The Toronto Raptor aka The "I can see clearly now the rain is gone" blog

45 points!!!!

2007-12-06T12:59:00.001-05:00

So if I keep listing the teams that the Raps blow out, I guess it’s only fair to list the reverse.

Teams that have blown the Raptors out
Milwaukee
Phoenix

It’s hard to really be that upset over last nights game. I went to the ACC knowing full well that it was not going to be pretty, and for the first half of the game, the Raptors showed some potential. I mean, the Suns were still in complete control for the first 24 minutes, but at least at half time it was a 5 point game which was more then enough for me to hope for a miracle. Then the second half started. 45!!! Points in a quarter. That’s just crazy. It was overall a combo of Barbosa and Bell who just rained the threes at the worst possible times. Sure Amare had a good game too, but it was the three point shooting of Bell/Barbosa that killed us.

But let me also say that Steve Nash really is MVP material this year. He might not get the press because he does not have to do as much scoring this year as perhaps he had to the previous seasons, which Grant Hill on the team and Barbosa taking it up another level so far, but when Nash is in the game, the Suns are a well oiled machine. When Nash was out, that is when the Raps actually put together a few runs to make it interesting.

Ford looked good last night by the way. And him and Jose on the floor together, not in the final 2 minutes of a game, but for about 5-6 minutes covering the 3rd and 4th quarter was definetly an interesting move by the Mitchster.

Kapono, who has been on a solid streak of games, had his worst game as a Raptor last night. Deflino, while not looking bad, also had his worst game in the past 2-3 weeks last night. Now to be fair to Delfino, he didn’t play bad at all last night, just not as good as he has been playing.

So the question is if Bargnani and Bosh played, would the final result be different? Yes. The Raps would not have lost in the fashion that they did. But at this stage in the Raptors development, they still would have lost. Since the issue last night was completely defense related, the only thing Bargnani would have helped with would have been maybe grabbing one or two of those rebounds that the Suns got off their missed shots, as well as maybe having Amare missing one or two extra shots over the course of the game. But definetly Bargnani would not have helped enough on the Defensive end to make a big difference. Bosh, while not a 1st round defensive team player, would have made more of a difference on the defensive end. Enough though for the Raps to pull out the victory? Well since the Suns won the game from driving –kick-kick, I don’t think Bosh would have helped out stopping the three point shooters.

And here we are back to the same problem from a few weeks ago. Toronto’s perimeter defense as well as getting back in transition. The same issues from a few weeks ago.

Silly questions from Charlotte

2007-12-04T15:47:00.000-05:00

Interesting tidbit from last night on Raptors TV gamenight. As they showed clips of the Raps destroying the Bobcats, that showed a clip of a reporter from Chartlotte ask Carlos Delfino a few questions after the game. Now here was a game where Bargnani and Ford did not play as well as Bosh, and where Delfino, Jose and Hump stepped up for the good guys. And this reporter asks Delfino “How long do you think you guys can keep this up without Bosh and Jorge Garbajosa?”. Now here is how you know when a reporter has zero clue what they are talking about. How will they hold up without Bosh and GARBO?? Geez, I don’t know but I am more worried about Bargnani and Ford then I am Garbo right now. Garbo, of course, wasn’t even on the court for a majority of the games he did suit up earlier this season. And let’s be honest here, I am a big supporter of Garbajosa, but in terms of importance, even last season I would put Ford above him and Bargnani at the same level. That was last year. This year even if Garbo was fully healthy and playing, I think Bragnani is still obviously the bigger, more important piece to the puzzle. But this reporter asks Delfino the question like Garbo is our number 2 guy to go down with an injury.

I guess the point is that we here in Toronto have moved on from thinking about Garbo’s injury. The fact that he didn’t play much this year made it easier. So when a reporter asks that question, it screams “that’s so 2 weeks ago”.

Another question I have here is why all the interviews on Gamenight for the Raps are done by the opposing teams reporters? For Cleveland’s game Bosh was interviewed by the Cavs broadcast team. I am going to keep my eye open to see if that’s a trend.

Another one bites the dust

2007-12-03T21:22:00.000-05:00

No Bosh
No Bargnani
No Ford

Yet we can officially add Charlotte to the "Blow Out" list.

Jersey
Chicago
Memphis
Charlotte

The week ahead

2007-12-03T16:41:00.001-05:00

Well this week might not be pretty.

Monday vs Charlotte
Wednesday vs Phoenix
Friday at Boston
Sunday vs Houston

The good news is that 3 of the games are at home. The bad news is that Bosh/Bargnani and Ford will not be playing tonight and who knows about later on this week. And even if they do play, as we saw how long it took Bosh to get into game shape from that pre-season injury, they might not be playing at 100%.

Charlotte – Last season we handled Charlotte with out much problems. And if we were at 100% we would be able to do it again this year. But missing the players we are missing, tonight might just be a close one. Being a home game for Toronto helps, but at the same point, the Raptors can’t afford to lose tonight with the schedule they got coming up. Time for Moon/Parker/Delfino to step up, and for Jose to take maybe a few more shots on the offensive end. Even with out the Raps big 3, the team is solid, but when Hump and Joey are on the floor, no one is safe.

Phoenix – Let’s just hope that all hands are on deck for this one. If we take on the Suns sans Bosh and Bargnani, it will be trouble. Even with those two, this would be trouble. But at some point the Raptors need to start to get some victories over the NBA elite. The Suns have been playing good basketball, but they have also allowed teams like the Knicks to stick around for the majority of the 48 minutes. The Raptors are better then the Knicks, which actually might make this tougher as I doubt the Suns will try to sleep walk threw Wednesday’s game.

Boston – If Bosh and Bargnani play on Wednesday, then this might just be the message game in Boston. Let’s be honest, the Celtics have not looked all that impressive recently. They are getting by on some solid defense and the fact that the teams they are playing have come up with duds (that Knicks team looked worst then my high school basketball team. I really truly think that we could have taken then out as well). This game is the perfect chance for the Raptors, if they are making their shots, to send a message. BUT, it’s going to require a 100% Bosh and Bargnani.

Houston – Well last season the Raps smoked the Rockets and the Rockets smoked the Raps. So let’s see who brings the goods this week.

Well….2/4 is the goal. That means tonight and one of the big three games. 3 wins this week would be magical, but the Raps have still yet to prove they can take out a top dog, and the Suns/Celtics are at that level with the Rockets not far behind. Let’s keep those fingers crossed that at least Bosh gets back ASAP.

Cleveland and Washingston

2007-12-03T16:29:00.001-05:00

Sorry for the lack of updates…

Cleveland was a strong W. With no Bosh and no Lebron, it was up to the other 14 players and we already knew that Toronto has much stronger depth. In fact, Cleveland was very close to making it to the “Blowout” list as the Raps had a 20 point lead in the 3rd and never looked in danger. But a blow out is a blow out and this was not technically a blowout since the Cavs did go on a run in the 4th to at least keep the game from going into garbage time. Bargnani looked great and Delfino looked great.

We didn’t need Bosh for Cleveland, but we did for Washington. Bosh had great games vs the Wiz last year and with him in the line-up, I am 95% percent sure that the Raps would have won on Saturday. But with out him it was going to be tough. The reason though that Washington won was due to the fact that the Raps looked tired and the Wiz really wanted that game more. Antawn Jamison after the game talked about how badly the Wizards wanted this one after losing a few in a row, and it showed during the game. And the Raps were a step slow on defense which shows that they are playing the back end of a back-to-back. Bargnani though, needs to step up more consistently as he shot something like 2 for 13.

So to wrap up the week, the Raptors went 2-1. Not terrible, but with everything that went down, injuries wise, they are not heading into the toughest stretch of the season the way they should be.

Adding to the fire

2007-11-30T14:01:00.000-05:00

I am going to make this quick and get right to the point. The media here in Toronto needs to stop talking about this Jose/TJ thing. Seriously. While fans of the Raptors might be complaining about starting one over the other, by hearing Doug Smith or any one of the Raptor TV guys or Chuck Swirsky or Leo Routins mention the conterversy on a regular basis just helps to add fuel to the fire. And is that what ether Ford or Jose needs to hear about on a regular basis? Here we have two outstanding point guards who are happy with the roles they have. So does having to hear about what the fans want (which is generally Jose over TJ) going to help the cause? Now, I have looked around the net for Raptor pages, and while there is a lot of Raptor fans on the net that are vocal and I am sure there is more outlets on the net then I know of for them to speak out, generally speaking everyone in the city only gets the Raptor news from the papers or the games on TV.

If these guys in the paper or on TV just stopped referring to it, then I would bet most fans might not complain about it that much ether. And even if they did, who cares. Mentioning it though is just making it worse and encouraging more people to be vocal about it. I know that Doug Smith is just generally joking about it when he always refers to the amount of emails he gets saying “Jose over TJ” but he jokes about it EVERY single week. If the purpose is just to be funny, well the joke has worn off. Move on. Because by mentioning it every single week it encourages more emails saying the same thing.

On TV, how many times have I heard the guys say “…and these two players get along and know what their roles are on the team. So there is no need for this TJ/Jose starting contervery.” Now if these guys said this once, alright. Whatever. But again, I think I hear these guys say it once a day. Ether on Raptors Today, or the pregame/post game show, or by Chuck and Leo during the broadcast. STOP bringing attention to it and it will die down.

By the way, as I predicted yesterday or the day before, Jose should be starting tonight with Ford coming off the bench at least for tonight’s game.

Think about it

2007-11-30T11:40:00.001-05:00

What is going on with the people in Spain? Here is a story from the globe and mail discussing how Jose Calderon told this reporter that Jorge Garbajosa had been practicing with the Spain national team for weeks before the Euro’s which would really paint Jorge in a negative light, seeing how he shattered his freaking ankle months before and had only received clearance from the Raps to play a few days before the tournament started. So Jose tells everyone that Garbo was practicing well before the clearance was given, and now Jose is talking about how much trouble he got into from the people in Spain. These must be the same people that are attacking the Raptors franchise for trying to punish Garbo for playing for Spain.

What is with you people? I understand that you don’t perhaps hear as much as someone who lives in Toronto hears, and I am sure when you see teams like the Knicks you can easily feel that a majority of franchises are screwed up, but I want you to understand that part of the appeal to this Raptors team is the fact that they have the best intentions in mind from top to bottom.

Fred Jones last season was riding the pine. Sulking a bit in doing that as well. So what does Bryan Colangelo do? He talks to Portland to see if they were interested in Jones, since Colangelo knew that Jones would be interested in Portland seeing how that is his home town. Was Colangelo making the trade to help Fred Jones out? Or just because he really really wanted Juan Dixon?

I am not going to assume here that this franchise is perfect BUT I will more then assume that this franchise is not run by a bunch of idiots. The reality is that management puts a lot of stock into locker room attitudes, as we have heard so many times from Colangelo talking about how good so and so is with the rest of the team and in the locker room. So do you think that if this team was trying to punish Jorge, that the vibe from other players might be a bit negative, especially Jose, towards the Raptors management? Do you think that Raptors management doesn’t want Jorge on the court where he could help them win? Do you think they would accept the possibility of not being as good this year just for the sake of punishing one player?

But the people in Spain attack Raptors management, and now Jose Calderon and not put the blame where it should go with is on Jorge Garbojosa. And I am not coming down on him, but the reality is that he started playing ball WAY to early in a tournament that I am sure meant a lot, but regardless he still has a broken ankle. I am not sure what these Spanish doctors are saying, but take one look again at that injury from last March and tell me that a 29 year old can heal that quickly.

Could ROY really be a possibility?

2007-11-29T13:34:00.000-05:00

Now I have been reluctant to check out the various rankings NBA.com has during the season because it is just so damn early. The top 30 teams, the race to the MVP and the rookie rankings are all going to change as the season wears on. But, today I took a quick glance at the rookie ranking and boy was I ever surprised to see who number 2 was. .

And here is the thing, remember how everyone talked about how great of a rookie class 2007 was? That the draft was the deepest in years? Sure Oden not playing is a huge blow, but still, JAMARIO MOON IS RANKED SECOND??!? That’s crazy talk!

But really though, no rookie at all has really caught my attention at this point. Nor should they since it’s the end of November. Last year’s ROY was currently injured at this point of the season. Still, it’s tempting to consider if Moon has a legit chance at ROY when April rolls around? I never thought of it before hand, partially because I have a hard time considering a 27 year old who has played ball in various developmental leagues a true “rookie”. Same with Juan Carlos Navarro. Sure these guys are rookies to the NBA, but it’s not the same as being drafted out of college. Some of these guys, like Jorge Garbajosa last year, are well seasoned players.

And that fact alone actually gives Moon a HUGE advantage here. The fact that he has composure in the game that most rookies don’t have due to age and experience differences. Let’s be honest, Moon has that starting SF position locked up. Did he have some crazy stat line last night? No. But nether did Mike Miller and that was who Moon was responsible for. Moon is the starting SF now and I think it’s safe to say he will be at that position for the entire run. So, he is a starter and is he is contributing to this team, if not for the points then for the boards/steals/blocks. And we hear from Mitchell, and saw vs Chicago, that Moon does have an offensive game that they are bring in slowly, which is wise. Now, let’s assume that the Raps are ready to make a run up the standings here. Currently they are sitting in 6th spot and while they have a very tough schedule in December, just like last year in January, this team should be in a decent position to shoot for a top 4 record in the east. So here is Moon, in the starting lineup and a contributor to a (potential) top 4 team.

Kevin Durant might have a nice future, and he might be shooting a bit better then he did a few weeks ago, but he is also playing on the team that should end up winning the 2008 draft lottery. So what’s more impressive? Contributing to a winner or a loser? Sure this is the Chuck Swirtsky argument on why Bargnani was the ROY over Roy, but I think there is a solid difference between the Bargnani/Roy thing and this Moon/Durant thing.. Bargnani didn’t get more then 30 minutes a game last year like Moon is right now, and Bargnani was contributing, but mostly in the 3’s department. Moon is giving a bit of everything during a longer span in the game. On top of that, while Durant might end up the better player long term, Brandon Roy did have a fantastic season last year on a team that was stronger then this Seattle squad. So let me say that, while I agree with Chuck in that a producer on a good team should be considered more favorably then a producer on a bad team, Moon is much closer to the level of contribution that Durant brings then when comparing Bargnani to Roy.

But again…it’s early.

Last night...

2007-11-29T10:21:00.001-05:00

New Jersey Nets
Chicago Bulls
Memphis Grizzlies

The growing list of NBA teams that have been blown out by the might Raptors. I really wish I could add Dallas to that list, but I can’t put a team on the list unless Derrek Martin gets serious burn. Only then, has the Raptors truly blown a team out. And don’t be fooled by the 13 point difference in the final score. This game was in garbage time mid way threw the 3rd. The defence of the Raps was abit shaky in the 1st quarter, and when Bosh headed into the locker room, and Hump and Derrick Martin was on the court, it did look scary. In fact, the second quarter when the Raps outscored the Grizz 30-10 was tight up until about 5 minutes left when, surprise surprise, Jose checked back into the game. Calderon is just on fire right now and that 5 minute stretch was just awesome.

We, without a shadow of a doubt, need TJ back sooner then later. That keeps Martin off the court and allows the Raps to keep the pace of the game quicker for much longer. Believe me, I know all about trying to pace myself to stay mentally focused during the course of a game. In my b-ball league we play two 23 minute halves and I have smoked more then a few packs of cigs since my high school days. If I go for it all in the first 5 minutes, then I am completely useless for the remainder of the 41 minutes. So I have had to learn to pace myself, only using my energy in bursts. So with Jose, who I am quite sure is in just a little bit better shape then I am, can obviously have more frequent burst of energy BUT, he still has to pace himself for the 41 minutes a game he is getting. With TJ though, both players don’t have to worry so much about saving energy and can turn it up a notch more frequently. That puts a very high amount of pressure on the defenses to continuously stay on guard for the attacking Raptor points. We need TJ back to help deliver that 48 minute attack.

Here is my advice to the Raps…Friday vs Cleveland, if Ford is ready to go, start Jose and have TJ come off the bench. Let TJ work with the second unit and let Jose continue doing what he has been doing the past 4 or 5 games. Then against Washington on Saturday let TJ start where he should be full of energy which will be needed in that particular game.

Speaking of Cleveland, usually I prefer the Raps prove themselves and beat teams at full strength, but it is early in the season, and I think it would be nicer right now just to get a streak going, so is it wrong to hope that Lebron does miss a few games due to that injury last night?

I am not too worried about Bosh though, as it was his groin muscle he hurt last night and NOT his knee which I was initially afraid of. If it was the knee then that would have been a huge problem, but a pulled groin? Hopefully he is back for tomorrow. As for Bargnani, I am not that worried ether. He was able to hop off the court, and unless you need to be carried off, he shouldn’t be hurt that badly. If Lebron does not play Friday, and I do NOT want to get over confident here, but we won’t need Bargnani. Washington, who is playing outstanding so far given the fact that they lost Arenas, we will Bargnani for.

And Carlos Delfino…HUGE. He in the second quarter, Bargnani in the third (it was when Rasho subbed out and Bargnani subbed in that the Raps really ran away with it) and Jose overall were last nights MVP’s.

The week ahead

2007-11-27T16:38:00.001-05:00

The week ahead for the Raptors is a crucial one. It’s time to get this party started.

Since the Dallas game, this team has looked much better then compared to the majority of the first handful of games. When you look at the past four games, they won two of them while losing the other two due to MVP performances. Now, of course, you would still like to see this team be able to stop/overcome those MVP players, but it is still early. Right now the team is at 7-7 and with Chris Bosh playing back to his all-star level, the rotation starting to take solid shape and Mitchell using 8 or 9 guys tops, which is what I was begging for a few weeks ago. With Moon looking like he is legit. With Kapono starting to look like he deserved the 5.5 mil and Bargnani back to looking like “December-March” Bargnani, this is the time.

Wednesday vs Memphis
Friday vs. Cleveland
Saturday at Washington

Well, with the Memphis, that one just needs to be a “for sure” game. Playing at the ACC against a sub-500 team that you already beat a week ago. Again, the Raps can not let the shooters of Memphis get going, but as long as the defence on those guys is tight, Memphis should have no chance. Watch Bosh have another huge one against these guys.

Cleveland should be interesting because Lebron is just on another planet right now. Hopefully Lebron’s game against Boston will slow him down a little, but it’s just insane what this guy is doing. And it’s SO simple. Shooters on the outside, Lebron take his man one on one till the double comes, outside guy cuts to the net and Lebron throws a lob to the weak side for a three. Wash, rinse, repeat. Now, here is the thing… the Raptors last week had Lebron down for the count. Well…let’s not go that far, but the Raptors in the first quarter were dominating the Cavs. What ever defensive scheme the Raps drew up was working nicely and the momentum was fully in the Raptors favor. Now do you want to know what Juan Dixon was the back-up point guard against the Bulls while Martin rode the pine? Because in the Cleveland game, when Martin subbed in for Jose at the start of the 2nd, the wheels completely fell off. The Cavs got the transition game going, got some momentum and the Cav shooters started to get a rhythm going. Sure the game was still tight the rest of the way, but when playing on the opponents floor with the shooters hot and a MVP like Lebron, let’s just say that that situation is a tough one to get a victory out of. Now, if they were able to continue that pressure in the 2nd that they had in the 1st, I got a feeling it would have been a different story. Personally, what I would do is let Lebron go one on one for the most part, show some double but never fully commit, and if anything, foul Lebron hack-a-shack style. JUST don’t let the Cavs shooters ever get easy looks. Let Lebron score 50. And I know that Lebron is not as bad at the line as Shaq, but at this point, his 68 or 69 percent from the line is more appealing then letting the shooters go nuts. NOW, here is the problem with this plan. It really let’s Lebron get into a rhythm himself, so that if the game is close at the end…well, we all know what happen against Detroit in game 5 last year. Bottom line is that you need to out score the Cavs. And I will take, for example, Lebron shooting 18 for 26 from the line over the Cavs as a team shooting 12 for 19 from the 3 point line. By the way, the Raps need this one too. Got to get the momentum going.

The Wizards are playing like mad dogs right now. Sure they are missing Arenas, but unlike last year when the injury blows happened in mid-season, this Wizards team pretty much went threw training camp without Gilbert so they were already practicing and preparing for this injury situation. Now, here is the thing. Sure Butler and Antawn are great players and sure they are going to be a handful, but this team was not THAT strong when it was all three of them together, are they really that much better with just two, even when considering that they have been able to prepare for this current line-up that they have? Maybe they are, as they have been on a tear after that 0-5 start. But I just don’t feel that they are. This is going to be a tough one regardless for the Raps as it’s yet another back to back, going from Toronto to Washington the next day. And I remember a game last year when the Raps won about 3 or 4 in a row and looking good, then going to Indiana on the second half of a back to back and being exhausted and losing by about 15. They do not have the work load previous to this Washington game like they did during that Indiana game, but I can see something similar happening here, especially with the effort they will need to beat Lebron. Regardless, I just don’t feel a 2/3 week is good enough. If this team has truly turned the corner, 3/3 would be a suitable example of how they have.

Now, Jose has been playing off the wall the last few games, but we do need TJ back. Word is that TJ will be ready to go this weekend and if that’s the case, that will be a huge benefit as Jose will be dead if he has to play 40 minutes all 3 games this week. And let’s not forget that Rasho will return which would help against Big Z who killed the Raps last week.

Da Bulls pt. 2/The Raptors/The Warriors

2007-11-27T10:48:00.001-05:00

Let me talk about a few different teams here…

Chicago Bulls

Just to finish up with what I was saying before. It certainly is confusing why this team has fallen fast and hard…or is it? I was watching NBA TV on Sunday night and they were discussing the Bulls/Raps game, and when they started to get specific about the Bulls problems, the one guy (Frank Iasota although that is not how you spell his last name) pretty much laid it all out on what the problem is…no low post scoring. Well, was that not what we have been hearing for over a year now about this Bulls team? But of course, as some of us ponder and examine the issues with this Chicago team, I think that Frank is right in saying that the old problem is still today’s problem. Right now the Bulls have 3 scorers (Deng/Hinrich/Gordon) who are all shooters and who can get streaky. Add on the fact that defenses can relax in major ways off of Ben Wallace and help out with Deng and Gordon cutting off screens, and now you are looking at a team that just can’t score. Chicago and Toronto are actually quite similar except that Toronto has a Chris Bosh working inside. Both teams have the shooters to go along with it, but as we Raptor fans have seen, the shooters are only as good as the inside presence is at attracting defenses off the perimeter. The confusing part of this was the fact, and the reason why everyone (myself included) pick Chicago to do big things this year, that this team was successful without the inside man. They swept the Heat, who was not at 100% at the time of the playoffs, but a sweep is still a sweep. Chicago also got a few games against Detroit. This team was having success without the inside guy, and while that player would be nice, it was looking like it was not necessary. Well here we are one month into the season, and I guess maybe that player is necessary. Wallace is not getting younger and he is getting more and more useless by the game. Scott Skiles I think has done major damage to Tyrus Thomas’s contributions this season. Joe Smith can knock down a shot, but he is not even close to what they need. No doubt about it now, this team is going to need to make a trade. AND NO, not that Kobe trade.

This team can still pull it together and have some success with this current line-up. But with the aging Wallace in the middle, this team is just getting more and more exposed and I think we can see after these first few weeks that whatever success they had previously can not be duplicated with out making changes.

Trade Tyrus since Skiles ruined him, keep Noah, and trade Ben Gordon.

Toronto Raptors

Let’s talk about a few things. Garbo is having surgery and I think it’s now pretty clear what has been going on, and the Raps have been saying it from day one. The guy is still hurt. Now, from our standpoint, if we see a player playing and looking perfectly fine, then we do assume he is fine and give him some PT baby!! But, clearly he was not fine. Spain is attacking the Raptors management making accusations about this being punishment for Garbo playing for his national team, but that is stupid. Besides the fact that this line of thinking would assume that Colangelo is evil (revenge over an issue of national pride) it is also silly to think that this team, who is clearly driven to show success on the court, would rather punish a player instead of using him when he has been proven to be productive on the court. Even Garbo has come out recently to defend the Raptors management. So bottom line is that Garbo will be going under the knife once again, and perhaps be back for the end of the season. Hopefully this guy can still contribute down the road, because it would be a shame if we, as Raptor fans, only get ¾ of a season out of Garbo’s entire career.

Jamario Moon is the talk of the town, and besides the fact that his 15 points, 7 board, 6 block, 4 steal Sunday game pretty much won my week in fantasy basketball, he is a stud for just simply playing his role and playing to his abilities. He is staying in that starting line-up and will be in the 33-38 minutes a game range. The great thing about Moon is the fact that he has confidence, and the more comfortable he gets, the better he plays.

Golden State Warriors

I jumped on the bandwagon last spring, but last night’s game against the Suns proves why I did that. This team is fantastic. The Warriors still can’t beat teams like Utah or Boston or Houston because of the types of teams they are, but Golden State can outrun the Suns. The difference is that the Suns are built to take on the Utah’s/Boston’s/Houston’s as well. Regardless, if the Warriors keep this up and can get close to the 50 win mark, I am calling for Don Nelson as coach of the year.

Da Bulls

2007-11-25T21:06:00.000-05:00

The questions of "What is happening.." has already been asked hundreds of times. Now, the Chicago Bulls are in flat out trouble. Today they came into the ACC and had about 5 minutes worth of "classic" Chicago Bulls basketball. You remember that kind of basketball? The kind of basketball where they take and make shots in rhythm. If it wasn't for the efforts of Nocioni, then this game could have gone down that 30 point blow out road that the Raps took the Bulls on a few weeks ago.

It is just wierd and unusual to see a team like Chicago playing like this. Why do you think that everyone was so high on this team this season? They swept the Heat and then got intimidated by the Pistons until finally they decided NOT to be intimidated and made a series out of it last spring. You would think that they would be able to come into the season with a lot more confidence then what they are showing, but it is just not there at all for them.

Sure, the Kobe thing got them off there game early on, and once they started to travel down that dark road of defeats and negativity, it becomes much much tougher for a young team to rebound. Can they even rebound? Of course they can, and I still expect them to do it. But at this point that team is going to have to forget all about the "Drive for the Championship" attitude or the "Best in the East" label. What they need to focus on is joining a handful of other teams in the "just trying to make the playoffs" approach to the season.

And will someone tell Kirk Hinrich that perhaps playing full court man to man is only doing damage to his own conditioning? I play basketball today and I am no where close to decent shape, and I know that when I get tired, the shot starts to miss and the turnovers start to pile. Kirk, that full court defence is not working on anyone. Is it really worth putting that much effort on defence when your offence is shit?

Oh, and Scott Skiles might have killed the year for Tyrus Thomas. Tyrus Thomas against Detroit was huge. So we know he can play the game, even though he will be inconsistent because he is a second year player. Same with Bargnani here, as everyone has high expecations although we all need to remember that he is only a pup in the league. When it comes to Tyrus though, he has just looked awful the past week plus, been getting called out (who cares if there was an apology after) by his coach and then benched. Hmm...could this be coming accross to the young player as a vote that HE is the problem so far? True or not true, is it not possible that he might feel that way? That is the difference with Bargnani by the way, cause when Bargnani went to the bench and played shitty, but no one ever made mention that Bargnani was to blame for the teams troubles. The only way now that Chicago is going to win is with Tyrus on the bench. And that is not completely Tyrus's fault.

So THATS why he is considered the favorite to win MVP

2007-11-24T15:55:00.000-05:00

Tough lose for the Raptors. Tough because for the first 14 or 15 minutes, the Raptors were dominating ala Dallas/New Jersey/Chicago. But the bench work of the Raps (Derrek "Carlton Banks" Martin) put the Cavs back into the game, Cleveland starting to make some outside shots, Lebron stepped up and since it was in Cleveland, it was tough to stop that train.

Lebron freakin James. WOW

Positive of the night was Chris Bosh's stat line. It's now official that he is back, and even though the Raps lost a tough one, the fact that Bosh is back is a sign of sunnier days ahead.

And here is something I didn't think would be the case before the game...we need Ford back stat. And I don't say that because I believe we lost the game because of Martin. But this game did change when Jose was off the floor and this is why one of the strengths of the Raps is the double point guard power. Jose also is not use to playing 40 minutes and I think perhaps is trying to pace himself for the length of the game. Hence him not taking it to the net as ofter.

One thing that I have noticed with the Raps is historically they have a tough time against superstar players. Tonight against Lebron and a few days ago with DIrk is just a small slice of what MVP players have done. Can we really forget who it was that felt the wrath of 81 Kobe points? Even Vince Carter was dominating the Raps for a while, until the Raptor fans finally got to him.

Little of this and a little of that

2007-11-23T12:50:00.000-05:00

Not much to discuss today. Raptors are getting ready for a big game tomorrow against Cleveland, as the players on the Raptors side are talking right now with confidence. Things like "Turning the Corner" "Figuring it out" "We understand". CB4 has put up outstanding numbers the past two games, and if he does more of the same, these Raptors will be deadly. As for Bargnani, well it would seem his "Summer League Flashback" stretch was directly related to his move back to the bench. Sure, now in retrospect that seems obvious, but Bargnani always seems more confident that perhaps he actually is (which is fine, he is 21 and in his 2nd year).

In fact, not too many 2nd year players are performing strong so far. Sure, LaMarcus Aldridge is bringing the goods, but Brandon Roy is struggling with his knee, Tyrus Thomas is struggling because of his coach. Rudy Gay has done nothing newsworthy so far this year. Randy Foye is hurt.

Even with the inconsistencies, Bargnani is still easily looking like the right choice at number one last year, although like I said, Aldridge is bringing the goods so far this season.

By the way...I posted something a few days ago which linked Bill Simmons of ESPN comparing the Raptor fans like soccer moms, but in a good way. Well, again this morning I was reading an article saying how Memphis has one of the best young 1-2 point guards in the league, if they move Damon Stoudimire and be left with Lowry and Conley. Then it was followed up with the writer making a reference that he was about to get some nasty emails from a lot of Raptor fans.

I have been hearing this for awhile, about us Raptor fans getting our voices heard on the web, but are we REALLY that crazy compared to other fan bases? I can already tell you that Celtic fans and Laker fans are just as crazy.

Previously on.....

2007-11-22T11:28:00.000-05:00

Believe it or not, the Raptors actually looked really really good last night. The fact that it was tight down the stretch and Memphis was leading with about 4 or 5 minutes to go would indicate that the Raptors did not have a great game, which they didn’t, but you could tell that it was a matter of fatigue more then anything else. The plays they ran, the spacing on the floor, the decision making was all looking good. The shots were just not dropping and the Raps looking sluggish at times. And that is understandable, as they did play in a very emotionally draining game against Dallas the night before.

Speaking of Dallas, I guess us Raptor fans don’t need to feel as bad about what happened against the Mavs since Dallas did almost the exact same thing to Houston last night.

Now let me mention Bargnani for a moment, as last night was a very important evening for the man. You see, the last two weeks he has been struggling. And last night, starting the game 0-9 was not an indication that things were going to turn around for the guy. Previously, Bargnani was not only shooting shitty, but also getting into really really early foul trouble and getting pulled rather quickly. So when you look at last nights game, even though he was shooting at the start like he has been shooting for most of the season (first half of the Dallas game excluded) he was bringing enough on defense and rebounding that Mitchell did not pull him. And what happen? As what will happen with any shooter who keeps taking shots, the shots started to drop. Bargnani finishes with around 14 points including a huge 3 with 3 minutes left in the game and hopefully Bargnani “gets it” and has turned the corner here. I think that has been something the Raps have been stressing the past few days to the players, which is don’t worry about the shot dropping, do the other things right and you will stay in the game.

Jamario Moon, ladies and gentlemen, really just might be legit! Now he is hitting jumpers with confidence right in the eye of the defenders. Give me those steals and blocks (got him on my fantasy team) and we will all be happy.

Bosh looked better and I think we might be getting to that stage of being able to say “He’s back”. Not yet though, let’s see what happens against the Cavs and Bulls first.

Kapono had his best game as a Raptor.

Jose was O.K.

Props to Mitchell for going with Delfino over Parker down the stretch. Delfino hit a huge three that put the game away for the Raps.

But Mitch, let’s me just tell you, Moon is looking legit. Good work on that one. No one gives you the proper credit for taking that bold move, but I will. But on the other hand, let’s keep Baston in street cloths. Mitchell, you have been coaching great for the most part, but that whole “Bosh has his 4th foul so let’s put in Hump for 2 minutes, then yank him and put in Baston who blows big time so let’s yank him and go small.” KEEP BASTON AWAY FROM THE COURT.

Kinda wanted to see Jose start one more game, although it sounds like Ford will be back for Saturdays game. That being said, at least Ford being back will keep Carlton Banks aka Derrick Martin off the court.

I got this feeling deep inside, that the Raps are going to murder the Cavs and have a hell of a game against the Bulls at the ACC.

You can just forget about that whole "Give Garbo more minutes" thing

2007-11-21T15:12:00.000-05:00

Well, maybe this is the reason why Garbo has gotten no love. I mean, they keep saying that his leg is still broken, so really there was no way he could play 25-30 minutes a game. But if his leg was broken, how in the hell did he play in the Euros, and practice on a regular basis with the Raps for 2 months and play in the games he actually has had a chance to play so far this year? Until we learn more about what they found on the MRI, we really don’t have a clue what to expect here but I got a feeling that he is going to need that surgery that he was putting off.

So as we saw last night, Hump got Garbo’s spot in the rotation. Kind of scary to be honest because, as we say in the Jersey series last spring, Garbo would have helped out quite a bit last night, being the steady rock to help keep the ship steady while the Mavs made that run. Again, the Raps lost it last night because they were overwhelmed, and I think that is what Garbo brings to the table…stability. That will be missed, because Hump does not bring that at all. And then when you look at the other players on the rotation, who can help turn it around when things are going down the toilet? Moon is WAY to inexperienced to be able to contribute much in getting things straightened, he disappeared completely in the 3rd quarter (but he didn’t do anything negative enough to warrant taking him out of the starting 5, Moon played well for the most part last night). Kapono is certainly not the guy. Delfino can get a big steal and play tight defense, although not so much offensively when the team really needs a bucket. Having Parker on the court is a must in terms of stability. Bargnani we are hoping will be that guy, but even after a fantastic first quarter last night, he disappeared in the second half. And of course CB4. As I mentioned earlier, it’s all about him, he needs to bring that stability but right now he has been having his own confidence issues to deal with. That’s why Ford has been taking over the game a lot so far this season, because on one else on the team is stepping up.

With experience comes the skill of being “that guy”. So hopefully last night was a solid learning experience for some of the players and someone will step up when it matters.

Ohhh...so THAT'S why he was MVP last year

2007-11-21T10:39:00.000-05:00

At the end of the day, it is a lose like any other lose. Fans in Dallas will not be thinking “Wow, did Toronto ever look good tonight.” Or “Thank the good lords above that Dirk saved us.” because the reality is that for Dallas fans, Toronto is just another decent East team in the league for the Mavs to get 2 wins out of during the season. Even a 24 point lead that the Raps have would not be attributed to the Raptors great play but more the Mavs lack of effort. That’s the way it goes. Like when the Pacers played the Raps, Indiana got off to a quick start, but then the Raps took over and won the game. And afterwards, we Rap fans think “Nice game, Raps should have won” or “Raptors finally are dropping that shot”. What we didn’t think was “Pacers gave us a hell of a time pulling out that win.” Or “Toronto is going to be in trouble next time they play Indiana”. The league has a pecking order, and even if you can build a huge lead during a game, that will be viewed more of a fluke then skill if there is a wide difference between the teams on that pecking order.

