Morning Coffee – Mon, Jul 1
Knicks strike out and Stephen A. Smith is crush LOL | All activity on day 1 is good sign for Raptors
The other piece the Clippers could unload is Danilo Gallinari. Gallinari is owed $22.6 million for 2019-20, the final season of his deal, and he’s coming off a really solid year. With so much cap space chasing too few top-tier players, the Clippers probably wouldn’t struggle to find a team willing to take on that salary. Gallinari will only be 31 when the season starts, and he averaged nearly 20 points on 63.3 percent true-shooting last year and played more games than he had since an ACL tear cost him 2013-14. If Leonard and another star tell the Clippers they’re in, they could probably work swiftly to find a landing spot for Gallinari, maybe even without paying a team much to take him on. (If the Clippers are the mystery team on Horford and have Leonard and Butler in their crosshairs, this kind of creativity becomes much more necessary.)
The other option is to send him out in a sign-and-trade for one of the stars. The Raptors could facilitate such a move, taking Gallinari back for Leonard and maybe picking up an asset for doing so.
Such a scenario always feels at least a little strange — helping a player land in a new destination — but if you’re losing a player regardless, you have to do what’s best for your franchise moving forward. Some will want to blow up the core completely if Leonard walks, and that’s something I’ve warned might not be particularly likely. Finding homes for the contracts of Kyle Lowry, Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka without taking back bad long-term money could be difficult, and the Raptors won’t be able to get bad enough quickly enough to really bottom out. If they accept a transition year in which more responsibility is shifted to younger players and the team competes at a lower Eastern Conference playoff tier, Gallinari fits that mold and comes off the books with everyone else in 2020, standing as another potential deadline trade chip in the interim.
Toronto would probably ask for a sweetener to facilitate, as taking back Gallinari would keep the team above the luxury-tax line for the time being. If it could pick up a future first-round pick or even an interesting draft-rights flier like Kabengele, maybe that’s worthwhile. Perhaps there’s a deal structure through which the Clippers are amenable to taking back Norman Powell, further clearing the Raptors’ books for 2020 and 2021.
The sign-and-trade option still seems somewhat unlikely, but the Clippers are the one rumored Leonard destination where the Raptors might not end up empty-handed.
Kawhi Leonard’s silence through NBAfree agency noise favors Raptors – Yahoo!
While others blatantly ignored tampering rules in a rush to secure their future, Leonard didn’t even take meetings with teams. Instead, he sat back and surveyed the landscape before making any rash decisions, and it’s expected that he will ramp up the process in the coming days.
His options remain the same: The Raptors, Clippers, and Lakers all stood still while waiting for Leonard’s decision. However, the situations have changed in light of how the first day of free agency played out, and it generally favors the Raptors.
The Clippers took the biggest hit. It was reported for months that the Clippers planned to create two maximum cap slots to recruit a second star to pair alongside Leonard. However, that plan looks to be shot, as Kevin Durant joined Kyrie Irving in Brooklyn, while Jimmy Butler took his talents to South Beach. Even Al Horford opted to relocate to Philadelphia, which leaves D’Angelo Russell — who is closely affiliated with Minnesota — as the best remaining free agent available. Without a second star, it’s unlikely that the Clippers will hold much appeal beyond geography.
The Lakers still remain on solid ground. Reports indicated that former Lakers president Magic Johnson met with Uncle Dennis and Leonard, but nobody currently affiliated with the Lakers has yet to actually sit down with Leonard in a meeting. However, every lost second is precious for the Lakers, as back-up free agent options are quickly flying off the board while Leonard takes his time. Not only is there no more third star left for the Lakers to sign beyond Leonard, but even second and third-tier free agents might be unavailable as the Lakers look to fill out their roster that currently consists of only three players.
All this points to a positive outcome for the Raptors, who remain the most stable option. Save for Danny Green, who is drawing interest from Dallas, Philadelphia, and Los Angeles, the Raptors can assure Leonard that the entire rotation from the defending champions will remain intact. And even in the case of Green, he’s willing to hold the door open on re-signing if Leonard stays. It should also be noted that Toronto hasn’t leaked a mumbling word about the recruitment process, whereas the Clippers and Lakers have put the fiercely private Leonard’s name in the news cycle about once per hour since the weekend started.
NBA Free Agency Reports: How does any of this affect the Toronto Raptors? – Raptors HQ
Let’s end this bad boy on the biggest — and most unsettled — name out there. (Yes, even bigger than Kawhi, to a certain extent.) Obviously the pursuit of Kevin Durant is more complicated now since he’ll likely sit out the entire 2019-20 season with a ruptured Achilles, and it remains to be seen what kind of condition he’ll be in upon his return. Of the teams mentioned there, I’ll rank them this way from most likely to sign him to least: Nets, Warriors, Knicks, Clippers.
