It’s interesting; this team is interesting. We have gone through a few pre-season games, 1 of which was an 8-point loss to a Timberwolves team sans Jefferson and Love; and this team doesn’t look like the finished product that would win 50 games and a make it to the second round of the playoffs. The Raptors are reasonably deep, but nothing of real note after the starters (lots of interchangeable pieces where one doesn’t shine brighter then the other). The 2 spot was always the question mark in the starting lineup, but you know what? Frank Zicarelli got it wrong, again – DeRozan’s role on the Raptors, is to start at the 2.
The roster has been set for the opener, with no surprises. There was no one fighting for a roster spot at training camp. Only those fighting for minutes. There is a a distinction. For what it’s worth, the starting lineup is not bad. Calderon is a solid point guard. He conducts the offense; hits jumpers; makes the safe right plays; protects the ball; and he’s butter from the charity stripe. Hedo is a match-up nightmare at the 3. Dude is tall, creative off the hop, gets to the rack, isn’t afraid to take clutch shots; and hits them once in a while. Bosh is elite. Bargnani spreads the floor. has a solid jumper; gets a couple blocks a game; and can take his man off the dribble.
The starters have scoring down. Between the four, you can expect about 65pts a night from them (based on what they did last season). You figure the bench will chip in 20-25 a night, which leaves the starting SG only really needing to come up with about 10pts a night to get us to free pizza.
Defensively, shooting guard is a tough position. You have chase the likes of Ray Allen, Joe Johnson, Monta Ellis, Ben Gordon, Richard Hamilton, etc, around the court on offense – and make them work defensively. No one has really stepped up to earn that spot: DeRozan has been raw; Wright has been hurt; Weems was playing great but he’s not really a starter; Belinelli is way to inconsistent. So the question then becomes, what is the starting lineup missing?
Defense
It is safe to say that Wright is the best defender of this lot. He came with that pedigree, and he struts around with some attitude (I like the trash talking), but he is not much of a threat to light it up on offense. We saw DeRozan chase folks around screens, block the lane and crash the boards. He may not be as good as Wright, but he has shown a willingness to get dirty in this department, which suits me just fine for a rook.
Slashing
DeRozan, Weems and Belinelli are pretty good at getting to the rim. All three have shown that they are fearless in this department. Weems has been a pleasant surprise this summer, but his contribution is marginally better (if at all) then DeRozan’s. Both DeRozan and Weems got to the rim, been knocked down numerous times, and keep at it. I’d say it is a toss up here.
Athleticism
This is the two man race between DeRozan and Weems. They are both are freakish in this regard: jump the hell out of the gym and are quick up-n-down the court. DeRozan is taller younger, bigger and taller then Weems, with a longer wing span.
I gotta like DeRozan here. He takes it to the rim, he has been working hard, wants to play defense, and Hopla will improve his shot over the course of the season. So what’s the problem? Ahh, you want to ‘hide rookies’. I see. Bury them on the bench and let them shine in due time. I hate this strategy. When you have promise in a young gun, you need to nurture it. I’m not suggestion you play him 30+ minutes a night, but he does a lot of good things to be an after thought on this team.
Sure, starting Wright here is the safe way to go. He doesn’t need the ball on offense, and plays good D (gave Carmelo hell in the playoffs last year). But as much as the Raptors need that sort of production, they need athleticism more. Getting out on the break, filling those lanes, attacking off the bounce, alley-oops…all these things, I haven’t seen Wright do. DeRozan fits this bill.
“What about scoring? Wont DeRozan feel pressure to score as a starter?” Ye he will, but what you aren’t considering is that the offensive load for the SG is MUCH less as a starter then a reserve, on this particular team. As part of the the starting unit, DeRozan’s only needs to give Jose/Hedo another passing option. He just needs to catch the ball on the go and put it down. He doesn’t have to worry about creating his own shot, because the defense will be far too tuned in on the rest of the lot, and take advantage of the holes left by Bargnani and Bosh pulling the bigs further away from the basket as they should be.
As a reserve, DeRozan will not be surrounded with as gifted offensive players as the starters, increasing his burden to do more. He now has to create his own scoring opportunities on top of doing everything else. To me, that isn’t hiding the kid. He now has to worry about carrying the 2nd unit. Talk about throwing him to the wolves.
