The “the jumpers, the jumpers, the jumpers ain’t a-fallin’ edition.
Banks – gettin’ paid.
Bargnani – a double double from out of nowhere. His night played out like a Where’s Waldo story. He’s there, then he’s gone. Brutal defensively and a bad shooting night. This back to back killed him.
Belinelli – fantastic play in the third and he almost singlehandedly pulled his team back to within one point. Faltered in the fourth when he tried to drive in traffic and didn’t get the call. Our jumpers weren’t falling, but his were earlier, so not sure why he went away from them.
Bosh – I’m sure he was just happy not to see Nene. 32 and 17 for a guy that went against Leo’s argument that this team was fatigued.
Calderon – 2 assists, 2 turnovers. That tells you this wasn’t a typical Jose night. Deron Williams was back, he was hungry, and Jose was the main course tonight.
DeRozan – It was going to be tough to come out and play as well as he did last night. His line was small, as were his minutes (14) but he hustled out there tonight. He should be happy with his first western road swing.
Evans - faker.
Jack – safe to say that is appearance with Jose on the court at the same time in the fourth was the pin in the balloon again. Jack is struggling to find his groove, period, so why he gets put out there with Jose who is also just getting back to form is beyond me. Also, if you get the chance, you have to see one of the most awkward shots taken in Raptors history. Arsenalist breaks it down here.
Johnson – they should have a little puppy gate set up at the scorers table for when this guy checks in. It’s like he sees the ball and his eyes light up, a bell goes off in his head, and he has to have it. His energy boost was welcome tonight, even if stats-wise it did nothing for us.
Mensah-Bonsu – didn’t see the floor. This will be a common theme.
Nesterovic – didn’t see the floor. Wish this was a common theme.
O’Bryant – didn’t see the floor. The creator of the common theme.
Turkoglu- horrible start, but he picked it up when he checked back in. I was half expecting to hear the “He’s On Fire” sample being played whenever he shot the ball for a stretch there. He had one of those stat filling nights: 11pts, 6rebs, 4 assists. Played almost 40 minutes which surprised me given his night off last night.
Weems – not much to say here. Love the guy, but showed next to nothing tonight. I keep waiting for him to break out and absolutely crush his man. Guess I have to temper my expectations.
Wright – didn’t play, but kept active by setting up the team poker tournament for the flight back to Canada.
Driving The Bus: Chris Bosh
Under The Bus: Andrea Bargnani
Game Theme:
89 Raps
Jay playing Jose and Jack at the same time is killing us this season. When will he learn? We’re beating a dead horse by constantly using that backcourt duo. IT ISN’T WORKING. :(
Need work on closing out those 4th quarters too, but again fatigue set in.
Perfect summary of Andrea. Couldn’t have said it any better. ;)
Bargnani was horrible tonight, couldn’t play defence or shoot the ball, got abused by ak47 and picked up some silly fouls. I don’t know why Triano kept Bosh on the bench for so long, Bosh was singlehandedly killing the Jazz forwards one by one. Time to shop Bargnani.
lol shop Bargs, dont think that is gonna happen, nor would i want it to. I’d rather see Bosh go and actually get something in return, then the “banana”, as you called him, can slide to the position he is meant to play and we all know it’s PF.
LOL @ Bargs as PF. Just LOL.
Why do you people want Bosh traded, the guy is a top 10 player in the league and a max player period (32/17 tonight), when Mozarella ball soup gets 32 and 17, talk to me. If anybody needs to be traded, it should be Bargnani. If i was Colangelo, I’d call Chicago and ask them about Noah and Salmons.
I think the prevailing sentiment to have Chris Bosh traded is that he has “scattered” his focus. The last post on his twitter was …
“Have you all seen the trailer to my new documentary First Ink? http://bit.ly/37wbjR for those that havent seen it!!
7:56 PM Nov 10th from TweetDeck
Does this sound like he had his mind on the game going into a road trip?
What the fu@k is he supposed to do? Spend every single waking moment concentrating on basketball? Do you do that with your job? Obviously not or you wouldn’t be watching basketball and posting on blogs.
The things Bosh is getting ripped for is ridiculous.
Shop him for what !!!! Bag of Cheese puffss !!
Jarrett Jackass is a joke … the Derozan development experiment is over … start Belinelli and bench Derozan … why can’t Banks play point … might as well ..???!!!!
