Game Two Preview – Raptors vs. Nets

by RaptorsHQ - Archives on Apr 24, 2007 12:00 AM EDT in Media Watch

Before becoming a basketball fan I was a huge hockey fan. Played hockey, watched hockey and could quote random stats about anyone from Peter Sidorkiewicz to Glen Hanlon.

However above all else I was a huge Calgary Flames fan. The Flames fielded some of the best clubs in the NHL in the late 80’s and early 90’s however with the exception of two years, never could seem to deliver considering their immense talent. And as the team waned in strength in the mid to late 90’s, so did my interest until they became a distant second-thought to basketball.

On Monday night, the Flames were eliminated by the Detroit Red Wings from this year’s playoffs and as I lazily flipped between Detroit’s shellacking of Mikka Kiprusoff, and Golden State beating up on the Dallas Mavericks, I noted that in both series’ it was the winning teams that were dictating the tempo of the game.

It also made me think back to the Raptors loss on Saturday to the Nets and just how effective that zone defense was. Sometimes you forget that the purpose of a zone is not only to protect foul-prone players, force jump shooting and perhaps hide weak man-to-man defenders, but also to set the tempo for a game. New Jersey can get out and run with the best of them (as seen in Richard Jefferson’s numerous wide open dunks) however Lawrence Frank knows that by slowing the pace and forcing Toronto to play in the half-court, it negates many of the Raptors’ strengths. Even during their run in the late fourth quarter I remember Jose Calderon trying to get the ball up the court as quickly as possible and find players who could get to the rim in transition, only to have to pull up just after half as he attempted to wade through the muck and mire of the Nets half-court zone D.

Yes, New Jersey truly did bring the swamp to the ACC.

And besides slowing up Toronto’s offence, the other issue with the zone obviously was that the Raptors settled for perimeter jump shots or were forced into difficult looks (Anthony Parker’s fade-away off the side of the back-board jumper comes to mind.) These led to long rebounds which New Jersey would then simply run down for easy transition baskets.

Having said all that, what do the Dynos need to do tonight to fix this?

Well for starters, calm down.

The Raptors looked a tad jittery and need to play the way they have most of the season. If the team can settle down and start to run their offense and make stops defensively, that’s a big first step.

Secondly, Chris Bosh needs to get more involved offensively. Even when he wasn’t plagued with fouls, as some of our readers pointed out, he settled for jump shots through the entire first half and needs to start attacking the rim. As I discussed on Friday’s Game One Preview, as Bosh goes, so does Toronto. If he’s not getting touches inside, or is settling for outside shots, it makes New Jersey’s zone that much more effective. Therefore CB4 needs to establish position and make good decisions with the ball. Even when he’s not scoring 30 points a game Bosh can have a huge impact with his passing and rebounding, two other areas that were noticeably absent in Saturday’s loss. Above everything though, I don’t want to see him being guarded by Josh Boone and settling for fade-aways. Much to my horror, that was the case numerous times on Saturday and for Toronto to win tonight’s game, it must have an aggressive Bosh drawing fouls and more importantly, being that inside threat to help shift the zone around.

Interestingly, as effective as the zone was, the Raptors need to remember that they still only lost Saturday’s game by a very small margin. Therefore a few tweaks should go a long way. I felt that TJ Ford carried the club offensively and without him the Raps may not have even been in the game as the offense was so stagnant in the first half. However tonight, I’d like to see Ford get into the paint and help to collapse New Jersey’s defense beside look for his own scoring.

One of the best ways to beat a zone is to have your point guard split the top two defenders. This causes the "three" players in the 2-3 zone formation to have to come to the ball leaving Ford’s team-mates on the wing, wide open. Anthony Parker is about as deadly as they come from the outside so if Ford can use his speed to get open shots for Parker and others, this might force Lawrence Frank to abandon his zone schemes.

