Pro Bball Report

Covering the Toronto Raptors & visiting NBA teams at the ACC

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The NBA Should Embrace Social Distancing

The NBA Should Embrace Social Distancing to resume play in April

Everyone finally seems to have gotten onboard treating COVID 19 as a serious outbreak as the reality of world leaders, celebrities and sports figures coming down with the virus made headlines and forced change. However, in the race to do the right thing and accept the recommendations of medical experts, the “collective we” still aren’t always listening.

Events, schools, and even some venues like…

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NBA Should Take The Lead On COVID 19

NBA should take the lead on COVID 19 to protect fans, not banning media to protect players

There is a lot of concern about the COVID 19 virus and it’s potential impact on many aspects of our personal freedom and normal daily activities, activities like attending sporting events with large numbers of fans, but so far in North America no one seems to be  doing anything effective beyond wishful thinking and banning the media from locker roomsis doing less than nothing. The NBA has been a…

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The Raptors Stealth Reload

Raptors Masai Ujiri has managed a Stealth Reload

All the talk about the Toronto Raptors heading into this season was about when President Masai Ujiri would throw in the towel and move out Kyle Lowry, Marc Gasol and/or Serge Ibaka for future assets to begin the inevitable rebuild in the post Kawhi Leonard era. Paraphasing Ujiri’s response, hold my beer….

Never once suggesting his defending NBA Champion team would slink quietly back into the…

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Raptors Marc Gasol Has a Championship Hangover

Shooting 1-16 to start the season, Raptors Marc Gasol Has a Championship Hangover

After winning an NBA World Championship and a FIBA World Championship in the same summer, maybe it shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that the Raptors big center Marc Gasol seems to be suffering from a bit of a championship hangover early in the new NBA season.

Gasol was held out of contact drills at the start of the Raptors training camp and only saw limited action in two of Toronto’s four…

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76ers Bet Big Men Will Win The NBA East

Smash-mouth basketball is back in the NBA as 76ers Bet Big Men Will Win The East

It’s only “opening week” in the NBA, but the Philadelphia 76ers sent a message in their home opener against the Celtics, small ball is out and big MEN will determine who will win the East.

ESPN’s Tim Bontemps grasped what was going on in Philly right away.

The Philadelphia 76ers spent the offseason building a team focused on a very specific identity: being big and physical and imposing their will…

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Raptors Look Better Than Just Good In Home Opener

By Frank McLean

Tuesday night the Raptors opened up their 25th season in the NBA by finishing off  business from last year’s championship run by handing out their championship rings and raising their championship banner.

The rings are one of a kind, the diamonds have 14 carats and 650 of them total. Ring celebrations are rare if you are a Toronto sports fan and these rings are one of a kind.

I…

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Toronto Raptors Open The Season With Confidence

"People are sleeping on us," Toronto Raptors Serge Ibaka

The 2019 NBA World Champion Toronto Raptors will open the 2019-20 regular season for the NBA on Tuesday night with confidence despite all the changes that occurred during the summer. After absorbing the shock of NBA Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard’s departure to L.A., just about everyone who follows basketball has been coming to terms with the fact that this team is still pretty good.

“We still good…

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Raptors Get No Respect Again

Raptors Get No Respect In Preseason Projections for this year

You’d think after averaging 53.5 wins over the past six seasons and an NBA championship last year the talking heads at ESPN and elsewhere would be giving Raptors president Masai Ujiri a little more respect when it comes to building a winning program? But no, instead there’s a debate if Toronto will even make the postseason. Talk about no respect.

It takes a lot of effort to ignore the returning…

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Raptors Bet On Undrafted Rookie With Huge Hands

Raptors bet on another Undrafted Rookie, a guard with huge hands, Terence Davis

If you’ve been looking for a big name or proven veteran to bolster the Raptors rotation for the upcoming season, President Masai Ujiri hasn’t been listening. After signing a pair of young forwards that weren’t given a new contract by their old clubs, Ujiri has dipped back into the undrafted pool of talent to scoop up a combo guard from Ole Miss, Terence Davis.