OK, but who do you depend on with the second unit to score? I think Jay needs loosen the leash a bit with DeMar. Let him learn his mistakes by playing, not watching from the bench.
I said this in the forum thread but I’ll say it again – my only problem with Belinelli starting is that we would lose bench offensive firepower which is equally important. If Jack was playing well I’d have no issue with Belinelli starting but you need your bench to score and if he’s starting, that leaves the bench very thin for scorers.
its obvious that DD is a long term project…..see you in 2-3 years kid!!!
yeah Rocky needs to continue to come off the bench?!?!
btw who ever started the “rumor” that we have one of the deepest/talented bench squad in the NBA this year….complete BS
The Jazz bench outscored our 50 to 25 FFS
Don’t worry if Bosh is not staying in Toronto on 2010, expect Jack to be traded elsewhere. BC only acquired Jack inorder to persuade Bosh to stay.
YUP i totally agree with FAQ… Bench a 20 year old rookie and crush his confidence rather than let him play 18 minutes a night. Also take away our only scoring threat off our bench so he can minimize some of our starters shot attempts.
Maybe FAQ should apply for the coaching gig in GS, I heard they might need a new coach.
DeRozan development experiment will not be over for 2 more years at least. Look at these numbers:
Year Team G GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% OFF DEF RPG APG SPG BPG TO PF PPG
05-06 IND 78 17 22.6 0.462 0.323 0.777 1.7 3.2 4.9 1.2 0.7 0.8 1.03 2.71 7.5
7.5 PPG while playing 22.6 minutes per game. Not really all that good…
You know who this is? Danny Granger. So, before we flipflop on the Raps’ new KID, give him a couple of years.
Should he be starting? I am not convinced he needs to start in order to develop. I am inclined to start Wright, actually, so that a tone gets set early which will help us get the benefit of calls. Definitely think Beli should be our guy off the bench. If he thrives in this role, he could be for us what the Jet is for the Mavs.
The question we should be asking ourselves is this a development or disintegrating team ??? … because it certainly isn’t a playoff team considering the other teams in the Eastern Conference.
BC will be forced by circumstance to make a painful decision on Bosh … is he a max money keeper or is he gone by his own choice??? BC will have to pull the trigger very soon if Bosh is as good as gone, because the Raptor rebuild must not be compromised by indecision and useless hope.
lol.. in the bizzaro world that is BC, it’s both. Development and disintegration.
And it’s what the Raps are as a function of the NBA – rookie development and export (Bosh soon, DeRozan after, and all the ones before them), A/P for overpaid vet contract payments, useless journeymen/scraps collecting a living, Euro player testing ground, coaches development (do i have to list the names?) etc. TOTAL F CHAOS.
Useless hope with the “work in process” tag at all times.
And Bosh is cash money regardless of his The Clash singing. It’s what BC gets in return that will matter. Oh, how I dread the thought…if the last few years are an indication. Useless hope abound.
I highly suspect that BC told JT to boost Bosh’s stats to fatten him up for a trade to some near-playoff contending team this season. I’ll bet BC already has selected the teams he will try to peddle Bosh and what he wants in return. He would be a fool if he didn’t develop such a business scenario .. and Bosh knows this and is accommodating BC because Bosh is no fool.
BC installed JT as coach because he knew he could fully control JT, whereas a fully qualified NBA coach wouldn’t comply if it affected his W-L record. Smitch played the crap out of Bosh and Jose at the start of last season in a futile attempt to pad his coaching stats, but the ax fell too soon.
Of course bedazzled Moronto fans will accept teams like the Leafs and Raptors, as long as they can delude being part of the big athletic picture. There was even talk of dropping a NFL team into Moronto …LOL
pt.1 – it only makes sense. It’s a win win for both BC and Bosh if he plays well. Everyone gets consideration, and no doubt BC’s blackberry is full of scenarios, excels sheets etc. Putting that Cornell paper to work, baby!
pt.2 – when people talk about matchups, I think Jay has parameters he has to work with. Gotta showcase that investment!! (Also, i love how a substantial investment into supposed superior level talent ends up being coached by a NBA level subpar coach. Because, you know.. that makes sense. Oh, he’s Canadian you say? Marketing 101, maybe?
pt.3 – let’s face it, this is not about basketball; it’s about selling a brand, a concept, an idea. Economics 101, maybe?. Trying to be in that “growth going to mature” stage all the time, where the money is. And people love hope and potential. It sells.
