Who is Reggie Evans?

Mixed bag for sure but i still think the +'s outweigh the -'s here.

Question is, whats next now for the rappies? Do they draft from their spot, or try and move hump and some other guyz and trade up?

Tyler Smith just withdrew from the draft...

Warning: Long but worth it

I've been mulling over Colangelo's moves since he arrived and it dawned on me that it wouldn't really make sense for him to want to build a Phoenix North, type team as was the original assumption. The Phoenix Suns in their D'Antoni prime years proved unable to counter the Spurs in a way that would have allowed them to reach the finals. So, coming Toronto wouldn't it seem more ideal for him to want to build a team that mimics the team his original construction couldn't beat?
Maybe even a hybrid San Antonio spurs good fundamental basketball with a mean streak plus a few tweaks to incorporate some of the Phoenix Suns offensive aesthetic?

Maybe the draft choices and attempted free agent signings speak to the identity he has been trying to establish all along.

He inherits Bosh and (a surprisingly effective) Jose Calderon, Joey Graham plus Sam Mitchell. He acquires TJ Ford before he knows for sure how Calderon will pan out, drafts Bargnani, and PJ Tucker (on of the nation's leading rebounders out of college), brings in Anthony Parker, Jorge Garbajosa, and attempts to sign John Salmons He also adds Rasho

What identity would a starting line up of
Bosh,
Rasho,
Ford,
Salmons, and
Garbajosa possess?

Good fundamentals from the post, smart, solid defenders on the wing, game changing quickness from the point.

But look at the bench.

Calderon
Parker
Graham (likely assuming his natural position as an undersized 4)
Bargnani
Tucker (if he pans out).

Nothing stands out as spectacular but it's a good balanced team with a deep bench capable of making a playoff run for a few years, while it waits on internal development and other opportunities to upgrade.

If Bargnani develops as a top pick should you have by year 2 a starting line up of

Bosh
Bargnani
Ford
Garbajosa
Salmons

which gives you solid wing defenders again in Salmons and Garbo who can contribute on the offensive end, quick perimeter penetrator in TJ and Bosh and Bargnani providing a unique match up nightmare of smooth shooting bigs.

Again, the bench is solid
with
Calderon
Parker
Rasho
Graham (potential realized)
and Tucker's replacement

This looks like a more balanced competitive team than has actually been realized. Mitchell stays because the team wins, and the players as a collective play smart heady basketball (Garbo's influence). Not a lot of jump out of the gym athletes but guys who think the game as a collective (poor man's San Antonio) with some top ten pieces (Bosh).

Even subsequent moves (like the acquisition of Delfino and the signing of a Kapono to really spread the floor (a mistake)) speak to this idea of a smart, good shooting, balanced team with a strong bench.

So, now that things have fallen apart and he has to basically rebuild, he picks a coach he likes, adds an assistant who is considered one of the better ones in the league (who has worked with defensive minded head coaches).He will try to lock up the small forward he has always appreciated (Marion) and brings back the poor man's Manu for bench support(Delfino). Bargs and Bosh he doesn't want to move and just hopes he can add the two-way shooting guard and back up/defensive minded or quick disruptive point guard that would balance the team.

In this broader context, the trade for Evans makes sense because he is the rebounder BC tried to draft in the first place.

We've tried to figure out the identity of this team for a while. Maybe this summer we will come to understand what the plan was all along

I like the idea of having Reggie and Hump on the team. I believe that every player needs a capable back-up as inusrance WHEN injuries occur.

As I mentioned a few days ago on RR, Reggie's dual role will be to improve our rebounding and makes every Raptors players a bit tougher under the skin.

In making his first roster move this off-season, BC has acquired exactly who need to begin making the team 'Tougher Than Leather'.

Franchise, great read. I followed your link to their site too, you sure didn't hold any punches in your assessment of Kapono. Still, he seems pleased as punch.

I guess what I will miss most about Kapono, was that I never ever minded him taking a three. Seeing many players launch a three feels like a wasted play, and it usually is. We have been spoiled in TO with Parker, Kapono and Jose shooting the lights out from 3. A team like Philly, with no good shooters, would drive you crazy to watch - struggling to score every night. Kapono will be a useful addition there. Many share my fear that one day Kapono will hit a big three on us, but I also look forward to seeing this years draft pick blow past Kapono for the dunk. Even if he misses, Reggie will be there for the board.

