Ron Artest tried to get a job at Circuit City? Find out more in today’s Opening Tip.
The Rockets are in town so its natural to look up and down the roster and see if there’s anyone who’s annoyed us over the last decade or so to deserve some booing. The two candidates are Tracy McGrady and the volatile two-time Raptor Rafer Alston, neither worth wasting energy on. But Rafer - I’m telling you, he cared about winning. Anybody who cries cares about what they’re crying about.
The Raptors have lost three straight and 8 of their last 10. Half the fan base is debating whether to enter full-scale rebuild mode and the other half is trying to convince themselves that Colangelo is working hard on a trade that will correct the course of this ship after it hit the December iceberg. Realistically speaking we have every chance of going 1-1 over the next two games against Houston and Orlando. If we do that we have a 3-game winning streak waiting for us (MIL, WAS, MEM) and if we execute that properly we’ll be five games under .500 and right back in the hunt for the 8th seed. I know, it’s pathetic but that’s what you got to aim for right now. Of course I wouldn’t be doing my job if I didn’t mention that we got the Celtics back-to-back after that stretch so we can easily fall back to 7 games under .500 with 37 games played. You can figure out the math after that.
We do catch a break as Shane Battier is out with a sore left foot. Tracy McGrady returned from injury two games ago in which the Rockets went 1-1 - a home loss to the Wizards followed by a squeaker against the Bucks. The Rockets are planning on playing him only on one night of a back-to-back and whether he plays tonight against us or tomorrow against Atlanta remains to be seen. The Rockets are starting a 5-game road swing where they’ll face Toronto, Atlanta, Philadelphia, Boston and finally Oklahoma City. For the Raptors Jason Kapono is questionable with a bruised right quadricep and so is Jermaine O’Neal, he has fleas his knee still hasn’t fully recovered after being wronged against Golden State.
The Rockets are suffering from the fourth quarter disease all too familiar to Raptor fans, in their past four games, they have averaged 19 points, twice going through 0-for-9 stretches, making one of nine shots in a stretch against the Wizards and going 5-of-13 through the fourth quarter Wednesday against the Bucks. This kind of incompetency should make for an interesting finish if we once again manage to build a lead and blow it by the end of the third. Let’s quickly take a look at the starting lineups:
Tracy McGrady v Jamario Moon: Moon has to make McGrady a volume shooter, T-Mac’s been known to settle for inopportune jumpers and Moon has to encourage the behavior. After laboring with his shot against the Bucks he took over point-guard duties and notched 10 assists in the win. He’s still not in game-shape and Moon has to prevent him from having his breakout game while being cognizant of McGrady’s threat as a playmaker. As with any matchup against Moon, the advantage goes to the opposition.
Yao Ming v Andrea Bargnani: Jack Armstrong says Bargnani’s more confident when he starts. I say dealing with Yao in the post can quickly deflate that confidence if he picks up two early fouls. Yao can take Bargnani inside and dominate him on the boards. On the other hand, Bargnani, if motivated, can test Yao’s wooden feet and coax him into early fouls. With Yao out of the game, T-Mac still finding his way back and Battier out, we could actually have a shot here. In their last matchup, Yao had 25/11 and Bargnani had 0/6. But we won the game. The edge goes to Yao because he’s likely to use the advantage he has over Bargnani and the latter is likely to let him off the hook.
Aaron Brooks v Jose Calderon: How many times have we said that Jose should be able to take advantage of a matchup only for him to play it even or lose it. Calderon’s offense is starting to come along, he’s had 16, 11, 21 and 18 over the last four games and is shooting 58% in that span. How much of this good stuff he gives back on the defensive end is another matter, but right now we’ll take any good we can get. Hopefully his jumper continues to straighten out and he forces Yao and Rafer/T-Mac into some hard decisions on the pick ‘n roll. Advantage goes to Jose because of his recent offensive form. To be fair I don’t know much about Aaron Brooks except that he was a finalist for the “Black guy with a white name award” and lost to Kyle Weaver.