Wow. Bargnani. That was painful to watch. Despite the stat line of 11 rebounds. There were times when the ball literally fell into his hands and he somehow lost the rebound. He rebounds like the ball is on fire. He should have had 15 rebounds tonight. How do you coach someone on how to rebound? Seriously – someone tell me.
Wanting to grab the basketball is a PSYCHOLOGICAL thing. Bargs need a special course on Rebounding 101. Plain and simple. I just wish Evans gets back soon and do what he does best. Maybe Bargs may pick up a pointer or two.
Is it just me or does anyone else think Triano’s defensive scheme is not working. I dont see how helping on everything, including post up’s, and leaving the other big wide open or a cutter free to molest the rim is actually a good defensive plan. I counted 14 baskets last night against Denver where “helping” left a man open under the basket. Tonight the same story, their was at least 12 easy baskets, where our guys look lost when they help. Then Triano’s got the nuts to say “we had no answer for them inside”. The answer is your D coaching isnt D-League worthy.
Schemes are overrated in the nba. Boston’s great D. schemes were garbage before KG got there (Remember that season when they were last in the division). At the end of the day it comes down to execution and for some reason all our perimeter defenders get beat easily.
They need to switch up the D constantly during the game to keep the offense guessing and off guard which will hopefully create some turnovers.
Right now its just too easy to score on the Raps. Its hard to win games when you’re giving up 120 points a game…
I imagine even the GM may be getting closer to a realization about the Bargs. And Bosh gives them a shot at another win. Some fans want him to win by himself though. Probably the same ones who think Bargs ceiling is higher. LOL. Toronto fans. BTW, if his contract is a bargain, is he easier to trade? Just asking, as I don’t know how these exchanges work.
The Raptors cannot and will not be a winning club with Bargnani at center. He would be most effective playing forward in a Rashard Lewis situation. The lack of post defense, the ability of opposing teams to run down the middle and score easily is killing the team.
I don’t know if Colangelo can trade him because to do so would admit failure, but the raptors need either Andris Biedrins or Joakim Noah in that spot.
Both players are brilliant rebounders, post defenders, and shot blockers. The Raptors would instantly become contenders with those guys in the middle.
Agreed. He has to go or we are going to keep getting abused in the paint. He is just too soft.
I am not sure if Chicago will make that trade ( I know I wouldn’t) but GS might do it. Still, I do not think adding Bidrin will make us contender !!!! It is not like GS with him is having a great defensive inside presence !!!
Golden State plays a recklessly fast pace and has players that lack talent. Also, they’re currently mutinying against their coach. Biedrins is a superb garbage man, a western conference Noah.
BTW, Noah/Hinrich/Salmons for Bargs/Calderon works.
Will u do that trade if you were Chicago ??? Pay 10 mill to calderon to sit on bench and be back up. Give your Stud center for Soft Euro man and also inculde your scoring small forward !!!
We might as well ask them to bend over for us too.
Calderon is a better scorer than Salmons and can create too. Chicago’s problem is that although they play great D, they can’t knock down all of the good shots they create. Whatever else happens, that trade would solve that problem.
Works for who…you…keep dreaming!
If Bosh is not staying in Toronto on 2010, he might be traded and BC will rebuild the team once again. I’m pretty sure that’s one of the option for BC this summer.
Bargnani, and Jack are probably will be out of Toronto as well if Bosh decided to play elsewhere next year. BC can’t just sign-and-trade Bosh for a “no name” player, of course, he wants an all-star in return.
Seeing as how most people think Bosh will leave…
We should see what happens and if Bosh does leave then we sign-trade him to the GS warriors for Biedrins and maybe Anthony Randolph. Pretty decent trade, maybe we could throw in a draft pick.
Starting Lineup:
Calderon
DeMar D.
Hedo
Bargs
Biedrins
Anthony Randolph is untouchable, that fanbase would revolt in GS. More so that they already have and why would bosh re-up with GS. That be a worse situation than resigning here.
Bosh isn’t going to Golden State. I think Bosh is going to stay with the Raps, which immediately makes Bargs the odd man out because on defense they don’t play well together.
These issues might not work themselves out until next season because of the uncertainty over Bosh’s status.
do you know how little value a ’sign-and-trade’ is worth? Its usually getting ’something’ instead of nothing. Its nothing like trading a player under contract.
