Download the Opening Tip here. It’s a good one.
I have a humble request: please make your comments count. We appreciate the volume but there’s a fine line between basketball discussion and RealGM and we’d rather have 15 good comments rather than 157 where you have to sift through personal arguments and insults to find a basketball thought. Again, we love the response but let’s stick to basketball and maintain thoughtfulness when posting.
The Raptors were off on Thursday after their back-to-back split so there’s no practice to talk about. It’s New Jersey tonight and this one gets classified in the winnable category. A home game against the worst team in the division should be routine business, let’s pray we don’t make this any more interesting than what it should be – a shellacking of an inferior team.
Jermaine O’Neal’s been great so far, anybody who disagrees with that has unfair expectations of the man and is expecting his play to be reflective of his high salary. Unfortunately that’s not how the NBA works anymore. He’s averaging 13.5 pts, 9.5 rebs and 1.5 blocks and he’s in the middle of 5 straight double-doubles. The stats don’t tell the whole story, even if you’re the Anti-JO you have to concede that he’s brought a strong defensive presence and what some might even call lane intimidation to the Raptors. When was the last time somebody used the word intimidation when talking Raptors ball? His offense hasn’t fully arrived yet but if you look at his last five games he’s scored 23, 19, 11, 16, 16. As he shakes off the result and learns the shooting tendencies of his teammates it’ll allow him to be in better positions for rebounds and more aware of where his offense will come from. Barring injury, by January he’ll be an indispensable component of the team. There’s a great quote filled article by Michael Grange which talks more about O’Neal’s impact.
Anthony Parker’s coming off a good game against the Heat where he hit some clutch shots down the stretch to ice things off. I was shocked that he nailed those threes, I’m too used to seeing him come up short on his jumpers and FTs in crunch time and expect any offense from him to come in the first half when his legs are fresh, not late in the fourth quarter on the back end of a back-to-back. Every dog has his day and Wednesday was Parker’s. Up next for him is Vince Carter, a defensive assignment that can range from being very easy to very difficult depending on whether Carter’s bothered enough to play. I realize Parker’s got a tough job, he checks the best wing-scorer every night but that doesn’t excuse his offense which has the important by-product of making the other SG play some defense, thus taking away from their offense.
There was a lot of talk of us getting an athletic wing in the second round and as the night went along the possibility of netting CDR grew until the Nets snatched him just before us. So how’s he doing? Well, he injured his knee after playing three games and in his first three games he didn’t grab a rebound.
G GS MPG FG% 3p% FT% REB RPG APG SPG BPG TO PPG 3 0 11.7 0.40 0 0 0.0 0.0 1.7 0.3 0.0 0.67 1.3
We’ll get a look at Devin Harris who’s in his contract year and playing like it: 23/6/4 on 45% shooting. He’s the team’s leading scorer (0.4 behind Carter) and is second in the league in FTAs behind Dwight Howard. Chew on that. What this means for us is that our PG trinity will be tested once more. Calderon’s not 100% so you expect Will “Ugh” Solomon to get minutes and Harris will easily be the quickest guy Solomon has ever played against. Things could turn ugly if Harris isn’t played right, I’d start off by testing his jumper and see if he’s brought it with him and go from there. Note to Sam: Play Roko, he’s the future PG of the team and there’s no reason to invest in a 30 year old when he’s as bad as this. On a similar note, a Florida writer can’t believe how open we left Jameer Nelson on simple pick ‘n roll plays. I’m with him.
It’s China vs. Italy at the SF spot where Bargnani is up against Yi who’s having a nice rebounding year but is shooting a miserable 36%. I think if Yi’s on his game he could be a good test for Bargnani’s untested SF defense (Yi, Bargs). The Magic attacked via the point and the Heat stuck with Wade so Bargnani’s gotten off scott free so far. It’ll be even more interesting if Carter matches up with him and tries to challenge him, hopefully it does happen so we can see if Bargnani can handle defensive responsibilities under duress.
So do you boo Carter when you’re at the game? Do you really mean it or are you just doing it because you’re supposed to? Is there any genuine hate for him or are you just mad that he’s not here anymore? I think the booing would carry a lot more venom if Carter was actually a star player in the NBA and would show us what we’re missing every time we play. Such is not the case, he’s drifted off into mediocrity and most fans are thankful that he’s not here. Picture the Raptors with Vince’s $17M salary over the next four years, it’s not pretty. When I watch Vince play I’m not angry, I’m sad. I’m sad that here is a talent that had the potential to be one of the greatest players ever and so far has been completely wasted because of lack of commitment or direction. It’s the “what could’ve been” that bugs me more than anything, I wouldn’t even care if he became a superstar with another club, I just wanted to see his potential realized because it would’ve been spectacular and something to behold. That year when he was on the cover of ESPN The Magazine, I was sure he’d end up in the Hall of Fame, how wrong I was. It’s important to note that when he left he didn’t diss the city or the fans, he dissed the organization which is something we do on a daily basis. But hey, boo away, it makes for a great atmosphere.
