How to beat the Raps ... a scouting report

[Primer]

if you have guards that can't keep a guy in front of them, is it really rocket science to beat them and get the big in foul trouble or out of position?

People here need to learn the game. Casey has manpower issues. His team can't defend, and his big isn't a good defender.

Maybe you ought to look at it a little differently.... what has the Mesiah ujuri done lately?

He brought in a top notch defensive wing in James Johnson, a massive improvement over Salmons and Fields. He also brought in a high volume scorer who can spread the floor for the 2nd unit in Lou Williams, another big improvement.
Our best defender sat the entire game against the Bucks, and you think it's the players fault our defense sucks? Casey put our worst defender in GV on Tyreke Evans, who was on fire, to end the game against the Pelicans, resulting in a loss, but it's the players fault and not Casey's?
Things aren't so black and white. The players need some of the blame for the defense, but Casey deserves most of it.

There was also the brilliant move of putting Demar against Giannis, an obviously terrible matchup for him. It resulted in DD going 0-9. How about keeping Demar at SG, and put JJ against Giannis since we don't run offense through JJ, and he is an actual SF? If you want to run a bunch of the offense through DD, which is clearly our plan, then you should give him the best opportunity to succeed, not the worst.

JV was absolutely dominating the boards, 13 rebounds in 19 minutes, 6 offensive and 7 defensive, yet Hansbrough got more minutes than him, pulling in a paltry 4 rebounds and offering absolutely nothing on offense. It makes it that much easier to double our guards and force them into bad shots.

I really really hope we turn it around. I'd love Casey to earn a big extension by getting this team rolling into the playoffs, but if it doesn't happen, I'll be happy to see him go.

My question to you is, how bad does it have to get before you'd be willing to let Casey go?

[3inthekeon]

No big roster adjustments. Just turf the moron.

Masai must be an idiot not to see what you see.

[CalgaryRapsFan]

fair enough.

But if thats the move, you gotta think there will be roster adjustments as well.

I think (hope) that goes without saying. Given the number of free agents, I think it's a fair assumption to make.

Both starting forward spots need an upgrade; Amir is a hobbling shell of his former self and neither DD or Ross should be playing SF. A true rim-protecting backup C should also be targeted.

Without factoring in trades...

STARTERS
C: Valanciunas
PF: ???
SF: ???
SG: DeRozan
PG: Lowry

BACKUP
C: ???
PF: Patterson
SF: JJ (could potentially start, depending on starting PF)
SG: Ross
PG: Vasquez

BENCH
C: Bebe
F: Bruno
?: 1st round pick

[raptors999]

Masai must be an idiot not to see what you see.

He said no big changes. It includes post-Casey

[Primer]

I think (hope) that goes without saying. Given the number of free agents, I think it's a fair assumption to make.

Both starting forward spots need an upgrade; Amir is a hobbling shell of his former self and neither DD or Ross should be playing SF. A true rim-protecting backup C should also be targeted.

Without factoring in trades...

STARTERS
C: Valanciunas
PF: ???
SF: ???
SG: DeRozan
PG: Lowry

BACKUP
C: ???
PF: Patterson
SF: JJ (could potentially start, depending on starting PF)
SG: Ross
PG: Vasquez

BENCH
C: Bebe
F: Bruno
?: 1st round pick

I'd be fine with us exploring trade options for Ross and resigning Lou Williams as the bench SG. I don't wanna give Ross away, but if he nets us someone like Faried I'm all for it.

[CalgaryRapsFan]

I'd be fine with us exploring trade options for Ross and resigning Lou Williams as the bench SG. I don't wanna give Ross away, but if he nets us someone like Faried I'm all for it.

I like trades too, but I was just laying out the starting point situation this offseason. It's way too hard to predict what trades and/or signings will be made, but I think the positions and types of players likely to be targeted should be pretty obvious, unless a trade drastically changes the makeup or the roster.

[SamMitchells]

"Other coaches adapt , Casey doesn't"

Personally I feel like this is one flaw we can all agree on. This may be due to arrogance or a shallow understanding of the game. Perhaps he thinks his defensive strategy is flawless who knows but it's a fact that other teams , heck even analyst have dissected the raptor defence.

The big question at the moment is.... "Now what?"

Has your defence been figured out or just not implemented properly? Either way we'll all be patiently watching.

[raptors999]

I like trades too, but I was just laying out the starting point situation this offseason. It's way too hard to predict what trades and/or signings will be made, but I think the positions and types of players likely to be targeted should be pretty obvious, unless a trade drastically changes the makeup or the roster.

