Here is a quick breakdown of the Raptors Cap Situation going into this summer. I'll send another email out about how I think the Raptors can attack the off season given their current situation and the summer of 2008.
Actually, the Raptors were right at the salary limit of $53 million for 2007. Of course, in the NBA, this is the lower spending limit as the luxury tax doesn't kick in until you exceed $65 million, so you can look at that as the true cap limit (note - you cannot sign unrestricted free agents (from different teams) to monster deals if you're at the $55 million limit.
Alonzo was "making" 4.5 million this season and Alvin Williams was making 6.5. Combined they will offset the Chris Bosh extension which will come in around $12 million per. TJ is getting 8 million per, but other salaries are falling off (ie Mo Pete at 4.5, D Mart at 1.75 mil, Robert Whaley at 700K). Basically, after everything is said and done the Raptors are looking at a 2007-2008 salary structure of $51 million. Which puts them about $2-3 million under the projected cap of $54-55 million. Obviously, this amount of cash isn't going to buy you a high impact guy.
However, they do have a $5.8 million mid level exception, which they can give to one or several guys (once you spend you mid level you don't get it back until that contract is finished or ou trade the contract away).
Long story short, don't expect the Raptors to make any major noise this summer because they are still fairly capped out. A sign and trade with Mo Pete is a possibility (more on this later), and not having a 1st rd pick also saves a ton of cash (more discussion to follow). On the brightside, this year's unrestricted free agent class is very very iffy. Carter and Billups are the headliners, and Lewis is the next tier, but after him, the proven talent drops off a cliff.
Note - assuming the Raptors can't make any huge deals this summer, they are looking at a payroll of $39 million (plus another $1.5-2 million for their 1st rd pick, if they pick a ncaa guy), with a projected cap of about $56-57 million at the end of 2008. Giving them a projected $16 million of cap room to spend in the prime of Bosh's career, with TJ, Andrea, and Jose reaching their primes as well. 2008 is the last season of Garbo and AP's initial contracts, so their prices should drop as they would be entering their mid 30's. Basically, the Raptors should be able to add the final piece to a championship contender in a year. Look for a stop gap this summer (unless they can somehow pull off my secret plan)....
Monday, May 7, 2007
Sunday, April 22, 2007
Thoughts from Game 1
I know everyone is pretty hysterical because of the loss yesterday, and believe me I am super disappointed with yesterday's game, but everything that I've read, it seems like no one talking about the correct issues.
Sam had a good gameplan in place, and I think the Raps did enough of defense to win it, but at the end of the day, their offense let them down. They weren't able to force NJ into the double team scramble, and the Raptors offense ground to a halt because there was no where to swing the ball. Bosh needs to force the double down, and Bragnani needs to fucking hit a 3.
Other observations yesterday:
I definitely didn't think that Bosh did enough to force NJ into the rotations necessary for the Raps to get their normal 3's. They kept a second defender close to him as a soft double, but he didn't force them to double down hard, in order to make the Nets start to scramble. That is the biggest adjustment that they have to make on Tuesday to the offense. I don't think its broken, just something Bosh has to do to adjust his game. If Bosh starts to make a strong move to the hoop, NJ will have to start to double hard, and AP (and maybe Joey) should start to get hot.
I think Jose and Ford did as well as you could have asked for. NJ was forcing TJ to be a scorer, they played him to pass, so its good to see him adjust his game, and light them up, should make it harder for NJ to decide what to do in Game 2. Calderon they played to attack the rim, and he was able to rack up a bunch of assists in the 2nd half, which was good to see. Ford and Calderon definitely present a problem for NJ because Marcus Williams is terrible. The moment he got in to the game, the Raptors made huge runs, so I think Kidd is going to have to start playing even more minutes, which should pay off by Game 3 (hopefully). Kidd is a terrible shooter, so I kind of expect him to have similar type offensive game 12 and 10 is my prediction for game 2. The Raps CANNOT have Kidd grab 10 boards, that more than anything else killed them yesterday. Carter is probably going to go off in Game 2, but RJ will be limited if that happens, which the Raptors will benefit from.
They were able to turn RJ off in the second half, so Sam was ale to make an adequate adjustment on him in the half court. I think he only scored about 9 points in the 2nd half, which is way better than the 21 he put up in the first. Nachebar played a pretty big part, but he didn't perform outside my expectations. I thought going in to the series, he was going to be a huge part of their gameplan, and he proved me right.
The X Factor is gonna be Bragnani. He had a TERRIBLE game, probably his worst game since the first few of this season. If he gets his normal 13-16 pts, the Raps win yesterday.
As bad as the Raptors played yesterday, the Nets were just as bad. I think this series is going to come down to the Raptors improving their offensive execution because I felt that they played defense well enough to win defensively (they aren't going to morph into the Spurs just because its the playoffs), but their offense really let them down.
The transition defense was atrocious yesterday, and something needs to be corrected.
Sam had a good gameplan in place, and I think the Raps did enough of defense to win it, but at the end of the day, their offense let them down. They weren't able to force NJ into the double team scramble, and the Raptors offense ground to a halt because there was no where to swing the ball. Bosh needs to force the double down, and Bragnani needs to fucking hit a 3.
Other observations yesterday:
I definitely didn't think that Bosh did enough to force NJ into the rotations necessary for the Raps to get their normal 3's. They kept a second defender close to him as a soft double, but he didn't force them to double down hard, in order to make the Nets start to scramble. That is the biggest adjustment that they have to make on Tuesday to the offense. I don't think its broken, just something Bosh has to do to adjust his game. If Bosh starts to make a strong move to the hoop, NJ will have to start to double hard, and AP (and maybe Joey) should start to get hot.
I think Jose and Ford did as well as you could have asked for. NJ was forcing TJ to be a scorer, they played him to pass, so its good to see him adjust his game, and light them up, should make it harder for NJ to decide what to do in Game 2. Calderon they played to attack the rim, and he was able to rack up a bunch of assists in the 2nd half, which was good to see. Ford and Calderon definitely present a problem for NJ because Marcus Williams is terrible. The moment he got in to the game, the Raptors made huge runs, so I think Kidd is going to have to start playing even more minutes, which should pay off by Game 3 (hopefully). Kidd is a terrible shooter, so I kind of expect him to have similar type offensive game 12 and 10 is my prediction for game 2. The Raps CANNOT have Kidd grab 10 boards, that more than anything else killed them yesterday. Carter is probably going to go off in Game 2, but RJ will be limited if that happens, which the Raptors will benefit from.
They were able to turn RJ off in the second half, so Sam was ale to make an adequate adjustment on him in the half court. I think he only scored about 9 points in the 2nd half, which is way better than the 21 he put up in the first. Nachebar played a pretty big part, but he didn't perform outside my expectations. I thought going in to the series, he was going to be a huge part of their gameplan, and he proved me right.
The X Factor is gonna be Bragnani. He had a TERRIBLE game, probably his worst game since the first few of this season. If he gets his normal 13-16 pts, the Raps win yesterday.
As bad as the Raptors played yesterday, the Nets were just as bad. I think this series is going to come down to the Raptors improving their offensive execution because I felt that they played defense well enough to win defensively (they aren't going to morph into the Spurs just because its the playoffs), but their offense really let them down.
The transition defense was atrocious yesterday, and something needs to be corrected.
Thursday, April 19, 2007
Fordicus' Raps - Nets Preview
When Ford sent this email out, I almost passed out reading cause it got me so pumped...
Raps - Nets Preview
It was a scary thing to realize last week that this series was a
possibility. I was resigned to the idea of a relatively lax first round
against a depleted Wizards squad, but now the Raps have the kind of match-up
that could cause them to expend alot of energy and emotion. There is no
doubt the AC will be going bananas in our first return to the playoffs in
half a decade... and all the hatred, all the angst of failed seasons past
will be focused on one man: Vince Carter. Let's hope the rest of their bums
don't get overlooked in the process.
I hope Rasho knocks that bitch on the floor everytime he tries to get in the
paint. Then we will see the evidence for what his nickname should have
been... 'half man, half 20-foot fade away'. Still, he's won a few games
single-handedly before with a wince on his face and without a lick of effort
on defence.
ESPN has once again disappointed with three out of four predicting a Jersey
win. I'm not daunted by this in the least, but for the hell of it, let's go
through the match-up by position to see who has the edge here:
PG - TJ Ford & Calderon vs. J. Kidd & Marcus Williams: Ford and Calderon
are the best PG tandem in the league. No arguments allowed. Kidd is a
future HOF inductee and will have his moments of brilliance as he always
does, but this year his scoring has been down and he is visibly a step
slower starting the break after his knee surgeries. Marcus Williams is a
fat piece of shit who shoots 28% from 3. Calderon and Ford should wear down
Kidd and feast on the chubby laptop thief.
Edge: Raptors
SG - Anthony Parker, Juan Dixon, Mo Pete vs. Carter, Eddie House, Antoine
Wright: Parker has been the best surprise acquisition since Keon Clark was
electrifying crowds on a 20 win team a few years back. He will receive the
brunt of the minutes guarding VC, and will be counted on to hit some big
3's. Maybe you can only hope to contain the injury-prone pussy, but he is
still the best player in this group by a large margin. I look for Mo to get
some minutes in the early going if his knee is sound, but eventually get
benched for the younger, more intense Juan Dixon. Eddie house and Antoine
Wright both suck balls.
Edge: Jersey, but only slightly. The 3 or 4 guys Tdot can put on Carter
narrows the gap.
SF - Joey Graham, Andrea Bargnani vs. Richard Jefferson, Bostjan Nachbar:
This is going to sound crazy, but Nachbar is good. He's shown me he can
take it to the rack and hit the open 3 with consistency and he actually
scares me more than the post-injury Jefferson. Graham needs to keep up his
strong play and Bargs needs to get himself in shape and get his legs under
him quickly. If he can pose a threat from long range and utilize his
passing ability off the dribble, the Raps will be in good shape.
Edge: Tie
PF - Bosh, The Hump vs. Mikki Moore, Josh Boone?: I don't even really know
who the fours and fives are for NJ. A collection of scrap heap guys and
projects. Does anyone think they will be able to handle Bosh for a second,
or even keep Hump off the offensive glass. I say no way. This position is
a massacre and the Raps need to exploit it.
Edge: RAPTORS (caps lock for screaming)
C - Rasho vs. Jason Collins: I think we all know the big Lithuanian keeps
bodies in the trunk of his car despite his icy, stoic gaze. All he needs to
do is stand there and play good post position on both ends, hit the odd
elbow jumper and lay-up every would be dunk. Jason Collins is a stiff.
Always has been, never will change. These teams will likely go small and
also use a combo of their 4's at center, but the Nets just can't test up
front.
Edge: Raptors again.
Conclusion: While superstars win championships, and the Nets have an edge
of 1.6 superstars (Carter = .8, Kidd and Jefferson about .4 each) to the
Raptors 1 (Bosh), this Toronto team is built with the depth and role
awareness to easily dispose of this heavily flawed nuisance.
Prediction: Raptors in 5 and the ACC will have the roof blown off.
Raps - Nets Preview
It was a scary thing to realize last week that this series was a
possibility. I was resigned to the idea of a relatively lax first round
against a depleted Wizards squad, but now the Raps have the kind of match-up
that could cause them to expend alot of energy and emotion. There is no
doubt the AC will be going bananas in our first return to the playoffs in
half a decade... and all the hatred, all the angst of failed seasons past
will be focused on one man: Vince Carter. Let's hope the rest of their bums
don't get overlooked in the process.
I hope Rasho knocks that bitch on the floor everytime he tries to get in the
paint. Then we will see the evidence for what his nickname should have
been... 'half man, half 20-foot fade away'. Still, he's won a few games
single-handedly before with a wince on his face and without a lick of effort
on defence.
ESPN has once again disappointed with three out of four predicting a Jersey
win. I'm not daunted by this in the least, but for the hell of it, let's go
through the match-up by position to see who has the edge here:
PG - TJ Ford & Calderon vs. J. Kidd & Marcus Williams: Ford and Calderon
are the best PG tandem in the league. No arguments allowed. Kidd is a
future HOF inductee and will have his moments of brilliance as he always
does, but this year his scoring has been down and he is visibly a step
slower starting the break after his knee surgeries. Marcus Williams is a
fat piece of shit who shoots 28% from 3. Calderon and Ford should wear down
Kidd and feast on the chubby laptop thief.
Edge: Raptors
SG - Anthony Parker, Juan Dixon, Mo Pete vs. Carter, Eddie House, Antoine
Wright: Parker has been the best surprise acquisition since Keon Clark was
electrifying crowds on a 20 win team a few years back. He will receive the
brunt of the minutes guarding VC, and will be counted on to hit some big
3's. Maybe you can only hope to contain the injury-prone pussy, but he is
still the best player in this group by a large margin. I look for Mo to get
some minutes in the early going if his knee is sound, but eventually get
benched for the younger, more intense Juan Dixon. Eddie house and Antoine
Wright both suck balls.
Edge: Jersey, but only slightly. The 3 or 4 guys Tdot can put on Carter
narrows the gap.
SF - Joey Graham, Andrea Bargnani vs. Richard Jefferson, Bostjan Nachbar:
This is going to sound crazy, but Nachbar is good. He's shown me he can
take it to the rack and hit the open 3 with consistency and he actually
scares me more than the post-injury Jefferson. Graham needs to keep up his
strong play and Bargs needs to get himself in shape and get his legs under
him quickly. If he can pose a threat from long range and utilize his
passing ability off the dribble, the Raps will be in good shape.
Edge: Tie
PF - Bosh, The Hump vs. Mikki Moore, Josh Boone?: I don't even really know
who the fours and fives are for NJ. A collection of scrap heap guys and
projects. Does anyone think they will be able to handle Bosh for a second,
or even keep Hump off the offensive glass. I say no way. This position is
a massacre and the Raps need to exploit it.
Edge: RAPTORS (caps lock for screaming)
C - Rasho vs. Jason Collins: I think we all know the big Lithuanian keeps
bodies in the trunk of his car despite his icy, stoic gaze. All he needs to
do is stand there and play good post position on both ends, hit the odd
elbow jumper and lay-up every would be dunk. Jason Collins is a stiff.
Always has been, never will change. These teams will likely go small and
also use a combo of their 4's at center, but the Nets just can't test up
front.
Edge: Raptors again.
Conclusion: While superstars win championships, and the Nets have an edge
of 1.6 superstars (Carter = .8, Kidd and Jefferson about .4 each) to the
Raptors 1 (Bosh), this Toronto team is built with the depth and role
awareness to easily dispose of this heavily flawed nuisance.
Prediction: Raptors in 5 and the ACC will have the roof blown off.