Jack Armstrong is rating the top 10 road cities and I am very surprised at #6. I’ve been there once and almost got mugged by a cab driver.
Yesterday The Score announced that it has created a new “federation” of blogs. No, the Republic is not part of it for a few reasons but mostly because we want to keep this site ad-free and don’t want any restrictions on content – something that’s important to all of us. Since we don’t have a big channel like The Score to back us up we’re relying a lot on you to spread the word.
There’s a new poll on the site about Bargnani’s new position, the results from the old one are here. Finally, today is Friday which means we’ll be at Philthy McNasty’s watching the Raptors kick some Nets ass while downing a few. Try to make it out, it’s good times. We’ll also be running the live blog as usual.
Gunning for two games over .500 – let’s go you Raps!!!
77 Raps
great read arse heres my take on the game tonight.
we’ll come out and thrive off the crowd,build up a big lead,then sam will fall asleep,call late timeouts,make odd substitutions and play wacky lineup combos.he’ll freeze someone out who was hot early.he’ll overplay his starters and they’ll be dead tired. the nets chip away at the big early lead,then sam will insert the bench and well lose the lead,the crowd and all momentum,sam will then leave the bench out way to long in the 4th,but at the 7:45 mark as always sams watch alarm will go off reminding him to put the starters back on,we’re now down 6.we battle back and lets flip a coin, it could go either way now all depending if sams superb 4th qtr no play calling, freewheeling play style coaching and if, “SHATS” be fallin…….its a tough call, but isnt this how 80% of our games go,the other 10% is us getting blown out and other 10% is us blowin a team out.
cant wait!
Vince seems to play at his best when he knows that there’s something at the end of the road. He won’t try his best unless he knows that doing so will guarantee playoff success. My belief was that it all started with the signing of Hakeem Olajuwon, but of course people will have their own theories about it.
I predict that TheScore’s blog “federation” experiment will collapse in under a year. What exactly does it provide? It seems like a glorified webring, and anyone who used the internet in the mid-1990s will tell you about how that idea spectacularly failed.
The key Raptors site in the federation is raptorblog.com. A long, long time ago, it was a great site, but eventually Mr. Carefoot’s job caused him to not update after each Raptors game. Then he had the site in “lockdown” mode in late 2006 and I was turned off for good. I see that this season he’s trying to get his blog back on track. However, his entries top out at a few hundred words, while you spend thousands of words speaking your mind. You’ve done a fantastic job, so don’t let some “federation” give you the snub.
Yeah, I definitely like this blog the most. The columns are awesome and yeah, half the comments are dull, but the other half are pretty good.
I still hate Vince. But really I hate the GM that traded him (was it Babcock?). I mean, we got nothing back for him, and even though he was tanking and demanding to go, we could have gotten more than a centre who didn’t want to play for us and a couple pylons. If we had got lots of draft picks back I probably would be pretty happy how it all turned out, but instead we lost an allstar for nothing. But on the other side, we don’t have Vince Carter on our team. That’s a plus.
This Net team looks really crappy. Other than Vince and Harris, no other player seems even capable of playing at a high level. But there’s the problem, Harris. Is he going to shred our guards? Will O’Neal and Bosh be able to scare him away from the paint?
I say yes. Raps win handily, 104 to 92.
I think the raps will win, no thanks to Mitchell. The bigs will take the game into their own hands if we start getting left behind or the lead starts to shrink. VC will be playing hard – I always get the feeling that he always wants to win HERE (he doesn’t always want to win) as if to prove us wrong about the player he was and show us what we’re missing. Meanwhile the fans will be hoping for a miserable game from him to prove to themselves that VC is garbage and thank god we got rid of him and no it didn’t hurt when he bolted (yes, it did).
We definitely have the advantage on the interior. Yi has been playing well lately, so Bargs needs to be physical and use his slight weight edge to maximum effect. Otherwise, they may be too evenly matched to call it one way or another. Bosh and O’Neal will eat up Boone and co. but at the same time, VC and Harris will be attacking the rim all night – so we need AP to be hot on both offense and defense – unless we are going to rely on the “PLEASE don’t make those shats PLEASE GOD PLEASE PLEASE” defense.
I am waiting for Sam to do something dumb like put Solo-man in when they have started to eat up our lead and the momentum is going their way.
Whoops Yi is playing PF, so Bosh should be able to deal with that. So I guess I’m leaning on Bargs to post up and attack inside on Simmons who is quite a bit smaller and lighter.
