khandor’s sports blog

Last night’s 9th consecutive loss for the Raptors means that Toronto has now plummeted to the 4th worst W-L record in the NBA:

30 Cleveland Cavaliers, 8-37/.178
29 Minnesota Timberwolves, 10-35/.222
28 Sacramento Kings, 10-33/.233 
27 Toronto Raptors, 13-33/.283
26 Washington Wizards, 13-31/.295

and, once again, has a legitimate chance to secure a Top 3 Selection in the 2011 NBA Draft Lottery.

If the Raptors management group actually has the necessary level of Basketball Acumen to take full advantage of the team’s recent spate of injuries there is no legitimate reason Toronto cannot make a gradual rise in the standings over the course of the next few seasons and become firmly entrenched in the upper echelon of the Eastern Conference.

FRANCHISE STRENGTHS

1. Top 3 Selection in the 2011 NBA Draft Lottery [?]
2. No. 1 Selection in the 2006 NBA Draft Lottery, i.e. Andrea Bargnani, C
3. No. 9 Selection in the 2009 NBA Draft Lottery, i.e. DeMar DeRozan, OG
4. No. 13 Selection in the 2010 NBA Draft Lottery, i.e. Ed Davis, PF
5. $10.8 M Traded Player Exception [TPE], obtained in exchange for Chris Bosh
6. Expiring contract of Reggie Evans [$5.1 M]
7. Expiring contract of Leandro Barbosa [$7.1 M]
8. Starting calibre PG, i.e. Jose Calderon [$9.0 M, plus 2 more years]
9. Rotation calibre PF, i.e. Amir Johnson [$5.0 M, plus 4 more years]
10. Rotation calibre SF, i.e. Linas Kleiza [$5.0 M, plus 2 more years]
11. Rotation calibre PG/OG, i.e. Jerryd Bayless [$2.3 M, plus 1 more year]  
12. Salary Cap space … if the team chooses not to re-sign Sonny Weems [$0.9 M, 1 yr], Joey Dorsey [$0.9 M, 1 yr], Alexis Ajinca [$1.5 M, 1 yr] and Julian Wright [$2.9 M, 1 yr] after this season
13. World-class city with the 3rd largest market in North America
14. 10th most valuable franchise in the NBA
15. Rabid, loyal fan base

FRANCHISE WEAKNESSES

1. The absence of a deep pocketed ownership group that SHOULD BE prepared to EXCEED the Salary Cap and the Luxury Tax Threshold on an ANNUAL BASIS.

2. The absence of a highly respected General Manager with first-hand experience in the construction/operation of a championship-winning organization.

3. The absence of a highly respected Head Coach with first-hand experience in the construction/operation of a championship-winning organization.

4. An organizational culture which has failed to prioritize the winning of the League Championship as The Standard for Team Success.

5. An organizational culture which has failed to prioritize Team Defense, Team Rebounding and Team Offense as the THREE MAIN COMPONENTS required for Team Success.

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The fact is …

In the 16 year history of the Raptors franchise, there have already been 3 prior occasions when the team was well-positioned to begin a gradual climb towards the top of the Eastern Conference:

First, when Toronto used the No. 4 Selection in the 1998 NBA Draft to pick Antawn Jamison/PF and then immediately traded him to obtain Vince Carter/SF-OG [No. 5 Selection, Golden State Warriors];

1998-1999, 23 wins
1999-2000, 45 wins [up ... but, failed to retain the services of Tracy McGrady]
2000-2001, 47 wins [up]
2001-2002, 42 wins [down]
2002-2003, 24 wins [down]

Second, when Toronto used the No. 4 Selection in the 2003 NBA Draft to pick Chris Bosh/C-PF;

2003-2004, 33 wins [up]
2004-2005, 33 wins [same ... but, traded Vince Carter]
2005-2006, 27 wins [down]

Third, when Toronto used the No. 1 Selection in the 2006 NBA Draft to pick Andrea Bargnani/C;

2006-2007, 47 wins [up]
2007-2008, 41 wins [down]
2008-2009, 33 wins [down]
2009-2010, 40 wins [up ... but, failed to retain the services of Chris Bosh]
2010-2011, 13 wins so far [down?]

and, in each instance, the opportunity has been wasted by the relatively poor work of their:

i. Ownership Group, whose chief responsibility is to hire the right GM and then stay out of his way; 

ii. General Manager[s], whose chief responsibilities are to: A. Hire the right Head Coach & Staff, and B. Obtain the right mix of players, and then stay out of their way; 

iii. Head Coach[es] and staff[s], whose chief responsibilities are to: A. Fully develop the players on their roster into a highly effective and cohesive group, and B. Win as many games and playoff series as possible, on an annual basis;

with the prime directive being, “The Winning of the League Championship.”  

