We have Toronto’s (top 6 protected) and Charlotte’s picks (lot protected) next year so I’ve been interested enough to follow them both this season. Toronto was/is a popular pick of a team to blow it up via OG and Siakam trades and start a rebuild, but from how they’ve played so far this year they do not look like a bottom 6 team as is.
It’s early in the season but this pick is looking like it could be in the middle sweet spot for a team that is neither top 10 nor bottom six. And I think we benefit from Masai’s stubbornness as he showed last season by not trading Van Vleet or taking some good offers for OG.
Charlotte is a total shitshow and the best I could see for them is maybe fighting for a play-inn spot once they get their abuser back and manage to stay healthy.
I don’t follow college at all so the mock drafts don’t do much for me but having more swings high in the draft is always a good thing. For the more informed of you, where do y’all see the Toronto pick possibly landing and what do y’all think about making both picks versus packaging them for a trade (be it a player or higher draft spot)?
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I’m looking for the Raptors to win about 35 games. I think this puts them in that sweet spot to get us out of the protection. With the way they’ve been playing, I think this is definitely possible.
The Hornets, on the other hand, are a little tougher to gauge because that puts them at about 45 games they need to win this season to put them out of the lottery and in our possession. Their record, I think doesn’t tell the whole story. From the handful of games I’ve seen from them, I think they definitely have the talent to turn some heads, but I’m still not convinced it’s anywhere in the range of winning 45 games. Hayward is playing really well, and with him coming off the bench and Miles Bridges coming back into the lineup, this team may surprise some teams in the East. Like all the rookies so far, Brandon Miller has shown glimpses of what he can be, but I don’t believe he’s gonna reach anything close to his potential this season.
It’s gonna be interesting to see what the Spurs do because with potentially 3 picks, and expiring deals with McDermott, Cedi, Mamu coming off the books and their 3 two-way contracts. I can see Cedi getting re-signed, but I’m not sure about McDermott; he’s one of the few shooters on the team and brings a veteran presence to a young team
McDermott is in a trade before the deadline this year. He’s lost his minutes to Cedi. Hopefully to a competitor looking for some shooting.
The Hornets have a better than bad chance of making the playoffs in the East. Only Bos, Phi, Bucks are the only sure things to make the playoffs in the East. That leaves 7 spots for at least the play-in and Cha can fall right into that mix with ‘the abusers’ return (I think that’s how I’ll reference him from now on. Well done!).
The Toronto pick is almost certainly going to convey barring them winning the lottery or jumping into the top 4. There is no consensus top pick unlike next year (Connor Flagg) so they’re better off waiting a year before fully buying into the tank.
Also don’t forget the Hornets could just pull a Dallas Mavericks. If things are close they could just lose a few games to keep their pick.