Careful Chris, don’t want to injure that mouth.As unlikely as a playoff spot is, I’m still looking forward to this bunch at least try and make a push to prove that they’re more than a collection of overrated misfits and underachievers. The trade has breathed a little purpose into the season and I felt that as I made the brisk walk over to Philthy’s to catch yet another game on TSN2. Going up against Cleveland sans Chris Bosh and having two new players is an tough impossible challenge so all you really looked for in this game is some signs of whether this group could seriously pose a threat to anyone but my blood pressure. Results were leaning towards the negative.
Joey Graham was matched up against Anderson Varejao at the 4 as Shawn Marion got the call against Lebron James. The rebounding-allergic Bargnani was assigned to guard the unmovable object that is Zydrunas Ilgauskas and a 91.6524% Jose Calderon and Anthony Parker rounded out a starting lineup lacking in size. We were overmatched at the two rebounding positions and the stats reflected that, Cleveland outrebounded us 48-32 and our high-man (Parker) only had 7. Chris Bosh is our best rebounder and we traded away our second-best, what did you expect?
Like many a Raptor game the only positives in this one came early. All the up-tempo talk had Jose Calderon all excited as he kept his dribble alive against Tarence Kinsey and found his way to the basket for a couple layups. Cleveland misses were quickly rebounded and pushed up the court by Calderon and Marion, the latter finding Parker for an alley-oop on the break, a great pass and a surprisingly fine finish. Marion and Graham were getting into the blocks early and executed a couple strong drive-oriented moves for scores. It was going according to plan as the Raptors went up 19-10.
Bargnani got two scores out of face-up situations against Big Z but got called for his second foul at the 8:49 mark of the first. It’s unfortunate because he had it going early and the sub that followed killed his rhythm. Jake Voskuhl got the call (it’s either him or Jawai now) and that was a big drop-off for us as Bargnani was our only threat to create off the dribble. We soon went into jumper-mode as Joey Graham and Anthony Parker took the first shot available and Cleveland cleaned up the glass. Lebron was creating the offense by shifting the defense towards him and swinging to the weak-side where JJ Hickson and Varejao were left unattended – the lack of discipline in our defense was showing early and Cleveland shooting 58% for the game was no surprise. They ended the quarter on a a 15-4 run and led 24-23 at the end of the first.
Marion last night showed what he could possibly do for us. His defense on Lebron was good enough to force him into low-percentage shots, he got a steal off a front on Ilgauskas (no easy task) and took his man off the dribble for a couple scores. He made some good entry-passes (that’s a big deal for us) and executed a jump-hook in the low-block which I think will be his primary means of scoring. If we can get him into the post through a slip-screen he has the leaping and finishing ability to be a scoring threat. He looked lost at times, for example on one play Calderon used the high-screen and Marion sealed his man off so Jose could continue with his drive but instead he pulled up. Marion didn’t get why he did that and took the rest of the possession off by standing in the corner. All in all a decent game considering he’s guarding Lebron James – 10 points, 6 assists, 6 rebounds and 2 blocks. Here he is talking post-game about not being found despite moving without the ball and the Raptors being quiet on defense:
When you hear people talking, it makes people much more alert. When you’re out there all quiet and stuff it’s that much more harder. I was cutting, I was getting wide open and he couldn’t get a feel for it and couldn’t see me…It’s a feel thing.
The second quarter was all about us NOT guarding Big Z. He made Bargnani look small by patiently backing him down and finishing with jump-hooks and layups. It wasn’t all post-ups though, on the pick ‘n roll we were understandably cheating towards Lebron leaving Big Z open from 18 feet and he made no mistakes. He finished with a game-high 22 points on 11-17 shooting and created countless scoring chances. He’s only credited with three assists but he made our defense work by forcing us to send blind-side doubles, having our wings cheat on the strong-side and of course, forcing our defense to rotate which it does so pathetically. Graham and Bargnani were three steps too slow in closing him out all night long.
I noticed that Bargnani was inexplicably switched to Lebron on at least five possessions and looked like a guy about to get gunned down by a firing-squad. You know it’s coming, you just don’t know exactly when. How many times does this guy need to get owned by a SF before we realize that at no cost can we afford to switch him onto one? Speaking of ownage, I was very disappointed with Joey Graham’s inability to break down Anderson Varejao off the bounce. He’s conceding size on one end but I expected him to use his quickness to an advantage against Varejao but no such luck. Varejao was playing Joey tight and recovering in time to contest his little drives, I was impressed. We need to sign this guy.