So let him start. Wright can come off the bench IF Kid Dynamite can’t hold his own offensively. Weems can come in when the Raptors need a spark, and Belinelli can come in when all else fails. It might just take the whole year or more for DeRozan to get it right, but hiding him on the bench and sparing him the trial by fire at the hands of Wade and Kobe only keeps that pacifier in his mouth longer. To me, it’s a disservice. The kid can play, let him at it.
One more day!!!
98 Raps
Let him start. It’s more important who finishes.
Weems should be starting. Played his ass off in training camp.
which makes him a rotation guy, not a starter.
agreed
“As a reserve, DeRozan will not be surrounded with as gifted offensive players as the starters, increasing his burden to do more. He now has to create his own scoring opportunities on top of doing everything else.”
Except that ‘everything else’ is also against lesser competition. If he’s a reserve he’s playing against the other team’s reserves as well. So yes, he has more of an offensive burden, but he’s not being defended by Kobe freakin’ Bryant. He also won’t have to worry as much defensively as he guards the 2-guard reserves of other teams.
It’s not throwing him to the wolves at all. It’s facing him against lesser competition that he stands a chance against. You put him in the starting lineup and he’ll be chasing star guards all night on the defensive end as they try to abuse the rookie.
Kobe freakin’ Bryant will be on Hedo or Jose, not some rook.
uh, yeah, that’s what he said.
No, actually, he said:
“If he’s a reserve he’s playing against the other team’s reserves as well.”
Then he followed with:
“So yes, he has more of an offensive burden, but he’s not being defended by Kobe freakin’ Bryant.”
This is suggesting when he’s a reserve, he’s playing against a reserve SG, but when he is a starter, he’s being defender by Kobe freakin’ Bryant, like Kobe is going to be A) Defending some rookie, or B) Playing him straight up even if he is defending him
My point was that DeRozan would be facing better defenders if he started than if he came off the bench. I picked Kobe as an example – yes it’s possible he wouldn’t be guarding DeRozan, but it’s very likely that he is. Ron Artest on Turkoglu, Derek Fisher on Jose (remember Fisher played physical with Jose and pissed him off), leaving Kobe freakin’ Bryant on DeRozan.
And why wouldn’t Phil Jackson put Kobe on “some rook”? Kobe would be putting less effort in on the defensive end and still likely be shutting down his man, saving his energy for offense.
I recall Kobe on Jose even last year.
I’m almost positive it was Fisher on Jose. There was a technical or a double technical between the two and almost a physical altercation. Kobe may have been on Jose at other points in the game, but that was probably to take advantage of the fact that his hamstring hurt.
I agree with Martz. Him coming off the bench isn’t throwing him to the wolves. Its actually quite the opposite. Moreover though, the starting lineup needs a solid defender, and I’m not referring to merely the two spot. Someone has to set the tone, its not going to happen with ANYONE else on that starting squad and frankly THAT might be asking to much of a rookie that spent one year in college.
Three things to keep in mind here:
1. If he faces tougher competition, he will be pushed for excellence, not for mediocrity;
2. Derozan will play about 10-15 MPG, while star guards play 30-40 MPG. So he won’t be getting burned when it counts;
3. If Derozan is getting seriously burned, Triano will yank him (he has said and done just that, even in the preseason).
If DD is being a weak-link for 10 minutes, but not being exposed on every play down the floor, we will do just fine.
#1 is the only real reason I see for starting him.
#2 “he won’t be getting burned when it counts” when does a baksetball game count? The last few minutes of a game? I fail to see why people think that the first few minutes after the tip are unimportant. They help set the tone for the rest of the game. If DeRozan let’s Ray Allen develop his shooting touch early, it will probably come back to haunt us at the end of the game.
#3 The only time Triano yanked him (if I recall correctly) in the preseason was due to his poor shot selection.
Why isn’t Weems on the active roster? Surely, he deserved that much after pre-season. Sit Banks’ ass down in a suit and make Belinelli your third point guard
Injured his toe – out for game 1.
Weems got hurt in practice the other day.
oops. How’d I miss that?
If we want to finish the season strong and maybe win a playoff series, then it’s totally logical that DeRozen will need to be an effective player on both ends of the floor. He will need to grow during the course of the season and improve his skill set. In order to grow and improve, he needs playing time against starting with the starting line up, guarding opposing starter SG’s.
This is why he should start.
And if we want to start the season strong, then we don’t want to start a rookie who will be exposed by the Ray Allen’s of the league. We already have a defensive liability at the 1 with Jose Calderon, why have another at the 2?
