Media Watch for November 1, 2006 - NBA Season Preview Special

by RaptorsHQ - Archives on Nov 1, 2006 11:04 AM EST

Well...it's finally here.

Bye bye pre-season, hello real deal.

The Raps went 7-1 in said pre-season but now we find out just what this team is made of. Not to mention we find out just how devious the NBA schedule-makers are as the Raps open their season on the road against former Rap, Vince Carter, and his Nets tonight and then play another ex-Raptor, Charlie Villanueva and his Milwaukee Bucks, at home here on Friday.

So what to expect from tonight's season-opener for Toronto? Well, as will be our tradition all season, the HQ will be looking at three key things in tonight's game.

1) Chris Bosh's health. We fear this will be an ongoing situation throughout the year but for this game in particular we're curious to see how Bosh looks in terms of his mobility and simply how "rusty" he is. Sure this club has more depth and talent this year than last...but no one's pulling any punches...as Bosh goes, so do the Raps.

2) Bench play. This goes for both clubs. While the Nets probably have one of the top five starting lineups in the league, their bench, especially now due to injuries, is hardly a powerhouse. In fact with various players still shaking off rust and getting their legs, this game could very well be decided by whoever's bench comes out on top.

3) Game flow. The Raptors want to get out and run. They also want to prevent New Jersey from doing the same thing. Both Jason Kidd and TJ Ford will be attempting to push the tempo and get their wingmen flying to the hoop and besides bench play, we have a feeling that whoever controls the game tempo will be on the winning side when the game clock runs out.

Speaking of Ford, Raptor fans will be anxious to see how Colangelo's controversial off-season acquisition fares in the regular season especially considering the Raptors have just locked him into a new long-term deal. We'll be discussing the pros and cons of this deal at some point in the next few days but for now we'll let TJ's play in tonight's opener start the conversation.

In addition to the extension granted to TJ Ford, the Raps also exercised their one-year option on Kris Humphries. Humphries was one of the best players for Toronto in the pre-season and coach Sam Mitchell appears to be quite pleased to have both Kris and TJ locked up.

Our new poll today asks how many games Raptor fans believe the team will win. We're sticking to 37/38 wins but what does the media think?

At ESPN.com, their first power-rankings of the season have the Raptors placed at a respectable 21st spot. How do we feel about this? Well pretty good as it would put the Raptors hovering around Milwaukee and Indiana for the eighth and final playoff spot in the East...about what we expect. The rest of the ESPN.com crew? Well, they have the Raps finishing anywhere from fifth in their division and thirteenth overall in the conference to second in their division and seventh in the conference.

Over at CNNSI.com some view the Raptors as a surprise team (see Chris Ekstrand and Jack McCallum's season takes) but in Marty Burns' power rankings, he's got the Raptors seeded all the way down to the 28th spot. We have to disagree with him here as barring injuries we just don't see the Raps finishing below Boston or Philly record-wise.

So while CNNSI appears to be down on the revamped Raptors, theScore.ca certainly is not. In fact, in their NBA season primer, they've picked the Raps to win the Atlantic division, finishing ahead of the Nets!! The interesting thing is that considering the other teams in the Atlantic, that's not even outside the realm of possibility as the Nets really are one "jumper's knee" away from being a very mediocre club on paper.

Similarly, sportsnet.ca believes that while the Raptors won't win the Atlantic division, New Jersey is precariously in that spot, they will be in the running in what they see as a really wide-open division.

Finally, on a local note, check out our own Raptors season preview on the Detroit Pistons Today blog as part of their Opening Day Fiasco. And once again this year we participated in Chris Young of the Toronto Star's, online NBA roundtable, where we shared our thoughts on the upcoming season with other local bloggers touching on everything from the NBA Champ to the most overrated player...

The HQ

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Comments

i don't expect too much from the raps this season . both peter vecsey and fred carter of nba tv said toronto will not make the playoff . the 1st game will be a good indication of the raps' future .
this friday , the tj-villanueva trade will be put in the spotlight . i think the jury is still out on that . that is if the injury won't keep ford out !

by coach on Nov 1, 2006 12:22 PM EST reply actions

Well as of right now, I would say that the Raps have the better end of the Ford - Villanueva trade. Villanueva didn't play too well during the preseason so the Bucks are worried about him.
As for today's game, I think it'll be an interesting game and if the Raps bench is able to come through, they'll win. However if the Nets starting five dominate, they'll win regardless of how well the Raps bench play so the Raps need both units to play good defence or it's going to be another season where they start with a loss.

by Jason on Nov 1, 2006 12:53 PM EST reply actions

It's going to be tough to make the playoffs with so many new faces. Give them a year to integrate, and don't judge TJ too early. This year we should at least be entertained!

And remember - no more 4Q Mike James ill-advised-3-pointer-momentum-killer!

There was some article that said "Is TJ really an upgrade of Mike James?" Some of these "journalists" don't put more than a moment's thought into what they write..:)

by Chris on Nov 1, 2006 1:22 PM EST reply actions

Regardless of how the CV-Ford trade turns out, I hope that Charlie will have a good year. As for the Raptors, I think they'll close but probably won't make the play-offs this year. Nevertheless, I certainly hope that they'd entertaining. I can't wait to see them tonight.

by TJ on Nov 1, 2006 1:44 PM EST reply actions

The day I start listening to Peter Vecsey is that day I'll know I stopped thinking about basketball. Yikes!

by Toolsy on Nov 1, 2006 3:12 PM EST reply actions

I have to a diasagree with coach and whom ever, that dont believe that the raptors wont make the playoffs.The season haven't started yet, i agree with toolsy peter vecsey dont know what he's talking about, anyways i for one think they'll make the playoff.

by Maurice Francis on Nov 1, 2006 5:05 PM EST reply actions

too bad tonight's game wasn't at home, it would have been intense with VC in the house. raptors will win tonight, i can't see them losing with all the steam they've gained in the preseason, i mean a 7-1 record has to be good for something.

i hope the raptors will make the playoffs... but i just can't see it happening so soon with all the new faces on the team.

ps: garbojsa for rookie of the year!

by nirun on Nov 1, 2006 5:13 PM EST reply actions

I'm pretty sure Villaneuava will kill the raptors this and every time we play the bucks. Not because I think we got ripped off in the trade, so much as Charlie is great with outisde motivational things.

by LAs Only Raptor Fan on Nov 1, 2006 5:51 PM EST reply actions

After watching most of the preseason games that were available on TV, I had a prior engagement for last night and couldn't watch the game on TV. Instead, I caught most of the 4th quarter on the radio, and I must say, Paul Jones is the absolute worst!! I was pretty sure I was listening to him call a funeral, not a basketball game. Jonesy's a great guy, but that doesn't mean he should be the radio play-by-play voice of the raptors! Yes yes, I complained about Romanuck but, Jonesy makes Romanuck sound like the Vin Sculley of basketball.

Eric Smith is acceptable, nothing special but good enough.

How does a city like Toronto go from having John Saunders (one of the absolute best basketball play-by-play person) to Paul Jones? The Leafs don't skip a beat trasitioning on any of their media broadcasts.

Can't they make Eric the play-by-play and get Jack back on the colour? What about stealing back Toronto boy Dan Shulman for post-baseball? He does great college hoops calls. Someone needs to give him a whack of dough to make Dan the lead voice for the Jays and Raps.

ARgh! ARGH! I've never been so pissed! Somebody help me.

by Ustation on Nov 2, 2006 10:12 AM EST reply actions