So I guess what I want to make very clear here, is that the Raptors completely dominated the Mavs for about 21 minutes last night. Just destroyed them in every way possible. The Mavs were feeling the pain that Nets/Bulls felt, and it really did look like the Raps had it nailed down. But, with major props to Devin Harris, Dirk Nowitski was just something else. Now I don’t get to see him play much, I know based on his stats how dominate he is, but last night not only did he look like an MVP during that 3rd quarter, but when he dropped 4 threes in 2 minutes…good lord the guy looked 50 greatest of all time. Not saying I think he is, cause I don’t, but that was one of the most impressive displays of shooting and confidence that I have seen in a long time. The Mavs were already getting back into the game before those shots, but that was game over once Dirk nailed number 4.

So this is ether the started of something good for the Raps, or the start of the downfall. Tonight against Memphis is actually a very important game. Will the Raps take away the many many positives from last night, or the huge huge disappointment? I can say that the Raps lost last night because they were simply overwhelmed. The problem with those huge leads is that once the other team gets that momentum going, as talented as Dallas is, it’s going to be REALLY tough to stop that run. IF you stop it, you win the game, but when the Raps actually did look like they were stopping it and start to rebuild the lead to double didgets, that is when Disco Dirk went off. But during the Mavs big run, the Raptors just looked…well, quite honestly they looked scared. One of the best teams in the league in not committing turnovers created about 3 or 4 in a row! Bargnani, who played like current all-star Bargnani in the first half, just disappeared in the second. I know that the 31 and 12 from Bosh looks and sounds good, but believe me, he is still not there mentally. As a lot of plays were broken due to his indecisivness. The Raps as a unit looked like deer in headlights when facing a 3-2 zone. So with a lot of the negatives, we still have to look at the main positive, the Raptors DOMINATED the Dallas Mavericks in Dallas for almost 2 quarters. Again, as I said at the top, at the end of the day, the lose is still a lose. No one outside of Toronto is thinking “Wow the Raptors Dominated for 2 quarters last night”. They are thinking “Wow, Dirk went off last night” or “Dallas played like shit for the first half”. But my dear Raptor Fans, you and I know better.

The Raptors were the best of both worlds last night, the dominating Atlantic champions, and the 4-5 middle of the East team. But that view of the dominating Champs certainly was wonderful to see.

Now the Raptors can go out tonight, knowing that they have what it takes overall and that they just need to gain that experience to deal with certain things, like when a strong opponent gets on a huge run. And to sum up last night, it was all just a big display of inexperience on the Raptors part. The top teams don’t get scared or intimidated, but the top teams also don’t have the youth that the Raptors has.

But these positive vibes will only be present IF the Raptors win tonight. A lose tonight and you can forget about anything good that came from this Dallas game. Which is why tonight against Memphis is one of the bigger games so far in this early year. A bounce back game. Do the Raps come out blazing or frustrated. Do they put together a complete 48 minute game, or show the same early positive signs like last night until once again having a lid be placed over the net. Will we remember this Dallas game like we remember that Orlando game from last year when Bargnani went off for 5 threes in the 4th and was the symbol of the start of the turnaround for that team, or will we just remember it for Dirks amazing 2 minute display?

By the way, the Raps used a 9 man rotation last night, gave the starters the majority of the minutes, and the only difference from my suggestions were that Hump was in while Garbo now has something wrong with his leg showing up on MRI’s. THAT is not good folks. This whole Garbo thing is getting worse and worse by the second.

Ford also had a stinger last night, and as well as Ford has played this year, and he has play some great great basketball, having a different look with Jose starting might be a nice jolt just to get this team into a consistent rythem. Remember last year when Jose started that stretch, the Raps were playing some great ball, so hopefully we can see some of that magic again.

Big game tonight.

The week ahead

2007-11-20T12:52:00.001-05:00

So here we go. This next week I feel is going to be a rough one. A stretch of time where we can see this Raptor team dip below 500 by more then a few games. In one weeks time, I got this feeling that the Raps will be in desperation mode, and that actually might just be what this team needs to be honest. They are already feeling it now, especially with the ACC actually booing them at the end of the Warriors game. But in a week, when they are below 500, I think it’s going to hit it’s peak and at that point, it will be go time for the Raptors.

Tonight at Dallas
Wednesday at Memphis
Friday at Cleveland
Saturday vs Chicago

Well 2 out of 4 would be ideal, get over this stretch of games still at 500. I mean, this team is eventually going to have to start to make some moves up the standings, but as they try to build some sort of momentum, we can only hope for at least a split here. Now a breakdown with these games…

Dallas is a machine at home, and the Raps have not shown the ability so far to beat the top tier teams (Boston, Orlando, Utah) so I don’t know how we should expect them to do it on the road. It would be nice to think that this team is going to pull off the big win, especially since they have actually been very good on the road so far this year, but I am not holding my breath. I don’t have good feelings about tonight.

And then Memphis. Here is the problem with the Raps. When they get matched up against shooting teams, those teams always seem to get on fire against the Raps. I have no doubt that the Raps will keep the Griz below what ever Memphis season avg is in PPG, as the Raptors have improved in it’s defense so far this season, but with a disappearing offense on the Raptors end, they won’t be able to go toe to toe. Again, on the road the Raptors have been playing better. This game is one that the Raps should get, but right now in this gloomy state, I can just as easily see them losing because of the type of team Memphis is.

Cleveland I have good feelings about. The Raps played Cleveland tight last year, and it was actually Anderson Varejoe who hurt the Raps the most last season. With him gone, and the Raps in a potential state of panic going into this game, this is one I feel confident in the Raps winning, and even doing to the Cavs what the Raps did to the Nets/Bulls.

Back at the ACC for Chicago. It all depends on how well they did the previous 3 games. Because we do know that the Bulls will be remembering what the Raps did a few weeks ago, and with Nocioni in the starting 5 now, it will be a different Bulls team to a certain degree that will be looking for revenge. Now if the Raps went 0-3 going into this game, then the desperation of the Raps will toss the revenge factor aside and give the Raptors a win. But if the Raps actually end up with some success during the 3 games, this one could be difficult. Of course, the reality is also that the Bulls just flat out don’t look good, so really the Raps should win this game regardless.

And now, a glance around the league

2007-11-19T15:47:00.000-05:00

Continuing with my previous posting which graded all the Raptors. Let me take a quick glance at the 5 teams in the NBA that are stepping up after 10 Raptor games, the 5 teams that are doing exactly what is expected, and the 5 teams that have yet to bring that which we expected them to bring.

Bringing the goods

1) Orlando Magic - Rashard Lewis was still overpayed. But who can complain about the results so far? It’s hard to get too excited about this team as last season they started off in a similar fashion to all of a sudden crumble. But with a new scorer in Lewis, with Howard looking like he is taking the next step, with Jameer Nelson and Hedo Turkoglu playing much better then they did last season, and most importantly, a new quality coach in Stan Van Gundy, this team just might very well be legit. With the win vs Boston yesterday, the Magic have defied expectations and are currently the team to beat in the east.

2) New Orleans Hornets - And the West keeps getting better. With the big three of the Mavs/Suns/Spurs still playing like the big three, and with the Rockets/Jazz/Nuggets all playing great basketball, who would have thought that the Hornets would be the team that would threaten the most to turn the West from the big three into the big four. I thought they would be better, but to jump over 3 teams in the West pecking order is pretty impressive. That being said, it is still early. Paul is already out with injuries and the reality is that this team has only played 3 quality opponents, beating the Nuggets and the Lakers while losing to the Spurs. For New Orleans, it is a so far so good type of vibe but this team has yet to prove itself worthy of the big 4 label.

3) Los Angles Lakers - They are still going to be in the 6-9 spot in the conference and they are still going to be out in the first round, but they are winning games right now when everyone thought they were going to be a basement dweller with all that preseason drama. The reality has been that this team is not AS bad as Kobe Bryant thinks it is. They have young talent which is to be expected when they trade a superstar in Shaq. But now the Kobe trade talk is quiet and the Lakers are on somewhat of a roll. Of course, wait until that big losing streak, when Kobe then decides the team needs him to jack up 30-40 shots and we are going to be back to the same old drama, but gotta give credit where credit is due for today.

4) Los Angles Clippers - Remember when you heard that Elton Brand was going to be out for at least 3 months? Remember when you thought it would be a battle at that point between the Clips, Sonics and Wolves for the number one pick in the draft? Well not so fast. Seems like coach Dunleavy has decided to be smart for once, and has allowed Tim Thomas and Corey Maggette to do there thing, which Sam Cassell keeps pushing back father time to give one more year. Throw in a comeback season so far for Chris Kaman, and here is a team that might, JUST MIGHT be able to survive until Elton Brand gets back. They are in the tough and tumble Western conference, and really, I doubt anyone expects them to survive, but again, credit where credit is due.

5) Charlotte Bobcats - They have yet to beat a quality opponent, but this team each season takes one step closer to the playoffs. And here is the thing, the East is not as strong as we thought it would be. Sure there is some East teams that are underachieving at this point and should turn it around sooner rather then later, BUT this is still a golden opportunity for the Bobcats as they are playing well and have the drive to survive. Let’s hope the injury bug, which has already hit them, stays away for the remaining 72. It would be a nice surprise to see them get swept out of the first round.

Status quo
(Sure a lot of teams could fit in here, but let’s talk about 5 of them)

1) Phoenix Suns - Some picked this team to be the team to beat on the quest for a championship, and so far, the Suns looks like one of the teams to beat on the quest for a championship. Amare is looking like he is going to be healthy. Grant Hill is playing like it’s 1998. And Barbosa…WHAT is going on there??? At this rate, Barbosa might be the MVP of the team. The Suns are strong right now, and posed to make the big push next April/May and yes, June.

2) Denver Nuggets - They said that they needed a training camp to get everything organized, and so far, that looks like that was true. Now this team is on a roll currently, but how this team handles a rough patch, a 3 game losing streak for example, will be how we determine this teams playoff chances.

3) Cleveland Cavs - What did we think before the season? This team will be a playoff team, based on the play of potential MVP Lebron James, and that they might make the second round but will have no chance in making the finals again. After 10 games, I think it’s fair to say that we are thinking the exact same thing.

4) Portland Trailblazers - Did Portland have a chance for playoffs with Oden? Tough to tell, but this team does have talent. Brandon Roy is slightly inconsistent this season but still playing strong over all, LaMarcus Aldridge is doing his Greg Oden impressions and this team over all is playing like a team that is full of potential but not enough experience to make the playoffs. That is what we thought about this team WITH Oden, so I guess they are status quo based on the early summer predictions.

5) Atlanta Hawks - Stormed out of the gates, as they always do, this team is again looking like that team that has potential but will just miss the playoffs. Questionable attitudes on the team might hurt them down the road when it is down the road that they are looking to make the push.

Below the belt

1) Washington Wizards - As with most of the teams on this list, injuries have prevented them from getting off to a quick start, and the majority here should still be seeing playoff action. But regardless of what SHOULD happen, we do know what so far HAS happened and that is some team underachieving. Arenas is just starting to regain form, and of course, so has the Wizards, 4-0 after a 0-5 start. But are they just on a hot streak that will quickly turn back cold? Or were they just this years version of last years Suns/Mavs team?

2) New Jersey Nets - Charles Barkley’s team to win the East. What is that guy thinking? Regardless, this team is off to another slow start, after making a vow to get it going quicker this year. Sure Vince has missed some games, but it’s not like this team was looking strong before he went down.

3) Golden State Warriors - Again, at this point this team is not playing well. But that can change quickly with Jackson back and Harrington back in the starting 5. The problem with this team is that it’s style of play can lead to streaky play, which will make it tough to dig out of a early season hole. This team will be life and death for that 8th spot come playoffs, but if we see another Dallas vs Warriors matchup…that’s going to be special.

4) Chicago Bulls - Unlike these other teams that can blame injuries/suspensions for it’s troubles, the Bulls are just flat out sucking. And here is the team that a lot (me included) felt were the team to beat in the East. But Tyrus Thomas has taken a large step back. Deng has not taken that next step forward. Wallace is looking battling Shaq for quickest drop off in the center position. And Kirk Hinrich is just flat out playing horribly. This team can easily turn things around, and with Nocioni in the starting 5, that will help them overall, but this team has shown enough cracks to easily take them out of “Best in the East” consideration.

5) Miami Heat - Speaking of Shaq, here is Miami, who couldn’t win a game during preseason and pretty much couldn’t win during the regular season. Dwayne Wade is back, and the guy is a force ala Lebron, but just like the Cavs, this team will only go so far with one man carrying the team on his back. And sorry, but Shaq daddy is done.

Grading the Raptors

2007-11-19T11:43:00.000-05:00

A few things for you Raps fans to read…

This one about Chris Bosh in his funk
This one about the Raps playing predictable.

I don’t know if I completely agree with that last article though, as it’s not like the Raptors were doing a bunch of wild and crazy things last year. I believe that scouts started to take the Raps serious around New Years and the Raps still had shooters, and still ran the pick and roll, and opposing teams still knew it was coming, and the Raps were winning. Sure it might be nice to throw in a small wrinkle or two, but that is not the reason why the Raps are at a disappointing 5-5.

I have been mentioning Garbo the past few days, and I think really to sum everything up, the Raptors need to settle on a solid 9 man rotation. The depth of the team is really nice, but Phoenix does not have the best depth and they are one of the big three teams in the league. Dallas uses 9 men on a nightly basis. Look at the over achieving Celtics, winning with some of the worst depth in the league. So yeah, depth is nice, but at the end of the day, it’s going to be 9 players that take you to the dance. But which 9 players for the Raps is the tough question.

And let me add that I am not a fan of playing players based on matchups. At least, I am not a fan of changing that 9 man rotation based on it. Here is the thing, players need consistence. Garbo had a great game against Indiana, but didn’t play against the Warriors. I am quite sure it was due to the Raps worried about match-ups (hence 6-1 Juan Dixon getting some burn) but that now means against Dallas this week, when that game Garbo had against the Pacers would REALLY help, he might have lost the mojo due to riding the pine on Sunday. Consistency is needed here. The only player on the team that I view as a match-up type of player is Rasho.

So let me try to break down who should be in the 9 man rotation while also doing a 10game grade, a look at all 15 players and giving them a grade on how I think they have been performing…

The 9 Man Rotation

PG ) T.J. Ford B+
So far, so good for the most part. I don’t think he is getting the kind of help from his friends that he needs, but compared to a year ago when he was running out of control and missing every shot both inside the paint and outside the three point line, he is playing right now in late 06-07 form. He is also doing a good job in figuring out when the team needs him to pass, and when he needs to shoot. The outside shot is still not as consistent as it needs to be, but it is better. My big issue with T.J. has been some questionable late game decisions. Look, Ford is capable of hitting a big late game shot, but other players on the team are also capable and more then likely will be more consistent taking them. As Parker ever had a late game shot? Since he is the teams best 3 point shooter, shouldn’t he get some consideration for taking it? But so far, Ford seems to be trying to be the guy in that situation, when I feel it should be someone else. So room for improvement, but last year at this time he would have gotten a C-, so this is a huge step up with plenty of time to go.

SG) Anthony Parker A-
A rough start to the season, turned around the moment that his shot started falling. Now, AP is already back into that 06-07 form with even some more room for improvement to look forward to as the season grows. He has looked a step slow on the defensive end, as opposing players have been able to break down all of our players off the dribble (yesterday vs Golden State it happened every play I think) But Parker is still our best defender, and when he is on the court, the Raps flat out have more composure. Now let’s get this guy 36-40 minutes a game instead of 30-36.

PF) Chris Bosh C-
Really if you want to understand the problems the Raptors have been having, look no further then CB4. And that knee injury is not around any longer to blame. While the first 3-4 games could have been viewed as just “getting into rhythm” games, that ship sailed and now we are clearly in the “he is in a funk and we don’t know why” land. It has been said in the past that Bosh needs practice time to perform at a high level, and he has not gotten much of it yet this year. But he didn’t get much last year ether, and was still performing better at this stage. The problem is that when Bosh is on the court, the offense flows threw him. The lack of ball movement can be attributed to the fact that Bosh is struggling. The teams 5-5 record can also be attributed to Bosh’s struggles. We need 22-10 Bosh. Not 16-6 Bosh. I feel he will turn it around, but it does not look like it is going to happen as quickly as we might want it too.

C) Andrea Bargnani D
Here is the problem with Bargnani. He in 10 games has already looked like the future all-star we all feel he will be, he has already looked like that player last Feburary that was not there yet but full of potential, he has already looked like that player 3 games into his first season, and the scary thing, is that he has already looked like that player having no clue what to do in summer league over a year ago. The move back to the bench did hurt his confidence, but no matter what happens, Bargnani is a rotation player. He is the future. But he is still a 2nd year player, and we need to keep reminding ourselves that. Regardless of that fact though, he does have the potential and while maybe we shouldn’t expect all-star Bargnani right now, we should be expecting “full of potential” Bargnani. These moments of “Summer league” Bargnani is not helping out this team.

PG) Jose Calderon A-
That turing the corner off the pick and roll is not there as much this year, but Jose is still running the show as effectivly as last season. The only problem has been the inconsistency of his 2nd unit teammates, as he is only as effective as his team. When the second unit is on a roll, Jose is a MACHINE. But when the second unit is struggling, Jose can only do so much. This is a jump shooting team, and if they are not hitting the jump shots, what is a PG to do? Also…yes, T.J. is the starter, but don’t be so quick to not give Jose a chance to be a closer. One game out of 10 is not enough.

SF) Jason Kapono B-
Kapono was brought in for his shooting. And since he is at 50% for both inside the 3 point line and outside the 3 point line, I guess he is doing his job so far. And he is not starting which I completely agree with. Kapono is a great guy to have coming off the bench giving instant offense. He is also the guy that I would limit to “needing baskets quickly” status, meaning if the Raps are in the lead or in a tight game, I might limit Kapono’s minutes. If the Raps are in a hole, give Kapono some burn. He is a shooter, so use him when needed.

SG) Carlos Delfino B
The knock on him during his time with Detroit was that he was inconsistent. And that has been pretty much true here in Toronto so far. But when he is on, he brings defense, rounding and shooting and he has looked very good in a few games so far this season. He is a guy who I think can turn it on more consistent as the season wears on. Remember, these players have been in the league for a while, and they do realize that November games are not nearly as important as March/April/May games. I would give him not only the backing up Parker time, but also the backing up the SF time as well when Kapono is not needed.

SF) Jamario Moon A+
Look, I am not jumping on the Moon band wagon THAT much by giving him an A+. But how can you not be impressed by the guy who was picked up during a tryout at the ACC last spring, was the 16th guy on a 15th man roster. Sent poor Luke Jackson home. Wore street cloths for the first few games. And is now the winner of the Kapono vs. Deflino vs. Garbo battle. It is still VERY VERY early, and by next week, he could be back on the bench. Hell, he could even be back in street cloths. BUT the point is, today he is not. Today he is the Toronto Raptors starting small forward. He has started in 3 games and not lost that spot. It is going to be very interesting to see what transpires with Moon over the course of the season. As I have said previously, he fills a need on this team. But today, you can’t give anything but an A plus to this Cinderalla story.

PF) Jorge Garbajosa B-
I have already talked about Garbo in previous posts. Let me just add, that Garbo has not been as consistent as the team needs, this is true. I just think that a big reason for that has been playing time. We don’t know the full story about why Garbo is getting DNP’s but I also have no doubt that he can help this 5-5 team. I mean, he did it last year, so why should we not expect him to do it again this year?

Most nights, it should only be these 9 players that see’s the court. And some nights, they can trim it to 8, keeping Kapono out if the team doesn’t need him or Garbo if Bargnani is on point. This rotation does require Bargnani is step it up on a regular basis, but there is nothing wrong with sliding Bosh to center and putting Garbo in at PF if Bargnani is not bringing the goods. And of course, there is also nothing wrong with going to a 10 man rotation on occasion.

On the bubble

C) Rasho Nesterovic C+
We need Rasho against the big teams. Vs the Celtics, Rasho does the best job vs Garnett then anyone else on the team. Rasho is a big body that can be used in all sorts of different situations during the season. We also though must remember that Rasho was completely useless vs Jersey in the playoffs and he was out of the rotation during the big game 5 and 6 last spring. The reason I give him a low grade though is based on the fact that he has missed a lot of shots around the basket. The guy does need to put the ball threw the hoop more frequently to not be a liability on offense.

The Foul trouble/Garbage time crew

SG) Juan Dixon B
Hey, at least he is doing what he is suppose to, and that is scoring. Juan has been on a roll so far this season, looking much better then he did during late last year. Here is the problem, we have scorier already and Juan is just too much of a liability on defense. I like Juan, and this is not a reflection of his talent or work ethic, but how many times have I gotten him confused with T.J. Ford? One 5’11 player on the court creates problems on the defensive end, having two 5’11 players on the court is just undoable.

PF) Kris Humphries C+
Hump is an energy guy. And can he ever fight for the boards. And if one of the big guys in the rotation goes out for any length of time due to injury, Hump is a great player to have as back-up. But we are trying to make big moves in the East here, and even though he can shoot the ball, he doesn’t always take the best shots. He is a rebounder, and he is one dimensional. And he should stay deep on the bench.

PF) Maceo Baston C
It’s not his fault he was put into the starting line-up. As far as Baston goes, he has done an alright job so far this year given the role he has been given, which is spot starter. It’s not like he is Rafeal Arujo and needs to sub off after 2 minutes of game time. But regardless, Baston should not be starting, nor should he be dressing up for most games. The reality is that he brings nothing to the table that is not already provided by 3 or 4 other players. Hump at least brings the boards better then pretty much everyone on the team. Dixon is a scoring machine at times. Baston does nothing special, and is average at best at every aspect of the game. He should stay in a suit.

PF) Joey Graham Inconclusive
Of course, he has been injuried for a majoriy of the year, but I got a feeling that we have seen the last of rotation player Joey Graham. Of course, knowing Mitchell, he will be fair and give Joey at least one or two more tries when Joey gets healthy. But I don’t think it’s a secret that Joey is just not going to bring the goods on a regular basis.

PG) Derek Martin B-
Why does Carlton er… Martin get a B- when he has not even dressed for a game as of yet? Because as we all know, Martin is a coach now and one of the many mentors for the PG’s on the team. The PG’s are not the teams problems so far this season, so gotta give credit to the master cheerleader himself, Derek Martin.

The Coach

Sam Mitchell C+
He made some big bold moves that paid off with Moon as a starter. He is not afraid to put 5.5 million dollar Kapono on the bench. Not afraid to put number one pick Bargnani on the bench. Of course, he is not afraid to put Baston in the starting line-up…so these gambles he has been taking, some have worked and some have not. At least he is a guy ready to try different things to get the results he wants. His ingame coaching is still inconsistent, but that is to be expected. The true time to judge Mitchell will be at the New years mark. Will this team be full of momentum and ready to take serious aim at the 50 win mark? Or will this team be fighting life and death to stay above 500? Mitchell needs to get some consistency on the rotation in order to be successful, so let’s give him a benefit of a wait and see attitude.

The Team

The Raptors C+
They have made big impacts (Jersey, Bulls), they had close games that could have sent ether way (Celtics, Orlando) and some games that they should be frankly embarrassed about (Warriors, Utah) since they should have won those. The Raptors have yet to put together any type of momentum. But the real problem here is how they are playing in the ACC. What use to be a safe haven last season, is turning into something quite ugly. The boo birds were out last night, and I was quite happy for it. Sorry boys, but we expect more then what you are giving, and we are letting you know that we are not happy with the results at the Air Canada Center. Both of those big blow outs vs the Nets and Bulls were on the road, so us fans were not even able to enjoy those games live. But to follow up on what I said yesterday, the Raptors need to bring the urgency more this season then they have been. Want to know why the Celtics have had success so far? Yes the big three are playing well, but watch the Celtics bench as they are the ultimate cheerleaders in the league. The Celtics are not better then a handful of teams in the league, but they are bringing an energy that is almost unmatched. The Raptors had that energy last year as well, but this year it’s just been sluggish and a “it’s a long season” mentallity that is hurting them more then they realize. Because instead of realizing that it’s the mental approach that is the problem, they instead become confused and frustrated. It really is a long season, but the grind should come from the emotional drain of being so into and focused on every game, instead of the “this is game 10 of 82” lines that we have been hearing so far.

Sitting at 500, middle of the eastern confernce. This team is still more then capable of being in the top tier, but we all do realize that they are not at that point today.

At least Jessica Alba was at the game to stare at

2007-11-18T19:14:00.000-05:00

This is just not right.

My theory is that the Raps have this mental state right now that this is a long season, which is true and all, but that sense of urgency is just not there. I think that most teams should treat the season like it is a game itself, get off to a quick start, and let the momentum from that carry you near the end when you then make that big push.

But here is the Raptors. At 500 with some tough games next week. And doing horrible at home which is unexplainable. Except for the current attitude.

This team will turn it around. It is true that it is a long season. But we can still be abit disappointed in them for not starting alittle stronger.

Unfortunetly this team is treating the season like it is treating the games so far...slow starts.

I will give lots more tomorrow including a look at the upcoming week, and also my look at who should be in the Raptors 9 man rotation. That is something they need to get sorted out.

Garbo vs Moon

2007-11-17T18:10:00.000-05:00

I want to correct something I wrote earlier today. I said once again that Garbo should be the starting SF. Well, here is the thing, I don't think he should be. Yes, yes, yes, I know...I said a few days ago he should be starting over Kapono. And even wrote a letter that was published by Doug Smith on the Toronto Star website about it. But at that time, how was I suppose to know that Jamario Moon was even an option? And that is why today, right now, I am singing a different tune.

I DO think that Garbo needs 20-30 minutes a game and to be involved in crunch time more often then not. Garbo has to much basketball IQ to not have involved in the game. Just the decision making on where to move the ball is fantastic. That is the thing about Garbo, he doesn't get a lot of points nor a lot of assists, but he has such a great feel for the game that he knows where to move the ball and help set up the assist making pass. If this were hockey where there could be 2 assists for every basket, he might lead the team in that cat.

Dude can also play defence.

BUT today (and pretty much after Utah) I think Moon is a fine choice to get the starting nod at the SF position. He of course brings the one thing the Raptors needed during the off-season which is an athletic small forward. Remember how when the Raps signed Kapono, everyone had a fit about how he was not what we needed? Well the Raptors have gotten abit lucky here, as they might have just found that player way back last spring during the Raptors try outs at the ACC. Moon's athletism stands out also when compared to the other Raptors. NO one on the team has close to the hops that Moon has. And let's be honest. No one on the team can deliver blocks like Moon did to Dunleavy 5 minutes into the game last night. Moon can also drop the three. He is very active on defense and can handle his own against star players (Deng, Ak-47). This just might be the luckiest break the Raptors have ever caught. And let's be clear, I am not saying that Moon should all of a sudden be on the all-star ballet. What I am saying though is that he does deliver EXACTLY what the Raptors needed this off-season.

Forget about the attitude for a second, but Zach Randolph is NOT the best PF in the league. But would he not help out Chicago right now in a MAJOR way if he played for them? Same with Gasol. It's all about filling a role on the team, and the Raps had a large hole that has now been filled.

My concern is going to be playoff time, if Moon can continue to keep that starting spot. He has done an excellent job overcoming his obvious jitters. I loved his first play last Wednesday vs Utah. He had a steal, a turnover, another steal and I think another turnover right after that, all in about 15 seconds. But the good news is that he is able to stay calm, make shots, and make the right decisions. But as we all know, playoffs are a different type of beast. And as we saw vs Jersey, the Raps can lose a game in the opening 5 minutes quite easily. Having Moon in there at that stage is going to be interesting, as experience is suppose to be the key to success.

Of course, Daniel Gibson did alright against Detroit, so the hopeful thinking is that Moon will also be ok.

Very wierd that here we are, 9 games in, and Jamario Freakin Moon is becoming a huge fan favorite, the starting SF, and a possible impact player on this team.

So like I mentioned at the start, I want to clarify my stance today... GIVE GARBO SOME LOVE RAPTOR MANAGEMENT. But I am happy with the current choice of starting SF.

Very nice

2007-11-17T11:41:00.000-05:00

Now that was a game.

A 50 foot shot
Garbo
Jose putting on a show
A win at home!
Great three point shooting
Great crowd

The Raptors finally put together a (almost) complete home game as they beat the Pacers last night at the ACC. The start looked shaky once again as Indiana DOMINATED inside the paint and on the boards, and Bargnani was just terrible when he got into the game. It looked like it was going to be just another one of those nights that seems to be the norm at the ACC. But then...GARBO.

I said it before, and I will say it again, Garbo should be starting. At least though, he should be getting 20-30 minutes a game off the bench. It was when he went in that everything calmed down and the Raptors looked and played like the Raptors again. The fact that he got major minutes in the second half and in crunch time shows that Mitchell also regonized the contribution from Jorge. BUT what will this mean tomorrow?

The crowd at the ACC last night by the way was fantastic.

And now I am getting worried about Bargnani. A shooting slump is one thing, but he is now reverting back to summer league play from over a year ago. 3 fouls in 5 minutes. It's a long season and I have no doubt that he will turn it around, but when? I am just glad now that I didn't get him with my 4th pick in my fantasy draft.

From 9th to 5th

2007-11-15T12:27:00.000-05:00

Bill Simmons of ESPN predicted the Raps would miss the playoffs this season. Well now he has revised his predictions, and the Raps come in 5th. Take a look for the whole story, although here is my favorite part…

“The Raptors fans are like overbearing Little League parents, only in this case, they're passionate about an NBA team instead of a Little League son. What do you mean my kid isn't good enough??? He's one of the best hitters on this team! You just don't like him, that's the real problem here! And by the way, that's not a knock. If every city cared about its team as much as the Toronto cares about the Raps, the NBA would be a much better place.”

Gotta love it.

Live by the jump shot, die by the jump shot

2007-11-15T10:56:00.000-05:00

Of course it is not as simple as this, but I feel that the major reason why the Raps lost last night was because of the play of one man….

Andrea Bargnani

I said before that the success the Raptors have this year depends on the development of Bargnani. Sometimes it is easy to forget that he in only in his second year, and rookies typically take 3-4 years to really reach that next level. But the growth that we saw last season does lead one to believe (and expect) that we are going to get big things from Bargnani this year. Well last night was a major step in the wrong direction. Let me break this down for you…

In the battle of Ford/Parker/Moon/Bosh/Rasho vs Williams/Brewer/AK47/Booze/Okur, the Raptors clearly won. Not by much mind you which is why they couldn’t get that lead back at the end of the game, but the Raps outplayed the Jazz for the first 8 minutes of the game, and for the first 8 minutes after half time. In fact, the Raps had a nice 8 point lead nearing the end of the 1st quarter, until the subs started piling in. And that’s when everything went down hill. I can’t blame just Bargnani here, as Delfino shot something like 1-6, and Kapono did nothing and Jose went 1-4 or something like that, it was a ugly ugly second quarter that saw the Jazz take the lead. And Utah is not some average squad, give these guys an advantage and they will make it a tough experience trying to take the lead back.

Now here is where I blame Bargnani. He shot about 1 for 11 for the game. This guy was suppose to be one of the big weapons in the starting lineup. That was not working at this stage, fine. But now he is DEFINETLY suppose to be a weapon on the second unit. On top of that, he is suppose to be a shooter. But shot after shot clanked off the rim. And he did nothing to impose himself in the game in other ways. As a second year player, I guess we have to remember that he is going to be inconsistent, and I fully believe that sometime in the near future I will be typing in bold letters, all in caps, BARGNANI. It is just too bad that last night was one of those nights, because Bosh was also off for the most part but the Raps were still in control for large stretches of the game. Just not mid way threw the 4th quarter after the Raps bench was on the court.

Now let me also talk about Mitchell. I went to the game last night with a buddy who is not a Mitchell fan. “He should be subbing in Jose” “what is with the hockey shifts” “take ____ out of the game”. It’s like people forget that Mitchell was coach of the year for a reason. Sam Mitchell is not the best coach in the league, but he is the best coach for this team. The strength of the Raptors is it’s unity in a common goal, and it is Mitchell who leads the way in supplying that attitude. Plus, here is a guy who will make the changes. Rasho instead of the GM’s prize Bargnani. Jamerio Moon is a starter for the love of god! Mitchell will make the big decisions, and while there is definitely room for improvement, it’s not like he is Jerry Sloan with 20 years of experience. Mitchell, like Bosh and Ford and Bargnani and this whole team, is short of experience. But make no mistake about it, and I will say it again, he is not the best coach in the league, but he is the best coach for the Raptors.

That being said…

Some things I do disagree with from last night.

The Raps have depth, but the starters do need to see that court closer to 40 minutes then 30 minutes. And it was not like last night the starters were not being productive. Parker was having an excellent game, third in a row, and it was when he was off the court that affected the success of the team. Parker should have logged in close to 40 instead of the 30 he got. The Jose and TJ thing is tough and I am sick of people saying “What are they doing, put Jose in” or “Put TJ in”. Both players are great PGs and as a coach, not only do you have to be concerned with what is going on the court, they need to be good people managers as well. Jose/TJ are not basket cases, but at the same point, they have egos. Taking a player off the court or keeping a player off the court can be damaging to that players self-esteem. Hindsight is 20/20. But Jose should have staying in longer with the starters in the 4th quarter. Jose had a bad statistical night, but that was more due to who he was on the court with then his play. And TJ has been playing great so far this year, and did hit a few big threes in past games, It was Ford that hit a big three in the final 2 minutes to put the Raps down by one I believe. The Jazz then hit one of two from the line or something to that nature, and on the next play, Ford missed a wide open three, that came from some sweet around the horn ball movement, that would have put the Raps up by one with a minute to go. Ford also missed the game tying three with about 15 seconds left. Not sure who’s decision it was to have Ford jack that shot, but perhaps Parker should get more looks in key situations then he does.

Any how, hindsight is 20/20. Ford hits the shot, and it would be “Ford is the man” and so on.

Tough game though last night. And here we are 8 games in and the Raps have had flashes of Eastern conference beasts but mixed in with the so so play that was December 2006. It hurts a little more since they are now 1-3 at home which is very unusual for such a typically strong home squad. Let’s see how the next two games play out and we can make our first good assessment of this team.

By the way, I have a few to drink last night during the game, so if some of my points today make even less sense then usual, now you know why.

Tonight: Utah

2007-11-14T13:22:00.001-05:00

Tonight boys and girls, after a nice break, it’s Raptors Game Day. Utah coming to town and the first test for the Raps against a Western Conference powerhouse. Utah, somehow, is leading the league in PPG, based on the fact that both Deron Williams and Carlos Boozer are starting off on fire. Utah has a great PG, a great PF, nice depth, and a great coach. But of course, the Raps have 2 great PG, a great PF, nice depth and a coach of the year. I am looking forward to tonight as it will be an indication if the Raps have really turned the corner on that questionable play from last week against Celtics/Bucks/Magic.

Game starts at 7:00. I will be there live.

Young and the Restless

2007-11-14T13:16:00.000-05:00

Ahhh the New York Knicks. You guys just don’t disappoint. When we, as basketball fans, look for some drama in our sport of choice, we look at you NY. I thought over the summer about if there was any chance we would not get any Knicks related entertainment, but I guess I forgot who it was that we were dealing with.

Take a read on this article to get a nice summary of where the Knicks are today.

But seriously, please, some body tell me what in god’s name is Dolan thinking? Never mind Isiah, any right minded owner would have fired this guy YEARS ago! No playoffs, contract buy out’s for a handful of players, hefty contract signings for guys who looked like they belong in the D-League, trading for hefty contracts and on and on and on. Seriously, WHAT is Dolan thinking? He MUST have some sort of intelligence, right? He is in the top seat of a major corporation.