Jason Kapono is officially the only NBA player Wally Szczerbiak can post-up. He had Kapono chasing ghosts in that second quarter as he took him across screens and finished with 6 points. Mo Williams took liberties with Jose Calderon by faking him to the other side of the screen and pulling up for jumpers he makes in his sleep. Calderon’s early aggressiveness was nowhere to be found and he was content with dribbling it up the floor and passing it to a wing. He was held scoreless in the quarter and his defensive play had me wondering whether Marcus Banks should be brought in to check Mo Williams. Remember, he is supposed to be a good man-defender. The lack of defensive tenacity on this team really pisses me off to no end, just for once I’d like to see somebody fire the team up through their defensive play but I know it’s not going to happen.
Since Voskuhl wasn’t giving us much Triano went with Nathan Jawai in the second quarter and I kid you not when I say that Big Z gave him 10 whole feet of shooting space on one possession. Jawai wisely passed it off. Lebron was still being held in check by Joey and Marion, two of his passes in transition were picked off and although he was racking up the assists, his own offense was slow to come. On the other end we went through another cold spell – Parker’s butter fingers turned the ball over carelessly and he missed jumpers that he’s specifically being paid to make. Joey and Kapono missed their share of jumpers as our offense went stale. Despite shooting 39.5% we were only down 47-41 at the break because of Cleveland’s 11 turnovers.
A note about up-tempo play. If Shawn Marion thinks we’ll be playing up-tempo ball in Toronto I hate to disappoint him. As I see it there are two problems. Firstly, you need the ball to run and we don’t have the rebounding to facilitate early break opportunities. Secondly, no team will ever be able to run ‘n gun with Jose Calderon at the point. He simply does not have the court-vision, blow-by speed and pushing mentality that is needed for that style to have a remote chance at success. He might fool you into by “being aggressive” on a couple plays here and there but he just does not have the skill-set to sustain that kind of play for 30+ minutes a game. This brings us back to Shawn Marion, he’s going to have to be as much of a half-court scoring threat as much as a gunner for us to be any good.
Early Anthony Parker turnovers and missed jumpers characterized the third quarter in which Cleveland went back to Big Z in the post and we went back to not having an answer for him. A 10-4 run to start and end the quarter resulted in a 71-56 deficit heading into the fourth and with Lebron heating up and Big Z already established, this was a done deal. As this game wore on so did the Raptors’ desire to move the ball and naturally, the offense went in labor. Without anybody to command a double team or create off the bounce our offense was reduced to meaningless passes which didn’t unsettle the defense in the very least. What flowed forth was pure trash: one-on-one moves, contested jumpers off of pansy screens and confusion resulting in turnovers which amounted to only 15 points in the quarter and 36.5% shooting for the game. The futility of Ukic and Calderon to kick-start something presented Triano with an opportunity to test out Marcus Banks.
He looked as expected: a tight enough handle, not keen to drive and a low defensive stance that is a marked improvement over any of our point-guards. PGs are the hardest players to judge because there’s so much to evaluate them on, not the least of which is their ability to run a called play. You might think I’m being harsh but Banks looked like a slightly more composed version of Solomon. Again, it’s only one game and evaluating him will take much longer.
The fourth quarter rolled along and we scored the first couple hoops giving the Philthy’s crowd some hope but soon Cleveland went on a 17-7 run and put this one to bed. Triano got ejected for rightfully arguing with the officials about a non-call on a Parker jumper but let’s not kid ourselves, the officials didn’t affect the outcome in this one. Marion has a nice enough showing as the short-handed Raptors fall to the Cavs, instead of needing to go 17-10 to catch Milwaukee we now need to go 19-7. Ouch.
Liners:
- Cleveland shot 58%, the Raptors shot 36.5%. This is a season-high percentage differential.
- Anthony Parker GTFO: I can’t believe that Colangelo is actually thinking of bringing this guy back. He’s gotten progressively worse each year and you have to believe that his decline will continue. Now I know that he has an outside chance of being a contributor at backup PG for about 10 minutes a game but with Marcus Banks and Roko Ukic on the team, how many point-guards do we need? His bread-and-butter is the 18-21 foot jumper and he hasn’t made that consistently enough to warrant further consideration on the team. Great guy, but let’s move along. And no, even if he has an unbelievable end to the season I still don’t want him back.
- Roko missed three cutters.
- Shawn Marion has good basketball IQ. Other than a couple jumpers when the game was decided, he played within himself on offense and fundamentally sound defense. Lebron got some dunks over him but he does that to everyone. I was pleasantly surprised how easily he can make an entry pass, can’t wait to get Bosh back to see if he can guide him to better post position.