I think our hate for VC will always sit with us….However would we take him as a viable 2nd scoring option ,that would be an interesting topic,he gave up on us,but never dissed the city,I bet you Vince and his mother would come back in a heart beat…do we have a Williams to throw in the mix !!!!
Harrington to the Knicks….Do the Knicks give a sweet F… about a luxury tax….its all about winning,not making it to the playoffs,or being extatic when we do…
i’m also a recent convert from raptorblog. this site offers much more content and more high level analysis as opposed to personal opinion. that being said, if you need ads to pay the bills to keep the content at the same high level then do it.
… most of us have adblockers anyway.
One more thing to mention about O’Neal: part of that intimidation he brings is the fact that he’s the only other Raptor other than Bosh willing to take a charge (okay, maybe Jose too). But if the two bigs on defence are not just looking for a shot-block, but also looking for another way to turn the ball over, that’s something that can’t be overlooked.
The Nets will torch us from the perimeter tonight, ink that in. But seeing as they don’t have a single big who can cover Bosh or O’Neal, we should expect another 40/20 night from our increasingly potent PF/C combo. Sean Williams is more of a pogo stick than Jamario, and Bosh/O’Neal will recognize the advantage the pump fake gives them early.
I hope we don’t stop booing him.
Odd that I like Jersey as a team- they decided to rebuild and go young and seem to of made some sound decisions. I think “he who shall not be named” will be a valuable commodity come trade deadline.
Arsenalist – just responding to your question on previous posting. It’s a refernce Doug Smith uses when discussing VC. Its a take on the Harry Potter series, all the good wizards refer to the evil Lord Voldermont by that title.
Is it obvious I have an 8 and a 9 year old.
Andiamo: Great post, you just described the template for half the Raptors games played. How Sam gets away with this under a GM that didn’t even hire him is confounding…oh wait…he won COY which made it very hard to get rid of him.
Tinman, you really think VC is a tradeable commodity? Look at his contract, it doesn’t even expire the LBJ year:
http://hoopshype.com/salaries/new_jersey.htm
He’s pretty exposed as a player, everybody knows he doesn’t give 100% and the talent that’s hidden in him is hard/impossible to bring out on a consistent basis. His injury history would also scare a team from taking on that contract. I believe the summer rumours that Kiki tried to trade but couldn’t find anyone (he prob got similar offers than what Babcock took).
I think a quasi-contender will grab him(you know he’s available) thinking he is the missing piece. Yes I do.
So I guess Kiki was fielding offers of “hey, we’ll take Carter off your hands and give you a bag of trash, a pylon, and a couple used basketballs, how does that sound?” And Kiki probably seriously considered those offers…
Looking at Harris’ numbers, and what he’s done with his crap team can anyone here honestly say that Jose should be the starting PG on an All-star team?
wince to cle? gives them a secondary scorer, gives him someone to hide behind, and gives cle some insurance in case bron skips town, not to build a team around, but as an expiring contract the following year, and let’s the nets truly rebound around harris/yi/lopez.
Hey, if they will take Solo-man, Graham, Jawai and Adams off our hands for VC, I will make that trade. It would be hard to reconcile my boiling rage for VC, but I would do it for the team. Interesting how that would turn out eh? Toronto fans, unsure if they should cheer or boo VC at the ft line or doing anything at all would just be dead silent – and hopefully he makes those fts.
But otherwise, I dislike VC with the burning passion of a glass of warm milk!
“I have a humble request: please make your comments count. We appreciate the volume but there’s a fine line between basketball discussion and RealGM and we’d rather have 15 good comments rather than 157 where you have to sift through personal arguments and insults to find a basketball thought. Again, we love the response but let’s stick to basketball and maintain thoughtfulness when posting.”
FINALLY!BRAVO!
Katyusha, its too early to tell but if the numbers and record hold up, no. You also have to factor in Iverson now who’s usually a lock to get the 1 spot. I think if Jose gets in it’ll bey through the coaches and even for that he’ll need to average something like 17/8 and a low AST/TO and a good team record.
Jord, I wouldn’t be surprised, I believe Babcock when he said that it was the best offer he got. Keep in mind the team’s goal at the time was to shed salary and rebuild (acquire picks).
Yertu, if that trade were to happen it would’ve already happened in the summer. They already made their move with Mo Williams.
I really like our chances to win tonight – the match up’s are in our favour. That being said, watching Devin Harris blow by Calderon and Solomon/Ukic tonight is not going to be pretty. JO and CB4 better be ready with some shot blocking help.