So the Knicks miss the playoffs again this year. And Isiah will be back for 2008-2009 I swear, Isiah MUST have something on Dolan.

Utah/Indiana/Golden State

2007-11-12T20:42:00.000-05:00

For those of you who care, which is no one, but I won week 2 in my fantasy league. 5 - 3 was the final score in catagories, I won FG%, FT%, Points, Boards and steals, lost on Assists, Blocks and 3's. So heading into this week I decided to pick up Pryzbilla and McDyess, while benching Jose Calderon and Andris Biedrins. Jose and Biedrins has 3 games while Pryzbilla and McDyess give me 4, and my game play is to win Percentages and Rebounds for sure, and battle for the other cats. Any how, as I speak, I got Tyson Chandler at half with 6 points (alright) 3 boards (boo) 2 blocks (nice) and one assist (whatever, don't need those).

NOW

Let's get to things that you DO care about. And that is the Top eastern team in the league, the Toronto Raptors! I know that you Celtics fans think you got something going, but the Celtics got lucky when they were in Toronto, and at this rate, they will be out of gas by Christmas with the minutes that Garnett/Pierce/Allen are putting up. But alright, I will be serious. Toronto is not the best Eastern team today. But the potential is there for later on. This week is going to be a big one as they have 3 home games against very good-decent opponents and we are going to really see if these line up changes the Raps are making is really working. Let's be honest, Philly is not a top level team and the Bulls are playing like complete shit. The Raps did look good in these games, but let's see where we are next Sunday night.

Wed vs Utah
Friday vs Indiana
Sunday vs Golden State

Now obviously Utah is going to be a true challenge. My feelings for this year were to see the Raptors having success against the top Eastern Conference teams (S.A./Suns/Mavs/Rockets/Jazz) as last year they only beat the Rockets in Houston and lost the other 9 games. Well this year things need to change, and I think that the Raps will be competitive against all these teams, but we need some W's against them as well. This Wednesday will be a nice first step towards proving this team is a legit team to all those nah-sayers. Big game. Boozer had a easy time against us last year, going 12 for 14 or something like that in one game, so let's see how the defense looks this time around.

Indiana got off to a hot start before cooling down. Indiana is all about running the ball, and here is the thing...they have has some success so far, but it's still Indiana. Mike Dunleavy and Troy Murphy and Tinsley are still on this team! Let's put it this way...Milwaukee killed us, so any shooting team (which Indiana is) can beat the Raps, but they shouldn't.

Golden State should not beat us ether. Last time I checked, the city we represent is Toronto, not Dallas, so again the Raps should win here. Now Stephen Jackson I do believe should be back for that game, so that will be a new wrinkle in it because he will obviously be rusty but motivated. He got team captain status and sounds like he wants to show he deserves it. Again, the Raps should take these guys because the Raps can play small ball, but Golden State obviously has the potential.

So of the 3 games, we should be aiming for a 2/3 split. I really would like to get that Utah game though, and if the Raps are successful on Wednesday, then they are on the way for a 3 game sweep. With 2/3 that would leave them at 6-4 which is not too shabby compared to other Eastern Conference teams. Right now at 4-3 the Raps are sitting at 5th overall in the East. So with a strong week, it will put the Raps back in the top tier of the East.

Raptors win big

2007-11-11T13:21:00.000-05:00

You poor Chicago fans.

I always, of course, enjoy watching the Raps blow out teams, especially on the road. It was magical what the Raps did to Jersey a week ago. But last night....you just had to feel bad for the city of Chicago.

The boos. The Wave. The Kobe chant. That got into painful to watch land.

The Kobe Bryant rumours has done serious damage to this team. It's easy to forget that the Bulls are a VERY young team, and can get distracted easily by the behind the scenes drama. THe trouble for Chicago though, is that it just really appears like the team has other issues besides the distraction. They just have not looked good at all so far this year. Now, of course it's early. The Bulls started 3-9 last year. But with a long road trip coming up, and a much improved Eastern Conference, it is going to be a lot tougher to dig out of any early season holes. So already at this point, I think it's safe to say that while the Bulls are still a playoff team and should still be a top team at the end of the season, they won't be getting number one seed.

Now as for the team that will be battling for number one spot...

And what about Jamerio Moon?? Inserted into the lineup to match up against Luol Deng (these are examples of why Mitchell deserved Coach of the year), Moon had a break out night in every sense of the word. Tough D, getting the boards, highlight plays, and shooting the ball. From the guy who was 16th man of a 15 player roster 2 months ago, to being the Raptors starting small forward. HUGE. Now, what happens from here? That is a tough question, but I really do feel Kapono should be offense off the bench. I don't know if Moon is ready to become a starter or if that is even something to consider based on one game, but the crazy thing is that I am sure it is being considered. Now what would you have thought if you were told during that battle during training camp for the starting SF spot between Deflino/Kapono/Garbo that the winner would be Jamerio Moon? Lot's of time till the next game, but it's going to be interesting to see what the decision is going to be.

Another note about last night's game. The Raptors looked perhaps the best they have all season in the second half. They killed the Bulls after halftime. But first half though it was not as much the Raptors beating the Bulls but the Bulls just playing really bad basketball. Even Sacramento would have been winning the game last night in the first half with the way the Bulls were playing. SO the Raps do still need to be concerned about getting out of the gates early. 17 or 18 points in the first quarter is not going to cut it.

So we currently sit at 4-3, with a 2-2 record for the 4 battles this week. Well, even though 4-3 is not really great, I did say 2 out of 3 last week and they got it, and with the tough schedule this week I said 2 out of 4 and that got that. I will give a preview of the upcoming week tomorrow, but let's wrap this week up by saying that it was a tough week, but it all worked out in the end.

More on last night

2007-11-10T12:12:00.000-05:00

Funny how quickly things change. Bargnani is back to the bench while Rasho starts, and A.P. has his best game of the season. Make no mistake that this move was not made as a reflection of the play of Bargnani so far, although to be honest he has not been consistent, but more a move to open up room on the court. That is the problem with 4 shooters on the floor at once...not enough room to operate. Parkers 20 plus points last night shows that the change did help someone out.

That being said, the Raps still did not get off to a hot start last night, but that is ok. Unlike the Bucks/Magic game when the shots early in the game looked forced and missed, the shots last night early were solid shots that just didn't fall. Obviously the Raps winning the game help's but everything back into rosey colors. Last night was a step back in the right direction, and made the previous three games just look like a bad stretch instead of a season long problem.

Jamerio Moon last night by the way...WOW. He got the minutes as a coaching decision to match up with Phillys athletism and he made the most of his chance. I wonder if we are going to see him dressed in street clothes again anytime soon after last night. If he does get another chance in the rotation, it's Hump and Garbo that will be effected. Mitchell and his staff has starting the season strong, making a lot of the right decisions. The only thing I take issue with is the handling of Garbo. Last night they might have wanted more athletic guys, but I think Garbo needs to bigger spot in the rotation. The reality though is that at the end of the day, the Raptors are so deep that not everyone is going to get the type of spot they might be qualified for, and Moon brings something different to the table (athletism) which could give him more minutes and someone else less time.

In a world of short attention spans and spoiled attitude, it's easy to jump on the Raptors for this slow start. But one thing that must be remembered is that this is a long season. We have 76 more games to go. Remember last year when the Suns and the Mavs got off to a 0-4 start? Remember how everyone thought that Amare coming back had ruin the chemistry and how the Mavs lost all it's confidence losing to the Heat in the finals. Well both teams ended up doing pretty good by the end of the season. And that's why Sam Mitchell is the man. He understands it's a long process. If a player is struggling, you just don't yank the guy and put him at the end of the bench. Not only does that ruin his confidence, but also gives his teammates something to worry about if they make one mistake on the court. Mtchell knew that the Boston game was not the best the Raps can play, but he was patient. He knew that the Raps were horrible against the Bucks, but he was patient. The Raps again did not perform against the Magic, and now with 3 games to base his decisions on, he made a move. That is smart coaching. You don't make long term decisions based on one or two possessions.

Unfortunetly for the Raps, the rest of the league has gotten better. If they had this schedule last year, this would have been the easy stretch with Boston/Milwaukee/Orlando/Philly. But now they went 1-3 and they have a tough one tonight against the Bulls and then a tough one against the Jazz on Wednesday. It's not going to be easy this season.

Raps win

2007-11-09T23:37:00.000-05:00

Raptors win a close one. Anthony Parker breaks out of his slump. Bosh keeps up what he started against Orlando. More tomorrow.

Kapono stays. Bargnani goes.

2007-11-08T16:13:00.000-05:00

Well it was not the move I am suggesting BUT I can’t say I completely disagree with it. Rasho is back in the starting 5 and Bargnani is back to the bench. I have noticed that Bosh and Bargnani have been playing more effectively when the other player is not on the court. And the reality is that this team is much much better then it has been showing, and something needed to be done. What I do like about Rasho starting is that he gives tougher defense against opposing big’s. For example against Garnett, Rasho will be much more effective then Bosh was last Sunday. As well as the fact that T.J. seems to have great chemistry with Rasho is going to help for sure. The reality is that the Toronto offense has not looked the same compared to last year, and by going back to what worked last year is a wise decision.

My only real issue then becomes the fact that while Rasho was the starting center for the 47 win team, he also got nailed to the bench in the playoffs for a reason. Is that situation not going to appear again? Oh well, worry about that for another day. I at least feel better that something has been done and we can get back on track.

And don't worry Bargnani fans, he is still going to get his minutes and stats.

Only one change needed

2007-11-07T22:38:00.000-05:00

So, for now the 5th game in a row the Raptors started off playing like shit. Philly it was a tight game until the 3rd and with Jersey, the Net's were actually up by about 7 or 8 at one point in the 1st. Cetlics/Milwaukee and now Orlando each got leads on the Raptors early. And up until this point, you could blame a few different things. Bosh had been playing just awful up until tonight. Bargnani all of a sudden looked like a cross between future all-star Bargnani and last November Bargnani. And I will admit, as frustrating as it was last night, tonight was just sad because it was at home, and I knew they were going to lose. I could just feel it. And I left the ACC disappointed and heading right back to the "Fire Mitchell" days one year ago.

BUT then everything went calm.

The answers that had been missing were found. I had now known exactly what was needed to be done. And I am quite sure that via this solution, we are back on track to being one of the best teams in the East. Cause currently we are not.

The solution?

Well let me ask you this? What so far has been different compared to last year?

We lost to Boston by one in OT, but if we stuck with last year, Boston is sitting at 1-1.
Orlando tonight was up by around 16, then the Raps came back and took a lead by one. It was a blast from the past that got the Raptors run going tonight.
Milwaukee....well, I don't know if anything would have stop the Bucks, that was just one of those nights.

What has changed this year and what I think we need to go back to is of course... Garbo.

It's like deja vu. Last year he is coming off the bench, Raptors are 2-8. He gets the starting spot, the Raptors win the Atlantic. It is pretty much common knowledge that if the guy is playing vs Jersey in the playoffs last year, the series would have been quite different.

And while I have no problem with getting Kapono for 5 million, at the time I did not see a reason to start someone else over Garbo. Just because PF is his natural position? He looked pretty good at SF so screw natural positions. Garbo brings the ball IQ, brings the D. brings the boards and can bring the 3's.

This is an absolute no brainer to me. Give Kapono the Kyle Korver role, let him be offense off the bench, but Garbo needs to get back into that starting lineup. And the sooner the better.

The solution to the problem is now very clear.

Now I know how Jersey felt

2007-11-06T23:23:00.000-05:00

Worst game in two years. Hands down. Just pathetic.

I will add more tomorrow. But that was just sad. They should not have lost to Boston, but at least Boston is a potential 5-8 seeded team in the East. Milwaukee won't even make the playoffs! Just a sad sad game, and I don't even want to hear that Bosh is still rusty or getting back into shape. That excuse expired last Sunday.

Well...at least we are not Chicago.

Odds and ends

2007-11-05T16:31:00.001-05:00

Let’s cover a few matters today.

Not much else to add about yesterday’s game. If it was on the road in Boston, I would not be bothered at all by getting a lose in OT on a buzzer beater. The fact that it was in the ACC hurts more, since the Raps are such a strong home team. But to put everything into perspective, it was game 3 of 82. Long ways to go. It just would have been nice yesterday, since these Boston fans are blind with crazyness. You guys realize that you have the worst depth in the league…right?

Here is my list of surprise teams so far…

Atlanta
Indiana
Orlando
L.A. Clippers
Philadephia

No matter what there record currently is, these teams have all played well so far this season.

Here is my list of disappointments so far…
Chicago
Cleveland
Washington
Golden State
Memphis

(Miami is not on the list because I expected what we are getting)

BUT as I have to remind myself so many times…it’s early. Remember last year when both the Suns and Mavs were 0-4?? And the Raps were 2-8? Not until the middle of December will we get a good indictation of what the deal is for this season, so we still got over a month for that.

As for my Fantasy week one results, well it was a tie 4-4 and we are currently waiting for NBA.coms technical staff to get off their asses and fix some bug that is preventing us from finding out the winners. I won in FT%, Points, Rebounds and Steals, while losing FG%, Blocks, 3’s and Assists. I was WAY up in FG% until Jose Calderon and Paul Pierce combined for 4 for 24 or something like that. Our tie breaker though is Bench production, and the guy I am playing against did a silly move and picked up Elton Brand before the week started. I got Tyrus Thomas/Carlos Delfino/Jeff Green on my bench against Grant Hill and Krunas Kzbuikie or whatever his name is on Golden State. 3 players vs 2 I like my odds at winning the bench production, which would put me at 1-0 to start the season. But like I said, NBA.com has to fix the bug so that can be confirmed.

As for the week ahead for the Raps…

Tuesday at Milwaukee
Wednesday vs Orlando
Friday at Philly
Saturday at Chicago

Well this will be an interesting week.

Tuesday at Milwaukee, should be a victory for Toronto. The Raps did not have a problem with the team last year, even when the Bucks were healthy. The way I look at it, the Raps are going to be motivated to make up for the bad showing on Sunday and should take out Milwaukee. Michael Redd has historically had a tough time against us, as well as the fact that T.J. Ford always turns it up a notch against his former team. Interesting side story…last game between these two teams saw Bogut get tossed for flat out pushing Bosh as CB4 drove by him, and Ford getting all up in Boguts face afterwards. Bogut lose a few thousand dollars that night as he told his fans in Milwaukee how much he appreciated them by giving them the finger. Will these players remember that incident?

Wednesday at the ACC vs Orlando. This will be a nice tough game, as the Raps took care of Orlando last year, but this Magic team is different and Toronto does have tough times dealing with teams that have a number of shooters. Of course the game is at the ACC, where the Raps have yet to play a good game in, so I expect Wednesday to be the first. Of course, it is the second game of a back to back..so…it’s going to be a tough one.

Friday at Philly. As well as Philly played in Game one, Bosh was not close to 100% and I think the Raps will step it up a notch vs Philly. After losing that 20 point lead last Wednesday, I think the Raps will understand the type of focus they need and will get the W here.

Saturday at Chicago. Even though the Bulls has yet to get going this season, I got to admit I think that the Raps will have a very tough time this game. The Raptors depth will help out, but this being the last game of 2 sets of back-to back and ¾ road games…It’s going to be a challenge to say the least. If the Raps blow out Philly, then it will be a competitve game, but if the Raptors have a tough time on Friday, they might not have enough in the tank come Saturday. I remember last year when the Raps had a similar situation where they had a lot of back to backs in a row and some road games and went off for 5 in a row before losing in Indiana on a Saturday on the back half of a back-to-back. I can see a similar situation here.

I will be honest, I think that us Rap fans need to look for a 2 out of 4 week here. Of course I would love all four, but just like last week when I said I would be happy with 2/3, I will be happy here with 2/4. The nature of the scheduling here is tough. But that would put the Raps at 4-3 which is alright I guess. Actually, now that I look at that, I would be happier at 5-2 but whatever. Let’s see what happens.

That's what happens when you shoot around 27% for a half

2007-11-04T18:40:00.001-05:00

No doubt about it, a lot of disappointment tonight. Ray Allen hit a 3 at the end of overtime to win it for the Celtics. Let me break down the good and bad for Toronto overall at this point...

Good
-They won 2/3 this week which I said they needed to do.
- Ford played huge tonight, shooting the ball well. 3 threes!
- Bosh in the 4th for the first time this season looked like old school Bosh.
-The Raptors did not play well, but they still got the game into overtime and lost on a buzzer beater.

Bad
-They shot terrible in the first half and made many mistakes. Looking nervious perhaps.
-They could not contain Ray Allen.
-While they scored 17 points in overtime which is HUGE, they gave up 20
_A.P. had a terrible game on the offensive end.
-Bargnani shot 2 for 13.

Credit to Boston. Obviously, the defense has something to do with the missed shots and the turnovers that the Raptors had. But, I have no doubt that Toronto is the better team. It was just one of those nights where nothing went in and the Raps were always playing from behind. The fact that they got it into overtime and tied with 3 seconds left was a great accomplishment. That first half offensivly was just ugly for them.

My question for all of you though is simple...Can Boston's three players really play around 42 minutes a game all season? Because the only chance they have at winning is if all three play major major minutes.

I will add more tomorrow perhaps. But tonight was disappointing, but at the same time, Boston has gotten way too much overhype the past few months.

Deja Vu

2007-11-03T16:44:00.000-04:00

WOW, I can't believe I forgot to mention "the shot" last night. Truth of the matter, there was a TON of highlight moments that a lot of you won't see because of the disrespect shown by the media towards the mighty Raptors, but the one highlight you would have seen is of course the 60 foot buzzer beater by Chris Bosh.

Now here is the thing, that shot was EXACTLY the same as a shot Bosh made last year except from the opposite side of the court and with out Mo Pete. BUT IT WAS THE EXACT same. First, here is last year's version...

So I am watching it last night, and right when he steals it I feel it. Automatically I thought of the shot from last year against Washington. And even though I didn't know, I did know that that shot was going in from the moment it left his hands.

That was highlight reel moment #1 of many this season, and you can expect to be seeing that shot next summer when the year in review videos are on Raptors TV.

Oh MY God

2007-11-03T14:58:00.000-04:00

Not much time today to go over everything from last night. But you just know that I gotta mention a little sumthin sumthin about last nights ass kicking. Actually, I have a hard time calling it a "Ass Kicking" as it was much more beautiful then that. IT was one of the best performances from this Raptors team in the past 12 months. Hands down. You can hear the song and dance about how the Net's were not putting the energy into the game, that's BS. The simple reality is that the Raps are much much better then the Nets. Sure, I don't expect every game against the Nets to be a 30 point difference, last night was for sure a statement game, but there is no doubt that the Raps are really and truly a better team.

When will you silly fan boys realize that star players does not automatically equal great teams. Did Detroit teach us nothing?

106-69!

They got the 2/3 for the week. Can we see 3 for 3? Boston fans get ready.

No please...tell us how you REALLY feel

2007-11-02T12:18:00.000-04:00

Are you bored? Want a good read outside of the excellent material I give you on a semi-regular basis?

Check this out.Gilbert Arenas giving his thoughts on the world of basketball and he is holding nothing back. Go ahead and click the link then come back here……

Alright, so you should have read it by now, and I don’t know about you, but I do see his point in regards to getting his teammates around 20 shots even though he is taking his 30. And if the Wizards do 50 plus wins this season, then yes, he should get consideration for MVP. BUT that is not going to happen because as great as it is that the team is jacking up 90-100 shots a game, and everyone is getting a chance at the lovin’, this team has ZERO defense and won’t win a damn thing without it.

But I do see his point.

That a boy

2007-11-02T10:37:00.000-04:00

T-Mac baby!!!!

You might be wondering why I would be so excited about Tracy McGrady putting up a huge 47 points last night against the Jazz. Well it is simple, he was my third round pick in this years fantasy draft. THAT A BOY T-MAC. Keep that back stretched though for the love of all things holy.

What a win last night by Houston by the way. After not looking all that impressive in Game one this year vs. the Lakers, the Rockets went into a tough environment against an excellent team (which beat the Rockets out last year in the playoffs) and pulled out a convincing win. And factoring in the fact that with about 5 minutes to go in the 1st, the Jazz were up 16-6 or something like that, this really was a nice victory for Houston. What I noticed last night that helped was subbing out Ming early in the 1st (not sure if the reason was due to foul trouble, but I don’t think it was) and bringing him back in at the start of the 2nd. Ming was able to get a few baskets against the second unit of the Jazz and that started to turn the momentum around in Houston’s favor. Combined with McGrady shooting an insane 65%ish percentage for 47 points, the Jazz could not even get close to a comeback.

Give it up to the Sonics last night, who made it a game vs the Suns and lost it in the 4th due to inexperience, losing 106-99. Still it was a nice game for Seattle last night. Durant filling it up with 27 points.

Detroit beat Miami. The Heat has yet to win this year (including pre-season). By the time that D-Wade get’s back and into the full swing of things, it will be too late for this team.

Oh, and I know it was two days ago, but what is going on in Cleveland??? I didn’t expect them to make the finals again, but they are looking like a lottery team. They still have 81 more games, but with the East getting better, and teams like Atlanta, Orlando, NY, Charlotte and Indiana looking to make moves up the standing this year, Cleveland is looking like it is going to fall behind in a big way this season.

Tonight. Raps vs. Jersey. Huge game. The motivation is there for the Raptors to get the W. BUT it will be a tough one.

1-0

2007-11-01T12:02:00.001-04:00

It was not pretty, but it was a victory. The Raps did not play well for 48 minutes last night, but a true sign that this team has turned the corner is just based on the fact that they won the game. Even a year ago at the start of last season, last night would have been a game they would have lost. I give full credit to Philly as they might not have the most talented team in the league, but they won’t quit which is why they will win more games then maybe we all thought when predicting the season ahead.

First things first though, gotta give it up to the Raptor crowd last night. As I was standing in Union station waiting for a friend, I noticed about triple the amount of Raptor jerseys compared to last year. It was insane and great and I can imagine that merchandise money is starting to pour in for MLSE. Already, at that point, I could feel a different buzz in the air. Let me compare here to last year. About a year ago, I saw Raps vs Philly (with Iverson) where the crowd was about 14,000 and the only noise for 3 quarters of the game were from the 15 year old girls directed towards Iverson. Last night though was different. The minute Jose got off the bench, the JOSE JOSE JOSE JOSE JOSE JOSE JOSE song was being sung by about half the crowd. Garbo got a HUGE reaction when he entered the game. The crowd treated the first 7 or 8 minutes of the game like it was the playoffs and each possession meant something. There was a LARGE group of people that were on there feet and chanting for pretty much the whole game, and I commented during that those fans looked like Toronto FC fans (our soccer team) based on the style of cheering they used. Sure enough when I got home and looked at the articles about the game, it mentioned a large number of FC supporters at the game. I love it. Instead of that “everybody clap your hands” crap, we get more enjoyable and entertaining “Jose Jose Jose Jose…..” This is going to be a great season already just because the love towards the Raps in this city is increasing by the game. Screw the Toronto media. After last night I can say that the revolution is not being televised. But that does not mean it is not happening.

And it was nice being back in the ACC for a basketball game. It had been awhile.

AS for the game it self…well…not as good as the crowd, that is for sure. The refs were awful, and to be fair they were awful for both teams, but it did cost Bargnani minutes as he picked up 2 fouls in 5 minutes and sat the rest of the half. Bargnani was the man though at the end of the game. That 4 point play of his with about 4 minutes to go…HUGE! CB4 looked good for about 5 minutes. Here was the issue though with Bosh, as the Raps pulled away from Philly the moment that Bosh subbed out and Bargnani and Parker signed back in. That’s right, Bosh did not see the court for the final 5 or 6 minutes of a close game. I think what needs to be remembered is the fact that Bosh does not play as well when he has not practiced and played on a regular basis, which he has not done for awhile. With Jersey being the next game in Jersey, a team that has always given CB4 trouble, I don’t see the breakout game for Bosh until Sunday against the Celtics.

Parker was the man last night. Maybe not stat wise, but with him on the court, everything felt better. Delfino had a good night, Kapono hit his shots. In fact, Delfino played 30 minutes while Kapono gave 22. That is the right idea in my opinion. Use Kapono to get the offense going and use Delfino to keep the lead. Of course, the Raps did blow a 22 point lead last night, but I do need to review the footage on tape first to find out reasons why.

So NBA.com now lists a plus/minus like in hockey. Well last night, Juan Dixon was -22. I like Dixon, but the Raps got killed on the boards. Dixon should be a match up type of player. Got to say that I was not feeling Mitchell’s decision to give Dixon that type of burn last night.

And overall, the boards and the defense were again the issue. Nothing to panic about after one game, but after Jersey and the Celtics, we should have a more clear vision of if these two areas are still this teams weaknesses.

Like I said before, got to give Philly credit, they played hard.

The season has started!

2007-10-31T13:20:00.000-04:00

Exactly zero games has taken place since last year, and already the paper bags are coming off.

Let me first just mention that, after a nice plug on celticsblog.com, I, of course, got a few silly Celtic fans coming on the page and enjoying my thoughts on why the Raps are going to take out the Celtics on Sunday. The way I work normally is to just post my thoughts and whatever and move on, and let you fine folks add anything if you please. BUT I do feel the need to at least address one thing here. PLEASE don’t refer to a preseason game that happened almost a month ago. Yeah the Celtics won by 1 or 2 points in a game that saw Moon/Hump/Baston/Martin/Jackson on the floor at once and playing the majority of the 4th quarter minutes together. If you Celtic fans are using THAT game as proof on how the Celtics are better, then you just don’t know too much about this wonderful game of basketball and how the NBA works. I guess then the Knicks have a great chance at taking out the Celtics, since they both split games in the preseason, and the Bulls/Wiz/Cavs have no chance against the Raps after the Raps beat all three teams by 20 plus points.

IT’S THE PRESEASON!

The Celtics are going to be a playoff team this year. No doubt. And it’s very possible they will end up being a top 3 or 4 team in the East. But here is the important fact…the Raps already WERE a top 3 or 4 team in the East last year and they have gotten better during the offseason. Since the Celtics have done absolutely nothing so far to show they are a top team, since they have yet to play a regular season game together, let’s keep everything in perspective.

And I hope you all will come visit powerof15.blogspot.com on Sunday after the Raps take out this new “Dynasty” version of the Green Machine.

THE regular season has STARTED! Finally. My fantasy team is up and running. Had McGrady last night getting off to a slow 1 for 6 start but as I told my friend, that is his style. McGrady always starts slow then piles on the stats later in the game. 30 points, 50% shooting (VERY nice) around 6 boards, 4 assists. A steal would have been nice, but the percentages were a very nice surprise. I also had Ronnie Brewer from Utah, who I picked up a week ago at the expense of Antonio McDyess. Nice game, 18 points with good percentages. And 4 steals! Very nice. I also had Luke Walton and Andris Biedrins playing last night, both guys didn’t put up horrible numbers, but nothing newsworthy ether. I need Biedrins doing 10 plus boards a nice. (last night he had 9). So a good start. The guy I am playing against had Deron Williams who did a super solid 24 points, 8 assists. Not bad. Of course, him also having Stephen Jackson in his lineup was not the best indication that he did his homework before the week.

So are we surprised that Kobe scored 40 plus points last night? Dude is going for 50 a game. Screw assists, screw percentages, just jack that ball up every single time. And that is what he did last night. And again, the problem is going to be that Kobe will be in a rhythm for the most of the season, but any chance his teammates had at doing something this year is out the window already. They have no chance of getting the ball or doing anything to help them progress. As long as Kobe is a Laker, it will the Kobe-time for 48 minutes a game. Houston looked HORRIBLE for the first 5 minutes of the game, lost and confused. They had a month to figure out the new system, so I don’t know what was going on last night. Then they let the Lakers back into it at the end of the game when the Lakers went on a 10-0 run with 2 minutes left. A crappy game with at least an exciting last 2 minutes.

Speaking of crappy games, San Antonio beat Portland last night. Look, I respect the hell out of S.A. I watch them play and am amazed at how well coached that team is. And how it is DUNCAN who is the best player in the game today. But my god, do they bore me. I understand why ratings are so slow for the finals last year. Portland did a decent job sticking around in the game, LaMarcus Aldridge was huge last night, but there was no way they were beating the Spurs in San Antonio on ring night.

And Utah is looking in playoff form as they beat Golden State. I am really wondering about the Warriors. Did they just get on a huge hot streak at the right time? Yes, it was just one game. With out Stephen Jackson I should mention, but they got smoked by the 4th or 5th best team in the West.

Tonight ladies and gents, and silly Celtic fans, the RAPTORS are back and ready to go. I will be at the ACC and I will have some thoughts on the game tomorrow. Stay tuned.

Opening Week

2007-10-29T22:59:00.001-04:00

Right off the top, let me just say that I really hope that the Bulls don't trade for Kobe. They have such a good thing building for the next 7-10 years and they will ruin that if they trade both Gordon and Deng. I really feel they won't do it, but the Bulls really are the only team capable of doing this deal. And with the Kobe loving media all over this story, the more you hear about it, the more you get tricked into believing something might actually happen.

Let's just hope it does not.

But to more important matters. The week ahead....

Wed at the ACC vs the 76ers
Friday in Jersey vs the Nets
Sunday at the ACC vs the Celtics

My season tickets are all lined up and ready to rock and roll, and I am more then excited about getting back into the ACC. Sounds like even Leaf fans feel the excitment, as the Leafs got rocked 7-1 as the fans in the crowd actually chanted "Let's go Raptors". Thats great, I LOVE IT. Hahah. Two things I hate in sports. Kobe Bryant and living in a city that is so blindly pro Leafs. I actually cheer against the Leafs every game. Seeing them lose is great to me, just to stick it to these poor suckers in this city.

The ACC is home of the RAPTORS, the Leafs are just guests.

Anyhow, lets break down the 3 games...

Against Philly on Wednesday it is pretty much a must win. And it is pretty much guarenteed. With the way the Raps ended preseason, they are on a roll and the 76ers will have zero chance in matching up. Throw in the fact that Dalembert MIGHT be back for game one, but will for sure be rusty, the 76ers won't be able to handle both Bosh and Bargnani. NOW let me just add, that last season the 76ers showed alot of heart. If the Raps let the 76ers stay in the game, then Andre Miller could keep these guys going, I feel he is an underrated point guard. But it really won't happen. The 3's will be raining, and I got a feeling that Wednesday's game could be confused with one of the preseason games.

Friday in Jersey is a very nice test. These sweet looking Raps in the preseason has not played on the road in awhile, expecially on the road against an NBA team on North American soil. Plus these are the Nets that beat the Raps out of the playoffs last year as well as a (currently) healthy Nets team. Really tough to call this game, as I can see it going ether way. My question is that with a hurt Kidd and 38 year old Darrell Armstrong backing him up currently, does this Nets team have the ability to push the ball? I think the Raps should be able to outrun them.

Sunday at the ACC it is Boston. I fully expect the Raps to win. I will be honest, I am getting less and less impressed by this Celtics team. In the playoffs, they will be a tough out, but in Toronto, the Raps will dominate. And it's not just about the depth. Garnett is a strong inside defender, but who is he going to cover? Cause Bosh and Bargnani can both take him outside of the key and keep him there. Away from the net, he is much less effective on the boards as well as help D. And Kendrick Perkins has no chance against Bosh or Bargnani and will get into foul trouble early. Rondo might be able to keep up with Ford for awhile, but then Rondo will get a rested Jose THEN get a rested Ford. Turnovers and poor FG% in the second half for Rajon. Pierce is going to be tied to Kapono on the outside of the 3 point line while Ray Allen will be tired out chasing Parker off screens. Again guys and girls, Boston is going to get tired. Simple as that. And the game being at the ACC just puts it that much more in Toronto's favour.

The overall goal for the week is 2/3, and since Philly BETTER be #1, they just need to split the Nets/Cetlics game. IF they get both though and go 3-0, that would be a solid message to the league.

Tomorrow I got my own basketball league and of course the game on Wedesday, so I won't be able to post anything for a few days. Keep checking back though.

Bye Bye Luke

2007-10-29T19:37:00.000-04:00

To no one's suprise, Luke Jackson was cut today to make the roster 15. Gotta feel bad for the guy, as this is a close unit that I am sure no one wants to leave, but thats life.

More thoughts

2007-10-27T00:59:00.000-04:00

I don't know what else to add here, it was just silly. It was like the Raps were the U.S. National team while the Wiz were doing an impression of the Canadian national team. In fact. and I can not confirm this, but I think that the worst stretch of the game for the Raps, which was a 3-4 minute stretch at the end of the 2nd quarter, was because they were just bored silly by what was going on.

And for the first time I was bored.

I love watching the Raps blow teams out. I always mention that Denver game from last season where the Raps were up by 25 by the second quarter or something like that, and I did not get bored. It was great. But this game was just so one sided, I lost interest half way threw the 3rd. I know it's preseason, but based on what we have seen this past week, the Raps WILL blow out a number of teams this upcoming season. There is no doubt about it.

Bargnani looked great. Bosh looked good, in rhythm, although it is looking like his scoring average is going to be around 15 ppg at this rate, as the Raps just have such strong weapons all across the board. I read that with out Bosh, the Raps are a cellar team. BULLSHIT. The Raps would easily still be a playoff team even with out Bosh, although it would be 7th or 8th spot. Seriously, that's how good they are looking.

I am now torn on Delfino and Kapono on who should start. Kapono brings the spacing and shooting, Delfino brings the defense and rebounding. I wish we had one more game where Delfino started and Kapono came off the bench, but oh well. Ether way, we are good.

It is night and day with these two when compared to the Boston game 3 weeks ago.

Who else? Oh, say good bye to Jackson. Unless a trade is made, it will be Jackson bought out. It was sad too, as he set up a Moon highflying dunk. So the crowd goes nuts for a dunk that Jackson set up for the guy who will be replacing him. Dixon, unless via trade, is not going anywhere.

Garbo has not gotten the minutes the past few games. I am assuming, of course, that they obviously know what to expect from him and can rest him from the Euros, but is he going to be a 25-30 minute player or a 12-15 minutes player this season?

The rotation should be...
Ford
Parker
Kapono
Bosh
Bargnani

Nestorvic
Calderon
Delfino
Garbo

Guys and girls, the Raps are looking REALLY good. But, it does not mean anything until Wednesday.

34 points

2007-10-26T21:40:00.000-04:00

Alright, so it's preseason. I know. But can we read into anything from these games? Especially when the Raps are beating teams by 20-30 points? I guess all we can do is just wait and see if it continues in the real games starting next Wednesday.

The Raps beat the Wizs by 34 points. Arenas did not play.

BUT 34 POINTS??

Seriously, what can we, the fans, read into this?

More once I watch the game.

More on last night

2007-10-26T13:26:00.000-04:00

Now that I have reviewed the footage, I can give some more thoughts on last nights blowout at the ACC. Here is the lineup for the Raps that did the damage...

Jose Calderon
Juan Dixon
Carlos Delfino
Kris Humphries
Rasho Nesterovic

It was when these players were on the floor that the Raptors took over. Gotta love the depth of this team. You all might have heard by now, but Delfino had his best game in a Raptors uniform. 18 points, 9 boards (4 of which were on the offensive end) and 3 assists. Kapono went 5 for 8 with 2 for 2 from the three point line and added 3 boards. Now the big difference between the two players was that Delfino covered Lebron better then Kapono. If we assume that this night will be a typical evening for these players, my feeling is to keep Kapono the starter, let him build up that lead using his spacing and shooting and then go with Delfino for 25-30 minutes in the game after that. Almost similar to the T.J./Jose breakdown.

