Since this is a new blog and we don't really have consistent traffic at this point it's going to be hard to do Topic Tuesdays. Some Tuesdays we may not have 5 (like this Tuesday), but hopefully we will get to a point where we will actually have more than 5 questions. If that happens we will take those extra questions and save them for next week's version.
So basically what will happen is we will show the question in bold with either the persons twitter handle or name (first name and initials). Below that we will do exactly what we have done in our two previous blogs, we will both give our opinions on the question.
If you have any ideas for other weekly or bi-weekly things we can do please feel free to suggest them to us. We want to make this the most enjoyable read possible and obviously if you guys get involved it just makes it that much better for you!
Here We Go:
What Do You Guys Think Will Happen With The Raptors This Off Season? -@Jeaarr
Chris: I honestly believe not a lot will happen, simply because you really can't judge the overall team performance based on last season. Yes, it was an ugly season to say the least, and I don't like to make excuses, but when you don't have all of your players constantly available, it makes things very difficult. What I would use last year for going into this off season is single player performance. How did players step it up when their names were called upon, for example, Jerryd Bayless. Bayless has a tendency to struggle coming off the bench, he would constantly turn the ball over and make these bizarre plays that had people swearing at the TV. Interesting thing is though he numbers are terrific when he gets the start. I don't remember what they are exactly but his points per game average is in the high teens and his assist per game average is around 8, with the occasional rebound. Other guys however, like Bargnani (which we discuss later) showed us why they aren't meant to be a franchise player, and just how much work this Toronto team has left. In the end, you have to trade value to get value, and other than DeMar DeRozan, or I suppose Andrea Bargnani..the Raptors just don't have many valuable guys.
Ryan: Either a lot will happen, minor moves are made or nothing happens at all. In my opinion I can see Colangelo making minor moves to help build this team properly. One area of importance in the center position. Now Bargnani has been playing that position for several years now, and other than his scoring he has not really provided much on the defensive end or on the boards since he really is a SF in a seven footers body. With guys such as Marc Gasol and Nene entering the free agency market I would expect Colangelo to make hard pushes to get one of those guys. Greg Oden is also on the market and even though he may be a huge risk, I think it could be a risk worth taking. Other areas of importance will be getting some defensive minded players or a defensive minded coach, another player to help out on the wing and possible another PG. These voids aren't all going to be filled this off-season, but I can see Colangelo addressing several of them in the off-season and others either during the season of next off-season.
Will Andrea Bargnani Be Traded & What Can We Possibly Get For Him? -@Jeaarr
Chris: It seems like the odds of Bargnani leaving Toronto just keep going up, so I am going to say yes, he gets traded. It's hard to say exactly what we could get in return for him though. I honestly believe that we will need to trade him to a team that already has guys who are great at rebounding, but is in need of scoring. As big of a "happy moment" that I believe this will be for Raptors fans, i really don't expect it to be a block buster of any sorts, at all. Basically it will be like a trade in a fantasy league. Both guys are of equal status, but one guy has that status from scoring, and the other from rebounding. Obviously the Raptors have a lot of guys who can score, starting with Demar Derozan, but what we don't have is a true center that can rebound. The guy who has probably been mentioned the most in coming to Toronto (in our dreams) would probably be Marc Gasol, but seeing how far the Grizzlies went and can continue to grow, I wouldn't count on it. my best suggestion would be try and trade Andrea Bargnani + Jose Calderon to the Timberwolves for Kevin Love. I know this sounds like it probably could never happen but eh. Considering some of the comments Timberwolves GM David Kahn has made this off season, he seems like an idiot, so you never know until you try right?
Ryan: As much as it pains me to say this he won't be traded, even though I'll probably throw the biggest celebration ever if he does. Knowing Colangelo he would probably look to move Bargnani to the PF spot permanently by going after a legit starting C in the offseason. If he is traded though I'm not sure we can really get much value in return as we would have gotten for Bosh if he was traded to a team that had more than 2 players under contract. Most likely we'll get a few young up and coming guys or just a nice rack of Spaldings, maybe some Primo pasta and sauce as a bonus.
Who Do You Think The Raptors Should/Will Draft With Their 5th Overall Pick? -@Jeaarr
Chris: I'll be honest i don't know a whole lot about this draft class, but then again who really does? It's a risky draft class in my opinion. Enes Kanter didn't play this year, and he is who we are projected to pick. There honestly isn't a lot of depth so i have to say draft the best guy there. Whether that is a PG, PF, wherever, just draft him. You want to have the best players on your team and if you do, you can work around that. I will go with Enes Kanter though.
Ryan: If either Enes Kanter or Brandon Knight are still available when it's the Raptors time to select I draft one of them as they can help with the teams issues at the PG and C positions. Several mock drafts have them selecting Jonas Valančiūnas, who is a PF from Lithuania who is most likely gonna be a prospect and thus take a few years to develop. Given that he is a PF and the team already have Davis and Amir, I'm not sure how that'll work out, but he seems like a decent player who can play in the post, after checking out a few highlight reels on YouTube.
What Are Your NHL Finals Predictions? -@Bobswan14
Chris: Canucks in 7 (but i want the Bruins to win)
Ryan: Bruins in 6
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