Excellent point about VC – he’s not a star in the league anymore, and booing him is really pointless. He’s been gone for so long – and achieved nothing since he left – that I really don’t understand how people still have really strong opinions about him. Its not like two years ago when we meet them in the playoffs – he’s the “star” of a lottery bound team (actually Harris is, but…). And look at the all the positives that ended up coming out of his departure – our worst GM ever got fired, and most importantly the key of the franchise were turned over to Bosh. Its very debatable whether Bosh ever would have developed into the superstar he is today if he had been stuck another two seasons behind Vince.
Arsenalist, et al.,
Non illigitamus carborundum … never, ever.
———————-
The Nets [4-6] are much better than most Raptors’ fans realize [with a very solid win notched in their belt already]; while the Raptors [6-5] are not quite as good [yet] as most of us might think [still in search of their 1st quality W of the season].
Definitely a winnable game for the home side.
Either way, I expect it to be another close game, similar perhaps to the home-court match-up vs Golden State which was decided in the final minute.
At this point, both squads look to me as though might eventually finish somewhere in ‘the Middle’ of the League-wide standings.
We are just scratching the surface. I look more at our play than our record and I like what I see: JO a force inside, Andrea more complete player, CB4 playing at superstar level, Jose the epitome of a floor general. We do have problems at wing positions and the bench is weak however we finally put Moon in his place and Kapono is trying to expand his game to deserve 30′ a noght with mixed results. If we stay healthy and on the same path starting January we’ll compete with Boston and Cleveland for the best team in the East.
Our style of play is perfectly suited for play-offs and this should be our goal: to go deep in play-offs. IMO, the key for us is Andrea experiment at SF position: if it succeeds then the sky is the limit.
I don’t know Daniel, Bosh is playing at a superstar level, I agree with you there and JO seems to be coming around, especially defensively, but it seems to me that the rest of the team is a huge question mark. Even if all the other players figure out a way to fit in with Bosh and JO, how much better are we? We could beat Orlando and maybe Detroit if it comes together, I believe that, but Cleveland and Boston?
That said, I for one have climbed down from the ledge with this team. It may not have a better record this year than last year; and with the improving East that means a playoff spot is not guaranteed. But supporters need to remember that the JO experiment is a 2-year one. I guess BC figured that Moon and Parker would give us enough on the wings to get through this year. It looks like he was wrong about that but there’s still time for those guys to figure out their roles. Next year, however, the team has something like $12mil. under the tax. It will have to do some sign and trades to get free agents but maybe someone like Childress would be available for a resigned Moon and some filler. There are also wing guys like McCants or even the illustrious Rodney Carney. Picking a rough diamond from those kind of players is what separates the GM men from the boys. Not sure BC can do it but it’s not crazy to hope.
We can also start thinking about a new coach for next season. Right now I’m partial to teaming up Thibodeau from Boston with an offensive guy (Messina?) as a chief assistant. And there’s still time for Sam to surprise us all.
Never. Stop. Booing. VC. NEVER.
It should be noted that Devon Harris is 2nd in the NBA in free throws attempted per game. Second! Behind Howard and ahead of ‘Bron, Wade and Bosh. That is insane.
Back to VC for a sec, is it really a foregone conclusion that he will not make the hall? If he continues to stay healthy and keeps putting up these #’s for a few more years, I think he will garner consideration. Don’t think he’ll make it, but if he somehow ends up on a championship team (I agree with Tinman. There will always be a GM out there tantalized by Vince’s talents who thinks that Vince is the missing piece to get his team over the hump) at some point in his career it could happen. Potentially. I hope not.
Sigh. Vince and T-Mac. What could have been. Now Vine is a widely acknowledged floater and T-Mac’s body is breaking down at the age of 29. He’s averaging under 16 PPG this year.
Daniel…forget the Bad Boys from motor city ?
Sam: I agree with that pairing up of coaches, although I’m pretty sure Messina would want his own coaching gig if he were to come to the NBA. He has a pretty comfortable job right now in Europe. I think Thibodeau would be a really good fit with this team when considering the type of talent we have with bigs.
I think this will be a comfortable win for the raptors. Devin Harris is the only true threat from NJ and if we limit him to jump shots, he won’t kill us. We need to establish Bargnani as a big option early through post-ups because with Bargs hot, we can exploit the nets with our three big men and calderon (if healthy) and kapono firing away from the perimeter. When i see three bigs together, all i think of is cut, cut, cut when one big is posting up. Imagine Bosh posting up on the strong side, someone will help and that offensive player should cut. This team should play inside-inside-out, where we throw the ball inside, wait for the double, look for the cut, and if that is covered go outside for the open shot or to re-position.
well done again! i find the writing up here very well thought out and helps me think carefully about what i think i think! Tonight we have a good shot at starting a tough home stand with a victory! I think we need to let the fading star go away quietly as we should be over it by now! let’s not forget we let T-Mac go, we let Rafer Alston go, we let Marcus Camby go, do we boo these guys? not at all. first and foremost Vince has been and always will be concerned about Numero Uno! If we changed jobs for more money, how would we feel if our former co-workers and friends came and booed us!? time to let this one go as he has become an afterthought in the nba and focus on the potential on the home side of the court. Love the game, love the blog, love the Raptors.
