Tip-In, Toronto Raptors’ Post-Game: Fun is Number One

Last night the radio crew commented post game that they heard AP saying goodbye to some people and they alluded to the possibility of a trade going down. Now, I had a theory that Hump isn't that hurt and he was being benched because BC had him involved in a trade and didn't want to risk him getting hurt before the trade could go down (probably around the 15th). I am wondering if AP is in the same boat.

Getting excited about the Dinos getting a win over Indiana is a little bit like getting too upset about them losing to the Lakers. There have been some positive signs that the team is getting more committed to J's phylisophy but there were some bad things still going on. Murphy just killed the Raps (something like 20 points and a sick 20 rebounds). This highlights the fact they are still weak on blocking out and perimeter defence as Murphy seemed to hit just about every 3 he put up.
I like Bargnani coming off the bench right now as the Raps are down to only 3 bigs thanks to Humps "injury". It didn't make sense to start all of your bigs as it doesn't leave a lot of room to make adjustments if one gets into foul trouble. Hopefully, Bargnani can get over his demotion and bounce back over the next few games.

Great recap...spot on.

The offense was more fluid but our defence impressed me more. The Raps clogged the middle and forced Indy to take a ton of low percentage shots...and everything inside was contested.

McGateway,
AP seemed to have a genuine limp last night though. Who knows perhaps you're right. It's just that they would have to get back a big and wing in return, and I don't think there's anyone who will trade for those two straight up.

Listening to TJ talk post game last night reminded me how often the Toronto Basketball media gets its analysis wrong all the time. TJ answered a question about whether he felt he was the cause of last year's problem down the stretch and his response was something like "as you can see right now, it wasn't just me".

So to review some off the top of my head myths perpetuated by Toronto Media (and then regurgitated by lemming fans):

Smitch was the reason the Raps haven’t won a championship (okay well at least round 1) – err well maybe.

TJ was the cause of the raps being in the crapper last year down the stretch.

Bosh would demand a trade if his buddy TJ left (btw they haven’t spoken with each other since last year).

JC won’t stay if Garbo leaves.

Bargs is god, sucks, okay, well maybe not.

Graham sucks huge! why don’t we see Graham, he could be our saviour? well he’s okay.

VCs gonna leave us.. VCs gonna leave us.. Dang he signed a contract.

Darrell Walker is a good coach.

Ed O’Bannon is god.

Something I didn't get into enough in the recap was the whole "packing the paint" idea. Triano seems to be taking a page from Bobby Knight's book of tactics and knowing his players "defensive limitations," he's making other teams beat him via outside shooting. Some nights it won't work but last night Indiana heaved brick after brick en route to the loss.

I think AP is genuinely hurt, but there's no question the trade rumours will continue to swirl, especially after yesterday's deals. The trick now though will be for BC to quell what was perhaps an itchy trigger finger. I think now he's going to want to see how his players do under Jay's system because if it brings out the best in their abilities, suddenly he may not want to make any major moves.

LOL.. You kill me ustation. Ed Obannon LMAO!! Very good examples.

Okay, now that we've got Triano's first win out of the way, let's discuss BC and his ability (pieces to move) to better this team come Dec 15th.

Question: Is Garbo's expiring contract tradeable? Could the raps package that with someone like AP (expiring contract as well) to get a 9M semi-stud of some nature from a team that needs cap relief?

Graham seems to have worked himself into staying with his relatively low salary. Although signing him again could be a headache if he's looking for a big raise.

Hump's 3M seems like it could be useful as bait provided they are packaging it to go after a MORE effective big man.

The tricky thing about the raptors making any trades right now is that they already feel thin. If they package a couple of guys to get a semi-stud they're getting thinner again. Does that help them?

This is where my question of Garbo's contract comes into play. Could they take his expiring contract and trade it for a Travis Outlaw for example?

That's all for now... LOL... Ed Obannon.

Uh, ustation, been following the Raps pretty closely since their inception, and never, ever have I heard a consensus that: "Darrell Walker is a good coach". More of a "wait-and-see" approach; of course, he never had the opportunity to get painfully out-coached in the playoffs for two straight series like Smitch did.

Seeing Kapono, Joey and even
Jamario look so comfortable in JayT's offence also calls strong attention to how much Smitch mis/underutilized his assets. Pretty sad, actually.

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Franchise, I'm curious about your take on the Suns/Cats trade, it seems that the Suns have initially won it due to J-Rich's offensive skill, but now it seems Nash is pissed at his best friend (Raja) being shipped off, and the state of the Suns team in general (Raps in 2010!). If only we could have gotten Matt Barnes (1.2 mil for the season); but if Moon keeps playing the way he did last night, Barnes would be kind of redundant.

