Not a good week for the club, we got clobbered in Denver and then put up little resistance against the Jazz with the defense going from bad to worse. We gave up 108.25 points per game and our league-worst defensive rating went further down a couple notches to 116.4. Thankfully Miami came to town and we were able to snap out of a three-game losing streak before falling in rather depressing fashion to the Magic. We’ve lost 4 of 5 and are 9th in the conference heading into a week that even the most optimist amongst us would classify as no more than 2-2. The pattern of winning two and losing two might start anew as we face Indiana, Charlotte, Boston and Phoenix.
The Orlando game for me was a bit of a nightmare. It showed just how dependent we are on scoring, we went cold for 5 possessions and suddenly the Magic scrubs had taken the game over. Not having your defense to fall back on when things aren’t going right on offense is going to be the main challenge for this team. This could entirely be a personnel issue in that we simply don’t have good defensive players, but Triano needs to be held accountable because he publicly spoke of his faith in this unit’s ability to play team defense and he apparently also had a say in all summer transactions. Fourteen games in and it turns out both our GM and coach were way off on their evaluation of this team’s defensive abilities. Should we wait more before passing judgment? Does it really matter? I’m starting to hope that we remain around .500 or so till January and pull off a trade for the stretch run.
Positives
Marco Belinelli: I said he was feast or famine and last week he was all feast, hopefully he stays that way for us. He’s played like the super-sub we expected him to be and I like that he’s got a swagger about him. He had two big time performance against the Nuggets and Jazz where he averaged 17.5 pts and 4 rebs. The Miami game saw him handle the ball more and he notched 4 assists in only 15 minutes of play. He missed the Orlando game and his absence was felt as the Raptors bench struggled to score early in the crucial fourth quarter.
Amir Johnson: Too bad the team couldn’t pull through against the Magic because his great 14/8, 6-7 FG performance needed to be admired. He’s starting to have stretches in the game where he’s a defensive and offensive factor on three or four straight possessions, leading the opposing coach to call a timeout. The aggression he’s playing with is being rewarded which is usually the case. He wasn’t doing that early but having a chance to look at the team from the bench it’s not hard to figure out what’s lacking. He saw it and went about providing it. If Reggie Evans does come back and Johnson continues his good play, we could pack a hustle-punch or two.
Jarrett Jack’s lack of turnovers: Three straight turnover free games, a 17-point effort against the Heat including a couple big shots and an 11 assist game against the Magic. I don’t know what it means but he’s playing better and is driving more, which is what he was hired to do. Haven’t seen him get sucked in by those 20 footers too much last few days which bodes well. The defense isn’t what it was advertised as over the summer, but considering how awful he’s been to start the season it doesn’t take much for something to count as an improvement.
Negatives
Pick ‘n Roll defense: First and foremost, I blame the coach for not figuring this out. Everybody from Carlos Boozer, Eric Maynor, Dwight Howard to JJ Redick took turns exploiting what the Raptors give away on this set. The hedging is non-existing, the switching is random and the effort is minimal. Calderon, Jack, Turkoglu and DeRozan all get caught behind the screen leaving the ball-handler with multiple options. In the pre-season against Philadelphia I saw some trapping but that’s never happened since, no idea why not because it make sense to cause turnovers (2nd worst in league) since we’re unable to stop teams in their regular sets. It’s one thing to get physically beat on a play, another to play the incorrect strategy and further worsen your chances at a defensive stop. This is nothing less than shocking to me after my ears went sore listening to Triano laud the team’s defensive work.
Andrea Bargnani: Other than a strong showing against the hapless Heat, he struggled to get anything against the better teams as Nene, Lewis and Kirilenko all outplayed him. Averaging 9 rebounds for the week is a great jump from the usual 5, but the 10M dollar man needs to have an impact on both sides of the floor and that too, consistently. The return of the pull-up 20 footer is not a good sign, especially when it comes against slower big men who prefer you take that shot. When he does “put it together”, he does it for 5 minute stretches and we’re all waiting for him to put together a solid string of games where he’s a dominant force. Or am I asking too much?
Hedo Turkoglu’s utilization: Devlin’s reminded us to death about how he’s a “big time playoff performer” and we get it, but that shouldn’t mean Triano should give him the license to do whatever he pleases in the fourth quarter which so far has been going 1-on-1. He’s not an Ace of Spades that you can hang on to and unleash only when the game’s on the line. I still maintain that we should be going through Turkoglu a lot more in the first three quarters. The combination of Calderon/Jack is being scored open too often, they’re giving up 136 points per 100 possessions, this is well below the team number of 116. If Triano’s obsessed with having ball-handlers out there, Hedo’s a pretty good option. Turkoglu’s usage rate is 18.7%, that’s the lowest its been since the 2003-04 season.