Rafer Alston v Anthony Parker: As an exercise you should compare the Raptors the 2/3 scoring with their opponents when Anthony Parker’s starting. I used to do that earlier in the year and Moon and Parker were the benchmark for incompetency in that department. On paper, Parker has a 4-inch height advantage on Rafer Alston which could be used to invite a double-team and open up their defense. On the other hand, Alston is still quick enough to leave Parker clutching at his shorts on the perimeter so who wins this individual battle could end up deciding the game. If Rafer’s breaking us down and throwing behind-the-back passes to Yao cutting in the lane it could be a long night. I remember the job Parker did on Maggette and Felton earlier in the year, can we please have him back? Advantage: Even.
Luis Scola v Chris Bosh: Depends which Chris Bosh shows up, if it’s the one that wants to take trailing threes late in the fourth quarter after your team has fought back to get in the game, then Scola’s lack of mobility doesn’t even come into play. Or maybe watching a foreign player guarding him will remind him of the Olympics and he can perhaps play with the spark that’s been missing since November. On paper the advantage goes to Bosh but trust Scola to make him a jump shooter leaving me to tear my hear out during the post-game report. The Raptors rarely have mismatches to take advantage of in most games but Bosh remains the only player that can actually force the opposing coach into making tough decisions. If he’s letting the defense off the hook, it’s over for us. For starters he should start following the advice that he’s been dishing out about staying aggressive, I can’t even imagine what somebody like Moon thinks of him after he took that three. Hypocrite? Advantage: Bosh.
Here’s a quote from him after the Denver game, talk about a guy who says the right stuff but as soon as he’s on the court starts doing the exact opposite of what he’s preaching:
We need to be tough and we have to concentrate more. That is where teams are beating us; they are being tougher than we are. They are doing the tough things and small things and we are not concentrating on our assignments. We have too many lapses, we don’t play the intense basketball we need to play for the whole game.
I suppose I should talk about the title of the post. I just hope there’s not a single boo if T-Mac does play tonight. For anybody to think that the booing makes us look like “passionate” fans is wrong. It makes us look immature and gives the impression that we’re still stuck in the past. Think of it this way, we’ve gotten bounced out of the playoffs for two straight years and we can barely tolerate it, T-Mac hasn’t been past the first round six times, are we really missing him that much? Sure, we can all think about what woulda coulda shoulda been with Carter and McGrady but it didn’t happen, let’s stop making these players feel special by booing them. At the same time you can’t blame the fans for having a strong memory, this franchise has failed to bury the ghosts of the past because both Rob Babcock and Bryan Colangelo have failed to turn a new leaf in Raptors basketball. We as fans are so thirsty for success that since its not coming in the present, we’re continually looking back to when there actually was some hope for the team. We all need to see shrinks.
We selected a winner for the Magic ticket contest and it’s Salman Rashid. Congrats to him, we’ll try to have another one soon. You’ll also see an option to have a threaded discussion in the comment section, some like it, some hate it. We’re working on an option where you get to view the comments straight-up or in a threaded view. There’s also an iPhone friendly version of the site which shows up if you’re browsing it on mobile devices. Join us at Philthy McNasty’s tonight, the game’s on TSN2 and they have it.
FAQ
khandor
Dino Gunners
TauEpsilonNu
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46 Raps
I don’t know, is the shot just an obvious get me outta here? Team battling, game on the line, the stuff of legends.
Does JO sit with the team? I expect this has been raised previously, just wondering. If not, is he supposed to?
He has been the only Raptor in recent memory who has not been with the team while (cough) “hurt”. I don’t get it. It’s unacceptable in my books.
I don’t get it either, and I suspect the players are not oblivious to it either. And none of us need any extra reasons to examine more closely the situation on this team, in this season gone so terribly wrong.
Arse,
Any chance you have the streaming video of the game posted on the site tonight?
Thanks,
Spudz
http://www.altraps.com/forum
Spudz, I’ll be at Philthy’s but we’ll try to have a stream link up. You can always swing by the live chat, someone there always has one.
(Brooks + cheetah speed) + (Calderon + glacier speed) = trouble x 100
It’s going to be a long night.
And Triano will again play Solomon on BC’s orders to “showcase” his “massive” “talents” as “trade” “bait” - first time ever the D league has the upper hand in trade talks.
re: the vigorous preaching of CB4 during that time-out in the 3rd quarter vs denver
Chris Bosh was not yapping at his teammates to drive the ball to the rim or shoot better high percentage shot. He was speaking to the team about the specific blown defensive coverage Jay Triano had just attempted to fix by calling that time-out.
