you're saying but in 10 years nobody is gonna care how you got to the ECF, All that would matter if you got there or not

Yeah everyone is still swooning over the Pacers for making it just last year. It only matters what you do now if you didn't win it all. Being the third or fourth place loser doesn't mean shit.

[YoungGunRaptor]

I think you missed the point of the article.

All im saying tho is that we aren't quite THERE yet where we can be as confident as the post I responded to. Things could easily go south. I'm not saying I believe they will, but they could.

You make a fair point. It definitely wouldn't be hard to trade away our assets for draft picks and young players, but even Masaii knows that this team is already young, getting fairly experienced, and already has that coveted play-for-each other mentality. There should be no need to bring in more young talent. This team needs established and respected talent, and that is why there is so much talk about bringing in a big name free agent or two over the next couple of off seasons.

Like enlightenment said, if Lowry signs for a decent contract, and if we can get rid of Salmons, Hayes, and one front court player (Ive heard it will be Hansborough), we will retain a solid core of players and will make room for a rookie as well as a few Free Agents in the summer.

Tanking should very well be a thing of the past for this team. I expect Masaii to continue to build up, and not down.

[stooley]

As the article says, the same thing happened in 2001 when everything on the horizon looked so glorious.

I'm pretty sure the point that was made in that article was that things didn't necessarily seem that glorious. We didn't even know if the Toronto Raptors would exist 5 years later. This had a hand in pressuring us to sign those overpriced contracts.

[chch166]

Toronto vs Atlanta ECF. Book it.

Not happening unless someone goes Patrick Beverley on Lebron.