Built Ford Tough

That is my opinion as well and was surprised to see how many Raptor fans (on Real GM and a Raptors board I visit from time to time) would rather have Gay over Iguodala. If I had to guess I'd say that more wanted Gay than Iggy and I was genuinely surprised by that. I really didn't even have to think about it when I read this article earlier today. It was Iguodala right away for me. I wouldn't be mad if they dealt the pick for Gay, but I honestly can't say I'd be all that happy with the trade either. He is just kind of "meh" for me.

The funny thing is that the "Barnes is overrated" crowd has probably made him underrated. Was he overrated coming out of high school when he was being hyped as the next great NBA swingman? In retrospect, yeah, most definitely. Is he overrated ass a fringe top 5 pick in a draft that is deep but devoid of real star potential? I don't see it. I think you are living in the past a bit too much in regards to Barnes, though. I really don't see anybody hyping him up as anymore than a second option, Luol Deng type of player (but with more offensive potential and less defensive potential). Is it really that difficult to fathom Barnes developing into that kind of player? Not if you ask me.

The Raptors have been linked to being interested in both of these two. Hypothetically speaking if the Raptors could choose between the two and the price would be the exact same (lets say 8th pick and Davis) who would you rather Toronto trade for?

He'll win it but I really don't think it is as much of a no-brainer pick as people are making it out to be. Sure, his stats are brilliant, but how many games has he really been tested? The Kings' defense has been absolutely ridiculous in this playoff run. They simply don't give up any great scoring chances, allow Quick to see everything and keep every shot to the outside. The odd breakdown they have Quick is usually there to bail them out, but that is like once a game at most. Don't get me wrong, Quick is a great goalie. He absolutely carried this team in the regular season. As far as I am concerned, it is an absolute travesty that he isn't nominated for the Hart because as far as I am concerned he is definitely the MVP this year, but the Kings defense has been far more impressive than Quick has in the playoffs. I really think Kopitar is just as deserving as Quick is, if not more. He has been dominant in all 3 zones, has scored some huge goals and is simply playing awesome all-around hockey. I wouldn't disagree with Quick winning it, but Kopitar would be my pick.

It is pretty damn hard to be aggressive when this happens: 9:59 Gary Neal shooting foul (Kevin Durant draws the foul) 9:15 Tim Duncan offensive foul (Derek Fisher draws the foul) 9:02 Kawhi Leonard shooting foul (Kevin Durant draws the foul) 8:40 Manu Ginobili shooting foul (James Harden draws the foul) 8:18 Manu Ginobili offensive foul (Kevin Durant draws the foul) 6:56 Manu Ginobili shooting foul (Russell Westbrook draws the foul) 6:35 Stephen Jackson personal foul (Kevin Durant draws the foul) 5:52 Manu Ginobili offensive foul (James Harden draws the foul) 5:13 Stephen Jackson personal foul (Kevin Durant draws the foul) OKC shot 12 free throws in a 4 minute stretch. San Antonio had at least 6 points taken from them. Even if you want to argue Durant's drawn charge was legit (it wasn't, but I'm not going to argue that) they still had Leonard's 3 wiped away, a BS offensive call on Duncan and a non-call on a Parker shot. The worst thing about all of this? Like you said, OKC was the better team and deserved to win this series. They got back into the game in the 3rd quarter because of them simply shutting down the Spurs offense and executing their own. There is a damn good chance they would've won this game even if it wasn't for the preferential treatment from the refs. Even if they didn't come back and it did go to game 7, they would've had a great chance at that as well. Unfortunately, we will never know any of this because of how garbage the officiating was. You may not care, but me personally, I'm pretty pissed off that we just saw one of the best series in a long time be completely taken over by the zebras.

Quick question for you, which player would you rather have: Player A: 17.2 ppg, 4 rpg, 2 apg with a 53 TS% and a 14.4 PER Player B: 19 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 2 apg with a 52 TS% and a 16.8 PER Player A is paid under $8M and Player B is on a max contract.

Definitely. I won't lie, if I were on the floor I probably would've bolted right to the locker room after the garbage that I saw in this game and I'm usually the first person to criticize players for nto shaking hands after a series finishes. It is such a shame that such a great series ended like this.

They are both trending on Twitter right now, haha. The Thunder have played fantastic ball down the stretch, though. It is just a shame it will all be overshadowed by the garbage officiating. Actually, it probably won't since it is the Thunder. If it was Miami it would be huge news, but I'm sure it will be swept under the rug since it is OKC.