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
The Joey Question
The on going performance of Joey Graham may be pivotal to the success of the Raptors come playoff time. Being at the Bulls game has really given me a new perspective on Joey. To some extent I have to blame Sam a bit for holding Joey back (ie. mistake = bench). But with extended mins Joey is really starting to get into a grove. Will he regress when Bragnani is back? I say no. At some point players either turn for the better or they regress and go play in Europe. Joey was either going to turn into the player we are seeing right now, or he was going to tail off. The home stretch and the playoffs will be extremely important to gauge if Joey has turned the corner or not (remember Tayshaun did NOTHING for 2 years, before finally getting IT in the 2nd half of the Piston 2003 championship team). I don't think he is looking for his shot too much. He is taking the best open shot, and its available because teams are overplaying the Raptors for the corner 3. I think if Joey can score consistently at the elbow, it creates even more options.
Friday, March 30, 2007
Time for Everyone to Recognize
Alright, so I need to go on a little diatribe about the Raptors today because even keeps dismissing them, its like the American media just doesn't want to talk about Toronto, ignorant bastards.
39 wins and counting, they are the 3rd best team in the East, and they have so many legit wins and they have played the 2 best teams in the NBA tough (although San Antonio owns them). I don't know why everyone (media, etc) keeps saying the Raps won't get past the 1st rd, its just American bias. If the Knicks had the Raptors' record right now, ESPN would be running non stop stories about the greatness of Isiah's coaching. At the beginning of the year, people were saying that the Raptors can't win, when they go to .500 everyone said that they did it on the backs of bad teams, when they built their lead on NJ everyone said that they would come back to the pack. None of that has come to pass.
People in basketball recognize, I heard Reggie Miller on TNT last night saying that Sam Mitchell has to be the coach of the year. The media won't cause they love to hate on the Raptors, but when the second season comes, people are going to have to acknowledge that the Raptors are a force in the Eastern Conference. I am tired of everyone telling me why the Raptors can't do well. I think they are going to win at least one playoff series this spring, even if they are playing the sainted Heat (I don't drink the Kool-Aid, and you shouldn't either).
11 games left. I say they go about 8-3 in this stretch with wins against Charlotte (home), Orlando (away), Philly (away), Chicago (home), Minnesota (away), Detroit (home), New York (home), Philly (home).
By the end of this run, people will have to say the Raps are legit....
39 wins and counting, they are the 3rd best team in the East, and they have so many legit wins and they have played the 2 best teams in the NBA tough (although San Antonio owns them). I don't know why everyone (media, etc) keeps saying the Raps won't get past the 1st rd, its just American bias. If the Knicks had the Raptors' record right now, ESPN would be running non stop stories about the greatness of Isiah's coaching. At the beginning of the year, people were saying that the Raptors can't win, when they go to .500 everyone said that they did it on the backs of bad teams, when they built their lead on NJ everyone said that they would come back to the pack. None of that has come to pass.
People in basketball recognize, I heard Reggie Miller on TNT last night saying that Sam Mitchell has to be the coach of the year. The media won't cause they love to hate on the Raptors, but when the second season comes, people are going to have to acknowledge that the Raptors are a force in the Eastern Conference. I am tired of everyone telling me why the Raptors can't do well. I think they are going to win at least one playoff series this spring, even if they are playing the sainted Heat (I don't drink the Kool-Aid, and you shouldn't either).
11 games left. I say they go about 8-3 in this stretch with wins against Charlotte (home), Orlando (away), Philly (away), Chicago (home), Minnesota (away), Detroit (home), New York (home), Philly (home).
By the end of this run, people will have to say the Raps are legit....
Thursday, March 29, 2007
Thoughts on the First Post Garbo Game
Went to the Heat game last night, and here are just a couple of observations from me:
1) I am not sure where the "new" old Shaq went, but all I saw was the "old" old Shaq. In fact, since the Heat have failed to score 70 pts in the 4 games prior to their demolishing of the Hawks, I would say that "new" old Shaq was just a 9 game aberration. Look, I am not saying he is a sub par center, I am just saying that Rasho was able to guard him one on one for most of the time, and he was completely unable to force his will on the game. Its more like he is a very run of the mill center now, no more dominant that an Eric Dampier or Big Z. Its a little shocking to see the decline in his game because you can still see flashes of dominant Shaq (in the 3rd quarter he was able to spin on Hump, split the Juan Dixon double team, and throw down a monster dunk, of course re read the 2 defenders he abused, maybe I shouldn't be so impressed). Anyway, if people actually think the Heat can win without D Wade, they are insane.
2) If D Wade doesn't make it back in time for the playoffs, or if he is less than 80% (ie he can't take his wild and fearless drives to the hoop, and a well placed/well timed hack by Rasho may knock him out of a game), I would LOVE the Raptors matching up against the Heat. Watching the Heat is a total disaster, White Chocolate has one of the ugliest 3's I have seen, and he is a STILL a poor decision maker. Zo looks worn down, I think he had to play too many minutes earlier this season. Eddie Jones is a joke (Dixon was one on one with him the whole game, and he did nothing. Big 2's like Jones should just rise up and own Juan). Antoine Walker, wow I don't know what to say about this guy, the decline from his employee #8 days is shocking, at this point, I would say that he is as much of a detriment to the Heat as he is a contributor, way too slow, surprisingly indecisive, a bad fit as the 6th man for this team. Udonis Haslem, I like quite a few things he did on the court, but when he wasn't hustling, he is worthless, Bosh owned him for stretches, very lackadaisical effort last night. I don't know if the media is just in love with the Heat because of their referee assisted run last season, but there is really no way I can see the Heat team advancing past the 1st round without D Wade back. All things being equal, the Heat (without Wade) is definitely not as good as Detroit, Cleveland, Chicago, Toronto. They are on par with Washington, if both were healthy, it be very interesting to see how they would matchup.
3) What is up with Sam Mitchell's man crush with Juan Dixon?!?! I am not sure if asking Juan to guard 2 guards is going to work out for the Raptors. Now, given the way the other East contenders are built, this experiment could work out. One thing I do know, Mo is done, stick a fork in him because he's got nothing left. He had so many wide open looks from downtown, and he bricked them all. Joey had a decent game on the boards with 4 last night, he should've had 2 more pts (Hump stole a put back from him). 4 and 4 is decent, but I really don't see him getting into the starting lineup with that kind of performance.
4) I love AP, he is definitely stepping up his game with Garbo down. 20 pts, on extremely efficient shooting, helping out everywhere on D. That little curl jumper is money, I would love to see the Raps one that a few more times per game cause AP has a sweet stroke.
5) The Raps didn't miss Garbo last night with everyone stepping up their games (except Mo), but down the line I think they will miss him for a game here and there. If Brags can come back strong in the playoffs, the Raps should be able to have some success in the playoffs.
1) I am not sure where the "new" old Shaq went, but all I saw was the "old" old Shaq. In fact, since the Heat have failed to score 70 pts in the 4 games prior to their demolishing of the Hawks, I would say that "new" old Shaq was just a 9 game aberration. Look, I am not saying he is a sub par center, I am just saying that Rasho was able to guard him one on one for most of the time, and he was completely unable to force his will on the game. Its more like he is a very run of the mill center now, no more dominant that an Eric Dampier or Big Z. Its a little shocking to see the decline in his game because you can still see flashes of dominant Shaq (in the 3rd quarter he was able to spin on Hump, split the Juan Dixon double team, and throw down a monster dunk, of course re read the 2 defenders he abused, maybe I shouldn't be so impressed). Anyway, if people actually think the Heat can win without D Wade, they are insane.
2) If D Wade doesn't make it back in time for the playoffs, or if he is less than 80% (ie he can't take his wild and fearless drives to the hoop, and a well placed/well timed hack by Rasho may knock him out of a game), I would LOVE the Raptors matching up against the Heat. Watching the Heat is a total disaster, White Chocolate has one of the ugliest 3's I have seen, and he is a STILL a poor decision maker. Zo looks worn down, I think he had to play too many minutes earlier this season. Eddie Jones is a joke (Dixon was one on one with him the whole game, and he did nothing. Big 2's like Jones should just rise up and own Juan). Antoine Walker, wow I don't know what to say about this guy, the decline from his employee #8 days is shocking, at this point, I would say that he is as much of a detriment to the Heat as he is a contributor, way too slow, surprisingly indecisive, a bad fit as the 6th man for this team. Udonis Haslem, I like quite a few things he did on the court, but when he wasn't hustling, he is worthless, Bosh owned him for stretches, very lackadaisical effort last night. I don't know if the media is just in love with the Heat because of their referee assisted run last season, but there is really no way I can see the Heat team advancing past the 1st round without D Wade back. All things being equal, the Heat (without Wade) is definitely not as good as Detroit, Cleveland, Chicago, Toronto. They are on par with Washington, if both were healthy, it be very interesting to see how they would matchup.
3) What is up with Sam Mitchell's man crush with Juan Dixon?!?! I am not sure if asking Juan to guard 2 guards is going to work out for the Raptors. Now, given the way the other East contenders are built, this experiment could work out. One thing I do know, Mo is done, stick a fork in him because he's got nothing left. He had so many wide open looks from downtown, and he bricked them all. Joey had a decent game on the boards with 4 last night, he should've had 2 more pts (Hump stole a put back from him). 4 and 4 is decent, but I really don't see him getting into the starting lineup with that kind of performance.
4) I love AP, he is definitely stepping up his game with Garbo down. 20 pts, on extremely efficient shooting, helping out everywhere on D. That little curl jumper is money, I would love to see the Raps one that a few more times per game cause AP has a sweet stroke.
5) The Raps didn't miss Garbo last night with everyone stepping up their games (except Mo), but down the line I think they will miss him for a game here and there. If Brags can come back strong in the playoffs, the Raps should be able to have some success in the playoffs.
I Just Don't Want to Talk About It....
But you all know that I have to. Garbo's injury was ugly, I am just glad that it wasn't his knee, and hopefully, he will be back healthy in time for next season.
Here were my initial thoughts after almost barfing when I saw the injury:
There are only so many solutions available right now. I think Joey Graham has to be the answer at SF right now. Mo Pete was dragging ass again, and played like shit. He hasn't shown anything except for last Friday. Its time for Joey to shine, he has to get it done now, he has to get his head out of his ass and play the hard nosed defense and get some big boards that Garbo was giving them. Mo Pete needs to get a fucking clue and start nailing some 3's as well. I think the Raptors can get through this injury, but it is really going to take a huge effort by Joey and Mo to survive.
Richie's Thoughts, the day after:
Ouch! Ive read all the updates and for once I must say that I am happy i was not in Toronto watching last nights game.
So now we must analyse some of the likely repercussions:
1 MoPete starts in Garbo's place. This is the most likely and in spite of MoPete's up and down play this year he has still proven to be better than Joey on the vast majority of nights. He has experience, plays decent defence, is one of the teams leaders, and can stretch the D when hitting his 3's.
2. Joey starts in Garbo's place. Also a likely solution to the problem provided that Graham actually starts to show some consistent effort. He never has before though so why now? Is he ready to break out? I doubt it.
3. Start Dixon at SG and move Parker over to SF. I wouldn't do this, but if Mitchell has as much of a man crush on Dixon as it seems he does, it certainly is not out of the realm of possibility.
4. Start Luke Jackson in Garbo's place. Haha. Just kidding.
5. Bargnani makes a superhuman comeback while displaying faster powers of recovery than even Wolverine. He then decides to quit pretending to be a centre and become an exclusively 3 point chucking 7 footer a la Sam Perkins.
6. Go big and let the Hump play the three. This may in fact solve the Raptors rebounding woes - while simultaneously creating about 15 brand new problems. It may also necessitate that they begin to play My hump, my hump, my humps, his lovely lady lumps, more often in the ACC.
7. Explore the latest in experimental surgery and actually try to transplant Garbajosa's brain into Joey Graham's body. By creating Josep Garbagraham the raps could have the best of both worlds. This is probably a better option than number 4.
I personally, love idea 7, if only cloning and brain transplantation technology could be ready by the end of April!
Here were my initial thoughts after almost barfing when I saw the injury:
There are only so many solutions available right now. I think Joey Graham has to be the answer at SF right now. Mo Pete was dragging ass again, and played like shit. He hasn't shown anything except for last Friday. Its time for Joey to shine, he has to get it done now, he has to get his head out of his ass and play the hard nosed defense and get some big boards that Garbo was giving them. Mo Pete needs to get a fucking clue and start nailing some 3's as well. I think the Raptors can get through this injury, but it is really going to take a huge effort by Joey and Mo to survive.
Richie's Thoughts, the day after:
Ouch! Ive read all the updates and for once I must say that I am happy i was not in Toronto watching last nights game.
So now we must analyse some of the likely repercussions:
1 MoPete starts in Garbo's place. This is the most likely and in spite of MoPete's up and down play this year he has still proven to be better than Joey on the vast majority of nights. He has experience, plays decent defence, is one of the teams leaders, and can stretch the D when hitting his 3's.
2. Joey starts in Garbo's place. Also a likely solution to the problem provided that Graham actually starts to show some consistent effort. He never has before though so why now? Is he ready to break out? I doubt it.
3. Start Dixon at SG and move Parker over to SF. I wouldn't do this, but if Mitchell has as much of a man crush on Dixon as it seems he does, it certainly is not out of the realm of possibility.
4. Start Luke Jackson in Garbo's place. Haha. Just kidding.
5. Bargnani makes a superhuman comeback while displaying faster powers of recovery than even Wolverine. He then decides to quit pretending to be a centre and become an exclusively 3 point chucking 7 footer a la Sam Perkins.
6. Go big and let the Hump play the three. This may in fact solve the Raptors rebounding woes - while simultaneously creating about 15 brand new problems. It may also necessitate that they begin to play My hump, my hump, my humps, his lovely lady lumps, more often in the ACC.
7. Explore the latest in experimental surgery and actually try to transplant Garbajosa's brain into Joey Graham's body. By creating Josep Garbagraham the raps could have the best of both worlds. This is probably a better option than number 4.
I personally, love idea 7, if only cloning and brain transplantation technology could be ready by the end of April!
Friday, March 23, 2007
An Early Look at the Bulls from My Prospective
I'll be attending the April 8 Raptors game against the Bulls. I'll update my breakdown then since I haven't seen the Bulls live this season, and I definitely would like to see what they look like up close in an extremely hostile environment.
Here's my breakdown of the potential Bulls - Raptors series:
*PER is Player Efficiency Rating, which is a John Hollinger stat that is suppose to let you make relative comparisons.
PG: Hinrich is is actually 6'3 which gives him great size at the position (Nash, Billups, Parker, Kidd are all between 6'2 or 6'4). He is a little streaky in game, but overall he has a pretty good FG percentage at 44.9%, which ranks him in the top 10 amongst point guards (Nash is the PG leader at .536). He has good range (he is about 41% from behind the arc), but he only takes about 4 treys a game. Hinrich is an excellent distributor averaging 6.0 assists a game. He averages about 2 turnovers a game, so he definitely protects possessions with a TO to assist ratio of 3 to 1. Helps out on the boards with about 3.5 rebounds per game, and is adequate defensively getting about 1.3 steals per game. He isn't a game changer (he averages about 16 pts per game), but if he is going good he has the ability to let the Bulls pull away from opponents. He is a better road player than home player, averaging 4 pts more on the road than at home (18 ppg on the road vs 14 ppg at home). Overall, he has a PER* of 16.72, which makes him the 14th most efficient PG in the NBA. TJ matches up well with Hinrich, as Kirk is not a post up PG, and will not impose too physical of a presence on TJ. Given the make up of the Raptors, Hinrich will probably be focused on slowing TJ rather than look for his own offense.
