The Rap-Up: Could Gradey Dick win All-Star Game MVP?

Tanking season be damned! Despite the many losses, the Toronto Raptors may still have an All-Star on the roster.

How’s that for a click-baiting headline?

All-Star voting has commenced and the Toronto Raptors have 4 opponents this week, each with at least one All-Star on their respective rosters. Thanks to a new format, the Raptors may have an All-Star of their own!

The NBA introduced its latest attempt at drumming up interest for All-Star Weekend. Goodbye East vs West. Au Revoir team captain’s draft. Not yet, Canada vs World. A mini-tournament involving four teams of eight will replace the current All-Star game format. The first three teams will comprise 12 All-Stars from each conference. Voting from fans, players, and media will still determine the five “starters” from the East and West. Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal, and Kenny Smith will draft the 24 All-Stars to their respective teams (which also means there would be 15 starters, but who cares about logistics, right?).

The fourth team will be the winning squad from the Rising Stars game. All of a sudden, my eye-roll-inducing headline becomes slightly less ludicrous. Eight sophomores will be selected and, be honest, how many second-year players are being selected over Gradey Dick?

Victor Wembanyama won’t be part of the team because he’ll be an All-Star. Chet Holmgren probably won’t qualify since he’s still injured and has only played 10 games this season. Brandon Miller (21.4 points, 5.1 rebounds, 1.1 steals) is definitely getting selected. After Wemby and Miller, no one has scored more than Dick (17.4) among second-year players.

Alright, so Gradey gets to play on All-Star weekend. Whoop-dee-doo. What about MVP honours? The last 3 MVPs of the mid-year showcase have one thing in common. Damian Lillard (11), Jayson Tatum (10), and Steph Curry (16!!) each drained a plethora of threes! Thankfully, Gradey won’t need to hit that many threes, as games are won when a team scores 40 or more first. Assuming Gradey’s team — coached by Candace Parker — wins the Rising Stars game on the Friday, something like 4 or 5 triples in each of the semis and finals (not a stretch considering his improved stroke/confidence this season) should be enough to get MVP consideration.

“Your 2025 All-Star MVP is......Gradey Dick, from the Toronto Raptors!”

What a time to be alive (in my fantastical mind).

January 6 vs Milwaukee Bucks

From one (pie-in-the-sky) All-Star Game MVP to an actual All-Star Game MVP, Lillard has started to show signs of ageing. The 13-year veteran shot 3-for-14 and only scored 9 points in a New Year’s Eve win over the Indiana Pacers. Dame also had a single-digit scoring game earlier this season (4 points in a loss against the Memphis Grizzlies). This is the first time in 10 years that Lillard has had multiple single-digit scoring games in the same season.

The Milwaukee Bucks are also amid a swoon. After starting the season 2-8, a victory over the Raptors (of course) kickstarted a turnaround. Milwaukee would win 12 of its next 15 games* en route to winning the In-Season Tournament (they actually won 13 of 16 games, but the IST Championship doesn’t count towards NBA regular season records).

However, Milwaukee is slipping back to their early-season form. They’ve lost 4 of their last 5 games, with each of the losses to lottery-bound teams (Brooklyn Nets x 2, Portland Trailblazers, and Chicago Bulls).

Will a victory against the Raptors jumpstart another rejuvenation?

Fun fact about a likely East All-Star that may only interest me

Giannis Antetokounmpo has achieved almost everything during his NBA career:

• MIP (2017)
• MVP x 2 (2019, 2020)
• DPOY (2020)
• All-Star Game MVP (2021)
• NBA Finals MVP (2021)
• NBA Champion (2021)

With his latest achievement — this year’s In-Season Tournament MVP, less than two weeks after turning 30 — shockingly, Antetokounmpo has yet to achieve one accolade: Scoring champion.

Giannis currently leads the NBA with 32.3 points per game.

Prediction

If RJ Barrett can get over the illness that has plagued him for the last two weeks, this may be a game where both teams are fully healthy! (Yes, I’m also knocking on wood) Toronto fields the 6th-youngest roster, while Milwaukee sports the oldest team in the league. Four of the Bucks’ five starters are older than every Raptor that averages 20 or more minutes.

Despite the losses of late, the Bucks have kept games competitive with the 5th-ranked defense over the last two weeks. Milwaukee covers the -2.5 spread.

January 8 @ New York Knicks

On one hand, the New York Knicks are coming off a 9-game win streak that ended against the only other team with a longer win streak (Oklahoma City, 14 games and counting).

On the other hand, the nine victories came against the Washington Wizards (twice), Orlando Magic (twice; one with Mo Wagner, both without Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner), Minnesota Timberwolves, New Orleans Pelicans, San Antonio Spurs, Utah Jazz, and the Raptors. In other words, the only opponent currently in a playoff position (Orlando) is severely hobbled.

Karl-Anthony Towns will be an All-Star. Period. He’s been an incredible addition to the team, transforming Tom Thibodeau’s vaunted defense into an unstoppable offense. KAT leads the league in rebounding (14.0), ranks 10th in points (25.3), and 10th in 3-point % (44.0%). Towns has formed an unguardable two-man game with Jalen Brunson (more on him in a second).

While Brunson will likely land his second consecutive All-Star selection, how about showing some love for his backcourt mate? Josh Hart ranks 20th in rebounding, 12th in VORP, and 8th in Win Shares. He has more triple-doubles this season (4) than the entire Raptors roster (3).