We will see what happens tonight first though.

As for CB4, well, he looked alright. The good news always was that Bosh had these two preseason games to get back into the rhythm before the season started, and that is exactly what happened last night, Bosh getting back into rhythm. Actually in the first half, Ford and Bargnani looked out of rhythm because of Bosh which is natural. I think though that after tonight, we will be all good and ready for Wednesday.

The battle between Moon/Dixon/Jackson for that last spot was not cleared up last night. Actually, I don't know why Dixon is even included in these conversations. Dixon's issue is match ups, as he is a SG in a small PG's body. But he is a shooter and a smart player and there is no way that the Raps aren't going to keep him on this team. He might be at the end of the depth chart, but he has a solid spot on it. As for Moon and Jackson, well Mitchell did not give ether a great look tonight. I am going to assume that he will try to give them each 10 minutes tonight because on Monday decisions will be made. At this stage, with the upside of Moon, I think we have seen the last of Luke Jackson. He has done zero this offseason.

Now I will also add one more observation from last night. I think the Raps are better then this Cavs team. But the Cavs team that we saw last night would have gotten beaten by 80% of the teams in the NBA. The Cavs last night looked HORRIBLE. What happened in China? They looked tired and just completely out of it. Check this out, and it was only for about a minute or two, but the line up of Martin/Moon/Jackson/Graham/Baston took on Lebron/Hughes/Gooden/Big Z and that Raptor lineup DOMINATED! So...yeah...Cleveland did not bring the A game last night.

Tonight, its the Wiz and the last game of the preseason.

33

2007-10-25T21:25:00.000-04:00

I know...it's just preseason.

But preseason or no preseason, losing by 33 has got to sting.

The Raptors took down the Bulls and now they SMOKED the Eastern Conference champs 111-78.

Oh...but it's just preseason. That's true, but let's not ignore the fact that the Cavs starters played in the 30-35 minute range while Toronto's starters went in the low 20's. In fact, CB4 only went 15 minutes.

Back later with some thoughts after I watch the actual game.

Raps vs. Cavs

2007-10-25T12:48:00.000-04:00

Just to remind you all that the Raps play tonight and tomorrow before having a few days break leading up to next Wednesday's opener vs. Philly at the ACC.

Tonight it is Cleveland and this is what to watch for...

How much is Bosh in the flow of the game? Vs the Bulls, the Raps looked great and in mid season form on the offensive end. Bosh has two games to join them.

Bargnani taking on big Z. Good practice for Bargnani on the defensive end.

Moon vs Jackson. The Raps are still going to need to cut someone, and it is pretty much down to these two.

The small forward position. Well, I don't think it is a battle anymore. Kapono is the starter, but since it's not official, this is still something to watch.

Keep the vibe going. They looked real good against the Bulls. Let's keep it up.

Remember, the game is being broadcasted as a Game in an Hour on Raptors TV at 11:00.

This changes everything

2007-10-25T01:04:00.000-04:00

You know something...I figured that arm chair quarterbacks would not give the Raps their due, and I am alright with that. But the GM's in the league should be smarter then this.

Every year, all 30 Gm's are polled on various questions and when asked the question of "Who would win the Atlantic" the defending champs the Toronto Raptors received a grand total of.....ZERO votes!!! That's right, 29 GM's (I assume Colangelo could not vote for his own team) didn't think that the Raps are good enough to repeat. Now you might think that they all jumped on the Boston bandwagon. Well only 70.4% percent did. But the Nets received 25.9% while, and this is the biggest insult, the KNICKS got 3.7%. That's right, more GMs think the Knicks will be the Atlantic divison champs then the Raps.

COME ON!

This is just getting silly. Now I can't wait to see the Raps take everyone down!

Before, I understood and I was cool with the lack of respect. But now I am pissed.

As for all these other questions...
Dallas is slightly ahead of S.A. in the southwest poll
Miami got the vote ahead of Orlando and Washington
Chicago ahead of Detroit and Cleveland
Utah ahead of Denver
And Phoenix recieved 100% votes for the pacific divison

Most GM's felt that Lebron would be the MVP of the season, with Duncan/Kobe/Nash/Garnett/Wade and Ming all getting some love.
Luol Deng and Al Jefferson tied for player most likely to have a breakout season.
The best players at each position are Nash/Kobe/Lebron/Duncan and Duncan again for center for some reason. He is a PF, not a center. Ming was in second so I guess he is the top center.

Most underrated player acquisition was Luis Scola for Houston
The order of improved teams is Boston/Memphis/Orlando/Milwaukee

The only poll that gave the Raps some love was "Which international player is most likely to have a breakout season" with Bargnani getting the most votes while Jose was in second.

The Suns were voted most fun team to watch with the Warriors in second.
Utah was voted best home court advantage team. Now here I have an issue with, as they list 9 teams that received a vote and again Toronto was shut out.

T.J. Ford was voted second for player fastest with the ball. A.I. was number one.

And there is a bunch of other questions, but they are all pretty much along the same lines adding in some silly Kobe loving votes. When will people learn.

ZERO VOTES for the Atlantic??? Come on!

Utah Jazz

2007-10-25T00:51:00.001-04:00

Utah Jazz season preview

Projected starting line-up

G Deron Williams
G Ronnie Brewer
F Andrei Kirilenko
F Carlos Boozer
C Mehmet Okur

Reserves
Jason Hart
Paul Millsap
Matt Harpring

Last year
Jerry Sloan proved that you can not keep him down for the count. Sure, Utah stumbled slightly once Stockton and Malone left, but just like that, the Jazz were once again a force to be reckoned with in the West. After 3 years of missing the playoffs, the Jazz stormed out of the gates in 06-07, winning 12 out of the first 13 games. The two players who lead this charge were Carlos Boozer and Deron Williams. Carlos Boozer had missed a majority of the previous season due to injury while Williams was the rookie point guard that was selected after Chris Paul. In fact, the leader of the team prior to this season was Mr. AK47 himself, Andrei Kirilenko. Ironically he was the only player on the team that took a step backwards compared to previous season. The reality is simple though for AK47, as Sloan loves the pick and roll and Boozer fills the Karl Malone spot much more effectively then Kirilenko ever could. Mehmet Okur was another player that stepped up, so far in fact, that he got a injury replacement spot on the Western all-star squad. Okur is one of the rare centers in the league that makes his money from outside the three point line. Now, everything was good for Utah. Great in fact. They were in the same breath as Dallas/S.A./Phoenix. But they took a step back from that group in the last month or so of the season as they started to struggle. Chemistry issues with Kirilenko could be part of the reason, although Okur also was not putting up the stats he was doing during the first few months. I am not saying that Utah fell apart completely, but enough so that they fell out of the elite standings. And it looked like they fell even further when they went down 0-2 against the Rockets in the first round of the playoffs. The negative momentum was being carried over into the most important time of the season, and it did not look good at all for this Utah team. What turned them around though was one of the biggest strengths they had during the year, and that is playing in front of their home crowd. Utah had a great home record, and with taking both game 3 and 4 in front of the Utah crowd, they were able to build back up the positive momentum and win the series in 7. They also killed the good vibe Warriors in the second round, although with the huge weakness that was rebounding for Golden State, this was an emotional but easy victory for Utah. And finally, they proved that they were not in the elite class when the Spurs took them down just as easy as Utah did to the Warriors. Again, this is not a huge negative attached to the team. They might not have been a top 3 team in the league, but after missing the playoffs for a few season, turning around becoming the number 4 or 5 team in the league is still pretty damn impressive.

Off-Season
Released Derek Fisher
Drafted Morris Almond
Lost Rafael Araujo to free agency (I don't know if lost is the right word)
Signed Jason Hart
Singed Ronnie Price

They made the right decision (really the only decision) in allowing Derek Fisher walk away from his contract to be closer to his daughter. This would though leave a potential hole in the SG position. The bigger news of the off-season though was dealing with Andrei Kirilenko and his trade demand. After kicking butt in the Euro's, Kirilenko decided that he did not want to do another season under system used by Jerry Sloan. On top of this, Deron Williams and Kirilenko might not be exchanging birthday gifts any time soon as they have traded words during the summer. As we head into the season, everything seems to have been worked out, but 82 games in a long time.

2007-2008
They made a big move last year, but the goal will be to join the elite for this season. But with little moves done during the off-season, it will all ride on the continue growth of Williams, Boozer and Okur as well as Ronnie Brewer and Paul Millsap. This is a young team, but have they already hit the roof in regards to potential? They definetly won't be going down the rankings in the West, but does this team even have the ability to move up? Deron Williams, as strong as he was, still had a very high turnover number last season which is something he can improve on. Boozer is a power forward who gets tons of boards, but can't block any shots. Similar situation for Okur. All areas where this team can make improvements. And of course Kirilenko. If he can become happy in the system and provide the defensive stats that his teammates lack, then this team does have a shot at bigger things this year. But if he continues to be a distraction, this team will be stuck in the same spot it was in last year. The 4th or 5th best team in the league. And that's not a bad thing, but it's not the goal for this team ether.

Things to watch for
1) Obviously Kirilenko - 5x5 won't return. But can he become happy with his role?
2) The progress of Deron Williams - He made a big step up last season and in the playoffs. What will he do for an encore?
3) Utah's bench - With Fisher out and Brewer in the starting 5, the bench for Utah looks a little thin right now. Is that really the case?

Prediction
They surprised us last season, but I don't seem the same surprises this season. In fact, with the improvements that Houston made, I see a slight drop for Utah. Again, they will be a very good team, but not great,

Between 47 and 51 wins this season with a 5th place finish in the West.

Miami and the Wolves do business

2007-10-24T16:43:00.001-04:00

Trade today to talk about. Well, I am not going to talk about it all that much. Frankly, it is only interesting because Pat Riley has finally gotten rid of Antoine Walker.

The Heat traded Walker, Wayne Simien (who?), Michael Doleac plus a first round pick and money to Minnesota for Ricky Davis and Mark Blount.

Ricky Davis is a scorer which is going to help out Miami. Walker is washed up so for the Wolves, it seems this was all about getting rid of some contracts and getting another 1st round pick next June.

At least we are done with hearing about Walker's body fat issues.

Detroit Pistons

2007-10-23T17:19:00.000-04:00

Detroit Pistons season preview

Projected starting line-up
G Chauncey Billups
G Richard Hamilton
F Tayshaun Prince
F Antonio McDyess
C Rasheed Wallace

Reserves
Rodney Stuckey
Jarvis Hayes
Amir Johnson
Jason Maxiell

Last year
For most teams, just making it into the Conference finals is a major accomplishment. But for Detroit, it's another day at the office. In fact, anything short of the finals is seen as a major disappointment. The most dominant team in the Eastern Conference for the past 5 or 6 years, Detroit continued it's success in 06-07. Although the hole that Ben Wallace left in the middle became just a little larger this past season. Detroit struggled out of the gates via the lose of the big man in the middle combined with bored attitude for the first few months. In fact, it was not until the signing of Chris Webber that this Detroit team actually resembled the team that went to the finals in back to back seasons. The key word here is resembled, because this team was not that same team. While Webber brings the offense, he does not come close to the defensive anchor that Wallace brought during the glory years. And with Rasheed having one of those years attitude wise, where he felt it was the right way to go by ignoring play calls from his coach, the trouble spots had become more apparent then ever. This was a team that had success in 06-07, not so much anymore from effort, but experience. The lack of effort proved deadly as they allowed Lebron James to go crazy in game 5 of the conference finals, as well as allow the Cavs to come back from a 2-0 deficit. Remember that this was a team that proved that a collective unit can overcome a superstar driven squad (the Shaq/Kobe Lakers) yet this year they could not overcome a team with depth issues and only one superstar. They could intimidate from past experience, but when push came to shove, in 06-07 the Detroit Pistons, for the first time in a long time, started to look average.

Off-season
Drafted Rodney Stuckey
Drafted Arron Affialo
Lost Chris Webber to free agency
Resigned Chauncey Billups
Signed Cheick Samb
Traded Carlos Delfino to the Raps for 2 second round draft picks
Signed Jarvis Hayes
Lost Dale Davis to free agency

The key to the offseason was resigning Billups which the team did. They also had to get rid of Delfino for nothing to keep the cap space free for Billups. They are high on rookie Rodney Stuckey, and while Stuckey will get minutes, he won't be put into many pressure situations in his first year. Obviously Detroit saw the same thing that Philly saw and that's Webber can still bring the offense, but his defensive liabilities are just too much.

2007-2008
Two things that are noticed right away with this upcoming season for Detroit are that they are focused and they plan on giving some of the youth on the team a chance this season. For the past few years now, Detroit has been accused of treating the regular season as a nuisance instead of preparation for the playoffs. Well Cleveland seems to have awaken these guys and given them the motivation to reclaim their crown as the top team in the East, even if it means giving some more effort during the regular season or getting along with the Coach (I am looking at you Rasheed). But the question has become, do they even still have the talent to be the top team in the East even with the effort? McDyess has had a solid career, but still a large step down from the hole still felt by the absence of Wallace. Nazr Mohammed was a waste of a signing last season as he does not fit Flip Saunders style of play. Rasheed and Billups are not over the hill, but they are not spring chickens ether. Add in the fact that every other team has seen the cracks in the armour last season and that intimidation factor that had worked well for Detroit is starting to disappear. It's a good news/bad news situation, they are truly motivated now due to the poor showing last season, but also lost the intimidation due to that poor showing.

What to watch for
1) Staying with the elite - Is this the beginning of the end for this team or are they still the team to beat?
2) Rasheed and Flip - Can these two work together?
3) Bench - Will this season see Detroit's depth get a solid shot at some minutes?

Prediction
I see this as the beginning of the end. Joe Dumars heard the calls for a major shakeup, but he decided to stick with the guys that have been the top Eastern team in the past 5 or 6 years. I understand the decision he made, but I feel he is going to hear those same calls next year as Boston/Toronto/Chicago and Cleveland might be at the point of passing this team in 07-08.

Prediction
Between 52 and 56 wins this season with a 3rd place finish in the East.

Power 30

2007-10-22T14:14:00.001-04:00

Nba.com has put up it's first power rankings of the new season. More of a projection then anything else. Here is the top ten...

1. Spurs
2. Mavs
3. Suns
4. Rockets
5. Pistons
6. Utah
7. Celtics
8. Bulls
9. Raps
10. Nuggets

And we say the East has gotten stronger. 5 of the top 6 are from the West. Anyhow, I concur with the first 4, although the Pistons have alot to prove this season and I would not put them as high as 5. I also would not put the Celtics ahead of the Bulls. A day or so ago, the Celtics lost a preseason game to Philly with Garnett and Pierce sitting out. The Celtics have ZERO depth. I thought that Posey was the answer. I was wrong.

Raps at 9, and that is respectable. That is ahead of the Cavs (11), Nets (12), Wizards (14).

Ouch, the Lakers are down to 22. I don't know about that one.

The bottom four...

27. Portland
28. Minnesota
29. Clips
30. Sonics

Let me just say, and as you can see on the right, I have the Clips low as well, but they have looked damn good so far this preseason. Maggette is playing well (and on my fantasy team which is very nice) and the Clips MIGHT not be as bad as we are thinking.

Sacramento Kings

2007-10-22T13:23:00.001-04:00

Sacramento Kings season preview

Projected starting lineup

G Mike Bibby
G Kevin Martin
F Ron Artest
F Shareef Abdur-Rahim
C Brad Miller

Reserves
John Salmons
Kenny Thomas
Mikki Moore

Last year
Did someone not pass the memos to the Maloof brothers before they signed off on the Ron Artest trade? Someone had to tell these guys that Artest was trouble, right? Sure it was easy to get blinded for a moment, as the Kings had went 20-9 after the 2006 NBA all-star break, but this is Ron Artest we are talking about here. The guy who started the Malice at the Palace, the guy who needed time off to promote his CD, the guy who asked for a trade from the team that stood beside him, the guy who felt he needed a second job at circuit city during his rookie season, the guy who wore a bath rode to a practice...DID THEY GET THE MEMOS??? I mean, it's quite obvious that this guy is somewhat unstable. Is that championship material? The 2006-2007 season will go down as a major disappointment for the once proud (and successful) franchise. I don't want to blame everything on Artest though, as the Kings decided a successful coach in Rick Adelman was not needed and they choose not to renew his contract, instead signing Eric Musselman, who celebrated his new job by having a few drinks and going for a nice little drive. Let's see...what else...oh yes, Mike Bibby. Dude who scored 36 points in game 5 to lead the Kings over Dallas in the first round of 02-03 playoffs had become non existent. Brad Miller who is one of the best passing big men just a few years ago, spent the majority of the season on the sidelines, and when he did play, he looked 40 years old instead of 31. Shareef Abdur-Rahim USE to be an all-star!?!? I know, I had to double check that one myself. This team showed how much of a decline it was on in 2006-2007...except for one player, Kevin Martin. Out of the ashes rises hope, as Martin in his 3rd season averaged 20.2 points shooting 47.3%. But as I have said before, how good can one player be if he is the best player on a awful team? Regardless, the upside is there. Which is more then I can say for the Kings team as a whole.

Off-season
Signed Mikki Moore
Re-singed Justin Williams
Drafted Spencer Hawes
Lost Ronnie Price to free agency
Lost Corliss Williamson to free agency

Well the Maloof brothers must have been watching Saturday morning TV when they decided to hire Reggie Theus. Reggie by the way, has zero experience coaching an NBA team, although i am sure the success he had with the Deering Tornadoes will help him out in the NBA. As for Mikki Moore, he was tops of the league in FG% but did that memo about playing with Jason Kidd also miss the desk of any of the Kings staff members?

2007-2008
If you could take the best out of the starting five, like take the 03-04 season of Bibby, the 06-07 season of Martin, a sane Ron Artest, Shareef from 01-02 and Brad Miller from the 02-04 years and add in the success that Theus had with Deering and then you got one heck of a team here. In fact, a top 5 or 6 team in the league team. But all you are going to get in 07-08 is Martin. As for everyone else, enjoy the money because the money is the reason why changes will be minimal for the next few seasons. They already looked into moving Bibby, but the obvious decline (or lack of interest perhaps?) as well as a massive contract makes Bibby pretty much stuck in Sac town. They trying to see what they could get for Artest, but other teams read what they get in the in-box. No one is taking Miller. The only positive they got is Martin. So it was a fun ride. Those Sacramento vs L.A. battles in early 2000 was great. Hopefully NBA TV replays a few of those some day. But as for today, welcome to the world of the NBA lottery Sacramento.

What to watch for
1) Artest - If history has taught us anything, it's that Artest will do something news worthy this season
2) The decline of Bibby, Shareef and Miller - If these guys can have a bounce back season, it can change the outlook of this team in a big way
3) Coach Theus - Is NBA coaching experience required to be successful?

Prediction
I see the decline of those three players continuing, and even if they did bounce back, it's a tough road to the playoffs in the West. Martin will keep up the 20 ppg average, but blowing up this team is pretty much the only option at this point.

Between 23 and 27 wins this season with a 12th place finish in the West.

The Raps SMOKED the Bulls

2007-10-20T01:33:00.001-04:00

Let's just get this out of the way...the Raps killed the Bulls tonight. Just man handled them. Sure it was Toronto's deep bench vs Chicago's deep bench for most of the night, but Bargnani got minutes for Toronto, and Hinrich, Joe Smith and Tyrus Thomas got minutes to Chicago. So it was a preseason game, but regardless the Raptors looked damn good tonight.

I figure I would take a moment to go over each player for the Raps and give my thoughts on not just tonight, but so far this preseason how they have looked.

So let's start with the top:

Chris Bosh - Obviously I have not seen alot of CB4, but then again we don't need to. We know what we are going to get with him, although it did look like he worked on his back to the basket game a little over the summer. I do though hope he gets a solid week of practices and the last two preseason games so that he can get in that rhytem with his teammates.

Anthony Parker - They have really shortened his minutes. The 32 years old thing might have the team being slightly more careful with his minutes. Parker has looked like Parker from last year, except his shot is not at that mid season form as of yet. It will be though soon enough.

T.J. Ford - He has looked GREAT. It is looking like he now has a 3 point shot. Great decision making and tons of confidence. This is going to be a great year from him just based on what I have seen over the 5 games.

Andrea Bargnani - Also has looked great. It looks like he is ready for that next step, which will mean big things for the Raptors. Bargnani is getting after the boards more, the shot is still dropping, and he is developing the inside game nicely. And it is hard to remember he is just entering his 2nd season. How good is this kid going to be at year 5 and 6!

Jason Kapono - I am pretty sure he has the starting spot. Overall I am looking forward to Kapono's play this year. The first three games were whatever, but since getting back to Toronto, he has looked much more comfortable. There was one play tonight where Parker had the ball at the corner, with Kapono at the 3 point line side and Bargnani at the top. Parker faked, drove and kicked to Kapono, who gave it to Bargnani, who gave it back to Kapono for the 3. And the Bulls just tired themselves out from running from 3 point weapon to 3 point weapon to 3 point weapon. Just the amount Kapono helps spread the floor out is insane. The bad though at this point is that he is not getting the boards and the defense is so so.

Jorge Garbajosa - Looks just as good as he did before he got hurt, if not better. He now has a year of NBA experience under his belt, and the way he is playing, I still have feelings towards a small forward starting Garbo.

Jose Calderon - He is taking it a little easy this preseason. Letting over players do some things. He should have a big year.

Kris Humphries - Looking great. He is not going to give up any minutes easily, and the way he has played so far, Mitchell might just need to find this guy 15 a game. Hump is getting the boards, but is also making smart decisions on when to take a shot, and when to pass. That was something he was not doing so well with last season till the end.

Carlos Delfino - Well he did nothing much overseas, looked good in the 4th quarter Wednesday and looked decent tonight. Shot was not falling, but he made some good passes and smart decisions. Still would not start him, but I would give him 20-25 backing up Parker and Kapono. Only issue I have is that he dribbles alittle to much and slow in making decisions, although that might just be a comfort level thing as he is still getting use to his new teammates.

Rasho Nesterovic - Looking good. Rasho is going to be valuable this season giving Bargnani a breather and also taking on the bigger centres in the league.

Juan Dixon - Shot is falling, which was something he lost at the end of last season. With the way Dixon is playing, he is going to get some minutes in ether garbage time or against good matchups like Golden State.

Joey Graham - Personally I am ready to see the end of the Joey Graham experiment. He just does not have it on a regular basis. It is just not ging to happen. And at this stage, I rather see the minutes go to Hump and Moon and Delfino. Joey, welcome to the end of the bench.

Jamario Moon and Luke Jackson - Sorry Luke, but it's time to cut Jackson and keep Moon. He played great tonight, with a highlight reel dunk, 2 threes, a sweet block on Tyrus Thomas and some smart decisions. He still looked raw, and it was not against the Bulls best, but Moon regardless looked good. We will need to see how he does for an encore next week and give Luke one more chance at least, but at this stage I think it's time to make the change here.

Maceo Baston - He has looked alright on defense and getting a few boards, but he has done zero on the offensive end and nothing overall that made me even notice he was on the court. I would like to see him get some PT on the court with some of the Raps top level players.

Derrick Martin - Martin, we all know your valuable to the team, but STOP SHOOTING jumpers. Let me just remind you all about last January against the Suns. Ford was hurt, and for whatever reason Mitchell had Martin in at the end and Jose on the bench. Suns are on the line, go up by 2 with 3 seconds left and no time outs. Martin gets the ball, dribbles up past half and jacks a three pointer that looked like, remember that Fresh Prince episode where Carlton is playing high school basketball, gets the ball at the end of the game.... Just skip ahead to 2:35 and that is EXACTLY what Martin looked like against the Suns.

So anyhow, all summed up and the Raps are looking much better now then they did last week overseas.

Thoughts around the web

2007-10-19T22:42:00.000-04:00

Same deal today as wednesday. The preseason game vs Chicago is on tonight at 11. I will give some thoughts after that, although the Raps did win and it sounds like they looked good in doing so.

But until then, I was reading a season preview on the Raps. Everyone is pretty much putting them behind the Nets and the Celtics in the Atlantic. I want to repeat, that I don't care that there is little respect given towards the Raps. But just for fun, let's look at what some other people are saying...

Here we have CBS sports giving some respect to the Raps. They believe that the Raps are here to stay as a tough competitor, although they still have the team 3rd in the Atlantic. One of the potential reasons given is...

"A rough start gets in everyone's heads and Toronto starts believing that last year's success was a one-year deal. The team's nucleus is still young and therefore fragile."

A couple notes about this:
1) Bosh, Graham, Jose were all together during 05-06 when things were not as rosy. Bosh even went as far to mention that after the 2-8 start last year, they were not worried at all. They had been threw worse, like 1-15, that 2-8 just wasen't that bad. If the Raps for example go 500 in November, or a few games below, they had seen worse. They won't though think that the success was a one year deal.
2) Parker/Garbo/Kapono/Delfino/Jose/Rasho/Bargnani have all had success playing basketball around the world. This team is not as young as some people think.

This guy on the other hand pretty much gets it exactly right. Here is what they say about the teams weaknesses...

"The main weakness for Toronto is most likely its interior play. The team doesn’t have tremendous defensive footspeed or rebounding ability, though they do have excellent stretches of team defensive play and don’t make many mistakes in terms of communication and positioning."

"The team’s interior defense has similar problems. While both Bargnani and Bosh have had moments, neither has shown great ability as interior defenders. Rasho Nesterovic and Jorge Garbajosa are not the type of complementary frontcourt players that help to elevate the team’s interior play either. The addition of a defensive-oriented big man who can intimidate in the lane and clean up the glass would drastically improve the team’s chances of success against opponents with dominant big men."

Bargnani is going to be looked apon to step up with his defense. If he is capable of doing some effectively, the Raptors will take that next step. But this guy also thinks that...

"Raptors fans and players are justified in feeling somewhat slighted this off-season. The team won the Atlantic division title and was improving by the week leading up to the playoffs. Their opening round loss helped to dampen some of the enthusiasm for the club outside of its own fanbase however, as did the roster changes from teams within their division. "

"Look for the team to compete heavily with Washington, New Jersey, and Cleveland for playoff seeding with the potential for bigger things if Bargnani breaks out big in his second season. A little more playoff seasoning and Toronto will soon take its place amongst the Eastern Conference elite."

BUT let's remember, that the Raps were 2nd best in the East since New Years and that is with a rookie Bargnani. This is why I feel that the Raps are already in that Elite class, because of the success in the 2nd half of last year and the fact that all players should come out stronger this season.

Well well well, another positive vibe. 3rd overall in the East. I can dig that.

"Bottom line: Toronto will win a playoff series and be a tough out but the Raptors are not quite ready to make a trip to the NBA Finals."

Only thing I will say, and it's the same thing everyone else says, is that if Cleveland can make it, so can the Raps. You can not tell me that Cleveland has anywhere close to the depth that the Raps have.

This one mentions a game I will always remember.

"On March 23, Allen Iverson and Carmelo Anthony led the Denver Nuggets into Toronto. As well as the Raps were doing up to that point, no one expected them to put the ungodly smackdown that they put on their guests. The Raps came out of the gate with a fourth quarter intensity and instantly blew the game open. The game was decided after the first half, and they went on to win 121–94."

I was at the ACC for that one, and I remember being somewhat nervious for the Raps since the Nuggets had been playing well at that point of the season. What I saw was the biggest ass kicking ever! It was 10-0 at the start, then 22-7 or something, then 33-11, then 45-18. That is not exactly accurate, but something like that. The only reason that the Nuggets got it to 27 was because the second half was completely garbage time. It was GREAT.

"Prediction: Progress takes root in different forms. If they don’t win another banner or get that franchise-best 48th win this year, the season’s not a wash. A healthy Bosh and an improved Bargnani will drive this team forward in the season that matters. I’m guessing 45–50 wins and a trip to the illustrious Eastern Conference Semifinals. If Chuck Swirsky never says “Oh my Bosh!” again, even better."

This guy gets on Chuck a little too much though. I agree, the "oh my Bosh" or "Bosh pit" has to go, but the guy has alot of legit passion for the team. That is something that is respectable about the guy.

Woah woah woah. Come on now. This is just silly...

"Also they're already experiencing a ton of health problems to their top players. You wonder how much the grind of the regular season will expose their bench. They need more rebounding. "

EXPOSE their bench? He almost answered that with the line before. The Raps did see a ton of health problems to their top players. And they needed the strong bench they have to get over it. When Garbo and Bargnani went down, it was Graham and Humphries who stepped up in a big way (and got boards), and the team actually went 12-2 or something to that nature down the stretch. That Denver game...that was the first game after Garbo went down and without Bargnani.

This is more like it.

"hey showed last year that they can play for stretches no matter who is in the lineup. Ford was unstoppable as Toronto went 6-6 while Bosh was out. Calderon stepped up in Ford’s absence. Different Raps made big time plays when Bargnani, Parker, and Jorge Garbajosa were injured... the list goes on and on. The key to this team is that they likely have the most depth in the Eastern Conference and no one really needs to play heavy minutes."

He also mentions something that I completely agree with and something that will be an issue next off-season.

"I’ll take a different route and say the best move was keeping Calderon. GM Bryan Colangelo declared Ford as the point guard of the future when he signed him to a long-term deal before last year’s campaign. Although several teams would love to have Calderon as their starting point guard, Colangelo continues to stockpile assets like Calderon, Kapono, and Delfino in order to make a blockbuster deal down the road. Colangelo likely received many offers for the Spanish guard who had a breakthrough year, but Calderon’s value on and off the floor while being signed at a great price (thanks Rob Babcock!), was too much to part with."

Keeping Calderon now is huge and I think keeping him long term will be huge also. Forget blockbusters. That is like the Bulls dealing for Kobe right now, the pieces are there. Don't need to mess it up. The Raps have the pieces to be a top team for the next 6 or 7 years just with these pieces! Parker at 32 is the only player that might not be around long term. Jose is a huge part, no reason to mess around.

I would love to add the ESPN preview that has the Raps at 8th in the East, but I don't wanna pay for that crap.

Golden State Warriors

2007-10-19T20:27:00.001-04:00

Golden State Warriors season preview

Projected starting line-up

G Baron Davis
G Stephen Jackson
F Matt Barnes
F Al Harrington
C Andris Biedrins

Reserves
Monta Ellis
Mickael Pietrus
Kelenna Azubuike

Last year
Let's just jump to January 17, 2007. That was the date where Golden State traded Troy Murphy, Mike Dunleavy Jr., Ike Diogu and Keith McLeod to the Pacers for Al Harrington, Stephen Jackson, Sarunas Jasikevicius and Josh Powell. Before that, the Warriors were just not a threat, Nellie ball requires all 5 players on the court, not just 3, so Dunleavy and Murphy had to go. Harrington and Jackson both were taller guys who could run and shoot. And people forget because of his attitude, that Jackson was a star player for Indiana. People also forgot, because he was always hurt, just how good Baron Davis was. Davis was a machine, especially down the stretch and in the playoffs. Avg 20 points and 7 assists for the season, Davis was the leader of the craziest style of street basketball anyone has seen. And this style brought forward little known players that must have felt like being back on the blacktop courts. Monta Ellis had a stand out season, as did Andris Biedrins as the only legit big on the team. Throw in Matt Barnes, and 20 ppg Jason Richardson and this is a team that had all the right pieces to make this style of basketball work. Now, we already know what they did to Dallas. And I will say, that series was one of the more entertaining playoff series I have seen. From that rabid, playoff starved Golden State crowd, to Nelson letting Dirk know that he is owned by the Nellster. It was history and great basketball at that. Sure, I knew that Golden State had no chance against Utah, the lack of rebounding killed them, but it sure was fun to watch. The dunk that Davis had over AK-47 was one of the biggest dunks I have seen in quite a while. Now the best part of this whole season, because it came out of nowhere, is ffinding out what will they do for an encore?

Off-season
Drafted Marco Belinelli
Traded Jason Richardson and Jermareo Davidson to Charlotte for Brandan Wright
Signed Austin Croshere
Signed Kosta Perovic
Waived Sarunas Jasikevicius
singed Troy Hudson
Resigned Mickael Pietrus
Signed Pat Burke
Waived Carlos Powell

So trading a 20 points per game player like Richardson for a draft pick might seem questionable, but let's be honest, this team is stacked of player capable of shooting and scoring. Jason Richardson is expensive and a health risk, so I can't say I blame the team for moving him. They won't feel the lose. Especially drafted a sharpshooter in Marco Belinelli. The biggest drama for the team in the off-season was Don Nelson requesting a new contract. With out Nellie, this team is screwed as it was put together with him in mind. Well, thankfully, the drama is over, as Nelson returned (to less money then he wanted)

2007-2008
We know that the crazy basketball style they used last year can work for a short time, but we also know that this team is not going to get anywhere deep in the playoffs until it can fix the major whole which is rebounding and defense inside. It is early to tell if they fixed that, but let's not forget that the team that made it to round 2 last year only started playing together in January. And with even more new faces, this training camp and off-season is crucial to deal with issues, like rebounding, if they want to be a legit contender. As long as the players stay on the court (health with Davis, legal trouble with Jackson) this team will have more ups then downs this year, although it will see it's share of downs as well. When the jump shot is not falling, which will happen more then once over the course of 82 games, this team will not get a victory, even with it's slashers. On the flip side, when the ball is falling, this team is hard to beat as it plays a style that is hard to duplicate and hard to stop. San Antonio has won it's rings by being able to adapt to the different styles of basketball teams play as well has being able to control the tempo to their liking for the most part. But Golden State takes it to such an extreme, that it's hard for any team, even the Spurs, to stop the train once it's going. But only if that jump shot is falling.

What to watch for
1) Dallas - Can this team continue to own Dallas?
2) Injuries and other - Can this team stay health and out of trouble?
3) Warriors - Just watching this team in general was a great part of the playoffs last year and should be once again this year

Predictions
They are in the nasty West. And it's all going to come down to rebounds. Can they improve in that area. They beat Dallas last year because Nelson knows the Mavericks like the back of his hand, but it was also obvious that the team had no chance against the Jazz because Utah ate them up inside the key. If they can rebound, they can jump up 2 or 3 spots. I am though going under the assumption that we are going to see something similar to last year.

Between 41 and 44 wins this season with a 8th place finish in the West.

Los Angeles Clippers

2007-10-18T14:35:00.001-04:00

Los Angeles Clippers season preview

Projected Starting line-up
G Sam Cassell
G Cuttino Mobley
F Corey Maggette
F Tim Thomas
C Chris Kaman

Reserves
Brevin Knight
Quinton Ross
Al Thornton

Last year
It almost seems like a dream, doesn't it? A dream where the L.A. Clippers went deeper into the playoffs then the L.A. Lakers. Of course, it was not a dream, but it was definitely a tease for the Clipper fans. Not only did the Lakers regain their #1 L.A. based basketball team status, but the Clips went right back to the usual spot of NBA bottom feeders. Alright...not that bad, but they didn't make the playoffs. So what happened? Let's start with Shaun Livingston. Here is the guy that was picked to be the future PG of the team. Sam Cassell was a huge part of the success in 05-06, but that was also his last year of usefulness. Age will catch up to players at some point, and 06-07 was that year for Cassell. That would have been ok if Livingston took that next step, but it never happened. And I am not talking about that next step that pretty much tore his leg into two. Even before that injury, he was not producing the way the Clips envisioned. Then we have Corey Maggette. This guy could get to the free throw line whenever he wanted. He is a scoring machine. Does he play great defense? Maybe, maybe not. But obviously being a 6th man was not clicking with Maggette and last year coach Mike Dunleavy would not budge on giving Maggette a chance in the starting line-up. Sure it's nice to have a scoring punch off the bench, but that is only if your starting line-up is strong. Obviously, Maggette might have helped more starting and getting 40 minutes, seeing how with him off the bench, the Clips were ranked 23rd in PPGs. Next up we have Chris Kaman, who looked strong and full of potential in 05-06, signed a nice contract and then all of a sudden struggled all season. That is a tough one for the Clips, Kaman DID look good the previous season. Finally we have Elton Brand, who threw all this, still played like an all-star. Except there is two types of all-stars. The Mehmet Okur/Rip Hamilton/Josh Howard type of all-stars, and then the Kobe/Lebron/Bosh/Wade/Duncan/Garnett superstars. I would put Brand right in the middle of those two categories, which is not good enough to carry this team to the playoffs despite all these issues.

