Accurate assessments of the Toronto Raptors
When the bell finally tolls …
Statistics do a number on Raptors
An illustration: when Parker, Bosh and Jose Calderon were on the court together without Bargnani last year, they played nine points above average. With Bargnani thrown into the mix, they dropped to four points below average.
“I can’t explain why that is, but it is a dramatic swing,” Winston says. “This is concrete evidence that he isn’t helping the team. It’s important that they know that if he plays a lot of minutes and does not improve, they’ll win fewer games.”
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As regular readers of this space can attest, this is an observation which was made, repeatedly, by yours truly throughout the 2008-2009 season … and going even further back than that … based on Basketball Acumen, specific situational stats and Possession Outcome Charts, to the consternation of some Raptors fans obsessed with an individual player’s seasonal ”game stat averages” [i.e. basic and advanced] and/or drunk on the Kool-Aid distributed by the organization.
At the end of the day …
1. Those being truly ‘objective’ in their analysis and criticism of the Raptors and Andrea Bargnani have correctly identified his individual ’strengths and weaknesses’ and his ‘negative effect’ on the performance of the team, on the whole.
2. This year’s final EC standings are going to be very tight between the No. 6 and No. 12 positions and, although the Raptors should be in the mix the entire way, there is little indication to this point that they will be a better team than Atlanta, Washington, Miami, Detroit, Chicago, Philadelphia, Charlotte, New York and Indiana … following the Big 3 of Boston, Cleveland and Orlando.
3. “The proof of the pudding is in the eating.” - Anonymous
Tags: Amir Johnson, Andrea Bargnani, Anthony Parker, Antoine Wright, Chris Bosh, Hedo Turkoglu, Jarrett Jack, Jeff Sagarin, Jose Calderon, Rasho Nesterovic, Reggie Evans, Shawn Marion, Toronto Raptors, Wayne Winston
October 26th, 2009 at 12:33 am
Anybody who has played bball at a higher competitive level knows that you just can’t throw a whole bunch of players together and based on their individual stats predict that it will be a playoff team.
But what about the Celtics going from worst to champions? Well the Raps don’t have a Pierce, Garnett and Allen … they only have unproven B-grade players from other teams. Hedo is not enough to make any impact playing with Bosh, Bargs and Jose. In fact that lineup is a disaster waiting to happen..!!!
The Raps may not gel adequately and the chemistry may not be there … resulting in a disastrous last place finish in the East … believe it.
Even Triano started the players off just passing the ball around and running a lot on offense .. to “get used to each other” … in the preseason games. IOW, the Raptors are a raw bunch of players who not in top condition yet and suffering injuries because of that … and they are going to face the top team in the East in the Cavaliers on Wednesday. It will be like a junior high school team playing the senior h.s. team …!!!!
October 26th, 2009 at 12:39 am
Bargnani sucks, Bargnani sucks, Bargnani sucks.
October 26th, 2009 at 3:31 am
[...] Read more here: khandor's sports blog » Blog Archive » Accurate assessments of the … [...]
October 26th, 2009 at 6:33 am
anti rapti
October 26th, 2009 at 7:30 am
[...] Khandor’s Sports Blog This year’s final EC standings are going to be very tight between the No. 6 and No. 12 positions and, although the Raptors should be in the mix the entire way, there is little indication to this point that they will be a better team than Atlanta, Washington, Miami, Detroit, Chicago, Philadelphia, Charlotte, New York and Indiana … following the Big 3 of Boston, Cleveland and Orlando. [...]
October 26th, 2009 at 10:06 pm
FAQ,
re: Hedo is not enough to make any impact playing with Bosh, Bargs and Jose. In fact that lineup is a disaster waiting to happen..!!!
What’s really interesting is how certain folks in the traditional media, and some on-line, seem not to be seeing the merit of what you’re pointing out.
October 26th, 2009 at 10:08 pm
A.C. Smith and rob,
Even in the midst of a barren desert, all you can really do is lead a man to water; not make him drink it.