Tip-In: Toronto Raptors Post Game: Brutal

Annoyed blogger, I just really want to watch the Raptors win a championship. As every team that's supposed to win in the NBA except for Raptors wins, it's inexcusible for the Raptors to lose. As Howland has already pointed out.
Anyway, as everyone is sick of me posting, I won't be posting anymore.
Good luck Raptor fans.

Maybe Colangelo needs to make a trade a la his dad and Kerr in PHX.

Since Toronto is modelled after the Suns, maybe we can get a giant slow center.

Hakeem, welcome back to Toronto!

Bizarre numbers tonight, 15 steals, 24 assists, only 8 turnovers to clippers 20, but killed on the boards and of course, Plan A.

Damn you Plan A!

BargsBust you might stop posting but I doubt you'll stop reading....

Although I doubt its true but it does seem like you have somethign personal against him.

You claim Kaman had a field day....he had 18 points, 12 rebounds and 2 blocks. He averages 17 points, 13.5 rebounds and 3 blocks. How is that a field day? Pls explain? (Not to mention he fouled 5 times and had 5 TOs above average for him)

And then you completely neglect to mention that Bosh could not guard Al Thorton who matched up against Bosh and scord 12 of 19 in the 4th (the guy averages 7 points). You fail to mention that none of our wing players could contain maggette who scored 35 when he averages just unde 20.

Nope....no mention of Bosh's lack of defence or moons however you make some abusrd claim about Kaman having a field day....

Where to start. Myself and fresh1 where at the game, and if I could of walked down and choked Sam Mitchell and his coaching staff we would of. I thought we were going to get kicked out of the game. Note to everyone - don't sit near us.

The second half was BRUTAL!!!! Do you know what offensive play we should run more - THE FREAKIN HIGH PICK AND ROLL!!! Damn, we ran it everytime down the floor. Someone get these coaches the little coaching basketball book for dummies. Our coaches did not sub properly or react to game conditions at all. I really don't think we have any other plays. How we don't have a few specific plays for AP, or Jay Kapono, or Delfino I don't know.

Who did play ok was Andrea B. He shot in control (just wished he wouldn't settle for them because he had miss matches all the time), but played well on D. Delfino was the only one scoring in third quarter (and then coaches took him out - and never really to see him again). As for our point guards - STOPPING DRIBBLING THE FREAKIN BALL SO MUCH. Push it up the floor already (the wings where always open). They could not recognize any mismatches, ie. mobley on AP. and just kept running a high pick and roll with bosh. Someone tell bosh its ok to pass out of a double team.

OHHHHHHHHHH that was good to get off the chest.

We need some really good coaching - not SAM or these other characters.

Howland - great to hear you had floor seats. Its awesome down there. I had a chance to see Lakers with floor seats (after Kobe got thur his legal woes). We were dogging him all night with comments.

GO RAPS - GO BC - GET RID OF SAM!!!!

Yeah this team is destined for another 1st round exit it seems, unless we play the wizards/magic with home court.......any team with a superstar wing, would eat us alive. i was against getting maggette at first (cuz of his to's and the clips reluctance to trade him), but his peneration and fta are exactly what this team needs desperately. i doubt colangelo makes a trade tho. and don't resign delfino, his shot selection is so poor. we need a wing, hopefully through the draft or something, we'll see what happens in the playoffs tho

No question this was a game we let slip out of our hands, and as usual it was "plan A" playing the role of culprit. Jamario refuses to make the most out of his athleticism on a regular basis, Parker isn't cutting to the baseline for dunks with the frequency he did last year and (contrary to what Leo says on every broadcast) Jason Kapono is not a guy who refuses to settle for the jumpshot. He settles his ass off because he simply can't create his own. It also doesn't help that Bosh played a subpar game, particularly on defense against Thornton, but watching that matchup unfold I was left wondering why The Smitch didn't switch over Jamario to take away some of Thornton's quickness. Anyways, all of these issues don't make me confident we have the makeup needed to make a playoff drive, but in the big picture I still love the building blocks of our team, and I think a few tweaks are in order rather than a whole rebuild.

The thrill of offense, the agony of defense. The RAPS will not always be a sharp shooting team, regardless of their offensive talents. Teams like PHX have only made it so far with superior offensive prowess, and it took them some time to learn this- ala the SHAQ experiment. The RAPS need a defensive presence, sooner than later. I know BC does not want any short term fixes, but unless we shore up our defense, I’m afraid a first round exit seems imminent. Besides Bosh/Rasho, the RAPS do not have a defensive bone in their bodies. I hope BC can make a solid deal in acquiring a solid wing who can defend/score or a ‘pure rebounder’. We need a guy like Reggie Evans… dude is only getting 24 min/per in Philly and I think he’s expendable… BC should take a closer look at him. This Paper Clip game was ripe for the picking, but when our offense suffers, so does our defense (3rd quarter drought)- here’s to BC making a BOLD move before the deadline.

