Raptors' Rapid Recap - Bobcats 97 - Raptors 91

Bargs was -15. Next worst Raptor was -5 (Kleiza).

No they don’t.

.

I"ve said it over and over, but when Bargnani went to the bench, the defense looked SOOO much better. And then when he returned, it went to pot again. Tonight was worse than normal, but certainly indicative of how much he effects the defense.

I’m not that disappointed with the loss, since wins shouldn’t really be the primary focus this year, but the Raptors are simply never going to be a good defensive team with Bargnani playing more than 20 mpg.

Amen on the coaching. I thought Triano did an awful job tonight. It’s bad enough having Kleiza on the floor at all, but to put him out there with Bargnani for alot of the second quarter and then again in the 4th, is amateurish.

It wasn’t even that Brown did anything to win the coaching matchup; it’s that Triano made decisions that lost it.

I’m calling it now: Kleiza and Bargnani will be this year’s Calderon-Jack-Turkoglu idiot lineup that Triano will keep trotting out there. Every time it’s been used, it’s been a defensive nightmare.

Play to lose – get good draft position. How do I achieve this goal: Play Bargnani 42 minutes a night to guarantee a losing season and increase his trade value. With more minutes Bargnani will continue to be a black whole, probably increasing his scoring (NOT his efficiency) and some GM will be dumb enough to trade for him. Plus, 42 minutes a night of terrible rebounding and zombie defense will ensure a great draft pick!

What is the point of trying to make the playoffs? Lets assume that everything in the East remains as is and the Raptors get a shot to make it. Do you really believe they can play with Boston, Orlando or even Miami and Atlanta? Almost all of those teams will destroy them in 4 or 5 games and it will be a completely wasted effort. Playoff experience only matters when you make the playoffs on a regular basis which you cannot believe this current lineup is capable of. You cannot cross your fingers and hope that everything goes your way every year and you can trot out the same mediocre lineup and make the playoffs and somehow overcome superior teams to make going to the playoffs worthwhile. This team needs a true star player which we will never get if we are drafting in the 10-20 spots every year. Instead, the team will be forced into making bad trade (like the Leafs for Kessel) after bad trade trying to find someone that one or two really crappy seasons could produce more naturally. If you really think that winning now will have any real long term benefit for this team you are sadly mistaken.

amir, davis, sonny, demar and bayless (i believe that was the group, Barbossa may have been in there) who took a 13pt lead. Played even ball with the Cats in the 2nd half, and then somehow didn’t get to play the end of the game.

I also don’t think it was at all a ‘bad game’ for everyone. Just the usual suspects….

SO what is the answer?

we all saw it during the game… when he sat at the 6 minute mark of the 1st, then returned to the game. He played the same through the 2nd half.

When Jay put Bargs back in at the end of the 4th I just groaned…. no hindsight in this one. You could see it as the game was being played

1. Spending more money on a lottery team is incredibly dangerous. The team is already close to the luxury tax, right now. And simply spending money is never the answer. Ask New York.

2. You assume that coaching is going to change some players. It won’t. And young players make mistakes. Often times over and over, before they finally get it. I’ve never seen a young team that doesn’t go through the exact same thing the Raptors are going through this year, no matter who is coaching.

3. You’re also assuming they are not being developed well. And, again, you’re assuming coaching is going to make a player develop in the way you want him to. Sometimes they don’t, no matter what is done. Coaches can only do so much. A guy like Bargnani is never going to be a good defensive player, no matter who is coach is. There’s a difference between developing a player and changing who he is.

4. You’re assuming Oklahoma would want a third shooting guard and a defensively weak SF for Jeff Green, which I highly doubt. I like Jeff Green, but it seems to me this trade is only to really help the team immediately. He’s a free agent this summer, and could end up leaving for nothing. Both DeRozan and Kleiza have longer contracts, so could be used in a trade down the road. This seems to be more a knee jerk trade.

Your views do not represent mine, nor most Raptor fans that I talk to. The goal of a franchise should be to win the Championship. I don’t want to cheer for Atlanta, a good team that has no hope of ever being a real contender. I want to cheer for San Antonio. The Lakers. Boston.

And you’re focusing too much on the #1 pick. Franchise players don’t necessarily have to be a #1 pick, and often aren’t. Guys like Wade, Chris Paul, Deron Williams, etc, were all top 5 picks.

Bottom line, you have a much better chance of drafting a franchise player than of signing or trading for one. And without a franchise player, the chance your team will ever truly compete for a Championship is very, very small. No team has ever won a Championship without an ALl NBA player on the team. Of course, you don’t care about winning Championships, and for that I am extremely thankful you are not in charge of the team.