Tip-In, Toronto Raptors’ Post-Game: A Simple Equation

now we know why Sam was swearing all the time.

is anyone else getting kind of tired of watching o'neal sulk after pretty much every play? that staring off into space and almost crying look is starting to piss me off.

and bosh? yeah he's doing it a bit too much too. especially on the defensive end after a bucket. he kills the up-tempo pace before it ever has a chance to start.

how do 3 seven footers get crushed on the glass?? ugh.

I'm starting to go to that place I went to last year. it's a little place I like to call: 'I just don't give a sh*t anymore'. I have to go there for my health. in essence it's the betty ford for broken raps fans.

and I'm broken.

oh, and something else - I love the HQ, always have, but you know things are going bad for the raps when even you guys start losing your sense of humor in reporting about them.

all the reports are so serious these days!

You know, between alternating between watching some stuff on the Food Network and listening to the game off of The Fan feed from my TV, I'm just not even sure how the Raptors managed last Friday's win. I think the Raptors will point to the back to back and running in a back to back to back situation, but in all honesty, it was guys like Trenton Hassel, Devin Harris, and Bobby Simmons get to the glass before you do, well...

I couldn't believe that quote from this morning where someone said that they couldn't believe the Raptors don't even jump for the ball. And you know what? Guys like Jermaine O'Neal obviously are playing gingerly thanks to being worried about their knee, or Jamario Moon, who is worried about getting a bruise (cause come on, he's got to be the least physical guy I've ever seen) then you just can't expect to win.

And being lazy on the offensive end with all those jump shots? Of course the Raptors are going to be lazy going for rebounds and such. We've seen this a week ago when they hustled about as effectively as Oliver Miller through an all you can eat restaurant.

But yup. At least we can say to Colangelo "your roster ain't as good as you think it is". If there's something that I've always liked about BC it's the fact that he's generally kept himself within position to make a move or two, so we'll see just how yet another loss to Vince Carter affects his demeanor.

Let's all just say what we're really thinking: this team sucks.

I'd like to go one step further and say what I've been thinking for years: this franchise sucks.

Ownership that refuses to up payroll when the product on the court is clearly garbage. A GM that makes failed trades, busted a 1st overall pick (the worst ever #1 pick in my opinion), and hasn't built for the future in ANY way. And, finally, as the above article notes, a team filled with softies, who don't really care about winning more than saying post-game that they "care about winning." No diving on the court. No big blocks. No energy etc. etc. etc.

I want a trade, but who can guarantee that Colangelo won't screw it up? This is already one of the worst teams in Raptors history (and that's saying something for the 3rd-worst franchise in the NBA--thanks Clippers and Grizzlies!); can it get any worse? Can they win two more games in December?

Raptors suck, just admit it and move on to next year.

Aaron - That's going a bit much. One of the worst? I don't think so, and it's not even close. I mean, yes, this team mailed it in yesterday, but I don't think they will mail it in every night like they did 3 years ago. Yeah, they're inconsistent and can't yet win against the top tier teams, but I don't think they're more than a major move or two to get where they need to be.

And in general, I definitely don't think Bargnani's trade value is as low as most people think it is. He's the kind of player that (let's just for argument's sake) say that if the Raptors give up on and shop around, a GM will be enticed enough by his flashes to take chance on. I think moving him to the 3 position screwed up his game a lot more than people let on as it got him away from all his good habits for about two weeks.

But yeah, we'll see.

I think it time for a trade....Seriously. I was just checking out some other games last night and I notice something...

The Warriors are playing Marco Belinelli more and more. In the last three games he been avg. 26 mins per game before that he was only get garbage minutes here and there. I think there is trade on hand if we can get it for nothing then I will take him...

He will not be the raptors savior but he would make a difference.

I no a lot of guys thinks Mike Miller is a one dimensional type of player and some argue it would be stupid to give up AB and a pick with some other bench warmers for this guy but I think he would make a significant difference if we get him.

If we can get a Mike Miller without given up AB than go for it.

A guy like Kelenna Azubuike is a young tough guard who rebound and love contacts, not afraid to take to the hole would be another option.

I hope BC makes the right move soon like very "*******" soon. I tired of seeing us lose stupid game. it is getting frustrating and I just about to lose hope in this teams

Doug article on Jose comment alone some it up

"The last couple of games I was so positive, I thought we were doing a good job but today I don’t know what’s going on, it was a bad game. We’re supposed to have this one, twice we went 10 points up and we couldn’t finish. It was the same type of game as two weeks ago (against the Nets)."