It’s remarkable just how often the in-game broadcasters for the Raptors actually get it wrong and send their the team’s faithful fans on a mis-directed harangue.
that’s a good point, i was wondering when someone would pick up on that. it was crystal clear after JT post game, yet it the whole drive it thing just kept going.
The shot is the legacy of that game, as I suggested. All else is just leading up.
Jack Armstrong is the only barely palatable guy they’ve got. And he’s been pissing me off lately.
Leo is an idiot and the Devlin guy’s basketball IQ is single digits.
A grizzled drunken Irish Hurling commentator fresh off the potato boat would have more of a clue than Devlin.
That grizzled drunken Irish Hurling commentator would be well worth tuning in for!
Khandor,I agree with your broadcasters comment…but I truly feel that when the lights are on and the big guns come to town,Bosh doesn’t excude that confidence the rest of the team needs to see.
Looking at the body language of a certain few small forwards they are tuning him out….how many times has Bosh chewed out the headband chosen one ? it comes down to leadership,and I havent seen it,like in the past.
Has Bosh already made up his mind ? sometimes I dont care if he does leave,but it would be a shame,if BC doesn’t do something soon,because the chemistry on this team is in the toilet(contrary to the bs the players are spewing).Ramblig now…
In defense of pasta light…its like being drafted by the leafs as a left winger,and now you poor bastard you will be in goal ( have fun ,with no goalie coach,and a coach (sam) that shows you the tough love and doesn’t talk to you for 2 weeks !!!welcome to the show.
I guess the big question,where do we go from here,we have no tradeable assets,heaven forbid the lux tax !!!do we make a run at the eight seed and get smaked down by the C’s or anybody else,or do we pull a Heat and pack it in?
If I was B.C….
- Trade Bosh
I really think he’s an impact player but when your the “franchise guy” and after you come out an emotional timeout only to shoot a low percentage 3 with the game on the line portrays to me like you don’t give a flying fuk. we all have to give him credit for what he’s done for the team after V.C destroyed it. Many teams would like to have a Bosh and since his value is high we should be able to get a strong wing player + draft picks.
Who can we get for Bosh that will benefit our team in the longrun? I wanna hear your inputs.
- Keep JO until next year
Help develop Bargs
Move to PF Fill Bosh’s Role
Trade next year for draft picks or strong role players.
- Start Bargs at Center
If B.C so keen on developing his number 1 pick he should give him important minutes and let him play through the rough times. I don’t think he’s a bust. he just needs a stable starting role. Also playing along side JO will be huge confidence boost
1. Jose/Soloman/Ukic
2. Parker/Kapono
3. Moon/Graham/Adams
4. JO/Humpfries
5. Bargs/Voskhul
2-3 spots will have some added depth after bosh is gone. i hope we don’t make playoffs this year so we can get high lottery draft. that’s 2 picks. with that add another wing player + PF.
I didn’t want it to be like this because i had high expectations. But i rather watch bargs develop while we lose, then have BOSH leave us eventually while we lose.
I’m not a expert or anything i just want to see my favorite team move in the right direction..
what do you guys think?
agree with trading Bosh.
trading bosh will make O’Neal pissy and I doubt he “helps” Bargs in the way you propose.
Bargs playing centre is laughable. He is a very tall shooting guard or small forward. Period.
Bosh to heat for Beasly, Haslem, Joel Anthony and a Pick
i don’t know about beasley, the guy doesn’t seem very ‘motivated’. if i’m trading bosh, i want people who will hit the ground running, and not another project who may become great.
Bosh for aldrige, bayless and a future first rounder (or sergio)
i might want a little more, realgm had a thread that was interesting:
http://www.realgm.com/boards/viewtopic.php?f-28&t=863497
doubt it happens though.
I want to amend my trade
Bosh for aldridge, outlaw and bayless, + filler to make it work
I think that is more than fair for both sides.
BiggestRapFan, go through the draft? this will be the weekest draft since 2002.
Oh okay, that’s why B.C isn’t doing anything then i suppose. Guess we have to wait til next year to make the big moves.