Hopefully, this time around …

Kyrie Irving/PG, Duke University
Harrison Barnes/SF, University of North Carolina
Jan Veseley/SF, Partizan-Belgrade

the Raptors’ management group doesn’t screw it up, again.   

Looking at the way the Detroit Pistons have performed during their last 7 games:

it should now be relatively easy for others to see that the main reason this team has wallowed in the bottom third of the Eastern Conference Standings, to this point this season, has been the relatively poor job done by John Kuester and the Lack of Team Cohesion his personnel decisions have fostered.

The stark reality for the Pistons this year is that …

There has always been more than enough legitimate NBA talent on-hand for Detroit to compete effectively for a lower tier playoff position in the Eastern Conference … as long as their head coach doesn’t muck it up by:

I. Refusing to settle on one of many different possible solid 8-9 player rotations;

and,

II. Creating a series of needless internal conflicts with the best players on the team.

… in contrast to what you may have been told by certain ‘stats gurus’ who think that the Pistons’ main problem has been rooted elsewhere. 

Yes, it was 1 week ago, but …

as today’s 2nd NFC Divisional Championship Game gets set to kick-off

Seattle Seahawks +10
CHICAGO -10 [as of 11:00 AM today]

… this corner of the net would certainly be remiss, if this video clip was not posted here, as the single greatest running play in the history of the Seattle Seahawks franchise.

KSS Prognostication

CHICAGO -10

Expect to see a big day from Misters Forte, Cutler, Urlacher and Hester, as the Seahawks’ proverbial bubble gets unceremoniously popped.   

Based upon the actual ‘talent level’ of the players on their present rosters …

The Top 4 teams in the Western Conference this season might actually be:

1. Los Angeles Lakers [29-11/.725, currently in 2nd place]

2. San Antonio Spurs [33-6/.846, currently in 1st place]

3. Denver Nuggets [22-16/.579, currently in 6th place]

4. Oklahoma City Thunder [27-13/.675, currently in 4th place]

5. Dallas Mavericks [currently in 3rd place]
6. Houston Rockets [currently in 10th place]
7. Utah Jazz [currently in 5th place]
8. Memphis Grizzlies [currently in 9th place]
9. Portland Trail Blazers [currently in 8th place]
10. Phoenix Suns [currently in 11th place]
11. Golden State Warriors [currently in 12th place]
12. Sacramento Kings [currently in 15th place]
13. New Orleans Hornets [currently in 6th place]
14. LA Clippers [currently in 13th place]
15. Minnesota Timberwolves [currently in 15th place]

and, in the opinion of yours truly …

Stan and Josh Kroenke should be considered guilty of ‘operating in bad faith’ this season, if/when they do not try their very best to win the 1st NBA Championship in Nuggets’ history, on the heels of dismissing Mark Warkentien last summer and Brett Bearup earlier this fall.

Unfortunately, as long as John Kuester is head coach for the Pistons …

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Richard Hamilton on the sideline as Pistons fall to Grizzlies

He stood away from the team during timeouts, talking with longtime teammate Ben Wallace.

Richard Hamilton managed to crack a few smiles, despite registering his first healthy “did not play-coaches decision” in his career as a Piston.

His name being the subject of serious trade rumors for a week, he sat and watched as his teammates dropped their second straight game, losing 107-99 to the Memphis Grizzlies at the Palace on Tuesday night.

“They didn’t tell me anything, I was definitely surprised,” Hamilton said after the game. “Do I think it was a level of disrespect or unfair or anything? I’ll leave that to you all.”

Teammate Tayshaun Prince chimed in and said, “buffoonery. Do you all know what that means?”

Hamilton said the game is usually his sanctuary, a place he can tune out all the chaos surrounding him, but Tuesday was a different story. He was asked if he wanted to be traded.

“I can’t control that. Like if I wanted to play, I couldn’t control it,” Hamilton said. “Only thing I can do is prepare myself to play and give the fans what they want. It just wasn’t that way tonight.”

When asked if he was eager for a change, Hamilton said: “I really can’t answer that right now.

“It’s tough, especially when you’re not playing. You can kind of isolate everything that’s going on. When you’re not playing, (it’s) ‘what did I do? So I try to stay motivated. I can’t control my minutes, my playing time.”

The Pistons’ franchise leader in playoff scoring said he wouldn’t approach coach John Kuester about it or Pistons president Joe Dumars, saying “I don’t talk to nobody. Maybe you all need to talk to them (management).”

As for the future, that’s a question no one is willing to address.

“We shortened the rotation and changed the lineup,” Kuester said. “That was it.”

Kuester said everybody’s gotten a chance to turn things around, and that Hamilton’s sitting was nothing to read into.

“When you put Rodney at the two, and depending on matchup situations, somebody has to be out,” Kuester said. “Right now we’re searching to find a group that can get the job done.”

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… it now seems as though whatever NBA-level talent this club has on its current roster is simply going to waste away.