Nice call Mr. Archibald, I'm looking forward to the Evans block on Kapono now too!

Saw that about Tyler Smith Jenge, mixed emotions. It was weird because I had a feeling he was going to pull out again, especially when I saw earlier this week that Draftexpress didn't even have him ON their latest mock. I like that I'll get to see another season of him at Tennessee but at the same time, would have loved him to fallen into the second round and for BC to have snatched him up.

Interloper - Might have to write a blog based on your post, some very interesting observations. Also goes to show that when players suddenly bloom and exceed expectations that you may have had as a GM (Calderon), it can really throw a wrench into your plans.

And I agree, I think this summer represents the first one since Bryan Colangelo came onboard where he's got a chance to move pieces around to create the identity he wants.

Interloper:

seriously good post, nice to see someone who can paint the big picture for us.

RE: draft..

Am i the only one who is wary of drafting DeRozan?

JENGE, you're not the only one. I'm not a fan of DD but at the same time I can see y he's so intriguing. After watching him in college tho, I can’t see what the big fuss is, he had a decent finish but the guy wasn’t outstanding or anything. Having said that, if he’s there I’d still take him but not expect him to be a huge contributor for a while if ever. If we acquired the 18th pick, who would u target if we used the draftexpress mock draft?

Great article btw.

Good observation about Evans' rebounding numbers by your 76ers blogger. Sometimes the numbers don't tell the whole story. Danny Fortson is another guy who could inflate his rebounding numbers by rebounding his own misses. But Evans does bring some intangibles that should help this team. Just don't expect the second coming.

Having Evans and Pops on the bench could be great! I could see this being absolutely infuriating to other teams.

Re: Draft

I looked at the #18 spot and man o'man is is getting thin.

1. It looks like Psycho T and Ty Lawson could be grabbable.

2. I would choose Sam Young before picking Earl Clark - and I don't want Earl Clark...

3. Is it worth paying 3 mil to pick these players? Lawson might be... but Draft Express has him going at #17

4. If T.Williams was available at #18... then hell yes!

So is the word on the street that we are buying a pick from Minn?

Franchise, you picked a great blogger for the trade insight.

Interloper, your comparison was well presented. I never thought of Garbajosa and Parker as examples of BC's organizational philosophy (beyond being products of Euroball), yet they are the kind of additions that San Antonio is known for making.

Member29 and Jenge:
Going by scouting reports, DD is not the kind of player that merits absolute confidence if you're the Raptors. A point in his favor is that he's a freshman, so it seems unfair to compare him to a player that's had a few years to hone their game in the NCAA environment. If we're looking for a homerun, DD is that 95 mph fastball down the middle of the plate. I'm hopeful that Alvin Williams was brought in to help guide our newest pick in the ways of being a pro both on and off the court, in addition to work with Ukic of course. In regards to the 18th pick, I agree with Jenge that the pickings are slim. I'd snag Lawson, T-Will, Teague or Clark if they drop. I figure as long as Clark plays consistent shutdown defense, he's still good value at 18. Teague is the one I'm iffy on, since he seems to have a steeper learning curve for pg skills. After those four, IMHO we're better off just banking the three million to buy a pick in 2010. Best case scenario is that Detroit sells us #15 in their haste to clear room under the cap this season.

I have changed my mind about whether or not Bosh deserves a max contract and whether he can be considered a franchise player or not. Originally, my position was YES. Then, I started to think about and think about it and think about it some more. A single thing made me change my mind. It wasn't that he doesn't have the ball in his hands at the end of games (ultimately, NBA basketball is a guards game as they are the ones who have the ball in their hands at any given time). It wasn't that he couldn't score winning baskets (we have seen him do it). It is a single number that greatly concerns me. 2.2 - His Career Assist numbers. If Chris Bosh is suppose to be the centre of your offense, shouldn't his assist numbers be much higher than this? I looked at superman's numbers and thought, wait, his assist are lower so maybe I am being harsh but then I looked Supermans other numbers which more than offset his lower assists totals. Namely, he has never averaged less than 10 rebounds per game and he averages 2 blocks per game. Conversely, Bosh has only averaged 10 rebounds or more per game twice in his career and barely averages more than a block a game. Shaq's numbers are actually better tahn Bosh's too (obviously) and are on par with Dwights numbers with the exception of scoring. Gasol's numbers are also intersting. He has averaged less points and rebounds then bosh but his Blocks are higher by half a block a game and he has averaged one full assist more per game. The more you look at other big men who might be considered franchise players the more Bosh's lack of something more becomes worrying.
KG - 20.2ppg, 11.1rpg, 4.3apg, 1.4spg, 1.6bpg
Brand - 20ppg,10.1rpg,2.6apg,0.9spg,2.1bpg
jo - 14.3ppg,7.6rpg,1.5apg,0.5spg,1.9bpp
boozer - 16.8ppg,10rpg,2.4apg,1.0spg,0.5bpg
dirk - 22.7ppg,8.6rpg,2.7apg,0.9spg,1bpg
duncan - 21.4ppg,11.7rpg,3.2apg,0.8spg,2.4bpg
shaq - 24.7ppg,11.2rpb,2.6apg,0.6spg,2.4bpg,
yao - 19.1ppg,9.3rpg,1.6apg,0.4spg,1.9bpg
dwight - 17.3ppg,12.5rpg,1.4apg,0.9spg,2.0bpg