I feel sorry for the guy....
BC make a trade before the wounds get wider and deeper...

OKAY THAT'S IT!!! I've had it, I'm starting a campaign to fire Raptor's Assistant Trainer and strength & conditioning coach Keith D'Amelio. He's to blame for all of this!

The lack of rebounding is totally because of Keith. Even though I don't know him, or know exactly what he does, it's his fault!

This is the worst team on the planet (well, except based on record for: Indiana, Charlotte, Washington, Memphis, Sacramento, Golden State, Clippers, Minnesota, and Oklahoma - other than those teams, we're the worst!)

Let's get ready to welcome Blake Griffin. But because we're the raps we'll get Al-Fraoug Aminu I bet!

Oh and let's trade Joey for Lebron. Joey's been hot.

Sorry for the lack of comedy in the recap but perhaps resorting to math equations to break down games counts? Yes?

Anyone?

I do think the Raptors are going to make the playoffs (not as fifth or even sixth seed however) and get to the .500 level once the games start to even out. But if the team wants to really start to do some damage I do think BC needs to make a deal or somehow steal an underrated guy not getting a lot of time.

Interestingly, post-game on Sunday Jack Armstrong mentioned that while the Raptors are soon headed on a long Western road trip, it's the weakest one he can ever remember.

He's right too with teams like Sacto, the LA Clippers and Oklahoma ripe for the picking.

That's why it's going to be even more important to see how this team performs over that stretch. For all of last nights frustration, you could still argue that five games under Triano the club is still trying to figure things out.

However a loss to the Thunder on Friday night and then things are really going to get ugly.

BTW, on a more serious note, I really would love to see Paul George in a Rap Uni next year: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IR94c-Sl2kw

I think he's the explosive, slashing athlete we need. Decent defender.. unfortunately haven't seen many Fresno State games on TV.

Is it just me or did that attempted alley-oop really kill the game? Down 5 and jose tosses up a long distance oop for bosh that is nowhere close. Come on jose - make a better decision than that! Well that and a complete inability to rebound.

I think Ukic has become the backup in Triano's system, and I'm ok with that.

I read on a website that shawn marion might come to the raps. How likely do you think this is possible? I think he woud fit in well and rebound which the team obviously lacks in.

I played semi-professional b-ball for 10 years and I'm completely surprised by our rebounding woes. I'm reviewing the 4th Q again and again and I just don't understand what's going on. We have the size to be a good rebounding team and historically JO, CB4, Moon, Graham have been average to above average rebounders.
Ustation may have a point in taking on the conditioning assisstant however I'm sure there are deeper things than that: JO is protecting his knee, CB4 is tired or pacing himself out(what for?), Moon is too skinny to fight for rebounds in traffic (he was the main culprit in the 4th Q for missing a few key rebounds), Kapono and Jose have good rebounding positioning however they lack athleticism to actually box-out and grab the rebound.
It may be that we are trying to run and we just don't have the stamina and conditioning for it and we were dead tired, especially in the 4th Q however the rebounding is a systemic problem for us. I'd hate to be the coach of this team because all the ingredients for a decent rebounding team are there however for whatever reason we are not doing it. Definitely Franchise had a few good explanations for our woes but is it enough?
Jose's comment is very troubling coming from an insider and shows there are deep problems in this team. We don't even play one of our best rebounders which tells me a trade is brewing. Something is not right with this team and I hope BC knows what it is and can correct it.

the math was good franchise, no worries - you know I'm just playing!

I just read a recap over at raptors republic and he had one part that went something like (and I qoute):

'Imagine bargs walking into the dressing room like a stiff with his two rebounds in his travel pouch and everybody’s got the boxscore in their hands and they look at him like, "WTF man, two rebounds? Jeebus H Krist man, you’re useless!"

that was just too funny.

http://raptorsrepublic.com/blog/2008/12/16/still-cant-score-when-it-counts/#more-3330

damn, I've always been on bargs side, but I just had an image of bosh playing alongside roy. damn!

