Twas the Night Before Christmas - RaptorsHQ's Annual Letter to Santa

Merry Christmas from all of us basketball nuts at the HQ!

For those of you have been with us for a number of years, Franchise and I always venture back to the East Coast for the holiday season and we are grateful for friends and family. It’s a time to relax, eat a little too much, drink a little too much and reflect on the past 365.

It’s a great time of year and always a nice change from the T-Dot pace.

It’s also the time of year when we present our Christmas wish list in hopes that Santa himself is a Toronto Raptors fan, and might have an extra 6’8" mega athletic swingman who can create his own shot, kicking around the workshop to be placed under Bryan Colangelo’s tree.

Here’s an excerpt from this year’s letter…

"…and we would also like a Playstation 3.

Now for the Raptors it’s been a newsworthy but turbulent year thus far and we were hoping you might help them out.

If there is one thing we would wish for this team it’s some stability. Right now it seems like everything involving the Raptors is just out of sync. This is not what we had expected. The team is well below .500, they are on their second coach and unfortunately the schedule makers only allow this team to play the Clippers twice a season.

Something positive needs to happen to get this team back on track. Maybe it’s a monster output on the offensive end from Andrea Bargnani or maybe it’s a strong finish to the road swing.
Whatever it is Santa, this team needs a lift.

We are hoping for a surprising victory over one of the leagues elite teams. This team is in desperate need of a big win which will not only raise spirits but help give the team confidence that yes, they indeed can compete with the rest of the NBA. This season is not a complete loss as it’s only December 24. How different would this season be had the Raps managed to beat Boston early on? We would suggest very different. This team needs to believe in itself and it would seem that only a big win will help accomplish that.

Of course if this really is a "wish list," the thing we really want is what we have wanted the past few years. We’ve been good again this year Santa and we are hoping you will finally deliver. No, we don’t want to become millionaires off running the HQ, once again we are asking for an elite swingman! Chris Bosh cannot do it alone. We’ll even help explain things in Santa terms if that helps.

Ok let’s see, Santa, let’s say you are CB4. Well Santa needs a Rudolph to help guide him doesn’t he? The rest of the reindeer are ok, but none of them are good enough to help him complete his goal. A reindeer named Wallace, Jefferson, Thornton, or Deng might do the trick! And think about it, that might make things easier for Dasher, Dancer, Calderon, all the rest of the gang!

You know BC is feverishly working the phones looking for a solution and hopefully there is one out there. Maybe you have to move Jermaine O’Neal and move Bargnani to the starting line-up, or maybe, just maybe, BC will swallow his pride and move Bargnani. The upside is clearly there, we’re just not sure we are willing to wait much longer for it to pan out. As you know Santa, 2010 is looming over many franchises, including this one. We’re hoping for a winning franchise before that time, otherwise he might have to make like the Narwhale in Elf, wishing Bosh best of luck as he leaves in search of his buddy Lebron.

In terms of coaching we are hoping Triano succeeds. He may not be the long-term leader for this franchise but it would be nice to see someone so well respected in NBA circles take advantage of this opportunity. He’s in a rough position but maybe you could help him out. We know Joey Graham is doing his best to help out, but Triano’s going to need more than Good Joey to right the ship.

All in all Santa we are hoping for this team to find its way. This team is better than their play would suggest and although expectations were too high early on, their performance lately leaves much to be desired. There is talent on this roster, it just doesn’t seem to be meshing. Maybe we should just ask for some Crazy Glue to see if we can put the pieces together. If only another training camp were something we could wish for…

Finally Santa, we wanted to thank you for what you did bring us this year. Not only have you given us some great insight and help from Mr. Vicious D, but you’ve also again provided us with a bounty of wise and hilarious readers that keep us going...even when it means 3 AM recaps after losses to Oklahoma…

Until next year Santa,

A Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all from the HQ.