Quick correction to my last post about Vince Carter. I somehow neglected to include Game 6 of the 2007 Playoffs, which was, until the November 21st game, the best game between these two teams since the trade. Perhaps the end was too painful and I blocked it out. Carter had another average game, 6-19 for 21 points in the Nets’ one-point win.

Anyway, I’ve updated my spreadsheet and here are Carter’s stats against Toronto, including Game 6 and this past weekend’s games:

44.6% FG, 36% 3FG, 68.5% FT, 6.5 R, 4.5 A, 23.7 PTS in 23 total games. New Jersey with a 13-10 record.

And his total stats as a Net, through Monday’s game:
45% FG, 36.9% 3FG, 80.4% FT, 5.9 R, 4.7 A, 24.2 PTS. 317 games played.

So, again, virtually identical. I think I’ve made my point here, though I’m sure I’ll be forced to bring it up again when the Nets come to town in January… but Carter’s no different against the Raps than he is against anyone else.

Of course, in the one stat that really matters, he’s got 3 more wins against the Raps than we have against him - and I hope that we can get one more this year.

Tags: Toronto Raptors, Vince Carter

You know, it’s nice to have a team to support, to cheer them on, to believe in them. But sometimes - all too often in these parts - it’s incredibly difficult.

Last night’s game, unseen by the masses of course (hence this less-than-detailed analysis, which really, is more of rant…), was just the latest in a series of bitter disappointments.

Toronto Raptors basketball… where no double digit lead is safe happens.

Of course, it’s the Goddamn Nets again, so it’s even worse. But how in the world does a professional basketball team - any team, I don’t care if you’re the Celtics or the Grizzlies - give up a 23-4 run to start the fourth quarter? At home!? That’s almost inconceivable. How is it even possible to go for more than nine minutes of the fourth quarter without scoring a field goal? What the hell were they doing out there?

I really believed the improved play we’d seen over the past three games was indicative of overall improvements. I had faith that they were finally on the right track. But they betrayed me by choking down the stretch of last night’s game.

It doesn’t help that we have a team of cowards afraid to take shots and make plays in the fourth quarter. And when your knees are wobbling, it’s that much harder to play defense.

Playing not to lose is no way to win, that’s for sure.

Sigh. They did so many things right in that three-game stretch - even in the Hornets game - that I’d really believed they were at a turning point. I thought that confidence would transfer over to exactly the kinds of situations you had last night - a fourth quarter lead with the opposing team making a run - and that confidence would enable them to keep their cool, to execute, to raise their play.

I was wrong. The played exactly like they played through the first 20 games. Scared. Playing not to lose is no way to win, that’s for sure.

Of course, it’s not all their fault. It’s pretty clear now that Colangelo’s failure to get a decent wing player, who can score when needed and can defend his own position, is going to be the death mark stamped on this season’s back.

If we had one guy who could stop some dribble penetration, and not leave our bigs on an island, they might be able to stay home and rebound. And if we had a guy who could create his own shot, when the team struggles on offense, we might have someone to kick-start everyone else by creating something from nothing and getting to the line.

Is Corey Maggette really the answer? Of course not. He’s not much of a defender and he’s not known for swinging the ball or kicking out on drives. And he’s got a bad attitude to boot. But… isn’t he better than what we’ve got? Don’t you think Jermaine and Bosh can keep him in line? Don’t you think it’s possible that, playing in Golden State without a PG, is killing his game? And don’t you think getting ANYTHING for Bargnani would be a bonus?

Sigh. I’m sure BC’s going to make a deal in the near future, but I don’t think it’s going to be for anyone of substance. No one’s giving us something for nothing - and nothing is all we have to offer. So, let’s enjoy the rest of this mediocre season with our mediocre team. Because remember, we’re all fans in the end - and we support our team through thick and thin.

Tags: New Jersey Nets, Toronto Raptors, Vince Carter

Hard to be too disappointed in yesterday’s loss to the Hornets. They are, obviously, a much better team than the Raptors, and losing to them is expected.

But in a way, you have to feel a little like the Raptors let an opportunity slip away. After all, they kept it close all day, were only one or two shots away from changing the game. And when you consider that the Hornets were without Tyson Chandler, one of those high-energy defensive hustlers who’s a killer on the offensive glass - you know, the exact type of players who gives the Raptors fits - this was probably as good a chance as any for the Raptors to steal a win over a good Western Conference team.

Alas, the Raps got virtually nothing from the wing position on the offensive end, and it killed them in the end. Hardly a shocking story if you’ve watched the Raptors all year long, but considering that they’d gotten good contributions from Moon, Graham and Kapono the past two, and considering Anthony Parker was back in the mix, you had to figure things were finally on the right track. Not just yet it seems.

Moon played well defensively, pulling in another 8 rebounds - great to see him getting back on the glass - and blocking two shots, but he proved his jumper is still as erratic as ever, going just 2-7 and 1-4 from downtown. Still, he helped out a lot on Chris Paul and when the Raps needed a stop with 35 seconds left, he forced Paul into an incredibly tough driving layup that missed. (Naturally, Moon’s teammates didn’t back him and David West got the rebound and that sealed the game. Sigh).

Kapono got a lot of nice looks on the day, but simply couldn’t bury them. I’m not too concerned about this either way - he got two contested-but-good looks in the fourth quarter that would have brought the Raps within three I believe, and there’s not a soul on this team I’d rather have taking the shots. But, he couldn’t get them to drop; it just happens that way sometimes. Of course, unlike Moon, he didn’t do much else on the floor, notching just one board and three assists. And he was consistenly late on defensive rotations - though he wasn’t the only one - and James Posey and Rasual Butler droped in a combined 10 triples.