SG: Ben Gordon is a second tier SG, but he can get very hot in clutch situations. Has below average size at 6'3, and he is a volume shooter (averages 16 attempts per game) that is very prone to hot and cold streaks (he just went 2 of 12 from the floor against the Clips). He is a threat from deep, with a 3 pt % around .400, while he takes about 4 treys a game. He averages about 3.6 assists per game, so he looks definitely looks for his own shot first. Does an average job on the boards for his position with 3.2 boards a game. Careless with the ball as he averages about 3 turnovers a game, but around the average for 2 guards. Can get posted up defensively due to his size, and is not a very good defensive player, averaging less than 1 steal a game. He isn't really affected by playing at home or on the road, as his averages are fairly consistent based on his splits, but he does average 2 pts more at home. Overall, he has a PER of 18.36, which ranks him as the 16th best SG in the league (D Wade is the leader at 30.05, Kobe is 2nd at 26.21). He has been a traditional Raptor killer, and the job of stopping him may fall on Mo Pete or Juan Dixon if Gordon continues to come off the bench for the Bulls (39 starts out of 70 games played).
SF: Luol Deng is a rising star at SF. Devastating mid range game as witnessed by his .521 FG% (as a comparison LeBron is .479 and Melo is .478). Should take more shots considering his impact, but plays within the offense averaging 14.7 attempts per game (LeBron takes about 21 attempts per game). Is not a threat from beyond the arc shooting a terrible 25% from deep, but he does not take many treys as he is averaging less than 1 attempt per games (apparently he understands his weakness). A great rebounder for his position averaging about 7 rebounds per game (compared with Josh Howard's 7 a game). Very good defensively averaging 1.2 steals per game. Takes very good care of the ball with only 1.8 TO a game, he isn't a non stop slasher which limits his TO situations. As consistent on the road as he is at home with only a difference of 0.6 pts on the split. Overall, he has a PER of 18.87, which ranks him as the 8th best SF in the NBA, amazing since he doesn't not get the same volume as some of the guys ahead of him (LeBron, Melo, Lewis). Luol Deng is the single biggest matchup problem for the Raptors, but if the Bulls don't start Gordon, Parker will probably do an adequate job of slowing him down defensively. He will hurt the Raptors, the biggest need is to limit the pain.
PF: PJ Brown, Tyrus Thomas, and Andres Nocioni share starting duties at this position. PJ and Tyrus both average less than 6 pts per game, and PJ is the better rebounder at 5 boards a game. Neither are factors for the Bulls (PJ is a historic Raptor killer, Tyrus may or may not be illiterate, and probably can't find Canada on a map). Nocioni has not played since Feb 23 due to plantar fasciitis. When he is available he is by far the best PF the Bulls have. He is a little undersized at 6'7, but has posted great numbers so far this season 15 ppg and 6 rpg. Is not a great defender based on his 0.5 blocks per game, but he is will make opposition work for their points. Has a great FG% at .468 while taking 12 shots per game. He is not on pace for 500 mins this season, so a PER is unavailable for him. Regardless, of who plays PF for the Bulls, their sole responsibility will be to slow down Chris Bosh. Given Tyrus Thomas' athleticism, he will probably get a greater share of this duty, while Nocioni will probably see his minutes limited. I would be extremely surprised if we saw PJ Brown play more than 10 - 15 mins per game.
C: Ben Wallace is still a difference maker on the boards and on defense. Very obvious slippage from his Defensive Player of the Year days. Has won a championship, so he knows what it takes to be successful in the post season. Averages about 6 ppg on put backs and baskets inside 6 ft, he has no real offensive game. A total offensive liability in late game situations as he only shoots around 40% from the free throw line. A top ten rebounder (# 8) in the NBA with 10.5 rebounds per game, and very effective on the offensive glass with 4 boards a game, which will generate at least 4-6 second chance points per game. Still a top 10 shot blocker (# 9) averaging 2.1 blocks a game, and helps out the overall team defense with 1.5 steals a game. Doesn't rank in the top 50 in PER for his position due to his shockingly inefficient offense (only takes about 5 shots per game, hitting 44% of the time). Rasho or Garbo (if Bargs is playing in late game situations) will be able to do an efficient job in slowing him down. He should have a very minimal impact on the outcome of this series.
My first impression of this series is that it will come down to which team is better at dictating the tempo of the game, and who can slow down the other teams main offensive threat, Bosh for the Raps and Deng for the Bulls. If the Raptors are extremely efficient in their offense, limiting their turnovers, maximizing their assists, and hitting from beyond on the arc, the Bulls will be hard pressed to keep up with them offensively. The Bulls have to force the Raptors into as many half court - zone situations as possible, as they do not match up will one on one with the Raptors, and they definitely cannot run their break as efficiently as the Raptors can. If Gordon gets very hot in this series, then the Raptors could be in serious trouble as Anthony Parker has to spend most of his time on Deng. However, since the Bulls backcourt is so small due to Gordon's lack of stature, I think we could see more TJ/Calderon pairings in 4th quarter situations to ensure the best possible lineup is on the floor. I haven't seen Dixon try to guard Gordon, so Juan's play could be a huge factor in the Raptors game plan for the Bulls.
This should be a very entertaining first round matchup, but right now Chicago does have home court advantage which is huge. If the Raptors can steal a game in Chicago, I think they will be well positioned to advance to the second round. Getting to 100 ppg is a huge key for the Raptors as scoring at such a high rate would mean that they are able to run their break offense effectively, which means the Bulls are playing at an offensive place that they are uncomfortable with, and will probably not be able to sustain over a 7 game series. Stopping Deng will be the key to any possible Raptors success.
Here's my breakdown of the potential Bulls - Raptors series:
*PER is Player Efficiency Rating, which is a John Hollinger stat that is suppose to let you make relative comparisons.
PG: Hinrich is is actually 6'3 which gives him great size at the position (Nash, Billups, Parker, Kidd are all between 6'2 or 6'4). He is a little streaky in game, but overall he has a pretty good FG percentage at 44.9%, which ranks him in the top 10 amongst point guards (Nash is the PG leader at .536). He has good range (he is about 41% from behind the arc), but he only takes about 4 treys a game. Hinrich is an excellent distributor averaging 6.0 assists a game. He averages about 2 turnovers a game, so he definitely protects possessions with a TO to assist ratio of 3 to 1. Helps out on the boards with about 3.5 rebounds per game, and is adequate defensively getting about 1.3 steals per game. He isn't a game changer (he averages about 16 pts per game), but if he is going good he has the ability to let the Bulls pull away from opponents. He is a better road player than home player, averaging 4 pts more on the road than at home (18 ppg on the road vs 14 ppg at home). Overall, he has a PER* of 16.72, which makes him the 14th most efficient PG in the NBA. TJ matches up well with Hinrich, as Kirk is not a post up PG, and will not impose too physical of a presence on TJ. Given the make up of the Raptors, Hinrich will probably be focused on slowing TJ rather than look for his own offense.
SG: Ben Gordon is a second tier SG, but he can get very hot in clutch situations. Has below average size at 6'3, and he is a volume shooter (averages 16 attempts per game) that is very prone to hot and cold streaks (he just went 2 of 12 from the floor against the Clips). He is a threat from deep, with a 3 pt % around .400, while he takes about 4 treys a game. He averages about 3.6 assists per game, so he looks definitely looks for his own shot first. Does an average job on the boards for his position with 3.2 boards a game. Careless with the ball as he averages about 3 turnovers a game, but around the average for 2 guards. Can get posted up defensively due to his size, and is not a very good defensive player, averaging less than 1 steal a game. He isn't really affected by playing at home or on the road, as his averages are fairly consistent based on his splits, but he does average 2 pts more at home. Overall, he has a PER of 18.36, which ranks him as the 16th best SG in the league (D Wade is the leader at 30.05, Kobe is 2nd at 26.21). He has been a traditional Raptor killer, and the job of stopping him may fall on Mo Pete or Juan Dixon if Gordon continues to come off the bench for the Bulls (39 starts out of 70 games played).
SF: Luol Deng is a rising star at SF. Devastating mid range game as witnessed by his .521 FG% (as a comparison LeBron is .479 and Melo is .478). Should take more shots considering his impact, but plays within the offense averaging 14.7 attempts per game (LeBron takes about 21 attempts per game). Is not a threat from beyond the arc shooting a terrible 25% from deep, but he does not take many treys as he is averaging less than 1 attempt per games (apparently he understands his weakness). A great rebounder for his position averaging about 7 rebounds per game (compared with Josh Howard's 7 a game). Very good defensively averaging 1.2 steals per game. Takes very good care of the ball with only 1.8 TO a game, he isn't a non stop slasher which limits his TO situations. As consistent on the road as he is at home with only a difference of 0.6 pts on the split. Overall, he has a PER of 18.87, which ranks him as the 8th best SF in the NBA, amazing since he doesn't not get the same volume as some of the guys ahead of him (LeBron, Melo, Lewis). Luol Deng is the single biggest matchup problem for the Raptors, but if the Bulls don't start Gordon, Parker will probably do an adequate job of slowing him down defensively. He will hurt the Raptors, the biggest need is to limit the pain.
PF: PJ Brown, Tyrus Thomas, and Andres Nocioni share starting duties at this position. PJ and Tyrus both average less than 6 pts per game, and PJ is the better rebounder at 5 boards a game. Neither are factors for the Bulls (PJ is a historic Raptor killer, Tyrus may or may not be illiterate, and probably can't find Canada on a map). Nocioni has not played since Feb 23 due to plantar fasciitis. When he is available he is by far the best PF the Bulls have. He is a little undersized at 6'7, but has posted great numbers so far this season 15 ppg and 6 rpg. Is not a great defender based on his 0.5 blocks per game, but he is will make opposition work for their points. Has a great FG% at .468 while taking 12 shots per game. He is not on pace for 500 mins this season, so a PER is unavailable for him. Regardless, of who plays PF for the Bulls, their sole responsibility will be to slow down Chris Bosh. Given Tyrus Thomas' athleticism, he will probably get a greater share of this duty, while Nocioni will probably see his minutes limited. I would be extremely surprised if we saw PJ Brown play more than 10 - 15 mins per game.
C: Ben Wallace is still a difference maker on the boards and on defense. Very obvious slippage from his Defensive Player of the Year days. Has won a championship, so he knows what it takes to be successful in the post season. Averages about 6 ppg on put backs and baskets inside 6 ft, he has no real offensive game. A total offensive liability in late game situations as he only shoots around 40% from the free throw line. A top ten rebounder (# 8) in the NBA with 10.5 rebounds per game, and very effective on the offensive glass with 4 boards a game, which will generate at least 4-6 second chance points per game. Still a top 10 shot blocker (# 9) averaging 2.1 blocks a game, and helps out the overall team defense with 1.5 steals a game. Doesn't rank in the top 50 in PER for his position due to his shockingly inefficient offense (only takes about 5 shots per game, hitting 44% of the time). Rasho or Garbo (if Bargs is playing in late game situations) will be able to do an efficient job in slowing him down. He should have a very minimal impact on the outcome of this series.
My first impression of this series is that it will come down to which team is better at dictating the tempo of the game, and who can slow down the other teams main offensive threat, Bosh for the Raps and Deng for the Bulls. If the Raptors are extremely efficient in their offense, limiting their turnovers, maximizing their assists, and hitting from beyond on the arc, the Bulls will be hard pressed to keep up with them offensively. The Bulls have to force the Raptors into as many half court - zone situations as possible, as they do not match up will one on one with the Raptors, and they definitely cannot run their break as efficiently as the Raptors can. If Gordon gets very hot in this series, then the Raptors could be in serious trouble as Anthony Parker has to spend most of his time on Deng. However, since the Bulls backcourt is so small due to Gordon's lack of stature, I think we could see more TJ/Calderon pairings in 4th quarter situations to ensure the best possible lineup is on the floor. I haven't seen Dixon try to guard Gordon, so Juan's play could be a huge factor in the Raptors game plan for the Bulls.
This should be a very entertaining first round matchup, but right now Chicago does have home court advantage which is huge. If the Raptors can steal a game in Chicago, I think they will be well positioned to advance to the second round. Getting to 100 ppg is a huge key for the Raptors as scoring at such a high rate would mean that they are able to run their break offense effectively, which means the Bulls are playing at an offensive place that they are uncomfortable with, and will probably not be able to sustain over a 7 game series. Stopping Deng will be the key to any possible Raptors success.
An Early Look at the Bulls - Raptors Series By Richie
Since you have set forth the challenge of breaking down the Bulls, let me get it started.
PG
Kirk Hinrich - An undersized point guard with a great shooting touch when hes hot. Capable of scoring in the mid twenties on those nights. His backup Duhon is very solid and can make big contributions from time to time at either spot in the backcourt. A versatile duo. I like Ford and Calderon better though.
SG
Ben Gordon - A traditional Raptor killer who has had plenty of huge games matchin up against Toronto. Makes plenty of circus shots and is the team's best scorer. However, as the leading scorer on the team he is not exactly overly intimidating on the superstar scale. More concretely, he is not as good other possible first round matchups like Wade, Arenas or Lebron. He has plenty of nights where his game is completely invisible. If Anthony Parker can get his ankle healthy enough to defend, Gordon does not worry me too much.
SF
Luol Deng - Definitely the real threat on the team to the Raps. They have absolutely no answer to his game. He is not quite a superstar, but is a great number 2 or 3 guy on a championship calibre team. Nocioni was good in the playoffs last year and could step up if he regains his full health. The Raptors are severely outclassed at this particular position.
PF
PJ Brown/Tyrus Thomas - Solid defence from these two and extremely limited offence. Thomas is simply too raw to be able to contribute much come playoff time.
C
Ben Wallace - Good defender, no offence and can't shoot free throws. Thus he won't even be on the court to play defence in plenty of close games. Why they gave up on Tyson Chandler for an older version of him I will never know. Skiles and Paxson were foolish in my mind to sign him to such big money.
Bench
Sefolosha, Sweetney, Griffin, Allen, etc are all crap. They will not get playoff minutes for this team. Thus the 8 players mentioned above will need to carry the load.
Wrapup
The Bulls seem to always beat the Raps. While their 15 game winning streak has been put to an end, it still seems to me that the Bulls hold a psychological advantage were they to meet in round one.
Overall I think the Bulls would win simply based on the experience they have gained over the past two seasons. The Raps are a bit too young in my mind. Other than MoPete, Rasho and Ford, the Raps have no NBA playoff experience.