Off Topic: I don’t think people realize how difficult it is to complete a trade. People hear rumours and think “oh that’s fair” but neither gm wants a fair trade. Both teams want the upper hand and with the salary restrictions there are very few opportunities.
Oh yeah I agree with the Solomon point. But you gotta give him a few more games and see if he figures it out. That’s what November/December basketball is for.
It’s a long season.
It should be noted that Devon Harris is 2nd in the NBA in free throws attempted per game. Second! Behind Howard and ahead of ‘Bron, Wade and Bosh. That is insane. from Baadasssss!
this stat would mean alot more if he were a 95+% shooter of free throws, but he comes in at around 88%. Btw, Jose Calderon is the league leader right now with 26/26 for 100%!! When you are looking at a stat like FTA what it tells me is that he attacks the basket alot and that he gets hit alot. It doesn’t mean much more than that really. I believe Kobe is usually the leader in FTA’s in the league which makes sense as he is always looking to get to the rim! It is a stat a coach looks at and wishes everyone on his team could copy! the Raptors as a team have been very good at getting to the line while not letting other teams parade through it. I expect the same tonight as the Nets are mismatched at 4 of the 5 spots on the floor. I give an edge to Carter as he is still a good player and Parker will be tired tonight for sure.
re: Wince Carter hate in Toronto
Hypothetically… If the Celtics had decided to fire Danny Ainge at the end of the 2006-2007 season and then asked for Paul Pierce’s opinion on who he felt the team should hire next … and ‘The Truth’ gave the team his opinion … but the C’s then decided to ignore that opinion and, instead, went in the opposite direction … Do you think that Mr. Pierce would have then wanted to play for the Celtics after that?
Especially if the coach who that GM then chose to run their team was not someone with whom Paul Pierce was in harmony when it came to how the game needed to be played moving forward with their team, given the success which the Celtics have had to that point in the history of their franchise.
Personally, I do not. Best wishes to Wince Carter wherever life’s travels take him. While he was a member of the Raptors, fact is, he was a star player for this franchise.
Gosh golly….just think: if this team keeps going we could actually be a 41-41 team at the end of they year!!
Gosh golly…if we try real hard we could be 42-40!!!
Oh my gosh, I can’t wait until we play teams like Boston, the Lakers, Detroit, Cleveland and Orlando because it’s so much fun to watch the groundhog day-like mistakes and weaknesses over and over again!!
Gosh golly, if one can’t get excited by all that losing, then one just doesn’t have the right attitude…
The important thing is to keep re-hashing the same things over and over in blogs….because if we do it enough, then the magic je ne sais quois of Toronto sports franchise dreaminess will turn mediocrity into excellence.
It especially helps to keep booing a player whose relationship to the team ended years ago….that will ensure his misery and our continued superiority. When Chris Bosh decides to leave eventually and play with other stars rather than become the next KG in Minnesota, we can boo him too.
The important thing is to never go over the cap …oh….and to chuckle at Leo and Matt’s and PJ and Sherm’s and Paul and Eric’s hilarious bantering and be awed by the deep thinking and razor sharp analysis of Peabody award calibre writers like Doug Smith….hell, we have so much good karma going here, we don’t even have to be able to WATCH all the games…TSN/MLSE understand that we can just imagine them…the results are much better than reality.
nunya, classic stuff my man.
20 games people, give them 20 games. Look at the games we’ve got after tonight that will take us to #20:
2008-11-23 BOS 12:30 PM CBC
2008-11-26 CHA 7:00 PM Score
2008-11-28 ATL 7:00 PM TSN
2008-11-30 @LAL 9:30 PM Score
2008-12-02 @DEN 9:00 PM Score
2008-12-05 @UTA 10:00 PM TSN
2008-12-07 POR 1:00 PM TSN
2008-12-09 @CLE 7:00 PM TSN
Don’t tell me that this won’t tell us exactly of what this team is capable off and whether a fix needs to be applied. If the trend of beating bad teams and losing to good ones continues through this stretch I’d say BC will be forced to do something because it’ll become even more clear that a 1st round exit is inevitable. At that point we can collectively start shitting on everyone. Hang tight till December 9th.
Nunya, you sound like a Knicks fan, you’re in the wrong place.