I agree the raptors don't suck - it really is (X+Y)T=L
- a variable has to change. Or a new variable added, maybe S for shoot the lights out, which is what this team is supposed to do. I'm mostly dissapointed in Kapono and Moon, they just cannot handle their assignments and it makes everyone look bad, especially AP who doesn't deserve it. I mean, how can can guys get rebounds going over the back of moon with his jumping ability?? He's just so casual, then Bargnani, even when he shows a lot of intensity, he just can't finish. I thought he'd broken out a bit, but now he's shooting about 20%.

There have been rumours about the Raps in talks with the Heat about Marion but I have no idea how this would work financially.

Just to give you an idea of the size of Marion's contract, Toronto would have to move Parker, Hump, Kapono and Bargs just to get salaries to match. So you can see that the numbers don't work. Toronto's bench is woefully thin now, getting Marion without moving another big contract like O'Neal just doesn't make sense.

I still think the teams BC should be targetting are Golden State (surplus of athletic slashers at the wings) and Denver (rebounding toughness for cheap ala Kleiza, Anderson and Balkman.)

I thought Bargs actually was one of Toronto's better players last night. His rebounding wasn't great, but his individual defense was fantastic and he was aggressive offensively. If you're going to blame a bad rebounder like Bargs, I think you also need to lay plenty of blame on two supposed good rebounders in Bosh and O'Neal. The rebounding really needs to be a team effort here.

Life is really changing for me. Not having to watch the cRaps anymore has freed up tons of time for productivity, going to the gym, socializing etc. This team is just not that good and I am willing to admit Sam did not have the team on his hands that I thought he had (although he remains a below-average coach in my mind). I am not sure the next time I will post, as this team is an absolute waste of my life at the moment. Hope everyone is well over the Christmas season, and here's to a big shake up trade (i.e. find a player to join this team who you don't wonder if they walk around in a skirt at home) before Christmas or in the New Year.

Simple Equation

Raptors Team + Games against any other team / Raptors team gets lucky + Games against any other team = Raptors lose more than not

The raptors suck.. we need a wing now... marion wont be an answer either... we need a wing that can finish damn games.. marion isnt that player..it doesnt even need to be an all star..sombody with stephen jackson type qualities and play....

I hate the raptors right now and it hurts

no doubt about the team rebounding. in fact bosh to me, with all his double doubles, seems to have moments where he just flashes stupid and forgets where his guy is under the basket and loses key rebounds.

or, like last night, when he didn't get a call on the offensive end and starting pouting, his guy came running down the floor at the other end for an easy bucket. no effort made by CB4naught.

he then proceeds to immediately get t-upped.

Ok,
I let it out of my chest. I believe the team plays better with Andrea and Jo than with Bosh and Jo. This is not for saying that Bargs is better than Bosh, just that they work better together. Moreover Bosh is not a good defender and on offense he is a black hole as he has little passing skills. Was Andrea more consistent in his scoring I would even dare suggest "exploring" a Bosh trade for close equal value SF + good contributors.
Note I did not overly complain about Andrea rebounding as ( I went to check just to be sure ) his opponents to not put out stellar rebounding or scoring.
Chris at the moment can provide a better contribution on offense, but flourish just with a special kind of offense (Pick and roll) that uses him as the offense terminal (hence the black hole) notice for example how his numbers have declined after Mitchell was replaced. Moreover, the fact that he is not a good passer from the post has been noticed and what teams do is to double him and by doing that they limit a lot his and the team offense.
Too bad Andrea is in a slump, even worse the whole team is in a slump with him.

With Raptors at 8-9, after 2 losses on the road, BC's big move, fire Mitchell.

Hire Triano, who is now 2-5 since his promotion.

Next move, fire the players, who cannot rebound, either for Mitchell, or Triano.

At 10-14 with Dallas next, and then 6 on the road coming up, the lottery in June is the next step, for BC's best team on paper in his tenure.

Hmmmmm.. this team could use a Vince Carter type player.. I wish we had a couple of Williamses to trade for him. Oh I know, what about Joey and Humphries for VC?

ustation--

great sarcasm, I'm really impressed.

Of the teams you mentioned as "worse franchises" than the Raptors:

Indiana was a GREAT team from 1994-2004, averaging 49+ wins over that span and winning numerous playoff series.

Charlotte is an expansion team, barely even a "franchise" at this point.

Sacramento averaged 52.6 wins from 1999 to 2006. They won 5 playoff series in that span. They've had two years in a row that have been bad--"Raptors-bad" even, but that's it.

