OverDrive - Rautins on the Raptors' compelling development, Rajakovic's coaching tenure and Flagg's incredible ceiling

Episode Date: March 31, 2025

TSN Basketball Analyst Leo Rautins joined OverDrive to discuss the headlines around the NBA, the March Madness matchups, the Final Four overview, Cooper Flagg's skill set, Darko Rajakovic's coaching viewpoint, the Raptors' winning streak, the development of the group and more.

That just happened with me, Vashi Kapelos, Canada Chooses 2025. Stay informed with my exclusive iHeartRadio podcast, available Friday afternoon, straight through till election day and beyond. I'll have your weekly highlights and my unvarnished analysis of the campaign of a lifetime. The candidates, the quotes, the polls, and the momentum. That just happened with Vashi Kapelosllo's Canada Decides 2025 fresh every Friday stream on your schedule with the free iHeartRadio app. We're joined now by our TSN Raptors and NBA and March Madness Analyst. Here's Leo Routens. What's happening Leo? I'm good. How are you guys doing?

We're doing very, very well. Hayes was just talking about the one seeds Leo and I'm not gonna act like I followed this really closely But a lot of what I've read is the transfer portals or have a lot to do with that. Do you agree with that? 100% I mean hey players are following the money the money's got the big programs the big schools the named coaches That's where the money is right and you And you look at the talent, the depth of the rosters. If you want a program today, you have to have money, a lot of money. And that's just the nature of the beast right now. And you know, the NCAA really kind of screwed this up

from years ago when we were all playing, you know, even the normal, just throw some bucks here and there just to get by little things. That's all people wanted. And you wouldn't even do that. So everybody cheated. Well, now nobody's cheating. Everybody's just paying. And it's crazy, right? Coaches are leaving players are leaving. It's really become something, you know, I didn't know if I'd ever see something like this, but basically it's professional basketball, and the smaller schools are getting killed, but one thing you do see, well actually you know who's getting killed, they're high school kids.

If you want to get a scholarship, you're a good player, unless you're a McDonald's All American, you might not get a scholarship, because a lot of coaches, hey, their jobs are in the line. It's no, hey, we'll develop the program, uh-uh. You win or you're fired. And so what happens is they're all going in transfer portal. They're getting guys that have got experience

and every one of them are saying, why do I want to get a high school kid and have to teach this kid how to play when I can get experience right now? So I did notice all the levels of the games from the beginning I thought were better because you just had more experience in the tournament on every team, including small schools. But the big schools got the money and that's where they are.

Well, you mentioned it like this Auburn team, they're starting five. It's a 24 year old, 22 year old, 25 year old, 22 year old, 23 year old. Like that's Making cake. Well, of course, but like that's rare, right Leo? Like usually it's mixing a couple of freshmen. These guys, Van Wilder across the board, man. These guys should have jobs.

Like they should be out working and living somewhere. I guess they do have jobs. They do have jobs, big money jobs, right? Yeah, that's right. Yeah, and also what it is doing is making it a little bit more attractive not to jump to the NBA. Right? A lot of guys don't have to take that chance now.

There's less of a risk. You've got some guys, you've got the guys making seven figures to stay. So your risk is kind of negated. You can't get insurance and you're having fun. You're't get insurance, and you're having fun, right? You're playing college hoops and you're having fun, and still getting paid. So that's not a bad deal for a lot of these guys. Well, and again, the Cinderella's and the kind of mid-level schools and small schools, they really have not factored in.

But now that we're down to the final four, like, can you spin this Leo in terms of the basketball is going to be at its at its best now because it's it's all the number one seeds. It's all the best players, the best programs. You got Cooper flag and Duke still in it. Like what what do you anticipate seeing in terms of level of basketball and how can you pick who's who's the cream of the crop when you get to you know, you got four teams that are one seeds all in the final four. I think the level is going to be pretty good. I think we're going to see some pretty good basketball, but I'm still riding with Duke. You know, you mentioned some of these teams

and the age of these players. Duke's a young team, you know, relatively speaking, but I'll tell you what, they are deep, they're talented, they're big, they're smart, they know how to play the game, they're well-coached. And even if you look at Cooper Flat, well, they're talented, they're big, they're smart, they know how to play the game, they're well-coached. And even if you look at Cooper Flag, well first of all, you got three potential lottery picks, multiple potential draft picks, but if you look at Cooper Flag, the projected number one, this kid knows how to play.

And okay, there's two guys in the NBA, we've talked NBA stuff before, that you know, John Jokic and Shea, those two guys play the game the right way, right? They don't just play for stats, they play the game the right way, even though they have phenomenal stats. And Cooper Flag does that too. He plays the game the right way.

And he's not on a team where he's got to get 25 or 30 for them to win. So he has the luxury of learning the game, playing the game, and he's not on a team where he's got to get 25 or 30 for them to win so he has the luxury of learning the game playing the game and not being forced to just carry everything and even though he could take 25 shots if he wants he doesn't play that way because that's not the right play so I love the way the kid plays and I think it has a big impact on the rest of the team so you know I like Duke I think Florida is to me the second best team Walton Clayton, Jr. Like this this kid this kid is Mr. Clutch he's certainly been shown that he is the closer in the sense. He double a tournament

But I think those are the two best teams. I love Houston Kelvin Sampson's an amazing job. They guard they get after you. I think that his kids just love playing for him. I'd love for him to see some success, but I just don't know if they can get past Duke. Leo, you think Cooper Flags, like an automatic, just translates to the NBA and he's like a stud immediately? I think it's gonna take a little bit of time.