He’s not going to trade any of our top players. He’s going to make lateral movements instead. minor tweaks. Primo Brezec or Jake Vaskuhl type of move. He doesn’t have the balls to make 4-5 drastic moves going back to his Phoenix Days. MLSE = treadmill. Recycle, repeat, wait next year.
joey: not sure that this team can handle 4-5 drastic moves in one season. they are fragile already. massive shake-ups would all but assure they miss the playoffs and return to the same level as when bc got here.
getting 1 or maybe 2 solid pieces could fix this team in a hurry, imho anyways.
from shootaround today and Eric Smith’s blog (link in the web articles section):
“BOSH
- When I asked CB4 about the “mentality” of the team right now - buying into the defence, trusting one another, and so on - he said to me (and I’m paraphrasing): “Haven’t we been talking about the same thing(s) for 3 … 4 … 5 … 6 years? I know I have”. Hmmm. Interesting. I’ll post that audio for you later as well.”
Good for you Chris. Good for you.
Same as jacking a 3 at that particular point, in that particular game. I’m gonna guess in light of discourse about Triano’s response that he got the message, or even reached the same conclusion at the moment of the infamous timeout, which occurred before the shot, taken just to make sure. And I guess JO doesn’t feel he should be part of the team. Ah well, I certainly feel differently about VC after all this.
End the year with an L, start the new year with L! New year some ol’ Raptors. This one will get ugly trust me!
Raps Fan:
I agree. I rather just rebuild and get a high pick. No more quick fixes. We need atleast 7-8 new players to be on the level of Cleveland and Orlando. Were that bad. A good wing won’t make a difference really
Prediction:
T-Mac does not play. There is no need for him to strain his injuries, as Artest will carve up our poor perimiter play anyways. Toronto will have no answer for Yao. And Yao will negate Bargnani, and Scola will do a pretty good job of hassling Bosh, though Bosh will have a pretty good game, along the same lines of the Denver game. More outside shooting though, because he will be afraid to drive into the waiting Yao.
AltRaps,
If I’m Chris Bosh right now … the specific individuals with whom I’m the most angry/disappointed/etc. are not my current teammates but:
1. Those who oversee the operation of MLSE;
and,
2. The Raptors’ President/GM, Bryan Colangelo [and the support staff which he has chosen to surround himself with since Feb/2006].
Completely agree and I’m sure that is where it is aimed, since he hasn’t had the same teammates for “5, 6 years”.
The audio clip of the scrum is now posted in our weblinks as well.
the motion passes with a caveat…
although he may not be angry with any teammate, i can understand him being annoyed with what happens on the court. he plays hard, and when the same effort isn’t be displayed by teammates, it’s hard to blame colangelo for it during the spur of the moment. but any harbouring of feelings is definitely towards the powers that be.
Bosh is losing increased future income playing on the hapless Raptors. His weaknesses are being exposed playing on this losing team. He is being dragged down and it’s affecting his future marketability. His agent must be screaming at MLSE and demanding a trade immediately, because this team is terminal.
GET ME OUT OF THIS MESS NOW … DEMANDS BOSH … AS HE MAKES A SUPREME EFFORT TO SAVE HIS CAREER AND FUTURE IN THE NBA … AND THAT’S WHAT’S HAPPENING … AFTER ALL THE NBA IS A “BUSINESS” AND BOSH MUST BE A BUSINESSMAN FIRST AND PLAYER NEXT.
Honestly FAQ, I don’t buy it. He might want to leave but if you think his current poor play is costing him bucks you’re wrong. Detroit or whoever is planning on making a run at him know what he’s capable of and smart GMs like Dumars factor in where a player has been playing and under what atmosphere before handing out a contract.
Plus, if Bosh really thought that his play with the Raptors will determine how much money he’s going to get in 2010 then he’d take it to the damn hole every time. Obviously he doesn’t do that and knows what his market value is going to be and is content with it.
there are two types of money for players:
1) contract
Bosh is a max player, no matter where he is playing, and will get max player money.
2) endorsements
this is the area i can see his geography dictating his money. if he was playing in one of the bigger markets (new york, la, chicago), or even his home state, he would probably be making much more money for two reasons; 1 - bigger markets = more people = more money
2 - more national tv exposure
just a thought.
