-The loss to the Los Angeles Lakers was tough to swallow, but tonight's drubbing at the hands of the Sacramento Kings was simply inexcusable.  The Toronto Raptors got blown out in the second half en route to a 113 to 90 loss in a game that should have been wrapped up early as win number 33 on the season.  Instead, it's loss number 31, the team's seventh in its last eight games.

-Lots of blame to be spread around in this one but let's start with Chris Bosh.  Yes, he's probably not 100 per cent.  But if you're that ineffective, either don't play, or do other things to try and get the team going.  14 points on six of 20 shooting and 5 rebounds ain't gonna cut it, and neither is 3 measly free-throw attempts.

-As mentioned though, this was an entire team failure tonight as Hedo Turkoglu was essentially invisible (six points on 2 of 8 shooting), Bargs was again only good in spurts (he had a team-high 20 points) and Toronto's point guards on the night were abysmal, both in terms of leading the team and in terms of setting the tone.  Jose in particular got lit up all night by Beno Udrih.

-Yes, Beno Udrih.  The same Beno who finished with 24 points and 8 assists, many of his points coming off of open drives to the basket.  He got a ton of help in the back-court however as Tyreke Evans simply did whatever he wanted en route to his first career triple-double (19-10-10.)  These two got a nice boost from other Kings like Carl Landry, Donte Greene and Jason Thompson and once Sacto got rolling to start the third quarter, they never looked back.  How rolling?  Well considering the Raptors gave up 43 points in the 3rd Q...

-From here, things could get pretty messy fast for Toronto.  They still have two tough games left on the road trip out West, then have to face the Hawks and Thunder upon their return.  Already they've tumbled in the Eastern Conference standings from 5th to 7th and another few losses could easily knock them out of a playoff spot altogether.  Dare we say it but is it time for another closed-door meeting?

Toronto Raptors vs. Sacramento Kings

March 9, 2010

TV:  the Score - 10:00 PM EST

After a devastating loss in LA the Raps head to Sacramento to face the Kings. Will the Raps be able to get up for this game after what happened last night or will they continue their solid play and beat the lesser Sacramento squad?

Go RAPS!

- There was a lot to like from tonight's game. From Bosh's clutch three, to Bargnani's rediscovery of his offense, the Raptors matched up with the Lakers.  Jarrett Jack, though, was absolutely spectacular and gave the Raptors some much needed offense and defense.  There is no doubt who was the best off-season signing for the Raptors last summer.

- Kobe Bryant was magical in his final shot, fading in the corner, with a couple Raptors draped over him for good measure.  The Lakers were just too strong from the inside-out thanks to guys such as Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum. 

- I'm not one to harp on the refs much.  I believe that there's usually something that the team can do to overcome the refs, but tonight, the Raptors just didn't get the breaks they needed.  The Lakers got the benefit of phantom calls as some timely fan interference. 

- Hedo Turkoglu was undoubtedly the dud of the game.  Readers may argue about his merits, but the Raptors got a whole lot of nothing when they needed something from their tall small forward.  Careless turnovers, bad decisions, and bricked shots were all a part of Hedo's repertoire tonight.  His ankle may still have been bothering him, but the Raptors needed something from everyone and Turk didn't bring much of anything.

- All in all, as good of a loss as you could want.  The Raptors seem to have rediscovered their fire and will now travel to Sacramento for yet another back-to-back.

Toronto Raptors vs. LA Lakers

March 9, 2010

TV:  TSN - 10:30 PM EST

The Raps hit the west coast looking to right the ship. The first opponent is the LA Lakers. With a win the Raps could actually sweep the season series. Unlikely, but it gives you reason to watch!

Go RAPS!

-CBC couldn't cut to skiing fast enough after this one.  Even though Chris Bosh returned, the Toronto Raptors looked lost at both ends of the court, losing 114 to 101 to the Philadelphia 76ers.  Philly simply did whatever they wanted offensively on this afternoon, and while Toronto cut the lead to 6 with about five minutes left, they just couldn't get the stops needed to get any closer.

-How bad was Toronto defensively this afternoon?  How about allowing Philly to shoot 56% from the field, 75% from long-range, and on top of this, the 76ers made 15 of their 19 free-throws.  Offense doesn't get much more efficient than that.  Conversely, while Toronto shot 51 per cent from the field themselves, it took them a while to get going for long range and from the line the Raps were a measly 8 of 12.

-So where does the blame lie in this loss?  Hard not to put the whole team under the gun today.  The starters lacked any sort of urgency, the bench was ok in stretches but careless with the ball, Bosh looked rusty, and Andrea aside from one quarter wasn't aggressive enough.  I can't even put the blame on Hedo, as he sat this one out with his nagging ankle issues.  Overall the Raps just didn't bring it.

-Philly however did, especially on offense where Thaddeus Young and Jrue Holiday absolutely lit up the Dinos.  Young had a career-high 32 points while Holiday had 21 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists in the win.  In fact all five Philadelphia starters scored in double figures and this was the main difference considering Toronto's bench outscored Philly's.

-The other main problem this afternoon?  For some reason Toronto was hell-bent on going one-on-five offensively time and time again.  From Jarrett Jack to Reggie Evans, this theme resulted in needless turnover after turnover and even though the Raps finished with 23 assists, many of them came late in the game when things were getting well out of hand.

-Bottom line - this could be a very tough loss to swallow.  The Raps are about to embark on a mini-road swing next and while teams like the Kings and Warriors may not seem too tough, both play styles that Toronto has problems defending, and after those games, the Raptors face the Blazers, Hawks and Thunder in succession.  Considering this afternoon's loss drops Toronto to sixth in the Conference, only two games out of ninth spot, this next stretch could be crucial in determining the team's playoff fortunes...

More photos » Chris Young - AP

Amir Johnson got the start and filled the void left by CB4. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Chris Young)

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Even before news came out that the Raptors would be without their franchise player for at least one more game with the flu, losing this game was simple going to be unacceptable.

The guys who did suit-up ensured a loss wasn't in the cards.

Continue reading this post »

- Another night without the franchise guy (Chris Bosh out with the flu) but unlike the past few games others stepped up and the Raps got a much needed win against the Knicks. It got close down the stretch but the Raps managed to pull it out at the end.

- Player of the game? RaptorsHQ favorite Sonny Weems who led the team in scoring with 20 points and 9 rebounds. It was once again the Raps bench play that saved the day as all the starters, with the exception of Jarrett Jack were rather underwhelming.

- The Raps did a great job protecting the basketball only turning the ball over 8 times. Some of the credit for this goes to the Knicks defense (which is non-existent) but for the most part Jose Calderon did a great job manning the point. He had  6 assists and only one turnover.

- Another night where Andrea just didn't step-up as one would hope. He looked like a member of the Knicks at times - jacking up shots right, left and centre. He shot a terrible percentage from the floor and outside of DeRozan was outrebounded by every other Raptors starter.

- The Knicks are just a mess. Other than David Lee there isn't much to work with. Al Harrington is a ball hog, McGrady is a shell of his former self, and Gallinari still has to grow as a player. For the sake of Knicks fans they better have a decent summer (which does not include signing CB4).

- It was not a thing of beauty but the Raps got the much needed win. Up next for the Dinos is the 76ers.

New York Knicks vs. Toronto Raptors

March 5, 2010

TV:  TSN - 7:00 PM EST

Back at home the Raps need to get back to their winning ways. Tracy McGrady, David Lee and others hope to ensure the Raps continue to lose ground in the Eastern Conference standings. Will the Raps get the job done?

Go RAPS!