DeRozan isn’t that bad a liability. He’s no Bruce Bowen, but the kid isn’t bad. Not even in the same vicinity of being bad on defense as jose is.
i hardly think a 34/35 year old ray allen should worry derozan, if his 19 year old legs and quicks can’t stay with ray we have bigger problems on our hands.
calderon playing pylon on the perimeter is the start of all of our defensive short comings. it forces our d to have to collapse opening up the drive and kicks for threes and further penetration, and exposes our bigs leaving them to pick up bad fouls and eliminate what little back side help we should have on a normal rotation. he really has to learn better defensive angles and how to play within his ability instead of chasing guys after their first cross over.
Mildly positive article Raps Fan, but a lot better (imo) than so much of what’s going on out in blog-land and elsewhere when it comes to commenting on how the Raps might fare, this year.
Personally, I’m rarin’ to go and I can’t wait ‘til tomorrow. It may seem ridiculously optimistic, but I’m liking the Raps chances against the Cavs, here playing their second game in as many nights (playing their first against the Celtics, no less – hope that game’s on TV somewhere).
Laying an egg that last preseason game should wake ‘em up as much as anything else could. As well, Bosh has all the incentive he could want for tomorrow’s opener, and with a bit o’ luck … the rest of the team will make a higher percentage of those shats than we’ve seen during the preseason (practice) games.
I’m pumped and ready for the real thing, baby!
Go Raps!
(Big Fargn’ HONK!)
The BOS-CLE game is on TSN2, and I hope it goes into triple overtime!
cheers to that!
Is Weems injured?
He is starting the year on the inactive list. Can’t show much athleticism there.
Griffin just went down for 6 weeks maybe more with a knee injury. If DeRozan starts and continues in the starting lineup he has as good a chance as anyone to win ROY.
The Raptors should start him just to give him a chance to win the ROY award, as that is probably the only award that this team has a legitimate chance of winning this year.
The defense still sucks, plain and simple. Bargnani and Calderon will always be big time defensively liabilities. Both of those guys need to be replaced with starters that can bring in on both ends of the court. Until that happens the Raptors defense just isn’t going to cut it.
toe injury (weems).
griffen – clipper karma.
derozan – no chance for ROY.
agree re. D. not sure why there seems to be so much attention paid to who starts at the 2, when what is critical for team success is who starts / plays heavy minutes at the 4/5. as long as VL is being counted on for heavy minutes, the raps will simply have a tough time defending/rebounding against even average teams. oh well…BC’s staked his rep on this guy, so it’s not like he’s going to be moved to the bench. guess we’re just supposed to hope that he’s learned to rebound.
Who do you suggest takes Andrea spot with the starters , Rasho or POB??.
Andrea will slightly improve his rebounding , remain the best blocker on the team and the best 1 on 1 defender (at least among the starters) . Just accept the fact that rebounding will remain his biggest weakness but he will make overall improvements to his game for tne next 2-3 years.
Sadly, Bargnani is the best center we have (unless you count Bosh as an undersized one).
that’s what i was kinda/sorta leaning towards…although i’ve argued that he can’t physically handle the daily pounding playing against 5’s, with his increased bulk & the fact that outside a handful of guys (shaq, dwight, etc.), there really aren’t a whole lotta centres in the east that are disproportionately bigger/stronger than bosh. so while i’m thinking they wouldn’t want him out there for all his minutes at the 5, starting him there & having an amir-type start at 4 might make sense. gotta say, i was hoping for more from amir during the pre-season…i get the sense he needs a lot more time to develop his overall game before he can be trusted with legit minutes. that being said – having him (amir) go against the opposition’s starting frontcourt alongside bosh for the 1st 6-7 minutes wouldn’t necessarily be a bad thing, depending on matchups.
contrary to what some may think, i’m actually a VL apologist…i still think he can be a competent contributor on a good team. but he simply isn’t a guy around which championship-calibre teams are assembled. not saying that bosh is either, but at least with bosh, you aren’t losing whatever he provides offensively with pissy rebounding & average-below average D.
How come Bosh gets no blame on our weakness inside? All seems to fall on Bargnani.
The tandem of Bosh and Bargnani are weak defensively – neither complement the other on either side of the floor.
Bosh is much tougher inside then Bargnanih he grabs almost double the rebounds.
