We’re seated in the base seats at the Miami Arena on Monday a few hours before kickoff, catching up with a few assistant coaches and staff members as the Raptors do their pregame work.
All of a sudden, a ball bounces in our direction, then a second one, certainly not thrown hard but enough to catch our attention.
On the other side of the court, smiling but really wanting to get to work, is Otto Porter Jr. and, yes, he’s eager to play as he deals with a hamstring issue. The Raptors want him and really need him.
“This guy is a great shooter,” says one of the trainers. “I mean, this guy is a great shooter. I can’t wait until he plays.
The Raptors, however, aren’t really in a rush to get the nine-year-old veteran healthy and on the pitch. The day he signed, a senior official told me that if they got out of Porter what the Golden State Warriors got last year – 63 games and about 22 minutes played – they would be okay with that. . They knew his injury was over – he was out about three years before last season – and felt the risk/reward of a guaranteed one-year contract (with a player option for a second season) was worth it. .
That’s because no matter what anyone thinks of the Raptors’ second unit, they just don’t have enough shooting. Not even close. And if they get a career 40 percent three-point shooter even for three-quarters of the season, they’ll be way ahead of where they were a year ago.
It’s no secret in the organization that away shooting is a problem, but the feeling is that Porter will meet that need when he returns from the hamstring issue, at least until in February, when the trade chatter begins and the Raptors can decide how they all are. season.
Lowry’s dilemma
Hang around the Miami Heat for a few days and it’s clear no one really knows what’s going on with Kyle Lowry.
He’s had more jaded games than good ones to start the season, the Heat don’t look offensively sharp, they don’t guard particularly well, and Dr. Lowry just doesn’t look at himself.
Yes, there are issues off the pitch that still weigh on his mind, but the strange thing is that he doesn’t seem to feel much enjoyment from playing. A guy who knows the Heat inside out says he thinks the last time he saw Lowry smile on a basketball court was in Toronto last season. It was unlike any of the Raptors games in Miami.
It can’t be easy being on the Heat and all the talk of “culture” has to run out. It’s not a fun-loving group and stern head coach Erik Spoelstra doesn’t embody much fun or create a relaxed atmosphere.
I remember talking to Lowry and people close to him when he finally left the Raptors and got to choose where he would go. He envisioned a lot of golf (he plays a lot now), a good team atmosphere (can’t say that was evident last weekend) and a great end to what could be a Hall of Fame career. fame. He doesn’t understand that and I’m sure it eats at him a bit.
No one I spoke to in Miami has a clear idea of what might happen to Lowry if the season continues to go south (the Heat were 2-3 after five games, with a game at Golden State on Thursday evening). An exchange is a possibility; Does Lowry and Duncan Robinson to the Lakers for Russell Westbrook and a draft pick make sense for anyone other than the only guy I heard about in the arena last Saturday? Maybe Lowry is just destined to play his role in a city he chose under circumstances he couldn’t have seen coming.
And if so, so be it. He won better.
Relegated to the trash?
It was a talking point when NBA commissioner Adam Silver mentioned the “R” word – relegation – last week, but it’s also a ridiculous idea and everyone in the NBA knows it.
It doesn’t work for the business model, it doesn’t work competitively; it’s a great idea for British football, it’s stupid for North American basketball.
Every conversation about it went like this:
“What do you think ?”
” What will they do ? Promoting two G League teams owned by NBA teams and forcing former NBA teams to play minor league basketball in their cities and arenas? »
Ridiculous.
I get that tanking could become a thing this season with Victor Wembanyama and Scoot Henderson on the horizon, but I also think the four worst teams will have split up so well by April that that might not be the issue. which many think it will be.
But I also agree that this idea of ”relegation” must disappear from people’s minds now.
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