shookem

Geez, I dunno man, that's the reason I'm so high on this guy, because in the games I've seen, he's defended really well.

He's had more then 2 steals in 5 out of 8 games, including two 5 steal games and a four steal game. This year, so far, he has 20 steals, last year in 31 games he had 25!

Not to mention the two 5 block games he's had so far this year.
I see Gay as the best defender of all the top prospects so far.

He's also averaging 6 rpg in 28 mpg.

All this after the night when his common comparision (although, pretty false as far as I'm concerned) Marvin Williams had a career night. 26 points, 7 rebounds in 25 minutes, damn.

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Benis007

I guess only time will tell. In today's NBA you need a lock down SF to match up against Kobe, T-Mac, VC, Lebron, Prince, Melo, and Pierce.

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shookem

yeah I think defensively Joey will get his game together and hopefully (only time will tell) be our guy to defend those players.
Size wise he's as big and probably in some cases stronger.
Having said that there aren't too many guys in the league that can shut down the players you mentioned, so to say you need that is true, but harder then it sounds.

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Benis007

Agreed

I didn't mean stop those players as much as limit what they do.

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AirBonner

I think trading an established dominant player for a prospect is idiotic. I also think its really hard to judge these players before after the ncaa tournament. There have been lingering questions about Gay's willingness to deal with contact and ability to take control of important games. Hopefully he'll show both when it comes to crunch time but its hard to say before then.

charlz

thank you monsterbosh for qualifying my post. I am in whole hearted agreement that bosh is a rare player who you build around. But so was Tracey McGrady. Bosh has been through alot here in toronto - I mean he suffered through a punishing rookie season and what did he get in return? Hoffa.

If Babs even gets word behind closed doors (like he did with Vince but failed to act) he needs to have a plan in place so that there is not the depreciation in Boshes value if he ever had to be moved. Carter could have been worth alot more on the night that Hoffa was drafted then when he tanked it and score 14 ppg after demanding a trade.

The good news is bosh is not a crybaby like vince - he is a quality guy who does not rely on women (his mom and wife) to make his own decisions.

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“I may be wrong... but I doubt it”
--Charles Barkley

Rhubarb

I think people tend to forget the draft is but a lottery in itself. There's no guarantee the player you pick has what it takes to make it at NBA level, let alone reach and fulfill his 'upside'.

We know what we have with Chris, he's a proven commodity in the league. Hell, some may even forget he's still improving. Aldridge will be talked up alot in during the course of the year, and I've no doubt a few outlandish comparisons will be thrown his way to make most drool (I've heard Dwight Howard amongst others). But the fact remains: he's still unproven at NBA level. You don't go trading away proven players of the calibre of Chris to put all your cards down on an unproven guy like Aldridge.

Skipping all hypotheticals, if Aldridge is the guy for our pick come June '06, then we draft him with the view of bettering the team and continuing the building around Bosh. Simple as that. If he isn't, and someone else like Rudy Gay is, you can't draft him purely as insurance for the worst case scenario of Bosh leaving. Whilst covering your bases to an extent is essential in this 'business', you can't get too pre-occupied with such 'what-if' situations, and lose sight of now.

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Tim Duncan: "People should stop talking about Bosh as a future force. He's already a force, right here and now."

"I don't really look at guys and memorize players, but (Bosh) is very impressive. He can shoot, he has an inside game, physical at times, he's pretty good...he's more than holding his own." - Shaq

"I really like him...to me he's already pretty special," Mavericks star Dirk Nowitzki said after continually getting beat to the basket by Bosh. "He's going to be a great player in this league."

"Chris Bosh really has emerged to be a star in this league. There are more than the top three (in the 2003 draft)." - Dwyane Wade

I love everything about him, I love his game, I love his work ethic. He definitely has my approval - Kobe Bryant"

Rhubarb

I don't think a guy like Rudy can be projected in a set-in-stone position.

If we pick him up, I can picture Sam using both Rudy and Joey in an alternating system between both the 2 and the 3. Both have the capabilities to defend both the guards and the forwards, and in a game situation, it matters little in their case which position they defend.

Either way, would be nice to see two guys who potentially could be defensive stalwarts on the wings.

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Tim Duncan: "People should stop talking about Bosh as a future force. He's already a force, right here and now."

"I don't really look at guys and memorize players, but (Bosh) is very impressive. He can shoot, he has an inside game, physical at times, he's pretty good...he's more than holding his own." - Shaq

"I really like him...to me he's already pretty special," Mavericks star Dirk Nowitzki said after continually getting beat to the basket by Bosh. "He's going to be a great player in this league."

"Chris Bosh really has emerged to be a star in this league. There are more than the top three (in the 2003 draft)." - Dwyane Wade

I love everything about him, I love his game, I love his work ethic. He definitely has my approval - Kobe Bryant"

Junkyard Dog13

PG Calderon
SG Grahem
SF Gay
PF Bosh
C insert name here, wish if Sheldon Williams fall s to Denver's pick but seems if he will go top 10 now

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changv10

you never have enough talented big man. check out detroit ... they have wallace x 2 and mcdyess. they also have davis and milicic rotting in the bench.

If Aldridge is available when we pick, I'd say pick him up. Otherwise, Tiago Splitter or Shelden Williams would be good big men to pick up. I'd pass on Bargani. Teams would have a ton of trouble if we show a lineup of Villanueva, Bosh, Aldridge. All young, all tall and athletic ... that's the future of the nba. Long talented big man are huge commodities.

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MOFOs & Raptors rule

icehawk

1. Don't trade Bosh.
Especially for a future prospect. Chicago screwed up when they dealt Elton Brand for Tyson Chandler. Like Rhubarb said, the whole thing is a lottery. Aldridge might end up to be a Kwame Brown, who knows? It's impossible to tell right now. However, one thing that is certain is that Bosh IS a star in this league and he's only getting better. Build around Bosh.

2. Rudy isn't a SG.
He's more of a 4 than he is a 2. I'm sure he can play stretches at guard but I wouldn't keep him there for too long, he'd be far more effective playing small forward in the NBA with his size and athleticism. If we get the top pick, I wouldn't mind picking him up. He can do pretty much everything and could be our 3 for the future.

Lots of people are worried that Bosh will jet out of Toronto in the future, but that's a possibility for any player. He just wants to play for a decent team. He's not worried about the other things, that's it. We have 3 of the top 10 rookies and they're only going to get better next year (don't forget about Roko too!). We have a top pick in this year's draft and a late lottery pick. We also have a lot of cap space after the end of next season to sign a big name free agent. Bosh, Villanueva, Calderon, Graham, Ukic, the two firsts (Rudy Gay and Rudy Fernandez, maybe?), and a big name FA (Jamaal Magloire?) looks to me like a good, young roster who can make the playoffs and keep Bosh if everything works out well.

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"I'm just tired of being treated like a cheap prostitute" - Mike James

icehawk

While this is true, they're also set at all the other positions while we aren't. We don't have a Prince, a Billups, or a Hamilton. I think picking up a power forward should be avoided.. next year Bosh and Villanueva will be by far our two best players and we'll need help on the perimeter.

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"I'm just tired of being treated like a cheap prostitute" - Mike James

85 lakers

It's funny ... I wrote this just yesterday about the Raptors.

http://blogs.foxsports.com/JRM

A frontline of Aldridge, Bosh, and Charlie V would be among the most promising in the NBA.

bigbabyjesus