Raptor Talk 11-12 Big Changes May be in the Works!

Coach - your hope springs eternal. I'm with you. Merry Christmas to all.

Bernie

Merry Christmas gentlemen! Merry Christmas!!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Hoping for a couple of dozen wins, or more, in Dwayne Casey's stocking. He seems like a straight forward, sincere guy.

Couple dozen would be a modest improvement from last year... yet it would probably land a great position for a loaded draft.

Although DeRozan and Bargnani stepped up in prime time, the Raptors had seven guys in double figures and a balanced spread throughout. They also had in the neighbourhood of 45 rebounds and a ton of assists.

Dwane Casey was moved to comment that their offence would not be a "democracy" down the stretch and added "This is not a my-turn game. It’s not a rec league game. We want to make sure our offensive players who are closers get the basketball.”

Lots to like about this guy and he's all about the D.

A win in Cleveland may not mean a ton in the big picture but I do like the direction we're headed in overall!

Bargnani did as well as anyone could have hoped for vs. Dirk. He put up 30 pts. and pulled down 7 rebs. He probably had the edge in their matchup as Raptors faded late to lose 99-86.

But where in the world are Demar DeRozan and Ed Davis at?

DeRozan has been invisible in the first quarter until last night but last night he disappeared completely after getting off to a better start early. Davis has just been ineffectual to date.

We will need both to step up moving forward! They have been chosen as the faces of the franchise by the organization. They need to start acting the part!

I believe both have the game to do so!

Coach... Demar has the game but really not sure if he has the mental toughness to be "go to" (wing position) franchise player. He likes to attack the rim when the lane is clear and is way to hesitant when the trees are protecting the basket.

Love. thus far, Bargs' renewed intensity and will to fight.

Very early impressions:

The defence looks much better with more help and better man to man intensity. But there are still lapses. We haven't seen much of the zone.

They've shown tougher rebounding with more people hitting the boards. Bargnani has shown more interest in sticking his nose in on the boards.

Bargs has picked up where he left off offensively and Barbosa has been a potent force off the bench. Others are inconsistent. They need DeRozan to be a reliable second scorer.

They aren't running much and have become a half court team most of the time on offense. When they run their sets they can get some good looks but the secondary scorers are running hot and cold and will drive Dwane Casey crazy if they don't show more consistency.

The guys look, generally to be in good shape, considering the lockout.

They are competing hard every night.

After failing to close out against the Mavs and Magic, the Raps got it done against the Knicks.

Once again they had solid performances from Bargnani and Calderon but this time DeRozan was better and Rasual Butler finally showed something on the offensive end.

Casey is definitely changing the culture here and the defence has improved immensely. We have some home games coming up in the next little while and we may be able to pick up some wins! We definitely showed well on a very tough 3-game road trip!

Definitely one of the more impressive wins in the last few seasons.

Bodes well for a young teams confidence and for their "team-esteem.."

James Johnson... I can see why this cat didn't get playing time in CHicago... another Joey Graham in the making!

The East, as a conference, is horrible - so maybe the Raps can fight for one of the last playoff spots.

To say Johnson is struggling is an understatement. He has one ugly jumper!

Barbosa continues to force his game at critical points in the game as well. He has his good moments but wowww!!!

But I like the kid... he works hard, he's tough, he's assertive, he never gives up on a play... he just has to slow the game down in his head - sometimes it seems like he plays on too much emotion.

Interesting article on how the Raptors are running the pick and roll with Bargnani and the problems it caused the Knicks.

http://ken-berger.blogs.cbssports.com/mcc/blogs/entry/11838893/34171753

As for Johnson, he's the best athlete on the team but he needs to play a bit more under control on both ends. He sometimes looks like he thinks its a street ball game with no referee.

I thought I was the only one who thought Barbosa makes bad decisions. He forces the game a lot especially in key times. He needs to let the game come to him

Barbosa making bad decisions and forcing his shot is the understatement of the year. He's been awful! When he's missing shots, then you really notice how flawed and technically poor his shooting form is.

Dwane Casaey has had a tremendous effect on this year's version of the Toronto Raptors so far. Two of the players most maligned by the Toronto fans have shone above all the others. That would be Jose Calderon and Andrea Bargnani. DeMar DeRozan is now showing a new dimension to his game as well with his success beyond the arc.

Casey has lavished praise on Bargnani in particular making him his go-to guy down the stretch. He compares him to some of the leagues all-time greats. Some post-game comments:

He’s playing at an all-star level,” Casey said.

