Following the Toronto Raptors & the NBA
Lots of smoke from the 6, but no fire Damian Lillard has been traded by the Portland Trail Blazers, and not to the Toronto Raptors. He’s off to the Milwaukee Bucks, in a three-team deal. Nobody among the supposed (or self-proclaimed) NBA insiders identified the Bucks as even being involved in cursory, let alone serious, […]
Trade speculation involving Toronto from all over the web Let’s start this post by making one thing perfectly clear (am I channeling my inner Richard Nixon…I hope not): Damian Lillard in a Toronto Raptors uniform would be a wonderful sight. However, I don’t think it will happen, or should, and here’s why. I’ve been taking […]
Toronto owes San Antonio draft capital – how much? The San Antonio Spurs have been rebuilding their roster for ages, and consequently have suffered through five straight losing seasons. Their management was all but certain center Jakob Poeltl would not return, so they traded him (back) to the Toronto Raptors. I think our team is […]
Superb showing at FIBA raises profile When the Toronto Raptors signed free-agent point guard Dennis Schroder, the NBA world yawned. He was viewed as a spent force; worse, the object of jokes. Dennis had turned down a huge extension offer, in the expectation of receiving more lucrative offers. None was forthcoming, and Dennis suffered the […]
Quiet off-season displays confidence in roster – or naivete The Toronto Raptors have been off the court since their woeful defeat by the Chicago Bulls in the 9 vs. 10 play-in tournament. During that time, there has been an orgy of speculation by the NBA press about the plans of team President Masai Ujiri. Trades […]
Equivalent of industrial espionage alleged While I’m always reluctant to lose the plot on this blog (i.e., I want to write about basketball, not legal matters), I can’t ignore the news which flashed across the wires Monday. The Toronto Raptors were sued by the New York Knicks. You’re welcome to read the details elsewhere; in […]
“nobody knows nothing” The quote above is attributed to the highly successful novelist and screenwriter William Goldman, and reflected his frustration with Hollywood. That’s how I feel about trying to forecast the upcoming season for the Toronto Raptors. Even allowing for recency bias, I can’t recall a year in which I have felt less able […]
Aging veteran’s signing is a headscratcher The Toronto Raptors signed shooting guard Garrett Temple to a one-year contract worth $3.2 million. The vagaries of the NBA CBA being what they are, the deal only counts for $ 2 million against the salary cap. This transaction has no impact on my opinion of the number of […]
Should two disgruntled stars be moved? I’m in the throes of creating a forecast for the Toronto Raptors’ 2023-24 season, but I keep getting interrupted. There seems to be enough ‘smoke’ about the disgruntlement of forward Pascal Siakam that I can’t proceed with my forecast; his departure would upset all my guesswork. Let’s proceed with […]
Was Miami’s Finals run a fluke, or portent of future? While my dislike of the Miami Heat is intense, rivalling that of the New York Knicks, there is no denying their astonishing accomplishment in the 2022-23 NBA Finals. To wit, they got there. Miami completed the season with a 44-38 record, good enough for eighth, […]