Rasual Butler… I mean, really. Rasual Butler is beating us with two late fourth-quarter threes and 16 points? Sigh. Good for him, and good on the Hornets for getting a contribution out of him. Naturally, the Raps can’t find quality second-tier players like him, and are forced to recycle duds like Jake Voskhul. Sigh.

As for the other wings, Graham and Parker just couldn’t find a groove and didn’t contribute anything.

Up front, Jermaine O’Neal was solid, with 7-10 shooting for 19 points, along with 7 boards. He was aggressive, which he needed to be; with Chandler out, JO had a big advantage against Hilton Armstrong and he worked it effectively.

But Chris Bosh struggled mightily from the field, going just 6-17, with most of them in the 17-foot range. He was working the drive effectively - he got the line 15 times and finished with 25 points - but when the jumper isn’t falling, he needs to be driving every time. And I know David West is a big, strong presence, but he doesn’t have great defensive footwork and I think with a couple more drives Bosh could have gotten him into some foul trouble, and gotten him out of the game. Alas. I just hope Bosh is keeping notes for next time.

And geez, Chris, if you’re gonna shoot threes - which I wish you wouldn’t, but if you are - at least get your feet set, man. No one’s coming to guard you out there, so you don’t need to rush it.

And our only big off the bench is Andrea Bargnani, and I’m probably beginning to sound like a broken record, but he struggled from the field. 2-7, four points. One board, only 11 minutes played. I wonder if Triano’s patience is wearing out? Those numbers are Jake Voskuh-esque!

Just kidding. Don’t wanna disrespect Jake, he’s been a professional his whole career and having another big on the bench never hurts. And since we’re up to 14 bodies a 2-for-1 style trade is a possibility, so I can’t complain about that.

Anyway, back to yesterday… at the end of the day, you gotta give the Hornets credit. We took away Paul’s ability to get to the hoop very effectively, but every time he kicked out, his teammates hit their shots. The Raptors struggled from the field, and the Hornets didn’t let them get back into it. I thought both teams played OK, but the Hornets were just a bit better, and they got a well-deserved win.

Now, tonight, it’s Vince’s second and final appearance at the ACC this season as the Nets are back in town. Nets played a back-to-back Friday-Saturday, this is a back-to-back for us, so both teams are probably a little tired. Luckily it’s a rare home back-to-back so the Raps got to sleep in their own beds; we’ll see if homecourt advantage has an impact.

Vince bounced back from his 0-13 game with a 33-point game against the Bulls Saturday night in Chicago, but the Nets still lost; they’re on a three-game skid. Raps of course have won two of three and the chance to take three of four is right there. Time to start winning consistently and not just trade wins and losses.

With two games under their belts, these two teams know each other pretty well. Raptors have to stop Harris and Carter and hope the bigs don’t dominate the glass; Nets have to stop Bosh and O’Neal and hope the wings stay cold. I always gave the Nets the big edge in coaching before, as Lawrence Frank always seemed to confuse the Raps with something, but with Triano at the helm, we’ve closed the gaps. I expect the Nets have made adjustments from Friday; previously, I’d expect the Raps to do the same old thing but now, under Jay, I expect some adjustments of our own.

I wouldn’t be surprised if we saw some more of Carter creating from the top, with Harris at a wing spot. That would allow the defense to react to Carter - and, knowing the Raptors, scrambling somewhat - and if he can kick out to Harris, Harris will have a much easier time creating against a defense that isn’t set.

Anyway, that’s just my idea. For the Raps, well, they need to find a way to get Bosh and O’Neal deeper post position; that’ll open the floor up for the shooters and for them. And we need Moon to continue to bring the same energy off the defensive end that he did early Friday.

By all accounts, no one was frustrated or upset after yesterday’s loss, no one was hanging their heads. The Raptors appear to have bought into the new coach and are playing with some renewed confidence. They’ve made some good steps the past week or so. I’m not ready to declare they’re back, but tonight would be another big step forward.

I think the Raps will pull it out at home: Toronto by 11.

Of course, I won’t be able to see the game, thanks to those bungling idiots at MLSE and the greedy bloodsuckers at TSN and Rogers. Fuck you, all of you. You’re a bunch of assholes. I can’t believe you fucking idiots haven’t solved this problem yet. I hope all of your advertisers love the 1800 viewers you get for tonight’s game. Fucking morons.

Tags: New Jersey Nets, New Orleans Hornets, Toronto Raptors

Well, the Raptors are inching back closer to respectability thanks to two straight wins. No, neither opponent was a world-beater, so it doesn’t make sense to get too excited, but the Nets are above us in the standings, and as I said the other day, wins are wins!

And, as we all know, there was a little extra motivation for last night’s game.

It sure seemed to pay off, as the Raps earned their first blowout win of the year - Chris Bosh and and Jose Calderon got the fourth quarter off! I didn’t see that coming.

As for Vince, you’ve all heard the story by now - 0-13, only 3 pts on 3-4 foul shooting. Hate to blow my own horn, but didn’t I just say he was due for a bad game? Now, maybe, can we stop the “he plays so great against the Raptors!” comments.