Look at this year:
Orlando got a trade exception for hedo
Toronto got Antoine Wright and Devan George for Marion
I know the deal was alot more complicated than that (as some players were ‘unwanted’, contracts etc)… but it gives you an idea of what you actually receive in a sign-and-trade.
If Bosh does not resign (which I do not want), hopefully he will be worth alot more because of the demand for his services, but I doubt its going to be 2 high calibre players worthy.
I think when Evans comes back healthy, we should try playing Bosh and Bargs apart for a while and see how it works. For instance have lineups that look like :
Bosh/Johnson
Bargs / Evans
So one quality scorer is complemented with a rugged rebounder/defender.
Plus this would give the bench more scoring punch, and both guys get more touches.
What do you guys think?
There are several problems with this idea.
One, you’re taking the #1 overall pick and turning him into a backup 4. Salary is too high for that. Colangelo would say “why can’t you turn him into a great defender/rebounder instead of keeping him on the bench?” Triano would be fired if this situation didn’t produce a lot more wins, and I mean a lot.
Two, Reggie Evans is a role player of limited effectiveness. I don’t want him playing lots of minutes. This is Evans’s career assist% : turnover% — 4.4 : 20.9
And here is Bargnani’s — 6.6 : 11.4. Evans has unexpectedly high Defensive Rating numbers, probably because all of his turnovers result in points for the bad guys. In short, Evans in not an efficient player at all.
The Raps need a defensive stopper at the 5 and there’s no way around the fact that they do not currently have such a player. If they’re waiting for Bargs to turn into a hybrid of Joakim Noah and Dirk Nowitzki they’ll be waiting a hell of a long time.
Didn’t we try and get a “brilliant rebounder, post defender, and shot blocker” with JO?
The problem is Jermaine O’Neal is a zombified version of his former self.
I think the words “instantly contenders” are throw around tooeasily in these parts.
I also think constant change is not what is needed. Until we hit the 20-game mark, carry on, give things a chance to work.
Did you see how hard Bosh had to work for his 32 points? I only counted 2 easy baskets for Bosh. The guy is working way too hard to get his points because NO ONE is creating shots for him. Boozer had 22 but was getting so much easier shots because his team creates them for him. Our offense sets are total garbage if Bosh has to keep creating shots from himself 20 feet from the basket.
Good point man, all the more reason to be impressed by Bosh. Nobody was driving and setting it up on a plate for him. He basically had to play one-on-one against good defenders tonight to get his and even after all his efforts we don’t give him a touch on possessions. Unthinkable. He was the only sure thing tonight and we could’ve milked him a lot more.
Good point Rey
I said the same thing few days back that our PG are not able, especially Jose, to create easy scoring oppurtunity for our players. Look at how Bosh has to score !!!! And some people here are happy with Jose’s Ast/TO ratio !!!
How about Bargnani and Devlin to Chicago for Noah and Swirsky? Would the numbers work?
I would prefer straight up devlin for swirsk…
Urgent MEMO to Bryan Colangelo
this team aint achieving shit all with the two turd-balls you have at PG
F@*Ck This!!!
Wow … all the Barg haters are on tonite.
It’s how people from Toronto generally are. If Bargs goes off for 30 against the Heat on Friday watch how big the line gets to suck his dick.
Now if there was only a way to take the best basketball genes from Evans, Johnson and Bargnani and clone them into a one player.
i think we will get a dennis rodman with a 3point shot
That should work.
Yeah, but where does the insanity and general instability come from. All of those guys are pretty level. Maybe a dash of Marbury would do the trick
That was a first for me. Fell asleep on the sofa in the second quarter and woke up to see Jay Triano doing the after-game press thing. (This road trip has worn me right out. Lol.) Could see by JT’s face how it ended … but then seeing the score, it wasn’t quite as bad as I’d been fearing after the first. Poor Bargs. Don’t know what he needs, but I hope he gets it fast. Not wearing the facemask these days, but I still have a touch of the BC disease: I just can’t give up on him. Maybe so used to the facemask I don’t know it’s there. It would actually explain a few things. Like why my girl seems reluctant to kiss me.
Bargs haters. Do you remember Jermain O’Neal ? Big intimidating center playing along Bosh ?
No. But I remember that old guy they traded for Marion.
I don’t like the Raps’ performance tonight. It was horrible. Their shooting is off, defense is soft, and they let the Jazz dominate them. They only trailed 3 points but they couldn’t tied the game. Those mormons probably celebrating their win tonight especially that Deron Williams is back.