The problem is, even when Toronto had open looks, they weren’t making them Saturday, especially in regards to the Raps’ bench crew. If Dixon, Bargs and Peterson aren’t nailing those open looks, Ford can penetrate all day and it won’t matter. Bargnani simply looks rusty and unfortunately I’m not sure Toronto can expect to see the February/March version of Il Mago again for a while. The same might now be said about Dixon, battling a wrist injury. Therefore Sam Mitchell needs to get maximum productivity out of the likes of Joey Graham and Mo Pete. Graham’s defense was solid for the most part on Saturday but offensively he looked lost. It was indeed Graham (instead of Darrick Martin) who should have been where Jose threw the ball in the fourth quarter and I too was not at all clear why he logged so many minutes. This evening, Toronto’s supporting cast needs to come out with a much stronger performance. I don’t expect Vince Carter to shoot so poorly and therefore the Raptors need all the offensive help they can get.

And how about Coach Mitchell? It seems like this remarkable Raptor season is going to continue tonight with a coach of the year award for Sam, something I’m not entirely sure all of Raptor-nation is in agreement with. If anything, it’s going to make this off-season very interesting should the Raptors under-perform in the playoffs.

While I didn’t feel as strongly as some about him being out-coached, I will be glued to the set tonight to see what adjustments Mitchell’s tried to make. It wasn’t him telling Chris Bosh to shoot 3’s, have his players catch the ball in corners and easily trappable areas on the court or making Bargnani force the issue on offence last game. That was the players themselves and while Mitchell isn’t the videophile that Lawrence Frank is, I am expecting some improved offensive execution based on two full days of practice.

More than anything though, I’m expecting a win tonight.

The Raptors have come back from adversity all season and while Saturday’s loss was disappointing, the team knows they were close even though they played one of their poorest games of the season.

Toronto also knows that they’ll once again have some ridiculously boisterous fan support. I was at the game and while it looked impressive live, on TV it looked even more impressive and reminded me of Calgary’s "Sea of Red," an imposing sight for opponents regardless of the fact that the Nets one-upped Toronto by wearing their red "third jerseys." Under NBA rules, New Jersey will now have to sport these on the road for the rest of the series so unless MLSE decides to switch to an all-white motif, Richard Jefferson will be able to keep making his "it was so nice for the fans to come out and support us" jokes.

I guess that’s all he can do.

A quick glance at ticketmaster.com reveals plenty of empty seats in the swamp for the rest of this series, a sad, sad declaration of the state of affairs in Juzzy.

Here in Toronto tonight, I’ll be waiting for the Raps’ zone-busters to tear the roof off an ACC that’s just waiting to explode.

FRANCHISE

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Comments

Excellent analysis! One question Franchise: Who starts at small forward? Can't start Joey after his last performance. The playoffs aren't the time to let him "play through it". Or do we start Mo Pete? Talk about limited options, yuck.

by OneandDone on Apr 24, 2007 12:00 AM EDT reply actions

So we still wear red tonight right?

Screw Jefferson! Hopefully the expected bounce back win tonight will wipe the grin off his face.

by Raptor99 on Apr 24, 2007 12:00 AM EDT reply actions

I'm looking to go out for tonight's game. Are there particular sports bars in downtown T.O. that favour Raptors? The thought of having to compete with a Roy Halladay start in April is a bit of a dis-incentive...

by OutOfTowner on Apr 24, 2007 12:00 AM EDT reply actions

hopefully the raps are feelin' as relaxed about the game as I am. play time is over.

the hype is gone. the nerves have settled. it's time to win basketball games. plain and simple.

by papa on Apr 24, 2007 12:00 AM EDT reply actions

Coach of the year:
http://www.tsn.ca/nba/news_story/?ID=205365&hubname

by mcFly on Apr 24, 2007 12:00 AM EDT reply actions

Franchise, thanks for the info re: NJ having to stay with the reds for the whole series... Just wondering if you might know what other rules there are surrounding uniform choices.

