Watching Andrea on Wednesday night reminded me about a few things in terms of his game and what I can guess is his general mindset when he's out on the court. I do have to remind you that it's preseason still and I also have to remind myself about this as well as It's easy to get excited or disappointed so quickly. Proof being all the articles and blogs and comments that I've read already in regards to just the one preseason game. True it was a great success, and it gave a lot of doubtful Raptor fans like myself some reasons to get excited about but as everyone knows from that feeling in the back of our mind and from past experience that there's no need to get too excited just yet.
So the same can be said about the performance of our resident Italian 7 footer. We all know he didn't play very well and I'm sure he'd be the first person to tell you that and I know he'll only get better this season. But watching him I noticed a few things that almost have become synonymous with him. First thing being that he seems to stand around a lot during rebounding opportunities. Unless the ball bounces right to him, he doesn't seem to make any effort to move his body towards the area where the ball might land. It's almost like he freezes, his mind's telling him he needs to be somewhere else on the court but his body never responds. The other thing is that he loses a lot of rebounds right within his grasp. He fails to get rebounds that should be his to take.
I have two hypothesis about this behaviour and the first one I suspect a lot of fans might agree with as well and that is that he's afraid of contact. I strongly suspect that this is true with him. I think this is just a psychological response that he hasn't overcome. I don't know if he'll ever overcome this. The only analogy that I can think of is that he see's himself as a finesse type of player. Which in fairness he is.That was the scouting report before he got drafted so it's hard to buy a pig and then put makeup and a dress on it and expect it to act like a lady. Truth is, he's a skilled player trapped in a big man's body. And that's really where a lot of frustration and hatred comes from in terms of the feelings he provokes in frustrated onlookers. He's 7 feet tall 250lbs. and guys that size are supposed to get rebounds, mix it up under the basket and do some dirty work. A perfect example is provided to him game after game, practice after practice by the behaviour displayed from teammates like David Andersen, Reggie Evans, and in the past, Jermaine O'Neal. But yet he's never made that connection that he too can perform some of these things that would endear him to not only fans, but more importantly the coaching staff and the other teams in the league. Yet his skill set would tell you otherwise. He puts the ball on the floor better than most big men, he shoots from the outside with proficiency and when you look at those abilities one can clearly agree that there's no doubt about his talent. Trouble being that those aren't the only talents required to be successful for a man in his position. So yes it's true he's a finesse player so I guess the analogy would have to be that he can be compared to a skilled player on a hockey team that doesn't fight, doesn't do the dirty work, and doesn't rough it up in the corners but concentrates more on scoring. Unfortunately Bargnani might be the only one that thinks this should be the case. Ask him personally and he will disagree with this but I bet subconsciously his head would be nodding up and down. Throw him in to a practice where Reggie and Joey Dorsey tosses him around the court a bit. Have a MMA guy come in and do some physical workouts with him. Maybe that will help. Just a suggestion.
The second hypothesis i have regarding his lack of rebounding ability and willingness would be that he lacks the tenacity to get a rebound. Well that's obvious isn't it? During a game there are usually many instances that a rebound does bounce his way only what happens in most of the cases is that either a smaller more tenacious opponent rips it out of his grasp or a teammate does it. And this really makes me want to tear my hair out and throw things at my tv. It's there for you... just take the damn ball out of the air, rip it out and hang on to it. But yet several times even during this past game against the Suns, he's had the rebound taken from right under his nose by the likes of Linas Kleiza, Sonny Weems, and a variety of other guys on the other team. It's like he's daydreaming for a split second every time the ball comes near him. In this analysis I really don't know what to suggest. I don't know what you do with a guy like that who consistently does this. What do you do when a guy just lacks hustle? Smack him upside the head and tell him to wake up? Maybe someone needs to do that to him.
He's apparently gotten stronger this year but I can't tell a difference. Even if he is stronger what is the use if he doesn't know how to apply it. It's like giving a toddler a revolver, he's going to end up shooting himself in the foot with it. Take the revolver away and give him a rifle. Guess what? He's shot himself in the foot with it again.The one thing I've noticed with the guy is that he doesn't seem to bend his legs enough during any situation. Shooting, rebounding, posting up, his legs are too damn straight. It's like he's too lazy to bend them. That's how you build power is by bending more before you back in for a post move. Just look what KG or Shaq does when They posts up. They catch. Lean back to feel the presence of his defender, then they bend their legs and push their way back. The first thing a coach teaches you is to bend your legs cause that's where the power comes from. The only time he noticeably does this is during a free throw shot. He does that very well. But otherwise it's like he's a guy on stilts. So maybe it's not his strength so much as it's his technique. I don't know. Just a thought to kick around your brain the next time you watch him and feel like tearing your eyeballs out.