Chris Bosh is playing like a beast and everybody should give him props for that. Amir did a decent game tonight. Bargs is really off, I hope the coaching staff should address his inconsistency. So does Jarett Jack. Alvin Williams should school him.
Marco Belinelli > Devean George. Agree? I should start saving my money and buy his jersey.
I don’t know what would the future holds for DeRozan. He’s still unprepared to play in the NBA. He’s starting to pull some ridiculous shots early in the first quarter — like what Joey Graham does. I’m not going to be surprised if he ends up like him. If he can score more than 50 points in a single game, I’m going to commit a 40 hrs. volunteer service. Your call where.
Don’t worry about the loss guys. Bad loss happens sometimes. Thanks god we don’t have a standing similar to the Nets.
Did DeRozan not leave bus change on the nightable for your sister? Your implying he’s a bust if he doesn’t drop 50 in a single game? How idiotic is that statement
Hmm, lets see, Duncan, Bosh, Gasol, Ginobli, Joe Johnson, Iguodala, Chris Paul. I guess they’re all garbage, they’ve never scored 50 points before, trade them all for Lord Jennings
Scoring only 2 points in 14 minutes, I think you can call it a bust. He’s been performing very poor since the season started, and y’all call that a “potential”? Shame on you people! He can’t even nail an open shot.
The only reason Triano place DeRozan in the starting line-up is because he doesn’t want Colangelo’s reputation go bad. Triano knows that DeRozan is a bust and now the coaching staff are now in a feeling of “buyer’s remorse”. I’m pretty sure they realized that drafting him was a mistake that’s why his minutes are decreasing. Don’t be surprised if he’ll be a DNP in the near future along with his fellow bust buddy, Patty O’Bryant.
It’s time to place either Wright or Belinelli at the starting line-up. DeRozan has still a lot of stuffs to be learned. Reading “Basketball Basics” by Jay Triano in the bench might help.
Knowing how much you compare DeRozan to Graham, you’re probably one of those people who wish we had picked up Granger instead of Graham. Well, I have news for you: Granger started his NBA career the same way as DeRozan. So did Kobe. So did T-Mac. So did many other NBA stars. And no, DeRozan is no Kobe or T-Mac, and probably no Granger either.
We get how much you love Jennings. Good for you — now FAQ off.
We lost two road games on the road to teams that are simply better than us. Not a winning statement I know, but I think it’s that Phoenix loss that carried over to make this road trip extra painful. We got all excited after that Suns game, and for good reason, but unfortunately things just didn’t pan out(for the rest of the road trip). For all the problems with defense and strategies and who should play where and how many minutes, what’s most troubling is how “fatigued” the Raptors are getting – it’s just downright devastating and unacceptable. How can we play better if we can’t even be in shape?
Someone explain to me how the Raps become a legitimate threat to win a series come playoff time. And they can’t trade Bargs (without great difficulty) because his extension buggers up the whole salary calculations.
It’s kind of surreal to see the development of Bosh & Bargs camps.
As someone who tends to barbecue in the Bargs camp more often, I do lean towards bias at times. Might be the heritage.
Sometimes I think camps are simply a time instilled reality. Which way is the wind blowing today? I recall earlier days when Bosh’s play started to take off – not just the stats. I also recall when the Vince style was at its’ most pleasant.
During these years the Raptors hit some pretty good highs. Moments when Vince was charming the crowds. And Bosh was shining. I looked up Mr. C’s record for the 2001 play-offs, and found:
Carter’s 2001 Play-off Stats
27.3 Points PG
6.5 Rebounds PG (3.1 Offensive)
4.7 Assists
1.7 Steals …. 1.7 Blocks
Vince was an all-star. Our all-star. And the best we’ve ever had – in my opinion. A real draft choice star – no buying this one.
Then along came Mr. B., a scrawny, tall, and limber 6’10er. Now more bulked up. After Vince left, Bosh began to put up good numbers. And in turn became the darling of the crowd.
Then in steps a 7 foot Italian, one who’s perceived by some as being coddled too much. And in turn, becomes the recipient for a lot of anger. But with a twist of fate, he finds himself amongst the few positives for a downright disappointing season, and becomes the newer darling.
I guess the point is, maybe Demar should pay attention. Make sure he’s aware that “Life sucks” can be around the corner. Where all it takes for a flight from your camp, is not so much a symptom of stats, but more a symptom that only a Rap fan can understand.