Nunya, when Khandor’s complimenting you it’s time to look in the mirror. And don’t forget Mo Pete, he got mercilessly booed when he was here with NO last year.
And in the meantime, try out Celticblog. Good writing and its about a championship team. You can frontrun with the rest of those c*nts
Worried about tonights matchup of Devin Harris vs Will Soloman. Seriously what raptors point guard has Soloman proved he is better than? Milt Palacio, Rick Brunson, Derrick Martin and Roko Ukic(atleast in Sam’s eyes) are the only ones I could think of that could have possibly underperformed him….
Takman- Devin’s frequent trips to the line are very significant at a 88% conversion rate (over a career that would put him 12th ALL-TIME).
As for the game, the only way NJ win’s this game is if they absolutely catch fire behind the arc (which is a possibility). However, I expect our bigs to dominate on both sides of the floor and negate Devin Harris from making an impact in the paint. Contrary to what someone posted yesterday, basketball is a vertical game, and it’s difficult to overcome a huge disadvantage in that area (nice to finally be on the other side of that dilemma). I expect some garbage time at the end of this one with the Raptors coasting to the finish line.
…and who isn’t giddy about the prospect of seeing VC turtle on his first drive when JO meets him in the paint?…and then seeing him hover around the 3pt line for the rest of the game (while we pray he doesn’t catch fire).
Re Arse:
I think through that stretch the consistancy of JO and Bosh means we only rely on 1 or 2 guys out of the other 6 or 7 in the rotation to produce big numbers. I dont mind those odds and am fairly confident we’ll escape within 2 games of .500 (barring injuries).
you people all expect too much from AP. While not the greatest defender, he’s the best this team has right now. Most think he does a good job. I mean every guy he covers averages over 20 ppg every night so whats the difference. On offense, he is this team’s 5 option, so as long as he makes good passes, doesn’t turn the ball over and scores between 7 and 14 points, who cares. He will never be the scoring 2 that u fans want, so stop comparing him to them. He fits a perfect place on this team when your 3 is scoring like Bargs has the past few nights and u have a pg like jose who has a decent ability to shot and drive to the basket. Kapono is the real problem on this team, this guy is a mess, he gets paid to shoot from beyond the arc and he simply does not want to do it. If he had a real job he would get fired for not producing results, plain and simple. Oh yeah, Moon can’t dribble or shoot or play defence, everyone who fell in love with guy and bought his jersey should take a long look in the mirror and seriously question whether to watch basketball anymore.
On the Harris subject – his numbers will be better than Jose as will his shot attempts. Jersey needs him to score as option 1 or 1A.
Jose is probably option 3 or 3A with the Raptors.
As good as Carter was during the Oakley years, he still quit on us. I will never forget.
“…everyone who fell in love with guy and bought his jersey should take a long look in the mirror and seriously question whether to watch basketball anymore.”
Ooookay… love for the underdog is natural and expecations differ based on what they are relative to. If BC picked up Moon as a free agent this year and he performed like this everyone would say he’s a solid pickup. For the money moon is still a very effective player who happens to need to figure out and accept his role so he can bring the energy he desperately needs…
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re: Contrary to what someone posted yesterday, basketball is a vertical game, and it’s difficult to overcome a huge disadvantage in that area (nice to finally be on the other side of that dilemma). – Raptoronto
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This observation speaks directly to someone’s understanding of the game and their overall Basketball Philosophy.
i) Basketball is [predominantly] a Vertical game; or,
ii) Basketball is [predominantly] a Horizontal game; or,
iii) Basketball is both a Vertical & a Horizontal game, with neither aspect more dominant than the other.
Into which of these 3 specific camps you happen to fall, as an individual, will most assuredly influence what you think and see and feel about the game, in the NBA.
sorry, Arsenalist …
e.g. Does Devin Harris get to the FT Line as much as he does primarily because of his Vertical quickness, agility & exlosiveness? Or, primarily because of his Horizontal quickness, agility & explosiveness? Or, because of both, in equal proportions?
You are free to make your own call. : )
Arse – I agree that that this stretch of games will be very telling as to where we stand as a team but after only 20 games I don’t think BC will feel inclined to make a move nor do I think he has much wiggle room to do so. The only players he might be able to move (and be willing to) are likely Hump and Kapono but, unless Khan can land a job as a GM of another team, what can that fetch us? Realistically the only move would be to bring in an unsigned veteran point guard but who is out there that would be worthy of going over the tax threshold to play a minor role?
Given his history as a GM in this League … THE move Bryan Colangelo is most likely to make, sometime during mid-December, if the Raptors are below the .500 mark at that point, is replacing his head coach, Sam Mitchell.
If you don’t believe this then you have yet to examine the man’s track record closely enough.