- Joey Graham finished with 15 points on 6-16 which aren’t bad scoring numbers but know that he took some very questionable jumpers, something that he’s been avoiding all season long.
- Jake Voskuhl should never be the first guy of the bench. With Humphries out and Bargnani prone to foul trouble this will continue to be a problem. AltRaps wanted Jawai to get some PT in the D-League, he just might get it here.
- I already said this in the post but I’ll repeat it in case you skipped down to the liners. Terrible switching by the Raptors in allowing Bargnani to be guarded by Lebron. Very disappointed in Joey not being able to take Anderson Varejao off the dribble.
- Jose Calderon was up against Tarence Kinsey and had 3 assists and 3 turnovers. When our big gun is out our second gun needs to step up and didn’t. I’m not surprised, merely pointing out that he doesn’t have the star ability many attribute to him. This was the one matchup where we were supposed to have a distinct advantage yet failed to capitalize.
- JJ Hickson has shown me something. Very poised player that doesn’t panic with the ball in the paint and moves beautifully without it. He also plays hard and strong, great pick by Cleveland.
- Cleveland’s wing shift on the perimeter better than any team I’ve seen. When they have Lebron or Big Z in the low-block, Gibson, Williams and Wally cleverly move along the arc and create just enough space for a shot.
- Best Lineup: Graham, Parker, Bargnani, Marion, Calderon going +4 to start the game. Worst Lineup: The same five going -6 to start the third.
- A body language expert told me that Bosh and Colangelo are lying in their recent interviews and Bosh is done with Toronto.
Check out the return of the Roll Call and be sure to follow us on Twitter for the latest Raptors news throughout the day. If you have any suggestions or comments about the site please email them to info at raptorsrepublic.com.
Thanks for reading.
90 Raps
Arsenalist,
What is your algorithm for estimating Jose’s health, percentage wise. It seems to be non-linear in nature given your prior postings and this ones. Is it safe to assume that you are using non-linear least-squares estimation methods?
P.S. I’m a huge dork.
I basically count the grimaces on his face, multiply that by the times he pulls up in transition. Call that number X. Then I take the number of times he drives to the rim and multiply that by the times he DOESN’T give the ball up at the first sign of pressure, call that number Y.
I then apply a variant of the Levenberg–Marquardt algorithm and the derivative of the output is usually the under-root of the cube of Calderon’s health.
LOL, fu-nny.
Should I be deeply ashamed that I’ve heard of the terms you are bandying about?
You know, Jawai can actually shoot the ball reasonably well from about 10-12 feet
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryCnDtE6sZU
Bosh the Cowboy = Vintage Gold!
There seems to be a massive lack of empathy for the Raptor’s reality situation. Need I remind you that:
1. at the start of the season, Sam said the team was not athletic but basketball-wise .. and then he played Bosh and Calderon each 40+ minutes per game to get as many W’s attached to his coaching record as possible.
2. The Raps roster had 4 new players of doubtful quality, at the start of the season … and no sane observer could conclude this was good.
3. The trade for JO .. stirred up the roster again.
4. And now we get Marion and Banks … with demands from tribal honking fans for another trade by the deadline ….!!!!
This Rap roster now resembles a team thrown together for a pickup game … so let’s have some empathy for the players and let’s not blow a gasket over a lost cause.
The only question is where do we go from here for the next couple of seasons leading to the 2010 player bazaar …??!!!
4. And now we get Marion and Banks … with demands from tribal honking fans for another trade by the deadline ….!!!!
You use the term tribal honking way too much. Give it a rest. It makes you sound stupid. IMO of course.
Bosh and Colangelo will scratch each others backs this summer when Bosh privately requests to be shipped, giving Colangelo an opportunity to fleece another team.
I think we’re at possibly the worst point in the cycle of a sports franchise – when the fanbase knows the team needs to rebuild, but the management isn’t quite ready to see the light yet, thereby prolonging the whole shitty ordeal. I don’t blame them though, the thought of rebuilding around Bargnani and Calderon makes me very nervous indeed.
‘giving Colangelo an opportunity to fleece another team.’
who has he fleeced, to date?
Indiana, no? He gave them that cancer TJ.
TJ Ford: the anti-Shane Battier.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/15/magazine/15Battier-t.html
(Great read. I’m assuming its already been posted.)
NO mention of TJ in that article but I get your point.
What TJ shoulda done last year was just keep it cool and let Jose start play the big minutes and put pressure on him (new contract) and let him get exposed on defense so people would see what we’re seeing now. But I guess he was just too hot-headed and he overreacted to not starting and personally I think that attitude wouldnt take any team far.
It wouldve been nice it BC traded them both last off-season.