Bosh - 19.6ppg,9.2rpg,2.2apg,0.8apg,1.2bpg

The thing that stands out from these numbers is how guys we know are worth more money than Bosh (Shaq, Duncan, Garnett) all have stats that are significantly higher than Bosh's in one catagory or other (Garnett, Blocks and Assists, Duncan and Shaq with Blocks, scoring). Even though Bosh's numbers are comparable to many of the others on the list, many of them have had higher scoring seasons than Bosh has had (Dirk, Oneal).

Ultimately, in order for Bosh to deserve a max contract and franchise tag, he needs to improve one of his stat lines (bring his scoring into the mid 20s, his assists closer to 5 or his blocks to over 2pg) otherwise his numbers do not warrant a max contract (Shaq, duncan and Garnett in their primes).

McGateway, interesting post. one thing though, don't all those guys on your list make huge money? Why should Bosh have to have Shaq in his prime numbers? This season, Bosh was paid less than Ben Wallace, JO, Odom, Zach Randolph!, Kirilenko, Rashard, Amare, even our very own Matrix.

Bosh deserves the max, not because of any one stat. He deserves the max because there is at least one GM in the Association that would pay him the max. That creates his market value. When BC sits down with Bosh and says that he will only extend him to a max deal is if he raises his assist (career assist?) totals to over 5 apg.

Bosh would say, ok coach and run around and play his game. The the season would end and bosh would finish with only 2.2 apg. Heck, imagine if due to Bargs improvement and Evans addition, his rpg drop to 8.4 and he scores less than 20 a game. Even still, there will probably be at least one GM that would find the money to pay Bosh.

I don't disagree that he probably doesn't deserve it. But you aren't going to sit down an elite level athlete and explain to him why his game doesn't deserve max money. Not when someone else is willing to pay that money, your opinion becomes moot if someone else likes adding Bosh to their core. I think trade Bosh, I'd love a package with GS that included Biedrins and any of their talented wings. I just don't think BC is going to do it.

I think we have to sit back and let the season progress. Bosh will be in a contract year, Jose is getting rested and healed, everyone is excited to see what Bargs and the coaching staff will bring next year. We have draft picks and FA's to sign. I think I am actually starting to forget how miserable last season was and starting to get excited for next year already!

The thing about Bosh is not even so much that he is not worth it from a talent standpoint, it's that the Raptors (or any other team not willing to pay the tax) CANNOT afford to pay Bosh the max and still have money to get a top flight SG/SF and a decent bench.

If MLSE was OK with paying the tax I think you could build a very good team even with Bosh on a max deal, but without such a venture the money tied up in Bosh would in turn tie the hands of management in acquiring the pieces this team still NEEDS.

This is without even mentioning Bargnani and the fact that he and Bosh are similar big men (shooters), will both have to be paid and we'll still not have a finisher at the SG/SF spot (Marion is NOT that).

If you're being objective you really have to admit that you keep ONE of Bosh/Bargnani; But you can't keep both. The reason I think Bosh should be the one moved is that you'll get a better return and the Raps will be able to sign Bargs for less that the max when he is due for an extension.

Rob

Good to know Reggie's a "consonant" professional! I had no idea he was so focused on the alphabet.

It must be tough however, even as a consummate professional, to get through life without mastering the use of vowels as well.