Sources: Undrafted Ole Miss guard…

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Raptors Give Rondae Hollis-Jefferson A Second Chance

Raptors are giving Nets cast-off Rondae Hollis-Jefferson a second chance

The Toronto Raptors have signed another young forward who can’t shoot giving Nets cast-off Rondae Hollis-Jefferson a second chance to prove himself in the NBA.

Free agent forward Rondae Hollis-Jefferson has agreed to a one-year deal with the Toronto Raptors, league sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @Stadium. Hollis-Jefferson gets fresh opportunity in Raptors development system and sets himself up for…

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Raptors Sign Reclamation Project Stanley Johnson

Raptors sign a young Reclamation Project in Stanley Johnson

The Toronto Raptors have signed the former Detroit Piston 2015 NBA 8th overall draft pick Stanley Johnson to a two-year $7.5 million contract that has a player option for year two as reported in Hoops Rumors  (among other places).

To put it mildly, Johnson hasn’t lived up to his draft position and the Pistons dumped him on the Pelicans last year who in turn didn’t bother issuing the 23-year-old…

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Can Raptors Masai Ujiri Poach Another Superstar?

Can Raptors Masai Ujiri poach another Superstar this summer?

Last summer Raptors President Masai Ujiri pulled off a blockbuster trade to poach Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green from the Spurs on expiring contracts and they came thru with an NBA Championship. However, Ujiri knew the risks and both players have taken their talents to L.A. in free agency leaving Toronto without a superstar for next season.

The only real questions for Masai now are, after getting…

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Clippers Bet Their Future On An Injured Paul George

The Clippers have Bet Their Future on an Injured Paul George

Apparently the price of admission to land the Raptors free agent Kawhi Leonard was a second superstar and the Clippers bet their future in a big way to pull Paul George off the Thunder in a trade that should remind everyone of a Nets team in 2013 that gave up their future for a shot at a championship.

The Clippers are sending Oklahoma City their unprotected 2022, 2024 and 2026 picks, their…

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Why Canadian Tax No Longer Scares NBA Free Agents

Why Canadian income taxes No Longer scare away NBA Free Agents

It’s mostly been misinformation that scares American athletes when it comes to paying Canadian income tax, often perpetrated by American media working in Canada who simply put, just aren’t in the right tax bracket, but any NBA free agent with an adviser worth anything will know this is one thing he doesn’t have to worry about.

As Adam Scherer, Tax Partner at Crowe Soberman LLP suggests, Ka’whi…

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By Going All-In The Warriors Sabotaged Their Dynasty

By Going All-In during the NBA Finals, the Warriors have Sabotaged their Dynasty

It’s admirable that Golden State fought to the very end of the NBA Finals, never giving up hope, but by going all-in the Warriors have sabotaged their dynasty and opened the door for the rest of the West to stake their own claim next season.

And it didn’t have to happen. Whether Kevin Durant stayed or left in free agency this team had a chance to get back to the Finals again next season if only…

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Kevin Durant Will Start For The Warriors, But

Kevin Durant Will Start For The Warriors, But

An hour before game time Warriors head coach finally confirmed all the speculation, Kevin Durant will play in game five, but it wasn’t until the third query that Kerr admitted Durant would start.

“Are we really going to go into it that deeply?” Kerr responded to the opening question. “He can play now. He’s been cleared, so he’s going to play.

“We’ll start him and play him in short bursts and see…

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Toronto Raptors First Of Three Chances For A Championship

It's the Toronto Raptors First of Three Chances for an NBA Championship

Everyone in Toronto wants to see the Raptors close out the Golden State Warriors in game five and no player wants to give their opponent a second chance, but this is just the first of three opportunities to win an NBA Championship for We The North.

“There’s still a lot of work to do,” Raptors head coach Nick Nurse said. “We got to keep some focus and improve on some things and make some…

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