[Hint: If you look elsewhere on the internet, it's available for you to see for yourself, in black & white ... Ain't that right, Flux? : )]
Edgar, re: Solomon vs Harris. If Will is in the game it should only be against the Nets back-up PG, not D-Harris.
khandor, I don’t give rats ass whether DH gets to the FT line because of his vertical or horizontal quickness. Bottom line is he gets to the line.
Raptoronto: Sure, BC’s not going to make a move on Dec 10th but I think the play in this stretch will plant the seed of whether he has to make a move or not. Hump and Kapono definitely have some value, Joey Graham might have some too, not because of his talent but because he’s expiring. As I said yesterday, unless he’s willing to trade Bargnani (which he’s not), he can’t make a significant move. The most likely move is to come via an FA signing in the summer, not through trade.
Sam, Re: Nunya, when Khandor’s complimenting you it’s time to look in the mirror.
You mean like when I compliment someone like ‘Dave’, for example?
Personally, when ‘Dave’ looks in the mirror, I think what he sees is a highly knowledgeable basketball person, who he is very comfortable with himself and his understanding of the game because of the long hours he’s put in, in an effort to better comprehend its many nuances, hence the absence of insultory language in the comments which he leaves, both, here and elsewhere.
From my perspective it’s a pleasure talking hoops with someone like ‘Dave’ … as it is with someone else like ‘Flux’, for example, who self-admittedly is at the opposite end of the spectrum, when it comes to acknowledging his relative inexperience in understanding some of the complexities involved with the NBA environment.
After all … It don’t matter from where you come, it only matters what you bring to the game, when you get a chance to play it.
raptorblog got boring a few years ago, so I don’t think you have to worry about the score sports federation too much. FYI, this is the only raptors blog I have bookmarked. Great job on the site. One thing, I know it’s on raptors.com, but could you please start posting who is broadcasting the game in your opening tip, or pre-game pieces.
nevermind, I found your schedule. Keep up the good work raptorsrepublic
re: khandor, I don’t give rats ass whether DH gets to the FT line because of his vertical or horizontal quickness. Bottom line is he gets to the line. – Arsenalist
Well, perhaps, you should … because it makes a difference in how an individual sees and thinks and feels about the game, and the different players who play it.
e.g. Someone who thinks along the lines of (i) has a full appreciation of a player like ‘Stat’; while someone who thinks along the lines of (ii) has a full appreciation of ‘The Big Fundamental’. There’s a difference there that matters, when you’re talking hoops.
Wow no comment on worst PG in Raptors history?
I like this DELFINO story from Russia. Bring him back and shit bring Garbo back too if the Russian aren’t going to pay them and get rid of Joey, JK, Adams. Somebody must be willing to take them go over the cap and sign the Euroraps back.
Here’s the story DR is talking about:
http://translate.google.com/translate?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.basketnet.it%2Fnews%2F%3Fid%3D97581&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&sl=it&tl=en
We still own Delfino’s rights to play in the NBA so if he does return the Raptors will have first dibs. We bought Garbo out so there’s no contract there, the only remnant from that transaction is his salary counting against the cap this year (bummer).
Would I like to see Delfino on this team? At the right price, yes. His only problem was that he fell in love with the 3-pointer too much and never got reprimanded for it so he continued launching them. He was a smart defender and a better slasher than AP, Moon or Graham. Best part about him was that he could run the point for 5-7 minutes a game. Then again its never a good sign when you’re bringing back mediocre players into an apparently mediocre team. There are better options out there but if you have to settle you have to settle.
Woo -hoo.
Just got a call from my neighbor who has an extra ticket.
Look for me in the nosebleeds!
#43 – this is in fact right. If one is to assume what BC’s next move might be, he may want to go with that one. Seems like a pretty safe bet anyway. Again, I wonder who the new coach will be and who will coach in the meantime? Does Jay get a crack at it?
#45 – truth is, we all have unique perspectives of the game and we all have different degrees of it’s understanding. Some more, some less and ultimately we can all learn from each other, in some way shape or form.
I’ll be the first one to admit I’m the least knowledgeable on here, (and even the most knowledgeable person will tell you they are (still) learning), but that doesn’t prevent me from having an opinion or perspective. I’ll do my best not to bring the discussion down to RealGM levels.
Re:VC – to each his own, but for me the worst act he committed was giving away that play to Seattle. I don’t care how obvious it was what we were running, that is the highest act of traitorship one can commit. I saw that as an insult to the organization, fans, city, team mates, everyone. INEXCUSABLE. You are dead to me, Vincenzo Lamar!!! You hear me? DEAD! (TO SMOOCHY..lol)
Tinman, have a good time tonight. And I don’t care how lame it may be to some… LET’S GO RAPTORS – VC SUX!!
is harrington to the knicks for crawford so ho-hum no one’s cares enough to mention it?