There’s a good chance BC fleeced Miami – their 2 best players are among the most fragile in the League and their payroll situation is anything but flexible – which makes them a borderline home playoff team at best and the worst case scenario with those two injured is another D-league bottom-dweller for this year and next …
good write-up arse. the roll-call was also bang-on.
what a shyte game…no flow, poor execution, stagnant offense, inappropriate doubling, late rotations, poor shot selection. shitty officiating (on both ends)….really chippy & choppy, borderline unwatchable.
was AP’s dunk on the oop from marion the first one he’s finished this season? i’m sure he’s completed others, and i haven’t watched every minute of every game (only ~95%), but i can’t recall seeing it before. can’t say i disagree about his game, it was butt fugly.
welcome back, VL!!! we missed ya! spotty D? check. settling for hesitation jumpers instead of taking Z off the bounce? check. poor FG%? check. as many boards as fouls? check. woohoo, it’s like january never happened. looking forward to friday, when he’ll be good again for a game. woot!
i think jose might only be at 82.635438%, ’cause otherwise, wow. i liked his help on Z in the post, which left a 3-pt shooter open on the opposite side…like, what, 5 times? he’s still doing his little ‘clap’ thing as he uselessly runs out to ‘defend’ the shot. i especially liked that brace/wrap he was sporting, that kept falling down his leg.
as for marion…i kinda felt bad for him, other than a possession or two, he didn’t seem out of place, other than the talent level around him. it was like he was taken off the varsity & put him with the JV guys, but the game was against a varsity team. his D on lebron in the 1st half was excellent, he did as good a job as could be expected, forcing lebron to find his teammates, which is when our other guys have to step up. unfortunately, they still haven’t learned not to overhelp, or to rotate properly, so that left mucho outside shooters wiiide open. how many set-shot 3’s did wally hit? we’re so late, shooters don’t even have to think about rushing…they can make the catch, take a dribble, set their feet, and just focus on the shot. it wasn’t until the 2nd half that lebron got on track w/ his own offense, and for the most part, it was after marion had moved to the 4 & was checking AV or hickson (’cause VL couldn’t stay in the game & they had to go small).
overall, well, what did we expect?
I thought Marion was a bit surprised at what the Raptors were doing. Take for example the play I mentioned in the post, he’s so used to Wade and Chalmers driving all the way that he did the right thing by clearing his man out but the drive never came. He looked perplexed.
I’m hoping he can take Calderon or Graham aside and tell them that what they’re doing is wrong. I’m starting to think Triano just doesn’t have the balls/authority to do that to certain player and that’s one of my reasons why we need a veteran coach.
there were also a few plays where he made a hard cut, or ran off a screen aggresively, which must have surprised jose &/or roko (since they haven’t seen either all that often), that while i think they saw it developing, they were just ill-prepared to make that kind of pass. i’d almost equate it to muscle-memory…while jose/roko likely recognized that they should make the pass, it hasn’t, to date, become ingrained to do so, and that miniscule hesitation kills the opportunity. that’s the part of ‘jelling’ that may take a game or three, and some practice time together. the guards will eventually learn that marion is going to look to make himself open on cuts, since he must recognize as well as everyone else that his strengths don’t lie in creating off the bounce (though it was a treat to see a wing with the actual ability to dribble the basketball – yes folks, it’s come to that…i’m excited over a raptors ability to dribble). i thought they should have looked to him in the post a bit more (since nothing else was working for long stretches); he seemed to be able to secure position well, and while his repertoire with the ball isn’t overly spectacular, he has the quicks/hops/touch in close to get off high-percentage shots…and the secondary leaping ability to go after his own misses.
on another note – i hate to bag on a guy after a tough game, and i’ve appreciated his efforts this year, but i really fail to see what AP is bringing to the table at this point. granted, last night was probably the worst game i’ve seen him play in a long time, but i fear it has become (or will become) the norm rather than the exception. i’m sure he’ll have good games, and we’ll hear all about how valuable he is, yada yada. fact is, his ‘nice guy’ rep has blinded people to what he is – bruce bowen. that is, bruce bowen from this year, not from when he was actually good.
and one that won’t snit out and throw a temper tantrum in a team huddle.
That would be nice.
I thought that was a sign of caring and leadeship.
