Toronto had to make room for Dion Glover at SG & since they're pretty loaded at PF, they waived him. He's 6'8" 260 lbs. & has shown some flashes of talent while in Chicago. At 6'8", he's a little undersized, but he won't get pushed around too much at 260 lbs. Besides, Weatherspoon is listed at 6'7" & he's starting to play better. Baxter's only in his 2nd year & wouldn't cost more than the minimum. If nothing else, we could stick him on the IL & see what he's got. With our weak PF play, would you pick him up? http://www.nba.com/raptors/news/Raptors_Sign_Glover_PR_040228.html Raptors Sign Glover, Make Roster Moves (February 28, 2004) -- The Toronto Raptors announced Saturday that they have signed free-agent guard Dion Glover for the remainder of the season. Per team policy, financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. In related moves, the team placed guard Alvin Williams on the injured list and waived forward Lonny Baxter. Williams underwent arthroscopic surgery Friday to relieve inflammation from his right knee. Glover, 6-foot-5, 225 pounds, is in his fifth season in the NBA. He averaged career bests of 10.1 points, 4.3 rebounds and 26.6 minutes in 55 games with Atlanta this season. He scored a season-high 23 points November 12 at Phoenix. Glover was waived by the Hawks on February 25. Glover owns a career average of 8.5 points, 3.1 rebounds and 1.6 assists, having played all 273 games with the Hawks. Atlanta selected the Marietta, Georgia native with the 20th pick in the 1999 NBA Draft. He played one season at Georgia Tech, averaging 18.4 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.6 assists in 33 games. Glover earned a gold medal as a member of the USA Basketball team at the Goodwill Games in the summer of 1998. Baxter was acquired in a six-player trade from Chicago on December 1. He averaged 4.2 points, 3.4 rebounds and 13.5 minutes in 36 games with the Raptors. Glover is expected to be in a Toronto uniform tomorrow when the Raptors play host to the Boston Celtics at 1 p.m.
Smoothie, I don't understand your reasoning. As weak as our PF play has been &, as you said, "baxter is a solid young player", why wouldn't we need him, especially, if he can further develop his game & only costs us the minimum? Saleem, We only have 13 players on the roster. So, we do have room for him. No Worries, It's still too early to tell, but he has shown some flashes of real talent. In my opinion, he is (or will be) better than Alton.
I would pick Baxter up. I've seen him play and he has made some very surprising passes for a guy his size. Essentially, he is a younger Clarence Weatherspoon. Tough rebounder and can hit the mid-range. This would be a nice pickup. Stuart
I'm not necessarily saying he'll be in the rotation. It would however, give the team a chance to take a good look at him. Besides that, if he came in hungry & showed the ability to score, rebound, & play some defense, I'd be willing to bet that the coaches would find a way to work him into the lineup. Have you noticed that Weatherspoon's minutes have gone up? The coaches are looking for someone that can score & rebound to take over the position.
well our main priorities for this team is that we need a solid backup point guard and a two dimensional powerforward. although undersized, baxter is a hard working player. he kicked ass in college. the problem is that we have too many pf on our squad, if we take him, who is no doubt a possible talent, who will lose minutes? Cato our defensive minded starter who is a rebound king but only capable of dunking? taylor, our sixth man, who is defensively weak, and just learning how to rebound? weatherspoon, our surprise spark off the bench, who is earning his spot on the rotation with gritty play? or padgett, our offensive, three point shooting token white dude not named pike? yeah we need a consistant powerforward like baxter, but we need to get rid of some of ours first, and then theres the whole question of whether badman is worth keeping over the summer. too many factors, by the time we figure it out, another team will pick him up.
well... IF we picked him up....and IF he showed some promise in practice(what little of that they get these days)...we could conceivably find some room. FOr example....when was the past time PAdge got PT? put him on the IL for a few games...move Cato to the backup C fulltime...start Mo or Spoon....and rotate in Baxter in Spoons old spot. all of that is contingent on him actually deserving it. my point is...it is possible to fit him in...you just have to be creative.
There usually is. However, I like to believe in the old addage that "One man's garbage, is another man's treasure". Let's sign him now.
Why do we want Baxter when we have Spoon? They are essentially the same -- undersized fours who hustle. Baxter is younger but Spoon has a guaranteed contract and may have more range on his jump shot.