Raptors should kick some canadian arse tonight.
Flux – your right that was the end for VC in eyes as well. I had him down to a 3 on my 1 to 10 hate scale, that memory alone brings him back up to a five maybe 6…it never ends!
Yertu – I think it’s more about the teams involved (non-contenders) than it is about the players….but it’s very sad when the NY Knickerbockers are trading a starter for a starter and no one cares. Zeke’s shadow still looms!!
This is completely off-topic, but has anyone else noticed that the author of the Dino Nation blog apparently never learned to use a comma in grammar school? I was reading a linked-to post there, and i swear it was like reading an essay written by a developmentally-challenged ninth-grader.
Well, I don’t get the deal from NY’s perspective. I haven’t seen them play much all year but isn’t Jamal Crawford one of the two Knicks that people would pick from that team if they had to. The other being David Lee. They’re trading away a guy who actually plays hard and has talent that isn’t hidden behind layers of fat for a complainer. But I’m not thinking about it, I learned a long time ago not to make sense of what the Knicks are doing. But as d279 said, gotta love the Knicks not giving a shit about the salary cap.
BTW, check out Jamal Crawford’s contract structure, he’s got a player option followed by a guaranteed year. Don’t see that much.
http://hoopshype.com/salaries/golden_state.htm
tkfu, go, easy, on, him. He’s, a, good, guy. Hopefully, I, made, up, for, the, lack, of, commas. :) ,
re. the deal – just looks like the knicks are clearing space for ‘10 & a run & bron-bron, while being able to continue a (marginal) upward trend improvement-wise.
Yeah, you’re right. Holy shit the Knicks have a lot of player options, they even gave Jerome James one!
http://hoopshype.com/salaries/new_york.htm
im skittish with anticipation of tonights game….man,my nerves,i fucken hate vc that much.i want us to destroy the nets tonight. jo with a nice hard foul on vc in the lane…id bust a nut.
Trade Bargs, Hump, Solomon & Delfino’s rights to MIN for Mike MIller & Foye!
umm negative on the Minny trade…
Oh good. O’Neal banged his knee.
Oh… no…
12 points in 33 seconds!!!!!!!!!!!! VC IS THE BEST!!! YEAAAAAHHHHHH!!
12 points in last 44 seconds for VC! Flashes of Isiah, Reggie & T-Mac there!!! Bosh with the crazy three! BEST GAME OF THE YEAR!!!
CARTEEEEEEEEEEEEERRRRRRRRRRRRRR
WHAT THA FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK!!!!!!!!!!!!!
OHH NOOOESS
SMITCH: You noe Vance Kotta juss made some shats…
KILLER ENDING!! You’d think the Raptors wouldn’t let Vince brutally rape ‘em in the ass like that TWICE but then again it’s the Raptors we’re talking about. 12 in .44 & 2 game winners for VC. What was that washed-up stuff you were talkin about again Arse????
What a waste of a career games by Bosh & Bargs. DAMN! I hate this garbage team. Will Solomon & Hassan “Gap Teeth” Adams are fuckin USELESS.
how are your nuts, andiamo?
Hell…we don’t even have to wait to play the elite teams to lose ugly…I suspect Oklahoma is looking at the schedule praying for their meetup with the Raptors…after all they did beat us last year…
Toronto fans enjoyed a brief moment of misguided arrogance after a half a Cinderella season and there are still dopes around who assume for some reason it is a playoff team(and no…barely scraping into the 8th seed does not a playoff team make)….I guess because the insipid Raptor shills on Raptor TV tell them so and there are no real basketball writers in this country…
where o where did vc man’s go?
You’re right! Where DID Jamario “our best perimeter defender” Moon go!?
time to start up the Artest in 09 movement. anything else would be premature.
As I alluded to yesterday, in Comment #29 [above] …
The brightest STAR in the history of the Raptors’ franchise was driven out of Toronto by the way MLSE chose to run its business, after taking control of the operation from Mr. Steve Stavro and, ultimately, following the dismissal of Glen Grunwald [former Raptors' GM]. Since that time, the principal people responsible for the way in which this franchise conducts its business, are Misters Peddie & Tanenbaum [not the OTTPP, which is an entity rather than an individual person], representing the Board of MLSE, who have made the decisions to hire Rob Babcock, in the first place; fire Rob Babcock; and most recently, hire Bryan Colangelo.
The people responsible for the current state of the Raptors’ team are not the players on the roster, nor the coaching staff.
In this franchise, the buck stops now with the names Larry Tanenbaum, Richard Peddie, and Bryan Colangelo.
It is going to be a very interesting season in Raptorville.