Once in a while he'll show that he can do things correctly. It's like he forces himself to do it out of his nature. Out of his comfort zone. Listen, it's been 5 years. You should be able to do this by now without having to mentally force yourself to. That's what I hope to see this season from Andrea. That what everyone's been hoping to see from him the past 5 years. Time to man up. Time to show your mettle. Time to add this physical element to your outside scoring touch.
So cause of these inadequacies and others, Bargnani is dragged through the mud. And rightfully so. But I bet any team in the league would love to take a shot at having a guy like him. I bet under the right circumstances he would have been able to shine more by now at this point in his career. He's being paid $10m a year. There's guys around the league that do a lot less than him and have a lot less talent and upside that are being paid more, similarly or slightly less. To say he's being overpaid is incorrect. He's being paid about right according to statistics. But judging by his draft position and lack of focus or general results most people would agree he hasn't lived up to expectations. Unfortunately he didn't draft himself first, the Raptors did. Like I said you can't dress a pig up and expect lady-like behaviour. Time to move past that. What we have to realize is that we have a good center who may not be worthy of the #1 pick but is still a good center. How many centers really do that much anyways? Most of the top players in the league aren't centers. They're SG's or SF's. Wade, Kobe. LBJ, Durant are all perfect examples. Even in the PG position you have top tier players like Rose, and Nash. Would you consider Brook Lopez one of the top players in the league? Probably no. But is he one of the top centers in the league? Probably yes. Let's get past that. I'll settle for him being a decent center and hope, nay, pray he becomes more.
Saturday, October 9, 2010
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Time to plan the parade route and get the champagne on ice!
Holy Shit!! The Raptors walked into the Rogers Arena in BC last night and trounced the Phoenix Suns like they were playin' against the Vancouver Grizzlies. The defense was noticeably better than the last 3 seasons and they held Hedouche to 6 points. Damn right it's embarrassing to lose by 50 points and that's what the Raptors are going to do to the rest of the league. Smash in skulls and wreck rims.
Ok now that the high i got from last night has worn off everyone knows not to get too excited. Especially in this city. With that in mind it was still a good start, nothing more nothing less. That is unless you're Il Mago who played like Il Crapo but hey that's what the preseason's for. It's for ironing out wrinkles like having a double team on you every time you touch the ball or even look like you might get a ball passed to you. They double teamed him and he bumbled the ball, rushed shots and looked pretty rickety.
Like I've said many times, I am not an expert but I thought running an iso for him would have been nice. Clear out the side for him and have Jose or Jarrett feed him in the post. If the PG drops down to double, swing it back out for an open jumper. If not, back in and try for a hook or fade-away or whatever. I'm probably not reading into it right but that's just what I thought would've helped.
Kleiza was as good as advertised but I would be surprised to see him do this well for an extended period. He was one of the positives as well the defensively alert and hardworking David Andersen. That guy showed me something. He showed me that if Bargnani had his Il Mago skills and half of Andersen's heart and hustle we would have ourselves a franchise player... but alas we don't. Joey Dorsey and Reggie were all hustle as well but Joey was a beast.
The defense for once was present. I haven't seen defense like that by Toronto since 2001. Or maybe ever. Where the hell was this kind of hustle last season? It's like they didn't feed the team for a week, then sprayed pork chop sent on the Suns players before the game. Then you got Grant Hill and Reggie getting tossed for touching each others bums. What on earth is going on here? I'll believe this impartial no-nonsense officiating when I see the Raptors play a team like the Lakers and the refs don't cater to Kobe's every wish or sniff Kevin Garnett's rare end. I give this impartial officiating 2 weeks of regular season. Then it's going the way of the dodo.
Ok now that the high i got from last night has worn off everyone knows not to get too excited. Especially in this city. With that in mind it was still a good start, nothing more nothing less. That is unless you're Il Mago who played like Il Crapo but hey that's what the preseason's for. It's for ironing out wrinkles like having a double team on you every time you touch the ball or even look like you might get a ball passed to you. They double teamed him and he bumbled the ball, rushed shots and looked pretty rickety.
Like I've said many times, I am not an expert but I thought running an iso for him would have been nice. Clear out the side for him and have Jose or Jarrett feed him in the post. If the PG drops down to double, swing it back out for an open jumper. If not, back in and try for a hook or fade-away or whatever. I'm probably not reading into it right but that's just what I thought would've helped.
Kleiza was as good as advertised but I would be surprised to see him do this well for an extended period. He was one of the positives as well the defensively alert and hardworking David Andersen. That guy showed me something. He showed me that if Bargnani had his Il Mago skills and half of Andersen's heart and hustle we would have ourselves a franchise player... but alas we don't. Joey Dorsey and Reggie were all hustle as well but Joey was a beast.
