House of Rumors
OG Anunoby has finally been connected to Portland in the news. This is what public negotiation looks like. Plus: Erik takes a victory lap for picking The Celtics to win the East.
The whispers surrounding OG Anunoby and a departure from the Toronto Raptors, as well as Portland’s potential as a destination for the 5th year wing finally hit the public NBA rumor mill on Tuesday. Bleacher Report’s Jake Fischer’s latest column, eerily titled “Does OG Anunoby want out of Toronto?” has effectively kicked off the public negotiations, setting off fan reactions in both Toronto and Portland.
While most public discourse following the draft lottery has centered on Jerami Grant or DeAndre Ayton, Anunoby is the Blazers’ No. 1 target. And we are already seeing the Raptors try to get in front of the rumor, and a potential trade request, with an asking price they deem “low”: Josh Hart and the No. 7 pick.
From Fischer:
However, league personnel believe Toronto would require far more than Hart and the seventh pick to part with Anunoby, considered to be a darling of Raptors lead executive Masai Ujiri. Anunoby's trade value is seen as greater than Detroit's known asking price for Grant: two first-round picks or a first and a promising rookie-scale prospect.
Most of the reactions are sympathetic to Toronto’s well-regarded front office and their reputation of getting over on other teams, leaving them feeling screwed after the deal. Their President, Masai Ujiri, is the NBA’s unofficial king of transactions.
But the question nobody seems to want to ask is what happens to your asking price when your darling doesn’t want to be with you? And effectively breaks up with you in public? And that darling is represented by Klutch Sports, who have a reputation for making things ugly, and also represent the Blazers brain trust of Chauncey Billups and Joe Cronin?
There are also the basketball realities that make the stance of Anunoby being so
coveted by Toronto look funny in the light. Anunoby, on an ideal Toronto day, is the 5th option for the Raptors. Rookie of the Year Scottie Barnes will likely only see his usage continue to go up. Meanwhile, Pascal Siakam, Fred VanVleet, and Gary Trent Jr. will also continue to demand shots. And if Barnes is really on a superstar path as the Raptors hope, the path for Anunoby to be anything more than a supporting 3-and-D player is basically all but gone. Not because of his talent but because of the team’s structure. The asking price and his role on the team aren’t adding up.
Toronto’s reputation as a well-run franchise is entirely held up by the lore of Ujiri and his underlings. And there are great reasons why. The Carmelo Anthony trade when he ran the Nuggets. The Raptors’ run of success with him in charge, as well as the 2019 NBA Championship, and the move to trade for Kawhi Leonard, despite not knowing if he would re-sign, cemented his legacy as a Basketball Don.
But the way in which people are referring to a No. 7 pick and Josh Hart, a lottery pick and a starter caliber player, as a starting point, is The Prestige Zone at work. They’re characterizing such a haul for a fifth option as low. Bad even. Doesn’t that seem odd?
It’s the same type of chatter that allowed Daryl Morey to escape criticism for how he handled the Ben Simmons trade request, as well as what he got back in return until the failure of the trade could no longer be denied. A lottery pick and a starter are not much more than what the Sixers just got for Ben Simmons, a max contract player. There’s no logical reason to say such a package for OG Anunoby is low, especially when the Raptors themselves do not value him as more than a 5th option. Only the prestige can drive someone to actually believe this as more than a negotiation tactic.
Also, we have to talk about the other rumor connected to Anunoby: Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz. The Raptors were connected to Jusuf Nurkic at the trade deadline, so their interest in a center does not start and end with Gobert. Oh, and did I mention Nurk has the same agent as OG? Of course, the Raptors would rather have Gobert. So would I! But this isn’t about what you want for Toronto. It’s about what they have the leverage to negotiate.
The most reasonable take to have about the latest Toronto rumors is this: Gobert, like Hart + No. 7, is a wish list, not an accurate appraisal of value. Of course, nobody is going to publicly expect the Blazers to get a good deal until they do. And nobody is going to publicly expect the Raptors to see a homegrown player ask to leave until they do.
But what we are seeing here is public negotiation and public perception at work in the form of trade rumors. How players are valued in the media doesn’t come out of thin air. There is always a reason for every rumor.
In the case of the cost of what it takes to get either Anunoby or Jerami Grant, we’re firmly in the house of mirrors. Asking prices are closer than they appear when things get complicated. And in the case of Anunoby and the Raptors, that complication might already be here, something very few saw coming. Meanwhile, Grant has his own complication, approaching 30 and not matching the timeline of a Cade Cunningham-led team.
If you have your third eye open and listen to the Bulls vs. Blazers podcast with myself and Sean Highkin, today’s news about Anunoby wouldn’t have been a shock at all. With the draft and free agency fast approaching, the public negotiations between the Blazers and the rest of the league are only beginning. And the possibilities may not be as limiting as some would want you to believe.
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Victory Lap
The NBA Finals are set and I need to celebrate. They called me crazy when I compared Ime Udoka coaching the Celtics to when the Warriors hired Steve Kerr. And there they are, facing off in the NBA Finals.
And yet, the Jays and Marcus Smart have me convinced that they’re ready to weather any storm. I’m banking on the presence of Udoka galvanizing the Celtics in a similar way that hiring Steve Kerr shifted things for the Warriors, by bringing a new voice, perspective, and strategy to a group of accomplished young players.
It’s rare that I’m this right about a preseason prediction and I’m more than a little upset I didn’t bet on a Celtics-Warriors Finals in the preseason. Thank you for indulging my personal vanity. But thank god Jimmy Butler missed, not just because it helped me secure by Celtics Win The East future, but also because I want the Finals to be fun.
I honestly can’t remember the last time a Celtics-Warriors game WASN’T fun. And with teams finally getting out of the Conference Finals gauntlet, gaining the ability to rest between games, I think the Celtics will benefit the most from the rest.
Steph Curry is the most well-conditioned athlete in the NBA and perhaps the most well-conditioned athlete in NBA history, so he likely won’t wear down. But something to watch over the course of the Finals is the Celtics getting healthier as the series goes on. Golden State won’t worry about Steph’s durability but as the series wears on, what about Klay? What about Draymond? The schedule also gives Boston an opportunity to get Robert Williams a full week of rest if they sit him for Game 1 and bring him back for Game 2.
I’m definitely pot-committed to the Celtics here, I’ll be honest about that. And Golden State’s defense is at least as good as Miami’s if not better. Yet, I have a feeling the Celtics will play liberated for a couple of reasons. Not only did they finally get over a mental hump they’ve been climbing for four years since they lost Game 7 of the 2018 Conference Finals at home, but the Bucks and Heat were both physically stronger than them at almost every position.
The Celtics have been taking extra ice baths because they’ve been getting beat up. Golden State will wear you down, but not like that. And while their defense ranked 7th in turnover rate, I don’t know if the Warriors will force as many turnovers against the Celtics when they are not as strong as Miami, or even Milwaukee.
Boston hasn’t had the strength advantage since the first round. Golden State’s perimeter skill and Curry’s movement present unique challenges of their own. But after two grueling physical battles, outside of Draymond Green and Kevon Looney, the Celtics will enjoy advantages they’ve missed in the last two rounds.
That, as well as having nobody on the roster who can guard Jayson Tatum, has me sticking with Udoka, Damon Stoudemire, Aaron Miles, and the Portland Celtics.
Finals prediction: Celtics in 6.