Watched the first half, went out to dinner confident that the Raps would pull it out... Came home, checked The Score for highlights and was nearly sick to my stomach. Seriously, this team has not progressed since last year.

The major blunder this off season was the signing of Kapono, or more specifically the over-payment of Kapono. It was blatantly obvious after last season that what this team needed was defense and toughness at the 3 through 5 spots. I think it was obvious to anyone that the one thing the Raptors’ didn’t need more of last year was ANOTHER FREAKEN JUMP SHOOTER. What a wasted opportunity.

For everyone who keeps ripping Sam after every loss, remember what he’s working with here. There hasn’t been a loss this season that can’t be attributed to defense and/or rebounding. That’s an obvious trend. That’ a personally issue. That’s a Brian Colangelo issue. Do we realy think running plays for Carlos freaken Delfino is going to solve our problems?!

The only hope for this season is BC wakes up and realizes run and gun, no defense basketball is all sizzle no steak. We don’t need to get any younger. Our first round pick for this year should be in play at the trade deadline along with Mr. Kapono.

the thing is we do have guys who can take it to the rim. it seems like the fault for Plan A (or the lack of Plan B at least) rests with Smitch.

Hey, are there any possibilities for improving our rebounding or defense at the 3 or 5 spots through the upcoming draft? I think possibly we could try and get Nicholas Batum (SF). He could be another Rudy Gay in the making....

wtf, sounds like you think the Raptors suck. That's BargsBust's point.
And you'll never admit to this, but BargsBust has been right all along with most of his remarks.
BargsBust, great insight!

Strange game:
Felt comfortable all game that Raps would pull it out, despite not playing well. But then it didn't happen.
Have you ever seen so many passes thrown into the back of people's arms? People need to learn to bounce pass occasionally. Sad basketball.
Yes, Bosh had a tough time with the smaller, quicker Thornton (though I thought Bosh did make good attempts to keep those feet moving), but there should have been some help defense coming over when he turned the corner on Bosh.
Have to disagree about TJ. Not that he didn't play well, but there was a stretch there where they left Bosh in with him, and the offense looked totally out of sync; ended up in some typical late shot clock heaves by Ford. However, that's not all on Ford. He made some good penetrations and passes in the air (which I know Leo hates) that his wings didn't seem ready for.
Why were both Rasho and Bosh at the top of the three point line? It didn't seem to be a designed screen play for AP or anybody to come up top and stroke it (by the way, the Clips seemed to try that play alot with Kaman and Thornton). It seemed like they were both tired and neither could decide who was supposed to be down in the key.
When Kaman got his fifth, I was thinking we need a penetrating wing to drive continually and draw that sixth foul on him. But then I realized, Ford seems to be the only one capable of getting that done. And is it fair to ask him to start driving non stop against a giant like Kaman at this stage of his recuperation?

No, Observer, BargsBust point has been that, duh, Bargs is a bust, which I think anyone with half a brain realizes is nonsense.

Not quite ready to conceed our first round playoff matchup yet, seeing how we ain't at AllStar break yet.

Bad loss - AB missing them open three's in the fourth and CB4 getting schooled by a rookie.

Observer: I'm not sure how you got the idea that I think the raptors suck....I was trying to point out that their play sucked in this particular game.

As mentioned in the previous post BargsBust point was that Bargs is a bust. He's not a bust...there is no way you can determine he is a bust this early in his career.

If Bargsbust had said the raptors are not going to win with a strictly offensive philosophy or when he says they should move bargs for a defensive center I can understand that. Might not completely agree with it but I can understand it.

However when he says we should move him because he is a bust then I have to disagree with him because as I mentioned previously and as it has been mentioned in many other posts including my own Bargs is not a bust.

benjibopper,

Doug Smith had the following to say in regards to Smitch and last night's loss in his blog...
http://thestar.blogs.com/raptors/

"Mail’s full of anti-Sam stuff this morning and one dude says he’s never, ever, ever going to watch another game (until Sunday, I’d bet) because the coach cost them the loss to the Clips. No, no, no, not because he was supposed to guard Corey Maggette, but because he apparently "did nothing at all" during the 18-0 Clippers run over the last two minutes of the third quarter and first four of the fourth.

Checking the play-by-play, the coach made five substitutions in that time, had the quarter break to talk to them and called a timeout three minutes into the fourth. That’s not nothing."

