Anyone else becoming more intrigued with the Raptors? They dropped my jaw when I went to their game at the Toyota Center last year and torched the place. Now, they look even deeper thanks to Colangelo: Nestrovic Bosh - Humphries - Baston Bargnani - Garbajosa - Graham - Kapono Parker - Delfino - Jackson Ford - Calderon - Dixon They have a ridiculous array of bigs that can play interchangably across the frontcourt and most are able to shoot from all over, 3 quick guards that can be played 2 at a time, and a bunch of nice glue guys able to pick up the rest. Their defense is weak, they can be intimidated by physical teams, and they're more streaky than you'd want in a playoff team, but when these guys get on a roll, they just might be the toughest offense to contain. A lineup of Bosh, Bargnani, Garbajosa, Calderon, and Ford can be pretty scary in a high tempo game. Anyone else keeping an eye on these guys? I doubt they'll contend for anything, but I do look forward to watching them occasionally this season. Evan
Things look great when everyone is knocking down jumpers... but they need a prominent slasher to be more consistent offensively. Which is why I didn't understand the Kapono signing.
the kapono signing was useless, and used up the whole mle. they should have gone after barnes or pietrus instead
I started keeping an eye on the Raptors the moment Colangelo became their GM. I've always been impressed with what Colangelo did in Phoenix with that small market team, so I was very curious as to what he could do in a bigger market. He isn't surprising me. He's turning the Raptors around.
They have a good lineup but two things really bother me about them: 1 Coach Mitchell. 2 They seem soft, especially mentally. The two go together because I can't forget Sam Mitchell's mental breakdowns in the playoffs against the Nets. His substitution patterns killed the Raptors. If either Bosh, Bargnani or T.J. raise their games to another level, the Raptors could be a dangerous Eastern Conference team. Otherwise, they are just a collection of above-average talent (but without any sizzle) similar to the Grizzlies teams that went 0-12 in the playoffs 3 straight years. They need a tough, seasoned, experienced and fearless veteran somewhere in their rotation.
colangelo wanted pietrus but that was his 2nd option behind Kapono IMO a lot depends on how good Bosh can become, he seems to settle a lot for that jumper, in the Playoffs he wasn't very effective, he needs to take the next step. They do seem soft and they need to play better defense.
You should have asked him why he sat Chris Bosh for so long after he got 2 fouls in game 1. After hitting his first couple of shots, Bosh was ice cold and out of sync the whole rest of the game because his coach panicked.
I didnt talk to hit, but I did talk to Brian Hill was sitting next to him (Orlando former coach). It was at the Hilton. I was talking to the concierge and I mentioned I was from Houston. I was walking back to my table and Hill came up to me and said he overheard I was from houston, he had a disappointed look in his face and he walked away.
Good team, but it was a mistake signing their coach long-term. If they had Thibodeau to get these guys to play defense and get more discipline on offense, they'd be sure threats.
The Nets were a veteran squad led by Jason Kidd, the Raptors consisted of guys with no playoff experience whatsoever.
Playoff "experience" is overrated. I think the raptors were a fluke last year. I think they will end up around 7th this season.l
Oh please, I bet you hardly watched these guys play, Chris Bosh had plantar fasciitis last year, don't know if you know what that is, but let's just say Tim Duncan had it a few years back and he had his worst season as a pro....Chris Bosh is a beast, and if healthy you will realize that this coming year (his D is his only negative). Plus they have two legit starting PG with another potential superstar in Bargnani. This team is going nowhere but up.... fluke my a$$
The Nets were just a horrible matchup. The Nets have phenomenal wing players but no frontcourt. Guess what, Toronto's frontcourt isn't really built to take advantage of that. Bosh plays primarily in the high post and shoots a fair amount of jumpers. He doesn't really have a low post game yet. And the same goes for Bargnani. I suppose Rasho Nestorovic is their best low post presence and well, that's pretty pathetic. I expect Toronto will get better. I didn't like the Kapono signing but hopefully they find away to get some rebounding and toughness inside.
They have chris bosh, and TJ ford, then a bunch of unknown foreign players. Bosh is good, but overrated. Bargnani is still young and will not be a superstart or even an all-star next season
WOW Why do you say that? I hope you understand that he's 23 years old, had a bad season partly b/c of plantar fasciitis...don't know how many times you've seen him, but he's getting better every season...even with the injury he played last season... As far as Bargnani goes, no, he's not going to be an allstar next season, but this kid has all the tools to be the next Dirk, it's all about if he puts in the work. Unknown europeans? Calderon/Garbagosa/Parker/Bargnani are all valuable players on this team. I bet if we had an all-Euro against N.America game, the Euro's will trash em. They know how to play as a team.
The Euro love-fest goes to yet another level. Those international teams like Argentina that beat the United States were actual teams - meaning they played together and practiced together for years. Your statement that an "all-Euro" team would "trash" the Americans, implying that good teamwork is inherent within Europeans, is completely absurd. The Americans would blow them out by 50 in your scenario.
Derron Williams and Carlos Boozer (and most of the jazz, w the exception of Fisher) had zero playoff experience last year but they destroyed the Rockets, most of whom had been in at least 2 or 3 times.
