Raptor Talk 2012-13 The New Broom

Hey Bernie... where the he11 have you been... nice to hear from ya!

Coach Casey is going to speak with Bargs about his recent interview:

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/blog/eye-on-basketball/21402743/did-andrea-bargnani-say-the-raptors-are-basically-the-worst-team-in-nba

Would be interesting to see a translation of the entire interview.

Petro - I've travelling a fair amount for work over the past 6 months so haven't had the wherewithall to post.... though I have followed the discussions.... it is really hard to pnpoint the incredible downward slide and spiral of the rap - poor play, bad luck, unfortunate injuries, quality of players, all factors for sure. Someone will have to take responsibility and that person this time will probably be BC. I like his risk taking but it hasn't worked and progress and winning is the bottom line.

talk soon
Bernie

Another "speaks volumes" game... i.e. no Bargs and Lowry and this team wins two in a row against not bad teams. Hmmm!

Any coincidence this team plays together, fights for each other, has good offensive chemistry, and their defense improves... with Bargs and Lowry out of action?

only hope is that we keep that top 3 pick this year, draft Nerlens Noel and move forward with a core of Noel, Valanciunas, Derozan and Ross.

a Noel, Valanciunas, Amir D and davis front court would be by far the most athletic front court in the NBA and this team could be built into a solid up tempo offensive team out running everyone
with those 4 + Derozan/Ross and PG (Kabongo?) the team would be at least entertaining and competitive rather than this aimless high screen Bargnani centered offense.... also would be VERY refreshing having two defensive bigs with shot blocking ability on the court in JV and Noel

That game against the Rockets was the best I've ever seen of Ed Davis. He wasn't exactly going up against the best in the business, but he basically did everything you would want your four man to do -- swatted shots, disrupted other shots, rebounded, started the fast break and demonstrated some nifty moves around the hoop...

I've seen Kentucky play twice this year... have seen Noel play three times (once at the HS all star game).

I am very on the fence with him... has the potential to be a "bust" and a victim of over hype.

Clearly... we need to see him play more and I hope he stays another year in college.

jgo - "a Noel, Valanciunas, Amir D and davis front court would be by far the most athletic front court in the NBA and this team could be built into a solid up tempo offensive team out running everyone"

Are you saying this would be a more athletic frontcourt than Blake Griffin, Deandre Jordan and Ryan Hollins in LA?
Or even Milwaukee with Larry Sanders, Dalembert, Ilyasova, Epke Udoh and rookie John Henson?

How about;
Portland - Lamarcus Aldridge, JJ Hickson and the rookie Leonard.
Denver - Javale McGee, Kenneth Faried, Anthony Randolph.
Utah - Marvin Williams, Derrick Favours, Paul Millsap!

Lets stay optimistic about the Raps future. But saying that next season 'we'll have the most athletic frontcourt in the NBA by far' is way too much. Raps have to build this thing up piece by piece. It won't be a finished product with one more lottery pick.

4 wins in a row, really liking how this group is starting to play together, unselfish on offense and a cohesive unit on defense. AA is a little trigger happy but easy to go with it when hes scoring around 15 a night during a win streak - much needed offensive threat off the bench combined with ross its a nice change up from what pietrus and derozan bring on the first unit

real ball - "by far most athletic" was definitely a bit of a stretch on my end, but that 4 man rotation would be up there for sure. I never said adding another athletic defensive big would bring out a finished product for the raps - just an entertaining one at the very least

petro - i've seen a few games of Noel and i like how active he is, will be a good all around defensive player @ Nba level in steals, rebs, and blocks. really needs to work on his offense though but overall i like him better than zeller so far

next up fri at home vs Orlando - would like to see them make it 5 straight

jgo wrote:4 wins in a row, really liking how this group is starting to play together, unselfish on offense and a cohesive unit on defense. AA is a little trigger happy but easy to go with it when hes scoring around 15 a night during a win streak - much needed offensive threat off the bench combined with ross its a nice change up from what pietrus and derozan bring on the first unit

real ball - "by far most athletic" was definitely a bit of a stretch on my end, but that 4 man rotation would be up there for sure. I never said adding another athletic defensive big would bring out a finished product for the raps - just an entertaining one at the very least

petro - i've seen a few games of Noel and i like how active he is, will be a good all around defensive player @ Nba level in steals, rebs, and blocks. really needs to work on his offense though but overall i like him better than zeller so far

next up fri at home vs Orlando - would like to see them make it 5 straight

Nice to hear a positive voice.