The defense for once was present. I haven't seen defense like that by Toronto since 2001. Or maybe ever. Where the hell was this kind of hustle last season? It's like they didn't feed the team for a week, then sprayed pork chop sent on the Suns players before the game. Then you got Grant Hill and Reggie getting tossed for touching each others bums. What on earth is going on here? I'll believe this impartial no-nonsense officiating when I see the Raptors play a team like the Lakers and the refs don't cater to Kobe's every wish or sniff Kevin Garnett's rare end. I give this impartial officiating 2 weeks of regular season. Then it's going the way of the dodo.
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Another horrendous season upon us. But I'm an optimist!!
Caution: Huge Rant
It's almost pains me to have to sit through this season. I am unfortunately like most of Raptor-nation. Or as normal people say, I am a Raptor fan. So i am going to painstakingly sit through games where the team I have a personal allegiance to get's systematically taken apart and humiliated in front of the world. Well the first question comes up and that is, who or what is at fault? Well the real answer to that is that it's probably everyone's fault at least partially. Why isn't Andrea Bargnani turning out to be worthy of a #1 selection? Why was that draft class so weak? Why didn't Bryan trade Bosh when he had the chance? Why didn't i win the lottery last week? It's a combination of different things going wrong. A perfect shit storm if you would. If you want to point your finger at someone then you can point it at Bryan. But I guess if you did that you might as well point up at the heavens or that rabbits foot you have on your key chain.
So the big trade the might have saved this season didn't go through. MJ's fault there. MJ is an idiot. He's proven that over and over again and If I had to name one person I can't stand the most in professional basketball it's MJ. Well maybe it's not all him. It's more like 80% MJ who is a cheating, gambling, bumbling idiot and 20% his moronic followers that thinks he's a basketball god. He's a jerk and he proved it himself during his hall of fame acceptance speech.
But I digress. Now that I have blown off that steam from the nixed trade I guess I'll focus on this team. This team has 3 glimmers of hope and they are Bargnani, Weems and DeRozan. This hope lies on the potential you have here with these 3. You hope that Bargnani's finally learned enough from his previous half decade in the league to string together the skill set necessary to make him look like a legitimate NBA center and give us 20 pts and 8 rebs. Then you got the young guns who look like they have the athletic tools to become the next superstars on this team a'la McGrady and Carter, (hopefully minus the selfishness and douchebaggery). But they haven't done anything outside of this past summer league.
The rest is all garbage. All garbage parts other teams didn't want any part of. I love Jarrett Jack but he's not a starting PG on a contending team. Not consistent enough. But he's capable of bringing his level up. We've seen it before. He's also capable of disappearing but that's what sets him apart from the rest of the team cause he could still bring his level up. You cannot tell me that any other player on this team would be a coveted player by the likes of championship contending teams cause if they were, they wouldn't be here. There's a reason why no Raptor ended up on the USA dream team. There's a reason why none of them have even been at the selection camp. Bosh is the only one and he's left town. That provides enough proof to me that the Raptors' talent pool is gutter level. Nobody even wanted to look at any of them to potentially join the world championship team. So when you look up and down our roster it has 3 players on it and they're not even proven. So i will not waste my money to watch them get dismantled over and over by teams like OKC who a few years ago, the Raptors used to trounce but now have turned the tables around so much that I wouldn't bother to venture to the ACC.
It's a sad state and any fan that thinks otherwise... I hope you're right. I really do. This team needs a miracle. Either that or it needs to end up with a legit megastar in next years draft. Or maybe MJ will have another brainfart and trade us something good for nothing. If i were Bryan I would call that guy every day just to see what kind of dumb shit he has going on in his head. I mean he drafted Kwame Brown and Adam Morrison He nixed a trade to get Jose Calderon and instead made a trade with Dallas for a couple of garbage part players. Somebody just give him a bag of quarters and sit him in front of a slot machine cause that's all he's interested in is gambling. He's not even good at it since I keep hearing he's owing money here and there.
I bet if i were to stop him on the street and sell him a bag of magic beans he'd offer to buy my company out of them. The only thing the Raptors have to offer this season is the hope that we might see a few players score some decent numbers whilst losing in the process. That's what I'm going to tune in for. Watching individual player's put up stats.
It's almost pains me to have to sit through this season. I am unfortunately like most of Raptor-nation. Or as normal people say, I am a Raptor fan. So i am going to painstakingly sit through games where the team I have a personal allegiance to get's systematically taken apart and humiliated in front of the world. Well the first question comes up and that is, who or what is at fault? Well the real answer to that is that it's probably everyone's fault at least partially. Why isn't Andrea Bargnani turning out to be worthy of a #1 selection? Why was that draft class so weak? Why didn't Bryan trade Bosh when he had the chance? Why didn't i win the lottery last week? It's a combination of different things going wrong. A perfect shit storm if you would. If you want to point your finger at someone then you can point it at Bryan. But I guess if you did that you might as well point up at the heavens or that rabbits foot you have on your key chain.