I do think it would be close though and I see the Bulls to be a deeply flawed team with a stagnant offence. They could be knocked off if the whole Raptors team shows up healthy for round one. I actually think it would be quite an attractive first round matchup.
PG
Kirk Hinrich - An undersized point guard with a great shooting touch when hes hot. Capable of scoring in the mid twenties on those nights. His backup Duhon is very solid and can make big contributions from time to time at either spot in the backcourt. A versatile duo. I like Ford and Calderon better though.
SG
Ben Gordon - A traditional Raptor killer who has had plenty of huge games matchin up against Toronto. Makes plenty of circus shots and is the team's best scorer. However, as the leading scorer on the team he is not exactly overly intimidating on the superstar scale. More concretely, he is not as good other possible first round matchups like Wade, Arenas or Lebron. He has plenty of nights where his game is completely invisible. If Anthony Parker can get his ankle healthy enough to defend, Gordon does not worry me too much.
SF
Luol Deng - Definitely the real threat on the team to the Raps. They have absolutely no answer to his game. He is not quite a superstar, but is a great number 2 or 3 guy on a championship calibre team. Nocioni was good in the playoffs last year and could step up if he regains his full health. The Raptors are severely outclassed at this particular position.
PF
PJ Brown/Tyrus Thomas - Solid defence from these two and extremely limited offence. Thomas is simply too raw to be able to contribute much come playoff time.
C
Ben Wallace - Good defender, no offence and can't shoot free throws. Thus he won't even be on the court to play defence in plenty of close games. Why they gave up on Tyson Chandler for an older version of him I will never know. Skiles and Paxson were foolish in my mind to sign him to such big money.
Bench
Sefolosha, Sweetney, Griffin, Allen, etc are all crap. They will not get playoff minutes for this team. Thus the 8 players mentioned above will need to carry the load.
Wrapup
The Bulls seem to always beat the Raps. While their 15 game winning streak has been put to an end, it still seems to me that the Bulls hold a psychological advantage were they to meet in round one.
Overall I think the Bulls would win simply based on the experience they have gained over the past two seasons. The Raps are a bit too young in my mind. Other than MoPete, Rasho and Ford, the Raps have no NBA playoff experience.
I do think it would be close though and I see the Bulls to be a deeply flawed team with a stagnant offence. They could be knocked off if the whole Raptors team shows up healthy for round one. I actually think it would be quite an attractive first round matchup.
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
Oden or Durant
Okay, this is a total hypothetical, but for a minute, let's pretend that David Stern didn't screw the Raptors over for the millionth time, and the NBA age limit didn't kick in until this season. Meaning that Greg Oden and Kevin Durant, as well as Andrea, were available to be picked by the Raps. Knowing what we know now about all 3 players, who would you have chosen? Here's my take:
I think Bragnani is great, and he does a lot of things that Oden can't like bomb 3's over opposing 5's in high screen-roll situations, and he has a certain height that Durant doesn't (6'9 compared with 7'0), so its a hard call to say that the Raptors would have been definitively better with one of the other guys. We know what the Raptors are with Bragnani, and we have had a few glimpses of what they might become (last Wednesday's game against the Knicks being the best example), but Andrea is 21 years old, which makes him 3 years older than both Oden and Durant. I think in terms of updside, its hard to argue against a couple of guys like Oden or Durant. Bragnani is still developing, and he is definitely a legit NBA player with All-Star potential, but is he the same kind of franchise altering picks that Oden and Durant are? I don't know the answer to that, but seeing how the Raptors have played this season, I think having Bragnani definitely puts the Raptors in a position to contend for a Finals if they can a couple more pieces.
Greg Oden is probably the best American center to come into the NBA since Tim Duncan (it can be argued that TD was a 4 for a lot of his career, but that's just semantics. After David Robinson retired, its pretty clear that TD has been the Spurs 5. Look at their last championship run, featuring Big Shot Rob at the 4, so who was the pivot? TD of course.) With Oden, the Raptors wouldn't be able to run the kind of offense that they do now (screen - roll, find 3 pt shooters), without having to change their roster significantly (no more Garbo, Mo Pete, Joey Graham). But, Oden and Bosh could work the high - low block with some pretty devastating results assuming we still had TJ Ford. In this situation, TJ could come off a high screen, and 1) turn the corner and get a layup, 2) penetrate and look for either a cutting Bosh or Oden with single coverage on them, or 3) kick it out to the perimeter for a wide open 3 because the defense has to sag so much to protect the rim against Bosh, Oden, and TJ. Of course this offense would be unstoppable if the Raps had another shooter on the perimeter to go with AP. I think the Raptors would have been a much better defensive team having 2 big time shot blockers in Bosh and Oden, and the rebounding that these 2 could provide would mean that the Raptors could probably run their break at an even faster pace. I think Oden probably would have made the Raptors championship contenders for the next 15 years.
Kevin Durant is probably the best young offensive player I have ever seen. I am not old enough to remember when Jordan entered the league, so I won't say that Durant is the all time greatest. At the same time, I can't recall too many Jordan clips where he started raining 27 feet 3's on people, so there are probably a few things that Durant does better now at 18 than Jordan did. I think that Durant would been able to make an instant impact with the Raptors because his game meshes so well with the Raptors philosophy of taking a lot of treys off TJ penetration, and be an outlet for a lot of Bosh high-screen and rolls kick outs. Ironically, I think the Raptors would probably be a similar team to what they are now since Durant has a similar jump shot based game to Bragnani (neither player is what I would call a force on the block). The dimension that Durant has that Bragnani doesn't is his ability to create off the dribble, a facet of the game that Durant is superior in. In late shot clock situations, it would be conceivable that the Raptors could throw the ball to Durant to let him try and create something. Right now, the Raptors definitely lack that aspect to their offense. At the same time, Durant looks like he may have spent a couple of summers in Ethiopia, I mean that kid is rail thin (I used to think that about LeBron when I saw him as a junior in HS, but HGH is a powerful drug). Durant's lack of overall strength and an NBA ready body would probably have meant that he would have to come off the bench, and his defense would be very limited.
Having covered what I think the impact on the Raptors offense would have been, who would I have chosen if all 3 were available? Probably Greg Oden. Having a guy like that just gives you so many options, ups the tempo of the break because of the increased transition opportunity, and the Raptors address their complete inability to rebound at a high rate. Oden and Bosh would have been like having the more athletic version of Ewing and Malone. That would've been awesome, but since David Stern decided to screw over Canada once again, its all a pipe dream. However, Bragnani was still a great choice even if his appendix did exploded today.
(The magic number is 10, Bragnani will be back in a month, I mean Ben Rothlisberger played a week after his surgery, and Bragnani doesn't have 300 lbs monster trying to break his stitches open...)
I think Bragnani is great, and he does a lot of things that Oden can't like bomb 3's over opposing 5's in high screen-roll situations, and he has a certain height that Durant doesn't (6'9 compared with 7'0), so its a hard call to say that the Raptors would have been definitively better with one of the other guys. We know what the Raptors are with Bragnani, and we have had a few glimpses of what they might become (last Wednesday's game against the Knicks being the best example), but Andrea is 21 years old, which makes him 3 years older than both Oden and Durant. I think in terms of updside, its hard to argue against a couple of guys like Oden or Durant. Bragnani is still developing, and he is definitely a legit NBA player with All-Star potential, but is he the same kind of franchise altering picks that Oden and Durant are? I don't know the answer to that, but seeing how the Raptors have played this season, I think having Bragnani definitely puts the Raptors in a position to contend for a Finals if they can a couple more pieces.
Greg Oden is probably the best American center to come into the NBA since Tim Duncan (it can be argued that TD was a 4 for a lot of his career, but that's just semantics. After David Robinson retired, its pretty clear that TD has been the Spurs 5. Look at their last championship run, featuring Big Shot Rob at the 4, so who was the pivot? TD of course.) With Oden, the Raptors wouldn't be able to run the kind of offense that they do now (screen - roll, find 3 pt shooters), without having to change their roster significantly (no more Garbo, Mo Pete, Joey Graham). But, Oden and Bosh could work the high - low block with some pretty devastating results assuming we still had TJ Ford. In this situation, TJ could come off a high screen, and 1) turn the corner and get a layup, 2) penetrate and look for either a cutting Bosh or Oden with single coverage on them, or 3) kick it out to the perimeter for a wide open 3 because the defense has to sag so much to protect the rim against Bosh, Oden, and TJ. Of course this offense would be unstoppable if the Raps had another shooter on the perimeter to go with AP. I think the Raptors would have been a much better defensive team having 2 big time shot blockers in Bosh and Oden, and the rebounding that these 2 could provide would mean that the Raptors could probably run their break at an even faster pace. I think Oden probably would have made the Raptors championship contenders for the next 15 years.
Kevin Durant is probably the best young offensive player I have ever seen. I am not old enough to remember when Jordan entered the league, so I won't say that Durant is the all time greatest. At the same time, I can't recall too many Jordan clips where he started raining 27 feet 3's on people, so there are probably a few things that Durant does better now at 18 than Jordan did. I think that Durant would been able to make an instant impact with the Raptors because his game meshes so well with the Raptors philosophy of taking a lot of treys off TJ penetration, and be an outlet for a lot of Bosh high-screen and rolls kick outs. Ironically, I think the Raptors would probably be a similar team to what they are now since Durant has a similar jump shot based game to Bragnani (neither player is what I would call a force on the block). The dimension that Durant has that Bragnani doesn't is his ability to create off the dribble, a facet of the game that Durant is superior in. In late shot clock situations, it would be conceivable that the Raptors could throw the ball to Durant to let him try and create something. Right now, the Raptors definitely lack that aspect to their offense. At the same time, Durant looks like he may have spent a couple of summers in Ethiopia, I mean that kid is rail thin (I used to think that about LeBron when I saw him as a junior in HS, but HGH is a powerful drug). Durant's lack of overall strength and an NBA ready body would probably have meant that he would have to come off the bench, and his defense would be very limited.
Having covered what I think the impact on the Raptors offense would have been, who would I have chosen if all 3 were available? Probably Greg Oden. Having a guy like that just gives you so many options, ups the tempo of the break because of the increased transition opportunity, and the Raptors address their complete inability to rebound at a high rate. Oden and Bosh would have been like having the more athletic version of Ewing and Malone. That would've been awesome, but since David Stern decided to screw over Canada once again, its all a pipe dream. However, Bragnani was still a great choice even if his appendix did exploded today.
(The magic number is 10, Bragnani will be back in a month, I mean Ben Rothlisberger played a week after his surgery, and Bragnani doesn't have 300 lbs monster trying to break his stitches open...)
Friday, March 16, 2007
Could the Real Mo Pete Please Stand Up
Now Mo Pete has seem extremely limited minutes in the recent winning streak. This pretty much baffles everyone since we have grown to know Mo Pete as a solid contributor who can play pretty decent defense. Richie and I had a recent conversation about Mo Pete's status in the Raptor rotation (this is for you Chueeey):
Oscar's View:
Sadly, I can't understand why Juan Dixon is usurping all the minutes from Mo. Now, when AP was out, Mo stepped into the starting lineup and sucked for about 3 games. 5 pts against the Cavs, invisible in San Antonio, okay in Houston! After the debacles against the Bucks and Cavs a couple of weeks ago, it seemed like Mo Pete just wasn't all the way there to me. He is definitely looking for his shot before he is looking to pass, but he doesn't seem to be burdening the offense since he isn't touching the ball all the time. Having said that, Mo has been pretty cold from beyond the arc lately, but he had a good night against Milwaukee on Monday. I think Mitchell feels that Dixon is more active on defense right now, which is one of the main reasons that Mo Pete is getting some serious splinters in his ass. Once Mo gets his defense up again, I have a feeling that his minutes should get to be about equal to those of Dixon's. Maybe Sam is just punishing Mo right now, hard to tell. I think the situation should get sorted out in the next week or 2.
Richie's Take:
I agree with Oscar that Mitchell is trying to punish Peterson's lackadaisical effort this year. However, last game against the Bucks he did get decent minutes and played better D as evidenced by his 4 boards and 2 steals. I predict MoPete gets more minutes once the playoffs start as he has valuable experience that cannot be found on Dixon's resume.
Oscar's View:
Sadly, I can't understand why Juan Dixon is usurping all the minutes from Mo. Now, when AP was out, Mo stepped into the starting lineup and sucked for about 3 games. 5 pts against the Cavs, invisible in San Antonio, okay in Houston! After the debacles against the Bucks and Cavs a couple of weeks ago, it seemed like Mo Pete just wasn't all the way there to me. He is definitely looking for his shot before he is looking to pass, but he doesn't seem to be burdening the offense since he isn't touching the ball all the time. Having said that, Mo has been pretty cold from beyond the arc lately, but he had a good night against Milwaukee on Monday. I think Mitchell feels that Dixon is more active on defense right now, which is one of the main reasons that Mo Pete is getting some serious splinters in his ass. Once Mo gets his defense up again, I have a feeling that his minutes should get to be about equal to those of Dixon's. Maybe Sam is just punishing Mo right now, hard to tell. I think the situation should get sorted out in the next week or 2.
Richie's Take:
I agree with Oscar that Mitchell is trying to punish Peterson's lackadaisical effort this year. However, last game against the Bucks he did get decent minutes and played better D as evidenced by his 4 boards and 2 steals. I predict MoPete gets more minutes once the playoffs start as he has valuable experience that cannot be found on Dixon's resume.
Views of the Raptors from across the Pacific
Special guest commentator CP gave me his thoughts about the Raptors. He is the only guy that I know that actually enjoys reading John Hollinger (who I have a secret grudge against because he dissed TJ at the beginning of the season. Like Sports Guy he must make a public apology before he is forgiven). More to the point, CP is the only guy that I know that wants my ESPN Insider access so he can look at the statistically breakdowns for different players, so that pretty much seals it.
CP's Thoughts:
1. Bosh - Superstar (only about 16 in league)
2. Calderon - Playing at an all-star level (plays both ends of the floor)
3. Ford - Quality starter (needs a jump shot to offset his defensive deficiencies)
4. Parker - Solid starter (best defensive player with a load of intangibles)
5. Peterson - ok backup (his efficiency numbers aren't bad he just isn't getting minutes)
I think Bargnani will transform into a boreline starter next year, and boderline all-star the next but I think he is still more of a liability than an asset this year. I think if we can sign an all-star or boderline all-star SF the Raps could win a title in three years from now.
CP's Thoughts:
1. Bosh - Superstar (only about 16 in league)
2. Calderon - Playing at an all-star level (plays both ends of the floor)
3. Ford - Quality starter (needs a jump shot to offset his defensive deficiencies)
4. Parker - Solid starter (best defensive player with a load of intangibles)
5. Peterson - ok backup (his efficiency numbers aren't bad he just isn't getting minutes)
I think Bargnani will transform into a boreline starter next year, and boderline all-star the next but I think he is still more of a liability than an asset this year. I think if we can sign an all-star or boderline all-star SF the Raps could win a title in three years from now.