I just don't know what the Bobcats are doing other than clearing more cap space (where no free agents to sign). What a sad-sack franchise.

it's hard to imagine much of an upgrade if you get rid of AP and/or Hump, those two I'd like to keep.

I have to say though, I'm thrilled by the quality if this victory even if the defense still leaves a lot to be desired.

I have to wonder, if smitch under-utilized his assets, how did the 07-08 season happen? They looked a lot like that team last night... not making some cryptic point, I seriously don't understand how the same coach could be responsible for such vastly different looking styles.

About that trade, my first reaction was that the Raptors right now are out of the running getting Barbosa... I don't see the Suns trading him away now, since it will kill all their speed, but stranger things have happened. I guess you could also make the argument they'd want people like AP then because he can defend better than Barbosa. Some food for thought.

All in a good win.

But did anyone else notice we we're not getting Jermaine involved on the offensive end? His body language was getting really bad because he wasn't getting a touch... not one! And this led to him not working quite as hard on D.

This is the one "danger" of having O'Neal play second fiddle. But when Bosh and Bargs are off the floor and he doesn't get any touches, I think there's a problem. When JO is healthy, and he looks healthy, we need to feed him... we got him to help open things up for our shooters.

Aside from this, a solid win.

We could stand to rebound better, but at least of defense kept them shooting from the outside. For a change, our D was solid.

axl - I'd say that Smitch was so focused on defense due to the playoff exit against the Nets that previous year, that he forgot what got us there in the first place. I mean, for two preseasons, Mitchell said that we need to work on defense and offense will come because this is a good offensive team... However, I think that because so much attention was put on the other side to slow the game down, that the Raptors really didn't put enough effort into pushing the ball or attacking using any new schemes.

VD - I think that makes a lot of sense, though Mitchell has to be one stubborn dude to stick with these strategies on both ends - when they obviously weren't yielding results... and I'm not talking so much about the last five game losing streak where they were out-gunned, but all of last year.

Loved the win although the pacers just arent that good right now. Woah, murphy with the huge game though.

I actually thought jo got his touches last night, he just didnt hit many shots - think he was 4 fo 10. I think if he had been going better the raps would have kept feeding him the ball.

well.. couldn't find any direct articles mention Darrell Walker as a good coach but found some stuff to help us remember the "good times":

July 29, 1997: Darrell Walker, the second-youngest and lowest-paid coach in the NBA last season, signed a three-year contract extension Monday with the Toronto Raptors. ``I think the offer is more than fair,'' Walker said. ``I used to say . . . when [General Manager Isiah Thomas ] and I sit down to talk it'll take 10 minutes or less. And that's what it took basically.'' Walker made $265,000 last year.

Saturday February 14 1998 SPORTS Big deal - Stoudamire, Anderson key figures trade. In a day of major upheaval for the Toronto Raptors star guard Damon Stoudamire was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers and coach DARRELL WALKER resigned yesterday. Stoudamire was dealt away in a trade that brought an- other headache to the Raptors Kenny Anderson acquired from the Blazers along with Gary Trent and NBA rookie Alvin Williams.

The play style seems designed to get better results from more players. Anyone else notice that the Raptors had 6 players in double figures? Joey Graham is playing the best ball of his career, while Kapono and Moon just had their best games of the season.

The only person struggling right now is Chris Bosh. The play style before was all Bosh all the time. Now that the offense is about motion and ball movement, the Raps don't just go to Bosh and wait for a kick out if Bosh gets doubled. Apparently, this is a productive change for almost the entire team. The only person hurt by this move is Bosh, which I hope he learns to accept.

franchise, let's not forget that getting some these guys playing up to their capabilities doesn't necessisarily make them good players. they're still the same players we were all trashing last week as not making any bench on a respectable team.

minus kap-one. I think he stills has something to offer, and it hasn't been brought out yet.

though say this: the recent good games by our role players certainly is making dec 15th a pretty damn interesting day to look forward to!!

Good point, but he did seem happy to me last night!

I really hope to see Jay keep Jamario and Kapono on as starters. My take:

- JK benefits more than anyone from the presence of Bosh and JO on the floor at the same time on both O and D.

- With Triano's new defensive scheme (clog the paint) starting to catch on it hides some of Kapono's defensive deficiencies (notably staying in front of his man).

- When Jamario plays with the starters his role is simplified (he really has no choice but to understand what his role is in that group) and a simple game plain is what a simple-minded player needs.