So the big trade the might have saved this season didn't go through. MJ's fault there. MJ is an idiot. He's proven that over and over again and If I had to name one person I can't stand the most in professional basketball it's MJ. Well maybe it's not all him. It's more like 80% MJ who is a cheating, gambling, bumbling idiot and 20% his moronic followers that thinks he's a basketball god. He's a jerk and he proved it himself during his hall of fame acceptance speech.
But I digress. Now that I have blown off that steam from the nixed trade I guess I'll focus on this team. This team has 3 glimmers of hope and they are Bargnani, Weems and DeRozan. This hope lies on the potential you have here with these 3. You hope that Bargnani's finally learned enough from his previous half decade in the league to string together the skill set necessary to make him look like a legitimate NBA center and give us 20 pts and 8 rebs. Then you got the young guns who look like they have the athletic tools to become the next superstars on this team a'la McGrady and Carter, (hopefully minus the selfishness and douchebaggery). But they haven't done anything outside of this past summer league.
The rest is all garbage. All garbage parts other teams didn't want any part of. I love Jarrett Jack but he's not a starting PG on a contending team. Not consistent enough. But he's capable of bringing his level up. We've seen it before. He's also capable of disappearing but that's what sets him apart from the rest of the team cause he could still bring his level up. You cannot tell me that any other player on this team would be a coveted player by the likes of championship contending teams cause if they were, they wouldn't be here. There's a reason why no Raptor ended up on the USA dream team. There's a reason why none of them have even been at the selection camp. Bosh is the only one and he's left town. That provides enough proof to me that the Raptors' talent pool is gutter level. Nobody even wanted to look at any of them to potentially join the world championship team. So when you look up and down our roster it has 3 players on it and they're not even proven. So i will not waste my money to watch them get dismantled over and over by teams like OKC who a few years ago, the Raptors used to trounce but now have turned the tables around so much that I wouldn't bother to venture to the ACC.
It's a sad state and any fan that thinks otherwise... I hope you're right. I really do. This team needs a miracle. Either that or it needs to end up with a legit megastar in next years draft. Or maybe MJ will have another brainfart and trade us something good for nothing. If i were Bryan I would call that guy every day just to see what kind of dumb shit he has going on in his head. I mean he drafted Kwame Brown and Adam Morrison He nixed a trade to get Jose Calderon and instead made a trade with Dallas for a couple of garbage part players. Somebody just give him a bag of quarters and sit him in front of a slot machine cause that's all he's interested in is gambling. He's not even good at it since I keep hearing he's owing money here and there.
I bet if i were to stop him on the street and sell him a bag of magic beans he'd offer to buy my company out of them. The only thing the Raptors have to offer this season is the hope that we might see a few players score some decent numbers whilst losing in the process. That's what I'm going to tune in for. Watching individual player's put up stats.
Monday, July 12, 2010
The Nightmare is over
Ed"209"Davis (Trademark Pending): First impression I had from him is that he didn't seem happy coming to Toronto. Not one bit. But lets hope he settles in. How many Raps fans felt like punching that reporter that kept asking him about Canadian taxes? I felt like super-kicking him. But alas, I didn't really know too much about his game as I hadn't seen it for myself but from what I heard he can rebound and block shots. I heard from some people that he couldn't score, and from other people that he had a strong low post arsenal. I was more excited about Soloman on draft night then I was Ed. However this all changed after watching them play during the first summer league game. Ya ya it's just one game but you could tell a lot about them just from the way the carry themselves on the court. Ed was quite impressive. Seems very comfortable in the post, has some good back-to-the-basket moves and some nice hooks and footwork. Needs to add muscle... ya ya ya... they say that about every bigman not named Shaq or Dwight. Also needs work on his mid range jumper. Bet a lot of fans wished he took #33 so they can recycle their Antonio Davis jerseys. I dunno what do you think? Ed 209, or Little Baby Davis?
Soloman Alabi: Some of the words used to describe him was that he was mechanical and robotic. This does seem to be the case after watching him. Looks like he needs to stick to what he's good at which is swatting shots and rebounding. Offense can come into play slowly as he adjusts and learns. Needs to smooth out that hook shot and shoot the mid range shot more cause I know he can hit it. Well spoken guy and seems pleasant enough. He'll be a good backup center or pf and an upgrade over POB during garbage time. During draft night I had hoped the Raps traded for Lani Gawal instead. Looks like he's turning into a super stud in the summer league. I hate when I'm right.