Ross was benched unless he shows something he has no value. Jeremy Lamb could be had for less than anything Ross would bring

[Primer]

Ross was benched unless he shows something he has no value. Jeremy Lamb could be had for less than anything Ross would bring

FWIW Ross looked much better coming off the bench. Seems like something we should have tried a while ago considering his play this season.

[SamMitchells]

Ross makes a great 6th man. Brings scoring / defence when he wants to from the bench

[raptors999]

FWIW Ross looked much better coming off the bench. Seems like something we should have tried a while ago considering his play this season.

This about his trade value not his value to the team. Without DD and Lowry he gets more chances and weaker opponents. Keeping him as a SF where he has a limited ceiling was the problem

[3inthekeon]

He brought in a top notch defensive wing in James Johnson, a massive improvement over Salmons and Fields. He also brought in a high volume scorer who can spread the floor for the 2nd unit in Lou Williams, another big improvement.
Our best defender sat the entire game against the Bucks, and you think it's the players fault our defense sucks? Casey put our worst defender in GV on Tyreke Evans, who was on fire, to end the game against the Pelicans, resulting in a loss, but it's the players fault and not Casey's?
Things aren't so black and white. The players need some of the blame for the defense, but Casey deserves most of it.

There was also the brilliant move of putting Demar against Giannis, an obviously terrible matchup for him. It resulted in DD going 0-9. How about keeping Demar at SG, and put JJ against Giannis since we don't run offense through JJ, and he is an actual SF? If you want to run a bunch of the offense through DD, which is clearly our plan, then you should give him the best opportunity to succeed, not the worst.

JV was absolutely dominating the boards, 13 rebounds in 19 minutes, 6 offensive and 7 defensive, yet Hansbrough got more minutes than him, pulling in a paltry 4 rebounds and offering absolutely nothing on offense. It makes it that much easier to double our guards and force them into bad shots.

I really really hope we turn it around. I'd love Casey to earn a big extension by getting this team rolling into the playoffs, but if it doesn't happen, I'll be happy to see him go.

My question to you is, how bad does it have to get before you'd be willing to let Casey go?

I've been the devils advocate in regards to Casey, but would not be the least bit upset if he was replaced either. I also don't think he's championship calibre enough to ever warrant a big extension.

He's an OK NBA coach, still makes too many mistakes (like the GV/Evans decision), but not the moron some paint him to be.

I'm positive JJ's benching Monday was discipline for something we may not know for some time, if ever, It does seem extremely coincidental that the instagram shit was brought up prior to him sitting. Hope for the sake of the team it's done and finished.

Don't really agree the D is mostly Casey's fault though. We just have more poor defenders than good defenders.

[raptors999]

I've been the devils advocate in regards to Casey, but would not be the least bit upset if he was replaced either. I also don't think he's championship calibre enough to ever warrant a big extension.

He's an OK NBA coach, still makes too many mistakes (like the GV/Evans decision), but not the moron some paint him to be.

I'm positive JJ's benching Monday was discipline for something we may not know for some time, if ever, It does seem extremely coincidental that the instagram shit was brought up prior to him sitting. Hope for the sake of the team it's done and finished.

Don't really agree the D is mostly Casey's fault though. We just have more poor defenders than good defenders.

Casey plays more poor defenders than good ones.

[golden]

This is becoming a more apparent issue - the poor fit of Casey's schemes and his personnel. He coached a championship defense in Dallas, but that was anchored by Tyson Chandler, Shawn Marion, and Jason Kidd - historically great defenders, who even if past their prime (Kidd) were still very high IQ defensive players. The Raptors are not anchored by anyone on that level, let alone three of them. JV is not a Chandler-type of center at all. JJ could play a Marion role but he still has some maturing to do and doesn't get the minutes or have a 3 pt shot to keep him on the floor.

Should Ujiri find the personnel to fit Casey's plans, or should Casey make adjustments to suit the abilities of his roster? I think it's the coach's job to be flexible - see Greg Popovich, who evolved his systems to stay current with NBA rule changes and trends and to suit his personnel. Unflexible coaches like D'Antoni and George Karl look pretty bad when they don't have the personnel to run their systems, or when their systems are exposed.

The example to follow is a team like Portland. Basically they've had the same personnel for the last 3 years (Robin Lopez for the last 2 seasons) and they've gone from 26th, to 16th to 2nd in DRTG, while maintaining an excellent ORTG (108+).

Identical personnel, vastly different results. And no historically great defensive player in sight. In fact, the opposite is more likely true. How do you explain that?

[S.R.]

Casey plays more poor defenders than good ones.

This confuses me. Why a defensive coach loves Lou and GV so much and seems much tougher on a guy like JJ while never playing Fields (even with his broken shot) is surprising. You think there'd be more reaching deeper into the line-up to find defensive solutions. Shooters definitely have a longer leash and get more minutes.