Its good to have a little something we can be positive about!

I will be at the Orlando game hoping for a big win but also hoping for big things from Andrew Nicholson (in a losing cause of course)!

Five games without Bargs and Lowry = five solid "team" wins!!!

Speaks volumes... and it makes me to wonder what the little voices inside Kyle and Andrea's heads are saying to themselves.

Love the team effort and togetherness... communication and toughness!!!

I saw the last few minutes of the game... the rap look good, but quite a small ball line up when you look at the front three... But heh they are winning... gotta go with that, be interesting to see how bargnagni is mixed back into te lineup. As long the current mix win, he should come off the bench; actually, may be a good time to trade him...

Hey coach are you staying away from this because of the negativity?

Don't think Bargs has been held fully accountable for his selfish style of play, since the Sam Mitchell days. Neither Jay Triano nor Dwayne Casey have appeared to make him earn his minutes.

Without JV, this team is very thin up front right now, but the guys are playing together, sharing the ball, and playing some serious defense. It's not pretty basketball, but more of a team game. Lowry was doing too much one on one stuff before he got injured, with everyone else standing around.

I think they have three veteran leaders on this team now in Anderson, Pietrus and Calderon ... something that has been lacking for quite some time.

Will be interesting to see if Gray gets some minutes, with all the injuries. He's hardly played all season.

They've finally had a break in the schedule, with a series of winnable games, but give them credit for winning them.

Jose is the greatest Raptor ever in terms of his dedication to the franchise and his impact upon the success of his teammates!


http://raptorsrepublic.com/2012/12/23/calderon-a-historically-significant-playmaker/

Terrence Ross has huge upside. I saw him on top of his game vs. the Magic.

He is an untouchable imo! I would never part with that kind of upside in any trade scenario.

I say this because he is mentioned here as part of some potential Bargnani deals.

http://www.rantsports.com/nba/2012/12/24/toronto-raptors-top-five-andrea-bargnani-trades/?utm_medium=referral&utm_source=t.co

winnable game against new orleans tonight - lets get to double digit wins... baby steps

would like to terrence ross eat rivers alive tonight too

We got that one after some shaky moments in the 4th. Solid effort from Kyle Lowry in his return.

Orlando is also winnable especially minus Big Baby.

they are fun to watch without Bargs.

Yesterday's demolition of the Magic may bode well for the Raptors who are about to embark on a six-game homestand.

petro I know you didn't agree about the NBA trying to bury the team early but we have played the 2nd most Western Conference teams of any team in the NBA. I know it evens out as you pointed out but we are making a number of adjustments and fighting a tough early schedule to boot. There is no love for anything not a big market USA-based team in the NBA higher echelons of that I am certain.

Regardless give us 50% of those seven narrow losses discussed earlier and we would be challenging .500 right now and in the hunt for a playoff spot. We may get there yet!

Terrence Ross is really stepping up in recent games and has made a move in the rookie rankings:

http://www.nba.com/rookie-ladder/

I don't expect them to sustain this run or anything close to it for the rest of the year... but I do expect them to not give Bargnani a starting role once he is healthy... and I do expect them to limit his minutes to zero if he can't fit in and play the style they are currently playing.

I still say Bargs has to go... and still not sure if BC is the right guy to pull the trigger.

Both guys have had plenty of chances to prove themselves... why should they get another one?

Stunning to see both Calderon and Lowry not shoot! Very Jason Kiddish.

The NBA schedule is crappy and can help lengthen losing and winning streaks. No more evident than this year with the Raps. Add four in fives, back to backs against teams waiting at home (like last night) and the whole thing gets goofy.

The question on my mind is can you ultimately win the big one without super star power on your team?

Yesterdays game against the Bucks really pointed out the lack of a player to take a game over and to "will" a win.

I love Demar's massive improvement but I don't see the killer instinct.

Maybe for the future that guy is Ross... but he ain't there yet given the lack of trust Casey has in him so far.

I was not able to see much of it but I listened on the radio. I could not believe the way the bench performed. It was ugly.