Off-Season
Waived Daniel Ewing
Released James Singleton
Drafted Al Thornton
Signed Brevin Knight
Signed Jose Powell
Signed Guillermo Diaz
Waived Will Conroy

Forget about who they got and didn't get. This upcoming season became a lost cause when Elton Brand blew his left achilles tendon. He might not be able to carry a team solo, but at least there is that slight chance he could. Now with out him, the Clips already can start to count how many ping pong balls they will have come draft lottery night. At least rookie Al Thornton is going to get some nice PT this season. As for Brevin Knight, he would be a decent backup to a star PG. Giving 12-15 minutes rest to a Kidd or Deron Williams. But he is backing up the even older Sam Cassell which means that Knight is going to see a lot more then 15 minutes a game. He can get assists and steals, but he is also zero threat for shooting making it much easier to guard him.

2007-2008
The year of the Maggette. That is pretty much what we are looking at this season. Good for him also since this is a contract year. Let's look at the potential for the Clips here... Kaman regains some of that potential he showed, and becomes a 17/8 type of player this season. Maggette gets 24 or 25 a game. Cassell is able to give one more season of production. Tim Thomas steps up and does something besides shooting threes. And this team is able to stay around 500 until Brand comes back after the all-star game. IF that happens, this team is playoff bound.
Of course, that is some mighty big if's. More then likely, Kaman will be overwhelmed without the help of Brand clearing the inside for him. Cassell will take that next step down due to age. Maggette will get 24 or 25 but forget what an assist is. Tim Thomas will continue to shoot 3's and that's it. And when Brand comes back, it will be too late to dig out of the 12 below 500 level that the Clips will be at. And by the end of next year, it really will seem like a dream that this team was the top L.A. based NBA franchise just a few short years ago.

What to look for
1) New franchise player Maggette - Can Dunleavy finally give the power and freedom to Maggette?
2) PG - With Sam Cassell and Brevin Knight, this should be an interesting year for the Clippers PG productivity.
3) Tread water till Feb. - Brand should be back with 2 months to go. Can the Clippers stay in the hunt till then?

Predictions
Sorry Clip fans. This team might not get blown out all that often this season, but they also won't be able to beat anyone in the 4th quarter. The age factor with Cassell and Mobley as well as just a lack of talent overall for this team will make it more then difficult to be at 500 for the all-star break.

Between 20 and 24 wins this season with a 14th place finish in the West.

New Orleans Hornets

2007-10-18T11:20:00.001-04:00

New Orleans Hornets season preview

Projected starting line-up

G Chris Paul
G Morris Peterson
F Peja Stojakovic
F David West
C Tyson Chandler

Reserves
Bobby Jackson
Rasual Butler
Julian Wright

Last year
You know what I think? I think playing in the Western conference is tough. Sure, the East is looking better this year, but the West is still the best. And for a young team trying to make some waves in the West, having the majority of your starting line-up go down with injuries is not going to help you make that move into the playoffs. Peja Stojakovic went down for pretty much the year, although it's hard to feel bad for N.O. for this one as everyone knew that he was an injury risk when they signed him. I can though feel bad for losing David West to some odd arm injury, as well as Chris Paul to an ankle injury. These things happen, but for these things to happen to three starters pretty much makes the season a write-off. But give credit where credit is due, this team kept fighting. Tyson Chandler took a step up in the second half of the season, Rasual Butler added some points...if this team was in the East, even with the injuries, they would have made the playoffs. It sure must be tough playing in that Western Conference.

Off Season
Drafted Julian Wright
Drafted Adam Haluska
Resigned Jannero Pargo
Signed Morris Peterson

Julian Wright is an athletic 6'8 forward who could see valuable time this season if Peja goes down again. Mo Pete, of course, is going to be another strong shooter on the court for the Hornets. Having Chris Paul drive and kick to ether Peterson or Peja must be a nice idea for the fans of the Hornets, but I will say that both shooters can be streaky. And Peterson got away from the slashing last season with the Raps.

2007-2008
Obviously this team is expecting playoffs. They made moves two off-seasons in a row with that goal in mind, and they very well might have made it to the dance last year if even just Chris Paul stayed healthy. But he didn't, nor did West and Peja, so the Hornets watched from the sidelines. This upcoming season, they hope health won't be an issue, but they also better hope that a loud home crowd was not one of the ingredients for there success last year. This team will be back in New Orleans full time, so the crowd support of Oklahoma will be gone, and replaced with the smaller crowds that they were attracting in N.O. before Katrina. Maybe the support has changed in the 2 years, but we will see. Regardless, having a rowdy fan base at home can only help. Ask Charlotte what it's like to have a non existent fan base.
I would not put the whole season on Peja's shoulders, but he does need to regain some of his all-star form he had with the Kings a few seasons ago. The Hornets have the strong nucelous with Paul, West and Chandler, so if Peja can add some of that all-star game, and Mo-Pete can supply some of that 2005-2006 game he had, there is no reason to think that this team can't make the playoffs.

What to watch for
1) Peja - If he stays healthy and plays well, this team can take that next step
2) Chris Paul - He watched Deron Williams step up in Utah. That has to motivated Paul to do the same.
3) New Orleans - How will the fan support be now that the team is back home?

Prediction
I tell you, I really wish I could predict playoffs. But I can't. I think they will be battling for it, just like last year. But in the battle vs the Lakers/Nuggets/Warriors, I gotta make the Hornets the odd man out. Maybe it's the experience thing, I don't know, but my gut tells me that those other 3 teams are going to make it in. I will say this though, I like the Hornets and I hope I am wrong.

Prediction
Between 39 and 43 wins this season with a 9th place finish in the West.

Raptors win Raptors win Raptors win

2007-10-17T22:57:00.000-04:00

So the Raps won tonight in there 4th preseason game against the Lithuanian league champion Zagliris Kuanas by a final score of 105-99. If was a very close game, with Kuanas up by 5 with 9 minutes to go. In fact, there was 16 lead changes in the second half. Let me tell you that if the Raps lost this game, I would then be worried. With or without Bosh, this teams depth should still be able to win ball games, which they did. Although when you look at who was on the court during crunch time, Delfino/Humphries/Dixon, Mitchell still realizes that it's preseason.

Now I would love to give more information about this game, but here's the deal...

Raps TV had the game listed for 7:00, with an hour pregame show that they normally do and an hour post game show. So 6 oclock rolls around and it is not the normal set up at the ACC (raps tv has its broadcast booth right in the middle of gate 4, it is quite a sight) but the studio set up they use for away games. And it's not the pregame show, but the daily Raptors Tonight show. I didn't notice it at first, thinking that they didn't have the Gate 4 set ready as of yet, but then they kept advertising that the game vs Kuanas would be seen at 11 as a Game in an Hour. Raps TV takes pretty much every game the Raptors play and edits it into an hour long version, and thats what I was getting.

I am very curious as to why this happened.

Update- Alright, I have watched an hour's worth of the game. Despite how close the game was, the Raptors did look better. Let's be honest here...they have played against a jacked up Boston team (in a game where they went REAL deep into the bench threw the 4th) and now three European squads that all have talent, have all been playing together for the past few months and have been putting in 100% effort for the victory. This Lithuanian team was not great, but you could see the effort they put in kept them in the game. Not to say the Raps didn't put the effort in, cause they did. But there is still a few things to work on for the Raps.

Kapono, by the way, started and looked great. He is not going to get the boards the Raps need. Those will just have to come from Bargnani, Bosh and Parker. But there was at least 2 occasions where the Raps got a board, Parker got the ball and threw it up to a streaking Kapono who hits the 3 with zero defense on him. The only negative I can see is that Kapono is going to have to remember that one more pass will get the ball to Bargnani. Bargnani and his long bombs were a no show tonight.

Man I can't wait to see Bosh 100% in this mix.

As for Delfino, he looked good in the 4th. One thing I noticed, that I didn't notice last year, was that if Ford or Jose was not close to the rebounder, Delfino and Parker would get the ball to bring it up court. I think they want to keep that push going, and instead of killing a few seconds finding the PG, Parker and Delfino are capable of handing the ball once in awhile.

Parker still does not have his shot falling, but I do remember last year it took until Decemeber for his shot to get consistent. I don't think it will take that long this year, but obviously he is a player that does need to warm up.

As for other preseason games today...

Dwight Howard is a BEAST! Orlando played Cleveland in China and Howard had a 31 point game. I will stick to my original rankings for my predictions BUT Orlando is looking good so far.

Boston KILLED NY by about 40 points. Pre-season or not, this does not look good for NY and looks great for Boston. So far, so good for the Celtics.

So now that Indiana is going to run, they are posting up 122 points in a game. Of course it was against defensivly challenged Memphis (who put up 115) but regardless, Indiana will be playing a different style this year.

Detroit beat Denvers Summer league squad (Iverson/Camby/Anthony/Martin/Nene did not play)

Portland Trailblazers

2007-10-17T15:35:00.001-04:00

Portland Trailblazers Season preview

Projected starting line-up

G Jarrett Jack
G Brandon Roy
F Travis Outlaw
F Channing Frye
C LaMarcus Aldridge

Reserves
Steve Blake
Martell Webster
Sergio Rodriguez
James Jones

Last year
After spending a few years as the Portland Jailblazers, the franchise began it's move towards respectability, at least in the public relations department. Zach Randolph was still around for the year, though Portland was able to find a dance partner to take Sebastian Telfair off their hands. Most importantly, the team got two very talented players in the 2006 draft with Rookie of the Year Brandon Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge. Roy in particular had a very strong year for the Blazers. After missing about a month due to injury, he had quickly become a fan favorite as the city got behind the ROY for ROY campaign. And Roy's numbers back up his claim for that award. Combined with the 20-10 play of Zach Randolph, the young team was able to get more then a few victories during the year. Finishing the season with a record of 32-50, they won 11 more games then the previous season. The only thing questionable was the moves they made at the center position, with the re-signing of Joel Przybilla followed by the signing of former all-star Jamaal Magloire. Not only did both of these players receive inconsistent time on the court, Aldridge also starting more then a few games at center during the season. With the lack of consistent roles for these 3 players, the center position was the major liability for this team. Of course, as we all know, that is not a problem any more in the upcoming future.

Off season
Drafted Greg Oden
Traded Zach Randolph, Dan Dickau and Fred Jones for Channing Frye and Steve Francis and a 3 million trade exception
Waived Steve Francis
Traded a 3 million trade exception and cash for James Jones and 24th pick Rudy Fernandez
Signed Steve Blake

The major victory for Portland this off-season was the way the balls dropped in their favor during the lottery selection. The major question then became do they select Oden or Durant, although the reality was that Portland always knew who they were going to select. Since all-star caliber centers are a dime a dozen these days, and with the major weakness for Portland being that position, the drama behind the selection was minimum. That being said, the rivery is now set-up between Portland and Seattle to see who can make it first to the championship. If Seattle goes further with Durant, no matter how successful Portland will be with Oden, the 2007 draft will be viewed in a negative light for this franchise. Getting rid of Randolph was a must if Portland wanted to be successful. No team lead by the "me first" attitude of Randolph would ever get very far, and if they wanted to get full value out of Oden, then Randolph had to go. Frye is a nice player, although Steve Francis was just involved for the numbers. They don't need nor want Francis involved with this team. Steve Blake is a solid player making a return to the team that he played on when he stepped up and started to produce.

2007-2008
The blow of all blows came when Oden went down and out for the season. He is young and should come back strong, but it does push his progress back a year. But even if he did play this season, expecting big things from this team so early is unfair. Aldridge and Roy learned quite a bit last year thanks to the fact that the team didn't completely suck and was able to get 30 plus wins under the belts for the youngsters. And if Portland was in the east, I could easily see them getting that 7th or 8th spot. But they are not in the east. It was going to be very challenging for them to make the playoffs this season with Oden, now with out him it seems like a foregone conclusion that Portland will have some lottery balls next year. The depth is an issue, as nice as players like Webster and Jack and Blake and Outlaw are, they will get eaten alive by most teams when it matters. I don't doubt that stronger teams step up when the opponents are at equal level, but when the opponent is a sub 500 team, the effort is more just to win, not to make a statement. Does Detroit really care that Zach Randolph was getting 20-10 against them when Portland had no chance of winning the game? Detroit though does care about Tim Duncan or Chris Bosh or Garnett getting numbers cause those players are on teams who have a shot of winning. My point is, does Portland have the talent to be able to step up when the opposition does. They do have a few guys who can...but not as many as they need to get into the playoffs.

What to watch for
1) Roy hitting the wall - Will he be the leader Portland needs this season, or will he hit the rookie wall in his second season?
2) LaMarcus Aldridge stepping up - He had a nice rookie year, and with no Oden and no Randolph, it will be Aldridge who will be looked at to own the inside.
3)Building the foundation - With Oden coming back next year, plus they will likely get a high pick in the draft, they need to continue to build the foundation for a solid championship contender.

Predication
Well, losing Oden hurt. It pushes everything back a season. That being said, with another high draft pick in the mix, this team can make moves next summer to help quicken the pace towards gold.

Between 21 and 25 wins this season with a 13th place finish in the West

Indiana Pacers

2007-10-17T12:13:00.000-04:00

Indiana Pacers Season preview

Projected Starting line-up

G Jamal Tinsley
G Mike Dunleavy
F Danny Granger
F Jermaine O'Neal
C Troy Murphy

Reserves
Marquis Daniels
Kareem Rush
Travis Denier
Jeff Foster

Last year
Kind of amazing to think how one man has lead to the downfall of an entire organization. From the Royal Rumble in Detroit that had Ron Artest as the #1 entry, to his decision Indiana would be better off if they had the drama surrounding a star player telling a local newspaper that he wanted to be traded, Indiana just has been on a downward spiral since this guy joined the team. Even in the first full season with out the Artest, the hang over was still around. For the first time in 10 years, Indiana missed the playoffs. Of course with Ron gone, he couldn't technically be blamed for this past seasons downfall. That blame falls directly onto Larry Bird on this one. Not that they were doing great with the line-up they had for the first part of the season, but at least they had a record of 20-18. Then came the big trade of the year when Indiana traded Al Harrington, Stephen Jackson, Sarunas Jasikevicius and Josh Powell for Troy Murphy, Mike Dunleavy, Ike Diogu and Keith McLeod.
Some trades are questionable as to which team got the better of the deal. There was no question to this trade. Golden State pulls of the biggest upset ever, while Indiana goes 15-29 the rest of the season. I could never understand the argument here about how Indiana needs time to gel. Golden State didn't need that much time.
Injuries of course also didn't help with Jermaine O'Neal as well as Marquis Daniels missing time during the season. And the Rick Carlisle style of coaching also didn't help matters, as this team was one of the worst in the league in the offensive department. Sometimes you just gotta let a team run once in a while. Again, I just don't understand the coaching style of perfering half court basketball every single possession. The 11 game losing streak that happened after the trade was one heck of a nose dive for this team and the beginning of the sign that this ship is not on the right path.

Off Season
Signed Travis Diener
Signed Kareem Rush

In a off-season that screamed "rebuild", the Pacers did very little. They got a new coach with Jim O'Brien to replace Carlisle, and this will more then likely mean that the Pacers will be able to get out and run once in a blue moon which should help turn things around. But let's also not forget that O'Brien was the third choice, behind Sam Mitchell and Stan Van Gundy. And Ron Artest must have viewed "Being John Malchovich" and tried to make his own version called "Being Jermaine O'Neal". Of course his 5 minutes inside O'Neal had to end at some point, and Jermaine then said that he didn't want to be traded and he just said IF he was going to be, he would perfer the Lakers or the Nets. Here's a hint, when the franchise has had issues in the past with players talking about trades, maybe it's a good idea to avoid the subject completely when talking reporters.

2007-2008
Any time a new coach comes in, it's hard to fully predicate what is in store for a team. Who knows, maybe this team has tons of potential only if they play more of a running game. I have to believe that with this change in style, the Pacers will be a tougher team to beat next year. And with a training camp to better prepare the new players with the old, this team has potential. Unfortunetly, I just don't see the talent. O'Neal has it, although his injury history has to be a concern. In the last 3 years Jermaine has played 44/51/69 games out of the possible 82. He says that he feels great this off-season and ready to go, but in his 11 years he has yet to play a full season. Jamal Tinsey supposedly is a much better PG when allowed to run which he should be able to do this season. In his 6 years he has yet to play 82 games and his last 4 goes 52/40/42/72. Troy Murphy and Mike Dunleavy couldn't get in down playing Nellie ball in Golden State so I don't know if we should expect much from them. Is Diener or Rush all of a sudden going to become superstars? Granger is a nice player, although again, I hear a lot about potential when it comes to this guy but have yet to see any results. And at the end of the day, it's Indiana. They are cursed. I really believe they are going to need to blow this team up, keep Granger and some of your bench, but move O'Neal NOW. If the Lakers will give both Odom and Bynum TAKE IT. Because the East is not as weak as it was last year, and last year they fell hard out of the East playoff pack. Is Jim O'Brien enough to jump over all the teams that had passed them? Or the teams like Boston and NY that has improved since last year?

Things to watch for
1) Return to the playoffs - Indiana was a regular in the post season. Are they about to become a regular in the lottery?
2) New style of ball - New coach, new style. Is this what the Pacers need?
3) The big mid-season trade - Excuses about needing time to jell is fine, but now that you get to start fresh with Murphy and Dunleavy, it's time to show that you knew what you were doing when you made that trade
4) O'Neal return to greatness - He has slipped largely due to injuries. He says he is 100%. Let's now see what direction his game heads.

Prediction
Can't say that I predict big things this year from Indiana. They got the curse all over them and until they build a new superstar (ala Al Jefferson or Andre Iguodala) I feel they will continue to win a handful of games but to always be distracted with something.

Between 24 and 28 wins this season with a 14th place finish in the East

The battle for 3

2007-10-17T00:48:00.000-04:00

So who is in this battle? Carlos Delfino, Jason Kapono, Joey Graham and Jorge Garbajosa.

The early favorite going into training camp was Jason Kapono. Having the best 3 point shooter in the league in the starting lineup is definetly plus. Forget all the junk about Kapono needing Wade and Shaq to get his looks, with the ball movement Raptors create, Kapono will see plenty of looks and even if he doesn't, the other Raptors will because of the attention Kapono demands. Now the problem is, the Small forward positions is going to need to be successful in two very important tasks for this team...Defense and Rebounding. Kapono is average so far in both.

Joey Graham has always been known as the two headed player. One is named Good Joey and one is named Bad Joey. Sometimes Graham gets it and is on point and is a machine. Good Joey is a starting forward type of player. But Bad Joey is 11th or 12th man type of player on a roster. That is what scares me. We saw alot of good Joey last year down the stretch, but in the playoffs vs the Nets it was pure bad Joey. Even though the Raps have the depth to sub someone in if needed, I would still like my starting 5 to be strong for the playoffs. If we knew we would get good Joey, I am all for it, but we don't know so I see a huge risk in this.

Carlos Delfino on the other hand seems to have fallen out of the mix. Today, Mitchell mentioned how the battle is now between Kapono or Graham. He even went on to mention that Delfino might not be putting in the maximum effort during practices that Sam wants. I was worried about this, could Delfino be bringing in a potentially negative attitude onto the team? But in an interview with Delfino today, he mentioned how much more effort the Raptors put into practice compared to Detroit. What that tells me is that he is not used to the Raps way of doing business. Therefore, this is a watch and see situation, and Delfino could still be in the mix for the starting spot, although as of now he is in 3rd place.

Jorge Garbajosa was also mentioned by Mitchell yesterday as being a potential dark horse for the position. Jorge did it last year and did great. I think though they are set on having Garbo play his natural position at power forward. If Jorge started, it would not be the end of the world, but no matter what, I do think we will see Garbo get some nice minutes this season off the bench.

The Raps still have 4 more preseason games in the next two weeks so plenty of time to see how everything shapes up, but one thing for sure right now, the Raps overall do need to get it going after a sluggish performance overseas.

The power of 13

2007-10-16T10:36:00.000-04:00

Well my team is ready. Since I only get 13 players, it's the power of 13 for this group. With 4th pick in our Fantasy Draft, I was taking pretty much what was left over from Garnett/Lebron/Kobe/Arenas, except maybe changing Kobe for Nash if Kobe was left over, cause I just can't root for Kobe, I can though root for a good ol Canadian boy.

First pick was Garnett, followed by Lebron and then (thank god) Kobe. That left me with my Pillar, the machine, the animal, the contract year playing, Gilbert Arenas. We do 8 cats, Pts,FG%,FT%,Asts,Stl,Blocks,Rebs,3's. Gilbert will give me everything except for good fg% and blocks. He is my foundation, and I am more then happy to have a chance to focus on his play this upcoming season. When you have a player on your fantasy team, you sure do pay a lot more attention to his teams and how well he does. Can't think of a better player to focus on.

So for round two, I was targetting Dwight Howard. He is a center (we need 4 guards, 4 forwards and 2 centers) and he looks like a beast in pre-season. The concerns about Howard are his poor ft% and assists. (the 3's won't be there, but only one or two players give all 8 cats) and in preseason, both his Ft% and his assists have bumped up. It's only preseason, but it's enough for me to target him with my 2nd pick. Of course, it just had to happen where the guy right before me, who I though wouldn't take Howard that early, took Howard and kinda took the wind out of my sails at that point. I really had my heart set on Howard.

I had to go best available at that point, and Paul Pierce got the call. On the power house Celtic team, Garnett will be the top fantasy player, but he won't be the top scorier, nor will Ray Allen. I see the Celtics giving Pierce the respect (he has been with the team the longest) and making him the focal point on the offense. That does not mean that Ray Allen is not going to get some shots (assists for Pierce) nor is Garnett going to get every board (Boards for Pierce). Pierce is going to give me the same things that Arenas does, and maybe even at a 1st round productivity now that he does have help. I still wanted Howard, but there is much to like with Pierce.

3rd round, somewhat targetting Carmelo Anthony because I had him 2 years in a row, but I made a game time decision to take a risk on Tracy McGrady. McGrady was a 1st round player previous, and with the new offensive style Houston will use this season, it could set up big things for Houston and McGrady. The injury risk is there, but it could be a nice payoff for a round 3 player.

Now here is what really broke my heart. I was going to Andrea Bargnani in the 4th round. I had him projected in round 7 and 8. NO way anyone was going to take him this early. I was reaching big time just to make sure I got him. He is a center which I needed also. So of course, the guy right in front of me, once again, screwed me over. He took Bargnani with his pick, when I really thought no one was going to do it that early. That hurt ALOT. At that stage I again, even though I needed a center still, went for best available and took Josh Howard. The guy does everything well except assists. He doesn't do anything great, but having a player again who can contribute to a majority of the cats is crucial and Howard does that. At this stage my weakest cats are fg% with blocks and Ft% not super. What does that mean?

Time for a center. I need two of them, and with such a small pool to draw from, it was time to make a move. And here finally I got some good news. I had in my sights Tyson Chandler. And I think this guy is going to be huge this year. I really have a feeling that he is going to be the Al Jefferson of the 2007 fantasy world. Chandler played with the U.S. team which is only going to help, New Orleans looks solid for this year. He won't get the points, but with Arenas/McGrady/Pierce I don't need points. He will shoot at a high percentage, gives me big boards and big blocks. And if he does get some more points (like that 19 in the preseason game a few days ago) that is just cream in the coffee. FT% though is even worse with him on the team, I gotta hope that the large volume of FT's that Arenas and Pierce get will off shoot the shaky FT% of McGrady and Chandler. I need someone to help the FT%.

I also need someone who is going to be a steal at number 6. Well what about then, a guy who might just very well be the offensive star of one of the 30 teams this season? Those types of players are generally top 3 rounds material. Well Corey Maggette, time to step up. Lot's of questions about this guy, but one thing is for sure, he can score and he can get to the line. And with Brand out for months, Maggette has been given the green light. Maggette also gives me decent boards, and at this point I am tight in that area. Only one rebounding superstar in Chandler, but every player I got will get me a handful.

Still weak on blocks, FG% and yeah, I could use another rebounding machine ala Chandler. Plus I do need my 2nd center. I guess it's about that time. It was a decision between Andrew Bogut and Andris Biedrins, and I went with Biedrins. He gives me the boards/blocks and FG%, does nothing for points/assists/3's and sadly FT%. But the Golden State Warriors are one of the few "dream teams" in fantasy basketball. When a team shots for 90 shots a game, that is good news to us fantasy players. Made this decision a no brainer.

Now I need a RAPTOR. No way I could take Bosh with my 4th pick overall, and he was not going to be around all the way to 21st pick. (He went 14th) I already mentioned my Bargnani incident. Ford was a top guy on the board in the previous round, but I needed a Center at that point. So at this stage in the 8th, I am going to do some reaching just to make sure I get a Rap, and take ether Anthony Parker or Jose Calderon. Both were available, and I went with Jose. For the record, we fantasy observers might worry about Jose's minutes, but I also worry about Parkers. AP is the starter, but with the strong wing men depth on the team, they don't need to give AP 40 minutes a night, I can see around the 30 mark. Well Jose is only going to give around 20 BUT if Ford does get hurt, that is HUGE for Jose. And Jose will get a large volume of assists fast, which makes him valuable this deep no matter what. The later we get in the draft, the less and less we find all round strong players and just find specialty players. The Raja Bells (3's) Drew Goodens (boards) Shane Battier (Stls and Blocks). Jose will give me assists quick. And he will also get times to shine, where Mitchell will give Jose the time with the starters. When Jose shines, he also can get some points as well as a wicked FG% plus some 3's. It might have been a stretch for the 8th round, but the potential is there.

Plus there was no way I was not going to have at least one Raptor on my team.

For number 9, it is time to find sleepers. At this stage there is guys like Andrew Bynum and Derek Fisher and Peja Stojakovic and Darko. Plus Ben Wallace!! But I went with a high energy sleeper in Tyrus Thomas. He is going to get minutes this year, and showed a lot of potential last year. If he can take the next step, lord knows he has little to fight with for position in Chicago (Joe Smith), this could be huge. He gives me boards which i need, blocks which I need and good FG%. He hurts me on the FT% and at this stage I am in trouble with that. THe only thing going for me is that the high volume FT guys I have shoot well (except for McGrady) and the bad shooters don't go to the line that often.

Luke Walton was doing really well in Fantasy last year up until he got hurt. Seems people forgot about the first half of the season. The guy does not stand out in any cats, he is best at assists, but does not hurt in any cat ether. He gets a handful of boards, points, a few steals, a few blocks, a couple of 3's and shoots decent percentages. He has gotten better every season he has played and Kobe trusts him (as mentioned in Phil Jacksons book). UPSIDE baby! Especially in the 10th round.

Now it's time to fill in the bench, and forget about catagories, I am going for sleepers. Guys who I think could be huge this season. If they suck after 2 weeks, then they can be dropped for someone else. First up is Jeff Green from Seattle. They are already building him up to be the Pippen to Durants Jordan. And since Seattle got rid of everyone, the Druant era will start this season, so too should the Green era as well.

Pau Gasol needed to be happy, and they brought in Juan Carlos Navarro to do so. So does that mean Navarro is going to get some PT? Navarro is a proven player on the international scene, so an adjustment period hopefully to the NBA game will be short. He has also looked good so far in the 3 pre-season games. PT will be the issue with this guy.

And last but not least, I took Antonio McDyess. Hey, he is a starter now on one of the better teams in the league. He is also going to try to prove he belongs. He might be a better 6th man then starter, and if that's the case, oh well, I look for some one else. At the 13th round, the selections get VERY tough.

So there you have it...
G- Gilbert Arenas
G- Tracy McGrady
G- Corey Maggette
G- Jose Calderon

F- Paul Pierce
F- Josh Howard
F- Tyrus Thomas
F- Luke Walton

C- Tyson Chandler
C- Andris Biedrins

B- Jeff Green
B- Juan Navarro
B- Antonio McDyess

I need Chandler to be huge this year, I need Tyrus Thomas to take that next step and I need Maggette to stay the focus in L.A. for the season. Oh, and McGrady to give me at least 70 games.

Miami Heat

2007-10-16T10:35:00.001-04:00

MIami Heat Season preview

Projected starting lineup
G Jason Williams
G Dwayne Wade
F Antoine Walker
F Udonis Haslem
C Shaquille O'Neal

Reserves
Alonzo Mourning
Smush Parker
Penny Hardaway

Last year
No one really believed that Miami could do it for a second year in a row. Then again, no one really believed they would make it all the way 2 years ago ether. But with the same team except for the fact that everyone got a year older, the Heat went into the season to defend their crown. I think though that starting the year off with a 40 point lose at home, especially with the ring ceremony being that same night, everyone knew that it would be a challenge for them to even come close to repeating. People always had to include the Heat in the conversation, but did these people really believe that the Heat deserved that spot? Shaq showed that he is completely unable to go 82 games at this stage in his career. While he still deserves tons of respect from the defense, the cracks in the armor are getting wider and wider. He missed around 30 games during the first few months of the season. On top of that, both James Posey and Antoine Walker were told to stay dressed in some nice suits for a few games due to the fact that they had a few too many post-championship celebrations. Jason Williams was down and out most of the season which left very old Gary Payton as the point guard option. Although the biggest hit the team faced was the injury to Dwayne Wade's shoulder, as if forced him to miss a month and a half of the season, as well as head into the playoffs not playing at 100%. Riley had mentioned a few times how this team feels like they will be able to coast the regular season and move into a second gear for the playoffs. Riley mentioned they would be wrong in that assumption. Riley was right. A shocking 4 game sweep to the Chicago Bulls sent the defending champions home VERY early. I don't think many people really thought that the Heat could do it two years in a row, but the way they lost last year was still a huge suprise to everyone.

Off-Season
Lost Jason Kapono to free agency
Lost James Posey to free agency
Lost Gary Payton to free agency
Signed Penny Hardaway
Signed Smush Parker
Traded for Daequan Cook on draft day

The biggest news out of Miami this off-season was the attempt to sign Mo Williams out of Milwaukee. With only a mid-level exception to use, Mo Williams stuck with the much bigger contract he was offered from the Bucks, but Miami had shown what they were interested in which was a point guard to make up for often injuried Jason Williams. If they had scoried Williams, then this year would be a potential year for big things. But instead they got Smush Parker. There goes the potential. Penny Hardaway might have been a very good player, but if Shaq can hardly go 50 games, how do we expect an even older Penny with bum knees to contribute in a positive way during 82 games plus playoffs? And they lost two players that were solid role-guys in Kapono and Posey. What players are going to make up for that?

2007-2008
If last year everyone was unsure about Miami's chances, this year I think it's very safe to say what they are. None. Shaq a year older. Alonzo a year older. Wade now with a major injury hanging over him. Jason Williams with knees that just can't go anymore. Smush Parker is the back up point guard. The biggest news of the summer is the signing of a 36 year old who has not played in years. And Antoine Walker could be seeing more playing time. All of this added together equals...

What to watch for
1) Health - Will Wade be the same Wade we all know and love when he returns? Can Shaq daddy make it past 70 games? Will Penny be able to play and contribute on his shaky knees? Will Jason Williams be able to give it this season?
2) Team Chemistry - It just seems like this team is ready to boil at any minute. With Pat Riley shaking things up, this pop can is ready to explode.

Prediction
I can't say that I predict big things for this team, but I can say that if Wade is healthy, this team will at least make the playoffs. Wade can win games on his own, so getting past the 42 W mark should happen. That being said, Chicago sweeping them was not a fluke last year. Don't expect to see Miami in the second round this season.

Between 41 and 45 wins this season with an 8th place finish in the East

Rockhard Fantasy Draft preview

2007-10-14T16:07:00.000-04:00

So tomorrow is the big day. The 2007 fantasy draft lottery. I got 4th pick and it looks like Gilbert Arenas will be leading the charge for the Power of Pain. Who would I take if I had number one? Hands down I think the top fantasy player will be Kevin Garnett. After watching him play against the Raps last week, I can say one thing for sure, HE is JACKED UP!! And a Jacked up, motivated Kevin Garnett is a fantasy winner!!

But he won't be around for number 4.

This is how I predict it goes down...
Number 2 pick will go to Lebron if available for sure, if not available then it's Garnett. I got a feeling though that Lebron is number one and Garnett will be number two. The only chance I got at Garnett is if Arenas or Dirk goes one, which is doubtful. If that does happen, Lebron will go two, and I then bank on a Kobe lover taking Kobe 3rd which leaves me with Garnett at four.

Regardless, I am getting whats left over from Lebron/Kobe/Garnett/Arenas. Although as you all know, I am not a Kobe fan, and I will give serious thought to taking Nash 4th over Kobe EVEN though Kobe should be the stronger fan player. The reality is, 1st round guys are all solid so the difference is not that major between them.

I will let you guys know my team on Tuesday. Until then though, let's repost the draft lottery video once again. I must admit something...I have seen quite a few of these types of videos pop up on youtube, mostly for fantasy football, but this might be bragging, but ours kicks all kinds of ass.

Boston Celtics

2007-10-13T22:03:00.001-04:00

Boston Celtics season preview

Projected starting line-up
G Rajon Rondo
G Ray Allen
F Paul Pierce
F Kevin Garnett
C Kendrick Perkins

Reserves
James Posey
Eddie House

Last year
The youth movement was on in Boston, as the young and inexperience Celtics team proved that having potential is one thing, winning basketball games is another. Could things have been different if Paul Pierce didn't miss half the season to injuries? Maybe, but since Boston's record when Paul went down was 10-14, I somehow doubt this team was going to do anything meaningful, with or without Pierce. Now of course, if Pierce was on the court, then they could have avoided the embarrassing 3-29 stretch they had when Pierce went down. But what else do you expect from a line-up of Sebastian Telfair, Tony Allen, Ryan Gomes, Gerald Green and Al Jefferson? The reality is that youth and potential is nice, and it might pay off in the future, but then again it just might not. And it was certainly not paying off last season. If Boston did keep the same team, only now with a healthy Pierce and one more year of experience for everyone, could we really expect anything different from them? Do you really want to keep a team that MIGHT be good in 4 or 5 years, but will most defiently not make the playoffs until then? In fact, for all the youth and potential that Boston tried to aquire, the only player to step up was Al Jefferson. Let me give a positive and a negative to Jefferson here....the positive is that he became the main guy on the team when Peirce was out, and a consistent inside threat and a double double player. The experience with that role, and the confidence from being successful with that role, will help the big guy for the immediate future. The negative is, and I have said it before, when you are the best player on a shitty team, how good are you really? Is Dallas REALLY going to give 100% effort against you when they know that they don't NEED to give 100% effort against you to win? Does Detroit really care if your main guy on a basement team gets 20 and 10? They show that they rather stay at home or in the hotel even when they are playing 500 level teams! They care that much when the team is losing 18 games in a row? Jefferson stepped up and played well, but if the competition decides to step up also, is it guarateed that Jefferson can handle it? I guess my point to all this is simple, based on what we saw last season, Boston needed a change.