Jose Calderon’s defense: Yes, I can blame him for other PGs having big games. Yes, basketball can be that simple at times and the box-scores can be that straightforward. AST/TO for the week was 2.3 but who cares, all I can remember is him being on Deron Williams’ hip instead of in front of him, Jason Williams going past him without a screen and Ty Lawson pulling some crazy sh*t on his watch. The offense is coming along with two 16 and one 14 point games but at what cost? Sorry, even after three years I haven’t accepted that we have a below average PG who will usually concede what he earns.
Coming along…
Using Chris Bosh: Technically, I should be putting him under positives every time but that would get old. Take the Denver game out and he’s had another great week. The five rebound total against the Magic was low but when you have Dwight Howard responsibilities you have to rely on your teammates to pick it up, they didn’t and we conceded 14 offensive rebounds. Taking one-shot in the fourth quarter didn’t jive well either. The Raptors forget about their best player far too often, he couldn’t get a touch in the fourth quarter on Sunday and didn’t have as many iso sets as he needed on the West coast. Sometimes we forget that he’s our main advantage and I find that hard to believe/accept/fathom. Triano, take note.
Looking ahead
Tue v IND: My man Roy Hibbert is averaging close to 12/9 for the 5-6 Pacers and playing big, I said it then and I’ll say it again – we never should’ve traded that 17th pick. Hibbert’s exactly the type of player we need, a 7′2″ 280lb C who plays his weight. Danny Granger’s pulling the weight of his contract with 25/7 and our old friend T.J Ford is dropping 10/4/3 as the starting PG. They started off losing three straight, won six straight and have lost three straight. All things considered, they’re probably in the same tier as us and since they got creamed in Charlotte on Sunday, it should make us weary of our next opponent.
Wed @ CHA: Where the Raptors suck at D and excel at O, the Bobcats are the opposite. Larry Brown’s got these guys playing defense and it shows in their 4th place defensive rating of 100.6. However, that’s offset by their 28th place offensive rating of 94. They’re cracked the 100 point plateau just three times and have been held below 80 five times, including a 59 against the C**tics. They snapped a 7-game losing streak at home to Indiana and at 4-9 are fighting with the Wizards and Knicks for something I’m not quite sure of. Keep an eye on Gerald Wallace, he’s netting 14/11 for them and is liable to explode against us. We should also see Stephen Jackson guarding Chris Bosh at some point.
Fri @ BOS: Can we f*&^%$g beat them already? Just once, in my lifetime!? The mega-c**t hit a game-winner on Sunday too which didn’t sit right.
Sun v PHO: If we lose by one on the road we should win at home, right? Phoenix will be in the second game of a stretch where they’ll be playing 8 of 11 on the road and trust them to try to get a couple wins early. It’ll be interesting to see whether Triano repeats the switching strategy on Nash/Amare, if he does the Suns will be ready with a plan. Fool me once…
RapsFan says 2-2, I concur, and phdsteve goes with 1-3. Here’s the podcast:
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23 Raps
hey fyi arse acouple of things I forgot to mention in the podcast but thought about when listening to it:
re: the DeRozan vs Vince match up
– DD also just missed dunking on VC on a nice back door cut in the
first quarter
-I like when DD plays a guy like VC so close for 3 reasons-
1 he has the athletic ability to stay with him (as we saw when he
dribbled by DDD before DD blocked his shot from behind int he 1st q)
2 he doesnt let VC get going on draining loooong 3s (whihc every
rap fan has seen him do)
and 3rd- he is using the help D by forcing VC into the middle. all good stuff
also- re: losing to Utah and Denver
-our D was bad but it was a huge improvement over last year when we lost by like 80 points totals in that same two game stretch. this season I think it was only like 35!
Hey, it was me that picked Amir. Don’t give Arse any credit. Guy rides on my coattails enough.
I find the team’s offensive efficiency (first) just as surprising as the team’s defensive efficiency (last). More so even.
I was expecting the team to be somewhere around 9-12th in offensive efficiency and 21-25th in defensive efficiency.
Then again, it’s early (a little too early for these type of efficiency numbers), the numbers could change a lot (or not) before the season is done.
Yes we need Evans healthy, but as hard as I try to make it work in my head, this team just doesn’t have the defensive tools to compete…
Move Calderon in a deal for picks and youth and then let Bosh go in a sign in trade to NY or NJ and get into the Wall sweepstakes…then rebuild around Bargs, Turk, a young defensive center (a la Hibbert – dammit), derozan and a handfull of prospects…
Jose is a nice piece on the second unit of a contender.
I agree with the opening statement, but the thing is, Bosh is a top 5 player. I don’t think the Raps should ever trade such players, they should try to add more of them.
Bosh should be the only untouchable player on this roster.
I agree that normally you wouldn’t trade a top 5 piece, unless its to one of the two worst teams in the league to go after a top three pick and a solid prospect or two.
Otherwise you stay on the ‘no asset’ treadmill. You have to borrow from tomorrow to bring in assets to help the team win…
I meant top 5 in the NBA. I think unless those guys demand a trade, you keep them, or else you turn into the Minnesota Tumbleweeds.