Why I still hate Duke, but Paulus is better than I thought
Okay, first I must say I am so glad that Duke got knocked out in the first round. Very excited about that. Coach K can't recruit smart black guys anymore, what happened to the Elton Brands and Grant Hills?
Anyway, after watching VCU beat them, Josh McRoberts sucks. He is terrible, I love it. McRoberts has been exposed. He should have left early, but now he is going to be marginal as a bball player. What was he thinking, he was ranked in the top 5, and with the incoming class he had to know that he was going to be em brassed.
I hate that guy, and Duke is always full of those guys. At least Lattiner was clutch in college, McRoberts isn't even good enough to beat VCU.
Has anyone else noticed that this year's Duke team is full of the discount versions of previous Duke players. For example:
1) McRoberts is like the unclutch, no heart (for college) version of Christian Lattiner
2) Nelson is like a much less capable Duhon, but has Duhon like game, just at a much lower level.
3) Henderson wants to have Maggette like game, but he has to settle for being a thug.
Everyone is a downgrade from the typical Duke player EXCEPT for Greg Paulus. He is like the upgraded Wojo. Last Duke team not be raked in the top 10 going into the tourney? You guessed it, 1996 when Wojo was the PG. Too bad cause Paulus is really tough, and he earned my respect against VCU. He is still an EXTREMELY limited player, and has no hope for NBA success, but at least he is tough, unlike his fraud of a teammate Josh McRoberts. Can you tell I hate McRoberts yet?
Anyway, after watching VCU beat them, Josh McRoberts sucks. He is terrible, I love it. McRoberts has been exposed. He should have left early, but now he is going to be marginal as a bball player. What was he thinking, he was ranked in the top 5, and with the incoming class he had to know that he was going to be em brassed.
I hate that guy, and Duke is always full of those guys. At least Lattiner was clutch in college, McRoberts isn't even good enough to beat VCU.
Has anyone else noticed that this year's Duke team is full of the discount versions of previous Duke players. For example:
1) McRoberts is like the unclutch, no heart (for college) version of Christian Lattiner
2) Nelson is like a much less capable Duhon, but has Duhon like game, just at a much lower level.
3) Henderson wants to have Maggette like game, but he has to settle for being a thug.
Everyone is a downgrade from the typical Duke player EXCEPT for Greg Paulus. He is like the upgraded Wojo. Last Duke team not be raked in the top 10 going into the tourney? You guessed it, 1996 when Wojo was the PG. Too bad cause Paulus is really tough, and he earned my respect against VCU. He is still an EXTREMELY limited player, and has no hope for NBA success, but at least he is tough, unlike his fraud of a teammate Josh McRoberts. Can you tell I hate McRoberts yet?
Quick Hits on things I've noticed about the Raptors recently
1) Bosh and Andrea are awesome, and both of them are good enough to be franchise guys. Bragnani is ice from beyond the arc. Everyone keeps complaing about their rebounding, and I agree that they need to take care of their defensive boards a little more, but the Raptors can run with any team in the league.
2) Did you know that TJ has made the playoffs every single season since he has been in the NBA. Milwaukee went from being a playoff team to a lottery team, Toronto the complete opposite. Colangelo is a genius.
3) They need a 3 who can hit from deep, and is a good man up defender. Then their D will be pretty good, and the O will be unstoppable.
4) Mitchell is a good coach now. He will get extended. I don't see Colangelo destroying a playoff team for no reason. Mitchell will get an extension if he wants it.
2) Did you know that TJ has made the playoffs every single season since he has been in the NBA. Milwaukee went from being a playoff team to a lottery team, Toronto the complete opposite. Colangelo is a genius.
3) They need a 3 who can hit from deep, and is a good man up defender. Then their D will be pretty good, and the O will be unstoppable.
4) Mitchell is a good coach now. He will get extended. I don't see Colangelo destroying a playoff team for no reason. Mitchell will get an extension if he wants it.
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Why Rashard Lewis would be the Missing Piece (and why it won't happen)
Who's the biggest Free Agent on the Market this summer? Other than Chauncy Billups, I think Rashard Lewis is the big fish in a little pond. I remember myself saying at the beginning of the season that he might not be the best fit for the Raptors due to his defense and the number of shots that he takes. After getting the chance to watch him play live in a relatively high scoring game, here's what I was able to observe about him:
1) Lewis is not volume jacker. Based on the number of shots he takes, I thought Lewis was the kind of player that never met a jumper he didn't like. In fact, from what I could see yesterday, Lewis functions very well in an offense, and he really lets the game come to him. His points are a function of his shooting ability combined with the fact that he is the 2nd option on the offense. When Allen was having an off 1st quarter, Lewis asserted himself some more, but when Allen started to catch fire, Lewis took the shots that were available and were within the confines of the offense. He isn't the kind of player that pounds the dribble to try and create his own shot off a drive. He didn't at any point decide to go 1 on 5 and total ignore his teammates. This is a huge bonus considering the style that the Raptors like to play.
2) You're right in that he grabs a shit load of rebounds for a SF. He is tricky with his boards because he is usually set up from behind the arc, and he sneaks in after the offense moves away from him to work the weakside glass. Now, Lewis didn't stand out yesterday as a phenomenal defensive rebounding presence, but its not like the Raptors (aka Garbo/Parker) where eating up the offensive boards, so I am assuming he blocked out at least decently. Of course, I really wasn't scouting Lewis closely enough to really say for certain what his defensive rebounding is like.
3) Lewis is terrible on defense. Now this is more of a statement that is indicative of the entire Seattle team. The Sonics showed no interest in playing any defense. Now I can honestly say that their defensive issues do not stem from Lewis, he is merely a victim of circumstance in this regard. I mean he could be okay on defense, but since no one else even bothers to get in the way of the other team, there is only so much one man can do.
Will he fit in with the Raptors? This is the million dollar question, or in Lewis' case its the $14 million question (he is set to earn $10 million in Seattle next season, I can't see him opting out of that contract to earn less than that). I think Lewis, if he comes to Toronto, would provide the Raptors with the athletic swing man at SF that they are dying for in order to get their offense to the next level. By next level, I mean the absolute elite of the NBA, if you add Lewis into the offensive game plan that the Raptors run right now, Toronto will be able to score at almost the same clip as teams like the Suns. Defensively they are hurt a little bit because Garbo comes up with a bunch of hassle turnovers every game, but the increase in their scoring would off set that. Garbo would be able to move into the 2nd unit combine with Calderon (and maybe Brags) to form a pretty lethal bench.
Now I would love to see Rashard in a Raptors uni next season. After watching the Raptors all season and getting a pretty good idea on what they need to get to that next level, I take back my initial assessment of Lewis, and I have come to the conclusion that he would in fact combine with Bosh to form a pretty formidable front court duo. When Andrea gets promoted to the first unit, he, Bosh, and Lewis would be pretty much unstoppable. Any double team on Bosh would probably result in a wide open 3 pointer (unless its Spurs, since they can teleport on defense), or if teams tried to play the Raptors straight up, the high screen - roll would cut the heart out of almost any team, which then leads to more drive and kicks. Anyway, I am getting ahead of myself because none of this is possible. Rashard Lewis is looking for HUGE money this summer, and Toronto just doesn't have that kind of space. What we need is the rookie version of Lewis, the kind of guy that can play his game, with maturity, but we won't have to pay him a crapload of money.
My odds on favorites on who the Raptors could get that can fill this role (assuming Colangelo can somehow finagle his way into the 1st round): Jeff Green from Georgetown, Al Thorton from FSU, or Brandon Rush from Kansas
1) Lewis is not volume jacker. Based on the number of shots he takes, I thought Lewis was the kind of player that never met a jumper he didn't like. In fact, from what I could see yesterday, Lewis functions very well in an offense, and he really lets the game come to him. His points are a function of his shooting ability combined with the fact that he is the 2nd option on the offense. When Allen was having an off 1st quarter, Lewis asserted himself some more, but when Allen started to catch fire, Lewis took the shots that were available and were within the confines of the offense. He isn't the kind of player that pounds the dribble to try and create his own shot off a drive. He didn't at any point decide to go 1 on 5 and total ignore his teammates. This is a huge bonus considering the style that the Raptors like to play.
2) You're right in that he grabs a shit load of rebounds for a SF. He is tricky with his boards because he is usually set up from behind the arc, and he sneaks in after the offense moves away from him to work the weakside glass. Now, Lewis didn't stand out yesterday as a phenomenal defensive rebounding presence, but its not like the Raptors (aka Garbo/Parker) where eating up the offensive boards, so I am assuming he blocked out at least decently. Of course, I really wasn't scouting Lewis closely enough to really say for certain what his defensive rebounding is like.
3) Lewis is terrible on defense. Now this is more of a statement that is indicative of the entire Seattle team. The Sonics showed no interest in playing any defense. Now I can honestly say that their defensive issues do not stem from Lewis, he is merely a victim of circumstance in this regard. I mean he could be okay on defense, but since no one else even bothers to get in the way of the other team, there is only so much one man can do.
Will he fit in with the Raptors? This is the million dollar question, or in Lewis' case its the $14 million question (he is set to earn $10 million in Seattle next season, I can't see him opting out of that contract to earn less than that). I think Lewis, if he comes to Toronto, would provide the Raptors with the athletic swing man at SF that they are dying for in order to get their offense to the next level. By next level, I mean the absolute elite of the NBA, if you add Lewis into the offensive game plan that the Raptors run right now, Toronto will be able to score at almost the same clip as teams like the Suns. Defensively they are hurt a little bit because Garbo comes up with a bunch of hassle turnovers every game, but the increase in their scoring would off set that. Garbo would be able to move into the 2nd unit combine with Calderon (and maybe Brags) to form a pretty lethal bench.
Now I would love to see Rashard in a Raptors uni next season. After watching the Raptors all season and getting a pretty good idea on what they need to get to that next level, I take back my initial assessment of Lewis, and I have come to the conclusion that he would in fact combine with Bosh to form a pretty formidable front court duo. When Andrea gets promoted to the first unit, he, Bosh, and Lewis would be pretty much unstoppable. Any double team on Bosh would probably result in a wide open 3 pointer (unless its Spurs, since they can teleport on defense), or if teams tried to play the Raptors straight up, the high screen - roll would cut the heart out of almost any team, which then leads to more drive and kicks. Anyway, I am getting ahead of myself because none of this is possible. Rashard Lewis is looking for HUGE money this summer, and Toronto just doesn't have that kind of space. What we need is the rookie version of Lewis, the kind of guy that can play his game, with maturity, but we won't have to pay him a crapload of money.
My odds on favorites on who the Raptors could get that can fill this role (assuming Colangelo can somehow finagle his way into the 1st round): Jeff Green from Georgetown, Al Thorton from FSU, or Brandon Rush from Kansas
Basking in the Glory of the Raptors
Just some quick thoughts from Richie and me about the state of the Raptors and their players. As you can tell from this email thread, we are pretty damned excited!!!
Richie's quick hits
i do not know how the raptors will ultimately address the rebounding issue. however, bosh and bargs are looking like they are BOTH franchise players. the recent return to brilliance of tj ford is also encouraging. (especially in light of villanuevas ineptitude. he is benched for skinner!!!! holy moses!!!) i suggest we bask in the glory that is the toronto raptors for a moment.
1. bosh - true leader
2. bargs - unlimited talent
3. ford - improving year by year
4. calderon - great dude, fantastic backup
5. parker - only good man to man defender on the team and solid on offence
6. dixon??? seems to be contributing well considering they traded nuthin to get him
while garbajosa, nesterovic are solid backups they do not deserve to start.
the hump and slokar deserve roster spots in the 10-12 range on the bench.
joey g is running out of opportunities it is sad to say.
mo pete will walk and free up roster/salary cap space. i wish he had played better and deserved a contract. he is a good guy and will be fondly remembered.
My Thoughts
Richie I completely agree that we should bask because this day in Raptors history just didn't seem like it would ever get here. I've posted some other comments on the current team.
Bosh - Absolutely clutch. Against both Seattle and the Bucks, he had a couple of stretches where his jumper just wouldn't go down. But in crunch time, when the Raps desperately needed a bucket, he found a way to get some points. He is the very essence of a go to guy, I mean he could develop Duncan like clutchness.
Brags - Wow, I can't say enough positive things about him. He does some things on the court that are completely unbelievable. Forget the fact that he is doing it at 7 ft, if he was 6-8 I would still be astounded. A great compliment of Bosh, Andrea understands how to adjust his game when he is playing with Bosh and when he is the main big man on the floor. At the end of the day, he IS the Raptors go to guy from 3 pt land, he is a stone cold killer at the end of a game. If it was game 7, and the Raps needed a 3 to tie, Brags is the one I would want taking the shot. That's saying a lot considering he is a rookie.
TJ - Well he is still a little inconsistent. He has been a little off the past few weeks, perhaps it was a Vegas hangover, but judging from the last 2 games, TJ is getting hot for the run to the playoffs. He light up the Bucks yesterday. Even if CV was having a great year, I still think this was a great trade for the Raps. Ford was unstoppable in the first quarter against the Bucks. He dunked, and had some ridiculous assists as well. If he gets a so-so 3, and makes his pull up very consistent, he will be an All-Star.
Jose - Great teammate, does a great job as the backup. Gives Ford the necessary rest/time to regroup when he gets a little haggard. Improving in all aspects of his game. Just a solid team guy that contributes to a good environment.
Parker - The trigger man for the Raptors defense. When he is there, I think the Raptors defense improves by at least 10 pts. I don't have the stats to back it up, but he just does so much on the defensive end. You don't notice it all the time when you watch them, but when he isn't in the game, you really feel his absence.
Garbo - Does what he needs to do. Probably playing/played too many mins this season. He looks worn down a bit. Fantastic team defender. He may not lock anyone down, but when the Raptors are helping, he is the man in that situation.
Dixon - Gets killed on defense by bigger guards. Very clutch on offense, feels big moments and doesn't shy away from them, a good sign. Probably a great guy to have as the back up 2, but he is playing a bit too much in my opinion.
Rasho - Doing what he needs to do to keep Chris Bosh upright. He doesn't bring a lot to the table, but he will get you 8 and 8 most nights, and he takes the pounding inside. Can't really expect too much more. Glad he is on the team, he can settle the defense as well.
Graham and Mo Pete - I am sad that both of these guys probably won't be around next season. Not sure why Mo Pete didn't step up that big this season, but its probably time for him to change scenary. It'll be a sad day when he leaves, but I am glad he was part of this playoff run. He deserves it after all the shit he had to play through the last couple of years. Graham, well he might be around for another season, he is a monster finisher (sometimes), a good defender (sometimes), and a good rebounder (sometimes). Its all the (sometimes) that will do him in, but maybe he really increases his basketball IQ this summer, and shocks the world. I though Calderon was a complete failure last year, but he has turned it around completely. Maybe Graham can do it too.
