-How about a win to start the NBA season for the Toronto Raptors? Yes, the win came against the Cleveland Cavaliers, hardly the Miami Heat, but if you watched this one, you probably came away pretty happy with the end result, and a lot of what you saw on the court.
-For starters, it was a balanced offensive attack by the Dinos. Toronto had SEVEN players in double figures, and did a great job moving the ball for the bulk of the match, something 35 assists on 79 shots is a testament to. Jose Calderon led the flow with 11 (to go with six rebounds and 15 points), but others like James Johnson and Ed Davis (7 assists!) also got in on the action.
-Speaking of Ed, both he and Amir Johnson were awesome all night, banging in the paint, blocking shots, grabbing rebounds and simply being extremely active down low, causing havoc for the Cavs. They combined for 27 points, 20 rebounds and 5 blocks, and were huge factors in this win. Jamaal Magloire also gave the Raps some quality time off the bench, and his 15 minutes of meaningful action was probably more than he's played in quite some time.
-The game wasn't without some trouble though. Jerryd Bayless didn't do much to show he's a viable point guard option, and at times the Raps settled for far too many J's. The team also shot only 13 free throws to Cleveland's 28 and had the Cavs hit more than 6 of the 20 long-range bombs they attempted, this might have been a different story.
-In the end though the Raptors held the Cavaliers to under 100 points, and just over 40 per cent shooting from the field, something that fans can hope is a common theme this season. There are still 65 games to go but there's no question there was a lot to like in win number 1.