Off Season
Traded Ryan Gomes, Gerald Green, Sebastian Telfair, Theo Ratliff and Al Jefferson for Kevin Garnett
Traded Delonte West, 5th pick Jeff Green and Wally Szczerbiak for Ray Allen and a 2nd round pick.
Signed Eddie House
Signed Scott Pollard
Signed James Posey

No matter which way you look at the big trades, the Celtics went from a lottery team to a playoff team this summer. When we examine the Ray Allen trade...Wally world was a waste of space, 5th round pick Jeff Green would only make the team younger which they didn't need, and Delonte West or all-star Jesus Shuttlesworth?Hmmmm. Sure Delonte West and Jeff Green might be more then solid players in the future, but they were not going to be that on last years youth version of the Celtics. As for the mother of all trades...Telfair is Telfair, which is to say that he is Minnesota's problem now. Ryan Gomes is Ryan Gomes, which is to say that he is a 2nd round draft pick who has had some decent games (to be fair, one decent game did see him getting a triple-double). Theo Ratliff has a huge contract ending this season, which is to say that during the press conference in Minnesota, I half expected them to put the Timberwolves jersey on a piece of paper instead of Ratliff. Gerald Green can jump out of the arena, but couldn't step up when Peirce and Wally world were injuried last year (10.4 PPG, 2.6 boards and 1 assist. View Al Jefferson's numbers for an example of someone who did step up). And of course, Al Jefferson. Al Jefferson is nice, and could get even better. But he is not a former league MVP who is still in his prime, simple as that. So with these trades, the Celtics needed to find some cheap players to fill up the roster. In comes House, Pollard and Posey. With the limitations from a money perspective, they didn't do as bad as I thought they would with filling in the roster.

Next season
Let's forget about long term, and how the Celtics screwed themselves over in 3 or 4 years. What I care about is now. How good are they going to be in 2007-2008. And in my opinion, it will all depend on injuries. Ray Allen is not in the best of shape with his ankles, I don't even know what was going on with Pierce last year and his elbow, and Kevin Garnett is due an injury as he has played major minutes in his career and yet to miss any substantal time. And if any of the big three miss any time this year, then this team will drop considerably in the rankings. While the additions they made in the off-season, especially with Posey, were better then expected, they are still a extremly weak team from 5-12. And that includes two starters in Rajon Rondo and Perkins. Rondo has potential, but he clearly has weaknesses in his game that will be picked apart by the opposing team looking for ways to win dealing with the big 3. And the way to win when dealing with 3 superstars, is to attack the weaker players. Rondo is a nice player, but he will be tested daily in big game situations. Perkins is Perkins, they need to start a center which is where he comes into play. Garnett, Allen and Pierce though have enough talent to have more then a chance at winning the east. They also have what some other big 3's are missing (like Washington) which is that one of the players (Garnett) is an inside force force to go with the preimeter play. Will the change from youth to experience cost the Celtics later on? Perhaps, but as for next year, they have jumped over many teams in the east and can safely be considered a favorite to win the conference IF the big 3 stay heathy all year. That is though a big IF.

What to look for
1) Does back up matter - House can shoot a ball, and Posey has a ring, but this is not a deep team.
2) Injury proof? - If one of the big three goes down, it will be trouble.
3) Need time to gel - If any three all-stars didn't need to much time, it's these three.

Predictions
They will kill the weak but might struggle against the strong. They will make the playoffs, but winning the Atlantic and getting home court in round one will depend on if the big three play more then 70 games each and not running out of steam at the end. Garnett/Allen/Pierce are all going to have to log minutes threw out the season in order for this team to have success. Will they have enough in the tank at the end?

Between 47 and 51 wins this season with a 5th place finish in the East

Charlotte Bobcats

2007-10-12T17:08:00.001-04:00

Charlotte Bobcats season preview

Projected starting line-up
G Raymond Felton
G Jason Richardson
F Gerald Wallace
F Walter Herrmann
C Emeka Okafor

Reserves
Matt Carroll
Adam Morrison
Jeff McInnis

Last Year
Expecations were low going into the 2006-2007 season. And not only were expeciations low but also attendance and profit. In Charlotte's third season, wins were few and far between but at the end of the season optimism was felt by everyone in the organization. With a final record of 33-49, they continued the trend of improving in every season (18 wins in year one, 26 in year two) and took out some top teams like the Cavs twice, Spurs, Pistons, Jazz, Bulls, Washington twice and the Lakers twice. Obviously this team does have talent, but the lack of depth and inexperience also lead to a 2-8 start to the season, a 5-10 December and an 8 game losing streak that spread both Feburary and March. On top of that, Michael Jordan, the man who proved being the best all time on the court does not mean jack-all when it comes to running a franchise, is now the main guy behind the scenes for Charlotte. Near the end of the season it was announced that Bernie Bickerstaff would not be returning as a coach or GM for the next season. So whatever progress was made this year, it could mean nothing now that someone else is taking the franchise in a new direction.

Off season
Hired Sam Vincent as a coach
Traded 8th pick Brandan Wright for Jason Richardson
Waived Brevin Knight
Re-signed Gerald Wallace
Re-signed Matt Carroll

Where to begin? Jason Richardson brings some more experience to the team, but this is still a very very young group with no meaningful playoff experience. Hiring a rookie coach to take over in this situation does not bold well for immediate results. And if at the end of next year this team has not taken another step forward, what happens with the Sam Vincent experiment? Matt Carroll is a solid shooter and adds some nice depth if he is coming off the bench. They don't need to get any younger so getting a proven scorer in Jason Richardson is very nice, although also getting his huge contract and his injuries concern is not so nice. If Richardson produces like he did in 05-06 where he played 75 games, shot 45%, grabbed close to 6 boards and averaged 23 points a game...he is by far worth trading a rookie. If though his numbers are like last year with 41.5% shooting, 5 boards,16 points a game and most importantly only 51 games then I would say he is not worth it. He does present a first for Charlotte which is a proven go-to guy. Gerald Wallace is a very nice athletic player....but is he worth around 9 million? Where in order for him to be effective he must put his body on the line which in turn makes him the injury risk that he is. He finished the year strong, averaging 28 points a game over a 5 game stretch in April. But if Charlotte is considered more of a threat, and opposing defense take more interest in Wallace, will he still be able to produce? Lot's of risks from M.J. this off-season.

2007-2008
A successful run from this Charlotte Bobcat team will be a very nice feel good story. It would be a pleasure to watch them be the Toronto Raptors of the 2007-2008 season. But for all the improvements they potentially made this off-season, it's not like other teams did nothing. And I use the word potentially because a lot could go wrong this year for Charlotte. Any major time missed by Okafor, Wallace and Richardson will hurt any chances this team has. And all three have to be considered injury risks. Plus Felton has been run into the ground last year when Brevin Knight was injured, logging a 48 minute game last year, a few 42-45 and a 57!! minute game along with a 51. Sure he is young and athletic, but so are most players when they get that first knee surgery. I guess the point is that for this team to make the playoffs, everything would have to go perfect this year, and even when making the playoffs, they would only be looking at 7th or 8th spot. So the question is, with the moves made in the off-season, is this really the direction they think will lead them to a championship?

What to look for
1) Jason Richardson - Can he lead the team as the number one option?
2) Experience: None - Can Sam Vincent as coach with very little experience and zero NBA head coaching experience lead this team?
3) Injury ridden season? - Sean May is already out, and Okafor and Wallace have the injury history. Can this team make it 82 games without major injury?

Predications
They have nice pieces but I have a hard time putting this team ahead of other lottery teams like Atlanta and Milwaukee. They have improved every season since the franchise started, but I don't see that big of an improvement this year.

Between 26 and 30 wins this season with a 13th place finish

Raps vs Real

2007-10-12T12:07:00.000-04:00

Some of you may already know, some of you might not, but the Toronto Raptors lost yesterday to Real Madrid by a score of 104-103. This puts the Raps at a preseason record of 1-2, not like last year when they tore preseason up going 7-1 overall. But let me just tell you Raptor fans, if you are worried, don't worry! It's fine. Here is the things to remember about yesterdays game...

1) Real Madrid is good, really good. They are one of the best club teams in Europe.

2) The Raps looked tired, real tired. Ford started the game great. But the opposing PG on Real Madrid picked up Ford full court every play and wore out T.J. And not just Ford but 75% of the Raps looked quite tired. This is preseason to them playing in a playoff type of game. And that's what the vibe, with the crowd into it and the other team jacked and ready to go, it had that vibe. Naturally a team travelling overseas, going threw a lot of promotional appearances and just trying to get back into game shape will have a tough time in a playoff game right now.

3) Home court for Madrid. The crowd was clearly behind Madrid, and was a very different type of crowd that a typical North American crowd. They did this thing where when the Raps were on offense, the crowd would whistle. And it was effective in throwing the Raps off for a couple of possessions.

4) No Bosh. I perfer they show they are talented enough to win without Bosh, and I do believe they are. But still, with Bosh it would have been a victory.

5) Luke Jackson played. IT'S PRESEASON! I know the Raps did want to win, and went for it, but they still needed to do preseason type of things. Like giving the bench extended minutes. Jackson will not be in the regular rotation come season time. Plus, on a side note, he did not look good.

So the Raps are coming home now. And have 4 more preseason games. At this stage, we still need to see something more out of Kapono and Delfino. Both guys have done nothing bad, but also nothing good. They are just there at this point. Time to step up.

Washington Wizards

2007-10-12T11:58:00.000-04:00

Washington Wizards season preview

Projected Starting line-up

G Gilbert Arenas
G DeShawn Stevenson
F Caron Butler
F Antawn Jamison
C Etan Thomas

Reserves
Brandon Haywood
Antonio Daniels
Darius Songaila

Last year
What have you done for me lately? That saying is what might lead you to only remember the Wizards downfall last season as injuries turned the team into the prize match up for who ever the first round opponent would be (in this case it was the Cavs). Both Caron Butler and Gilbert Arenas went down with season ending injuries leaving Jamison and remaining crew to try to at least appear like a playoff team instead of a lottery team still playing after the season. Problem is that the Wizards have always been a team with a lack of depth, so the lose of the two main players left no chance for the Wizards to do anything worth while in the first round. What have you done for me lately? Because before the injuries, Washington actually was considered a top team in the east. Who was the coach of the eastern conference all-star team? Remember that the way it works for all-star games is that the top teams in each conference sends their head coach to lead the conference team. Eddie Jordan was the coach of the eastern conference all-stars last season because Washington at one point was the best team in the East. Gilbert Arenas and Caron Butler were both on the all-star team as well. And Arenas overall was having a great season, not just stat wise but with his entertaining the crowd antics as well. Sometimes he went overboard (the jersey in Seattle thing) but I could watch his top 10 plays of the year over and over again. Very few people in the history of the game are as deadly with the ball and a few seconds remaining on the clock as he is. Regardless of his play though, and regardless of how well Washington played in the first 2 months, they had major holes that was very easy to see. The depth as I mentioned was extremely thin. Etan Thomas is alright, but Haywood who got just as much time at center was a joke. And the main 3 players from Washington needed each other to play to be successful. When Jamison went down in the middle of the season, the Wizards went 4-8 with Butler and Arenas. With out Butler, Jamison and Arenas went 2 -8. So no matter how well this team had played for stretch's last year, they still were a work in progress.

Off-Season
Lost Jarvis Hayes to free agency
Lost Michael Ruffin to free agency
Lost Calvin Booth to free agency
Re-signed DeShawn Stevenson
Drafted Oleksiy Pecherov
Drafted Nick Young
Resigned Andray Blatche
Resigned Roger Mason

Hmmm, the team has a lack of depth and what do they do for an off-season? Make it even worse. They added nothing this season to help them out, and lost Jarvis Hayes. Michael Ruffin and Calvin Booth. Not that those three were turning any heads, but they could give a few minutes here and there. Now with them gone, what does the Wizards have left to give those 10-15 minutes a game?

2007-2008
What I expect from this team this season is pretty much the same thing we got last year before Arenas and Butler went out. High Power offense with zero defense. A team that can beat anyone and one night and the very next lose to a lottery team. When the Washington offense is on a roll, they are one of the best teams in the league. But no team has a 82 game roll, there are peaks and valleys during the NBA season and what carries the strong teams threw those valleys is depth and defense, the two things Washington does not have. Even in the playoffs where a team has to win 16 times and can play up to 28 games, the Wizards can stay on a roll the whole way? And on top of that, they are similar to the Celtics in which they need there top 3 players to stay healthy. One injury to ether Arenas, Butler or Jamison and Washington suffers in a big way. I just didn't see the necessary improvements in the off-season to expect big things from Washington this upcoming year, and with other teams around the Wizards getting stronger, staying status quo might not even be good enough to get into the playoffs next year. One thing they do have going from them is that Arenas will be playing for money next season, as he is opting out of his contract at the end of the year. Contract seasons generally do lead to higher production.

What to watch for
1) Arenas contract year - We saw how well Arenas played last year, let's see how well he plays when it's for money
2) Defense - Does Washington actually believe that they can win it with such emphasise on offense and a the lack of defense that they showed last year? Contrary to popular opinion, the Suns do play defense.
3) Step up - The East has gotten better. Is Washington going to join the elite of the East, or fall back into the middle tier.

Predictions
They started great last year when fully healthy, and if they stay healthy this season I do believe they will be a handful for any team. But that lack of defense will get them in the end.

Between 45 and 49 wins this season with a 6th place finish in the East

Phoenix Suns

2007-10-11T15:28:00.000-04:00

Phoenix Suns Season preview

G Steve Nash
G Raja Bell
F Shawn Marion
F Grant Hill
C Amare Stoudemire

Reserves
Boris Diaw
Leandro Barbosa

Last year
When the driving force behind any chance you have of getting a championship is getting close to his mid-thirties, I am assuming that the sense of urgency might be higher for the team to succeed then compared to, let's say, Portland with Greg Oden. The term "window of opportunity" is used in situations like this, were Oden has about 15 or 16 solid years while Nash had about 3 or 4 going into last season. Based on this, I can also assume that what happened in the playoffs to Phoenix might somewhat more painful and tougher to deal with when compared to some of the other teams in the league. The one game suspension for Amare Stoudemire and Boris Diaw can not officially be the reason why Phoenix lost the second round series to San Antonio, who is to say that the Suns would definetly have won 2 out of 3 if both players did play game 5? But there is more then enough reason to believe that the Suns were in control of the series before the Robert Horry body check. Tied 2-2 going into game 5, the Suns had home court advantage as well as coming off a victory in San Antonio giving them momentum. Again, who knows what would have happened if Diaw and Amare didn't leave the bench, but we do know that the Spurs had a very easy time against Utah and Cleveland the rest of the way, pretty much making the Suns/Spurs series the championship in most observers eyes. With a 3-4 year window, I could understand if a team would be pissed about how everything turned out. As for the regular season, the good news for the Suns was the play of Amare Stoudemire. It was questioned if he would be able to return to anywhere close to the level of play he was at in 2004-2005. The team took a cautious approach for the majority of November, but by the time December hit Amare would playing a solid 30-35 minutes a game while producing solid numbers. His numbers would get better and better as the season went on. Leandro Barbosa had a break out year coming off the bench for the Suns, with a speed that was almost unguardable by anyone in the league. And Shawn Marion had another solid year, although the issues of team chemistry that has been talked about during and after the playoffs sounds to be the product of the Matrix. With a 15 game winning streak followed soon after by a 17 game winning streak, the Suns were easily considered to be the NBA's elite team with the Spurs and the Mavs.

Off-Season
Signed Grant Hill
Traded Kurt Thomas and draft picks for a trade exception
Traded James Jones for cash
Drafted Alando Tucker
Resigned Sean Marks
Signed Brian Skinner
Signed Sean Marks

The signing of Grant Hill was a nice move, especially considering that Hill can still produce at a high level, and coming as cheap as some deep rotation players. This off season though did have the rumors about trades involving Marion and also Amare. The reason being that the Suns are at or will be over the Salary cap which means it will cost this team even more to keep everyone together. Owner Robert Sarver, with no championship as of yet, must be feeling the pressure to get the costs down, as we saw both Kurt Thomas and James Jones, both servicable role players, traded for nothing but cash and a trade exception. Depth was never a friend of this team, and it looks like that won't change anytime soon.

2007-2008
While the window is getting shorter for Steve Nash and the Phoenix Suns, it's not closed yet. In fact, I see no reason to believe that Nash is going to start to show his age and produce anything but another MVP type of year. Amare will be ready to go from day one, and the addition of veteran player Grant Hill should help with some of the locker room issues they are having. I have no clue how Hill is going to be able to play the style of ball the Suns play with his ankles, but that had to be something they considered when they signed him, so that doesn't seem to be of major concern for the team, at least not when considering the bargain basement price they got Hill. What I expect from this team this upcoming season is something that was lacking from them anytime in the past few years since Nash arrived, which is a team full of piss and vinegar. They are not happy in any form about what happened last year, and unlike Dallas which is more embarrassed by what happened to them, the Suns are pissed off. When considering the top 3 teams in the league, the Suns/Spurs/Mavs, we see that the Suns are pissed, the Spurs are happy and satisfied and the Mavs are embarrassed. The advantage based on that goes easily to the Suns, but again it's a long season. I have no doubt that the style of ball the Suns play can win championships, and the 2007-2008 season might be the best chance they have at proving that.

What to watch for
1) Pissed off Suns - They are not happy about the playoffs last year. They will have an edge this season based on that
2) Marion's ego - Chemistry problems in the locker room that was the off-spring of Marion's issues with moving from the guy behind Nash to the guy behind Nash and Amare. They were close to moving Marion this off-season so let's see how the locker room works for the 82 games.
3) Spurs - The Spurs have the championship belt, and the Mavs have at least made it all the way to the dance. The Suns really have nothing to show fpr the past few seasons except for Nash with his MVP's. If they want to truly establish themselves with the best of the best, then they are going to need to beat the best which is the Spurs.

Predications
Let's not worry about Marion, I don't think he will be much of an issue. Let's worry about the Mavs and the Spurs, because those are the teams the Suns will be battling for the championship. And while the regular season might not be perfect, I think this is will be the year of the Suns.

Between 57 and 61 wins this season with a 3rd place finish in the West

Don't expect to see Bosh play today

2007-10-11T09:29:00.001-04:00

I have been trying to avoid saying that Bosh was injury prone.... but I do admit I am starting to get worried. CB4 hurt his knee a few days ago and has since missed 2 practices and will miss today's preseason game vs Real Madrid. Now I don't want to go overboard in doubt with this guy, Bosh will be in the lineup against Philly on opening day, and he will play in 70 plus games this season unless something major happens. But there is some players that never get hurt at all, and some players that do. And it is starting to seem like Bosh is falling into that sometimes do catagory.

Atlanta Hawks

2007-10-10T18:25:00.000-04:00

Atlanta Hawks Season preview

Projected Starting line-up

G Speedy Claxton
G Joe Johnson
F Josh Smith
F Marvin Williams
C Zaza Pachulia

Reserves
Acie Law
Josh Childress
Tyronn Lue
Al Horford
Sheldon Williams

Last year
I don't think going into last season, the Atlanta Hawks were picked as the team that would be able to break the record of longest run of not winning an NBA title with 48 years. And observers were correct, the streak is now 49. After last season, the Hawks also now have the longest tenure of most consecutive seasons without a playoff appearance at 8 years in a row. Throw in a 4th year in a row of 50 plus loss seasons, and we are looking at one struggling franchise. Atlanta has ownership issues and the reality is that when ownership is unstable, you can forget any type of major moves from that team. Joe Johnson, who is a damn fine player, is not going to win a championship solo and I question if he is capable of being the main guy on a championship team even with the support. Outside of Johnson though, Atlanta is a very young team that shows no urge to change that about them. How many times do I have to say that potential is nice, but a team full of it is going nowhere anytime soon. There needs to be a balance to the team for it to do any type of damage. So, even though the team had a nice 4-1 start to the season, a 2-14 run over December /January ended any type of tease that Atlanta gave the fans early in the season. And I don't want to jump on the "Speedy Claxton sucks" bandwagon, but when he got good money to fill the void that was point guard position for Atlanta, then played in 42 games, shot 33% for the field with a sad 21% from the 3 point line. Add in a even sadder 55% FT percentage what you will get is a lot more expensive PG void. Salt to the wound is watching Chris Paul and Deron Williams tearing up the league, both PG selected after Atlanta selected Marvin Williams. Again, I hate to be negative, but imagine Deron Williams/Joe Johnson/Josh Smith on the court together. One positive for Atlanta this past season was Josh Smith showing off some incredable athletic skills, although getting into it with Coach Woodson about playing time is not something that should become a habit. Losing all the time can be stressful and heartbreaking so I can give him a pass for an occasional outburst.

Off-Season
Drafted Al Horford
Drafted Acie Law

Remember that joke about how the Hawks were going to get Amare Stoudemire as part of some 3 team trade? Here is a team that has lost 50 plus games 4 seasons in a row, and all they do in the off-season was sign the two draft picks they had. At least they didn't screw it up completely, and did get a good PG in Acie Law. But a young team just got younger. This ownership issue the team has better clear it self soon, cause the lack of movement is going to lead to the lack of change in the teams record.

2007-2008
I mean, what else can be said. It's the same team that won 30, except with 2 more rookies. And even if those rookies have great rookie seasons, they are still rookies. Speedy Claxton will hopefully be recovered and ready to go this year. That might help as there is no doubt the big issue on the team is the PG position. If Speedy can play and contribute, then Atlanta might be able to get a few more games, but again I look at the lack of activity in the off-season and compare it to the other teams in the east that has improved. Atlanta has lost 50 games 4 seasons in a row in the weak east. What are they going to do with the same team + two rookies in a much stronger eastern conference? Even if Speedy can go, i wouldn't expect much from these guys. That being said, the pieces are there for some surprises as the young guys they got do have talent. They just remind me of a college basketball team trying to play in the NBA.

Things to watch for
1) Are the pieces there? - With drafting of a new Point Guard and a new Center/Power forward, does this team now have every position covered?
2) Joe Johnson part 2 - Last year was a break out year for Johnson, can he keep it up?
3) Josh Smith part 2 - Same for Smith, add in the attitude watch.

Prediction
Unlike ESPN, I can't predict playoffs for this team. They started strong last season, but inexperience kept them out of the playoffs. They needed a new point guard and a new center which they got, but do those two players add to the experience factor?
2 more years for this group of players.

Between 29 and 33 wins this season with a 11th place finish in the East

Memphis Grizzlies

2007-10-10T10:58:00.000-04:00

Memphis Grizzlies Season Preview

Projected Starting line-up
G Mike Conley
G Rudy Gay
F Mike Miller
F Pau Gasol
C Darko Milicic

Reserves
Hakkim Warrick
Juan Carlos Navarro
Kyle Lowry

Last season
International players treat playing for their respective counties as an honor, more so then in the United States. When growing up in North America, I would assume that the kids who play ball dream about making it into the NBA. Internationally though, I think that dream is to play for your country. Trying to stop Pau Gasol from playing for Spain in the world championships would have been a challenge. Of course, in retrospect, it might have been a challenge that Memphis management should have attempted, as Gasol broke his foot in that tournament and was out for the first 23 games of the season. No wonder GM's cringe when watching international basketball. Without Gasol, the Grizzles went 5-17 and effectivly ending the season just as it got started. Without defensive specialist Shane Barrier, who they traded to Houston for Rudy Gay and Stromile Swift, and with out Gasol, Memphis had no chance in the rough Western Conference. Damon Stoudamire was a shell of his former self due to an injury from the previous season. And coach Mike Fratello refused to change the style of play going into the season. It was argued that with the players on the roster (Mike Miller, Rudy Gay, Hakim Warrick and Dahntey Jones to name a few), a faster pace style of play would be more successful. Fratello though stuck with a slow it down pace and was fired after 30 games. Tony Barone Sr. was put in as a interim coach. After 30 games, the team was lottery bound. After the switch at the coaching position, and with Gasol back and playing at 100%, the Grizzles did increase the offensive production of the team, averaging close to 110 PPG in the second half of the season. Of course, having some defense on the other side of the court would help, but again this team was lottery bound so losing a few games to increase the chances of Greg Oden wouldn't hurt. Having your star player request a trade on the other hand would hurt. And that is what Gasol did early in the year. How close were we to seeing Gasol in a Bulls uniform, I have no idea, but he is still a Grizzly today. Would he become a happy Grizzly?

Off-Seaon
Signed Darko Milicic
Lost Chucky Atkins to free agency
Traded a future 1st round pick for Juan Carlos Navarro
Drafted Mike Conley

With the need for a new coach, Memphis was able to secure Phoenix Suns assistant coach Marc Iavaroni. Largly considered to be ready to step up to the plate, Iavaroni will bring his experience working with the up-tempo Suns to the Memphis Grizzles. He is also considered to be strong at teaching the big guys in the league, which will come in handy with Darko Milicic. Darko always had the excuse in Detroit of why he was a joke of a number 2 pick, but in Orlando, he did have more of an opportunity that slipped away. Third times a charm? Something tells me that he might just suprise everyone in this situation, still not #2 pick in the 2004 draft type of play, but at least he will earn some respectability here. Spain basketball has been a source of some great talent, and now 4 players from the World Champions play on 2 teams in the NBA, (Jorge Garbajosa and Jose Calderon on the Raptors, and Naverro and Gasol on Memphis) If Navarro produces like he does for Spain, then this is a very nice pick-up made by Memphis. And Mike Conley at point guard was a great pick up for a team that needs help in that position.

2007-2008
Basement teams should take notice, as Memphis showed what to do after a horrible year. Of course, we know that Memphis did have the talent, and were just dealt some bad cards last year with the injury to Gasol. And while that might have helped them get Conley, it was Memphis who went out and got one of the top free agent coaches on the market. It was Memphis who went out and got a player from a wold championship team with Juan Carlos Navarro, who is also good friends with Gasol which in turn makes your franchise player happy. It was Memphis who got a potential big man at cheap cost with Darko Milicic. Mike Miller will have some new confidence just getting off a summer with the U.S. basketball team. Rudy Gay got a lot of playing time and shots last year, which should help speed up his growth coming into year 2. Hakkim Warrick showed that he has potential to be a solid cnotributor in the rotation. Truth be told, these Memphis Grizzles have a lot of potential this year, and are one of the top teams to win the "Toronto Raptors" award of being the team to flip everything around so quickly. Now of course, they are still in the West, so even with as much potential they seem to have, it is still hard to say playoffs. But if they get a little luck, see some other teams in the Western Conference being dealt the injury bug, Memphis has the pieces to take advantage of any bad luck other teams might recieve. It would only be fair for Memphis to have some good luck after last year.

What to watch for
1) Darko - Last chance for him to not become a joke
2) Drastic difference - They will be better then last year. In the tough West, how much better?
3) Happy Gasol - He asked for a trade last season. Will he be happy this year?

Prediction
I have good feelings about this team, although how quickly they can adjust and come together will be the big story. They have the talent, and a coach who has experience even though not at the head coach position. The league overall has improved though, and I just don't know if they can get together quickly enough for playoffs. But this team should be a tough one on the schedule for the other 29.

Between 35 and 39 wins this season with a 10th place overall in the West

Rockhard Fantasy Draft Video

2007-10-09T18:36:00.000-04:00

Not sure how many of you are involved in any type of Basketball Fantasy league, but I am. And to make things fun, we figure out our draft order via an entertaining draft lottery video.

I have posted last years version a few times previously so now it is time for this years version...

Our draft is next Monday. With a early pick, I am looking at starting my draft off with ether Garnett/Arenas/Dirk/Marion/Kobe or Lebron, depending on what the few guys ahead of me do. First year doing H2H roto, should be interesting.

Pre season thoughts

2007-10-09T17:17:00.000-04:00

I thought that it was interesting, even though it is pre-season, the Memphis lost today to Unicaja Malaga by 3 points. Once again, I know it's pre-season and we should not read into anything. But with European teams getting stronger and stronger every year, it is becoming much more common for those teams to get a W in these pre-season games. The Raps of course lost 2 years ago when Anthony Parker played for the other team and hit a buzzer beater. Last year, the Clips and other NBA team, I can't remember which one, lost.

The common thread here is that all the NBA teams that had lost were weak NBA teams. The Raptors, which is not a weak NBA team, won on Sunday against a Italian squad quite easy actually. I watch the game, and even though it was close all the way into the middle of the 4th, the Raptors were not 100% there. Coming off a back to back this early in pre-season, they did not have the energy to blow the opponent out. Not to say that the Italian club was weak, they were a great three point shooting club, but the Raps were by far the better team.

That's why I am suprised Memphis lost, I figured they would be much stronger this year. It's early though, and this again means very little. Good news for Memphis fans though is that Juan Carlos Navarro came off the bench and dropped 5 three's for 21 points. The bad news? Darko came off the bench and shot 1-6 with 2 boards.

Let me take the time here to also mention the Boston vs Raps game. I had a chance to watch it and I will say that both teams put effort into it, but the Celtics were on a whole other level in terms of intensity. Garnett had league MVP bounce to his step. The Boston bench was standing much more then sitting the entire game and that included when both teams went deep into the bench during the fourth. That's right, Garnett and Pierce were being cheerleaders just as much as anyone else. And this is all very good news for the Raps! Because for the 3 quarters that mattered, the Raps and Celtics were dead even in terms of gameplay.

I personally don't believe the big Celtic three will take long to adjust to each other. All three are great players and most importantly, not selfish. They might take a while to beat the Spurs, but they will be able to take out 75% of the teams right off the bat this year. It's the bench for the Celtics that will take some time to get comfortable. I mention this all because I feel the Raps were at 65% on Saturday while the Celtics might have been at 80%. Close games against the Celtics will be tough because of the star power, but the depth is going to hurt them alot more then some people believe. And Posey is not the big answer that I might have thought a few weeks ago.

Book it now. The Raps will finish ahead of the Celtics this season.

Dallas Mavericks

2007-10-09T12:03:00.001-04:00

Dallas Mavericks season preview

Projected starting line-up

G Jason Terry
G Devin Harris
F Josh Howard
F Dirk Nowitski
C Erick Dampier

Reserves
Jerry Stackhouse
DeSagana Diop
Eddie Jones
Devean George

Last year
What a season Dallas had. The highest of highs and the lowest of lows. Let's start at the beginning. They just came out of a 6 game lose to the Miami Heat in the 2006 finals. Up two games to none and having a 13 point lead in the 4th quarter of game 3, at that point it was pretty much ring sizing time in Dallas. Of course we all know what happened at that point so no need to replay the entire series. When it was all said and done, I think that Dallas felt such disappointment in the fact that they were in such control of the series until that 4th quarter, that coming into 2006-2007 they had both the experience and knowledge that they could beat anybody but also most importantly they had that fire and drive inside them to make up for the 2006 finals. With a slight adjustment made to the starting line up after a 0-4 start to the season, they showed just how mentally prepared they were to take the championship by winning 67 of the next 78 games. Even after a 0-4 start, talk about 70 games was in the air. I don't think anyone was ready just yet to make these guys the number one favorites to win it all, the Spurs and Suns are still in the league, but I doubt anyone could have predicated what did end up happening to Dallas in the playoffs. Actually...that's not completely true. Of the 15 games that Dallas lost, 3 of them were to the Golden State Warriors. In fact the only team in the league that Dallas did not beat was Golden State who was headed by former Maverick coach Don Nelson. And who should Dallas get in round one? Now I am not saying that I predicated a Golden State win, I didn't, BUT I did think that Golden State had more then a slight chance at pulling it off. 6 Games later, one of the best regular seasons in league history ended with the greatest upset in league history. Dirk got his MVP wearing a suit in a studio and not in his warm-ups in center court. So what happened? How did this 67 win team get so dominated by one team? The knowledge that Don Nelson has about this Dallas team is amazing.

Off-Season
Re-signed Jerry Stackhouse
Re-signed Devean George
Signed Nick Fazekas
Signed Brandon Bass
Signed Eddie Jones

Well I guess we shouldn't have expected them to blow up the team or anything like that. But what do you fix on a team that won 67 and lost in the first round? The reason they lost to Golden State was because of the inabilty to deal with the style of play that Golden State uses. Do you change everything just to deal with one average team? Eddie Jones played well for Miami, Stackhouse could start on almost all the teams in the league and he is coming off the bench for Dallas. But besides Eddie, it's going to be the same team next year.

2007-2008
Well I can't see this group all of a sudden becoming shit. That's not going to happen. This team will still be a plus 50 win group. With Disco Dirk and J-Howard leading the team, they are still one of the elite no matter what happened in the playoffs. But obviously every other team is going to be watching tape when preparing for playing the Dallas Mavericks. And I am sure Golden States performance will be viewed many many times when it comes time to develop a strategy. And most importantly will be the fact that coming into this season, unlike when they lost to Miami in 6, they don't have that same time of fire and drive from what happened in the playoffs. They have embarrassment. And the league MVP had to spend all summer long hearing about how he didn't deserve his award. (He did, the award is specifically for the season and he was the MVP for the season) I see a team that can very easily go 60 wins once again this year. But also a team that will have a very tough time once again in the playoffs. Is it possible to have a team that can only perform at the highest level during the regular season, and not have the type of talent needed for the playoffs? Ether way, I am looking forward to the Golden State vs Dallas games this season.

What to watch for
1) Golden State - Can Dallas beat Golden State? 4 games during the season, let's see who wins.
2) Defeated mentality - They worked their asses off to win an emotional 67 games, everything they did meant nothing when they lost in the first round. Will they see any reason to put in that same effort during the regular season this year?
3) Disco Dirk - He was rightful MVP of the season. What will he do for an encore?

Predication -
In the regular season, this team will still be a beast. It's the playoffs that will be hard to predict for this team. But since this is not the playoffs we are working on right now, I do think they are in for a big regular season.

Between 62 and 66 wins this season with a 1st place overall in the West

Give me a break

2007-10-09T11:37:00.000-04:00

So ESPN.com writer John Hollinger has predictated the final standings of all 30 teams and what he thinks the end result will be in the East is interesting to say the least. At first glance, the insult is towards the Raptors. He still has them coming in at 8th which means at least he thinks the Raps are a playoff team. But then he goes ahead and makes his comment that the only two Raptors that are expected to stay at the same level or improve on last years performance is Bosh and Bargnani. Right off the bat that is just crazy! Is he forgetting the fact that the first month and a half produced lower stats for all players as they adjusted to each other? Forgetting that it was not until New Years that all the players started to click on a consistent basis? The fact that the Raps won't be needed that adjustment period at the start is one of the main reasons why most of the Raptors will produce higher stats overall for this upcoming season. Jose didn't start the season off great last year. Parker didn't shoot the ball great for 2 months. Ford was wild and inconsistent for 2 months until he settled down, plus it looks like he has developed a more consistent jump shot for this year. Garbo took a long time getting use to the NBA game. I really think it is crazy to say that only Bosh and Bargnani are expected to stand pat or grow. REALLY crazy.

As for putting the Raps at 8th, whatever. I mean, I think the Raps are getting short changed once again, but as I mentioned before, a lot of that has to do with the perceived bad performance they had in the playoffs last season. I mean, at least he still put the Raps ahead of the Nets who he thinks won't make the playoffs. But if you really want to see how crazy this guy is, listen to this...He puts the Washington Wizards in at 13th overall in the East!!! That's right, one of the top Eastern teams last year until injuries killed them, is below Charlotte/Milwaukee/New York/Miami/Orlando and get this...ATLANTA! Now don't get me wrong, Atlanta has the pieces coming together to be a potential playoff team SOON. But 7th overall? Is this guy CRAZY? Atlanta with such a young team will be ahead of Washington/Toronto/New Jersey and even New York and Milwaukee?

