Why are the Raptors stalling in picking their direction?

Are the Raptors re-tooling or rebuilding? Amit Mann and Katie Heindl discuss why they think the Raptors haven't made their choice yet. Full podcast on Pascal Siakam and Summer League takeaways is on the 'Raptors Over Everything' podcast feed and YouTube channel.

Video Transcript

AMIT MANN: But it's the pieces around them which makes the resigning of Jakob and bringing in Dennis Schroder a bit more puzzling. Again, like, I think Schroder-- I think there's more to his three point shooting than he than he showed this past season. Actually, his best three point shooting in his career was when he was with Darko in OKC.

So we'll see what happens there. But yeah, time is running out. And I don't know if they know where to go even at this moment as we record the podcast. And it makes me think about this tweet I sent a few weeks ago, where I was just like, you know, I'm so used to the Raptors front office being a step ahead, but now it feels like they're two steps behind, which is odd.

KATIE HEINDL: I think that's accurate. I mean, I think you-- they kept Jakob because the assumption was that Fred would stay. And then you'd have the kind of core three. And then I think Schroder-- I will quibble with your point-- yeah, he's a vet. I don't know that we've seen yet that he's a leader.

And I don't know if stepping into a locker room that has had problems between the younger players and the older players in terms of criticism, being able to handle criticism, work ethic, things like that-- I don't know that-- maybe it will work because, to me, Dennis Schroder doesn't offer those things. Like, he's never really had to be critical of his teammates. He's never been in a leadership role.

Maybe the younger guys will like that because they'll be like, this guy's more chill, used to skateboard, whatever.

AMIT MANN: Still does, doesn't he? He still does. He's got kids now-- maybe he had to stop it.

KATIE HEINDL: Yeah. And, like, you know, injury.

AMIT MANN: True. True. Liabilities in the contract.

KATIE HEINDL: To me, what you're talking about these kind of being two steps behind, like, now that's so visible.

AMIT MANN: Yeah.

KATIE HEINDL: Falling behind is so visible in the moves that the team kind of made and this, like, scramble pick up for Schroder. It's like, OK, well, we need a PG who's best available. We'll get this guy he was never really part of our plans and who we were looking at.

And now, I will say my sense and what I've heard is other teams are just getting very frustrated with Toronto in dragging their heels, because they want to be in the mix in these big trades, whether it's Tyler Herro or Damian Lillard, but they're waiting to see what the terms are instead of kind of offering up and leading on these trades. They're just like, well, if it's good enough, we'll get into it.

Which, at one point, yes, shrewd business decision. But when you haven't been making great decisions, again, this just looks like stalling. And I think people are going to get a little bit fed up.

AMIT MANN: Yes. Yes. Yes. And it makes you think, as you said, though, is that maybe the Raptors-- like, the Dame sweepstakes are still very open. Yes, he wants to go to Miami. But maybe they think that if you add Damian Lillard to the Toronto Raptors in some capacity and you have-- it could be Scottie Barnes involved in the trade-- I mean, I'm not saying-- that could be what the Blazers are looking for. If I was them, I would too.

But if you were to say that, OK, they have Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby, Gary Trent, Jr., I don't know, Damian Lillard, and Jakob Jakob-- then, like, that's a pretty damn good team for a couple seasons. But, obviously, you would need things to break that way.

And even Tyler Herro too-- like, that's another reason-- like, maybe there's a huge three, four, 12 team trade coming up here where a lot of really good players are going different paths. But at the same time, I think probably, yeah, they're stalling a little bit and they want to see where that goes. And maybe they could think that, hey, if Damian Lillard does get figured out and he's off the market, then Pascal Siakam all of a sudden is the best piece out there for a team to add and a team that wants to compete for a championship.

And maybe the deals get a little bit sweeter-- just a little bit sweeter. And there's reason to believe that, like, they are-- they're stalling, for sure. And I think all of us collectively, like, I've been preaching patience since the season ended. But, hell, I'm getting impatient now. I want a decision made.

And if they come back with a starting lineup of Dennis Schroder, OG Anunoby, Scottie Barnes, Pascal Siakam, Jakob Poeltl-- I mean, I wouldn't hate it-- I guess assuming that that comes with the Pascal Siakam extension. But you know, it's not-- it's not going to be it.