I give up on this game. You are telling me that wasn't a foul on Ibaka based on how the calls have been going on the other end of the floor? I can't even fathom how pathetic an OKC/Miami series would be if they can manage to comeback against the C's.

This is just ridiculous.

Well, the refs are on the Thunder pay roll, so they thought they'd even it out. That last foul on Manu was legit, though. EDIT: Scratch that. Just saw the replay and that last foul was not legit at all, lol.

Brilliant.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2012/06/05/SP421OT4KO.DTL#ixzz1x2yl3kJE Basically, they are dangling their 7th pick, 30th pick (or the 38th pick) and Wright for an upgrade at the small forward spot. If they can't get any team with a vet SF to bite on that package, they will then turn their attention to trying to move up in the draft to land MKG. I'd say they have a better chance of getting a vet than moving up to draft MKG. If both of those fail, the author suggests that they will keep the pick and either draft Jared Sullinger or Jeremy Lamb or take a chance on a risk/reward player like PJ3 or Terrence Jones.

Keep in mind that a big part of the reason why the Cavs drafted Thompson at 4 last year is because him and Irving were close. It is no secret that Barnes and Irving are very good friends, add in basically the ideal fit on the Cavs roster and I think somebody will have to absolutely blow Cleveland away or Barnes is either going to have to completely shit the bed during the combine and workouts. I find the latter high unlikely given Barnes will measure out well with his NBA frame, will likely look good in workouts with his jumper and is probably going to be the best interview of any prospect this year.

Finally some workout news from ol' Dougie: http://www.thestar.com/sports/basketball/nba/raptors/article/1206194--nba-draft-raptors-head-to-chicago-combine-to-gather-info-on-top-prospects Of course, I'd be surprised if it means anything because I still stand by my prediction at the end of the season that the pick will be dealt for a veteran small forward. Also had this to say in regards to who is on the Raptors radar:

http://tracking.si.com/2012/06/04/memphis-grizzlies-rudy-gay-trade/ At the deadline the Raptors dealt Barbosa for a 2nd, giving them exactly enough cap room prior to July 1st to make a trade of the 8th pick and Linas Kleiza for Rudy Gay. Coincidence? I'd be surprised if he isn't dealt to either the Raptors or the Warriors for their lottery picks, though.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2012/writers/sam_amick/06/06/harrison-barnes-2012-nba-draft-cleveland-cavaliers/index.html#ixzz1x1HFqVwK Not really ground-breaking news since a lot of people already know that the Cavs are very high on Barnes, but seeing Amick reporting this makes me definitely believe that Barnes is on top of the Cavs draft board, even if somebody like Bradley Beal or MKG were to fall to them.

http://espnmediazone.com/us/press-releases/2012/05/espnu-to-televise-2012-nba-draft-combine-june-7-8/ For anybody in Canada looking to watch it, I believe it will air on NBA TV Canada, but I do not think it will be live. I know the combine isn't what it used to, but I still figured I'd make this thread for the draft junkies like myself who still get enjoyment out of watching the event.

What does that make Harden then, who flops twice as much as Parker? Whatever though, it isn't a big deal. Just a pet peeve of mine. I don't have a problem with flopping as much as most, I just hate people who root for a team with major floppers calling out other teams or players for flopping.

Wasn't that an 8 second violation? I thought the ball was inbounded with 23 seconds on the clock, but I can't remember. So even if it was off of Leonard, it should still be Spurs ball. That is a moot point, though, since it looks like it was off Sefolosha. EDIT: Nevermind about the 8 second call, I was wrong.

And Harden ices it with a bullshit step back three over Leonard. It seems everything goes right for this OKC team late in games. Even awful possessions like that end up with ridiculous baskets, lol.

Is Perkins fouling out good for OKC or San Antonio? I'm leaning towards OKC.

What a moronic pass from Harden.

Aren't you cheering for OKC? Have you watched Harden and Westbrook play before? Parker and Manu flop, I'm not saying otherwise, but it is laughable when people cheering for the Thunder call other players out for flopping.

I really wish the Spurs would stop teasing us and just go away already. These runs they keep on going on are annoying because you know they aren't going to come back and win. The first half of game 6 will be huge for them. They can't afford to fall into another early hole and expect to come back.