He also has Orlando in at number 4. Give me a break. Orlando will be lucky to make the playoffs this year! But to move them ahead of Detroit??? And at number 6 is Miami. If any playoff team from last year that is not going to make it this year, it's Miami.

And the crazyness is not just held to Eastern teams, as he puts Houston as the number one team in the West over Spurs/Suns/Mavs. Hey, I agree that Houston will have a great season, great enough to join the 3 elite teams. I even stretched enough to put them in second. BUT i didn't put them ahead of ALL three teams.

Seriously, what is this dude smoking??

It's just the pre-season

2007-10-06T17:40:00.000-04:00

I am going to have to remind myself quite a bit during the next 3 weeks that the end result does not matter right now. The Raptors lost to the Celtics in game number one of the preseason by a final score of 89-85. And it really does not mean anything. The Raptor starters all played in the low 20's in minutes while Boston played in the low 30's. It still would have been nice to see the depth of the Raptors pull this out, but who cares.

I can't judge this very well as I am currently on the road and have yet to see the game, although it is taped and will be watched tomorrow evening. So this game along with tomorrows next preseason game against a European team I can't spell will be watch and reviewed by my tomorrow night. As well as the Season Preview will continue on Tuesday with 2 more teams.

As far as looking at the stats for today's game, the Raps did go with a starting lineup of Ford/Parker/Kapono/Bosh/Bargnani. I fully expect them to play around with that during the next 3 weeks, I have a feeling that Delfino will get a chance as well as Rasho. Unless of course, they are already dead set on Kapono and Bargnani in the starting unit.

Bargnani played under 15 minutes in his "Home" game. Here is the good... 4 for 6 shooting with 2 three's for 13 points. The Bad... 3 boards (remember it was just 14 minutes) as well as 4 fouls! The 4 fouls scares me, but that is what training camp and preseason is all about, working out the bugs. Let's just keep an eye on the foul situation when it comes to Bargnani as the preseason moves along.

Delfino was the high minutes man off the bench with 23 minutes. And a nice stat line of 3 out of 4 shooting, 1 long range bomb, 5 boards, 2 assists and a steal. Not bad.

Rasho, Garbo and Jose all got around 18 minutes, with Jose producing a 5 for 10 shooting game, Rasho not producing much and Garbo shooing 1 for 4. These 3 will be ready come season time.

As far as the player who more then likely won't be on the team come season time, Jamario Moon, he actually got some minutes. With close to 13 minutes played, he got more burn then Dixon/Jackson/Baston and Hump. How did he do with his minutes? 2 for 7 shooting wtih 3 boards. With the slim chance to begin with of staying on the roster, we can now say "So long" to Mr. Moon.

The other new Raptor, Maceo Baston didn't do well ether. 0 for 3, with 4 boards and 3 turnovers! Luke Jackson went 0 for 4 with 2 offensive boards. Hump didn't take a shot and got only one board with 2 fouls in 7 minutes.

It is hard, and pointless, to read into anything right now. Tomorrow, Mitchell might flip the script and put in 2 new starters and give Hump the most minutes off the bench. Who knows. I will watch the game tomorrow and see how it went, but until then, it's important to remember that it's preseason.

As far as the Celtics go, they did run the starters longer, which might have lead to some of the difficulties the Raps bench was running into. A line up of Jose/Jackson/Graham/Moon/Rasho would have a difficult time against Garnett/Allen/Pierce.

Anyhow, Garnett seemed at home with a 19 and 16 game. Pierce put in 14 points while Allen went 4 for 13. Eddie House got the most time off the bench, and shot a solid 6 for 10. Again, all of this is too early to tell, except that it seems that the big three will get around 30 minutes this preseason to help them gel together.

Boston will make the playoffs, but as far as Eastern conference title goes, I am still putting my bets elsewhere.

It starts today

2007-10-06T10:31:00.000-04:00

Today, at 2:30 on Raptors TV is when it all starts. The Raptors vs. Celtics in Italy. Does the game matter? No. But it is going to be nice to see the guys on the court as well as check out the new players in Kapono, Delfino, Baston and Moon.

Toronto Raptors

2007-10-06T10:30:00.001-04:00

Toronto Raptors season preview

Projected starting lineup
G T.J. Ford
G Anthony Parker
F Jason Kapono
F Chris Bosh
C Andrea Bargnani

Reserves
Jose Calderon
Jorge Garbajosa
Carlos Delfino
Rasho Nesterovic

Last Year
After going through one of the busiest off-seasons in Raptor history, the team that showed up for training camp was not even close to being the same team that had left just a few months previous. So long Mike James, Matt Bonner, Rafeal Arujo, Antonio Davis, Eric Willams, Charlie Villanueva and Jalen Rose. Hello Anthony Parker, T.J. Ford, Jorge Garbajosa, Andrea Bargnani, Rasho Nesterovic and Kris Humphries. Bryan Colangelo was brought in mid season in 2005-2006 to turn this franchise around, and what he did was completely overhaul a basement team into a playoff contender. At the beginning of the year, the expectations from outside the organization were for a solid step forward for the franchise but just short of playoffs. It would take time for this team to gel they would say. Maybe they didn't notice that the European players were already playing at a top level elsewhere, with Jose Calderon and Garbajosa both playing for the world champion Spanish team and Anthony Parker a 2 time Euroleague MVP and considered the best player not in the NBA. Sure experience playing together is important, but at the same time basketball is basketball. It took this team two months to gel, ironically needing a Chris Bosh injury to speed up the process, and from New Years till the end of the season they were the second best team in the east. The depth also was what allowed them to overcome injuries to Bosh/Ford/Parker/Garbo/Bargnani to finish the season with 47 wins, tieing the franchise best for wins in a season. Unfortunetly, the playoffs became a different story where the inexperience started to show and injuries did start to matter, with Garbajosa especially missed and a rusty Bargnani playing in the series. Even with all the struggles, they were a "one inch higher on the pass to Bosh" away from sending the series to a Game 7 at the ACC.

Off-Season
Lost Morris Peterson to free agency
Traded two 2nd round draft picks for Carlos Delfino
Signed Jason Kapono
Signed Maceo Baston
Signed Jamario Moon
Resigned Derrek Martin

The Morris Peterson situation is a tough one to describe. There was points last year were Mo-Pete was fantastic, hitting MP3 Downloads and playing tight D. Plus who can forget "the shot" in Washington. But just as equal was how often he would disappear on the court, both on offense and on defense. A very inconsistent year for Peterson, and as much as Peterson is loved by the Raptor fans, I don't blame the Raps for the decisions they made. Like I said, it's a tough one to describe but I think it was the right decision for the team. Peterson will be missed though. Jason Kapono made some waves right off the bat when the free agency signing period began with his rather large contract for a player considered to be a specialty player. All I can say is that if Kapono was dropping 3's like that in Miami, wait till you see what he does with the far superior ball movement in Toronto. As for the money, that is not my concern right now. If down the road the Raptors don't have money to spend on free agents they need and Kapono is sucking, then I will care. Delfino has tons of talent, and a change of scenery might be what he needs to show those talents. Plus he is bargain basement cheap, costing the Raps a couple of 2nd round draft picks. I see him has the replacement to Morris Peterson.

2007-2008
Here is where my thoughts will be considered biased. Because they are. This is a Toronto Raptors blog for heavens sake. But I really believe that the Raptors have just as much ability to make it to the finals as any other team. The biggest reason is Andrea Bargnani. With his move to the center position and having that first year under his belt, I can see very big things from him. This Raptor team is a two superstar team, which I think Bargnani will show. If the development of his low post game and some solid steps forward in the defensive department take place this off-season, then the Raptors will have the necassary weapons to handle any team in the east. Also a prediction of mine is that with the strong three point threat in Kapono now on the court (Garbo started last year and could hit the three ball, but not even close to the accuracy of Kapono) we will see Parker become more of a slasher then what he was last year. Word is that Parker was a fantastic slasher over seas. And on top of all this, the most important thing is the fact that they will just get better now that they have had one year playing together. The critics said last year that this team needed to gel. Well look what they did last year while that happened. The upside on this team is with out a doubt, NBA championship.

What to watch for
1) Battle of the Atlantic - It is no longer the Titantic division. The Raptors are the defending champs with 3 other improved teams now chasing them.
2) Bargnani - Will he take that next step forward.
3) T.J. vs Jose - Can they continue to co-exist?

Predication
I predict a lot more from this team then other observers, but I also have season tickets, so my opinion is tainted. Regardless, they improved as the year progressed last year and I expect more improvements this year. They were the second best team in the East since New Years, and even though the East has improved, again I think the Raptors will have improved also.

Between 48 and 52 wins this season with a 4th place finish in the East

New Jersey Nets

2007-10-04T11:36:00.000-04:00

New Jersey Nets season preview

Projected starting line-up
G Jason Kidd
G Vince Carter
F Richard Jefferson
F Nenad Krstic
C Jamal Magloire

Reserves
Marcus Williams
Bostjan Nachbar
Jason Collins

Last year
if you are a New Jersey Net fan, last year must have felt like a roller coster. They started the season being Charles Barkley pick to win the east. Lost Nenad Krstic to injury. Had a hobbled Richard Jefferson for a few weeks then went two month or so with out him. They have Vince Carter who can provide a roller coster ride on his own with his mixture of athletic abiltiies and ho-hum attitude. But they also have Jason Kidd who in 2006-2007 proved that age ain't nothing but a number. With 10 triple doubles during the season and 2 more during the playoffs, Kidd was on another planet this past season. Of course those triple doubles didn't help keep Kidd's name out of the paper as his divorce was making the front page of the sports sections in the N.Y. area. There was also an infamous stretch were they lost 3 games in a row, all on buzzer beaters. They also watched the Raptors take over the Atlantic crown during this season. On top of all this was the issues of where the Nets would be playing in the future. Brooklyn watch out. And of course the trade deadline drama consisting of "Do they trade Kidd?" "Do they trade Vince? "Do they keep this core?" "Will Vince resign in the off-season?" It really must have been an interesting year for Nets fans. Now of course the Nets went into the playoffs with momentum and a healthy Richard Jefferson, and some might argue that they could have done better against Cleveland if they had Nenad Krstic, although I personally don't agree with that. Let's not forget that the Nets did go 11-15 to start the season with a healthy Krstic. Now that everything is said and done on 2006-2007, I am sure the Net's would perfer just to forget that season happened, although to their credit they still had a decent showing in the playoffs.

Off-Season
Re-Signed Vince Carter
Signed Jamal Magloire
Lost Mikki Moore to free agency
Waived Hassan Adams
Waived Clifford Robinson
Drafted Sean Williams
Lost Eddie House to free agency
Signed Robert Hite
Signed Malik Allen
Signed Rod Benson
Signed Jumaine Jones
Signed Mateen Cleaves
Signed Eddie Gill

After all the drama, they decided to continue with what they got. Maybe it's true that it was the Lakers who said no to the trade involving Kidd, but now that it's over they have obviously decided to not bother finding another trade partner and to ride the Kidd triple double express as long as possible. Vince Carter sells tickets, but any team with Vince Carter will never see any rings. Of course, what Vince lacks in heart Jason Kidd more then makes up for it, so it's hard to say never. But I will still say never. Jamal Magloire was a former all-star who has quietly done nothing for the past few seasons. I know that Mikki Moore was a product of Jason Kidd, but I don't know if Magloire has the legs or speed to keep up with Kidd when he starts pushing the ball. Sean Williams is a high risk high reward player. Tons of talent, but sounds like the type of guy that would have fit nicely on the Portland Jailblazers a few years ago.

2007-2008
The funny thing about the Nets is that no matter what happens during the previous season, they are always in the conversation as one of the top teams in the east. That is more due to the power trio of Kidd/Carter/Jefferson then anything else. But even though we said the same thing last year, it needs to be said again, Kidd is a year older. On top of that he played this summer with U.S. national team. Will he have the legs to go 82 games plus playoffs? The Net's truly depend on Kidd for any success they have, as depth is not a friend of New Jersey. Marcus Williams is a nice player, but he does not have the impact on the flow of the game or on his teammates like Kidd does. Although it was only 2 games that Kidd missed last season (amazing it was only 2, he is a machine) the Nets did lose both easily to the Spurs and the Raptors. The success of the Nets rides competely on the shoulders on Jason Kidd. As for Vince Carter, should be interesting to see how he does now that he has his contract.

What to watch for
1) Triple Double machine - Is Jason Kidd slowing down? We will know based on how many triple doubles he gets.
2) Health - They should all be ready come Oct. 31st. Can this team stay healthy for the entire run?
3) Stand up or seat down - This team and its core needs to make a choice. Are they going to make a move to become an elite team, or continue as a 500 team. As a 500 team, there will be trade rumors.

Predictions
Even though it was close last year, a healthy Nets team is too good not to make the playoffs. But I think this has to be the year that Kidd starts to slow down. Based on a summer with the National team and Marcus Williams being out for the first few weeks, Kidd will still bring the goods, but not enough to lift this team into the upper tier of the Eastern Conference.

Between 44 and 48 wins this season with a 7th place finish in the East.

Minnesota Timberwolves

2007-10-03T14:56:00.000-04:00

Minnesota Timberwolves season preview

Projected starting line-up
G Randy Foye
G Ricky Davis
F Corey Brewer
F Al Jefferson
C Mark Blount

Reserves
Gerald Green
Marko Jaric
Rashad McCants
Ryan Gomes

Last year
On January 23, 2007 the Minnesota Timberwolves fired head coach Dwane Casey due to "inconsistency" according to GM Kevin McHale. Of course, the fact that Casey was only with the team for a year and a half before getting fired also shows the lack of consistence applied by GM Kevin McHale. But to make this change in mid-season was more then questionable. At the time of the trade the Timberwolves were 20-20 and were a very streaky team. In the first 40 games, they had 4 game losing streaks three different times and a 3 game losing streak once. Near the start of the season, they had a 1-7 stretch. On the flip side, in those first 40 games they had a 7 wins out of 8 stretch, a 4 game winning streak and a 3 game winning streak. Was this team inconsistent? Sure. But there is a reason why most teams try to avoid doing anything major till the off-season. After Casey was fired, the Timberwolves went 12-30 with new head coach (Casey's assistent) Randy Wittman. In 2003-2004 the Wolves lost to the Lakers in 6 in the Western Conference finals. Since then, they have not made it back to the playoffs. Kevin McHale has (and deserves) much of the blame here. Since he became general manager in 1995, the Wolves had made the playoffs 8 times although only once making it past the first round. Making it past the first round only once with one of the great power forwards of all-time is not exactly proof that you can do the job. Loyalty is a bitch sometimes though, and McHale has been with owner Glen Taylor since Taylor bought the franchise in 94, with no signs of the relationship changing any time soon. And since the teams record has gotten worse and worse since they made it to the eastern conference finals, it's pretty obvious that the moves McHale has made since then has not worked out in his favor.

Off-Season
Traded Kevin Garnett for Al Jefferson, Sebastian Telfair, Gerald Green, Theo Ratliff,
Ryan Gomes and 2 first round draft picks
Drafted Corey Brewer
Traded Mike James and Justin Reed for Juwan Howard
Signed Evanthia Maltsi
Released Troy Hudson
Signed John Edwards
Traded Trenton Hassell to Dallas for Greg Buckner
Signed Chris Richard

It's tough to fully grade the big ticket trade from the Wolves perspective, because a good portion of it will be based on future decisions made by McHale, when he uses the draft picks and the 11 million in salary money from Ratliff's contract when it is completed next summer. Nothing McHale has done though till this point has shown that he can build a successful team. Unless McHale get's something good from the money and the draft picks, then this trade will forever haunt Wolves fans. I know I know, Al Jefferson has shown that he can be productive on a weak team, and I don't doubt that he will be able to do the same for Minny. But we are talking about Kevin Garnett who still has 5 good years left. Jefferson played well last year, but let's not get stupid and think he compares to KG. Mike James was a bust for the Wolves, and a silly move to begin with since they already had 2 PG's last year, one being Foye who needed court time to grow. James is the classic "just because he avg. 20 points for one crappy team, it doesn't neccessarly mean he is a good player". People really need to stop focusing so much on the numbers. Juwan Howard would be an alright fit if, of course, he didn't turn around and request a trade. The movement is also not complete, as they currently have 17 players on roster at the moment. They will need to trim 2 before the season starts.

2007-2008
Welcome to the Ricky Davis era. It will be short since his contract is up after this season, but it should be a fun time watching Davis jack up three's like he is in a three point contest. Al Jefferson will get some love, at least, as the coaches will make sure he gets the ball a few possessions a game to try to show they knew what they were doing with the trade. Mark Blount also did show some improvement last year, and could be a solid contributor if motivated. But that will be the issue for this team. Garnett was a true leader. And it was a team that did have some questionable characters on it. Ricky Davis/Mark Blount/Mike James were all guys that needed some babysitting, and even with MIke James gone, he has just been replaced by Telfair. Who is going to police these guys? I remember a Raps vs. Minny game where Davis had about 15 points in the first quarter. Later in the game during a time out, Davis and Coach Randy Wittman started to yell at each other about something. Take the unstability of the players and add a crap load of loses and watch the new version of the Portland Jailblazers form. The Wolves have the youth, and with many high draft picks to come, they won't be get any older any time soon. Jefferson gets the go ahead to be the leader of the team, but it's not like he is all of a sudden of harden vet of the NBA. And when these young guys are going to need someone to help guide them and mold them into a playoff team in the next few years, all they are going to get is guys with questionable attitudes who have had very little success in their careers Welcome to the Ricky Davis era.

What to watch for
1) 1st pick - It will be a battle this year with Portland/Philly/Clippers/Seattle/Atlanta/Indiana. Who will come out on top!
2) The rise of Jefferson - Can he continue his development?
3) The fall of Ricky Davis - Will he be a team guy or not?

Predictions
If they were in the East, they might get a few more W's. But 4 times a year they play against the Spurs/Suns/Mavs/Rockets/Jazz/Nuggets. They are screwed. With the 1st pick in the 2008 NBA draft...

Between 18 and 22 wins this season with a 15th place finish in the West.

Chicago Bulls

2007-10-03T10:17:00.000-04:00

Chicago Bulls season preview

Projected starting lineup
G Kirk Hinrich
G Ben Gordon
F Luol Deng
F Tyrus Thomas
C Ben Wallace

Reserves
Joakim Noah
Chris Duhon
Andres Nocioni
Thabo Sefolosha
Joe Smith

Last year
Expectations were high going into the 2006-2007 season. With the draft day pick-ups of Tyrus Thomas and Thabo Sefolosha along with the big 4 year deal involving Ben Wallace, the Bulls were once again viewed as a contender to compete for the Eastern Conference championship. Just in case anyone had any doubts about this team, the Bulls pulled out a opening day 42 point win over the defending champions (on the night they got the rings) Miami Heat. During the course of the season, both Deng and Gordon took that next step towards NBA all-star level while Tyrus Thomas showed serious signs of his athletic ability as the season winded down. The only disappointment to the 49-33 season would be the affect of Ben Wallace, both on the court and in the locker room. With Detroit, and when I would argue that the NBA in whole was still in a half court style of play, Wallace fit in perfectly with the defensive style of game. But now that teams have quicken the pace, where the number of possessions in a game have jumped, and where weakness in one's offensive game can be exploited more easily, Wallace struggled filling the shoes of someone who deserves 15 million a year. I am not saying that Wallace is still not a star player, but I am saying that at 15 million a year he should be bringing more to the table. The Bulls finished 3rd in the Eastern Conference and went on to shock the Miami Heat with a 4 game sweep. I picked the Bulls to win that series, but not in that fashion. Of course the Pistons showed the Bulls what is was like to be on the losing side of that type of series when they went up 3-0 against the Bulls. But what bolds well for this still young team was the will and fight to get 2 in a row before losing in game 6. It's all about experience and in this season the Bulls got enough to make a legit march towards the Finals next season.

Off-Season
Lost P.J. Brown to free agency
Signed Joe Smith
Resigned Andres Nocioni
Drafted Joakim Noah
Drafted Aaron Gray
Drafted JamesOn Curry

The weakness for the Bulls comes at the PF position. With Wallace not providing any type of offensive power down low, they need someone else to provide that ability to be a post-up player. Joakim Noah will bring tons of energy and potential for the future, but in his rookie year, he is not the player a team would want to carry that type of responsibility deep in the playoffs. Joe Smith played nice for the 76ers after he was traded from Denver but it's not hard to stick out when your on a crappy team. Andres Nocioni is a solid player and great shooter to have as a 6th man. P.J. Brown is a solid vet but I don't think he will be missed.

2007-2008
Expecations are high for this year's Bulls team. But do the have a solution for the one weakness everyone knows about. Can they get scoring down low? Without it, the pressure on Hinrich/Deng/Gordon will be intense to continue to score. The Bulls have just as much depth as any other team in the league, but the scoring will have to continue to come from the perimeter. Tyrus Thomas showed signs of being that guy down low. But again, experience is everything. How well would Tyrus Thomas do against the Spurs and Tim Duncan in the finals? Experience is everything. This upcoming season might also be the calm before the storm as both Luol Deng and Ben Gordon are set to make a lot more money after this season. The Bulls are in good shape salary cap wise, but it would leave a nice hole if another team can come in a steal one of these two players. This team is going to need a strong season in order to keep this core unit together, anything less then conference finals will be disappointing for this team, because if 2007-2008 does not go well, it would be very easy (and tempting) to make some changes to the team. One change that has already happened for this upcoming season is that Big Ben Wallace can once again wear his headband. Now can he hit a free throw?

What to watch for
1) Tyrus Thomas - His evolution will play a significant role in the success of the Bulls.
2) Pay day - Deng and Gordon are in contract years. We have seen other players in the past step up during these special years. If Deng and Gordon step it up, it will cost the Bulls money later but it will also mean a great season.
3) Taking the next step - Last year they were just a notch below the top teams (Suns/Mavs/Spurs/Pistons) can they join that group this year?

Prediction
Even though the main weakness has yet to be filled (low post scorer) the Bulls have both talent and depth as well has having a great defensive team. The East is stronger, but it is still not the West, and I can see Chicago using the experience of last season being one of the top teams, and stepping into the NBA elite. Championship? Not quite. Top team is the East? Yes.

Between 58-62 wins this season with a 1st place finish in the East.

L.A. Lakers

2007-10-02T17:01:00.000-04:00

L.A. Lakers season preview

Projected starting lineup

G Derek Fisher
G Kobe Bryant
F Luke Walton
F Lamar Odom
C Kwame Brown

Reserves
Andrew Bynum
Vladimir Radmanovic
Jordan Farmar

Last Year
Are you a glass half full or half empty type of person? The Lakers had the number 2 seeded Phoenix Suns down 3-1 with more then a few chances to get that 4th W. That is the half full view is that the Lakers almost did the unthinkable and eliminate the more talented Suns team. Of course the half empty view is the fact that they were up 3-1 and blew the lead and lost the series. Ether way, I am sure coming into the 2006-2007 season, the team was optimistic about there chances in improving. Spurs/Mavs level? Not quite, but if the game is close in the 4th and Kobe is on the floor, the Lakers can beat anybody in the league. In fact the Lakers started the 06/07 season with a win over the Suns, and went on to a 20-11 record by new years. Now if I was to say that the most important player to this team was Luke Walton, you might call me crazy. But when Walton went down with an injury, the Lakers went 6-15 over that stretch. Combined with an injury to Odom, the momentum died quickly for this team. In fact, the only thing positive for the team in the second half of the season was a 5 game winning streak that happened shortly after Walton returned, although this was also the infamous Kobe averaging 36 shots a game and putting up his 65/50/60/50/43 stretch. The Lakers limped into the playoffs and were dominated by the Suns. What could be taken from this season was that when the Lakers were playing more as a team, were Kobe takes 17-22 shots, they were well above 500. But the injuries to Kwame Brown and Vladimir Radmanovic and Walton and Odom took away any type of team chemistry and gave Kobe a reason to shoot more. That huge stretch of scoring Kobe had could be viewed as the reason for the poor performance going into the playoffs, as when it came time to play team ball again, none of the players were in any type of rhythm for it. Oh, and when the Lakers played without Kobe, they were 3-2.

Off-Season
Signed Derek Fisher
Re-signed Chris Mihm
Re-signed Luke Walton
Signed Coby Karl
Lost Smush Parker to free agency
Drafted Javaris Crittenton
Signed Elton Brown
Signed Andre Patterson

So of course we all know what is going on in Laker land. What kind of drama will happen this year since this team did not come close to improving to the level that will satisfy Kobe? Derek Fisher instead of Smush is a definete plus, but not nearly enough. Signing Luke Walton to a long term deal was also smart as he had a solid year and works well in the triangle. But as nice as some of these deals were, I doubt they made the king happy.

2007-2008
This could be a fun one to watch. When the team is working together, and with the addition of Fisher, they are more then capable of playing plus 500 ball. But if those wheels start to come off, when a losing streak hits this team, when Kobe starts his 30 plus shots a game again, the shit will hit the fan. 82 games plus playoffs is a very long time. Every team in the league deals with injuries and losing streaks. Some of those teams have the depth and knowledge and maturity to deal with these road blocks. The Lakers last year were not one of those teams. Can they be one this up-coming year? If the drama from the summer is any indication, I would say no. And really this is not a kobe hating type of opinion...this team as it is today is not going to win any championships, but they are also better then what they showed late last year. 9 games over 500 at new years, 10 games over 500 going into Feb, they are capable of winning games. They then had a major meltdown that started with injuries to Walton and Odom. When those players came back, it was a different story with different results. Why? Odom missed 5 games the last 2 and a half months. Walton was back one month before the playoffs. They had plenty of time to get back to the type of ball they were playing before the injuries. But they looked like a completely different team. The reality is that you need a leader to guide you threw the tough times. Kobe Bryant aka "Lets cut up my teammate to this camera cause he wasn't traded" is not a leader.

What to watch for
1) The obvious - What is Kobe going to bring this year when it comes to attitude? This team is not a deep playoff team and he has 2 more years on the contract. The drama is far from over.
2) Bynum - This kid has been picked as the future by the Lakers management. He is still young, but he is going to need to start to show that potential to us basketball fans sooner rather then later.
3) Playoffs or bust - With such a strong western conference, if this team does not make the playoffs....oh good lord watch out.

Predications
Well, based on the production in the first half of last season, I will give the Lakers the benefit of the doubt and predict that they will make the playoffs. But it won't be easy. They are going to have to stay consistent for the entire run, because if they end up in 7th or 8th spot, they are just going to be handed another 1st round lose. You got to think that, in order to keep the drama down, they need at least second round.

Between 42-45 wins this season with a 7th place finish in the West.

Milwaukee Bucks

2007-10-01T23:14:00.000-04:00

Milwaukee Bucks season preview

Projected Starting line-up
G Maurice Williams
G Michael Redd
F Desmond Mason
F Charlie Villanueva
C Andrew Bogut

Reserves
Yi Jianlian
Bobby Simmons
Charlie Bell

Last year
There were lots of moves made by Milwaukee heading into the 2006-2007 season, including 3 trades that saw T.J. Ford, Jamaal Magloire and Joe Smith leave the team, while joining the Bucks were Charlie Villanueva, Steve Blake, Brian Skinner, Ha Seung-Jin and Ruben Patterson. These players combined with Maurice Williams, Andrew Bogut and franchise player Michael Redd set the expectations high going into the 06/07 season, as the franchise felt that with these changes to the roster, they could build on the 05-06 playoff appearance they made. And that might have been true, if the Bucks starters actually played more then a handful of games together during the season. Charlie Villanueva was figured to be a major contributor at the power forward position, but only played 39 games due to various injuries. Star player Michael Redd only did slightly better with 53 games. Mo Williams got in 68 while Bogut played in 66 games. Bobby Simmons played in a grand total of zero games. So it's going to be hard for any team to be successful when every starting player is missing huge amounts of the season. When Ruben Patterson becomes the number one option for the majority of the season due to him playing in more then 80 games, you know your in trouble. Regardless of the injuries though, Bucks owner Herb Kohl let it be known that he was not happy spending a lot of money on payroll and having a basement team. Therefore a sacrafice needed to be handed over to the basketball gods, and head coach Terry Stotts was fired at the 41 game mark. One good thing to come out of this season for the Bucks was the continue play of Michael Redd, who has become a scoring machine. With a 26.7 scoring average for his 53 games and a nice 46.5 FG%, Redd twice during the season dropped 50 plus points, once against the Bulls with 52 and a 57 point gem against the Jazz. Of course, the Bucks lost both of those games so those were not completely sweet for Redd, but he let the league know that he was a franchise type of player. As the season ended, and the Bucks sat with the 3rd worst record in the league, I think everyone knew in the back on their minds that this team was much better then 28-54.

Off-Season
Signed Yi Jianlian
Re-Signed Mo Williams
Signed Desmond Mason
Signed Awvee Storey
Signed Royal Ivey
Re-signed Charlie Bell
Signed Michael Ruffin
Signed Samaki Walker
Signed Jake Voskuhl
Lost Ruben Patterson to free agency
Lost Earl Boykins to free agency
Lost Jared Reiner to free agency
Lost Brian Skinner to free agency

Lots happening to the Bucks this off-season. I am not even going to get into the Yi Jianlian drama, let's just say that it's over and we can expect Yi to get anywhere between 20-25 minutes a game. The Bucks took the guy even when they knew of the potential drama because Yi is considered to be a very talented ball player. So now that everything is done and the contract is signed, I expect that Yi will be a contributor for the Bucks this season. Mo Williams worked his way to a nice payday when he had dinner with Pat Riley, scaring the Bucks into giving up some extra cash to keep Williams. Williams has talent, but he is getting overpaid. Since TJ Ford was traded, he is all the Bucks have at PG and he made them pay for the lack of depth. Desmond Mason could be a solid contributor off the bench and should make up for the lose of Ruben Patterson. Charlie Bell said he didn't want to return to the Bucks, and had signed a offer sheet with the Heat. The Bucks though decided that what Bell wanted matter very little and matched the offer. Truth be told, the only reason that Bell said he wanted out was because of the lack of urgency the Bucks showed in trying to get Bell signed. Now that it's done, he will be fine. And Michael Ruffin...I just want to mention him cause every time I hear the name, I think about the MoPete shot against the Wiz.

2007-2008
Unless the Bucks are cursed and see half the roster miss half the season again, expect a much different team this year. A new coach, a new high ranked draft pick, new role players ready to prove themselves...they were picked to be a playoff team last season so it would be easy to pick them again this year as a playoff team. That being said, a lot still rides on the fact that individually the Bucks have good players across the board but nothing great. Bogut is a servicable big man, but was one of the weaker 1st picks in the draft in the past 7 years. Charlie Villanueva is a good player, but with the exception of one 47 point game two years ago when he was with the Raptors, he has not shown all-star level talent as of yet. Micheal Redd is a great scorer, but as a franchise player for the team he is very one-demensional with low numbers in boards/assists/steals. Mo Williams is a good PG although last years numbers of 6.1 assists compared to 3 turnovers a game shows that he is not in the upper class of point guards in the league. The bench the Bucks have is nice, but again, just nice, not great. The reality is that this team is solid, but just solid and that's it. And with a much better eastern conference this year, is solid good enough anymore? They are not a basement team, yet I find it hard to call them a playoff team.

What to look for
1) Who gets the minutes? - They got money riding on Charlie V, but they also promised a role for Yi.
2) Scottie Pippen - Someone needs to step up and be the clear number 2 guy on this team. Will ether Bogut/Williams/Mason/Villanueva make the move to become Michael Redd's right hand man?
3) Keep it together - This team showed major frustration last season. It was understandable why, but if things don't go smooth this year, can these players keep it together?

Predictions
While I expect the Bucks to be more of a challenge then last season, I just don't see this team as a playoff contender in the stronger east. Maybe last season if they stayed heathy they would have beaten Orlando for the 8th spot. But this season it will be much tougher. Redd will have another great season, but unless someone else steps up, this will be a lottery team for the second year in a row.

Between 30-33 wins this season with a 12th place finish in the East

Houston Rockets

2007-10-01T11:58:00.000-04:00

Houston Rockets season preview

Projected Starting line-up
G Rafer Alston
G Tracy McGrady
F Shane Batier
F Luis Scola
C Yao Ming

Reserves
Luther Head
Bonzi Wells
Steve Francis
Mike James

Last year
While the main question should be "Does this team have a chance at winning a championship?" unfortunetly for the Houston Rockets, going into last season the main question was "Can McGrady and Ming stay healthy for a complete season." With both players missing substantial time the previous seasons, McGrady in particular has yet to play a full 82 games in his 10 years in the league, it was a major concern coming into the year. And if the major question was if they could both stay healthy, then the answer to that question was no, they could not. While McGrady missed 11 games, Ming had the much larger issue with a broken ankle and missed 34 games last season. The Yao injury must have stung even more based on the fact that Ming was having an outstanding season, shooting over 50% from the field and averaging close to 10 boards, 2 blocks and 25 points a game. Luckly for Houston, once Ming did return, he was able to pick up right where he left off. And also luckly for Houston, the record without Ming was 20-12, with McGrady able to deliver some big time performances for his team while Jeff Van Gundy had molded the team into one of the top defensive squads in the league. Even with the major injury to Ming, the team finished the season with a 52-30 record and headed into the playoffs with home court advantage against the Utah Jazz. What the playoffs did expose though was that even with the explosive McGrady and the monster Yao Ming, Houston might have spent too much time working on the defense and not enough on the offense. After grabbing a 2-0 and being in comfortable control of the Utah series, game 3 saw only 4 Houston Rockets record any points and the team finished the game with 67. Utah and Houston would trade a few more victories to even up the series at 3 a piece going into game 7 in Houston. How did it work out? Well let's just say that it was not a tear of joy that ran down McGrady's face in the post game press conference. While last year must have felt like it was a minor victory being able to overcome a major injury to a key player and still have a great season, the bitterness of the Utah series is what will be remembered heading into the new year.

Off Season
Traded a future 2nd pick and cash to Seattle for Carl Landry
Traded Juwan Howard for Mike James and Justin Reed
Traded Vassilis Spanoulis and a 2nd round pick for Jackie Butler and Luis Scola
Signed Steve Francis
Drafted Aaron Brooks

Some interesting moves from a player perspective, but the biggest move of the off-season for Houston was the firing of Van Gundy and the hiring of Rick Adelman. The same Rick Adelman that lead the Sacramento Kings during the Kings vs. Lakers fued in the early 2000's, you know, when the Kings were good. What is really nice for the Rockets about this move is that Adelman is considered to be more of an offensive minded coach, and it's not like the solid defensive teachings of Van Gundy is all of a sudden going to be forgotten. We should be seeing the top defensive team in the league also become a much stronger offensive team. Rafer Alston is a liability on the court, he has his moments but it's hard to picture Rafer Alston being the starting PG of a championship team. Of course, it's equally as hard to imagine Mike James or Steve "Franchise Killer" Francis being that PG of a championship team. Having the 3 players might be motivation for one of them to step up, but regardless of who it is, I don't see the major improvement in this area.