- Having AP coming off the bench gives Roko (Solomon needs to borrow some pom-poms from Adams) an outlet who can assist with carrying the ball, get out on the break and can create his own shot (at least more so than JK and Moon).

- Bargs, off the bench as a 4/5 will get more opportunities to get the ball in his hands and become the focal point of the offence for small stretches (instead of being the 4th option which seems to bore the Roman to sleep.

- I also think Roko and Bargs will be a good combo with Bargs tending to hover outside and Roko darting inside and Roko is not as hesitant, as other, to give the ball to Andrea (he wasn‘t hre for last year‘s debacle).

- AP would get more opportunities as well off the bench. Although he has struggled at times he is an underrated offensive player and would be up against lesser defenders. Also, his aging legs will not be as taxed defending against second unit players.

Amazing the revelations uncovered by playing a weaker team, lol.

In the real Caption Canada we trust!

Will Jawai ever play? Is he looking to get better or waiting to leave? If he never get the chance to play, can the raptors get anything for him?(Monetary or otherwise)

FRANCHISE- PLEASE GOD NO!!!!! (here's your quote) "The trick now though will be for BC to quell what was perhaps an itchy trigger finger. I think now he's going to want to see how his players do under Jay's system because if it brings out the best in their abilities, suddenly he may not want to make any major moves."

It was one freakin' game, and it was ugly for both teams--the Raps would have lost to 25 teams with their effort last night. We need a trade so bad I think I'm going to scream.

Parker, Hump, Moon, Bargnani (please, someone take him . . . TAKE HIM!), and Kapono can all go for some athleticism and wing defense. If we don't do something soon, this team is going to go into a major funk, link 30 wins on the year-style

Think I was posting my last comment ustation when you were posting yours so missed it the first time around...which is a shame because I too was howling and would like to add a few more to the pile:

-Pape Sow is the second coming of Ben Wallace. (Didn't help that we liked him at the HQ so much that we dubbed him Spider-man for his wall-climbing rebounds.)

-Omar Cook was the answer to all our back-up point guard problems.

-Marc Iavoronni is second only to Ed O'Bannon on the god list.

As for Jawai, sounds like we'll know in the next week what the deal is with his situation.

Our Wings happened to play well for one game! I would keep Bargs on the Bench, the experiment should be over now. I like the Moon/Kapono combo in the starting lineup. JT should try it out for a few games.

Graham for MVP!

First off that putback by Jamario moon was DEFINITELY offensive goaltending. He got up there though.

I think Triano nailed the difference between Moon and Bargnani. Moon (when he's playing well) impacts the game without have plays called for him. He tracks the down the ball. The most annoying thing about Bargnani is that unless the ball falls into his lap he's not going to get the rebound. He's not going to fight for it, and he's not going to hustle after a loose ball. Offensively when he's not knocking down the three, he's more hit than miss. His game lacks flow. I'm waiting for Bargnani to show me something. Right now he's a poor man's Raef Lafrenz. Ya I said it.

Franchise

Re:

"The trick now though will be for BC to quell what was perhaps an itchy trigger finger. I think now he's going to want to see how his players do under Jay's system because if it brings out the best in their abilities, suddenly he may not want to make any major moves."

...I think B.C. has seen enough of the talent on the team to conclude that decisions still have to be made.

Maybe raptorsrepublic.com and raptorshq.com should be on the radar screen re: the Score. I know raptorblog.com is, but the site is not quickly updated (understandible) but I think that the HQ and Raptorsrepublic could both be the blogs of choice for the Score.

V.D., H. and F. what do you think?

Rishi - Thanks man. I think if you guys make noise, it'll help! For me, I've worked a little bit with The Score in the past with Jeff Wong back when I was with Hoops Addict, and it was pretty enjoyable. Right now, for me personally, I just want to keep making the best articles I can and let all that other stuff settle itself out. But thanks for the thoughts!

Chris - I think it'll take a few games of coming back off the bench for Bargnani to get his inside game back. We all talked about the problems of having Bargnani at the 3 position for extended periods of time, and now, it's going to take time for him to readjust back to his previous role and good points that he had at the start of the year.

Raptorman,
You forgot to include AB in that short list of struggling Raps. With Bosh that makes 2 Bigs having bad hair days. Like .... say 5 in a row (or whatever). One of them for maybe Coach-related reasons, and the other for confidence. Which I guess doesn’t get a boost when you have LeBron on your ass.