From 1997-2004 the T'Wolves made the playoffs every year and won 50+ games four times, something Toronto has never done in 14 years.

Oklahoma is either an expansion team or, if you still consider them Seattle, then they are the franchise with the most consecutive playoff appearances in the history of North American sports.

Golden State and Washington have very similar histories to the Raps (albeit longer): bust draft picks, exiting the playoffs immediately and losing stars to better teams.

I would reiterate that only the Clippers and Grizzlies are truly worse FRANCHISES than the Raptors (not just this one season).

So at best, the Raps are the 26th best franchise out of 30, at worst they are 28th.

What are peoples' arguments against my assessment? (please use some stats rather than ranting--like my own earlier and silly post)

I don't know if this solves any of our problems... and I don't know if it's better than the Philly trade Franchise threw out there yesterday... but this works in the trade machine and I'd be curious to see if this were even discussed...

Bargnani, Parker, and Moon for Deng and Thomas.

Basically we're swapping underachieving drafts picks, and taking on an overpaid player (but one young enough who could still deliver on his paycheque) and giving up an expiring deal and a versatile forward.

Bargnani may not be the low-post threat the Bulls need, but, with Rose slashing as much as he does, and Bargs' discovery of good defensive positioning, this may work out well for the Bulls... Rose drives and dishes to an open Bargnani with Noah or Gooden crashing the boards. The only problem is this only increases the glut of guards on the Bulls roster... but the cap relief means the Bulls can look for that low post presence in the summer... with Gordon and Parker off the books.

For the Raps we get a wing, with good defensive abilities (not lock down, but good) and solid offensive production INSIDE THE ARC. Maybe not a slasher, but at least he doesn't hover around the 3 point line. We also take a flyer on an potential rebounding force... which we need desperately.

Even though it works on paper, I feel like the Bulls would be unlikely to pull the trigger on this deal, and Colangelo would be hesitant to take on Deng's contract... but there is enough give and take here for both teams... maybe a 2nd round pick seals it, but it seems plausible... with the Bulls' new focus Rose, clearly their greatest talent.

In he meantime, I'm patiently waiting for BC to address this roster... it's not everything he imagined... that's clear.

Different players, same crap. Different coach, same crap. The Raptors are cursed.

Well Aaron,

With your arguement then, the Leafs are one of the best franchises in the league. They've won the 3rd most Stanley Cups in NHL History! Winning 4 of 10 cups in the 60s. They won the division in 99/00, made the playoffs from then till 04/05, 92-97. Woot!

Oh and by the way, if you add up all of the years in existence of all the franchises Aaaron have listed since the inception of the NBA, they've won 1 championship.

Washington Bulletes in 1978. Oh wait.. 2, the Sonics in 1979. My bad.

So your list has 2 more championships combined than MY raps in the history of the universe.

:)

note to webmaster:
It would be cool if we could reply directly to people's comments and not just at the bottom. just a thought ;)

As I read through the first part of your article, I thought you were leading us up to something (or someone) in particular. You talked about the Raptors lack of athleticism, the need for a wing player who can attack the rim, lack of rebounding, the need for a possible trade… To me, all signs pointed to Shawn Marion!
Do you think that if the Raptors continue to struggle with their current squad, acquiring Shawn Marion would be a good option?

JP

Utes - Yeah. The plan is with the make over coming that a lot of the commenting system will get revamped and such. Can't wait until we do it and get your feedback. :)

Raptors losing has turn you guys against each other....lol and I love the quote

Hans says:
Different players, same crap. Different coach, same crap. The Raptors are cursed.

Seriously this one is on Bosh and JO. As a leader Bosh constantly take jump shot after jump shot and doesn't provide the leadership on the defense end.

Bosh to me is an average defender, but with JO I except better from him. At the start of the season we say glimpse of this new reformed leadership from Bosh but were is it now???