.
Am I the only one that thinks that now Marco should be our starter at SG?
Right or wrong, if they want Bosh to stay here they better do it pretty soon. They sat on that one last year for too long.
If Raptors wanted to show Bosh that they are committed to winning, isn’t the better way to create Cap space and go shopping in 2010? Instead of settling for second-tier talents who may or may not help them get into the playoff. Could they not announce it like the Knicks, let Bosh know they planned to spend big money in the summer of 2010 to bring in superstar players? either way, unless Colangelo work his magic once again, we’ll be cheering for Barg/Turk for the next 5 years.
Can we go ahead now and never play Jack and Calderon at the same time? Has it worked even once so far this year?
Wow. The Raptors had no right winning that game – and of course they didn’t, but holy damn too bad the shots weren’t falling tonight or else it might have been Toronto’s night – but alas! But I for one have faith in this motley crew of players, and believe that they will come home with something to prove to the home crowd.
Two things are for sure:
1) I certainly hope Jay Triano nor Bryan Colangelo ever takes any of the comments posted on this website to heart. Remember people, just because you’re the assistant manager at Staples doesn’t mean you’re qualified to run or manage an NBA franchise. As Jim Rome might say, “Relax, clones.”
2) Despite the disheartening losses, I believe this team is onto something. We’ll be in the playoffs for sure, and this team will start asserting itself in the month of December. The Toronto Raptors are a top six team in the East no questions asked.
Just my 34 cents…
I like the positive attitude… hate the Jim Rome refereence (I find the guy as annoying as hell and he uses so much slang I can’t understand what he is talking about).
I do agree though the raps had an opportunity to sneak this one away from the jazz if the could actually hit a shot in the 2nd half (or more specifically the 4th quarter)
Wow, couldn’t agree more with that last comment. (love the Staples comment)
I think things will start to turn in December. I’m not ready to give up yet and I think we’ll have a more accurate assessment of this team at the end of December.
So I will admit I completely missed the first half of this game… but I thought Bargs actually did a good job on D and on the boards in the 2nd half. Yeah his shooting was atrocious…. but so was everyone elses.
He was getting blocks and challenging shots, chasing rebounds and swatting them to the back court when he couldn’t grab them….
Isn’t this exactly what we have been wanting from him?
I agree that he is in the process of getting more involved in the rebounding department , this is what we all want him to do and when the transformation is complete we will have our go to man if CB4 leave.
rap of the day……JJ ,PIN IN THE BALLOON !!!!! 100% pretty sad when you start looking for Rocko !!!
Raptors need at least 25 games to ascertain the bad habits. They’re still in their erratic start-up phase and should be able to adjust mentally and physically by then. Considering that opponents right now are respecting the Raps offensive capability is a good sign, so just imagine the Raps next season if they’re still intact (then this brings the Bosh story blah blah blah)
The rest of the Dinos should rise from extinction and consider emulating Marco’s aggressiveness/high energy on both ends. As probably this is an innate attribute of his, management may consider a stimulus to jack up the testosterone level (could this be reason they’re considered sissy “soft” or is it the influence of residing in kind Toronto). In some occasions, the Raps should also learn to talk trash, stare the opponents eye to eye, and disrupt their rhythm mentally.
But they will be an impact team. Go Raps Go.
I would be curious to find the average age of the commentators on here.
This team is 5-7 and has already played 8 road games against some pretty good teams.
Where exactly did you have them after these first 12? 11 AND 1 ? 10 AND 2. If you did your goals are unrealistic.
Big newsflash – we are not one of the elite teams in the league, we won 33 fucken games last year and our coach and GM are taking steps to put us in that group.
If this team is anywhere near 500 after first 20 games(and it looks like they are on track) then we have done better than anyone predicted.
Way to talk people off the ledge Tinmann. .500 is about where we should be and will likely end up. I guess my issue is larger – at what point do we take that next step – better than mediocre – where going into Denver and Utah isn’t an automatic 15 point loss where we’re all happy just to “hang around” for most of the game? And, is this group of players, with Bosh as the focal point, going to take us to that next level? Too early to say. But, as a fan I’d rather have my team suck ass for a couple of years then struggle for the 8th playoff seed for 10 years.
Actually – I expect this team to be closer to 50 W at season’s end than 40.
Time will tell.