You know, there's always an adjustment. I think he's gonna, first of all, time. You know, there's always an adjustment. I think he's gonna First of all, he's a tough kid and he works. He looks like he doesn't he's around out there. Yeah No, he does and I know some people that have worked with him and they say he's all business I mean this kids he's got he's got a high level of confidence and he's all business So, you know you come to the league, you know, you take it's an adjustment for anybody but he's got all the qualities that I think they're gonna make him a great player in the league, it's an adjustment for anybody, but he's got all the qualities that I think that are gonna make him a great player in the league.

And today, if you could shoot the ball, that's a big plus, right? He can shoot it from anywhere on the floor, and he can guard. You look at him at Duke, I mean, he'll guard one through five. They can switch, they can do whatever they want. He'll guard everybody on the floor. So when you've got a guy like that coming into the league,

I think the transition becomes a lot easier. With Leo Routen's Raptors back in action in Chicago tomorrow night and the reports came out over the weekend that the Raps picked up the fourth year option for Darko Ryokovich actually I think last year, he's in year two. That means he'll be here next year and you presume he'll be there in year four. presume he'll be there in the year four what have you seen out of Darko this year that that has shown some sort of you know evolution in terms of his coaching he's never been a head coach at the NBA level and what do you think

Masai and Bobby's seeing him that would make you believe he is the right guy to transition this team into that next stage? Well it does make you think a little bit too about what's happening this season a little bit. Mm hmm. You're in a rebuild and I'm going, you know, lose. Yeah, they keep winning. They keep winning and you're starting to wonder, you know, with the confidence given to Darko, what's the real plan?

You know, is it to lose or is it to kind of be somewhere in the middle of the ground? You kind of get a little confused with that, but I will say on Darko's part, I think he's done a phenomenal job. You're just going to break it down and look at coaching. You look at a lot of these guys. I mean, how many games have the Raptors just thrown out, five guys, and they won the game, right? Young guys, draft picks, undrafted. That tells you that, you know, part of what's happening is development, right? You've got to develop players. The Raptors had great success when they won a championship. They developed a Pascal, they developed a Pertle, they developed a Powell.

They did a lot of good things that way. And this, and because by the nature of the program, where we are in Toronto, et cetera, you have to have development. And so the development has been amazing. And you look at some of the other guys, even the more veteran players, RJ Barrett's game's gotten better. You know, Scotty Barnes has gotten better.

You know, Quickly's gotten better. We're seeing more and more from every guy. So in the big scheme of things, you gotta be impressed. You know quickly has gotten better. We're seeing more and more from every guy so In the big scheme of things you got to be impressed You really have to be impressed and the fact that even when things are not Looking crappy early on a year, you know not winning any games not winning on a road nothing There was never a drop in morale. There was never drop in effort. Nothing this team plays hard every game There's a lot to be said with that as you look around the league and look at what's happening right now

man's son was a it's a that's ugly well the biggest challenge and and i know it's a weird question asked but is there is that what's positive about this for game winning streak is it the development because you just said it is you know it's taking them out of a situation where you're not going to get out as good a draft pick but you're helping some of the young guys get maybe get to that next level the army for sure i mean that that's definitely a silver lining uh... and if you look at

look at a lot of them okay the robert's very good bad thing if you look at the bad teams that are in the mix they're better than that so what we're seeing as far as the core, the potential, I think, and here's, I've been saying this for a while, there aren't great teams. There are good teams in this league, but there's no teams, you can't touch these guys, they're unbelievable, there's no teams like that.

That means the climb to get closer to the top, to become a playoff team, to have success is not great. You always gotta do the right things, and you gotta make the right moves, and you gotta have the development, but it's not insurmountable, right? Years back that would be, like, we'd be looking up

how are we ever gonna get to somebody's teams. But I think there's some good teams, but you can make it right so you're not that far off when you look at kind of the core and how they can tweak it what they can pick up in a draft what they can do with the trade or trades you know it's it's I think there's reason for optimism I really do because like I said of all the bad teams somebody seems just really like I don't want wanna watch them, they're terrible. Horrible, yeah it's horrible man.

And like, how about your former team Leo? Like the Sixers are, they're playing with fire man. Like they, this, I don't know how long the process can go on, I don't even know what stage they're in anymore. And now they're, it's pathetic to watch them play right now. It is, and the worst thing is you're charging NBA prices for G League games, right? And it's horrible for the fans but you know Philadelphia you know you're talking about playing with fire. Personally I'm you know I

respect Embiid's talent. I've never been a fan of Embiid. I would not have given him the money. I wouldn't have because he's never gonna give you a championship. He's never gonna be on the floor enough and I don't know I don't know how much that matters him to be a person, you know honest about it I don't know because when I watch I see a lot of I watch body language I watch interactions with players, you know, I've talked to teammates from that have played there and I go it's me I wouldn't have made that investment because now they're in a hole. They're in a big hole and good luck getting out of it.

Yeah, no kidding, man. No kidding. And they're trying to, they got that top six that's protected. They're trying to do everything they can to make sure they end up there in terms of those lottery balls falling their way. But we'll see, we're still a couple of weeks away from that.

Great catching up with you, Leo. Enjoy the final four and down the stretch in the NBA. Thank you for doing this. I always appreciate it, guys. You got it. There's Leo Routens. You can see of course during March Madness on TSN Raptors in Chicago tomorrow. That'll be a good one. All new, all Canadian, the best of our great nation one song at a time. This is Justin Bieber. Hi, this is Terry Clark. We are Nickelback. Made in Canada on iHeartRadio. Rock, pop, hip hop, and when it comes to country, it's the true north all the way. Loud and proud.

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