And Arse, WTF.. you are starting to think?? Man, you got serious hope with people. No idea how you do it. Dude’s been their BFF, playing good cop when Sam was playing bad cop, and now he’s gonna chew them out…?prob. not.
oh yeah, the chandler trade was rescinded, he failed his physical. zowee, that’s big…the thunder ain’t going anywhere soon, so if they weren’t willing to risk adding him, it must be pretty serious, no? or did they just have buyer’s remorse over taking on that contract, and used the physical as an excuse?
as for the chicago deal…at least that’ll quell the bosh to the bulls ‘rumour’ (read: creation). and i’m pretty sure all the amare talk has to be dead now, right? i mean, they’ve crushed the mighty clips two straight now…
——————————————
A note about up-tempo play. If Shawn Marion thinks we’ll be playing up-tempo ball in Toronto I hate to disappoint him. As I see it there are two problems. Firstly, you need the ball to run and we don’t have the rebounding to facilitate early break opportunities. Secondly, no team will ever be able to run ‘n gun with Jose Calderon at the point. He simply does not have the court-vision, blow-by speed and pushing mentality that is needed for that style to have a remote chance at success. He might fool you into by “being aggressive” on a couple plays here and there but he just does not have the skill-set to sustain that kind of play for 30+ minutes a game. This brings us back to Shawn Marion, he’s going to have to be as much of a half-court scoring threat as much as a gunner for us to be any good. – by Arsenalist
——————————————-
If you examine this specific stretch of games from last season – i.e. the 24 games played between Dec 12 and Feb 01 – you will see that the major observation[s] you are making are not factually accurate.
During these games … played without TJ Ford in their line-up and with Jose Calderon as their MAIN-FRAME PG … the Raptors were:
* 13-11/.542 overall
* 6-8 vs eventual playoff teams, which included the following W’s:
v Dallas, 92-76
@ San Antonio, 83-73
@ New Orleans, 97-92
v Philadelphia, 109-96
v Atlanta, 89-78 and
@ Boston, 114-112.
Blaming Jose Calderon for the defensive ailments of this team and the poor play, in general, is simply criticism directed in the WRONG place.
——————————–
Raptors fans were told, in advance, that adding Jermaine O’Neal to this team was not going to address the Raptors’ problems effectively [i.e. given what the Raptors gave up in the process].
You can judge for yourself whether [or not] this assessment has been accurate so far this season.
Likewise, you’ve now been told, in advance, once again, that the addition of Shawn Marion & Marcus Banks is not going to effectively address the Raptors’ current list of problems either [i.e. given what the Raptors gave up in the process].
Time will tell if this assessment is accurate [or not] as well.
———————
“The proof of the pudding is in the eating.” – Anonymous
Everything will be fine once we sign Rodney Carney.
I’d take Carney over Parker for next year, given what he’s done in Minnesota lately. We need to get some players coming into their primes, not guys on the decline. Parker is a role player at best, I don’t understand the loyalty. Hopefully, it’s just smoke at the end of a played-out season.
Free Banks (and trade Jose for Baron Davis)
What has Carney done in Minny lately? Stop eating Khan’s pudding.
I was going to link to his numbers since a few stories I’ve skimmed have talked about him coming on. But then I actually looked at the numbers. I am through eating Khandor’s Memphis U. pudding, at least for now.
Revised opinion: I’d keep Parker for Carney’s money
Your Italics button is stuck. As is your bullshit gauge.
They gave up JO.
I don’t see the relation between the section you quoted from the Arsenalist regarding pace, and the record of the team last year with Calderon at the helm?
The Arsenalist was addressing Calderon’s ability to play to Marion’s strengths. Last night Marion was cutting, setting hard screens, giving the offense some motion, and yet Calderon could not find him. Calderon had 1 assist, where Marion had at least 3 attempted cuts for alley-oops or easy baskets where not even a pass was attempted. It was nice to see, and granted the first game, but it also showed exactly what Calderon is, a stable, steady hand in the back court, not someone who is going to make it happen. Which was the Arsenalist’s point.
Your rebuttal is to say we shouldn’t blame Calderon for the team’s defense, by bringing up last year? When he had Bosh in the line-up and a deep bench?
Apples and Oranges.
What is your point exactly, in a Raptors specific sense, and further more existentially?
This team is BAAAAAAAAAD. I’m ashamed to say I was there last night. How can BC look himself in the mirror after fielding a lineup of Voskuhl, Parker, Kapono, Graham and Ukic? There is no rhythm to the offense. It felt like we were back to the expansion days.
We have Bargnani playing the role of Zan Tabak. AP filling in for Willie Anderson. Shawn Marion acting as the new Carlos Rogers. Marcus Banks is a poor man’s Mighty Mouse. Kapono is Tracy Murray. Or Hubert Davis. Or We might be worse than we were back then? Would Jawai (Sharone Wright/Oliver Miller) have beaten out Ed Pickney for a roster spot? Popeye Jones? At least in those days we didn’t have to listen to all this playoff push BS.
