Woj: Casey will be back

[Bandit]

Well, if we keep casey (and I'm starting to think we might) I really hope we don't keep the roster.

I hope Masai is going to start meddling in the coaching side of things, force some changes if Casey is truly unwilling to change his approach.

I hope Masai builds a team he wants and has Casey coach it the way he wants.

I wonder if Masai is thinking that he won't be able to put it all together this year, meaning he'll need a scapegoat if we miss the playoffs or get booted in the first round. Could explain why he might keep Casey, good behind the scene guy to fill in for a year.

Maybe with a forced change in perspective he could even become a decent on floor coach?

[Axel]

Well, if we keep casey (and I'm starting to think we might) I really hope we don't keep the roster.

I hope Masai is going to start meddling in the coaching side of things, force some changes if Casey is truly unwilling to change his approach.

I hope Masai builds a team he wants and has Casey coach it the way he wants.

I wonder if Masai is thinking that he won't be able to put it all together this year, meaning he'll need a scapegoat if we miss the playoffs or get booted in the first round. Could explain why he might keep Casey, good behind the scene guy to fill in for a year.

Maybe with a forced change in perspective he could even become a decent on floor coach?

I worry that you are right, Masai knows that the pressure falls on him if Casey is gone. Not a great way to run a team but a plausible explanation.

[Axel]

What counts as Casey failing though? Did getting swept by the Wizards vs. maybe making it to the second round with a better coach have all that much impact?

Masai is still playing the long game, and he gets to ride out the string on that until it becomes clear that whatever he's trying is not working. I don't agree with keeping Casey, but maybe in his mind he wants to assemble a roster that a coach can work with first, and then try to attract a very good coach by showing it the potential of that roster. I don't think these are the players to do that right now.

I don't think our roster is so devoid of talent that it is un-coachable. We just have a bad coach and pretty good talent.

Plus, different coaches will want different type of players. Until we have the a coach here for the long haul (ie next 3 years), then why bother tailoring the roster for someone who might not be here moving forward?

[Joey]

Casey doesn't Grind ... he Scrambles.

I've been preparing myself for this news, so it won't be a total blow if its true .. but still holding out hope.

[007]

The only thing that's keeping me from insanity is that Masai has probably the tightest front office in the NBA.

Woj didn't get our draft pick, he might not get this, it might be based on his own opinion.


Here's to hoping.

[phez]

Just getting around to listening to this now....

For a guy who has an 'in' on just about everything in the NBA, you can hear the pain in his voice in discussing Raptors. He really doesn't have a clue - lol. Raptors are on lock down. Lots of pauses, stuttering, sighs.... "probably" , "I think" , "I don't knows" , "the might make a change, they might not, I don't know" , "I think he'll be back but I wouldn't say 100%" ,


The Thibs discussion was interesting too. Sounds like a really dysfunctional relationship between coach and franchise.

pretty much this, woj really not in the know with raps. (if you want to say instead "doesnt care", sure)

[ebrian]

I too believe Casey is staying. He has a year left in his contract.

From a purely business perspective, it makes no sense to pay a new guy's salary plus Casey's salary in a season where the roster is nowhere even remotely close to being a contender. It would be different if we could sign a guy that would turn this team into ECF contenders, but we aren't even close to that right now.

[JimiCliff]

If Casey was coming back, Masai would have said so already.

He's waiting to see about Thibs.

[Axel]

Another wrinkle that Masai needs to consider, IF he keeps Casey, the rumours and calls for Casey to go won't go away. If the team struggles out of the gate, the pressure will rise. If players are not happy with their roles, the rumbles wont disappear.

Does Masai really want to have a team with that kind of environment hosting the All-Star game? The ASG is his best chance to "recruit" potential free agents by showcasing the benefits of playing in Toronto.

[Axel]

If Casey was coming back, Masai would have said so already.

He's waiting to see about Thibs.

Would Thibs even want to come here though?

Assuming he leaves Chicago, with what would likely be a messy divorce, does he want to come to a team that has a notorious coach fighter in Lowry over say, a team full of eager youngsters in Orlando who will follow his every command?

Personally, after the exhaustion of this season with the Bulls, a group of youngsters who want to learn and the sunny skies of Orlando sound a lot more enticing then the pressure of the Raps and the roster that comes with it.

[ebrian]

That is perhaps the only scenario I can think of where they would be willing to pay two coaches at the same time -- if we are talking about a replacement at Thibs' level. If not, it just makes no sense to pay two guys at once when you aren't even halfway contending.

But the reality of this is, how many guys are at that level who might be available? Only Thibs.

If you want to look at the numbers, Casey is earning $3.75M per year. If you were to fire him and get Thibs, who is making $4.3M (no doubt that number will go up in his next contract) that is at least $8M to spend on one coach who is coaching a team with all kinds of holes and another coach to sit at home or appear on radio shows to say haha-I-told-you-so.

Gregg Popovich isn't even hauling in $8M per so that's something you need to consider.

[Axel]

That is perhaps the only scenario I can think of where they would be willing to pay two coaches at the same time -- if we are talking about a replacement at Thibs' level. If not, it just makes no sense to pay two guys at once when you aren't even halfway contending.

We paid Landry Fields and Marcus Camby the same amount this season, as we would be paying Casey next to go away.

Happens all the time in the NBA and for good reason.

[ceez]

If Casey was coming back, Masai would have said so already.

He's waiting to see about Thibs.

i dunno about the Thibs part but this is a good point. if he was safe MU definitely would have indicated as much.

not saying he's definitely getting fired but it's a valid point.

[hotfuzz]

Tbh. If casey staying gets erid of alot of the fairweather casual fans. Its not a terrible thing

Brother I've been through the triano years. I can withstand tanking, but not this insanity that will just lead to mediocrity. I'm sorry, but I demand more from the team I support so much. If not, I'll just have to be a casual observer like mchappy.

[Joey]

Brother I've been through the triano years. I can withstand tanking, but not this insanity that will just lead to mediocrity. I'm sorry, but I demand more from the team I support so much. If not, I'll just have to be a casual observer like mchappy.

But imagine Leafs Fans all turned to Casual Observers when something counter to logic happens with their team ... they would have NO fans left! And yet, they ALL seem to be Die Hards.


... what if MLSE is trying to turn us all into Leafs fans ...