Richie's quick hits
i do not know how the raptors will ultimately address the rebounding issue. however, bosh and bargs are looking like they are BOTH franchise players. the recent return to brilliance of tj ford is also encouraging. (especially in light of villanuevas ineptitude. he is benched for skinner!!!! holy moses!!!) i suggest we bask in the glory that is the toronto raptors for a moment.
1. bosh - true leader
2. bargs - unlimited talent
3. ford - improving year by year
4. calderon - great dude, fantastic backup
5. parker - only good man to man defender on the team and solid on offence
6. dixon??? seems to be contributing well considering they traded nuthin to get him
while garbajosa, nesterovic are solid backups they do not deserve to start.
the hump and slokar deserve roster spots in the 10-12 range on the bench.
joey g is running out of opportunities it is sad to say.
mo pete will walk and free up roster/salary cap space. i wish he had played better and deserved a contract. he is a good guy and will be fondly remembered.
My Thoughts
Richie I completely agree that we should bask because this day in Raptors history just didn't seem like it would ever get here. I've posted some other comments on the current team.
Bosh - Absolutely clutch. Against both Seattle and the Bucks, he had a couple of stretches where his jumper just wouldn't go down. But in crunch time, when the Raps desperately needed a bucket, he found a way to get some points. He is the very essence of a go to guy, I mean he could develop Duncan like clutchness.
Brags - Wow, I can't say enough positive things about him. He does some things on the court that are completely unbelievable. Forget the fact that he is doing it at 7 ft, if he was 6-8 I would still be astounded. A great compliment of Bosh, Andrea understands how to adjust his game when he is playing with Bosh and when he is the main big man on the floor. At the end of the day, he IS the Raptors go to guy from 3 pt land, he is a stone cold killer at the end of a game. If it was game 7, and the Raps needed a 3 to tie, Brags is the one I would want taking the shot. That's saying a lot considering he is a rookie.
TJ - Well he is still a little inconsistent. He has been a little off the past few weeks, perhaps it was a Vegas hangover, but judging from the last 2 games, TJ is getting hot for the run to the playoffs. He light up the Bucks yesterday. Even if CV was having a great year, I still think this was a great trade for the Raps. Ford was unstoppable in the first quarter against the Bucks. He dunked, and had some ridiculous assists as well. If he gets a so-so 3, and makes his pull up very consistent, he will be an All-Star.
Jose - Great teammate, does a great job as the backup. Gives Ford the necessary rest/time to regroup when he gets a little haggard. Improving in all aspects of his game. Just a solid team guy that contributes to a good environment.
Parker - The trigger man for the Raptors defense. When he is there, I think the Raptors defense improves by at least 10 pts. I don't have the stats to back it up, but he just does so much on the defensive end. You don't notice it all the time when you watch them, but when he isn't in the game, you really feel his absence.
Garbo - Does what he needs to do. Probably playing/played too many mins this season. He looks worn down a bit. Fantastic team defender. He may not lock anyone down, but when the Raptors are helping, he is the man in that situation.
Dixon - Gets killed on defense by bigger guards. Very clutch on offense, feels big moments and doesn't shy away from them, a good sign. Probably a great guy to have as the back up 2, but he is playing a bit too much in my opinion.
Rasho - Doing what he needs to do to keep Chris Bosh upright. He doesn't bring a lot to the table, but he will get you 8 and 8 most nights, and he takes the pounding inside. Can't really expect too much more. Glad he is on the team, he can settle the defense as well.
Graham and Mo Pete - I am sad that both of these guys probably won't be around next season. Not sure why Mo Pete didn't step up that big this season, but its probably time for him to change scenary. It'll be a sad day when he leaves, but I am glad he was part of this playoff run. He deserves it after all the shit he had to play through the last couple of years. Graham, well he might be around for another season, he is a monster finisher (sometimes), a good defender (sometimes), and a good rebounder (sometimes). Its all the (sometimes) that will do him in, but maybe he really increases his basketball IQ this summer, and shocks the world. I though Calderon was a complete failure last year, but he has turned it around completely. Maybe Graham can do it too.
Monday, March 12, 2007
Observations from OT Sunday
I missed the March Maddness Selection show, there I admit it, but I have a completely valid reason. I was busy handing yet another Madden defeat to my buddy Dave. He claims that the win is in fact a non win because of a very suspect QB sneak (I admit it, I thought I was calling a completely different play because HIS CONTROLLER'S R1 button got stuck, so I guess I can say we are even), but like the plucky Pats of 2003, I somehow escaped with a win. Why is this story even remotely relevant? Because the Raps should be extremely thankful they were able to escape from the Sonics, and get a much needed, and not exactly deserved victory. Was I happy? Of course, I was hoarse from cheering at the playoff like atmosphere at the ACC (in the 4th quarter anyway), but there were issues people! Here are my observations:
1) Garbo played like crap yesterday. He didn't show the normal hustle that he does on the defensive end, and that definitely hurt the Raptors on the glass. He was getting owned by Rashard Lewis for a bit. Looks like he is hitting a wall again, or it could just be a bad game, it'll be interesting to see what he does in Milwaukee tonight.
2) I have no idea WHY JUAN DIXON IS PLAYING HUGE MINUTES. It is completely frustrating to me watching him get dominated defensively, and offering no help on the boards whatsoever. Of course, I will give him some credit, he does have a knack for getting some very clutch strips, but overall its too easy for bigger 2 guards (like Jesus Shuttlesworth) to get good looks off him. I don't know why he is taking so many minute from Mo Pete. Very baffling.
3) Brags is huge, he is developing into THE go to guy from long range for the Raptors. The end of the 4th quarter sequence was unreal yesterday, Ford drives for the tie, Seattle is packed tight, he puts up a soft shot off the glass hoping for a make or a Bosh rebound, Bosh tips it up, Ford races under the hoop to the other side to get the loose ball, then swings it to Bragnani behind the arc, and the Andrea drills the 3 AND 1, for the 2 pt lead. It was like watching the future right now, they are going to be good. Awesome.
4) The Raps got utterly destroyed on the glass yesterday, and I think there were several reasons for it. The Raptors had no answer for Chris Wilcox at all. Bosh was guarding Nick Collison. Wilcox and Petro were playing the 5 for the Sonics, and Rasho and Hump were getting dominated. Mitchell basically gave up trying to find consistent rebounding and put the hottest offensive team he could without sacrificing too much on the defensive end, so the Raptors glass work got worse until OT, when they Andrea and Bosh hit the glass really hard because TJ was on fire on offense. Rebounding is going to be a huge issue for them, if they have to play someone with a big/rugged center. We can only hope for so much from Rasho.
5) Parker looked really good coming off an injury. His stroke from 3 is a little rusty, but everything else looked good. He was awesome on offense yesterday, and he really took Rashard Lewis out of the game in the 4th quarter. He is such a key to Raps perimeter defense, I never thought he was so vital. I think they have a pretty good shot against Milwaukee tonight because Parker should be able to slow down Redd, and contribute enough offensively to let the Raptor bench blow through the likes of Earl Boykins and friends.
1) Garbo played like crap yesterday. He didn't show the normal hustle that he does on the defensive end, and that definitely hurt the Raptors on the glass. He was getting owned by Rashard Lewis for a bit. Looks like he is hitting a wall again, or it could just be a bad game, it'll be interesting to see what he does in Milwaukee tonight.
2) I have no idea WHY JUAN DIXON IS PLAYING HUGE MINUTES. It is completely frustrating to me watching him get dominated defensively, and offering no help on the boards whatsoever. Of course, I will give him some credit, he does have a knack for getting some very clutch strips, but overall its too easy for bigger 2 guards (like Jesus Shuttlesworth) to get good looks off him. I don't know why he is taking so many minute from Mo Pete. Very baffling.
3) Brags is huge, he is developing into THE go to guy from long range for the Raptors. The end of the 4th quarter sequence was unreal yesterday, Ford drives for the tie, Seattle is packed tight, he puts up a soft shot off the glass hoping for a make or a Bosh rebound, Bosh tips it up, Ford races under the hoop to the other side to get the loose ball, then swings it to Bragnani behind the arc, and the Andrea drills the 3 AND 1, for the 2 pt lead. It was like watching the future right now, they are going to be good. Awesome.
4) The Raps got utterly destroyed on the glass yesterday, and I think there were several reasons for it. The Raptors had no answer for Chris Wilcox at all. Bosh was guarding Nick Collison. Wilcox and Petro were playing the 5 for the Sonics, and Rasho and Hump were getting dominated. Mitchell basically gave up trying to find consistent rebounding and put the hottest offensive team he could without sacrificing too much on the defensive end, so the Raptors glass work got worse until OT, when they Andrea and Bosh hit the glass really hard because TJ was on fire on offense. Rebounding is going to be a huge issue for them, if they have to play someone with a big/rugged center. We can only hope for so much from Rasho.
5) Parker looked really good coming off an injury. His stroke from 3 is a little rusty, but everything else looked good. He was awesome on offense yesterday, and he really took Rashard Lewis out of the game in the 4th quarter. He is such a key to Raps perimeter defense, I never thought he was so vital. I think they have a pretty good shot against Milwaukee tonight because Parker should be able to slow down Redd, and contribute enough offensively to let the Raptor bench blow through the likes of Earl Boykins and friends.
Iavoroni the annoited successor? Maybe not....
I just bought "7 seconds or less: The 2005-2006 season with the Suns". This book is suppose to give a pretty candid look at the Suns last year, with the emphasis placed on the coaching interaction. I got the book because the Suns are awesome, and I thought it would be a great look into Colangelo's previous administration (a team that is a title contender, AND has a top 10 pick in this years draft, amazing....) An unexpected development though is that it gives a lot of insight into Mr. Marc Iavoroni. For example, it was noted in the book that Iavoroni is the Sun's defensive assistant, basically, he designs the "limited" defenses that the Suns run for Mike D'Antoni because of D'Antoni's offensive focus. Also, Iavoroni is from the Pat Reily coaching tree ala Jeff and Stan Van Gundy. Now I really don't see Colangelo hiring a defensive coach for the Raptors considering he clearly believes that offense wins basketball games, and not slowing the pace, and pounding out victories. I'll probably have more Iavoroni updates since I am only a quarter of the way through the book.
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
A Beatdown in the Heart of Darkness (er...I mean Texas)
Wow, San Antonio's D looks awesome. The Spurs are turning it on, and it is now a 3 team race between them, the Suns, and the Mavs. Its is going to be a good playoffs out West. Watching a team like the Spurs, one thing becomes very evident, they have ways to counter everything that is thrown their way defensively, and they execute their offense with a scary efficiency.
Toronto has been playing a little up and down the last 4 games. Their game against the Cavs was a little inconsistent (they could've easily won that game, but just didn't do enough board work), they dominated the Pacers and the Bobcats, and got crushed by the Spurs. I would say that the Raptors are in the Top 10 of the NBA right now, but they are not even close to the elite teams (aka the Texas 2some, and the Suns). The West is so much better then the East. The Raptors are missing a big piece, in the form of an athletic swingman that knows how to play the team game and plays D, ala Josh Howard. Maybe there is another Manu out there we don't know about, and Bryan Colangelo will surprise us all this summer.
Toronto has been playing a little up and down the last 4 games. Their game against the Cavs was a little inconsistent (they could've easily won that game, but just didn't do enough board work), they dominated the Pacers and the Bobcats, and got crushed by the Spurs. I would say that the Raptors are in the Top 10 of the NBA right now, but they are not even close to the elite teams (aka the Texas 2some, and the Suns). The West is so much better then the East. The Raptors are missing a big piece, in the form of an athletic swingman that knows how to play the team game and plays D, ala Josh Howard. Maybe there is another Manu out there we don't know about, and Bryan Colangelo will surprise us all this summer.
The Craziest Raptors' Related Idea Ever
I have to preface this by saying that this idea is totally insane!
But I think the Raptors are gearing up for a huge run at someone in the free agent market in the summer of 2009. Do you realize that is the summer that LeBron James becomes a free agent!!!!!! I predict that Toronto and Orlando are going to be the main players because of their upsides and cap situation. Right now the Cavs are in a championship run. They have a team that is built to win or at least get to a Finals in the next 3 years, and then they shed all the Marshalls and Snows on their teams, and they will only have 3 players under contract, Larry Hughes, Big Z, and LeBron (but LeBron has an opt out for that year). LeBron will have to make a decision on if he can win a championship in Cleveland with those guys, or go to the only two teams that will have the cap room to sign him, Toronto and Orlando. LeBron will have to choose which young big man he wants to play with, D Howard or Chris Bosh. Both Toronto and Orlando will have about $20 million in cap space to offer LeBron. Where will the "Global Icon" choose to play?
I think he will choose Toronto based on the team that he could play for. Bosh, Bragnani, and Ford as starters with Calderon and Garbo on the bench. LeBron could play the 3 for that team, and with a decent 2 guard (young, rookie/soph, athlete who can play shut down D) the Raptors would have a lineup that could be dominant.
Or LeBron could chose to pin his hopes on being a part of the Orlando Magic with D Howard, Jameer Nelson, Turkoglu, and Ariza combo of disaster.
I think Toronto would be the more complete team. If LeBron is serious about winning championships, then I think he would pin his hopes on Toronto. This is just a crazy theory, but I think it is one that is possible. After watching the Heat - Cavs game today, LeBron despises that team he is on, I think the are too untalented for him. LeBron is the kind of guy that needs a strong number 2 because he is kind of a pussy like Vince Carter, but not as bad. He isn't in D Wade's class, he just doesn't have the same kind of will. But if he plays in a strong team atmoshpere that forces him to perform, then I think he could win some championships. If Colangelo can pull that deal off, he would be remembered as one the greatest GMs in NBA history. Landing LeBron to play with Bosh, Bragnani, Ford, and a to be determined SG would make the Raptors a team capable of multiple championships. I think this is crazy.....could you even imagine if it happened?
But I think the Raptors are gearing up for a huge run at someone in the free agent market in the summer of 2009. Do you realize that is the summer that LeBron James becomes a free agent!!!!!! I predict that Toronto and Orlando are going to be the main players because of their upsides and cap situation. Right now the Cavs are in a championship run. They have a team that is built to win or at least get to a Finals in the next 3 years, and then they shed all the Marshalls and Snows on their teams, and they will only have 3 players under contract, Larry Hughes, Big Z, and LeBron (but LeBron has an opt out for that year). LeBron will have to make a decision on if he can win a championship in Cleveland with those guys, or go to the only two teams that will have the cap room to sign him, Toronto and Orlando. LeBron will have to choose which young big man he wants to play with, D Howard or Chris Bosh. Both Toronto and Orlando will have about $20 million in cap space to offer LeBron. Where will the "Global Icon" choose to play?
I think he will choose Toronto based on the team that he could play for. Bosh, Bragnani, and Ford as starters with Calderon and Garbo on the bench. LeBron could play the 3 for that team, and with a decent 2 guard (young, rookie/soph, athlete who can play shut down D) the Raptors would have a lineup that could be dominant.