To be honest, I was more worried about Devin Harris going into the game than Vince. Harris has been playing so well, and our perimeter defense - especially that of Jose Calderon - had been so weak, I thought Harris would go off. But, credit Jay Triano for giving Harris a multitude of looks - Calderon, the strong Joey Graham and the long Jamario Moon - to keep Harris off-balance. He finished 4-10 for 14 points.

The first half sure was a sloppy affair, with only Bosh really finding a groove; both sides missed a ton of open looks and the combined 74 points at halftime wasn’t pretty.

But Jason Kapono found his groove in the third with three threes and the Raptors sealed the deal early.

For the second straight game the Raptors held an opponent under 35% shooting. Crappy opponents, or good defense? I’d like to think it was a combo of both. I mean, you look at the Pacers and Nets; both were averaging just over 100 points per game going into their contests with the Raps (on 45% shooting) and the Raps held them to 88 and 79 respectively, on 35% and 31% shooting, respectively. So you gotta give the defense some credit.

Credit the Raptors bench, too, for playing well, and not just holding the lead but building it. Raps won every quarter except the ugly third, where each team scored 16. Ukic, Graham and Bargnani all scored in double figures off the pine.

Unfortunately, Bargnani’s 11 came on 10 shots and he only hit two of them (got the rest of his points at the line). He was fine defensively - 11 boards and 4 blocks - but man, he has got to get that jump shot falling. Like last year, he’s rushing everything and nothing he shoots even looks like it has a chance to go in.

Jermaine O’Neal was also a non-factor; 2-9, 2 boards, 2 blocks. Bosh made up for the scoring, at least, going 6-8. But he only had 5 boards as the Raps were once again outrebounded 50-37.

Now, once again - as with the Indy game - the Nets’ low shooting percentage contributes to that number. You miss 57 shots, there’s a lot of offensive boards to be had - and the Nets got 20 offensive boards. At the end of the day, though, a 13-rebound differential is way too high, regardless of the shooting percentages.

So, once again, a quality win. Raps led most of the way, held every Nets run in check, and won going away. A much, much tougher test comes to town tomorrow with the Hornets, but at least these wins should give the Raps some confidence going into that one.

And yes… revenge is indeed, sweet. Thanks for another memorable one, Vince! See ya Monday!

Tags: Chris Bosh, New Jersey Nets, Toronto Raptors, Vince Carter

Since it’s Raptors-Nets tonight, that’s prompted the usual “Vince really likes to kick Raptor ass!” statements around the Web. The one that’s got me riled up right now is on Yahoo Sports. It features such gems as:

“There are few players who treat the Raptors as poorly as the one who led them further than they’ve ever gone,” and “Carter has been a thorn in the side of the Raptors ever since he was traded away from Toronto in 2004.”

Just for kicks, since I looked at Vince’s numbers against the Raps in Toronto last month, decided to take a look at the Raptors-Nets box scores in Jersey over the past four seasons. Game results are at the end of the post, and here’s the tally.

Now, if you’ll recall his stats as Net:
45% FG, 37% 3PT, 81% from the line, 5.9 rebounds, 4.7 assists, and 24.4 points per game.

And his stats in Toronto against the Raptors (11 games):
45% FG, 36% 3PT, 68% FT, 7.2 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 24.5 points per game - almost identical.

So, here’s his stats in New Jersey against the Raptors (9 games):
50% FG, 36% 3PT, 66.7% FT, 5.8 rebounds, 4.8 assists, and 25.6 points per game.

In other words… WAIT FOR IT…. ALMOST EXACTLY THE SAME.

Here’s the overall stats in 20 games against the Raps:

47.4% FG, 35.6% 3PT, 65.6% FT, 6.5R, 4.7A, 25 points.

So, field goal percentage up slightly, 3-point and free throw down slightly, rebounds and points up slightly, assists the same. Really, is a half-point more against us than against everyone else “sticking it” to us?

And really, it’s just downright lazy on your part. I did this research in about an hour this afternoon. It’s all out there on the Web, and if I can do it, so can you. Especially the reporters - you know who you are, the ones who look down on us mere bloggers. This is your job, for God’s sake, to get the facts right. So do the research.

Of course, now you don’t have to since I’ve done it for you! In return, I am asking, if not outright begging: people, please stop saying Vince Carter brings his A game against Toronto every time they play. The stats clearly indicate he brings the same game he brings against every other team - which, as you know, is inconsistent but pretty darn good overall - and there’s no evidence to suggest he goes out of his way to play better against us or stick it to us or whatever.

I mean, look at it this way. In 20 games, he’s averaging 25 points per. He’s had:

Six games within five points of the average (between 20-30 points).
Seven games of more than five above the average (31 or more).
Seven games of more than five below the average (19 or less).

In other words, a little up and down, but, well, that’s Vince’s entire career, right?

Yes, he’s had some great performances against us, and of course, those are memorable. The talking heads remember them because they make the highlight reels, of course, as fans, those are incredibly painful losses. But you can’t forget that he’s had great performances against a lot of teams; sure, it doesn’t break their hearts the same way it does ours, but they’re no less impressive.

Not only that, but he’s had some outright bad performances against us! If you’re going to recall the great ones (the 42 point game, the 37-point game and the two 39-point games, all victories), please, don’t forget about the bad ones (the two 15-point games, the 12 point game, and the 7-point game, all losses).

So, newsmen, talking heads and bloggers, stop sayingthat Vince is gonna stick it to us “again.” Write that Vince is going to be Vince - maybe good, maybe great, maybe average - just like every other damn time he’s played us.