Couldn't have said it better myself. As for the plan A stuff... I think it would be easier to design more creative plays if we had more creative players... Who are these guys that can take it to the rim besides Bosh? Moon? Everyone and their mother has been telling him to drive for the last three months. Kappono.. umm, no. Delfino? Still waiting for that to happen... This is a jump shooting team, the caoches job is to take advanatage of what he's got and the pick-and-roll plays that are run puts our JUMP SHOOTERS in the best position to score.

Furthermore, Raps were out rebounded 45 to 33 and the Clips shot 53% from the field! Not sure how Sam’s offensive schemes explains that. My point is that the 24 million we gave to Kapono may have been better spent on defense, toughness and rebounding. Part of the problem is that our best players are young, but there is definitely a skills gap in the defense and rebounding departments.

MAS - great points, I agree, it's the players that just weren't sharp last night and didn't hit enough shots or rebound enough. I think though, that you're wrong that we overpaid Kapono. The guys is excellent trade bait and a nice size contract is actually a huge benefit, so that BC can avoid throwing in extra players just to make a deal work. When you have a guy like that, a specialist that's consistent, teams will want him. I'm starting to believe also, that he just doesn't fit into the raptors "read and react" system. He needs plays run for him specifically. It's really too bad he can't defend even a little better, because he's the most consistent three point shooter on the raps and in the league.

Time to trot out my Mopete love we really miss his defense, even just to spell AP so he can be more aggressive. I'm starting to think that AP has not regressed, but is being asked to do too much: defend the best player, third option to score, handle the rock more, lots of minutes - plus he's somewhat of a glue guy, but it's maybe too much to expect him to excel at these things at once. He's no MJ.

Here's an interesting take on last nights win from the Clips Nation point of view.

http://www.clipsnation.com/story/2008/2/9/01715/96698

A solid read and he makes some good points that we Raps fans need to be concerned about.

AXL,

Interesting perspective on Kap's contract. Building a team by putting together valuable pieces, that is one philosophy. However, if we didn't spend that money on Kapono, but on what this team really needed (defense, rebounding etc.) we wouldn't have to go through the pain of tryig to find a defensive minded rebounding player to trade him for. Don'tcha think?

Mas - Dude, I'm *saying* he doesn't fit the raptors.

It's just that I think his contract matches his trade value in the NBA.

took a look at that Clipper's blog, courtesy of Howland. Now, that is funny! Guess you have to have a certain offbeat sense of humor to be a Clips fan, after 200 years without a playoff accomplishment to speak of.

Makes me think we here at HQ are just a *little bit* too serious about our topic.

This latest debacle by a Toronto sports team might actually be caused by something misaligning in the universe. The Maple Laughs just beat the top team in the NHL (Detroit), and to compensate, the stars determined that the Raps would not beat the Clips.

It's a Gaussian balance.

raps who can take it to the rim:

bosh
ford
calderon
parker
bargnani
delfino
moon
humphries
rasho
graham

they all can. problem is they don't. not saying that should be entirely smitch's fault, but it is the coach's job to get the players doing what they need to do to win, no?

Learn the lesson guys, there are no guaranteed wins in the NBA due to record. Any team can win on a given night. Rap's @ yr 1.5 still young and inconsistent. The reason LAC made more rebounds was the Rap's missed 47 shots, LA had 41 def rbs & 4 off same as TO. Forget the rebounding, that's not the main problem. They just can't stop aggressive 2/3's from scoring, or getting to the basket. BC needs to find an aggresive 2/3 who can create, get to the hoop, draw fouls, score and defend. A tall order with limited funds and the need to sign Calderon and Delfino.
Let's remember this was game 2 in TJ's return, with 6 asts, but no scoring which will limit his impact till in sync.

Point #1 Sam and the coaching staff do need to expand the playbook. While he's an excellent motivator Sam will never be a top tier coach unless he gets more plays than the pick n roll.

Point #2 No matter what the coach does its the players that have to play. If you and I knw that playersettle for too many jump shots I'm sure the coaching staff drills it into the players heads every practice.

I coach a youth team. Not the same as coaching grown men who make millions BUT nothing is more frustrating than practicing several plays or a defensive set all the time and then watching the game unfold and the players act like they never heard of a backdoor cut or a trap! It happens! When the game starts and the whistle blows the player always revert to what they know when the pressure is on. Jump shooters shoot jump shots so BC needs to find someone who can beat their man off the dribble and drive to the hoop.

Regarding Detroit Red Wings take a lesson. Their last 2 games they lost at home to the LA Kings and last nite to the Leafs. The best team in the NHL lost to 2 of the 3 worst teams in the NHL.