Fun fact about a likely East All-Star that may only interest me

Rick Brunson, Assistant Coach of the New York Knicks, played 9 seasons in the NBA, including 3 games with the Toronto Raptors. Over his 337 career games, Rick’s single-game scoring record was 19 points.

Rick’s son, Jalen, has scored 20 or more points in 178 games, including 9 instances against the Raptors (the last 20-point game against Toronto was on December 9th).

Prediction

New York has already won the first two meetings between the teams. The Knicks’ recent win streak, despite my skepticism, was still a classic case of taking care of the schedule in front of you. They may not have defeated any top-tier teams, but they took care of business against the teams they should beat.

That includes the Raptors, who they defeated twice in December and should defeat again here. New York covers the -9.5 spread.

January 9 @ Cleveland Cavaliers

Atlanta Hawks. Boston Celtics. Miami Heat. Those are the teams that have defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers this season. That’s it.

The Raptors have yet to win 9 games total, while the Cavaliers are in the midst of their second 10-game win streak of the season!

Similar to the Knicks, the Cavs have a shoo-in All-Star (Donovan Mitchell) and a very likely second All-Star (Evan Mobley). Unlike the Knicks, the Cavs have not one but two other players that have played like All-Stars.

Jarrett Allen leads the league in offensive rating, ranks 2nd in true shooting percentage, and ranks 7th with a (team-leading) 4.9 win shares. Darius Garland is averaging 20.4 points and 6.8 assists (12th in the NBA) on 49.5/43.3/91.5 shooting. No one in the NBA currently qualifies for the 50/40/90, but Garland and teammate, Ty Jerome(!) are the only players in the 49/40/90 club.

What a juggernaut!

Fun fact about a likely East All-Star that may only interest me

Evan Mobley is a superstar. He may not win Defensive Player of the Year (currently 3rd in betting odds behind Victor Wembanyama and Jaren Jackson Jr.) or Most Improved Player (currently 5th in betting odds) but that hasn’t stopped Mobley from making the proverbial “leap”.

Mobley is 10th in FG%, 12th in blocks, 13th in win shares......and 17th in 3-point FG%. I’m not sure if that’s the most shocking fact, or that he’s played 3 fewer games in his career than Scottie Barnes!

Prediction

Scheduling the Raptors to play two of the best offenses, on the road, in back-to-back games is a cruel way to start 2025!

Both teams will be playing the second game of a back-to-back. While Toronto will be travelling from New York, the East-leading Cavaliers will remain at home after taking on the West-leading Oklahoma City Thunder. While the likelihood of a letdown in quality is in play for Cleveland, that still shouldn’t keep the Cavaliers from winning this game. Cleveland wins but Toronto covers the +13.5 spread.

January 11 @ Detroit Pistons

The 2021 NBA Draft is really shaping up as one of the best in NBA history. Barnes is somehow the only player with an All-Star appearance, but that will change soon. Mobley should be selected, as should Cade Cunningham (more on him below) and Alperen Sengun. Franz Wagner was well on his way to an All-Star selection before he tore his oblique. Jalens, Green and Suggs, have been excellent on opposite sides of the ball. Jalen Johnson is offering a glimmer of hope in Atlanta that Dejounte Murray never could.

It should come as little surprise that the Pistons, who drafted first in 2021, has been one of the pleasant surprises this season. Cunningham is finally healthy (knocks on wood) and showing the versatility that had rival GMs jealous of Detroit winning the lottery. Trajan Langdon did well in the offseason to surround Cade with capable, veteran shooters by signing Tobias Harris and Malik Beasley, and trading for Tim Hardaway Jr.

Jaden Ivey’s unfortunate leg injury last week (out for at least 4 weeks) did not stop Detroit from winning its third straight on Saturday against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Jalen Duren and Isaiah Stewart are in the top 20 in blocks per game. Beasley ranks 2nd in 3-pointers made per 100 possessions. Ausar Thompson’s 1.5 steals per game would rank in the top 15 if he played enough games to qualify.

There’s a solid mix of veterans, youth, and rising talent from various positions to give hope to a Pistons fanbase that has not witnessed a playoff series win since 2008.

Fun fact about a likely East All-Star that may only interest me

Cade Cunningham is currently averaging 24.1 points, 9.5 assists, 6.7 rebounds, and 0.8 steals per game. If you round those numbers up, here are the players that have averaged at least 25 points, 10 assists, 7 rebounds, and 1 steal:

• James Harden (2016-17)
• LeBron James (2019-20)
• Russell Westbrook x 2 (2016-17 & 2017-18)

Oh, I forgot to mention that Cunningham is also averaging 0.8 blocks per game. If we round that number up to 1, here is the revised list:

• Cade Cunningham (2024-25, if he gets there)

Considering the depth of his draft class, Cade is certainly doing his part to live up to being drafted first!

Prediction

The last time Toronto defeated Detroit, the Raptors hung 142 points on the visiting Pistons — a record total for either team in their matchup history. Pascal Siakam, Gary Trent Jr., and Dennis Schroder were the leading scorers for Toronto. Yes, that was just last season.

In the last matchup, Ivey hit a game-winning buzzer-beater over Ochai Agbaji. Before that meeting, Gradey Dick missed an open three in the final 30 seconds that could have given Toronto the lead, and another three that could have tied it. With two close losses this season, a victory may be in the cards for a Raptors team that’s finally healthy. Toronto covers the -3.5 spread.

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Last Week’s Record: 1-2

Season Record: 13-22