(And hey - doesn’t it look like he’s about due to drop an egg against us? Say maybe a 6-17, 16 point, 3 free throw night? I think it’s time.)

As for those game-by-game results:

February 22, 2005: Toronto 100, NJ 82
Carter: 8-25 FG, 0-3 3PT, 6-10 FT, 7R, 4A, 22PTS

December 3, 2005: Toronto 95, NJ 82
Carter: 4-11 FG, 2-6 3PT, 5-7 FT, 1R, 3A, 15PTS

March 4, 2006: NJ 105, Toronto 100 (OT)
Carter: 12-26 FG, 0-3 3PT, 7-13 FT, 7R, 4A, 31PTS

November 1, 2006: NJ 102, Toronto 92
Carter: 10-16 FG, 1-4 3PT, 4-4 FT, 11R, 6A, 25PTS

January 9, 2007: NJ 101, Toronto 86
Carter: 12-23 FG, 2-4 3PT, 6-8 FT, 5R, 7A, 32PTS

April 27, 2007: NJ 102, Toronto 89 (Playoffs Game 3)
Carter: 15-23 FG, 2-4 3PT, 5-6 FT, 2R, 5A, 37PTS

April 29, 2007: NJ 102, Toronto 81 (Playoffs Game 4)
Carter: 9-15 FG, 5-8 3PT, 4-9 FT, 7R, 7A, 27PTS

November 2, 2007: Toronto 106, NJ 69
Carter: 2-6 FG, 1-2 3PT, 2-4 FT, 5R, 3A, 7PTS

April 5, 2008: NJ 99-90
Carter: 12-21 FG, 1-5 3PT, 7-8 FT, 7R, 5A, 32PTS

Tags: Toronto Raptors, Vince Carter

It’s the Nets again, this time in New Jersey. I won’t go over the details of the last game against Vince and the boys - it’s too painful to think about - but we all remember it was a horrific loss, one of the worst in Raptors history.

It’ll also go down as one of the games - along with the Denver Debacle - that got Sam Mitchell fired. Hearing Colangelo say that he “just can’t get the New Jersey game out of my mind” following the coaching change was very telling.

The Raps may have won Wednesday, but they’ve still dropped 7 of their last ten. Meanwhile, the Nets lost Wednesday, but they’ve actually won 7 of 10.

Perhaps not coincidentally, both of those strings started that night in Toronto.

But, the past is the past and we’ll see tonight if the Raptors can avenge that loss, and we’ll see if “The Turnaround” really is in effect.

Devin Harris has been playing out his mind. Honestly, I never thought the guy was this good… but damn. 24.8 ppg on 49% shooting? 6.2 assists? Those are some pretty unbelievable numbers. Vince is putting up his usual 22/5/5, and together they form the highest-scoring backcourt in the NBA.

The Raps, obviously, need a repeat performance by the swingmen from Wednesday if they want to win tonight. If you’ll remember last game, Chris Bosh dominated the Nets up front - they really had no idea what to do with him - but I don’t think that’ll happen tonight, because Lawrence Frank is too smart for that. And he’s got history with shutting Bosh down.

He’ll realize this time out that letting Bosh get his isn’t the way to go, and that the better strategy - played out over these past 10 games - is to double and trap Bosh, and make the wings beat you. I’m certain we’ll see the Nets moving a lot faster on the double tonight.

That should free things up a little for Jermaine O’Neal, perhaps. O’Neal struggled last game, before going down in the third quarter with the knee injury, despite the fact that he was being guarded by rookie Brook Lopez. I’d really like to see Jermaine attack Lopez, especially if the Nets are paying extra attention to Bosh like I expect.

Defensively for the Raptors, I assume Jamario Moon and Jason Kapono will get the starting nods again tonight, and I assume we’ll see Moon guarding Vince and Kapono on Bobby Simmons. Simmons isn’t nearly as big a factor in the Nets offense as Carter, obviously - less than 7 shots a game and more than half of those are from downtown. So that should minimize Kapono’s defensive deficiencies, and if Moon can play with the energy he brought last game, he should be a little more effective at slowing down Vince than Kapono.

Bosh and O’Neal should have an advantage over Yi and Lopez, the real challenge - as always - will be keeping them, and their reserves Josh Boone and Ryan Anderson off the glass. Crafty vets like Bosh and O’Neal should be able to do so. I’d like to see both of them with double-doubles tonight.

Unfortunately, I really don’t really know how Calderon is going to be able to slow down Devin Harris. Harris has shown he can take just about anybody, and Calderon has trouble keeping guys in front of him, so this spells mismatch from start to finish. I just hope Calderon continues his aggressive play from the past couple of games and makes Harris work on the other end.

To be honest, these teams are a pretty cool mismatch on paper - the Nets are strong in the backcourt, the Raps are strong in the frontcourt. The former won game one, which will come out on top in game two?

Not only that, but we all know Lawrence Frank has owned Sam Mitchell for the past two years, so now we get a chance to see if a new coach can make some adjustments in turn. I think this is a great test for Triano; when the teams are evenly matched, the coach can make a big difference. Let’s see if Triano earns his pay tonight!

I have decided that positivity is the way to go, especially in games where the teams appear to be evenly matched. I choose to believe that the win the other night was the start of a good thing, and I believe they’ll continue that - and build on it - tonight in New Jersey.

Raptors by 7.