Leandro Barbosa: I don't know much about him having only watched him play a few times but what I don't understand is why people are saying he'll be the starting PG. He's not a playmaker from what I can tell so I don't understand the logic. He's super fast so obviously you want him on the wings. I like this pickup cause he can score but I worry that his arrival will hinder the development of Sonny and DD. Nonetheless, a solid pickup which upgrades our team. I like Cpt. Barbosa off the bench as a spark plug allowing Weems to start and develop.
Boris Diaw: The man is a rock. A skilled one at that but he needs to get away from my favourite spot which is the buffet line and spend more time on the treadmill. Hopefully this comes to fruition. Plays just about any spot on the floor except the 2. Defends well which goes without saying is an overwhelming need. I like Boris coming off the bench as well or used as a defensive stopper. Too much of a log jam at the 5 and the 4 positions to justify starting him.
Tyson Chandler: Ah, my favourite pickup of the trades. What's weird is that I traded for him in my game on NBA 2k10 like a week ago. Then again I also traded for Turkoglu a few years ago and promptly realized he was a dickwad and traded him away for something good. But whatever, TC is a solid legit center. He brings intensity and is one of the quicker centers in the league. This is a definite upgrade for us on the defensive end. Let's hope he's healthy but I like this pickup more than I liked the Jermaine O'neal one back then since I always thought Jermaine was so fragile that he was one bad bump away from serious time off.... which he was. Chandler is younger and his issues seem a lot less serious. I'll take a bad toe over 2 bummed knees any day. His defense should cover up the some of the defensive inefficiencies produced by my favourite Italian bigman.
So the Raptors make some good trades today and I just like playing around with line ups cause it's fun.
Depth Chart:
C: Chandler, Amir, Alabi
PF: Bargs, Davis
SF: Diaw, Weems
SG: Derozan, Barbosa, Belli
PG: Jack, Banks
Possible Starting Line up:
1:
C: Chandler
PF: Bargnani
SF: Weems
SG: Derozan
PG: Jack
2:
Chandler
Bargnani
Diaw
Derozan
Barbosa
3:
Bargnani
Amir
Weems
Barbosa
Jack
Bench:
Amir
Davis
Bellineli
Alabi
Starting line up 1 is my favourite as it has the two towers up top and the young guns being allowed to develop with more minutes. Jack is our only real legit PG so he's going there unless there's another major trade. Another big issue is how they're going to find minutes for Amir Johnson the $34M man and their prized rookie Ed "209" Davis
Looks like it opens up some spots to sign guys like Mike Roll, Bobby Brown, Joey Dorsey or some other legit free agents that are still available. Doug Smith said the Raps are done dealing but I am not sure about that. Can a guy like Colangelo really keep the gun holstered? Also, like I said it doesn't rule out signings since we still have that $15M trade exception. Cha-ching! We also need a backup PG cause I really don't see Captain Barbosa as a legit PG.
A great day in Raptorland. I can finally stop complaining about the Turkish Shit factory. No disrespect at all intended to other Turkish people who I know are outstanding citizens. This is the biggest thing to happen to Toronto Sports in a long time. Maybe we should actually have a parade down Yonge St.
Monday, May 24, 2010
Raptors Thoughts
First I just wanna say that I love Victoria day and this weekend was totally awesome. Nothing beats bbq'n with family.
Hopefully these things happen for the Raptors. And again this is speaking from the viewpoint that Bosh is gone baby gone.
The Raptors either move up in the draft or still end up with a decent player at the 13th spot. This time of year is exciting because eventhough our team blows, this time of year provides us hope to look towards the future and getting lucky in the draft like PHX did when they picked 9th a few faithful years ago.
There's been a lot of lamenting going on down south in regards to Hedo.... TRUST ME... if you guys want him back in Orlando you can have him!!! FOR FREE~!~!~! Fuck, I bet we can even get Bryan to throw in a play or two for free just to unload him. Shit, I bet we can even get the GM of Orlando a new car or something.
Please please trade away Jose. I know he's been good in the past but the guy is a stiff on D and I am sick of watching guys break down the defense at Jose's expense. He might have an amazing ASST/TO ratio but if you count how many times he lets his man go around him... well you don't let a man go around you in any situation but if you count those times.... he's not looking like too good of a player.
Bosh mentioned his top 4... let me get that right for all you people. It's 4 teams. There's only one good option here for the Raptors. Let's get that straight. There's only one good feasible option and that his to take David Lee and/or Galinari in exchange for Bosh's rights in a sign and trade. There is not option in Chicago. If we do business with them we won't get back Noah. Not with his stock so high. And in turn we would get back garbage. People complain that Lee can't defend. But regardless... the Raps are in trouble and his scoring and rebounding would help. It might not be Bosh Caliber but it still helps. Galinari would just be icing but he's a very skilled player with heart and amazing up-side. Los Angeles? Bynum is a human ACL issue. I don't want damaged goods. He would only be acceptable as a consolation prize. It's like when we got Jermaine. He's good... if he can stay healthy. Which we all know he can't. Bynum is like Hakeem. He's good but he was one injury away from retirement.