Im not sold on marion as the answer for this team for a few reasons, one being his contract size. But the main reason is can he be that guy to create his own shot that we so desperately need? and the answer is no. Marion has been less then exciting since his departure from the suns and without nash making him look like lebron he hasnt excelled in being that number 2 option to wade. Yes he can fill up your rebounding stats and is a great perimiter defender..but when the shot clock is down he still cant create his shot off the dribble at all. In my opinion he is just a better version of moon, but how much better and at what cost? I really dont see marion being the difference maker this team needs.

kelenna azubuike would be primo for this team i'd love to see a starting lineup of calderon, kapono, azubuike, o'neal and bosh

Hello Franchise,

The issue, as I see it, is Colangelo's prioritizing that having a "solid citizen" on your team is more important than talent. You are correct - there is a lack of athletisism on the Raptors - but that is because the main filter used in building the Raptors was chemistry and players being solid characters. This is especially evident with the Raptors signing Jake Voshkol - a guy who is great at cheering for his teammates, but does he really make our team better? My conclusion is that Colangelo plays it "close to the vest," does not take risks with bringing in players with a checkered past and that, right there, will put a ceiling on how far the Raptors can achieve.

In high school we had a blockout drill where you couldn't get a rebound until it had hit the floor. The only thing that was important was that you opponent didn't get the ball and couldn't get to the ball. The Raptors need to make that kind committment. The other teams are sending everybody to the boards because they know they can get there. It looks lie a fire drill at times. The Raptors rarely send anybody to the offensive boards from the weak side. They must think that sending a rebounder will kill the space One-on-One O'Neal and Bosh need. I agree that if I see Bosh take another 3 pointer with time running down in a close game, I'm going to puke. If the best player on the team doesn't know who should be shooting 3 pointers and who should be pounding the boards, then how will anybody else know their roles on the team.

The small comfort that I am taking from what will be the two consecutive years of mediocre play is that it helps the GM properly assess the value of his supposed "franchise" player. I'm of the opinion that .500 teams do not have franchise players, so right now the Raptors do not have a franchise player. That player is a good asset to turn into other pieces to what hopefully becomes a better puzzle. The danger in not even considering that option is that we'll get into this continuous cycle of thinking we need only add one piece to this team to make it championship competitive. This team needs many pieces, many trips to the high end of the draft, so, being realistic I don't mind this losing anymore. I've adjusted my expectations accordingly and will sit back and watch as management hopefully starts KEEPING ITS DRAFT PICKS AND USING THEM WISELY. Strange, we supposedly have some of the shrewdest basketball minds in our executive ranks and it looks like they are not going to exceed the heights Grunwald achieved with fewer resources. Disappointing.

Hockey? Seriously? Let's stick to professional sports instead of a league where a bunch of thugs from North Bay play.

Back to real sports . . . your Leafs comparison is silly. Clearly, the teams I referred to have had great success within the same 14 years the Raptors have been in the league, not in the 1960s.

On top of that, I am not comparing the Raptors to other good franchises (which would be a joke)--I am simply putting this franchise up against the other CRAPPY franchises, and seeing that we still come out on the short end of the stick.

Wow... this loss really got everyone riled up... and rightly so. It was embarassing. Just another in a long line of the Raps finding ways to "make things worse than they already are".

I hate to be the guy to say this, but the lack of rebounding is the ONLY consistent thing about this raptors team. Scary.

Rebounding is all about aggression and mindset. We've all been taught the basics... that's great... those will get you through public school like a superstar and may serve you well in high school, but like every other part of the NBA, you need guys with that fearless mindset who WANT the ball to use those basics and blend them with their exceptional talents to excel at the art.

I don't see that hunger in any of the Raps.

None.

They all say the right things, but when push comes to shove, they're the ones getting shoved.

Hey raps. Anyone care to step up? Anyone? Your season depends on it.

I'm not sure if this is a stupid trade, but would Marion & Blount for JO and whoever be possible?

Miami could lose Marion next year, and Blount seems like he's going nowhere (and doing nothing). JO is hampering our ability to "re-adjust" this team, but would be an asset that Miami could move next year .. in whatever quest they have to get better.

I tried the trade checker on RealGM and Humphries would work as the "whoever".

I had such hopes this year.

I think BC would love to give up on JO now. Buying Marion and any crap to free up 16 million of cap space would be worth chewing on another bad 7 million contract somewhere. That would be 16 million to take a shot on getting some talent here to keep Bosh happy.