Tags: Chris Bosh, Devin Harris, New Jersey Nets, Toronto Raptors, Vince Carter

That feels a little better, doesn’t it? I’d almost forgotten what it was like to see the Raptors win.

Now, obviously, you can’t put too much stock into beating the 7-win, last-place Pacers. But when you’re coming off five straight losses, any win will do and besides, beating the teams you’re “supposed to beat” is the first step to becoming a good team.

So I’d hardly call it a great win, but it’s a start.

Most important thing the Raptors did last night, in my mind, was hold the lead. We’ve seen them blow enough double-digit leads this year to never feel safe, but the Raptors actually won every quarter - first time all year they’ve done that. The Pacers made a few small runs but the Raptors never let anything get out of hand.

Coach Jay Triano - picking up his first win, congrats - has said that a defensive priority would be to pack in the middle, taking away drives and easy baskets and making opponents beat them from the outside. That strategy seemed to work last night; the Raptors tried to take away the paint any time Marquis Daniels and TJ Ford drove the lane, and the Pacers shooters couldn’t connect from long range on the kick-outs. Of course, the Pacers still scored 34 points in the paint, so there’s still some work to be done; and you can’t expect all teams to shoot as poorly from range as the Pacers did (7-25 from three). But, it appears there is a system in place, and it appears that the Raptors might be starting to “get it.” Let’s see if it carries over to the Jersey game…

Rebounding was again an issue last night; the Pacers pulled down 18 offensive boards, and outrebounded the Raps 52-47. Now, give that an asterisk because the Pacers only shot 35% and missed 62 shots - a lot more opportunities for offensive boards than the Raptors, who only missed 41 of their 81 shots. But Troy Murphy and Jeff Foster - as expected - were dominant on the glass, with a combined 32. The Raptors simply need to box out better. And that’s on everybody - I saw Bosh fail to box out, and I saw Ukic leak out too soon. Top to bottom, every single player on this team needs to improve their rebounding efforts. As they’ve proven already this season - all too often - you won’t get many wins if you don’t hit the glass.

While Murphy and Foster were bringing their usual scrappiness, I have to say, I was particularly unimpressed with Danny Granger last night. This is a guy I thought was making “the leap” this year. I thought he had taken his game to the next level with a nice mix of inside and outside stuff. But he started out settling for long jumpers, and when they weren’t dropping… he continued settling for long jumpers. I thought he’d mix it up, find another way to get into the groove, but he didn’t look at all interested in the game. In fact, he looked like Bosh has looked for the past two weeks - disinterested and unmotivated. If he’d bother to read a scouting report, he’d know Jamario Moon jumps on every head fake he sees, but only once did I see him use one. He still led the Pacers with 22, but he was only 9-25 from the field - and 3-11 from downtown - and had just two foul shots, and no assists or steals. Just an energy-less performance.

As for Bosh, well, he coasted a bit last night as he’s been doing, but I’m pretty sure I also saw some pick and rolls with him and Jose, where he got the ball at the elbow, face-up - that’s where I like to see him get it. I also saw a number of times where he fought for good post position but the Raptors didn’t get him the ball. Is it just me, or is this team terrible at making entry passes to the post? Still, when he did have the ball, Bosh had some drives and some jumpers (most straight-up, not fadeaways), and thankfully, no three-point attempts. All in all, a decent game, and hopefully, one that gets him back on track.

Now, obviously, the big story last night - aside from the win - was actual, real, tangible wing play. Don’t laugh, I’m serious! The Raptors got production from the 2 and 3 spots!

Moon started in place of Bargnani - I for one didn’t see that coming - and he played his best game of the season. 17 points on 7-12 shooting, with 8 rebounds and that monster put-back dunk that was probably a goaltend. I can’t believe how high Moon was on that play. Meanwhile, although Granger coasted most of the game, Moon deserves a little credit for Granger’s 9-25 - he was getting a hand up and not making the shots easy ones.

Now, it wasn’t all great; while Moon had a couple of drives, I did feel like he settled for too many jumpers on the night. For once they were going in but until he starts hitting the 15-20 footer consistently, I’ll be cringing every time he rises up.

Kapono, meanwhile, started for an injured Anthony Parker, and played HIS best game of the season. 11-16, 3-7 from downtown, and he really mixed it up with some runners and floaters. He also pulled down eight rebounds! Yes, Marquis Daniels beat him to the rack on several occasions (finishing with 21) but Kapono was… adequate on defense. Hey, as long as he’s outscoring his counterpart, he’s doing his job!

Finally, our man Joey Graham proved yet again who is the superior Graham, with 12 points and a number of aggressive drives to the hoop. Stephen, meanwhile, didn’t score and picked up two offensive fouls in 8 minutes of play. I’d like to see Joey get more rebounds - only 2 in 25 minutes - but he played smart, under control, aggressive ball, which is exactly what we need from him.

Finally, we come to the men of the hour, Jose Calderon and TJ Ford. Ford was a non-factor; really, there just isn’t much to say. 2-8, 4 points, 4 assists. Calderon wasn’t at his best either, but he was solid - 11 points, 14 assists, and the dagger three to seal the victory.

As for the other tradees, Jermaine O’Neal and Rasho Nesterovic, Jermaine had a quiet 10-9 while Rasho had an even quieter goose egg (with 3 boards).

On the night it looks like the Raptors won the trade but really, none of the four was a big factor in the outcome. It was mainly decided by the wings. Graham, Kapono and Moon finished 22-35 for 55 points, while Granger, Daniels and Brandon Rush combined were 19-50 for 49. It’s been a long, long time since our wings outplayed anyone else’s. Lots of room for improvement, but good job, fellas.