The Nets feel like they have a pitch in place now, with Irving apparently set to join the squad. They have the better management and situation for Durant overall. And, in truth, won’t even need him to compete for a playoff spot and/or run into the later rounds. In this scenario, Durant can rehab, cheer for a solid team, and prepare for his grand return where he puts Brooklyn really really on the map.
That said, the Warriors still have a few cards to play here, and it’s not impossible to see Durant return. I actually think this is more likely than him signing with the terrible Knicks and wasting a few years of his career doing nothing for nobody — and having to see James Dolan all the time. And finally the Clippers, the original swag-less team, have no shot to get Durant. They will likely talk themselves into some second- or third-tier free agent after they strike out on him and Kawhi, and that’s that.
So, to sum up: Durant on the Nets is a huge concern for the Raptors. Durant on the Warriors is a fun thought experiment. Durant on the Knicks is a cute novelty. Durant on the Clippers is a joke.
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This is just a smattering of the potential deals happening at 6pm today. We’ll have an open live thread going once we get closer to the official start time. Let’s see how the rest of the evening shapes out.
Leonard and Green still in play after NBA wave reshapes Eastern Conference | The Star
Leonard’s unwillingness to ride the wave of movement during the opening hours of free agency is hardly surprising — he doesn’t strike anyone as someone who makes rash and quick moves — and leaves the Raptors, Los Angeles Clippers and L.A. Lakers still waiting for one major shoe to drop.
If Leonard returns to Toronto — and there remain well-connected sources who think that’s likely — it may leave the two Los Angeles teams scrambling for free agency leftovers.
And with Jimmy Butler, seen in some places as a potential running mate of Leonard’s with the Clippers, now in Miami, that possibility no longer exists.
The wait on Leonard also means there will be a wait for Danny Green, the other Raptors free agent, whose future in Toronto is very much tied to Leonard’s.
Free Agency Winners and Losers: Kawhi keeps Raptors, Lakers, Clippers waiting – Sportsnet.ca
Loser: The teams that won’t sign Kawhi
One, for the obvious reason that if a team strikes out on Leonard, they lose out on both the game’s top player and the opportunity to become instant championship favourites.But after roughly 1,304 notable players found a home on the first night alone, the remaining free agent market is suddenly paper thin.
This isn’t really a factor for the Raptors, who aren’t likely to dive into the free agency pool apart from re-signing Leonard, but for teams like the Clippers and Lakers, their search for a star via free agency will be an abject failure.
One-On-One With Nick Nurse | whotv.com
Nurse talks with Mark Freund about coaching in the NBA, being from Iowa, Kawhi Leonard and more.
GMS Conversation with Toronto Raptors Champion, GM/ President Masai Ujiri – GiveMeSport
Toronto Raptors GM/ President of basketball operations Masai Ujiri believes Kawhi Leonard’s “incredible experience” with the organisation’s medical staff will help persuade the NBA Finals MVP to stay with the franchise in free agency.
Toronto Raptors: 2019 NBA Offseason Preview – RealGM Analysis
If Toronto does go young, they have a lot interesting players to do it with. Pascal Siakam had a breakout season and looks like a budding All-Star. Siakam is due for a new contract as soon as the summer of 2020, but looks every bit the part of a franchise building block. Norman Powell finally found consistent minutes after Delon Wright was sent off in the trade for Marc Gasol, and was solid in the season’s second half. Fred VanVleet has become one of the better backup guards in the league. And the Raptors are still high on OG Anunoby, who suffered through an injury-plagued sophomore season.
That youth is a big part of the reason the depth is there for Toronto to sustain losing Leonard and Green and remain in the upper half of the Eastern Conference. And a year from now, Lowry, Gasol and Ibaka all come off the books, and Ujiri could be looking at a total rebuild around Siakam and the other young talent. That could make him reluctant to commit much money beyond just this next year, to allow for maximum flexibility in the summer of 2020.
It’s also fair to consider whether Ujiri could begin to rebuild on the fly if Leonard and Green are both gone. While the veterans all carry big contract numbers, they are still solid players who could fill vital rotation roles on any number of teams. Ujiri isn’t afraid to swing for the fences. He’ll do what he thinks is best for his team, both in the immediate future and further down the line.
In a world where Leonard and Green do return, Toronto will be deep into the luxury tax. They’ll really only have the Taxpayer Mid-Level Exception to work with of about $5.7 million. The good news is that they don’t have a lot of holes in the rotation. They could use another big, especially since it would nice to spot Gasol and Ibaka the occasional rest day here and there. Ideally, someone with some range would nice. A player like Anthony Tolliver could fit in well in that role. The Raptors could also use a third point guard behind Lowry and VanVleet. For that role a younger, developmental player would fit in well and would probably come via a minimum contract signing.
The Raptors’ summer isn’t really all that complex. If Leonard returns, they will contend for another title. If Leonard leaves, they’ll start to pivot towards youth and building for the future. Either way, don’t count out Ujiri doing something completely unexpected to keep Toronto competing for another title.
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Morning Coffee – Mon, Jul 1 originated on Raptors Republic.