Interestingly enough (and as a side note), I just checked our rebounding stats for the preseason. Here they are:
Our average RPG: 39.3
Opponents’ RPG: 41.5
If you discount the first game against Boston (first game missing Evans… call it an “adjustment period”), then these are the numbers:
Our average RPG: 40.3
Opponents’ RPG: 41.1
Surprisingly, not that bad!
“The defense still sucks … ” blah blah blah. Why don’t we wait a game or five before declaring as a fact (?!) who ‘will always be defensive liabilities’? Aside from me disagreeing strongly with that nonsense (my opinion), it’s a new season and it hasn’t even begun, yet. You sound like a Leaf fan.
make sure you don’t make yourself scarce in 3 weeks…i’m sure everyone’ll be in the mood to hear about how strong they are defensively by then. har fucking har.
In three weeks time, they’ll have played 11 or twelve games … and we’ll all have seen for ourselves – in real games – how much they have (or haven’t) taken to or learned Triano’s (and Iavaroni’s) defensive system. I’m willing to give it ‘til then to see which way this thing is going.
Buddahfan is right about Bargnania and Calderon. I dont see how your starting C AND PG can BOTH be defensive liabilities if you plan on getting into the playoffs, much less win in them. It just makes Bosh and the others work harder. This is especially true when Calderon gets beat, becuase his man gets a free pass into the heart of the lane, where he can draw a foul, pass or shoot.
As for Rookie of the year… a little to optimistic at this point. There are a lot of good rookies out there, many of which will get lots of playing time on bad teams (t-wolves, thunder)
Jose appears to have improved defensively from last year, and has certainly shown a desire for just that.
And by most accounts, Bargnani is actually a solid 1-on-1 defender.
When Phoenix was starting Nash at PG and Amare at C, were they a playoff team? Just saying it’s possible to be successful without your whole roster being stacked with All-Defensive players.
It would take a great deal of development for Derozan to be a contender for ROY. I say this not because other rookies are way above him in talent, but because several good rookies are playing for awful/rebuilding teams (e.g., Griffin, Evans, Flynn, Jennings, and Harden).
Those guys won’t need to really earn their PT, whereas Derozan must. On the other hand, if he earns more minutes, that will mean that he has developed to the point where he WILL be in the running for ROY.
Oh, and can we wait for at least ONE real game to be played before we start to panic/criticize the team? Chances are, game one isn’t going to be pretty, but we can at least wait and see until then.
‘wait & see?’ why? it doesn’t seem likely that this is a simple flick of a switch, that they all of a sudden won’t be fatigued once the games start for real. btw…how the F$%^&K is FATIGUE or CONDITIONING an issue NOW?!!? it’s not like they’re going to get a chance to rest up once the season starts, now is it? if conditioning is an issue now, it’s gonna be an issue throughout the season, and if that’s the case, then injuries are sure to follow. it’s just one excuse after another…
oh, and williams in NJ looks like he could be a sleeper ROY candidate, especially if the nets are anywhere close to respectable.
From what I understand the players are behind in conditioning because they spent quite a bit of time in the class room learning the x and o’s that Triano want to install.This make sense since there are so many new players who are not as experienced as the likes of Garbo and AP when they joined the team in 06-07. So basically we will have to be patient for a couple of months before this blog start to be inundated with firing and trade ideas .
It should not take these guys more than 1-2 weeks to get in tip-top shape.
In 3 weeks I went from not having done any kind of cardio intensive activity for many months, to running 30km one day and 12km the next day (i.e., I wasn’t even too sore to go another 12km the next day).
If I can do that in 3 weeks, these guys should NOT need even a single month. Can we all just get that excuse off the table, please?
Nobody is using that excuse – no games have been played yet.
Did you ran the 30km at the top speed you are capable of ? ,probably not but the pros are required to play at top speed the entire game and hopefully they might be close to that by to-morrow night . Hopefully Shaq will be in the same boat and a few other Cleveland players also.
@nadir: quite right. I wasn’t actually accusing anyone, I just hope that we (myself included) would not resort to that excuse. We have many potential reasons for failure, but that one (IMO) would be an excuse.
@cesco: fair point. I certainly could not run that far at the same pace I run 10km. Although, to be even more fair, anyone’s top speed is a sprint. I don’t think ANYONE can sprint 30km.
But as you imply, I would expect the vast majority of our guys to be at 90% conditioning by tomorrow (at least), with the possible exception of Antoine Wright. He ACTUALLY has an excuse to be at… say 60-70%, depending on how active his summer was.
