Raptors not wheeling and dealing, and that’s just fine: Arthur | Toronto Star
There is a bigger picture, though. The Raptors will have salary cap space open up in the summer — fare thee well, Marcus Camby’s cap hit — and only have Kyle Lowry, DeMar DeRozan, Greivis Vasquez, Patrick Patterson, Jonas Valanciunas, Terrence Ross and Bruno Caboclo on the books for 2016-17, when the new TV deal could send the salary cap from $68 million or so to something like $90 million (all figures U.S.). By then, the Raptors will have hosted next year’s All-Star game, should still have general manager Masai Ujiri’s rock-star aura to work with, and will chase bigger fish. Anything that compromises those two windows wouldn’t be worth it, unless the Raptors can somehow conjure a star. And there isn’t currently a deal that would adequately marry the short-term and the long term, so Thursday isn’t expected to be quiet and polite. Marc Gasol isn’t walking through that door, Raptors fans. Neither is Kevin Durant in a couple years, barring some act of god. Miami, not being a fan of comedy and story arcs, isn’t repatriating Chris Bosh.
Rather strangely, DeRozan has proven to be a significant help to the defence, a fact Casey explained away by noting his tenure with the team and the coach’s systems. Per nba.com, the Raptors have allowed 102.1 points per 100 possessions when DeRozan is on the floor this year, and 105.9 points when he is off of it. This has been a trend all season long, before and after DeRozan’s injury. However, things have not been as good on the other end. Even if he had been healthy all year, it is questionable whether or not DeRozan would have repeated as an all-star with the season he is having. His player efficiency rating is just a tad above the league average, while his true shooting percentage — a figure that takes into account three-pointers and free throws — is the lowest of his career, despite never having attempted more free throws per field goal try. He is shooting a miserable 32 per cent on pull-up jumpers, a shot type that represents nearly half of his attempts. Last year, he connected on 36 per cent of those attempts, and relied less on them, as well. Which is to say, DeRozan can be a lot better offensively. “[There] is still another level to reach,” DeRozan said.
Calm before deadline storm for Raptors | TSN
“I think that’s one thing that got us off to such a good start, continuity,” Casey insisted after Wednesday’s long practice. “The theme of today was to continue to get better. No matter what happens these next 29 games, every time we walk in the gym, whether it’s shoot-around, practice, we’ve got to get better.” Some may contend that the Raptors have a unique opportunity to swing for the fences this season in a wide open conference and having all but wrapped up their division. But the danger in going out to get that “missing piece”, assuming he’s out there, is it will more than likely come at the expense of the team’s prized chemistry and/or its promising future. “Masai has got to make the decision as far as what’s going to make the team better and for us to continue to grow as a team,” Casey said. “You don’t want to sell the farm to win a series this year. We’ve still got to look at the big picture. That’s the thought process going into the trade [deadline].”
The long, strange journey of a Raptors’ assistant | Sportsnet.ca
Nurse is in his second season with the Raptors, and like many coaches in his role across the league, he fulfills his duties in relative anonymity. Everyone is familiar with the players, the head coach and—in Toronto’s case—the general manager, but assistants are also crucial to a team’s success, especially in making sure their team is prepared for its next opponent. Their path to the NBA isn’t as celebrated as the players, who are written about extensively from a very early age, but making it to basketball’s biggest stage requires the same blend of hard work and dedication. Nurse’s story is a great example.
Can Patrick Patterson Continue to Improve? | RealGM
think he’s the player that you see. Do I think he’s shot will always be this reliable? Probably not, but he’s under contract for the next 2 years, and should be a good big for us off the bench. I think what you’re trying to get at is if he’s a starter? I don’t see it. He’s better coming off the bench and spreading the floor. He’s a nice change of pace big for us. I think a lot of times we overvalue our bench players and believe they all can be starters. Sometimes an orange is really just an orange. It might be the tastiest orange you’ve ever had, but doesn’t change what it is.
It will be on /r/nba just giving y’all a heads up!!
How the NBA Playoffs Would Play Out If They Started at the All-Star Break | numberFire
So that leaves us with Atlanta and Toronto in the Conference Finals. Toronto leads the season series 2-1, but Atlanta took the last meeting in Toronto by 21 points. The Raptors have an advantage on the offensive end of the floor, as they boast the league’s second-best offense, compared to the Hawks’ sixth-best. But, defensively the Hawks are far superior as they rank sixth in the league in Defensive Efficiency. According to the numbers, chalk holds and the Hawks, who have an 18.0% chance to win the title, head to the Finals.
I can haz yo linkz??! rapsfan@raptorsrepublic.com