Or LeBron could chose to pin his hopes on being a part of the Orlando Magic with D Howard, Jameer Nelson, Turkoglu, and Ariza combo of disaster.
I think Toronto would be the more complete team. If LeBron is serious about winning championships, then I think he would pin his hopes on Toronto. This is just a crazy theory, but I think it is one that is possible. After watching the Heat - Cavs game today, LeBron despises that team he is on, I think the are too untalented for him. LeBron is the kind of guy that needs a strong number 2 because he is kind of a pussy like Vince Carter, but not as bad. He isn't in D Wade's class, he just doesn't have the same kind of will. But if he plays in a strong team atmoshpere that forces him to perform, then I think he could win some championships. If Colangelo can pull that deal off, he would be remembered as one the greatest GMs in NBA history. Landing LeBron to play with Bosh, Bragnani, Ford, and a to be determined SG would make the Raptors a team capable of multiple championships. I think this is crazy.....could you even imagine if it happened?
Richie's Mid Season Grades
Since we have now reached the NBA All-Star break I find it a fitting time for a first half recap and a look into the Raptors future.
In general the Raptors have been a MAJOR success. What they have done since the beginning of 2007 is truly incredible. The betting odds for them winning the Eastern Conference get lower every day. They went from 20-1, to 18-1, to 17-1 just this week. Do I think they will accomplish it? No, probably not, but the fact that anyone is discussing it is truly amazing.
Here is my player by player breakdown of the Raptors:
Bosh - He has improved every year and is showing himself to be a truly exceptional player. Missing those 12 games in fact helped the team and him to improve their offensive flow. He has never looked better. I hope Mitchell plays him less than 40 minutes a game from here on out to keep the wear and tear to a minimum. A+
TJ Ford - His shot is improving and so is his decision making. He carried the team when Bosh was hurt and has proven to be worth Charlie V. He is young and if his shot continues to improve he may even become a top 7 point guard in the league. A
Jose Calderon - Who would have thought this guy was gonna be this good? Best thing Babcock ever did was sign him. The stats that he and Ford put up together are jaw dropping. The Forderon Monster is averagin approximately 25 points and 15 assists over the last few weeks. Lets hope they keep the good relationship going and do not develop any sort of rivalry. A
Anthony Parker - Started slow but is now a solid 'glue guy' that does everything well. Great addition to the team. A-
Andrea Bargnani - His offensive skills are unreal. Silky three point stroke and his inside moves are noticably improving already. Better than expected shot blocker and defender so far - I wish he got some more rebounds though. His ceiling is fuckin high. Compare him to other big rooks like Tyrus Thomas or Lamarcus Aldridge. Damn glad the Raps didn't pick them. Lets hope he doesnt hit a rookie wall. A
Jorge Garbajosa - His shot is streaky but he does the little things to help teams win and he has the best post game quotes. B
Rasho Nesterovic - Solid guy. The best center they have had in a while. He is there when you need him and hopefully that wont be too often in the future. C+
MoPete - Started like shit but has been good lately. Will he be with the team in a few weeks? Im guessing the answer is yes. Everyone likes him and Im bettin the Clips are regretting not trading Maggette for him when they had the chance. B-
Joey Graham - Continues to be elusive and flash the potential from time to time. He is a good chip to have and at least has shown some signs of progress. He doesn't kill the team when he comes into games a la Fred Jones. C-
Fred Jones - The only bust thus far. His fall from grace reminds me of the year the Raps signed Hubert Davis who then forgot how to hit 3's. F
Kris Humphries - Has played ok in limited minutes. Needs to improve shot selection. Thank god he is not Arraujo. C
Darrick Martin - He is ok as a 12th man I suppose. Wouldnt want him to play much though. C-
Pape Sow, PJ Tucker, Uros Slokar - Who knows, not enough minutes to tell. Incomplete
In general the Raptors have been a MAJOR success. What they have done since the beginning of 2007 is truly incredible. The betting odds for them winning the Eastern Conference get lower every day. They went from 20-1, to 18-1, to 17-1 just this week. Do I think they will accomplish it? No, probably not, but the fact that anyone is discussing it is truly amazing.
Here is my player by player breakdown of the Raptors:
Bosh - He has improved every year and is showing himself to be a truly exceptional player. Missing those 12 games in fact helped the team and him to improve their offensive flow. He has never looked better. I hope Mitchell plays him less than 40 minutes a game from here on out to keep the wear and tear to a minimum. A+
TJ Ford - His shot is improving and so is his decision making. He carried the team when Bosh was hurt and has proven to be worth Charlie V. He is young and if his shot continues to improve he may even become a top 7 point guard in the league. A
Jose Calderon - Who would have thought this guy was gonna be this good? Best thing Babcock ever did was sign him. The stats that he and Ford put up together are jaw dropping. The Forderon Monster is averagin approximately 25 points and 15 assists over the last few weeks. Lets hope they keep the good relationship going and do not develop any sort of rivalry. A
Anthony Parker - Started slow but is now a solid 'glue guy' that does everything well. Great addition to the team. A-
Andrea Bargnani - His offensive skills are unreal. Silky three point stroke and his inside moves are noticably improving already. Better than expected shot blocker and defender so far - I wish he got some more rebounds though. His ceiling is fuckin high. Compare him to other big rooks like Tyrus Thomas or Lamarcus Aldridge. Damn glad the Raps didn't pick them. Lets hope he doesnt hit a rookie wall. A
Jorge Garbajosa - His shot is streaky but he does the little things to help teams win and he has the best post game quotes. B
Rasho Nesterovic - Solid guy. The best center they have had in a while. He is there when you need him and hopefully that wont be too often in the future. C+
MoPete - Started like shit but has been good lately. Will he be with the team in a few weeks? Im guessing the answer is yes. Everyone likes him and Im bettin the Clips are regretting not trading Maggette for him when they had the chance. B-
Joey Graham - Continues to be elusive and flash the potential from time to time. He is a good chip to have and at least has shown some signs of progress. He doesn't kill the team when he comes into games a la Fred Jones. C-
Fred Jones - The only bust thus far. His fall from grace reminds me of the year the Raps signed Hubert Davis who then forgot how to hit 3's. F
Kris Humphries - Has played ok in limited minutes. Needs to improve shot selection. Thank god he is not Arraujo. C
Darrick Martin - He is ok as a 12th man I suppose. Wouldnt want him to play much though. C-
Pape Sow, PJ Tucker, Uros Slokar - Who knows, not enough minutes to tell. Incomplete
When I Really Started to Believe
I got was able to watch the Raptors - Hornets game live. I have to say it was one of the greatest Chris Bosh performances. He had a terrible night until late in the 4th quarter, where he took over. He is awesome, he will lead the Raptors to a championship. He is better than KG. I think Bosh is going to make a name for himself soon.
If they could be combined, they would be an amazing PG.
Scouting Notes from the game:
- Jose Calderon had a great 4th quarter. He isn't a starter though. There is going to be a lot written about how Jose should be the starter, but TJ is the better guy to lead them because of TJ's speed. Jose can't seem to beat athletic shotblockers, which means that Jose should be coming off the bench in the long term. He lacks the vertical to beat good shotblockers whereas TJ can beat them (he just needs to get better at finishing.). Jose didn't start to have success until Tyson Chandler fouled out.
- When the Raptors were making their run, TJ was a good teammate to Jose. It appears that they do get along, which is good for the morale of the team. This is one of the main reasons why I think the Raptors will not fire Sam Mitchell if they get into the playoffs or they are extremely close. Sam Mitchell is getting to be a better coach, I think we should give him a chance. Somehow the Raptors have become a great defensive team. It is astounding. It always gives you hope.
- For some reason, I think Chris Bosh somehow owns stock options for MLSE. He seems very very corporate. Its interesting.
- Brain Colangelo looks like he is running the mafia. It is fucking hilarious. The way he dress and watches games, its like he is Micheal Corleone. I have no idea what the Raptors are paying him, but it is worth it. He is going to be executive of the year at some point in his tenue. He is awesome.
- He has done a great job adapting to Eastern Conference basketball, where playing defense is key, unlike the finesse of the west.
- Garbo has hit the rookie wall big time. He needs the All Star break to come.
- Bragnani really opens the floor up for Chris Bosh near the basket. I can't believe how good Bragnani is at shooting 3's. He is going to become a much more consistent shooter. When that happens, the Raptors offense will take off. Its all so close.....
I know many of you think that I am just optimistic, but the Raptors are actually a very good team. They are going to get some recognition soon.
Chueeey/Richie, try to YouTube a clip, they are so good.
- Garbo has hit the rookie wall big time. He needs the All Star break to come.
- Bragnani really opens the floor up for Chris Bosh near the basket. I can't believe how good Bragnani is at shooting 3's. He is going to become a much more consistent shooter. When that happens, the Raptors offense will take off. Its all so close.....
I know many of you think that I am just optimistic, but the Raptors are actually a very good team. They are going to get some recognition soon.
Chueeey/Richie, try to YouTube a clip, they are so good.
Some understandable reservations......
hey boys, i think oscar is still wearing his rose coloured glasses. either that or he has deveoped a dependency to ecstacy, possibly leading to the inevitable delusional statement that the raptors are "all love" sometime in the next few weeks.ford, could you please write us a more even-handed review of the raptors, and their playoff/future hopes? be as realistic as possible. statements like "bosh is better than garnett" or that "bragnani is better than dirk" are rather useless to me. in my mind, the nba has elite teams, very good teams, good teams, average teams, below average teams, and crappy teams. oscar claims the raptors are "very good". I disagree. Id say based on their roster that they are slightly better than average, also considering they have not beaten one of the best this year. their most impressive wins have come against who? cleveland or washington? not exactly awe inspiring is it? i would say that the chicago bulls who went 72-10 with jordan and pippen were elite. the general criteria for an elite team requires winning at least 60 games in a season. probably phoenix and dallas will reach that status depending on what happens for the rest of the season. i would say that they are currently "very good" and so is San Antonio. I do not believe Toronto resides in their class. then there arent really any other 'very good' teams, other than maybe houston or miami if they stay healthy for a long stretch. the good teams include: detroit, houston, utah, denver, los angeles x 2, miami, cleveland, chicago, washington. the average teams: orlando, indiana, toronto, new jersey, minnesota, golden state (maybe new york or new orleans). average: new york, new orleans, portland, seattle, sacramento (a bunch of injured teams are currently roughly at this level like milwaukee, boston and atlanta). crappy teams: charlotte, philadelphia, memphis - its all about oden and durant for these guys. fluking a win against new orleans sans chris paul and david schwimmer does not convince me of anything. thus i think it is extremely premature to call the raptors "very good". i also think it is premature to call them good. i believe they are average. in february the raptors will face a much tougher schedule than they have thus far in 2007. if the raps are above .500 at the end of february, i will upgrade their status to "good". (which still may be a bit generous)i like bosh and id love to see the raps win a championship with him, but there is no way in hell that will happen with the current pieces surrounding him. ultimately i do not see tj ford winning a championship unless he learns how to knock down open three pointers. i like a lot of the raptors complimentary players. i think parker, garbajosa, graham and calderon are solid performers. but they are still in need of a serious infusion of talent at SG/SF and more toughness on the boards before they can win in the playoffs.
A Surprising Response....
First of all, I watched that game last night and I can understand why Oscar is so excited. It was a frustrating first 40 minutes where guys like Devin Brown, Rasual Butler and a hobbled David West were able to maintain a decent lead when every Toronto fan was aware that this was a must win game. But by no fluke, they gutted it out down the stretch and showed alot of emotion and heart. Bosh was practically having a seizure after he hit that 3 in the final minute and Calderon was equally as excited when he seemingly penetrated at will for the go-ahead layup. This team likes each other and they want to win badly. That's more than I've seen from most teams I've watched this year.
Let's put the Raptors in perspective of where they presently stand in the East and how they match up with other teams in the conference. Stein has them ranked 17, Hollinger has them at 9 (in the league!), but here's the Ford power rankings for the East:
1. Detroit - Hamilton, Wallace, Billups, Prince and Webber is the best starting 5 in the East and while they may lack some depth, some of their young bench players seem to be stepping up their roles in the rotation. Just as in their previously good years, they're relying on the health of their starting 5 to keep them as the top seed. Once the playoffs start, they're as dangerous as anyone. Even with Billups missing 8 games they still have the best record.
2. Washington - Tough at home and fairly weak on the road, they have a trio
that can get it done with Arenas playing like an MVP candidate, Jamison's consistency and a great stretch by Caron Butler. After that though, they're sketchy. Deshawn Stevenson and Antonio Daniels are role players, Jarvis Hayes has struggled with his shot you never know what you're gonna get from that mess at the 5 of Haywood and Thomas. The fact that they are currently the second best team in the East is reason for Raptors fans to be optimistic. Hibachi!
3. LeBron James and those other guys - This team is a joke. I never imagined that James would come into the league and I would hate watching his team play. He scores at a good pace, still lets off a few highlight plays every week if not every game, but the rest of those dudes who I won't even bother to mention just stand around and give a half hearted effort. They've lost to Charlotte, Atlanta, New Orleans and scored 63 against Houston sans Yao. They may win 48 or so games and have a high seed, but they stink when it counts.
4. Raptors - I think they are the third best team in the East. Better than those scrubs I mentioned above, but I'll wait until they go above .500 before I anoint them the champions. After the 2-8 start they have a .585 winning percentage and they're 8-3 in their last 11. All this without having their whole rotation healthy for the majority of the imrovement. Their last 4 losses have come against Utah, Dallas, New Jersey and Phoenix, of which only the mini-blowout in Jersey was a truly bad game. They could have beaten Phoenix, SHOULD have beaten Dallas, and hung in and made it close when Utah was executing brilliantly. I agree that they need to beat an elite team to raise their stock, but they can undoubtedly play with the best in the league. Garbo is slumping but still brings it on D, TJ needs to watch his chucking at times and Fred Jones has to get his head out of his ass and take it to the hoop like he did in his 4 minutes of PT last night. If, IF, that happens, they will be deep, versatile and real contenders. I shit you not.
5. Chicago - I'm having a hard time figuring this team out. One minute they play suffocating defense and have Hinrich, Gordon and Nocioni hitting from outside. the second best team in the East is reason for all over with the unstoppable Luol Deng slashing to the basket, and the next they fold and can't hit jumpers and lose. From looking at their game log, they beat the teams they should beat and lose to teams with better records. They haven't lost by more than 10 since November and they give me this feeling like they might go on a run and rip off 10 or 12 games in a row. They're 21-10 since a bad start and I think they would definitely beat the Raps in a playoff series. They're better than their record and a team on the rise... possibly second best in the conference if they play to potential, as they seems to be less flawed than teams ahead of them.