“Dear TSN2,
Thank you thank you thank you thank you than you.
Love, Baadasssss!”
And now playing the role of Loren Woods …. Patrick O’Bryant!
Just a quick comment on the whole “weather ,skull caps.. ”
What’s the weather like at this time of the year in…
Boston
New York/Jersey
Milwaukee,Minesota
I’m sure there are others…
That’s American weather. The exchange rate make it totally different.
Flux,
You must have missed the RR’s memo that went out last week … there is only one khancer, in Raptorville, and it was never TJ Ford. : )
===============================
nadir,
They gave up O’Neal + Moon + the 1st Round Draft Pick and were forced to add the contract of Marcus Banks.
That’s not worth the contribution which Shawn Marion is going to make to this team, short & long term.
Getting rid of Blowneal was well worth it. Obviously he was going to do nothing for our offense considering he was never any good on O, but the fact he made both our defense and defensive rebounding worse was his ticket our of here. Calderon should be next to go.
Khandor,
That wasn’t an RR memo.. that was from some “johnny new comer”. I don’t read memos from Know It All Nobodies.
If so, you need to stop reading Khan memos.
http://www.mediatakeout.com/2009/30762-on_blast_nba_baller_tried_to_play_games_with_mediatakeoutcom_reader__so_she_sent_us_nekkid_pics_of_him.html
George Hill of SASpurs got screwed by an ex
come on Colangelo, show us that magic…trade Kapono for Wilcox!!!
Shut down Jose for this entire season, and try to rid Kapono to the suns for anyone that can at least stay in front of ppl. If Marion wants to run a little more, he can’t do it with Jose playing half court in the last 26 games. Jose from 2006-2007 would be the point guard that fits Marion, but all we are seeing is a husk of Jose dribbling the ball. What really pissed me off more was how Chris Bosh was reacting when Triano got ejected, with the game lost already, I won’t mind seeing an injured player getting a technical foul from the bench as well.
Waaaaaaaaaaayyyyy Off Topic, but….
I am a *HUGE* D-Wade BUT…. ever since him pulled his impression of Nelly with the STUPID Band-Aid I can’t help but want to rip it off and slap some sense into him. I don’t understand the NEW nerd theme LeBron & D-Waaaaaaaaaannnnnn and trying to start for attention. Somebody please explain this to me, please.
I’ll never have the same repect for somebody that’s copying ‘Nelly’.
Nelly (is a Looser) = Poser
so does that mean
D-Waaaaannnnn = Want Be Like Nelly = Looser!
D-Wade please drop the Band-Aid before you loose you fan base & gets replaced by a bunch of 10yr old girls.
Don’t tell me it Represents his Home-Boy in jail or something….but if that’s the case his still a looser!
I have no idea what you’re talking about but I think you mean: lose and loser.
Tomato Tamoto… Check All-Star weekend. He been sporting a Band-Aid under his left eye for a bit. LeBron & D-Wade dressed like a couple of dweebs during All-Star weekend. Attention getting I’m guessing, but I heard Kenny ‘The Jet’ Smith say a month or so ago that the new trend is to be a NERD.
Am I getting too old? Is this a sign that I don’t understand today youth? Please, the Tight Black Jeans, Mullet, MakeUp, Hair Teased Lovin’ Skids was a horrible trend in the 80’s. It hope the Nerdy trend thing doens’t catch on.
I’ve been to Cali and been to all over Europe. We in Canada are alway behind a year or so in the latest fashion. I hope this isn’t the new trend. Only the summer will tell….
Where is my Ebonics any way….
“After the police broke down my door last night, they said, ‘Darnett, urinal lot a trouble.’ ”
I’m a talker….not a speller…..I guess
The band-aid is functional. Wade got cut during a game and has a bunch of stitches to cover up.
Chris Wilcox for Jason Kapono
http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=co9ghu
Could happen?
Motivation for OKC?
that’s why when I mentioned this, I said “work your magic BC!”
actually it’s a bad trade for OKC, but hey, we need a break for once!!
I’m so pumped I didn’t have cable for this game. Now I’m gonna try to catch this train wreck live at MSG tomorrow night.
Oh my.
The Knicks have apparently bagged Wilcox:
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=3918993
so much for a back up big….go Jake!!!
lessthanzero,
Within that quote I referenced, these are the specific points raised by Arsenalist:
* Secondly, no team will ever be able to run ‘n gun with Jose Calderon at the point.
* He simply does not have the court-vision, blow-by speed and pushing mentality that is needed for that style to have a remote chance at success.
