From Distance: Vlogging The Raptors’ Win
2019-06-14four point play….
1. In this final “From Distance” of the 2018-2019 NBA season, I give my initial post Raptors win reaction. I cover the more obvious story lines.
2. I recorded before I learned that Klay Thompson’s knee injury is a torn ACL. Man, what a rough break for a great player. Get well soon, Klay. Sheesh, Dubs fans. Talk about excrement hitting the ventilator.
3. Fred VanVleet somehow didn’t make it into my initial thoughts. Tip of the hat to you, Fred. His three-point shooting and defensive prowess against Curry were absolutely paramount to the Raps’ success. He is basically a Kyle Lowry redux with less of a drive game. Fred made Nick Nurse’s decision to go double PG in the backcourt look straight genius.
4. It seems Pascal Siakam and VanVleet are close. Their post game hug was one of the sweetest things I have seen on a basketball court. That was some serious teammate love. Then again, Pascal seems to be rather universally loved. It is nowhere near the majesty of a J.R. Smith celebration mode, but Siakam certainly does radiate warmth. I am a big fan of that guy.
Bonus:
I mentioned my only true Raptors fan friend in the video. If you like jazz and/or cool people, check him out.
A mock, one of many.
Griff cleaned them out pretty good, although I don’t love those Laker players…
So who do the Pels take at 4? Maybe Culver.
I really like the Gottlieb hire. Strikes a positive note for the franchise nationally.
The idea that this is a 2-3 player draft is dumb. There are always players. Bucks got Giannis the year we drafted AB.
If we could land a Klay/Dray level player and a FVV level player, that is a homerun.
Agreed about the Gottlieb hire…. just read about her in the press release. Beilein is on board with it, sounds like she will help with player development, and I like having two recent college coaches in order to emphasize player development. I think Sexton and the incoming rookies will benefit a lot learning from those two. I’m pumped for the draft.
Hall of Famer and a high level role-player? Yeah that would be a pretty good haul.
Okay! I’m in! Cam and Bol Bol!
Which one is which?
Both HoFers, of course!
Has anyone tried the FRY-PA? The Channing Frye IPA, made by Sibling Rivalry Brewing. I picked some up at the grocery.
Beautiful night in the land.
Next season should be a fun once since there’s no way GS is favorite to come out of the West. Also depending on how the dominoes fall, it will be fun to see what happens in the East.
Besides all that, I’m excited to see the Cavs get better. Can’t wait.
5 and 25: Brandon Clarke and Grant Williams. That’s a lot of 3/4s though.
https://twitter.com/Sam_Vecenie/status/1139560922647654400?s=19
Yeah I would rather some shooting and a wing at one of those spots.
ESPN with no respect: https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/26922131/nba-power-rankings-way-too-early-edition-offseason-chaos-ahead 30. Cleveland Cavaliers 2018-19 record: 19-63 Result: Missed playoffs 2020 title odds: 100-1 All of the Cavaliers’ struggles in their first season after LeBron James left for Los Angeles came with a silver lining in a lottery pick in the 2019 NBA draft. Unfortunately for Cleveland, it ended up with only the No. 5 selection in what’s widely considered a two-player draft. The Cavaliers could return a core of Kevin Love, Cedi Osman, Tristan Thompson, Larry Nance Jr. and second-year point guard Collin Sexton, who dramatically improved over the second half of last season to… Read more »
Wish I could disagree! Not necessarily disappointed with the way the rebuild has started but our team is going to be not very good next year. Hope Beilein isn’t toooooo averse to being back in the lottery.
I do know if Kawhi stays and Raps have health, their window to come out of the east and contend for a ship could be a 2 to 3 years. Siakam could keep improving. If his j gets more consistent look out. I mean he can hit them. Just is a little streaky. On top of that they just have a bunch of solid pieces and major depth. Unless Lowry, Gasol, Ibaka, and Green just tank and get old really fast (possible i guess), Raptors have a really really good team that could get much better organically. FVV seemed to… Read more »
They are going to have to re-imagine their team after next year. Gasol and Lowry are old and that’s 60m in salary coming off the books next year. Ibaka also comes off the books, and that pushes it up to 85m.
Also, next year they’ll have to re-sign FVV and Siakam to big contracts. If they find a way to ditch Powell’s terrible contract, and spend their cap wisely… they will have 3-5 year window. But they have an important two offseasons coming up.
If Ky and Bron had stayed, that would be us. But both guys are of the “when the going gets tough, we leave town in search of greener pastures” variety. With Klay’s injury, two of the top 5 in FA (KD, Klay) are now out next year. Top 3 left: Kawhi, Kyrie, Butler. Maybe Kemba. Have to think Kawhi stays. Yes? Kyrie to Nets. That is perfect for him. He can jack shots at will & the fans will love oohs and aahs and losing in the second round. If some teams try to open cap space for next year… Read more »
It does suck to think we could have added to the trophy case. But we got the one that mattered, and the one I suspect GS wanted the most. That’s good enough for me.
I mean there are never guarantees. 2016 warriors were better than 2019 warriors (without durant), and they pushed us to the limit like we pushed them to the limit. Another championship wasn’t guaranteed. There was a good chance. But nothing is guaranteed. As to Kawhi, I would think so, even if it is for a shorter term deal (1-3 years). But who knows? I have no idea what any of these guys are going to do. Klay seems likely to stay. I would think KD stays, but who knows? I don’t have a clue what Ky does. Mike O said… Read more »
Ha. Who’s this “McNeil” cat anyway?
He’s awesome. He’s most known for being the guy that organized the Browns 0-16 parade. IMO he’s the best follow on twitter.
The Raptors defense is just so much better than the Cavs, even at their peak in 2016 and certainly now. D.Green, Kawhi, Siakam, Gasol, Lowry — all better defenders than pretty much anyone on the Cavs. When JR’s game fell off there was just no chance to contend.
New York Post Mock Draft: (from today)
5. Cleveland Cavaliers
Jarrett Culver — Texas Tech, G, 6-7, 195
The Cavs could end up moving down (think Atlanta, with three first-rounders). But if they stand pat, they’d happily scoop up the Big 12 Player of the Year, who led Tech in points, boards and assists.
https://nypost.com/2019/06/14/2019-nba-mock-draft-2-0-knicks-pick-new-york-ready-rj-barrett/
26. Cleveland Cavaliers
Matisse Thybulle — Washington, F, 6-6, 201
He’s older as a rare senior. But he’s an outright glove on the wing, and could be the best defender in the whole draft.
Pretty sure he’ll be gone by 26, but this guy would be a no brainer…
He’ll be gone. Everyone thinks he has a celtics promise.
https://twitter.com/PlayoffsLeBron/status/1139378336063340545
https://twitter.com/CoryO24/status/1139385237794742273
The Warriors have been relatively lucky with the injury bug. But after 5 years, I am not surprised to see them break down physically. I’m sure LeBron was kind of happy he didn’t have to participate in the post season this season. He needed the rest after 8 years of NBA finals.
Klay got his feelings and his knee hurt in the same game