Of course, not every Raptor got lifted by the good vibes. Andrea Bargnani had possibly his worst game of the season, notching a big fat zero in the points column. Four shots, four rebounds, four fouls, three turnovers. Looked completely lost on offense, like he had no idea where to go or what to do. Some of it’s on the coaches, no doubt; please, somebody, define this kid’s role and find some way for him to contribute! I note that he didn’t get much an opportunity to showcase his improved D last night, as he was playing against Rasho and Foster who don’t look to score much. But four fouls and four boards indicate he wasn’t exactly at the top of his game. Just really, really, disappointed in him the past couple of weeks. I really thought his improved play earlier in the year meant he was going to start finally reaching that elusive potential. Well, shame on me for believing. He fooled us all again.

Thankfully, the Raps didn’t need him last night. But overall they do need him. If he keeps having games like that, the Raptors aren’t going to win many.

So, anyway, not a great win, but a win nonetheless. The Raptors needed it. Is it the start of something special? Has “The Turnaround” begun? We’ll find out on Friday. A road win - they haven’t had a quality road win since… well, I guess maybe since the very first game of the year, at Philly? They’ve also beaten Charlotte on the road, but it’s Charlotte, and Miami, but they came thisclose to blowing that one.

Anyway, a road win in Jersey - a measure of revenge - would go a long way to restoring a little more of my faith in this team.

Tags: Chris Bosh, Indiana Pacers, Jermaine O'Neal, TJ Ford, Toronto Raptors

TJ Ford, Jermaine O’Neal, big trade, first game, Ford-Jose, blah blah blah. We know all about that and I blogged about the reception I expect TJ will get before (a likely mixture of boos and cheers, when it should be, in my opinion, all cheers) and while it makes for nice drama, it doesn’t matter one damn bit tonight.

If both teams were playing well and in the thick of it, I’d love the added drama. But both teams need a win in a big way so I really don’t give a crap about the rest. Winning is all that matters.

And besides, we all know the real matchup we want to see is Stephen Graham vs. Joey Graham!!

Seriously, looking at these two teams, you have to think that realistically the Pacers are actually better on paper than the Raptors. They’ve got a good point guard (obviously), but also a solid back-up in Jarrett Jack. There’s Danny Granger, who’s blossoming into an all-star. They’ve got Troy Murphy and Jeff Foster, who are pests around the glass (and Murphy can shoot, too). They’ve got our old friend Rasho Nesterovic, still solid in the middle, with 10 points and 5.4 boards in 25 minutes. Somehow, Marquis Daniels has resurrected his career, to the tune of 16 points and 6 boards a game as the starting 2-guard. And, they’re still missing Mike Dunleavy with some kind of knee trouble.

In other words, they’ve surrounding their budding star, Granger - who is capable of creating his own shot - with actual NBA talent. Actual NBA talent that has beaten both the Lakers and Celtics, and took the Celts to overtime last game before losing on Sunday.

Meanwhile we’ve got three quality NBA players in Bosh, O’Neal, and Calderon, and they’re all struggling. None of them can create their own shot. And the rest of our roster is a mess. We’re on a five-game losing streak with a point differential of minus-20.

All right, all right, I’ll stop taking shots at the roster, it’s getting tired. It’s not good. We all know it.

No word yet on whether or not Jay Triano switches Bargnani out of the starting lineup; I wasn’t sure yesterday if this was the right move, but today - after watching Bargnani struggle to do anything productive even in garbage time - I’m pretty damn close to calling Joey Graham’s number. In fact I may have down so this morning but I was still kinda fuming from the game and not really in my right mind. Look at the numbers it seems clear that Joey’s earned it… But I still hesitate because we’ve all seen enough “bad Joey” to know this might be a huge mistake.

Still, anyone can see that Bargnani can’t guard threes. At least it’s Graham’s natural position. No one knows what the hell Bargnani is, but it’s becoming clear, it’s not a three.

And with Humphries still sidelined, doesn’t it make sense to keep Bargnani on the bench to back up JO and Bosh? I dunno… I fully understand the “play your best five guys” mindset… but it doesn’t appear to be working right now. How long do you stick with it?

Now, I know Triano is installing his new offense, and I like a lot of the movement that we see out of guys like Parker and Kapono. But you can’t forget the pick and roll. It shouldn’t be used every play, obviously, as it was earlier this year, but you can’t deny that Chris and Jose are effective out of it. So even though we need new things on offense, I’d still like to see those two in the pick and roll a few times a game. We need to get Chris going and the pick and roll is a way to do that. The play itself was never bad, but the amount we were using it was. So don’t throw the play away “just because.”

And when you consider that Murphy isn’t a great defender, Bosh should have an advantage there.

Rebounding continues to be an issue for the Raptors. I just don’t understand why they don’t box out. I know it’s “easy to say, harder to do” but come on… this is basic basketball, and you know, basic common sense - as Jack pointed out yesterday, a long shot from the left corner is likely going to bounce long right. So be prepared on that side! (Joey wasn’t in this case yesterday). And it’s not like we’re running a small lineup out there! Box out, for fuck’s sake.

I spoke earlier of “The Turnaround.” I’m capitalizing it now because it’s that important. We need something to swing our way, and we need it to last for a decent stretch, and we need it soon. Even a four wins/two losses stretch over the next six games would do, just to give the team - and its fans - some confidence.

