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Wednesday, February 3, 2010 7:58 PM EST
Bargnani's back-to-back struggles
The Raptors were due for a stinker, and giving up 130 points to Indiana stinks. It will be interesting to see how the Raptors' depth holds up with Calderon out (presumably) as well as DeRozan and perhaps Turkoglu.
But what I’ll be most interested in tonight against the Nets, though they may not provide the best measure, is how Bargnani will perform on the second night of a back-to-back after logging a career-high 34 against the Pacers (and as an aside, can you have a less satisfying career night? You get blown out; you don’t lead your team in scoring; you have two rebounds until two meaningless ones in the final couple of minutes, you shoot 2-of-6 from the line and you have no assists. Even at his best, Bargnani makes you think: “Meh, there’s a lot of room for improvement”).
I mentioned yesterday that I think Bargnani’s could be in better condition. This isn’t to say he’s out of shape or that he doesn’t take care of his fitness. He’s a pretty diligent guy from what I’ve observed. He stretches a lot, and he does this thing after practice all the time where he lies on his back with his legs elevated against the wall. It’s very Euro.
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Tuesday, February 2, 2010 9:56 AM EST
Strong play from the point
If you think back to 2006-07, the good old days, in other words, there was pretty much complete agreement on two truths in the Raptors universe.
The first was that Toronto benefited from remarkable point guard play – even in the absence of remarkable point guards – because they had a pair of very good point guards operating in a platoon.
Someone felt so strongly about this they started a website devoted to the cause of the Raptors two-headed point guard.
Thursday, January 28, 2010 3:02 PM EST
Enjoying the Raptors' run
As most who read this blog semi-regularly know, I’m a fan.
I’m not a fan of the Raptors in the sense that I don’t watch games hoping they win and feel let down if they don’t.
But I’m a fan of basketball. I loved all sports as a kid until I started playing basketball. After that everything else became kind of secondary. Some of the very best – and a few of the worst – moments I’ve ever had have come on a basketball court. It has never been a casual relationship.
Wednesday, January 27, 2010 12:31 PM EST
No DeRozan? Outrageous!
Normally I couldn’t give a – well I can’t even say it – but I don’t care much for the sophomore-rookie game.
But I’m outraged that DeMar DeRozan has been left off the rookie roster. Outraged!
Okay. Surprised.
Monday, January 25, 2010 3:05 PM EST
Time to believe in the Raptors
So how good are the Raptors?
Right now it’s tough to tell, exactly. Obviously they’re playing better, but can they be trusted with your optimism yet?
They’re a game behind Miami for the fifth seed in the East and will have a chance to make a statement in that regard on Wednesday when they host the Heat at the ACC.
They’re now 15th in ESPN's John Hollinger’s power-rankings which seems a bit low for a team that has beaten Orlando, San Antonio, Dallas and now the Lakers in the past three weeks, given that his rankings weigh recent performance more heavily. I’m guessing, however, that because scoring margin is a big factor in the Hollinger’s weighting system the Raptors are still bogged down by their early season tendency to get blown out.
But they’re also now, I think, officially past the “hot team” stage, or “getting lucky with the schedule” proviso.
Thursday, January 21, 2010 3:44 PM EST
More on Bosh
So…spent the last couple of days watching pre-Olympic ski-cross which has cut into my blogging opportunities here, but it doesn’t mean I’m not thinking Raptors!
No. No.
In fact, I was listening to Adrian Wojnarowski on The Fan as I was driving home from Blue Mountain, and the discussion turned to Chris Bosh. Since Wojnarowski is one of the best NBA writers out there, he made the point that even if Bosh is a 1A star and not an absolute top-tier franchise guy, the Raptors have to do everything they can to resign him.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010 12:49 AM EST
Grading the Raptors
What a difference a 10-3 streak can make. What was looking pretty dismal is shaping up to be a very interesting second-half of the season.
Here’s the From Deep mid-term report cards:
Friday, January 15, 2010 2:22 PM EST
Analyzing The Month That Matters
So the first month of the end of the Raptors season wraps up tonight. Or, as I liked to call it: The Month that Matters TM
Remember? Toronto was coming off yet another pair of bad road losses and the obligatory blowout on the second night of a back-to-back. It was hard to see exactly how this team would find its feet given how easily they were knocked off them early in the season. But the month between Dec. 17th and tonight featured 12 games eight of them against teams with losing records and featuring 14 off days, not including Christmas and a heavy dose of home games too. Time, in other words, to practice, rest and play with some fire.
Looking at the schedule I thought the minimum Raptors should be able to muster would be a 7-5 run if not an 8-4 stretch. If they can beat the Knicks on the road tonight after two days of practice Toronto will be 9-3 in the MTM and at .500 once again.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010 10:20 PM EST
The Bosh trade buzz
I was given Bill Simmons’s The Book of Basketball for Christmas and I’m almost through it. At some point I might feel compelled to offer my thoughts on it. Right now I give it a ‘B’, I think. There’s some amazing stuff in it, for sure. His careful argument why Bill Russell was a better basketball player than Wilt Chamberlain is brilliant and pretty much settles the debate for all time as far as I’m concerned, and is alone is worth the price of the book and the time to read it. I won’t go too deeply into the short-comings but reading 700 pages of someone so prone to gimmicks and crutches (Vegas references, porn references, 80s pop culture etc.) can get to be a bit much. One of his favourite habits is to quote himself. He’s by far his most-quoted source. Which is fine; it’s his book, and like I said, it’s pretty good so no big deal.
I only raise it because – what the hell! – I’m going to quote myself. There’s been a lot of Bosh trade buzz lately and could be more with the trade deadline looming Feb. 13th. For those not already aware, there was a report on ESPN.com that the Houston Rockets are trying to land Bosh and another in the New York Post that the Lakers would offer Andrew Bynum in a deal that couldn’t be completed until the summer because Bynum is a base year compensation guy.
Some of you may recall that this past summer it was mentioned here that Bynum might be the kind of sign-and-trade prospect the Raptors should seek out if it comes to that; this stuff isn’t rocket science.
Monday, January 11, 2010 11:43 AM EST
Some things after the Celtics game
One game some things: v3.38
1. If I had to pin point one reason the Raptors lost yesterday I wouldn’t pick the stupid start (Celtics: two multiple pass lay-ups and two wide-open threes; Raptors: jumper, jumper, jumper, jumper; Celts lead 10-0) or the odd ending (Bargnani and Bosh play pitch and catch when down four with just over under a minute left before Bargnani turns it over.), though both were factors. I’d take a sequence late in the third quarter that went more or less like this:
2. Sonny Weems blocks a Paul Pierce jumper and Bargnani ends up with the ball in the middle of the floor leading the break. Bargnani gets fouled by Glen Davis just before midcourt but the refs don’t call it – reasonably, you could argue – because the Raptors had an advantage and the cheapie foul could cost them a layup. Except Bargnani kind of gets knocked off balance and goes out of control and throws a wild pass into the front row. Celts get the ball back and the Raptors come up with another great defensive stand, with Bosh blocking Pierce again. This time Rondo comes up with the ball and with the clock ticking down heaves up a deep three that banks in. And no, no one heard him call bank. A five point swing so far.
3. Then the Raptor smartly run the floor off the make except Bargnani blows the lay-up on the finish. The Celtics get the longish rebound run it straight back – bad floor balance by the Raptors – and get a lay-up of their own by Rondo. Now we’re at a nine-point swing.
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Michael Grange
Michael Grange brings unique news, commentary and analysis from around the basketball world