Some co-workers and I were discussing this, and we're wondering whether the home team ever has the option in the NBA of wearing their road or third uniforms instead of their home whites?

by MattK on Apr 24, 2007 12:00 AM EDT reply actions

actually, doug smith in an article today mentioned the fact that the uniform rules have changed again recently, and the nets don't have to wear red for the remainder of the series. (when playing away.) they can use their blue uniforms, if they wanted to.

though I'm sure that one missed pass by calderon to darrick martin will obviously keep RJ and co., in red.

by papa on Apr 24, 2007 12:00 AM EDT reply actions

I hope the raps watched golden state play the mavs to know how they have to play defense. What absolutely incredible hustle. They can't count on their offense to get over the hump, it's got to be that lockdown fourth quarter raptors d the entire game.

by axl on Apr 24, 2007 12:00 AM EDT reply actions

OutOfTowner - Harbour Sports will definitly have the game on. They're located at 10 Yonge right near the waterfront and across from the Toronto Star building. It's our usual hangout spot although I'll be at the game this evening. Loose Moose on Front Street might be another option.

OneandDone - I think Sam's going to go with Joey again tonight but I expect to see more of Mo Pete if Graham doesn't get off to a good start offensively. It's a tough call right now because we really haven't seen much of Peterson. However while he did miss his two shots, he was flying around after rebounds and looking aggressive...here's to hoping that he can bring that tonight.

As for the jerseys, from Raptors.com and the folks on RaptorsTV, it sounds like they want fans in red regardless. Thanks for the update though Papa on the jersey rules...

by Franchise on Apr 24, 2007 12:00 AM EDT reply actions

Congrats to Sam! But I still don't think that he's a top level coach. DoC Rivers was COY, for christ's sake! Nevertheless, I hope Sam will prove his mettle by winning the next couple of games. Go Raps!

by tfan on Apr 24, 2007 12:00 AM EDT reply actions

Raptors did not lose because Joey G. only shot 2/5 4pts 2rb. He was in game for his defense on Carter where he was ok. They lost because their two best players Bosh and Parker were useless in the first half. Bosh 6 pts & Parker 2 pts. If not for TJ's 14 pts Rap's would have been even further behind.
Joey G. will continue to start because Dixon too small & MoPete too inconsistent.

by Johnn19 on Apr 24, 2007 12:00 AM EDT reply actions

Mitchell has been talked about as a candidate for jobs in Charlotte and Indiana, but Colangelo said he'll try to keep him in Toronto.

"We're going to do everything we can," Colangelo said. "It's our intention to bring him back. I am saying Sam is right for this organization and we're going to try and make it happen."

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=ap-nbacoachaward&prov=ap&type=lgns

Looks like we are stuck with him, for better or for worse. Here's hoping for bigger and better.

by Gerry on Apr 24, 2007 12:00 AM EDT reply actions

After 5 LONG years, I finally made a return to the playoffs myself. Yes I was relegated to the cheap seats in the Sprite Zone, but as a die hard since my first game watching Orlando's Shaq from level 500 at Skydome, no seat could ever be worse!

What can I say? Thank you BC for AP! The single most complete game by a Rap in the playoffs ever!!! (And I've been to many of them) Offense aside (26 points, an efficient 8-13, 3-4 from downtown), look at Richard Jefferson (4-16), 8 boards (more importantly, the LAST 3 defensive boards), 4 steals, and throw in a blocked shot to boot. Awesome.

This is a scary team to watch when the high screen and roll doesn't fall! Ugh!

They've got to solve Bucky ball (Nachbar). Bosh left him too many times on the VC iso on the weak side. The last open look to tie would have gotten me to jump off the balcony right there (OK AP that was your one mistake!!! He was supposed to switch when VC screened Bosh - but no one's perfect)

Can ANYONE tell me why the raps didn't use the foul they had to give? Especially at about the 15 second mark being up 3.

Ok.. I'm done.. and completely lost my voice. Let's go Raptors! Go RED!

by ustation on Apr 24, 2007 12:00 AM EDT reply actions

ustation - I was wondering the same thing about that foul to give. It's UNFORGIVABLE that Nachbar was THAT open for the would-be tying 3 with that little time left and a foul to give. We were lucky that shot didn't go down.