If The Turnaround started against TJ and the Pacers, well, that would be just a little sweeter, wouldn’t it?

You know what, fuck the negativity. We may be down, but we’re not out, right? I still have faith in my team. Not much - I’m digging down low to get it - but it’s there. I believe in the Raptors. I believe they’ll come out fired up, because it’s the Pacers, and because they need a win and they know it. I believe they’re tired of losing. I believe they’re getting Triano’s system down and that it’s gonna start coming together.

I believe! The Turnaround starts tonight!

Raptors by 10.

Tags: Chris Bosh, Indiana Pacers, Jermaine O'Neal, Jose Calderon, TJ Ford, Toronto Raptors

It was to be expected, I suppose, the floundering Raptors getting blown out by the undefeated-at-home Cavs. But still… there’s a part of you that hopes your team will at least make a game of it. I guess that was foolish of me. Like Eomer said in The Two Towers, “Do not trust to hope… it has forsaken these lands.”

Much has been said of Bosh in all the post-game reports, so I don’t need to go into the details. Besides, you’d have to be blind not to see it: He’s just not bringing it right now. I don’t know what the problem is, and I don’t really care - it simply needs to be solved. This team is absolutely nothing if Chris Bosh is not involved. He needs to get his head on straight, the coaches and guards need to get him the ball in spots where he can succeed, and he needs to get back to averaging 25 and 10. Anything less and this team won’t win another game for a long, long time.

It would appear Bargnani has fully regressed to his 2007-08 form on offense. He can barely get involved (only seven shots) and can’t hit what he takes (3 makes, and of the four misses, “not even close” would be generous). He couldn’t even get it going in garbage time! And only three rebounds? Not acceptable. Not only that, but as I mentioned yesterday, playing at the SF spot is taking away some of his defensive improvements. Of course he can’t guard SFs. Get him back to coming off the bench and playing against bigs. Joey Graham (leading scorer last night) deserves to start.

Incidentally, and nothing against Joey Graham, but when he’s your leading scorer you know your team is in trouble. And if Joey being high man doesn’t tell you something, how about this stat: only one - one! - Raptors starter scored in double figures, and that was Jose’s 14. 48 points combined from five starters… that’s just brutal. Especially considering how crappy the bench is. Not gonna win many games like that.

Jermaine O’Neal, six turnovers… that’s not right. Some of the blame to the guards for not getting him the ball in the right spots, but geez… gotta take care of the rock, guys.

I really like Jack Armstrong, but he was giving the Cavs too much credit for their “defensive intensity” in the third quarter. They weren’t “playing the passing lanes to perfection” - they were just playing the basic deny man-to-man defense that you learn in high school. It was simply that the Raptors threw about four straight incredibly lazy passes. A ninth-grade team could have intercepted those passes. It was a disgusting display.

Ukic played some good ball, though shame on Delonte West and Mo Williams for being all up in his grill; I realize there probably isn’t much of a scouting report on him yet, but the one thing the report should say is “can’t shoot.” So why crowd him? Even marginal NBA players can score a layup. Ah well, I won’t complain, a game like that, even if it is garbage time, can only help his confidence.

While I’m still making up my mind on Triano as a head coach, he’s losing a lot of respect every time he puts Will Solomon in the game. He can’t play. It’s as simple as that. He’s a shorter Hassan Adams, and if Adams can’t get off the bench, Solomon shouldn’t either.

Triano’s now had three games and the Raptors have played a total of three good quarters (the second last night, and the first and fourth on Sunday). I know that’s an incredibly small sample size, and it’s against good teams… but of the remaining nine quarters, I’d say about three were average or slightly below, and two were garbage time. The other four? First and third last night, first and second against Utah? Some of the most pathetic efforts I’ve ever seen. I can accept average, but I can’t accept that piss-poor lack of effort.

A few more quarters like that, and it’s going to be apparent that a lot of people - myself included - were wrong, and Sam Mitchell had nothing to do with the team’s lack of effort this year. It’s going to start falling on the players, and on the GM who brought them here (and who, thanks to his own short-sightedness, can’t get them out)

It should at least be clear now - Sunday’s game was not the start of something good, it was catching a good team when they were tired. And they still beat us.

It’s not looking good. I thought the Raps would go 7-9 this month, leaving them at 15-17 on January 1 - still in the thick of things, with time to get better. But that’s looking far-fetched, isn’t it? 4-12 seems more likely at this point…

A 12-20 mark heading into January? The playoffs are getting farther and farther away. I mentioned it on November 25 - the Raptors were in danger of missing the playoffs - and that feeling has only gotten worse in the past two weeks. I’m now wondering if they’ll win 30 games.

I keep footnoting those statements with disclaimers like “they can still turn it around, it’s sports, anything can happen, it’s why we watch,” etc. But if that turnaround doesn’t come soon, I fear I’m going to have to stop putting those disclaimers on.

Tags: Cleveland Cavaliers, Toronto Raptors

The Raptors head down the road to Cleveland tonight to face the Cavs in what is sure to be another road drubbing.

Now, we all know how horrendous that west coast trip was, but let’s look at some stats here. In the Raps’ past three road games, they were outscored by an average of 26 points, giving up 119 a game; they shot only 39.5%, and allowed their opponents to shoot 53.9%; they were outrebounded 50.6/37.6, a minus-13 differential.