The NBA is perhaps the only sport in which the number of superstars dictates the winning. You can’t take it all with a bunch of good players and one superstar. You need 3, and not much else. The Raps have one. Bosh will stay in Toronto if they can get him some more high-level talent.
Dumping superstars in the hopes that at some undefined time in the future you can draft more of them is not a good plan.
Or…
You end up like OKC, Portland and Milwaukee…all of which have 2 things on this raps team:
- They’re better teams now
- They have a better future
I still don’t see why we can’t draft or trade for defensive PF’s or C’s and put Bargs on the bench. This is why I like it:
1) More firepower on 2nd unit to make good runs and create a lead.
2) He doesn’t go up against the better C’s in the league so his D isn’t such a liability
3) Bosh, Hedo, and Bargs can get their share of touches throughout the game
4) Our starting line up could have a real defender in the front court to help rebound/defend
If guys like Ginobli, Crawford, Terry, Odom come off the bench, why can’t Bargs?
as long as bargs is a raptor, he will NEVER be coming off the bench. too much of a hit to BC’s ego for that to happen.
I will like to add 1 more to the negatives.
Missed Breakway points – Are we one of the worst teams in the league in missed breakways opportunities without finishing?! how many times have we had 1 on 1 or 2 on 1 or even 3 on 1 where we usually see Calderon pull back waiting for everyone else to arrive or we end up going for a jumpshot that doesn’t go in or we attack the basket and the ball doesn’t go in.
Those missed breakways add up to the team overall lack of confidence.
How many fast break points do the Raps average per game? I bet it’s less than 10.
in order to successfully run the break, don’t you need
a) strong rebounders who are confident with outlet passes
b) a guard/wing (basically, someone who can handle the ball & make good decisions) making themselves available for said outlet pass who is willing/able to push it
c) someone who can finish in traffic, even with contact.
i’d say the pieces are there…they just aren’t looking to do it on a regular basis. sure, there are spurts in the game when they look to push the pace, but that’s more often simply jose or jack dribbling up the floor quicker, before settling into a halfcourt set. the only time they truly ‘run’ seems to be when they trap & force turnovers, which has happened just a handful of times so far (and usually involves bench/role players like amir & belli). of course, that brings up another point – why don’t the raps pressure the ball more often, especially when facing ’superior’ opposition? yes, there is greater risk for easier hoops if/when the trap is broken, but let’s be honest…it’s not like they don’t give up ‘easy’ looks when their defense is set in a traditional manner anyway. fuck, let’s see some imagination…and at least an attempt to mitigate our obvious weaknesses & turn what little we have in terms of an advantage (a relatively deep, relatively athletic bench) to better use.
I say 3-1. How’s that for optimism???
Anything can happen in the next 4 games I think.
Ind is not a great team, but they did light up Boston a few games back.
Charlotte can’t score but the Raps are the worst defensive team so….
Boston I believe is 4-4 in their last 8, so they’re not playing their best ball right now.
I hope for 2-2
The real back break game to tell them all….PHX, but Steve Nash thinks it’s a home game, it is no guaranteed win at all. If we win Boston, then that means pigs fly.
Re: Podcast comments about Triano and his tactics:
I was at the game today and noticed during timeouts that Jay spends 3/4 of the time in a huddle with his assistants 10 feet away from the team, then slowly makes his way to the players on the bench to give instruction. Meanwhile, over at the Orlando bench, Ron Jeremy is giving instruction face to face to his players, getting in their faces and actually coaching. I have a few issues with what Jay has done in his first full season as a head coach (overplaying the combo of Jackerone being atop the list), but I found this highly bizarre during the timeouts.
Also, Orlando looked far more focused and seemed to want to win much more than Toronto. Whether this is Jay not getting through or not I’m not sure.
I think every Raptors coach in recent history has pulled the same tactic of huddling with his assistants first and then going to the players. Most coaches do this very thing, but it does seem like Jay, Sam, etc drag it out a little longer than their brethren.
“All things considered, they’re probably in the same tier as us and since they got creamed in Charlotte on Sunday, it should make us weary of our next opponent.”
Same tier? Not really. I’m not saying we’re definitely going to win the next two games — after all, that’s why you play the games — but though their record is similar to ours, they’ve had the 2nd “easiest” schedule (Milwaukee, surprise surprise, is #1), while we’ve had the fourth hardest.
Gonna say it here — the Pacers belong in the bottom-most tier in our conference.
so…the win vs the C**tics was a fluke then?
имхо, автор не прав
Сенкс, очень полезная информация.
“Очень познавательно. Спасибо.”
“Прямо даже не верится”
Кто не умеет пользоваться счастьем, когда оно приходит, не должен жаловаться, когда оно проходит. – М. Сервантес
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[...] Podcast: Weekly Review/Preview Not a good week for the club, we got clobbered in Denver and then put up little resistance against the Jazz with the defense going from bad to worse. [...]
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