No matter what happens. I trust Bryan. All of you complain about Bryan but he does something that I love. He actually makes trades and turns every stone for a possible move. He's not a chicken. Some of the things he's done might not have worked out (ie Hedo). But at least the bastard tries his butt off to make the team better. For that... I would follow him to hell and back I would.
Hopefully these things happen for the Raptors. And again this is speaking from the viewpoint that Bosh is gone baby gone.
The Raptors either move up in the draft or still end up with a decent player at the 13th spot. This time of year is exciting because eventhough our team blows, this time of year provides us hope to look towards the future and getting lucky in the draft like PHX did when they picked 9th a few faithful years ago.
There's been a lot of lamenting going on down south in regards to Hedo.... TRUST ME... if you guys want him back in Orlando you can have him!!! FOR FREE~!~!~! Fuck, I bet we can even get Bryan to throw in a play or two for free just to unload him. Shit, I bet we can even get the GM of Orlando a new car or something.
Please please trade away Jose. I know he's been good in the past but the guy is a stiff on D and I am sick of watching guys break down the defense at Jose's expense. He might have an amazing ASST/TO ratio but if you count how many times he lets his man go around him... well you don't let a man go around you in any situation but if you count those times.... he's not looking like too good of a player.
Bosh mentioned his top 4... let me get that right for all you people. It's 4 teams. There's only one good option here for the Raptors. Let's get that straight. There's only one good feasible option and that his to take David Lee and/or Galinari in exchange for Bosh's rights in a sign and trade. There is not option in Chicago. If we do business with them we won't get back Noah. Not with his stock so high. And in turn we would get back garbage. People complain that Lee can't defend. But regardless... the Raps are in trouble and his scoring and rebounding would help. It might not be Bosh Caliber but it still helps. Galinari would just be icing but he's a very skilled player with heart and amazing up-side. Los Angeles? Bynum is a human ACL issue. I don't want damaged goods. He would only be acceptable as a consolation prize. It's like when we got Jermaine. He's good... if he can stay healthy. Which we all know he can't. Bynum is like Hakeem. He's good but he was one injury away from retirement.
No matter what happens. I trust Bryan. All of you complain about Bryan but he does something that I love. He actually makes trades and turns every stone for a possible move. He's not a chicken. Some of the things he's done might not have worked out (ie Hedo). But at least the bastard tries his butt off to make the team better. For that... I would follow him to hell and back I would.
Saturday, May 1, 2010
Penguins show their mettle
Beating the Senators was very gratifying as the Sens were not an elite squad but one that had something to prove. They could be dangerous but I think in the end the biggest factors in the outcome of the series is of course the skill and leadership provided by Crosby and Malkin but more importantly I think is the playoff experience that the Pens have accumulated over the past 3 years. As everyone knows, this team has played a shit load of games in the past few years but seem to still be able to chug along.
The Sens have on their roster a couple of what I would call jerks in Chris Neil, Andy Sutton, and Daniel Alfredsson. Why are they jerks? Well Chris Neil is paid to be a jerk. Basically he's Darcy Tucker, or the Pen's version of Matt Cooke. Nothing wrong with that I guess but when you're on the other team you hate him, it's natural and It was pretty sweet to wipe the smile off his face. Andy Sutton as well is a jerk and it's also his job. A job he does well. He's physical and difficult to get around. Daniel Alfredsson is a jerk cause he's Ottawa's main man and he's got this jackass demeanor about him that Toronto fans have become used to. The fact that he didn't do too much in the series makes my day.
The Pens have some jerks as well but naturally we love them cause we're on their side. Matt Cooke is obviously our main agitator. Similar to Neil, he may be a jerk but he's also skilled which makes him dangerous. In fact, his skill was what got us 2 goals and the series clinchers in game 6. So, to Neil and the Sens... Suck it.
The Habs were thanked by every team in the East as well as every fan of the remaining said teams for ousting the overrated, under-prepared, and just downright stupid Washington Capitals. They just couldn't change their strategy against the Habs and kept driving the puck into the zone and firing a shot off the skate of whoever was in front of them. It's like watching a lemming hurl itself off a hill or a cliff. That being said, all credit must be given to the Habs for having heart, and to Halak for being solid between the pipes.