Arse/RapsFan … You overlook one obvious reason why Bosh most likely wants out of Toronto … the injury risk factor … personal injury playing for a losing cause and diminishing his NBA market value. If Bosh were to sustain a career-threatening injury, perhaps say driving awkwardly to the basket, and hammered hard … don’t you think he must be thinking about that??? Vince did .. and he refused to drive to the hoop and just took soft safe jump shots .. and when he was whacked, he faked injury so he wouldn’t have to play.
Pretty soon Bosh will come to the same conclusion, and perhaps he already has with his circus jump shooting .. even 3-pointers .. causing Triano to have a tantrum without calling out Bosh the Untouchable.
I wish tribal honking fans on this fine forum would stop deluding that Bosh is working hard and sacrificing himself for the team and Toronto fans … and will stay here for max money because he loves Toronto. In my estimation, he is putting up a good PR front pretending to care for the Raptors, as he should as a matter of mature business practice.
What we are witnessing from the MLSE is a propaganda campaign, having the announcers proclaim that Bosh is the Raptor franchise player .. because if you think about it, there is no other reason to watch the Raptors other than Bosh doing his ejaculation thing on the floor and exciting the tribal honkers who can’t imagine Bosh being traded away.
There is so much intricate, detailed, miniscule, emotional analysis done on this fine forum, but there is no empathy for the players, nor is there any view of the big picture of what is happening to the Raptors within the NBA.
Arsenalist, et al.,
FYI …
The part of this “threaded” comments section format which I’m really averse to is having to continually “search” through each of the individual comments … not just up and down but left to right, as well … just to see where exactly the “new additions” to the conversation may have been placed, instead of very quickly/simply being able to scroll directly to the bottom of the page, knowing that the recent comments have ALL been placed there.
There are well-established blogs elsewhere on the net that use this format and are just not worth the extra time & effort it takes to perform this “search & seizure” method each time you want to check a blog to what exactly has been added since you were last there.
My two cents : (
PS. Where exactly on the site is the option for me to turn this new “feature” off located? : )
Khandor, you should see an option before and after the comment section which allows you to switch back and forth between regular and threaded mode.
Your the only one complaining about this site. You talk so much shit just for the sake of being different. If it bothers you this much then go to your stupid site and talk to yourself on there
Meh the elitist type are usually the ones who got bullied in school and are mostly loners. I get a feeling, just a a hunch , you now, you may have been one of those kids on the receiving end one too many times.
Who’s gonna get booed more tonight - TMac, or the Raptors when they start their classic 2nd half meltdown?
Arsenalist,
The Switching Boxes are now in plain sight. Merci beaucoup!
===============================
Joey,
re: a history of being bullied
lol, lol, lol …
Try thinking, again, in that regard … or, perhaps, for the first time; whichever glove fits your hand the best. : )
The intended “insults” which others usually think of first are likely indicative of their OWN unfortunate life experiences … in which case, you have nothing but my sincere sympathy.
Bosh is not losing any market value whatsoever based on how he’s playing this season.
Keen observers around the League can see with acuity exactly what specific strengths and weaknesses CB4 brings to the table, night-in and night-out, in the NBA.
If anything, the character he’s displaying this season …
e.g. in interviews like this one
in the midst of adversity which is coming his way through no fault of his own … is gaining himself additional esteem in certain knowledgeable quarters of the NBA.
By refusing to mail it in, playing hard, and hanging tough with his existing teammates … he is displaying the type of maturity his former head coach, Sam Mitchell, would be very proud of.
Please refer to my response to your previous post #15. I think it counters your mistaken, even deluded analysis of the situation on the Raptor team.
The fact that anyone..even a pathetic Toronto fan twat can assume that Mil, Wash and Memphis would be a winning streak for a team as bad as the Raptors is unbelievable…really…unabelievable.
Just what happened to this city to make everyone so fuckingly arrogantly deluded?? Do you have to have your geek faces rubbed in shit repeatedly?
Effing mixmaster forum … the previous format was more logical because of the continuity of discussion. Now it’s just one elongated sausage forum. Some people just can’t adapt to logical change… sheesh …!!!!
Indeed, the missed shot told the whole story, yet some here still aren’t paying attention.
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