2007-2008
To be honest, I expect big things from this Rockets team next year. Health again will be an issue, it might always be an issue when it comes to McGrady's back and Yao MIng, but if nothing disasterious happens then this Rockets team is set to possible make it a 4 way battle in the West. The offensive minded coaching of Adelman will add a new dimension to this team that was obviously needed. And let's also not forget that Bonzi Wells is still a Rocket, and had his most productive years under Aldeman in Sacramento. If Aldeman reproduces that success with Wells this upcoming year, the depth of this team naturally would become much much stronger. What will hold this team back for at least the next season is lack of playoff experience. McGrady and Yao have yet to see the second round, and while that might not matter as much in the east, playing the Mavs/Suns/Spurs in round 2 is going to be quite the challenge. The west (and the league pretty much overall) is owned by those 3 teams, and no matter what improvements the Rockets have made, it still might take a few more years of getting some second and third round playing time before the Rockets can completely match up against the power of the big three. That being said, if I am correct about the Rockets keeping the defense and adding the offense, then I see no other team in the league as close as Houston right now of changing it from the big three to the big four.

What to watch for
1) Joining the elite - Can they take the next step and join Spurs/Mavs/Suns
2) Stevie Franchise - or Stevie Franchise Killer
3) Heathy season - Will Ming and McGrady play more then 75 games each this season

Prediction
The moves that Houston made has put them above the Jazz in the NBA power rankings. But not quite ahead of the Suns/Mavs/Spurs. I can see the Rockets challenging those teams for best regular season, although come playoff time, the lack of experience will hurt the Rockets. Still, if they get the experience this season, they might be able to make the big jump next year.

Between 58 and 62 wins this season with a 2nd place overall in the West

Orlando Magic

2007-09-30T22:11:00.000-04:00

Orlando Magic season preview

Projected Starting line-up
G Jameer Nelson
G Keith Bogans
F Rashard Lewis
F Hedo Turkoglu
C Dwight Howard

Reserves
Carlos Arroyo
J.J. Redick
Trevor Ariza
Tony Battie
Adonal Foyle

Last year
I remember a time, about 17 games into the season, when the Orlando Magic had a record of 13-4 and everything looked great in Florida. With Miami coming off a championship and Orlando making big moves forward, it must have been great for b-ball fans in the sunshine state. Now let's go back even further here, to the 2005-2006 season when the Magic were having a horrible year with a young team, an injuried Grant Hill and Steve Francis still on the roster. They made a trade in the middle of the season that sent Francis to the Knicks for Penny Hardaway (who they waived) and Trevor Ariza. With starting line-up of Tony Battie, Dwight Howard, Hedo Turkoglu, DeShawn Stevenson and Jameer Nelson, the Magic went on a huge run towards the playoffs including a winning streak of 8 games. In those 8 games they beat the Spurs/Pistons/Mavs and Heat. Now they didn't make it all the way out of the hole they dug earlier in the season, and missed the playoffs. But the momentum was there. And with a 13-4 start, it really did appear that Orlando was legit. Of course the key word is appear, as the Magic ended up finishing the season with a 40-42 record in the weak east. Sadly, 2 games below 500 was still good enough for the playoffs. And that is where the magic were put down quietly by the Pistons in 4 games. A 40-42 record and getting swept did not match to the potential that was shown just months earlier. What happened? I know people in Orlando feel that coach Brian Hill is a big part of the reason, and I do have to agree. When you have a weapon like Dwight Howard who can score every single time he gets the ball anywhere within 5 feet of the net, maybe that should be the prime goal for the teams offense. Perhaps finding a way to get Dwight about 15 shots a game would do the trick. But Dwight Howard only shoot the ball 15 times or more in 11 games during the season. Chris Bosh for an example shot the ball more then 15 times in 47 games, and he had an injury during the season too! Now CB4 is a more diverse player, as Dwight has no mid range shot, but Howard is still an athletic freak who should have an offense designed around the goal of getting him the ball in a nice position, at least more frequently then what we saw last season. While the jury is still out on Jameer Nelson (he was a huge bust from a fantasy perspective, I can tell you that) and his point guard skills, it's the coaches responsibility to make sure that the star player is involved in the offense.

Off-Season
Signed Rashard Lewis
Lost Darko Milicic to free agency
Lost Grant Hill to free agency
Signed Adonal Foyle
Signed Marcin Gortat

I am not even going to get into the Billy Donovan situation. All I will say is that the Magic did alright in the end by getting Stan Van Gundy. A different direction is exactly what this team needs, and with the talent the team has combined with a new coaching style, it could lead to big things for this franchise. Of course, giving way too much money to Rashard Lewis is not going to help long term, but if we just looking at the talent and not the financial side of things, Lewis is a much better option then 35 years old and broken down Grant Hill. Is Lewis though equal to both Hill and Darko? I never saw anything from Darko that would indicate he is the type of player that can contribute to a winning team, but he never got a fair shake so far ether. I would imagine it would be tough for any player to do anything positive on a team like Detroit, and with the Magic, how much did Brian Hill hold back on the possibly talented big man? If Darko steps up in Memphis, and with the Magic putting everything they got financially into Lewis, this off-season could be viewed as a disaster by this time next season.

2007-2008
With Orlando involved in the summers biggest free agent purchase, a lot of pressure will be riding on this upcoming season. You don't just spend that kind of cash and lock yourself in from a salary cap perspective without expecting positive results ASAP. But I would say that not as much is going to ride on the performance of Lewis, but more on the performance of Gundy. This team last year was weak in the PG position, had a lot of inconsistent players on the team like Hedo Turgoglu, and a big man in Dwight Howard that was not getting the ball nearly enough. Injuries did hurt the depth of the team last year, but I do question how much quailty there was in Orlando's depth to begin with. What is Van Gundy going to do to change all these things? Especially with one less big man on the court in Darko? And it's not like the east has gotten worse? With Boston and NY and Charlotte as 3 eastern lottery teams looking to make a move into the playoffs, some teams with high expecations just ain't going to make it. Having a 40-42 season won't get you into the playoffs anymore (I hope). So has Orlando improved enough to play better then Boston/Detroit/Washington/Toronto/Miami/Cleveland/New Jersey/Chicago? For Orlando to make the playoffs, they better hope they did.

What to watch for
1) How badly did they overpay - Rashard Lewis is a solid player, but for the money he is making, he needs to help Dwight Howard lead this team to the playoffs. Anything less would be considered a bust.
2) Howard getting an outside shot - He won't take the next step with out some sort of jump shot.
3) Stan Van Gundy - He has the motivation to succeed after being forced out of Miami half way threw the championship season. But with a questionable roster, does he have what it takes to get the maximum out of this team?

Prediction
Anytime a team includes a new coach as well as a new star player, making a accurate prediction is tough. So many unknowns in this situation. How much was the talent held back by the previous coach? Can the new coach get the full potential out of the players? Will the new star continue to be a star in a new environment? At this stage, I can't honestly say that I expect Orlando to beat any of the 8 teams I mentioned above, but this will be a different team then the one we saw last year.

Between 36 and 40 wins this season with a 10th place overall in the East

New York Knicks

2007-09-30T17:47:00.001-04:00

New York Knicks seasons preview

Projected line-up
G Stephon Marbury
G Jamal Crawford
F Quinton Richardson
F Zach Randolph
C Eddy Curry

Reserves
David Lee
Jared Jeffries
Renaldo Balkmen
Nate Robinson

Last year
Coming off the worst season in franchise history, the Knicks and Isiah Thomas had officially become a joke to any and all basketball fans. With a pay roll that was almost double the salary cap, no amount of money could kill the doubt every NBA fan had about the chances of this team succeeding. The questions started to mount...how much did Larry Brown and his record number of starting line-ups contribute to the downfall this franchise had seen? Could Isiah bring them back to the playoffs and prove that he knows how to build a successful team? Could Starbury and Stevie Franchise co-exist in the back court? Was Eddy Curry a bust?

Some, No, No, and somewhat.

I think everyone except for the New York Knicks and Spike Lee knew before the season started that this team was not going to be seeing any type of action past April 15th. And if they were trying to avoid drama last year, they did a horrible job in doing so. From the "Isiah has one year" drama to the minor Starbury vs Isiah problem in late November/early December. Throw in a nice little brawl for all on December 16 vs Denver. And why not include the play of Jared Jeffries, another addition to the roster full of overpaid players who produce nothing. And of course the issues with David Lee deserving a starting spot that Isiah refused to give. The drama didn't even wait for the start of the season, that's how special of a year it was, when Renaldo Balkman received the best reaction I have ever heard from a crowd during a draft. It's true that the Knicks were in the playoff hunt till late in the season when injuries struck in a big way but so was Indiana, and the Pacers lost 17 out of 19 during March. Saying that you were close but lost out in the East playoff race in 2006-2007is not something to exactly be proud of.

Off-season
Traded Channing Frye and Steve Francis for Zach Randolph & Fred Jones & Dan Dickau
Drafted Wilson Chandler
Traded a 2008 2nd round pick to Portland for Demetris Nichols
Traded Cash to the Clips for Jared Jordan

Isiah said he wouldn't do much this off season. I guess he meant number of deals. I don't know much about Wilson Chandler except that he didn't get the Rolando treatment from NY during the draft. As for the big trade, this will help the Knicks score a few more wins next season. When we look at the 5 players involved, Fred Jones is not going to win a team any championships nor will Dickau (who is in the process of getting bought out as we speak) and getting rid of Francis is a good thing for NY. So when it comes down to Frye and Randolph it's simple, Frye is nice and has upside but Randolph is proven. For what they gave up in getting a proven 20-10 guy, Isiah might have scored on this one.

2007-2008
The key word here is MIGHT have scored. Because this trade is the definition of a high risk/high reward type of deal. The reward is having one of the more dominant front courts in the league who will control the paint with ease against almost every team. Also now having someone who can actually get a few boards unlike the other half of this power combo. The risk side, of course, is that Zach Randolph will have too much fun in NY and get into all kinds of off the court trouble. I think that's possible but if I was a Knicks fan I would worry more about the fact that as big as these two guys are, they won't be winning any type of 100m dash any time soon. The Suns are going to run circles around these guys. Sure the Curry/Randolph combo is going to get a few baskets, but I just don't see them putting up the amount of points they are going to need to win games. Defense was not a strong suit for the Knicks last year, and I don't see how they improved that much this year. On top of the shaky D, they still have the major problem which is Starbury and his effect on team chemistry, they still have the team's best rebounder in David Lee on the bench (although if he gets 30 minutes a game, it's not the end of the world), they still have Isiah running the show. A healthy Q. Richardson with the addition of Zach Randolph very well could put this band of characters back in the playoffs but does this team even come close to having a chance tat winning a championship? And if the players, Isiah Thomas and James Dolan and New York Knick fans are satisfied with just making it past April 15th, aren't they missing the point?

What to watch for:
1) Zach and Eddy - When the Knicks win, everything should be fine. But wait for those 3 or 4 game losing streaks. Then let's see how well these two (and the team overall) plays together
2) Starbury - He is the self-appointed star, and he is going to be in for some major mood swings this year as he has fallen down to number 3 on the offensive pecking order.
3) Isiah Thomas - Watching him deal with his mess has been quite enjoyable so far. Hopefully that continues.

Predications
Sorry Knick fans, but I can't say that I expect this team to do any damage this (or any) season. Sure they are a stronger team and more powerful with the inside game, but the weaknesses are still there. With the league going small ball, other teams are going to be able to run circles around the Knicks.

Between 38 and 42 wins this season with a 9th place overall in the East

San Antonio Spurs

2007-09-30T16:31:00.000-04:00

San Antonio Spurs season preview

Projected starting line-up
G Tony Parker
G Michael Finley
F Bruce Bowen
F Tim Duncan
C Fabricio Oberto

Reserves
Manu Ginobli
Robert Horry
Jacque Vaughn
Francisco Elson

Last year:
The model for the perfect franchise for the past decade. And let's be honest, one of the main reasons they didn't get a ring in 2005-2006 is because of the foot injury that slowed down Duncan for most of the year. Since drafting Tim Duncan, no franchise has been as consistent as these San Antonio Spurs. Going in to the 2006-2007 season, the Spurs had to be considered one of the favorites to win it all even as teams like Dallas/Suns/Pistons were getting more attention. The reality is that picking the Spurs was pretty much considered a boring pick. Everyone knew they were a serious threat, but picking the Suns or Mavs was a more "sexy" choice. At the end of the day though, we all knew that beating the Spurs in a 7 game series would be quite the feat for any of the other 29 teams in the L. Leading up to the all-star break last season, the Spurs looked good but not great. They were not on the tear that the Suns and Mavs were on, that much is for sure. Of course, unlike the Suns and the Mavs, the Spurs have already been there and done that, and the strategy to the season became more clear after the all-star break. Take it easy in the first half and turn it up a notch for the home stretch. The Spurs had a record of 23-4 after the all-star break (I am ignoring the last 2 games in the season that obviously was rest time for the team, Duncan didn't play in ether game) and went through the playoffs only losing 2 games in three of the four rounds (Denver/Utah/Cleveland).The one hitch to the season of course was the controversy with the Suns series. But while the Suns can play the game of "what if", the Spurs can play the game while enjoying the sparkle off their new championship rings. The NBA finals were such a joke this year because of how much better the Spurs were then the Cavs. It was pretty much common knowledge that the finals were not going to be close, which is a testament to how good the Spurs truly were. Them winning this year was viewed as boring for the average viewer with ratings for the finals being down, but is it the Spurs fault that they were so good that no other team except one (Suns) had even a remote chance at making things interesting?

Off-Season
Re-Signed Matt Bonner
Re-Signed Jacque Vaughn
Re-Signed Fabricio Oberto
Traded Jackie Butler and Luis Scola to Houston for Vassilis Spanoulis, a 2009 2nd round pick and future considerations
Drafted Tiago Splitter
Drafted Marcus Williams
Signed Ime Udoka
Released James White

Did anyone expect them to blow-up the team? They re-signed the depth as they should, with Bonner, Vaughn and Oberto. If this roster took them to the dance with ease last season, there is no reason in getting rid of anyone at this point. In fact, the only reason that Butler and the rights to Scola were traded to Houston was for financial reasons. While those players could help out the Rockets, they were not needed on the ultra-deep Spurs team. Ime Udoka will back up Bowen and possibly be prepared for the started small forward position down the road.

2007-2008
Only two teams are capable of taking down the Spurs, the Suns and the Mavs. At this point the Spurs have too much talent, too much chemistry, one of the top coach's in the league, multiple rings, too much experience...what else? Oh yeah, the best player in the league and the best power forward in the history of the game in Tim Duncan. No team in the East will be able to challenge this team. BUT I am not saying that the Suns and the Mavs couldn't do it, specifically the Suns. Phoenix has shown the ability to beat the Spurs and next year they will have something that San Antonio might be lacking which is drive. I don't doubt that the Spurs won't bring it all in every game they play that means something, but after 4 rings in 9 years, can they match up with the piss and vinegar that the Suns will be bringing? Did anyone watch that celebration after game 4 in the finals a few months ago? I think I saw Duncan yawn as the clock ticked down. Again, the opponent was a huge reason for this lack of celebration last year, but will this team be short the fire they will need against the Suns? No matter what though, this team is not going away. They have Duncan, Manu and Parker signed for 3 more years playing together as well as next season having cap space to make some moves. The question is not IF this team will win it's 5th but a question of WHEN it wins it's 5th.

What to watch for:
1) Complacency - You have won 4 championships in 9 years. The last one without breaking a sweat. You know you got the talent to make another run at number 5 but do you have enough drive to deal with the urgency the Suns and Mavs will bring this season?
2) Injuries - I know Duncan had foot issues two seasons ago, but he still played. The Spurs have yet to deal with a big blow injury wise. There is always a first time for everything.

Predication
I see the Spurs following a similar pattern as last year, with a slow (there standards of slow) start with a strong post all-star finish. I think that the talent is better spread out this year, as not that many teams have gotten weaker in the West (at least not the teams that stood a chance of beating the Spurs to begin with) and much improvement in the East. What this means is a tougher time during the regular season. The bottom line though is that what happens during the season won't matter during the playoffs. And even if the Suns and Mavs finished with a better record after 82 games, once the playoff series starts, everyone is back to zero. And in the playoffs is when the experienced Spurs are most dangerous.

A 52-55 win season with a 4th place overall in the West

Media day

2007-09-28T22:11:00.000-04:00

It was media day for the Raptors at the ACC before they headed on a plane for Italy. Raps TV conducted interviews with the players although at this point I have no idea when they will air those. Monday they put up the weekly schedule on raptors.com so hopefully something will be shown next week. Regardless, the Raptors first pre-season game vs Boston will be on Raptors TV next Saturday Oct. 6th at 2:30 pm.

A few things said today that made the web...

"I see guys a little hungrier this year," Colangelo said. "You've got guys that have had a little taste of the apple, a little taste of playoff action. . . I swear T.J. (Ford) had his game face on two weeks ago in the informal workouts here."

Good, these guys know that all the talk is once again about everyone else except them. Boston already has the Atlantic divison according to most observers. Let me be clear here and say that it does not matter that the Raps are getting little respect, or at least little faith, by some of the people out there. Last year during the season it was annoying, but this year it's different. The Raps did end up getting Coach of the year, executive of the year and lots of MVP talk for Bosh when everything was said and done so they have not been ignored. I am not handing the Atlantic over to the Celtics or the Nets though, although I am sure some people would look into what happened during the playoffs last year as a reason why the Celtics and Nets are favored both over the Raps. I do think a close look into what happened in the Raps/Nets series would show a toughier situation then normal for the Raps, but as an outside observer, they just see the Nets winning in 6 which is fine and fair. A Mavs fan might see things that I missed, as I just saw the Warriors kick ass. So I can't blame people for picking Boston right now over the Raps, even though I might not agree. And at the same point, everyone sleeping on the Raps should be firing up the players, something to prove, and that is a good thing for us fans.

"From a pure offensive standpoint, I think we're going to be one of the best shooting teams in the league," said Colangelo. "I'm not sure you could put many people in a shooting contest with Anthony Parker, Andrea Bargnani, Jason Kapono. . it's a situation where there's going to be a lot of shots made this year."

I think it's pretty set that its Ford/Parker/Kapono/Bosh/Bargnani for the starting five. And Colangelo is right, who are you going to use to double? Every player except for Ford can hit from outside. And hopefully that is something Ford has been working on. Bosh backs this up...

"It improves us," said Bosh, who continues to cement his spot as the cornerstone of the franchise. "I think our outside shooting has improved, we have Anthony Parker, Jason Kapono, and Andrea Bargnani all spotted up and me and T.J. attacking the basket, you have to pick your poison a little bit. Our athleticism improved, our outside shooting improved, and that's the kind of game that we play. We definitely got better."

Bosh says the goals are...
"Get to the playoffs, be in the upper tier in the Eastern Conference and advance in the playoffs," all-star forward Chris Bosh said of the team's goals."

I would say that it would be a very disappointing season if they don't win at least one round. I know the East got better, but that is how much I believe that they are better then most teams.

Here is another article talking more specifically about Bosh's foot.

"I'm not going to lie and say it's 100 per cent, but it's a lot better than last year, and I'm looking forward to it going away and leaving me alone," Bosh said Friday, a day before Raptors training camp in Treviso, Italy. "I'm staying on top of it, I'm treating it with respect, and making sure I can prevent it from happening again."

It's impressive how little Bosh showed any type of pain. Seriously, I knew he had the injury at the start of the season, but I thought it was gone by the time January rolled around. Sounds like that was not even close to being the case.

"The most important thing is we would like Chris to have more practice time, because it's hard to get better just playing in the games," said Mitchell. "He missed a lot of practice time last year, so if we can get him on the floor for practice time, that will help us."

"I got off to a slow start last year because I didn't practise," Bosh said. "This year, I expect to practise constantly, expect to be 100 per cent and I expect to get off to a good start.

And with the summer being used to stay off his feet, he has been hitting the gym and is said to be looking stronger. Excellent. Bosh always had the finesse, but to continue to add a power game would be a nice addition.

"I have minimal pain right now, I've come a long way. I'm just happy to wake up in the morning and be able to walk without any pain."

HE still has pain??? Good lord.

Can Jason Kidd handle the minutes?

2007-09-28T18:54:00.001-04:00

Back up point guard Marcus Williams of the New Jersey Nets has suffered a fracture in his foot and will require surgery. No idea on the timetable, but I think we can at least expect that some regular season time will be missed.

No offense to Williams, but this it not earth shattering news. But I am bring this up as it can impact the chances for our Raptors to repeat at divison champions. We all know that it's a three way race between the Celtics/Nets/Raps. The key to New Jersey is in Jason Kidd, and he can not be superhuman. He has seemed that way at times, but as each year passes, he is going to need more and more rest. Williams was drafted as the guy to one day replace Kidd, but until then, give Kidd some rest during the season. Keep Jason fresh for the main event which is the playoffs.

Is Marcus going to be out all season? No. But the more Kidd is forced to play, the more he will be worn down come playoff time.
Remember, Kidd already put in time this summer to the U.S. team. If he is forced to give 38 minutes a game instead of 33 for any stretch, its all going to add up at some point.

At least that's what we Raptor fans hope for.

The flip side is, Kidd has been superhuman every year so far. He might just very well be superhuman for 07-08 as well.

Update for you all
Tomorrow I am going to do up a quick rant on the greatest team poll I got going, and then IT'S GO TIME. Monday will be the start of the season preview. Big polls and big write-ups. Make sure you check back and see if you agree with my thoughts on all 30 teams.

A moment with Andrea

2007-09-27T18:12:00.000-04:00

Here is what Bargnani had to say during his conference call...

Q: What is the biggest improvement you need to make?
A: I have to improve a lot in the rebounding area and my game in the low-post. That is what we worked a lot with my coaches last year. This is what I have to work on this year.

Q: Is it a challenge to have the training camp in Italy with so many people wanting your attention?
A: It’s very unique to go to my country with my NBA team. I will play in front of my family, my parents. That will be very special.

Q: How excited are you about your first time in Rome as an NBA star?
A: First of all, I am not an NBA star. I still have to work on my game to become a star. Of course, I am very excited to go to Rome with my NBA team. This is something very big; I will be nervous to play in front of my family and my fans. It will be the first time all my family will be able to watch me play.

Q: How are you right now after the defeat of your National Team in the European Championship?
A: I am very upset about that, we played bad basketball and we were not a team on the center court so we have to work a lot next year to improve. We are a new team so these things can happen.

Q: How are you feeling physically? Did you do anything different for your training, preparing you for the physical year you will probably have to play with the Raptors?
A: I worked a lot physically. I don't think I have to put a lot weight on my body. I am 255, 258 pounds, like a lot of people in the NBA. I just have to learn how to guard bigger people.

Q: You were selected first overall in last year’s draft. Have you seen the impact this selection had on the basketball culture in your country?
A: I wish the basketball culture could be bigger in Italy but compared to soccer, it is still smaller. This is quite difficult; basketball is less popular in Italy.

Q: What do you think about players like Sarunas Jasikevicius or maybe Andrei Kirilenko that want to come back and play in Europe?
A: They are good players. I didn’t know anything about Kirilenko wanting to go back playing in Europe! They can play in the NBA like they can play in Europe. It’s their decision.

Q: Do you think that your experience on the National Team can improve your style of playing in your second season in the NBA?
A: I hope, because I played against very good players that are playing in Euroleague, so I think you can always learn something from these players.

Q: When you played in the EuroBasket this summer, you were the biggest name on the team? Did you feel any extra pressure going into the tournament?
A: I had that pressure the year before the draft and in the EuroBasket of course. There was a lot of emotion.

Q: It was the first time you have been with the National Team in a major competition, how would you compare the training and the settle to that which you have in the NBA?
A: The training is very different because we worked together for almost two months and we were practicing twice a day, almost every day for two hours. So it’s a different style of training I think. Here we practice once a day, so in Europe it's quite different.

Q: What do you think your team can achieve this year with the Eastern Conference getting tougher?
A: It will be more difficult. We'll try to do like last year and get to the next round in the Playoffs. I think that's the target of everybody.

Q: Did Coach Mitchell talk to you about being in The Finals? Are the expectations really high for your team?
A: Coach Mitchell didn't tell me anything about that. It's very hard to speak about The Finals. We know we are a good team. We will work hard and if we play good we can go very far but we still have to work.

Q: Have you set any goals for yourself personally coming into your second season in the NBA?
A: Yes, I have to improve my rebounds. I keep working and trying to improve like I did last year, that's why I'm in Toronto.

Q: Jose Calderon said he was excited about having the team in Europe for training camp as it would be a bonding experience. Would you agree with that?
A: Yes, of course. We'll be able to go out to dinner a lot of times and eat some good Italian food!

Q: Do you feel ready to be in the starting five?
A: I don't know if I will be in the starting five; we have a lot of good players. I'm going to work hard in practice and after that the coach will make his decision.

Q: After the EuroBasket how do you want to work with the international team in the future?
A: We just played really bad so we have to work a lot and improve. But I'm not thinking about next year yet, I'm just thinking about being in the Raptors.

Q: So your relationship with the National Team will go on?
A: Yes, why not? I have to play almost 100 games now with the Raptors, so it's hard for me to think about next year now.

Q: In what way can you improve as a team to make it to the Playoffs again?
A: Last year, we played very good basketball because we passed each other the ball so it was a fun game to watch. I just think we have to continue to play on this line and continue to get better. Always better and better.

Q: What impressed you most positively and negatively in your first year in America?
A: Positive, there are a lot of things: all the people that work round the league; the organization is perfect and is something amazing if we compare it to Europe. Negative, I can't really tell you anything negative because I had so much fun. Just positive things.

Q: Is there something that you miss about Italian basketball and Italy in general?
A: Yes, of course. I miss Italy. I miss my home town. I miss my friends and family. That's normal. It's a different game. I have so much fun in the NBA that I don't want to go back.

Q: Do you keep in touch with your friends and follow Italian basketball?
A: Yes. I call them up all the time and I follow the Italian league very closely.

Q: What do you think about the Italian Championship?
A: I think that Sienna is the best team right now because they have the same players as last year plus a few new players, so they have the best team right now.

Q: Like your teammates in Toronto showed you around Toronto, are you ready to show them around Italy?
A: Yes. I will be very, very busy with lots of stuff, so I don't know if I will have time to show them that much. For sure I won't have time to show them Rome. To see Rome you need at least two months!

Q: What do you think this trip in Europe can bring to your team?
A: People will be so far from home that you become more of a team, as you have to stay close together. I think that's the main difference that will be better.

Q: What do you think of the teams you will be playing against, Lottomatica and Real Madrid?
A: They are very good teams in Europe. They have a lot of players that could play in the NBA, so they will be tough teams.

And one more makes 4

2007-09-26T10:33:00.000-04:00

So lets see....

Kobe Bryant
Sort of Jermaine O'Neal
Andrei Kirilinko

Ohh and let's add Shawn Marion for the fun of it.

All these players requested a trade this summer.

That's right, Shawn Marion didn't like hearing his name in the trade rumours all summer and now he wants out. Make no mistake about it, it's an ego thing. He does not like playing second fiddle to both Amare and Nash. And let's also mention that Marion was pushing the Suns for a contract extension for 3 more years at 60 million. WTF?? Come on Marion! I like you, your a great player BUT 20 million a season???

As it stands now, Marion is the highest paid player on the Suns. He has 2 more years left. And I really don't know what the Suns are going to do here. They will clearly not get equal value to Marion. They felt team chemistry was an issue last season (with Marion being part of the problem) and while Marion said that if he is not moved, he will report to training camp, keeping Marion will not help that team chemistry issue. I was thinking Suns this year, but this drama could clear the way for a repeat championship for the Spurs.

Yoda is coming back

2007-09-25T17:22:00.000-04:00

Darrick Martin is coming back. Which is fine, as he was good for team chemistry, good for cheerleading and good for helping out with Ford and Jose. Both Jose and Ford got better as the season went on, and Martin was giving them tons of advice during the season, so how much did Martin help out in the progress of the two point guards?

That being said, let's just hope that the only time we see Martin on the court is during garbage time. I remember when the Suns were in town, it was the first game for Bosh post injury. T.J. Ford was injuried and Martin was getting minutes and not playing that bad. And for whatever reason, Mitchell decided to go with Martin over Jose at the end of the game. Bosh put the Raps up by 2 with about a minute and a half left (this capped off the big comeback as the Raps were down by 15 at one point) when Steve Nash just bolted down the court and hit a crazy three pointer about 1.5 seconds after Bosh scoried.

I forget the exact sequence, but Bosh scored again and Nash got fouled and scored some free throws to put the Suns up by 1 with 3 seconds left and zero time outs. The ball gets in bounded to Martin, he darts up the court and jacks a three pointer from 30 feet out. I was in the arena when everyone held their breath hoping the game winner would go in. And I was also there when everyone collectively said "what the f-ck" when the ball bounced of the shot clock. THE SHOT CLOCK!! No rim, no backboard, no air. SHOT CLOCK! And it was not a half court shot, it was 30 feet!! Half way between the 3pt line and half court!! It was the distance of Mo-Petes Washington buzzer beater. THE SHOT CLOCK!!!

I like Martin, but let's not have him on the court during times that matter.

Raptors vs Nets

2007-09-25T15:02:00.000-04:00

Raptor TV is replaying the first round series of the Raptors/Nets this upcoming sunday starting at 6. Here is how I watched the games originally...

Game one I dropped $180 for seats that were 8 rows back from the baseline. I hate baseline seats, but for the playoffs and being 8 rows back it was fantastic. I went to the game knowing I was in the lower bowl, but when I entered the arena and kept going down and down the stairs, it was a thrill. The Raps lost, but I was too hammered by 2 o'clock to be that bothered. Passing out at 4 in the afternoon was interesting also. I have said it before, the first 20 minutes with the singing of the national anthem and Garbo joining the bench, as well as the Raps not getting off to a horrible start all made it a once in a lifetime event.

Game two was a tough one for me. It was the same night as my basketball league which meant taping the game on the PVR. Here is the deal...I had to take a streetcar and the subway to get to the school where my ball is at. The spot where I transfer between streetcar and subway is at Union station which is right beside the ACC. And of course, game 2 was at the ACC. So my goal was to get home with out finding out what happened so I can enjoy the complete game. I thought I would make it past Union before the game got out, but of course, I got into Union just as the game ended. I literally was plugging my ears as Raptor fans got on the streetcar, just trying to avoid the results. It was too late though, the honking of the horns of all the cars gave it away. Well, at least they won.

Game three was at philthy mcnastys where it was packed. Everyone was pumped. And within the first 5 minutes of the game, the disappointment had set in. By halftime we were completely focused on other things. That was definetly the most disappointing game of the series.

Game four was equally as disappointing but at least I was at home for that one. Lot's of channel surfing going on during this game.

Game five was a similar situation as game 2 as I did have a basketball game myself. And to be honest, the thought of seeing Vince win the series in Toronto was a scary thought. So to make things easy, I just went to a friends house who has no cable and we ended up listening to the game on the radio. That was a unique way of doing it, but at the same point, it would have been better to have seen it live. I am looking forward to watching this game on sunday.

Game six was on a friday. And that weekend I had to head to my hometown of Kingston, What crappy timing for everything. My father picked me up in Toronto and had to drop some people off in Hamilton before turning around and heading to Kingston. So it was another game for the radio. The disappointing part is that as the game got into the fourth quarter, we were too far from Toronto to get a clear signal. I didn't know the results until an hour after the game, and truth be told, I only saw the last play maybe months after the fact on youtube.

So bottom line is that I am looking forward to rewatching games 1,2,5 and 6. I might skip 3 and 4. And for any of you with Raptors TV, just a friendly reminder that it starts at 6 on Sunday.

1st pick poll

2007-09-23T16:13:00.000-04:00

The question was "If you had first pick in a draft where every NBA player was available, who are you taking as the first pick to start the new team?".

I doubt that everyone who voted gave a lot of deep thought as to who they felt would be the best choice. Obviously if everyone did give the question the proper thought, then Kobe wouldn't have gotten 22 votes. Just joking. Sort of.

Tim Duncan with 30% of the vote. And I think he is the right guy for it. The most dominent team in the past decade is the Spurs, and that domination started when Tim Duncan was drafted. No doubt about it, the Spurs have great depth and balance along with all-star players in Tony Parker and Manu Ginobli as well as one of the top coaches in the league. But let's be honest, Tony Parker is not the best PG in the league. Top 5 maybe. And Ginobli is a very good player who can be great once in a while. And there are other deep teams in the league (Bulls, Mavs, Jazz) as well. So what makes the Spurs so special is with out a doubt Tim Duncan, who is the heart and Soul of that franchise. While highlight reels can help give players the undeserving title of "best in the game today", Tim Duncan owns that title. The depth of his team combined with an unselfish attitude affects Duncans numbers, he won't lead the league in scoring. But he is the best player today and the best power forward ever. Sorry Utah fans, but Karl Malone does not hold a candle to the overall game that Duncan brings. The only thing that would be a concern of mine in drafting Duncan is the age factor, he is not going down the hill yet but it won't be that much longer till that happens. But with his attitude, the positive effects on teammates would help there individual growth which benefits the team even when he is gone.

Oh man, I just don't understand some of you people. You get blinded by flash. Is Kobe Bryant one of the best SCORIERS in the league? Sure. But you all realize there is more to basketball then just shooting 35 shots a game, right? The guy was not even the best player on the Lakers championship teams. Bottom line is that Kobe is the anti-Duncan. He proved it this off-season with his unprofessional attitude. He does sell tickets as he has been made the #1 guy by the NBA marketing machine, but unless he is teamed with a Kevin Garnett type of player, he will never see another championship ring again. Now why would anyone want to draft that? 25% of you though need to take those glasses off.

Lebron got third with 17%. Not my personal choice, but unlike Kobe, I won't disagree with those of you who made this choice. Lebron has the all-round game that most other NBA players could only dream about. And how great would it be to get a top notch scorier, passer, defender, rebounder and attitude all in one player. Most of the top players only have 2 or 3 of those attributes. My concern with him is the lack of a killer instinct. When the spotlight is on, can he deliver. I know it was his first finals, but he failed misrably against the Spurs. I think it's a very valid concern to have. To be fair though, Lebron did bring it against the Pistons.

Steve Nash with only 12% percent. Steve Nash, like Tim Duncan, is the type of heart that could drive a franchise for years. My concerns though with Nash are as follow: If you draft Nash, they you will have to go with a fast tempo offense. That is what he is all about. With Duncan, he can go both ways with a half court offense and uptempo offense. Also with the style of ball Nash plays, he will break down quicker then Duncan.

As for the rest of the bunch, we got Jason Kidd with 3%. Age and injuries and not a great scorier works against him. D-Wade with 3% and I am really suprised with this pick. Did you all forget how he took over game 3 against Dallas and put Miami in the driver seat? The dude is just as much of a scoring machine as Kobe, plus with the right attitude. If the injuries are what held you back from this vote, fair enough. MVP Dirk with 2%. He was the MVP, you all knew that right? But I agree, I wouldn't pick him ether. At least not over these other players. Bosh with 4%. Maybe in 5 or 6 years after we see what Bosh can do in the playoffs. But as of today, no way. Oden with the big zero. Even before the injury, I guess you gotta prove yourself before getting any type of confidence in your abilties.

So Duncan is the winner, and I agree with that 100%.

Away from the desk

2007-09-22T14:18:00.000-04:00

Not much in the way of updates till Monday when I write a nice rant on the MVP poll that will finish over the weekend. Until then, here is something quick that I just read...

Deron Williams basically called out Andrei Kirilenko, saying that Kirilenko has zero work ethic. When AK47 came off a screen, Williams went to the other side with Matt Harpring coming off a screen, cause Matt puts the work into it.

Them fighting words.

The drama in Utah is just heating up. For you fantasy players, what happens to Kirilenko could make him the comeback kid of 2007-2008.