Last night however, the Pens dispelled the idea that Halak is unbeatable and that the Hab's will and determination would overpower any of the competition. The Pens put 5 by Halak before he got yanked. Despite coming out of the gate fast and putting a goal past Fleury, the Pen's resident moron. The Habs could not adjust to the obviously different strategy that the Pens brought in. But that's why you play playoff hockey, you never know what's going to happen. Especially with the idiotic monkey flopping around between the pipes for the Pens, it would be dangerous and stupid to underestimate the Canadiens. They will adjust. They were able to shut down Malkin and held Crosby without a goal. Let's not celebrate a trip to the East final yet people. Let's not forget we lost Jordan Staal for the foreseeable future. Staal is an absolute rock for the Pens. Extremely powerful boardwork, physical and defensively focused. Staal is a huge loss for the Pens as he was the defensive stalker for the Pens against the opponent's top line. I guess it's an eye for an eye sorta as Andrei Markov was also injured although I do not know the extent of his injuries.
Hopefully the Pens can continue to bring it on the ice Sunday afternoon at Mellon.
Thursday, April 29, 2010
The Draft: hopefully it is rich and clean and goes down smooth
The Draft
Let's talk a little bit about this draft since we got nothing else to talk about lately. I'm not bored though as I am being well entertained by the NHL playoffs and my boys down at the Igloo are doing well so far. This discussion is with the idea that Christopher Wesson Bosh is going to do what everyone including that jackass former espn analyst thinks Chris should do which is say SAYO-F'n Nara Toronto. I hope I am wrong. With that in mind we would draft a PF would we not? But hold on here.
Andrea Bargnani sliding over to PF. That's what Bryan Colangelo says. That has the makings of a disaster and I am guessing that if they do this, he'll either be back at the Center spot by the end of November or he's going to be injured by trying to go up against the most physical and athletic position players in the world. In comparison, NBA centres are big, heavy, and slow. Perfect for the likes of a 3 point shooting bigman, anomaly, and pasta pusher to go around, pump fake out of their shoes to make plays and/or shoot over. PF's are faster, more agile, more defensively intelligent and capable of dealing with that type of coverage. PF's would eat Andrea up and spit him out. Andrea's game is based on 2 mismatches:
A. The aforementioned slow, sluggish, only-playing-basketball-cause-I-am-7-feet-tall sloths in the NBA. There are of course exceptions to every rule and I am sure you can point out a few to me but in general most C's are usually slow. Unlike the glory years when you had guys in the league named Hakeem, The Admiral, Ewing, and the young Shaq, aka Shaq Fu: The Return.
B. AB7 also plays upon the mismatch of SF's who the other team might put on him to test out his much improved post play. As we've seen he's had much more success in this department this season.
It's like the difference between matching wits with Steve Urkel vs. Stephon Urkel. It's not much of a contest here. They might look the similar but there is no comparisons who is smoother. PF wins out.
So therefore in my estimation we should draft a PF. Positionally a PF is what we need if you want to talk about needs.
Who I like in the race:
Ed Davis. He's the anti-Bargs and seems to be a good compliment to him on both ends of the floor. He doesn't overwhelm you with size but he's got the skillz. A good example is Antawn Jamison who isn't big but who could argue with me that he isn't one of the league's best PF's?
Donatas Whatevertheheckicantpronouncehisdamnnameis. He's a Andrea Bargnani wannabe! Do two wrongs make a right? Most people say no. I say screw you, hell yeah it does. We shouldn't be stockpiling more Euros true. But Donny here is a skilled bigman. Apparently he has more of knack for lowpost play, rebounding and physicality. He's got a good jumper and seems almost like he's already got the skill set that Andrea lacked before the NBA and now has recent come to fruition with. Just the idea of having two skilled 7 footers who are pretty interchangeable seems scarey to me. That'd being said... if we take him we don't have a legit inside rebounding threat. It's not like Andrea is all of a sudden going to pull down double digit rebounds and can't expect Donatas to do that either in his first season. Having two European roosters in the hen house might not be very good for egos though.
Hassan Whiteside. A defensive and rebounding specialist. Just what the doctor ordered. He's another 7 footer who's got the size and athleticism. Seems like another perfect tonic to what ails the Raptors these days. A legit center. But I am guessing he'd handle the move to PF a lot better than the fragile confidence of Il Mago would.
Any of the aforemention 3 players would be good picks in my opinion and I would be quite happy with. Of course the team has to go with the best talent available as well and if theres a player available down at 13 that is in any floor position, take him regardless of need.
The team could also go a different route and take a PG. We are in need of one believe it or not. It's not a dire need. It's nothing we can't handle at the moment unlike trying to plug a hole filled once by a perennial all-star. But the Raps are probably going to get rid of Jose or Jarrett. Jose sucks and I pray it's him that goes but the business side of it says otherwise. Apparently it's more fiscally responsible to ship Jack off. Man that sound's bad. Anyways, even if they do keep Jack he is not an elite level PG. Jack is a very good PG especially in contrast to the swiss cheese contributions provided by Jose. So if we pick up a good PG now and develop him, it might pay dividends down the road. .