When it comes to line-ups, I`d rather AB come in as the 6th man, and if Bosh + O`Neal operate in a more reasonable minute range, Rubble will get his minutes. Plus bring our 2nd unit closer to its heyday – a possibility if Ukic gets his time in, damned or not. In some respects, this past losing had an upside to it.

And while I know Moon had a superb game – by his yardstick – I wonder if a Kapono/Joey start (at the 2 / 3) is not worth trying for a set number of games. And no quick hook for a bad game. As much as one can say Joey brings an energy off the bench, the inference being to give a boost to team play, I say why not give that jab right away. Inside presence – in different ways – means we can be up 10 points after the 1st quarter. Which I know, a pessimist Raptor might say we`ll blow it like usual, but I`d rather be up 10, then down 10, when I start that 2nd quarter.

And as much as I`ve heard that coaching doesn`t impact a team in any majorly way, I have to disagree. Smitch – with the right type of players – certainly has the chance to take whatever he`s learned and be a good coach. One who understands minute distribution. But as we are seeing with Joey and hopefully JK, Sam`s tenure with the Raps went as far as it should go.

Jay T may not be the answer, but this year needed to be a sort of long exhibition season, where we groom for 2009/10 – the year we should take the big run .... damn the luxury gurus. The coach for this year, will in all likelihood take a fall, win or lose. Bosh will need some serious incentive – besides money – to stay. A high rolling coach may do just that ... I mean a really good one. And If BC gives JT the confidence that he will remain in some capacity with the club, then we have the right coach for the rest of the year. A sort of holding pattern guy – to keep Bosh not necessarily overjoyed, but happy. And with the foresight to see a reasonable future.

This is a BBC team that with the right extras – and we certainly will have the (tradable) assets next year to get them – be able to take that run in 2009. And failing that drive to winning it all – we could all dream so well – the next year becomes our new target. And hope.

Which you wouldn`t know it, reading some comments.

So what do you guys think on http://www.Bustnani.com ?

JohnyBlaze - Raptors fans will make a site about anything Raptor-related won't they? Site is funny but it will be interesting to see if it keeps up, especially if Bargs starts to break out again.

Rishi - No interest in the Score network right now although as Vicious mentioned, we have worked with Jeff in the past. With our relaunch aiming for early next year, we'll probably have other partnerships on the go at that point in time and we're just not sure The Score is the right fit for our site right now. We're pretty adamant about certain journalistic standards and updating patterns so it would probably make more sense for us to partner with someone else.

The Score blog collection (Federation) is managed by Raptorblogs' Scott Carefoot (he works for the Score) and seeing that HQ has easily the best blog writers on the Raptors, I'm sure he would add this site if there is no conflict.

As for Raptorsrepublic; pretty to look at and the links are great but I would not put them in the same conversation as this site (in terms of writers and the commenters they attract).

Johny Blaze,
AB is missing 2 things. Confidence and that Italian fury. With the right coach, the former can be achieved. Add a few years of being slapped around, and we can only hope the latter is unleashed.

AB may not have been the right top pick – we need to get over that – but he can be the right piece to the puzzle. This team will never be a Bosh team, in the mold of Lebron. He`s simply not in that stratosphere. James will always kick Bosh`s ass. So the only way to kick his ass, is having Bosh as a vital component to a true team effort. One that features AB. And JC. And some dynamites at the 2 and 3.

Since my focus is more on next year, I have a question:

Assuming we have 32 million tied up with Bosh, Bargs, Calderon & Ukic – all others being tradable – and with a luxury tax of 71 million, which teams might want some of what we have. Expiring contracts for the following season ... aka ... the Lebron Sweepstakes

Sweet game.

Get Ed O'Bannon's agent on the line anyway.

And call Keon Clark one last time BC.!! OHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!

(Yours truly,
Keon Clark)

Forget Raef Lafrentz -- he's actually had a career.

If we want equal value, can we trade Bargnani for another top pick bust like Olowakandi? How about Kwame Brown? Maybe Tskitishvili? Fredric Weis???

If you want proof that Bargnani is a 1-trick pony, look at his comparisons:

http://www.basketballreference.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=BargnAn01

Sadly, most of them are guards! Shouldn't a 7-footer get 5 rebounds/game just by standing there?

TJ frickin Ford has 4.4 rb/game and 36% 3PT%... just slightly under Bargnani's 4.9 rb/game and 38% 3PT%., and no one would ever claim that TJ Ford's strengths are rebounding and 3-point shooting!

I guess we can be happy that Bargnani's stats are marginally better than Adam Morrison's (another rumoured #1 pick possibility back then)