In the NBA windows of opportunity to win championships or even to be good open as quick as they sometimes shut. Some teams are lucky enough to have those rare few Superstars that can keep that window open for a long period of time, ie. Chicago, OKC, LAC, Houston, wherever LeBron is playing.
Other teams rely on a mix of All Star talent and good players to stay in contention ie. Memphis, Indiana (from recent years) Atlanta, Dallas, etc., but these teams have a higher rate of flux. Meaning there are more moving parts to what makes these teams contenders and year to year things change with losing important role players in free agency. So this type of team doesn't have a consistent window because the only stable parts of their roster are the All Star level guys whom aren't enough to keep that window of opportunity open themselves. Certainly, Memphis is facing that with Marc Gasol's free agency this summer.
Then there is a group of teams much like the Raptors. The teams that are fighting to break out of that mould of being a bad team. Teams like the coach Karl Denver Nuggets, or coach Nelson Golden State Warriors (when they were good). Teams that are made up of decent to good players that have great chemistry. Those teams generally have a very small window to stay relevant in the NBA. They tend to come and go with a different bad team breaking the barrier between bad team and good team for a short time before falling back to where they were.
So are the Raptors' window of opportunity to stay a good team closing? Do they need to look harder at free agency and trades to firm up their foot hold as a good team? First things first, we aren't by any means a contender, and with a tougher schedule recently we are all starting to realize what this team is...a decent to good team. Half our core players are in their prime with another half nowhere near it. I don't know if that is balance or a recipe for disaster. Masaii is a very patient GM and doesn't make any harsh, reactive moves like BC might have, but should there be a bit more urgency on his part? Is this teams window already closing? Thoughts?
Other teams rely on a mix of All Star talent and good players to stay in contention ie. Memphis, Indiana (from recent years) Atlanta, Dallas, etc., but these teams have a higher rate of flux. Meaning there are more moving parts to what makes these teams contenders and year to year things change with losing important role players in free agency. So this type of team doesn't have a consistent window because the only stable parts of their roster are the All Star level guys whom aren't enough to keep that window of opportunity open themselves. Certainly, Memphis is facing that with Marc Gasol's free agency this summer.
Then there is a group of teams much like the Raptors. The teams that are fighting to break out of that mould of being a bad team. Teams like the coach Karl Denver Nuggets, or coach Nelson Golden State Warriors (when they were good). Teams that are made up of decent to good players that have great chemistry. Those teams generally have a very small window to stay relevant in the NBA. They tend to come and go with a different bad team breaking the barrier between bad team and good team for a short time before falling back to where they were.
So are the Raptors' window of opportunity to stay a good team closing? Do they need to look harder at free agency and trades to firm up their foot hold as a good team? First things first, we aren't by any means a contender, and with a tougher schedule recently we are all starting to realize what this team is...a decent to good team. Half our core players are in their prime with another half nowhere near it. I don't know if that is balance or a recipe for disaster. Masaii is a very patient GM and doesn't make any harsh, reactive moves like BC might have, but should there be a bit more urgency on his part? Is this teams window already closing? Thoughts?
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