I like the D, protect the house philosophy — for an AAU game. Jay tried this on the fly last year, and it failed miserably. You just can’t leave NBA quality ballers alone to shoot from the arc. Shane Battier made like Dell Curry, wait until it’s the actual 3pt shooters being left wide open. This game plan will especially hurt against a team like Orlando that is built on kick outs to open shooters.
Would you rather give an open 5 footer or 25 footer, because if the opponent is skilled they’re going to get one or the other. Have to minimize the damage for a team like the Raps. Mitchell just let his guys get burned then complained about it, at least Triano is actually trying to do something to stop dribble penetration.
if a team’s giving up ‘open’ 5-footers through any defensive system…well, they should just fold the effin team.
i agree with the general defensive philosophy JT’s attempting to install, but the main problem is that the raps simply have weak-ass frontcourt defenders, plain & simple. there’s a reason the perimeter is open, same reason it was open last year – wings/guards dropping into the ‘house’ area to help guys who shouldn’t need help (but do), leaving any team with a) competent passers & b) competent shooters to pick them apart. the houston game was an extreme example, because even wide open, teams aren’t gonna shoot that high a % regularly. but still, the best shot is the open shot (as long as it’s taken by the right player); the key is being able to defend the paint without requiring wing/guard help.
the wing and guards “dropped” into the house area because they were chasing the guy that just beat them off the dribble.
we were one of the poorest perimeter defending teams in the league, it was laughable. nothing is going to change until we quit getting beat to the middle. that is what teams are killing us on.
Good article…except I totally agree with Zicarelli…start Wright…Raps are in big need of D in starting rotation and could use more offence in the 2nd unit.
Seriously, has anyone ever agreed with or enjoyed a Frank Zicarelli article???
I stand corrected
Well, it’s as simple as this…if the Raps are getting lit up from the perimeter like they were with Battier and Allen, it’s obvious they will eventually have to start Wright. BC and JT have too much at stake to let the Raps go on a losing skid just to get DD more involved.
Keep in mind that Kobe, Wade, etc, will play upwards of 36 MPG. Are you suggesting that we play Wright for that long? I didn’t think so.
That still leaves us with someone else guarding those elite players for up to 16 MPG, so it might as well be DD, and it might as well be in the first and third quarters.
I think Jack can be solid defensively, but is too undersized for the elite SGs. If he gets his SG minutes against backups (who are often smaller and/or weaker shooters), he will be just fine defensively.
DD has the height, weight, wingspan, and athleticism to bother even the bigger SGs. He just needs to show effort and match those physical gifts with enough basketball IQ to play team defence.
Well ya, you have to play D against LA and Miami just like any other team. If you don’t stop them, guess what – you lose.
Yes, but what I’m saying is that Wright is not a 36+ MPG guy. He just isn’t THAT good (but I hope that I’m wrong). Also, some of his minutes will be at the 3.
Since Wright can’t check Kobe/Wade/etc for a full game, I think that DD is as good an option as any, on our current roster.
Wrong about Hopla fixing DeRozan’s shot throughout the season. He was only up here for a few days.
Apparently Hopla has an exclusive with the Raptors this season, and will be in and out of the team through the seaon. Heard that from a good source, but I’ll check again.
Cool – my bad if you’re right!
You have made some very good points starting DeRozan and I believe he will be our starter by the end of the season. However, I think everyone agrees that the biggest weakness of our team is Defense so I can’t see Triano not starting our best defender if he is healthy.
This will not only push DeRozan to work even harder, Triano can use Wright as an example of what he expects on Defense.
It’s simple: start the best player.
Is DD the best player? if by half year he can’t take the starting job from Wright, we are in trouble. deep deep trouble.
was batum the best sf on the trail blazers last year? was jones the best sg on the nuggets last year? you start the player that best fits with the other four and with what the coach is trying to accomplish.
DeRozan is the second best wing on the squad. He can add more to the team than anyone else. He should start. All of the other options are too flawed in one way or another.
And, DD shouldn’t play any minutes at small forward.
I agree, small forward is not a good fit for him. I just don’t like the rest of Wrights game to start him, he is a situational defender IMHO, and hurts the rest of the starting 5 since the other team can cheat on him defensively to help out against the other Raptors.
Fair point, but won’t the same thing happen with DD?
