Vincent Ellis: Also, it’s highly likely Dwane Casey will be a candidate for the coaching opening … as soon as they fill the president of basketball ops post. Time frame for president spot? Sometime around the first week of June.
Toronto Raptors Rumors
It’s why West also told me he’s pondering an offer to formally join the N.B.A.’s crusade, in conjunction with the National Basketball Players Association, to promote a more open dialogue about mental health and ultimately unveil a new leaguewide program to help players in the area of mental wellness. The campaign most recently featured the All-Stars DeMar DeRozan of the Toronto Raptors and Kevin Love of the Cleveland Cavaliers as the stars of a new public service announcement. “They want me to get involved with that and I might,” West said. “But I think the younger players have more of a voice than I do. I don’t know why I go through these spells, but I’ve found a way to cope with it myself. I can always see light at the end of the tunnel, regardless of how much I battle my own personal depression. And it doesn’t put me in any personal danger. But I’m very hard on myself to this day.”
Shams Charania: The Toronto Raptors interviewed Jerry Stackhouse, head coach of G League affiliate Raptors 905, last week in Chicago for the team’s head coach opening, league sources tell Yahoo.
One name brought up often in recent days has been Toronto’s DeMar DeRozan, who could become available should the Raptors look to make wholesale changes following a third straight loss to LeBron James and the Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference playoffs. Wiggins’ Canadian roots could make him an attractive option for the Raptors and good reason to hope that they could get the best out of him while playing in his backyard. In some ways, DeRozan could provide a good blueprint for Wiggins to follow. DeRozan didn’t become a real star in the league until his fifth year and has proven to be effective even though he isn’t a knockdown three-point shooter. But his game is also similar to Butler’s, so it is hard to see how a swap like that would give the Wolves what they are looking for in terms of a different look aside their leader.
When you talk about your free agency, knowing you’re restricted, is it still your top preference to come back? […] Fred VanVleet: “Nothing’s changed for me. [Dwane Casey] was a big part of that, just my familiarity and comfort level and obviously, I was playing a lot of minutes, and, you know, a coach could come in and it may not work out that way. But I can’t worry about that. I’m going to be loyal to the organization that gave me a chance and I love the city of Toronto, I love the fans, I love the people here, and I would love to be back. So hopefully it can work out. Obviously, you’d like to be wanted. You want all parties to find a way to make it work. And that’s what we’re gonna shoot for. We’ll see what happens in the next few weeks.”
Kristian Winfield: Masai Ujiri on Raptors coaching search: “It’s a tough place because you have to find that balance. But you can’t always think of the team now, you also have to think of the future.. You have think of the vision as a whole.”