“I’ve been around some great players: Shawn Kemp, Gary Payton, Kevin Garnett, Dirk (Nowitzki), he’s playing at that level offensively and defensively.”

As petro pointed out there are some God-awful teams competing for the last play-off spot in the East. We look to be in the conversation so far!

Nice to see some signs from Ed Davis yesterday. He can help so could a healthy Kleiza!

In a post-game interview what is Bargnani talking about? He's talking defence - nice!!!

The ridiculous reality of what the NBA is asking teams to in this shortened season is about to ring home for our Raptors!

The Raps follow yesterday's thrashing at the hands of the Nets with a trip to Philly tonight. They have Sunday off then go back-to-back against Minny, Wizards and Kings. They get Thursday off (thank you very much!) then back-to-back Pacers and Bulls. Seven games in nine days!

Casey said following the loss we needed to play "desperate" to win. I think we need to be desperate just to survive (i.e. without losing some key bodies to injury). Obviously Calderon and Bargnani cannot possibly log the minutes they have been putting in in many games this season.

What the NBA is doing to its players is inhuman! Surely they have to take responsibility for the way this season is going down. Obviously the Raptors are not the only team facing this insane method of scheduling!

It is insane and it's only a matter of time that injuries to key players begin to mount.

Rautins said last night that the NBA should've cancelled their all star week and spread these games out a bit more. Not too often I agree with Leo (lol!) but he is bang on.

Not much to say about this one. Just that some (most) of our guys God-awful on offence. When any of Rasual Butler, Barbosa, James Johnson, Ed Davis, Anthony Carter, or Amir Johnson shoot other than a lay-up I cringe. At least Magloire has a handle on what he can and cannot do.

Philly looks pretty damn good! They come at you in waves and they are great in transition. They look like Atlanta a few seasons back knocking at the door of being a major force.

We have Andrea and Calderon who are playing well and DeRozan continues to be extremely inconsistent showing only flashes of his potential then disappearing for entire quarters and games. Amir definitely has his positives and Davis shows signs. The rest of our guys have a major problem with shot selection.

Here's hoping a day of rest and the potential return of Linas Kleiza can help us against Ricky Rubio and the Timberwolves. I can't wait to see this kid in action!

They need to run more sets for DeRozan, like Butch Carter used to run for Vince. The sets for Bargnani are actually working well.

Not sure why Butler is in the starting lineup. He looks better suited to play spot minutes off the bench. Perhaps Forbes will get a shot at that spot.

The coach seems to be shortening his bench and playing guys like Johnson and Barbosa less minutes than he had been. But that means even more minutes for the starters. In fairness to the coach, the Bayless injury couldn't be predicted. But there are likely to be a lot of injuries in this scheduling format.

The lack of reliable depth on this team is going to be magnified by this compressed season.

That was a brutal effort last night against a Philadelphia.

Derozan has a poor handle. Nice player - nice kid... but doesn't have the skill set that will lead us to the promise land. Third or fourth option on any decent team.

Calderon is playing like a champ... but not sure how long his body will hold up.

They are sorely missing Bayliss... lot's of energy and toughness off the bench.

WoW... Ed Davis his pretty limited... can you say "don't shoot unless it's a dunk!"

Anthony Carter is an odd cat - a grumpy old man.

Like what Magloire brings to the table on the court and in the locker room.

If the Raps don't have high energy against the T-wolves... Love and Rubio will make it ugly

Great win led by Amir who has never played a better game as I can best recall.

Bargnani nets 31 and Calderon wins the battle against his younger countryman.

Dwane Casey continues to prompt strong team defence out of these guys Bargnani included!

Next up John Wall and the winless Wizards - two of these three would be awesome!

Hate to say it... and it might seem like I'm picking on him... but Derozan is exposing himself more and more on how soft he is and limited his game is.

The kid has no handle in traffic... and have you ever noticed how erect his body is when he plays... there is very little "knee bend" to his game. WHich means lateral movement does not come easy for him.

Ed Davis is another guy who needs to work on his incomplete game. He needs to join the weight lifting club with Jamal and Amir. He didn't do enough in the extended off season to get stronger. He's a four man with no range, so he has to be able to wrestle with the power forwards. He's a great leaper with good timing, but he needs more sand in his pockets to be effective for a full season, especially with the way he plays the game. Another thing on his checklist would be to work on his jump shot, like Amir did a couple of years ago.

I agree about Davis I always had a problem with why people were so in love with his game.

He is quick off his feet but he has tons to work on in his game not the least of which is developing some range. He cannot pound with the big boys with the body he has!