DD has been doing a good job of keeping active on the perimeter, and making hard cuts to the rim without the ball. That type of movement forces the defender NOT to cheat, or risk an alley-oop on his head.
Hopefully DD stays VERY active (with his feet) offensively, a là Rip Hamilton, so that his man has no choice but to stick with him (or risk giving up an alley-oop or similar easy scoring play).
If we are having DD stand and wait for the ball 20+ feet out, we are in big trouble (and yes, his man WILL cheat with little consequence).
I haven’t been able to watch too many preseason games, but as per Raps Fan’s post above, it sounds like EXACTLY what I just said is indeed happening.
If Triano starts Demar and plays him for significant minutes, that will confirm a development player is being force-played on a transitional team. Remember how many minutes BC forced Smitch and Triano to play Bargnani just to boost his development? Same thing … believe it.
I don’t see heavy minutes for DeMar. Something in the range of 25-28 a game.
Okay, let’s look at the matchups for the Cavs game:
Jose on Williams
Demar on Parker
Hedo on LeBron
Bosh on Varejao
Bargs on Shaq
What happens when Demar must switch on to Williams or LeBron or even Varejao? Use your imagination. School-time..???
DeMar can easily defend Williams, nobody can guard LeBron, and any 2 would struggle against Varajeo. I’m fine with this, all he has to do it keep Parker within a couple strides so he doesn’t get open 3s. Seems a pretty perfect matchup actually.
I agree.
Congratulate me.. I got the Cavs starting lineup for today’s game against the Celtics … with Parker as starting SG …. See .. I got the mojo ..!!!
When the Cavs show up tomorrow for the Raps home opener, they are gonna be one badass bunch of nasties … and show no mercy for the Raps … believe it.
However, the Cav look to be a one-man team moreso now with LeBron carrying the scoring load while everybody else just stand there and watch him do his solo thing … Now if the Raps had somebody to decently defend LeBron it might be a contest … Pray that LeBron goes cold in T.O. tomorrow ….!!!!!
“If Triano starts Demar and plays him for significant minutes, that will confirm a development player is being force-played on a transitional team.”
Not necessarily. Significant minutes could also mean that DD is doing well, or at least better than any alternative. I’d say that based on the preseason, DD has done what is expected of him and perhaps a little more.
FWIW, the only way this Raptors team will succeed this season or over the next few is if Bargnani and DD develop so I’m all for boosting development. I’m even willing to sacrifice a few games this year if it means that we get more in the following years.
What it will confirm is that the Raptors have a very poor collection of wings once you look beyond Hedo Turkoglu.
DeRozan wouldn’t deserve to start if the Raptors had better talent. Unfortunately they don’t, and consequently DeRozan is their best option.
yeah that clearly backfired, with bargnani being our best offensive player now. terrible idea
Why start derozan? He’s already being buried
on offense just by being out there with the starters. And if that won’t hurt his confidence, maybe being lit up on D every night by elite sgs will do the trick…
Let him kick off the season on the bench where he can EASE his way into the expectations you’re handing him….
DeRozan is our best Sg and that is why he starts. Anyone who think Weems is better has watched too many summer league games. There is a reason even the most die hard NBA fans in Toronto couldn’t have picked him out of a line up 2 months ago. He is a work in progress.
Antoine Wright is a solid back up. Nothing more. Marco…Well I won’t go there. He is a talented player and would be a top pick if it was street ball. No IQ for the game at all.
Stop worrying about his confidence or that Kobe or Wade will score on him at will. THEY SCORE ON EVERYONE!!!!
You worry about the other small companies like you. There is no shame or embarressment in taking some lumps from the elite. It doesn’t suprise me to hear this statement over and over again as that is a comment on the vast majority of our society…If you don’t try then you can’t fail. That’s why the great are great. They learn that to try, fail and learn is the path to greatness if you really want it.
I think he wants it and he has the tools to do it so stop worrying about his confidence! He’s not you. He is already among the best in the world at his profession. He probably has a ego the size of the Empire State Building. Playing him more against the best will only excellerate the learning curve not slow it.
It’s always interesting to hear the majority opinion because its those same people that are neive enough to think that the majority opinion is usually the right opinion. Most people don’t know Jack%^$&
If Demar starts against the Cavs that’s like playing 4 1/2 men against 5 men … unless Triano has been camouflaging Demar’s fantastic game ..!!!!
