Unfortunately, the Raptors couldn’t capture the best start in franchise history. They fell 100-93 after a pretty good fourth quarter effort to get back in the game; they just couldn’t quite get over the hump.
Allen Iverson didn’t play, but I have to say, watching how well Detroit moved the ball and how smoothly they worked on offense… I’d be more concerned than ever about how he’s going to fit in there. Leo Rautins said it best, after a play in which the Pistons swung the ball from one side to the other then back, getting an open look with the Raptors scrambling: that ball would have stopped at Allen Iverson. They’re a well-oiled machine now, Iverson may just be the gunk that slows the cogs.
As for the Raptors, well, let’s be honest - they’re just not in Detroit’s class yet. I think what’s disappointing about this loss is that Toronto’s defense really let them down. They played solid defense in the first three games, but for stretches of the second and third last night… well, they looked like last year’s Raptors: slow rotations, turning their backs on cuts (leading to easy buckets for the Pistons), giving up open threes (that score could have been a lot worse if the Pistons hadn’t been 3-12 from downtown), and missing key rebounds.
That bad D led to a couple of key Detroit runs, and then it was “climb out of the hole we just dug ourselves” time for Toronto. They almost did it, too, closing it to within one several times in the fourth after being down 16 in the third. But, the defense just couldn’t get those one or two more stops they needed to put them over the top. A good effort in the fourth, but you gotta play that way the whole game to beat Detroit.
They do play the game well, don’t they? They remind me a lot of the Spurs, in the way that they always pick the right moments to run and the right moments to slow the tempo. And they slow it waaay down at times. It’s frustrating to watch, but sometimes, they cross the half-court line and then it’s like they just stand around for a second and catch their breath - and lull the defense to sleep - before getting the offense going. Not much fun to watch, but man, they work it well. Credit to them for being this good for this long.
Unfortunately, Jermaine O’Neal is going to get a lot of blame for this loss, because he struggled on offense and was in foul trouble. But also keep in mind, O’Neal held Rasheed Wallace to 4-12 shooting. Meanwhile, Chris Bosh - who finished with a nice-looking 26 and 13 - won’t get any blame, but who was settling for long jumpers and awful-looking fadeaways whenever Wallace was near him? Honestly, Bosh seems like he’s genuinely afraid of Wallace. He won’t go anywhere near the hoop when Wallace is on him. He finished 11-24 and a couple of those misses were unbelievably awful shots. He also let Jason Maxiell manhandle him on a couple of loose balls. So please, spread the blame for the bigs equally, won’t you?
Bargnani also deserves some disappointed glances. He was fine on offense, going 5-6 and hitting both his three-point attempts (and that smooth stroke I loved in his first year - that was absent last year - is back!), but he blew a couple of rotations on defense and got lazy on a couple of rebounds. He did have one nice block, however - like the O’Neal block of Maggette against Golden State - the ball went straight to Rasheed, who nailed an open three. Sigh.
Jose Calderon was magnificent on offense again, but Rodney Stuckey showed how vulnerable Jose is when a strong guard goes right at him. Calderon backpedals too quickly sometimes, and a player like Stuckey - who can score, no doubt about that - will take advantage.
Anthony Parker didn’t do much on offense, but I’ll never complain about that, as it’s his defense we need. He did the best he could last night, but chasing Rip Hamilton is never easy - especially when, and this bothers me because it’s so cheap, Rip pushes him into the screener when running through the off-the ball screens. I’m serious. You think Rip is so great at getting open, but I wonder how great he’d be if he ran off screens without pushing off?
The biggest Raptor killer last night was Tayshaun Prince. 27 points on 10-13 shooting. And most of those 13 shots were wide open looks. You know, it’s a good thing we have Jamario Moon in our starting lineup for his defense! Sigh. At least he got four rebounds, more than doubling his season total.
The rest of bench, outside of Bargnani, was invisible. Will Solomon played some decent backup minutes for Jose - and I assume his strength made him the better option than the rail-thin Roko Ukic, who hasn’t seen the floor since the first half in Milwaukee - but Sam may have left him in a couple minutes too long in the fourth. Kapono was 0-6 from the field; not exactly his best night. Kapono does a little too much with the ball; he needs to take a lesson from Rip, if you’re open of a screen, just shoot. Don’t try and dribble to create more space, just shoot.
Couple of other thoughts:
- What was all the hype for Amir Johnson a year or so ago? Man, did he ever look awful, and not just on D (where you knew Bosh would be too much for him). His jump shot looked awful and he boxes out about as well as Bargnani. You know it’s bad when you’re giving minutes to Kwame Brown.
- O’Neal got his second tech of the year. He spends a lot of time arguing with the refs I’ve noticed; I don’t mind that per se, some edge is good - and I grant the Pistons get away with a lot, and that’s frustrating - but Jermaine should know to wait until a stoppage to voice his concerns. Don’t allow yourself to be distracted by the refs while the play is still going on!
- Outrebounded once again! This time by five. Sigh.
- Jose Calderon’s numbers through four games: 19.5 points, on 52% shooting (54% from downtown), 9.25 assists, 2.25 turnovers, 4 rebounds. Those are some “wow” numbers. Of course, he’s averaging 38.5 minutes a night and ideally, it should be about 36, but clearly, they need him out there - not just as the floor leader, but because he’s the second best offensive option behind Bosh. I’d like to see Sam recognize that he can’t have Bosh and Jose on the bench at the same time. Yes, they play well together and have great chemistry. No doubt. But you need at least one of your primetime scorers in the game at all times, and Bosh and Jose are the only two you’ve got: O’Neal is not there anymore, and Bargnani is not there yet (if ever).
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