So that’s how the Raps have been doing on the road lately. Cleveland, meanwhile, is 11-0 at home, where they shoot 50.6 per cent and score 107.5 points per game. They also happen to have the best rebounding differential in the league, and hold opponents to the lowest shooting percentage in the league. Given that we don’t rebound and we take mostly jump shots, well…

Oh, and in case you forgot, they also have that LeBron James guy. He’s, um, pretty good.

He’s no doubt salivating at the prospect of taking on Andrea Bargnani and our motley cast of small forwards. Andrea obviously can’t guard James (no one can, but LeBron will embarrass Andrea I expect) but he can’t even do anything to offset James on the other end. James is strong enough and quick enough to take away any advantage Andrea might have. The thought of the Andrea/LeBron matchup turns my stomach… expect James to have 30 by halftime.

Regardless of the matchup, Andrea, to say the least, is struggling right now. I’m really not sure what to make of him, or his role on this team. His defensive improvements are significant, and gives me hope that maybe some of his less-defensively-minded teammates might also be able to improve. I love the 1.68 blocks per game.

But I wonder about his offensive role as the starting SF. He doesn’t get many touches when he starts, since Bosh and O’Neal are - rightfully - the focal points. Even when he has a significant matchup advantage - like the other night against 6′6″ CJ Miles - the Raptors never go to him in the post. It’s hard to find enough touches with all those guys out there, and besides, the refs seem to call him for a lot of really cheap fouls in the post.

When he plays at the other forward spot or center, he’s generally quicker than most bigs but still a little awkward on his feet; he gets a lot of travel calls or offensive fouls, and doesn’t draw many fouls (he’s shooting 92% from the line but gets there less than twice a game.) He’s still got the advantage that most opposing bigs won’t come out to guard him, but his shot, sadly, isn’t falling consistently.

Here’s some stats. First 8 games of the season, off the bench:

9.4 ppg, on 54% shooting (50% from three), with 4 boards a game.

Next 5, as the starting small forward:

17 ppg, on 47% shooting (46% from three), with 5.6 boards a game.

Then after O’Neal went down he switched to starting C for three games, then moved back to starting SF the past three:

8.8 points, on 32% shooting (23% from three) with 6 boards a game.

As you can see, a sharp decline in the shooting percentages. He’s reached double-figures just once in the past five games. If he’s not scoring he’s not taking advantage of his abilities on offense, and since most of the time opposing SFs have an offensive advantage (in quickness) on him, he’s really not helping the team by starting. For all his defensive improvements, there isn’t anyone of his size and foot speed that can D up one on one against an athletic SF. His defensive abilities are much better suited to a center or PF role, where he can match speed with opposing players and be in position to help out on defense with the shot blocking.

So what’s the answer? I hate to take him out of the starting lineup because I think part of the problem last year was he was jerked around so much… but I really think he might be more effective off the bench, playing PF or C. There’s just not enough room on the floor or enough touches for him, JO and Bosh, and with his shooting slump, you wouldn’t wanna give it to him anyway. Perhaps playing against second-string centers and forwards he might get it back?

Of course, that leaves the question of who you start in his place. Moon can’t start, because, well, he’s been awful all year. He won’t drive and his defense has regressed about a million-fold. Remember that game last year where he locked down Shawn Marion and wouldn’t even let him get the ball? Now his “defense” consists of jumping at every head fake he sees.

Then there’s Kapono… at the start of the year, I thought he’d be the best starter, but that assumed he’d find his role on offense - in other words, launching jumpers. The way he’s playing, with that “dribble-off-my leg” drive and the “I don’t want to shoot unless I’ve got 10 feet” mindset, he wouldn’t provide enough on offense to make up for what he’d give up on D.

There’s only one guy who’s played his way into an increased role, and that’s Joey Graham. He’s played great as of late, being aggressive on both ends of the floor and not making too many mistakes. Problem with Joey is that there’s a 99.99 per cent chance he’ll regress back to his usual boneheaded ways and then what do you do? Make yet another lineup change? Is that really what we want?

I really don’t know the answer here… well, the real answer is “make a trade for a real wing player” but since that’s not going to happen… I guess you throw your best five guys out there and hope for the best! And that’s JO, Bosh, Parker, Jose… and Bargnani.

Tonight, that best won’t be anywhere near enough. It’s not gonna be a pretty one, folks. I almost don’t want to watch because I just know it’s gonna be ugly. Like “I want to stick a fork in my eye” ugly.

I’m sure a lot of you are thinking that the Raps might have turned things around Sunday, that they played a lot better and it might be the start of some good things. But I just can’t put much stock into a loss where they blew a 16-point lead to a West-coast team playing their final game of a five-game East-coast road trip. They did some good things, for sure, but doing them at home against a tired Blazers team is not the same as doing them on the road against the best home team in the league.

I didn’t think the Cavs would be any better this year than they were last year - all they really added was Mo Williams and I didn’t think he’d make much of an impact. But I guess he has, and perhaps a training camp with all the pieces from last year’s trade - Wally S, Delonte West and Ben Wallace - has made the chemistry better. Or maybe LeBron is just that good.

Regardless, this team has the right pieces at the right positions, they’ve got a deep bench, and they’ve put together an amazing start to this season. Since the Raptors’ roster is full of holes, they’ve got no bench and they’ve proven that they simply can’t compete with good teams, especially on the road, this will be a joke of a game and an easy Cleveland win.

Cavs by 37.

Tags: Andrea Bargnani, Chris Bosh, Cleveland Cavaliers, LeBron James, Toronto Raptors