Fair enough but so what if they claw their way back into the middle of the pack in the East after their schedule eases up a bit. I agree they have a tough early schedule but who thinks that this team has the extra gears they are going to need to pose a realistic threat to Boston, Orlando, Cleveland and now maybe Atlanta and Miami.
Big deal if this team makes the playoffs, can they do anything once they get there? While they haven’t lost touch with the cream of the League yet, nothing about what I’m reading about (and only occasionally seeing of) my team makes me feel that it’s just a question of time. They are the worst defence in the League and need to radically improve on that count (i.e. get to rank #15-20 defensively without losing the offence) to have a chance in the playoffs. I’m not a “defence-wins-championships” wacko but you’ve got to be able to get stops at crucial times and there’s nothing about the Raptors right now that says that will ever happen. Someone convince me I’m wrong but this feels like the same old Raptors season to me already.
I’m with you on that. The faces change, but the results look pretty much the same. That said, our record will be better that last year. Like I said before, the summer of 2010 is the crossroads. Signing or trading Bosh will define this team for the next 6 seasons. And the decision has to be to swing for the fences, whatever way you go, rather than be content to compete for a playoff spot every year.
I expected the loss, but I expected a serious whuppin. Especially after Denver owned us and the way the 1st q started… Andrea Bargnani was frighteningly bad all night on D. He had a couple of nice blocks but 99% of the time he just blew. Bosh needs help down low and AB ain’t it. He’s the worst defender on the team by a country mile and it’s all because he just dioesn’t think on D, you can tell by the surprised look on his grill when guys are getting open dunks and he’s nowhere near the post. Does he just not care? I’m starting to think that the obvious lack of chemistry between AB and everyone else other than Marco is due to the fact he doesn’t have anyones back on D. I’d look him off after getting hung out to dry that often. It’s no surprise that as soon as Turk, DD and Bargs went off in the 1st we started to get it together. Turk came back, played well. DD is a rook who was a step slow and getting burned but he’s a rook so it’s forgiveable (BTW FAQ you know nothing about player development, go watch the leafs) but AB is a 50million dollar man, 4th year player. Worse yet is you can see he has the ability, size and skill to play in the post and on the glass but he is the tin man on D. He has no heart. None.
Last thing about Bargs: 10 rebounds? He didn’t fight for a single one, great example of how being 7 feet tall can get you stats. I can think of at least 3 times he had the ball nearly smack him in the face.
DeMar needs more of a leash. Weems is nice but he’s 3rd string, Jack is in a slump and this JC/JJ thing is making me sick to my stomach. Any player needs to find a flow and I don’t see DD being able to do that. Kid has hustle, gets on the glass and corrects his mistakes as he gets comfortable. Meanwhile Jay sticks with guys like MB long after they are gassed (last night in the 4th he was in there for his scoring but he was done: front rim after front rim). I’d like to see more of JJ/DD/AW/HT/CB: you get 2 ball handlers, 2 go-to scorers, DD gets to play D with AW (by far our best wing defender) and learn and Jack looks to throw alley oops and passes into the post where DeRozan is at his best.
All-in-all it was at least a contest and the Raps gave themselves a chance. Overall I’m happy with the progress of most of the team. If we could just find a way to put Amirs heart in Andrea…
Sorry for the rant. 5-7 is more than I hoped for at this point.
You are so wrong in describing who was on the floor when the Raptors started to put it together near the end of the first half.
When Andrea left the first time with 6 minutes to go in the first half the score was 18-6 in favor of Utah , when he reentered in the second half the first time the score was 30-13 (the differential had balloned up).When he reentered the second time the score was 53-36 and the Raptors began catching up , the score was 61-51 when he left with 7 seconds to go replaced by Weems.
Please try to be more objective when describing who is who on the floor during the ebbs and tides of a basketball game.
Sorry , 6 minutes to go in the first quarter , not the first half.
And he had 11 rebounds , not 10.
Whatever, watch him on D. Where is he? His head is in the clouds 90% of the time and his help is simply atrocious. I really do want him to put it together, and he shows flashes, but last night he was garbage, 11 rebounds or not. and the rest of his line was 3-10/1-5/3-4ft/4to/1b,s,p,f. Not good enough.
Meh lets see if we can get bogut for bargs.
Knicks for Lee and a pick? Would they even do it?
Trade Jose and a couple other players for Chris Paul.
This wouldn’t even work on NBA 2K10