On the bright side, it almost seemed like Sam was listening to us (the collective "us" here at the HQ, that is!) - very short stint on the floor for Dixon, little time for a still-rusty Bargnani (but great hustle on that one offensive board he tapped back out to the perimeter), and FINALLY some pine for Joey.

My buddy and I wondered what was up when Joey took the floor to start the second half, and then made that feeble swipe at RJ on the first bucket of the half. Then MoPete got up, we looked at each other, and said "short leash!" Smitch didn't even look at Joey on his way off the floor, much less talk to him.

For those who were at the game, it was almost surreal - about 5 minutes after Joey was pulled, during a stop in play they showed Damon Allen on the scoreboard to introduce him, and sitting in the foreground of the Damon Allen shot was... Stephen Graham! It was like Joey came out of the game, kept walking to the locker room, and was already in street clothes and in the stands 5 minutes later!! :-)

by MattK on Apr 24, 2007 12:00 AM EDT reply actions

It's incredible to me that Nachbar is a serious issue to this team.

I vote he becomes officially known as Admiral Nachbar.

Kidding aside, we did a lot better tonight at breaking into the paint and going to the hoop. Carter looked pretty quiet in the second half, especially after getting what looked to be a cross-check sandwich by the Raps' D.

Wtf was up with Jose in the fourth? He looked like Mike James for a stretch there just before he was pulled out (went like 1-5 and hogged the ball mostly).

Other than that, ball movement looked great, the Raps just didn't make their jump shots. It seems like in regular season April the Raps were averaging 55% or more per game shooting, but now they're being held to around 40 in both games. I hope they crank it up a notch Friday in Jersey, and come out scorching -- like 60-65% shooting for the first two quarters -- and then maintain 45-50% the rest of the way. Going up 2-1 would give them the boost they need to finish out the series and move on to the second round.

As I said before though, I'm not going to complain if tonight was the only game they win in this series. Division title, 47 wins, Coach of the Year, Exec of the Year (no doubt), and a fantastic first round series. I couldn't have dreamed this at the beginning of the season.

GO RAPS GO!
DREAD THE RED!

by Shep on Apr 24, 2007 12:00 AM EDT reply actions

defense won this one. fantastic effort.

by axl on Apr 24, 2007 12:00 AM EDT reply actions

My top ten of the game:

10 - Bosh is still rocking his 'Predator' dreads. This is by far his scariest look.

9 - Bosh has the flu and abused the Nets D almost at will. You can see he had to fight to stay focussed and active throughout and that it was exhausting for him. He was amazing.

8 - Nesterovich and Mikki Moore have mirror image games: 6 pts and 8 rebs for Rasho, 8 pts and 6 rebs for Moore. A fair trade off you'd say c'ept that Rasho played a full 10 minutes less than Moore did.

7. Carter may be 18-43 from the floor, but he is now giving the best interview of his career.

6. Apparently good Joey comes to watch bad Joey's games. For five full seconds, I was actually in the twilight zone.

5. Bryan Colangelo has now come out and said that 'The red promotion is a good idea' - which has me worried. You see, I had previously thought it was a huge screw up to have the fans wear the same colour as the opposing team, but as soon as I heard Colangelo, I instantly said to myself 'of course, he's right, the red promotion really is still a good idea!', and I realized I could actually feel the cult conditioning as it takes effect. Go Red!

4. Bosh humiliates Jefferson in the 4th with an outrageous, monstrous block. I think we may have actually seen the precise moment a man's spirit is snapped in half.

3. Kobe turned an ankle tonight in a blow-out loss to the Suns - completely wrecking my evening. That is if by 'completely wrecking' you mean 'cherry on top'.

2. Has a coach ever gone doghouse to penthouse faster than Sam Mitchell? All class, he invited his team to join him for the ceremony.

1. Anthony Parker is Money.

by Bedhead on Apr 24, 2007 12:00 AM EDT reply actions