* He might fool you into by “being aggressive” on a couple plays here and there but he just does not have the skill-set to sustain that kind of play for 30+ minutes a game.
If you look at the box scores for that set of 24 games from last season, you should be able to see exactly how Jose Calderon needs to play in order to be successful as a Main-Frame PG in the NBA.
If the Raptors chose not to play that way this season … by failing to fill out the remainder of their roster properly around #1/Bosh, #2/Calderon, #3/Bargnani, #4/Parker, #5/Moon, #6/Humphries, #7/Graham, #8/Nesterovic, #9Delfino and #10/Kapono, after making the decision to trade TJ Ford, and shifting towards either a “Twin Towers” Approach [with Jermaine O'Neal] or a “SSOL” Approach [with Shawn Marion] to the game, then the blame for their failures, as a team – whether on Offense, Defense or Rebounding – should not be placed on Jose Calderon, who has already shown that he is a solid PG in this league.
If need be, Jose Calderon CAN, in fact, play the game at a Fast pace.
If need be, Jose Calderon CAN, in fact, play the game at a Slow pace.
If he has his choice, however, IMO, Jose Calderon would probably prefer to play the game at a Moderate Pace … which is quite compatible with being the Point Guard for a High End team in the NBA.
——————
IMO, those individuals who would merely label Jose Calderon as a “too safe” PG, who cannot “create” easy scoring chances for himself or his teammates do not really understand [in-full] how exactly the game is played in the NBA … in terms of creating, minimizing, and then taking proper advantage of both individual and collective mismatch situations.
So why doesn’t calderon get easy scoring chances for his teammates? Why does he never turn the corner on the pick and roll? Why are the vast marjority of his shots well outside the paint? Why does he constantly get burned on straight line drives by opposing point guards yet he rarely returns the favour?
duh…it’s b/c of all the crap on the roster. sheesh.
Still don’t know if I agree with you, but at least you’ve made a clear point.
I like Jose. I don’t feel like he’s to blame for any of this. But he doesn’t push enough, none of the Raps do. Last night we had plenty of opportunities to break out (Marion leading the way) and no one knew how to gt it done. We don’t know how to run the fast break. And until we move up from the bottom of the NBA in fast break points, I’m going to have to say that it’s not Jose’s strength. And until we start to consistently score easy baskets, I’m going to have to say that Jose is not a great creator. We live and die by the jump shot because we lack great creativity at almost every position.
So you are right. It’s not just Jose.
Take out the last paragraph of your standard condecending bullshit and I fully agree with your accessment of JC. We have very few decent open court ball handlers and even fewer guys who can finish at the rim on the break…hopefully a couple of practices and games with Marion will alter JC’s trust issues.
*assessment, *condescending
the Raps need picks! the more the merrier since 2010 is all about capspace and the more cheap/young talent you have at the summer of 2010 the more players want to play for you!
Sam,
As I’ve said before … don’t make the mistake of thinking that I think Rodney Carney is a terrific NBA player because OTHERS try to tell you that’s what I actually think. : )
FACT IS … the only thing I like about Memphis is right here.
what’s the connection b/w memphis & RC?
Carney played for Memphis (the NCAA version; I mean the version coached by Calipari and not managed by tight-wads) and I think I recall Khandor pumping Joey Dorsey at some point. By my very lax standards that’s a bias.
Turtle, turtle…turtle, turtle!
That said …
Even Rodney Carney would be a better investment on this current Raptors team, at a cost of $4.7 M/year, than a player like Jason Kapono. : (
Why are we still talking about Carney?
Stefanski probably didn’t even TELL BC that he was avalible for nothing. I mean why would you help out your division rival like that? If BC wanted to get Carney he probably would’ve got him so put all this Carney talk to rest.
is it just me or did we recently trade for an allstar swingman?? so why the fuck did joey, parker and kappono all take more shots than him?? these guys were the reason we traded for him. whos fault is this?? the guy goes 3 for 3 in the first quarter and doesnt see the ball again untill the 3rd, and speaking of body language this guy is already frustrated. i was embarassed last night. i was trying to look in through his eyes and saw the biggest bunch of losers especially our spazy dorky canadian coach… we’re so baaaad!!
joey is a huge hog by the way
… or, Marcus Banks.
is it just me or did we recently trade for an allstar swingman?? so why the fuck did joey, parker and kappono all take more shots than him?? these guys were the reason we traded for him. whos fault is this?? the guy goes 3 for 3 in the first quarter and doesnt see the ball again untill the 3rd, and speaking of body language this guy is already frustrated. i was embarassed last night. i was trying to look in through his eyes and saw the biggest bunch of losers especially our spazy dorky canadian coach… we’re so baaaad!!
joey is a huge hog by the way..