As oppposed to the other great SG? Your comments get worse with every passing day. Tell me which of Wright, Weems or Marco is “a full player” and I’ll send Triano a tweet! Your an ass.
Why not give an opinion once in a while instead of treading others. You are a joke. Support your case for once!
Thank you for saying what most of us feel about Yertu and FAQ, who simply spew negativity for the sake of getting a rise out of everyone.
They’re SO overcritical.
hey now, don’t lump me in with FAQ. i don’t ’spew’ negatively, i simply feel that there is a significant area of weakness on this team, and to ignore it just seems silly to me. i’ll be first in line to admit i’m wrong, which i hope i am…but nothing that’s happened so far leads me to feel overly positive about the raps’ chances this year, so why pretend i feel differently?
This point seems to go largely ignored but I think it’s a huge factor. One of the biggest problems with the Raps since VC winced his way out of town is that our 2 and 3’s never made their cover work on D (or on O for that matter); meaning the opposing 2/3’s can go 100% on O knowing full well they don’t have to work hard on D and then they also have their legs in crunch time. At the very least I believe DD will make his opposing player hard work on both ends of the floor…I haven’t seen enough of Wright to say he won’t but I suspect that he wouldn’t be in a Raps uniform if he did.
This is also a factor why I think Hedo is a huge upgrade for this team…he’s very active on O and forces the opposing team to fight through screens and rotate constantly. If you can’t wear down the opposition even a little on one side of the floor, they will kill you on the other.
A very good point that hasn’t been brought up! Nice
Another great reason for teaching Derozan to channel his inner Rip Hamilton. Not that just anyone can be that good without the ball, but I think they should be working on that as far as Derozan’s offensive game goes.
The BIG BIG X-Factors are the amount of production that DeRozen and the Turk will put up and how they will help us finish games on the offensive end and on Defense. Our bench looks like a question mark too, I will keep my fingers crossed for them. I just hope Bosh will become the main rebounder on this team or else his bulking up is just a fad….
Umm, Bosh is already our main rebounder on this team and has been for years. Maybe you meant Bargnani, but I don’t think that is likely to happen. I’d settle for an uptick in his rebounding totals just to help out.
Bargs will never be a 10 Rbs/game…never, I can guarantee that. Unless he can shove those word back in my mouth. Well the thing with Bosh is how he’s pulling those boards down, besides going against Dwight Howard and Shaq, can he really fight for those boards with “pimp slap” authority?
1) There are more than 3 teams in the league.
2) There are no pimps in basketball – that’s just weird.
Frank Ziccarelli is not a writer, the Sun is not a paper.
Frank Ziccarelli is my poo, the sun is the toilet tissue.
End of story. DO NOT POST ABOUT THIS CLOWN BECAUSE HE HAS ZERO KNOWLEDGE.
Looks like DeRozan will be starting: http://twitter.com/stackmack/statuses/5207598803
DeRozen has gotta start, he’s got a momma to care for and to see him on live TV succeeding whatever obstacles (creating happiness and better health for her). Jay Triano should be smart enough to know this motivation will make DeRozen succeed to levels beyond. Considering how crooked the US health system is, DeRozen knows he wants to be (pretty much needs to be) a successful player to have his mom and dad + family to have all the health care she needs to carry him mentally through his career. He knows being close friends with Romeo and Master P won’t guarantee his security at all, though it can be a perfect ally to carry out his charity foundations.
DeRozan to start is the right move.
Build the kids confidence and skills by making him a starter.
This isn’t the NHL with minor leagues to send the kid down to for a few seasons, in the NBA you learn on the job – or you fail on the job!
This kid looks like he is going to be a player.
Too bad Weems is going to be in a suit on opening night. How are they benching him in favour of Banks…
Injured
i think what everybody is overlooking is that the sg position, regardless of who starts, is still going to be the fifth option on the floor amongst the starters.
thats the perfect fit for DD, all he has to do is play solid d, run the floor, dunk the ball and hit a couple open jumpers. if we needed any one of the sg’s on our roster to step up and become our first option we would be in trouble.
we’re in a pretty good postion with all of the guys we have, if DD is getting torched then bring in wright. if marco or weems are having a good game ride it. the kid is going to be a starter, you drafted him to be a starter, play him as a starter even if its for 20 minutes a game. if he earns more time give it to him, otherwise let him play against the players he’s supposed to become.
if we were going to bury him on the bench we might as well of traded the pick for some vets to do that to.