Mentioning Bosh. I'm with Renato - float some ideas on moving him for some real young athletes. He's been nothing since he sucked in L.A. on national television - his planned MVP breakout game. He's becoming a suck because all the moves that he liked and were designed to make him happy are not working out. He'll want out. Sounds like VC. He wanted JYD, Hakeem, Davis, and became a big suck when it didn't work out.
I strongly disagree with the reference to Bargs being the worst ever #1. When he dropped VC he became worth it. Really, they have to stop messing with his role on this team. Let the kid grow. Moving Bosh now could be a huge turning point and fast track us to Trailblazer territory - young, athletic, and with a future. Right now we look like the Leafs who were good enough to continually build hopelessly on shit.

In true frustrated Raps fan fashion, I've come up with all the Toronto rebounding we could ever need in three easy trades.... (it only works if all three trades are made due to cap issues)

1. Oneal for MARION
2. Bargs + Hump for TROY MURPHY
3. Parker + Graham + Moon for OUTLAW + PRYZBILLA + FERNANDEZ

This would give us

Calderon/Ukic
Kapono/Fernandez
Marion/Outlaw
Bosh/Murphy/Marion/Voskuhl
Murphy/Pryzbilla/Bosh/Voskuhl

All of this together should help raise the level of bench competition in practice and get these jokers actually trying to rebound!!

Oh yea, and then we would trade Solomon for Michael Jordan in his prime. I can't believe I almost forgot to mention that.

Man it's hard being the worlds smartest wannabe GM.

**sigh**

I hate to say it, and I realize there is AB bias, but if they trade Bargs this year, it will be the year they became the Toronto Maple Leafs. And I don't think I have 41 years left in me.

Wow, that was the worst I've seen Bosh play since he was a rookie. At times he looked like the worst player on the court. He got OWNED, not just outplayed but OWNED, by Ryan Anderson and Josh Boone. He killed the Raps with that T and then the ridiculous three, after which I turned off my TV. When Bosh is playing the worst of the 5 raps on the court, we're going to lose every single game. I thought everyone else played alright last night, some even better than usual, but Bosh singlehandedly killed the Raps chances with incredibly slow and akward drives that always led to turnovers. Is he hurt or something, or just tired from doing too much early in the season? Argh, so frustrating...
Sorry to be so negative with all my posts but it's hard to find anything positive about this team.

I've wasted the last hour bemoaning the terrible Raptors and have come up with an ingenious solution: trade Chris Bosh.
Sounds crazy, but his value will never be higher, you leverage the risk of losing him in 2010 AND you address the real possibility that Toronto may never win a championship with him (too dependent on pick and roll, not a strong defender, not a great passer out of double teams).

Here's how the trades go down:

Toronto sends: Chris Bosh to Chicago
Chicago sends: Derrick Rose, Andres Nocioni, Joakim Noah, 1st round draft pick
Why?: You think Chicago doesn't regret doing the Gasol trade now that their stuck with Deng for 50 years? They finally get a real star out of all their assets.

Toronto sends: Calderon, H. Adams, J. Graham, W. Solomon to Washington
Washington sends: Caron Butler

Why?: Probably the least likely to happen, but they're in last place and they get a top-tier PG with a reasonable contract who gives them more flexibility with Arenas.

Toronto sends: Anthony Parker, Jason Kapono to LA Clippers
LAC sends: Marcus Camby

Why?: They already have Kaman and Randolph, Camby is the oldest of the three. Might as well get some immediate cap relief and the best 3-point shooter in the league for him. And because Dunleavy will do anything.

Toronto sends: Jermaine O'Neal to New Jersey
NJ sends: Vince Carter and Keyon Dooling

Why?: If they're serious about this Lebron in 2010 thing, don't they have to be able to sign someone else PLUS LeBron to sell the possibility of multiple championships? And how do you attract LeBron with VC sitting in his role? And if they lose the LeBron sweepstakes, why keep VC around and pay him when you can turn his max contract into 20 million in cap space after 2010?

I know this is crazy, but you end up with the following Toronto depth chart:

PG: Derrick Rose, Roko Ukic (some Dooling in case of emergency)
SG: Vince Carter, Keyon Dooling (Jamario Moon in case of emergency)
SF: Caron Butler, Andres Nocioni, Jamario Moon
PF: Andrea Bargnani, Kris Humphries
C: Marcus Camby, Jake Voshkul

Who would want to play against that team in the playoffs? They can score, rebound, defend and have some depth too. It also all works under the salary cap according to ESPN's trade machine. And, I think there's a reasonable chance that these trades appeal to all teams involved.