6. Orlando - You guys were giving praise to their core the other day, but they're stinking up the shitter just waiting for that inevitable Grant Hill injury to flush their playoff hopes away. Look at some of the duds that get PT on this squad - Dooling? Bogans? A fading Bat-Man and Darko, who is not improving nearly as much as we'd like him to. Sure, Dwight Howard is awesome. But when Miami gets healthier, this is going to be the team to slide out and let them in the playoff picture.
7. Indiana - Who knows what to make of these guys after acquiring all those over-paid white guys in that recent blockbuster with G-State. They beat the Bulls the other night, and I saw an impressive stretch on court surfing last night where they managed to climb back into the game against Miami with a barrage of 3's, ultimately beating them in OT. Having a healthy Troy Murphy playing the 5 (17 and 12 last night) will allow them to move Jermaine O'Neal to his better position of 4 and probably improve the frontcourt. I like Diogu coming off the bench, and Marquis Daniels is serviceable, but that's all I can really say in their favor. Dunleavy is still a bust, and Tinsley probably has about 5 games in him before he gets hurt again and they're starting 80 year old Darrell Armstrong. They're a collection of injury-prone pussies who will probably hand around the .500 mark.
8. New Jersey - They're about 9-4 in their last 13. Two of those games have feature the dominant Mikki Moore as their leading scorer (see Chu! I told you he was good!). Krstic is gone for the year, Jefferson is out for over a month to have knee surgery and who knows what will come out about Jason Kidd when his divorce goes to trial. Is he a wife beater? A child molester? Who knows. There are crazy rumours about him or VC getting traded... this team is in serious limbo. They also have a present starting front court of Jason Collins, Mikki Moore and Hassan Adams. That's a title contender if I ever heard of one. Fortunately, their present back court can win games by
itself (if Carter feels like trying), and that makes them the closest thing to a challenger for the Raptors in the Atlantic.
9. Miami - The Diesel just came back. Are they gonna go on a run now? My instincts say no. Gary Payton and Antoine Walker should have both retired after the championship last year. They are more washed up that the shores of Banda Aceh. Would someone please test Alonzo Mourning for performance enhancing drugs? I can't believe this guy can be so legitimately good at his age with one kidney. Dorrell Wright is getting DNPCD's and Jason Kapono is a starter. I know people keep saying 'just wait till the playoffs' and they just need to get in to make some noise', but seriously - they've only won back to back games 5 times this year, and they can't count on Dwyane Wade to win it all for them every night, can they?
10. New York - Even though 'Crazy Isaiah' is running the show, you've got to admit they have some talent, and that's really the only reason I'm listing them. They have guys who can score even if those guys look for their own shot too much, a few guys who can defend (Q, Lee and Balkman), a few guys with weight problems (Curry, Malik Rose, Jerome James) and the little-man syndrome that could, Nate Robinson. Probably about 6 or 7 headcases too many to be successful at anything, but they're an intriguing bunch, who with a whole lot of therapy, might come together and make a run.
Boston and Milwaukee have too many injuries to key players to bother with, and the others, Atlanta, Philly, Charlotte are just total shit. They're the lottery front-runners and that's about it.
On a case by case basis, I really don't think Oscar is excessively pumped. I'm probably up there with him when you realize that only about 4 or 5 teams in the East show the potential to be good and most are on a downward swing, leading me to believe they will either sustain their mediocrity or get worse. The Raps have more depth than anyone, and are maybe one more rebounder and 3-point shooter away from being a serious threat to make a run in the playoffs. It's an exciting time to be a Raptors fan, and after all those horrible years we had to endure I see nothing wrong with a little optimism.
If they could be combined, they would be an amazing PG.
Scouting Notes from the game:
- Jose Calderon had a great 4th quarter. He isn't a starter though. There is going to be a lot written about how Jose should be the starter, but TJ is the better guy to lead them because of TJ's speed. Jose can't seem to beat athletic shotblockers, which means that Jose should be coming off the bench in the long term. He lacks the vertical to beat good shotblockers whereas TJ can beat them (he just needs to get better at finishing.). Jose didn't start to have success until Tyson Chandler fouled out.
- When the Raptors were making their run, TJ was a good teammate to Jose. It appears that they do get along, which is good for the morale of the team. This is one of the main reasons why I think the Raptors will not fire Sam Mitchell if they get into the playoffs or they are extremely close. Sam Mitchell is getting to be a better coach, I think we should give him a chance. Somehow the Raptors have become a great defensive team. It is astounding. It always gives you hope.
- For some reason, I think Chris Bosh somehow owns stock options for MLSE. He seems very very corporate. Its interesting.
- Brain Colangelo looks like he is running the mafia. It is fucking hilarious. The way he dress and watches games, its like he is Micheal Corleone. I have no idea what the Raptors are paying him, but it is worth it. He is going to be executive of the year at some point in his tenue. He is awesome.
- He has done a great job adapting to Eastern Conference basketball, where playing defense is key, unlike the finesse of the west.
- Garbo has hit the rookie wall big time. He needs the All Star break to come.
- Bragnani really opens the floor up for Chris Bosh near the basket. I can't believe how good Bragnani is at shooting 3's. He is going to become a much more consistent shooter. When that happens, the Raptors offense will take off. Its all so close.....
I know many of you think that I am just optimistic, but the Raptors are actually a very good team. They are going to get some recognition soon.
Chueeey/Richie, try to YouTube a clip, they are so good.
- Garbo has hit the rookie wall big time. He needs the All Star break to come.
- Bragnani really opens the floor up for Chris Bosh near the basket. I can't believe how good Bragnani is at shooting 3's. He is going to become a much more consistent shooter. When that happens, the Raptors offense will take off. Its all so close.....
I know many of you think that I am just optimistic, but the Raptors are actually a very good team. They are going to get some recognition soon.
Chueeey/Richie, try to YouTube a clip, they are so good.
Some understandable reservations......
hey boys, i think oscar is still wearing his rose coloured glasses. either that or he has deveoped a dependency to ecstacy, possibly leading to the inevitable delusional statement that the raptors are "all love" sometime in the next few weeks.ford, could you please write us a more even-handed review of the raptors, and their playoff/future hopes? be as realistic as possible. statements like "bosh is better than garnett" or that "bragnani is better than dirk" are rather useless to me. in my mind, the nba has elite teams, very good teams, good teams, average teams, below average teams, and crappy teams. oscar claims the raptors are "very good". I disagree. Id say based on their roster that they are slightly better than average, also considering they have not beaten one of the best this year. their most impressive wins have come against who? cleveland or washington? not exactly awe inspiring is it? i would say that the chicago bulls who went 72-10 with jordan and pippen were elite. the general criteria for an elite team requires winning at least 60 games in a season. probably phoenix and dallas will reach that status depending on what happens for the rest of the season. i would say that they are currently "very good" and so is San Antonio. I do not believe Toronto resides in their class. then there arent really any other 'very good' teams, other than maybe houston or miami if they stay healthy for a long stretch. the good teams include: detroit, houston, utah, denver, los angeles x 2, miami, cleveland, chicago, washington. the average teams: orlando, indiana, toronto, new jersey, minnesota, golden state (maybe new york or new orleans). average: new york, new orleans, portland, seattle, sacramento (a bunch of injured teams are currently roughly at this level like milwaukee, boston and atlanta). crappy teams: charlotte, philadelphia, memphis - its all about oden and durant for these guys. fluking a win against new orleans sans chris paul and david schwimmer does not convince me of anything. thus i think it is extremely premature to call the raptors "very good". i also think it is premature to call them good. i believe they are average. in february the raptors will face a much tougher schedule than they have thus far in 2007. if the raps are above .500 at the end of february, i will upgrade their status to "good". (which still may be a bit generous)i like bosh and id love to see the raps win a championship with him, but there is no way in hell that will happen with the current pieces surrounding him. ultimately i do not see tj ford winning a championship unless he learns how to knock down open three pointers. i like a lot of the raptors complimentary players. i think parker, garbajosa, graham and calderon are solid performers. but they are still in need of a serious infusion of talent at SG/SF and more toughness on the boards before they can win in the playoffs.
A Surprising Response....
First of all, I watched that game last night and I can understand why Oscar is so excited. It was a frustrating first 40 minutes where guys like Devin Brown, Rasual Butler and a hobbled David West were able to maintain a decent lead when every Toronto fan was aware that this was a must win game. But by no fluke, they gutted it out down the stretch and showed alot of emotion and heart. Bosh was practically having a seizure after he hit that 3 in the final minute and Calderon was equally as excited when he seemingly penetrated at will for the go-ahead layup. This team likes each other and they want to win badly. That's more than I've seen from most teams I've watched this year.
Let's put the Raptors in perspective of where they presently stand in the East and how they match up with other teams in the conference. Stein has them ranked 17, Hollinger has them at 9 (in the league!), but here's the Ford power rankings for the East:
1. Detroit - Hamilton, Wallace, Billups, Prince and Webber is the best starting 5 in the East and while they may lack some depth, some of their young bench players seem to be stepping up their roles in the rotation. Just as in their previously good years, they're relying on the health of their starting 5 to keep them as the top seed. Once the playoffs start, they're as dangerous as anyone. Even with Billups missing 8 games they still have the best record.
2. Washington - Tough at home and fairly weak on the road, they have a trio
that can get it done with Arenas playing like an MVP candidate, Jamison's consistency and a great stretch by Caron Butler. After that though, they're sketchy. Deshawn Stevenson and Antonio Daniels are role players, Jarvis Hayes has struggled with his shot you never know what you're gonna get from that mess at the 5 of Haywood and Thomas. The fact that they are currently the second best team in the East is reason for Raptors fans to be optimistic. Hibachi!
3. LeBron James and those other guys - This team is a joke. I never imagined that James would come into the league and I would hate watching his team play. He scores at a good pace, still lets off a few highlight plays every week if not every game, but the rest of those dudes who I won't even bother to mention just stand around and give a half hearted effort. They've lost to Charlotte, Atlanta, New Orleans and scored 63 against Houston sans Yao. They may win 48 or so games and have a high seed, but they stink when it counts.
4. Raptors - I think they are the third best team in the East. Better than those scrubs I mentioned above, but I'll wait until they go above .500 before I anoint them the champions. After the 2-8 start they have a .585 winning percentage and they're 8-3 in their last 11. All this without having their whole rotation healthy for the majority of the imrovement. Their last 4 losses have come against Utah, Dallas, New Jersey and Phoenix, of which only the mini-blowout in Jersey was a truly bad game. They could have beaten Phoenix, SHOULD have beaten Dallas, and hung in and made it close when Utah was executing brilliantly. I agree that they need to beat an elite team to raise their stock, but they can undoubtedly play with the best in the league. Garbo is slumping but still brings it on D, TJ needs to watch his chucking at times and Fred Jones has to get his head out of his ass and take it to the hoop like he did in his 4 minutes of PT last night. If, IF, that happens, they will be deep, versatile and real contenders. I shit you not.
5. Chicago - I'm having a hard time figuring this team out. One minute they play suffocating defense and have Hinrich, Gordon and Nocioni hitting from outside. the second best team in the East is reason for all over with the unstoppable Luol Deng slashing to the basket, and the next they fold and can't hit jumpers and lose. From looking at their game log, they beat the teams they should beat and lose to teams with better records. They haven't lost by more than 10 since November and they give me this feeling like they might go on a run and rip off 10 or 12 games in a row. They're 21-10 since a bad start and I think they would definitely beat the Raps in a playoff series. They're better than their record and a team on the rise... possibly second best in the conference if they play to potential, as they seems to be less flawed than teams ahead of them.
6. Orlando - You guys were giving praise to their core the other day, but they're stinking up the shitter just waiting for that inevitable Grant Hill injury to flush their playoff hopes away. Look at some of the duds that get PT on this squad - Dooling? Bogans? A fading Bat-Man and Darko, who is not improving nearly as much as we'd like him to. Sure, Dwight Howard is awesome. But when Miami gets healthier, this is going to be the team to slide out and let them in the playoff picture.
7. Indiana - Who knows what to make of these guys after acquiring all those over-paid white guys in that recent blockbuster with G-State. They beat the Bulls the other night, and I saw an impressive stretch on court surfing last night where they managed to climb back into the game against Miami with a barrage of 3's, ultimately beating them in OT. Having a healthy Troy Murphy playing the 5 (17 and 12 last night) will allow them to move Jermaine O'Neal to his better position of 4 and probably improve the frontcourt. I like Diogu coming off the bench, and Marquis Daniels is serviceable, but that's all I can really say in their favor. Dunleavy is still a bust, and Tinsley probably has about 5 games in him before he gets hurt again and they're starting 80 year old Darrell Armstrong. They're a collection of injury-prone pussies who will probably hand around the .500 mark.
8. New Jersey - They're about 9-4 in their last 13. Two of those games have feature the dominant Mikki Moore as their leading scorer (see Chu! I told you he was good!). Krstic is gone for the year, Jefferson is out for over a month to have knee surgery and who knows what will come out about Jason Kidd when his divorce goes to trial. Is he a wife beater? A child molester? Who knows. There are crazy rumours about him or VC getting traded... this team is in serious limbo. They also have a present starting front court of Jason Collins, Mikki Moore and Hassan Adams. That's a title contender if I ever heard of one. Fortunately, their present back court can win games by
itself (if Carter feels like trying), and that makes them the closest thing to a challenger for the Raptors in the Atlantic.
9. Miami - The Diesel just came back. Are they gonna go on a run now? My instincts say no. Gary Payton and Antoine Walker should have both retired after the championship last year. They are more washed up that the shores of Banda Aceh. Would someone please test Alonzo Mourning for performance enhancing drugs? I can't believe this guy can be so legitimately good at his age with one kidney. Dorrell Wright is getting DNPCD's and Jason Kapono is a starter. I know people keep saying 'just wait till the playoffs' and they just need to get in to make some noise', but seriously - they've only won back to back games 5 times this year, and they can't count on Dwyane Wade to win it all for them every night, can they?
10. New York - Even though 'Crazy Isaiah' is running the show, you've got to admit they have some talent, and that's really the only reason I'm listing them. They have guys who can score even if those guys look for their own shot too much, a few guys who can defend (Q, Lee and Balkman), a few guys with weight problems (Curry, Malik Rose, Jerome James) and the little-man syndrome that could, Nate Robinson. Probably about 6 or 7 headcases too many to be successful at anything, but they're an intriguing bunch, who with a whole lot of therapy, might come together and make a run.
Boston and Milwaukee have too many injuries to key players to bother with, and the others, Atlanta, Philly, Charlotte are just total shit. They're the lottery front-runners and that's about it.
On a case by case basis, I really don't think Oscar is excessively pumped. I'm probably up there with him when you realize that only about 4 or 5 teams in the East show the potential to be good and most are on a downward swing, leading me to believe they will either sustain their mediocrity or get worse. The Raps have more depth than anyone, and are maybe one more rebounder and 3-point shooter away from being a serious threat to make a run in the playoffs. It's an exciting time to be a Raptors fan, and after all those horrible years we had to endure I see nothing wrong with a little optimism.
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