I said it much earlier in the season when we fired Mitchell and Colangelo talked about how the Raps would run and gun. Here are some random thoughts…
1)
Those Suns were something really unique. Nash, Amare, Diaw, Bell, Barbosa…these were guys born to run on a team. Not to mention being in the desert is good for soreness…unlike TO. D’Antoni had them working like a well oiled machine – did you see any of that last night??? No. We shot a horrible percentage. I don’t want to be too harsh, it was their first game with a new player, and in a new style. But, I would like to know whether people think the run and gun could work here with Calderon, Bargnani and Bosh.
2)
In my opinion, it cannot. I see NOTHING WRONG with integrated a player like Marion into a balanced offence that runs on the break when we come down with a favourable rebound, and can set up in the half court and show patience until we get the shot we want. If Colangelo is committed to run and gun, then he should trade Bosh.
3)
I want Calderon and Bosh to sit out for the rest of the season, and I want Colangelo to build a better team that is able to handle that kind of offence. We can’t out-grind a team like Boston, but it doesn;t mean we need to use the seven seconds or less offence
4)
My prediction: Come 2010, that run and gun will revive in New York. LeBron and Nash and Amare will be on the same team, and kick everyone’s ass.
Free O’Bryant!
Boston Globe reporting that Solomon might be gone…and Patrick O’Bryant headed here instead of Sacto. If that’s true, love it…small little move but O’Bryant as a former first-rounder who still has upside. And frankly, BC should bring as many of these types in as possible for the rest of the season to see if he can unearth another gem that’s been lost in the NBA shuffle. What have they got to lose?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zm7zNa5aCy4
and so the will solo era ends. is that ‘Taps’ i hear in the background? o’bryant should fit right in. and that’s saying something.
O’Bryant is a retard. Will is better.
like i said, he’ll fit right in…
Lol.
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4176/is_20070125/ai_n17165586
Don Nelson on Pat: “I told him if he goes down to the D-League and isn’t a dominant player, there should be red flags all over the place, and he should be the first to notice,” Nelson said. “He’s not only not dominating, he’s not playing very well. He’s a long-term project. I really liked him the first week of training camp, but I assumed there would be great progress. … He hasn’t gotten better one bit.”
we are basically getting a 7-footer on the cheap and not giving up anything…can anything make you guys happy???
there’s nothing to be happy about, or disappointed about…it’s called ambivalence.
I agree, however ambivalence is not what I see above, I see more negativity.
Yes, this gets classified under the “who cares” category, but I believe it was better than keeping Solomon.
The deal is a no brainer. Kind of like Hoffa for Hump.
will o’bryant be any more valuable than will was? yeah, they’re thin in the frontcourt, but he’s probably going to be battling w/ jawai for minutes, same way will was going to be fighting for minutes w/ banks. so if there’s a tone of negativity, it’s merely that they’re replacing one piece of crap with another…as opposed to, y’know, improving the team & all.
Ease up a bit. BC traded a 2nd rounder and a bit of cash (to cover the costs of Solomon’s buyout, I suspect) for a young big man who still has a sliver of upside. They need the body for practice, if not games and rolling the dice with a 7′ in his early 20’s sounds better to me than the dice roll BC made with the 31-year old PG. Yeah, he’s recovering from past mistakes but at least he got something useful. Solomon was no longer that.
the raps are getting the future 2nd rounder, not giving, right?
Even if O’Bryant is exactly of equal value to Will, he’ll be more valuable to the Raps. Will wasn’t in a battle for minutes. He was stuck behind Jose, Ukic and Banks. O’Bryant will at least be battling for minutes with Jawai and Jake, if not supplanting them altogether.
Oh my. Am I actually typing the names Jawai, Solomon, Banks, Ukic and Voskuhl with respect to the Raps??? WE SUCK!
I guess what I’m saying is whereas Kill-Will was useless, O’Bryant is a modicum above useless. And we won’t have to look at that stupid faux-hawk anymore. Or this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6kbgAA8uhM
And simply by virtue of being 22 yrs old, O’Bryant has upside. Kill-Will has no-upside. Just a landslide of downside.
Welcome Patrick! The road to the Championship starts now!
I was fine with this when the Raps were giving up a future 2nd rounder. Guess my future as an NBA GM remains up in the air.
Sac town is getting will the thrill, we are getting O’Bryant, and Boston is getting a pick from the Kings.
2 mistakes corrected now.
Three mistakes, you’re forgetting Hassan Adams. I don’t know about corrected though, the jury’s still out on that so let’s just say he dealt with them.
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