Whatever happens, this is sure to be a very interesting draft and post season for us to see unfold. Very entertaining no doubt. Will we pick up what we need to get us over the hump? Or will we be headed for another disappointing season? Oh hear me ye basketball gods, bless upon us Raptor fans the players, skills, and intangibles needed to bring glory and victory on the battlefields of the National Basketball Association and the floor of the Air Canada Centre. Bring upon 2nd round defeat for our evil monstrous green enemies.
Let's talk a little bit about this draft since we got nothing else to talk about lately. I'm not bored though as I am being well entertained by the NHL playoffs and my boys down at the Igloo are doing well so far. This discussion is with the idea that Christopher Wesson Bosh is going to do what everyone including that jackass former espn analyst thinks Chris should do which is say SAYO-F'n Nara Toronto. I hope I am wrong. With that in mind we would draft a PF would we not? But hold on here.
Andrea Bargnani sliding over to PF. That's what Bryan Colangelo says. That has the makings of a disaster and I am guessing that if they do this, he'll either be back at the Center spot by the end of November or he's going to be injured by trying to go up against the most physical and athletic position players in the world. In comparison, NBA centres are big, heavy, and slow. Perfect for the likes of a 3 point shooting bigman, anomaly, and pasta pusher to go around, pump fake out of their shoes to make plays and/or shoot over. PF's are faster, more agile, more defensively intelligent and capable of dealing with that type of coverage. PF's would eat Andrea up and spit him out. Andrea's game is based on 2 mismatches:
A. The aforementioned slow, sluggish, only-playing-basketball-cause-I-am-7-feet-tall sloths in the NBA. There are of course exceptions to every rule and I am sure you can point out a few to me but in general most C's are usually slow. Unlike the glory years when you had guys in the league named Hakeem, The Admiral, Ewing, and the young Shaq, aka Shaq Fu: The Return.
B. AB7 also plays upon the mismatch of SF's who the other team might put on him to test out his much improved post play. As we've seen he's had much more success in this department this season.
It's like the difference between matching wits with Steve Urkel vs. Stephon Urkel. It's not much of a contest here. They might look the similar but there is no comparisons who is smoother. PF wins out.
So therefore in my estimation we should draft a PF. Positionally a PF is what we need if you want to talk about needs.
Who I like in the race:
Ed Davis. He's the anti-Bargs and seems to be a good compliment to him on both ends of the floor. He doesn't overwhelm you with size but he's got the skillz. A good example is Antawn Jamison who isn't big but who could argue with me that he isn't one of the league's best PF's?
Donatas Whatevertheheckicantpronouncehisdamnnameis. He's a Andrea Bargnani wannabe! Do two wrongs make a right? Most people say no. I say screw you, hell yeah it does. We shouldn't be stockpiling more Euros true. But Donny here is a skilled bigman. Apparently he has more of knack for lowpost play, rebounding and physicality. He's got a good jumper and seems almost like he's already got the skill set that Andrea lacked before the NBA and now has recent come to fruition with. Just the idea of having two skilled 7 footers who are pretty interchangeable seems scarey to me. That'd being said... if we take him we don't have a legit inside rebounding threat. It's not like Andrea is all of a sudden going to pull down double digit rebounds and can't expect Donatas to do that either in his first season. Having two European roosters in the hen house might not be very good for egos though.
Hassan Whiteside. A defensive and rebounding specialist. Just what the doctor ordered. He's another 7 footer who's got the size and athleticism. Seems like another perfect tonic to what ails the Raptors these days. A legit center. But I am guessing he'd handle the move to PF a lot better than the fragile confidence of Il Mago would.
Any of the aforemention 3 players would be good picks in my opinion and I would be quite happy with. Of course the team has to go with the best talent available as well and if theres a player available down at 13 that is in any floor position, take him regardless of need.
The team could also go a different route and take a PG. We are in need of one believe it or not. It's not a dire need. It's nothing we can't handle at the moment unlike trying to plug a hole filled once by a perennial all-star. But the Raps are probably going to get rid of Jose or Jarrett. Jose sucks and I pray it's him that goes but the business side of it says otherwise. Apparently it's more fiscally responsible to ship Jack off. Man that sound's bad. Anyways, even if they do keep Jack he is not an elite level PG. Jack is a very good PG especially in contrast to the swiss cheese contributions provided by Jose. So if we pick up a good PG now and develop him, it might pay dividends down the road. .
Whatever happens, this is sure to be a very interesting draft and post season for us to see unfold. Very entertaining no doubt. Will we pick up what we need to get us over the hump? Or will we be headed for another disappointing season? Oh hear me ye basketball gods, bless upon us Raptor fans the players, skills, and intangibles needed to bring glory and victory on the battlefields of the National Basketball Association and the floor of the Air Canada Centre. Bring upon 2nd round defeat for our evil monstrous green enemies.
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