Results For Pistons Last 10 Road Games

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Published Wagering Line

Opening: TORONTO RAPTORS -4.5/-110

Current: TORONTO RAPTORS -5.5/-105 [as of 11:00 AM today]

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KSS Prognostication

No call.

Those who would try to tell you that they have a solid grasp of what specific line-up the Pistons will trot out this evening vs the Raptors are being disingenuous.

If Detroit chooses to use a ‘non-buffoonery’ type rotation … that is similar to what they did the last time they visited Toronto … then, the Pistons could well blow the Raptors out, once again.

If, however, Detroit chooses to use a ‘buffoonery’ type rotation … that is similar to what they did for their last game, vs Memphis … then, the chances are equally good that the Raptors will win tonight’s game by a double-digit margin.

Best to stay as far away from this game as possible.

The Toronto Raptors lost a hard fought game to the visiting Atlanta Hawks last night:

Atlanta Hawks 104
TORONTO RAPTORS 101
Complete Game Info

but, instead of whining about the discrepancy in fouls called against the Raptors by a fairly veteran crew of officials … i.e. Bill Spooner, Rodney Mott and Haywoode Workman … which is really as good as it gets for a Wednesday night in the NBA with 11 games on the slate, what the Raptors and their rabid fanbase should actually be moaning about today is the poor defensive execution displayed by their own team on the following possession which allowed the Hawks to take the lead for good, on a simple “catch-and-shoot-3PT-shot” by notorious Raptors killer, Mike Bibby, with Atlanta down 2 points and 10.3 secs left in the 4th quarter:  

Q1. Which of the following individuals for the Raptors was at fault for failing to carry out his assignment properly on this specific defensive sequence?

i. Jose Calderon,
ii. Amir Johnson,
iii. DeMar DeRozan,
iv. Andrea Bargnani,
v. Leandro Barbosa,
vi. Jay Triano?  

A1. If you’ve been a regular visitor to this blog over the last several years, then, you should already be able to answer this question correctly for yourself.

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When a team is currently ranked:

A. 26th in [5th last] Points Allowed [i.e. 105.1], and

B. 30th [last] in Defensive Field Goal % [i.e. 49.2],

that team’s supporters need to understand that the primary reason they lost a very winnable game last night has nothing to do with the poor quality of officiating their team received but the poor quality of defensive execution by specific players and coaches when the outcome of the game was actually on the line.

FWIW, here’s the correct answer to the question posed above:

i. Demar DeRozan … did his job properly.
ii. Amir Johnson … did his job properly.
iii. Andrea Bargnani … failed to do his job properly.
iv. Leandro Barbosa … failed to do his job properly.
v. Jose Calderon … failed to do his job properly.
vi. Jay Triano … failed to do his job properly.  

SPECIFIC RATIONALE

re: Bargnani [i.e. near screener's defender]
The primary responsibilities of the screen defender – in the double screen action – who is closest to the inbounds passer is to:

- see the 2 cuts happening from the player located above/below the double screen [i.e. Mike Bibby]

and,

- jump out on the near/high side of the double screen to deter and/or intercept/deflect a direct pass to the shooter popping out at the top of the key

re: Barbosa [i.e. inbounds passer's defender]
The primary responsibilities of the inbounds passer’s defender is to:

- ”jam the passer” so that he is not able to complete a direct pass to a teammate cutting to the top of the key with the benefit of a single, double, or staggered set of screens

re: Calderon [i.e. weak side shooter's defender]
The primary responsibilities of the defender who is checking the player located above/below the double screen is to:

- “stay below” and towards the “basket side” of his own check

- “switch” vs any little-on-little cross screen action that ahppens below the double screen

- “chase” the shooter who comes out towards his side of the floor “around” the double screen action at the top of the key … and into the area of screen defender who is nearest the inbounds passer … by “trailing” on the hip of the shooter rather than attempting to fight “through” the middle of the 2 screeners

re: Triano
The primary responsibilities of the head coach whose team is leading by 2 points with only 10.3 secs left in the 4th quarter and the opponent with the ball in a sideline out-of-bounds situation, when coming from a called time-out is, to:

- Ensure that his players fully understand what they MUST DO in order to NOT GIVE UP an open 3PT-shot … either, from the top of the key, or the near wing/corner … which can lose them the game, outright, as opposed to surrendering a 2PT-shot which can only tie the score 

re: Amir Johnson [i.e. far screener's defender]
The primary responsibilities of the screen defender – in the double screen action – who is furthest from the inbounds passer is to:

- stay below the double screen, in order to cover whichever screener might step towards the basket in response to the actions of the near screen defender and the weak side shooter’s defender 

re: DeMar DeRozan [i.e. ball side shooter's defender]
The primary responsibilities of the defender who is checking the shooter located in the ball side low post is to:

- “front” vs this shooter so that he does not receive a direct entry pass

- “switch” vs any little-on-little cross screen action which occurs below the below screen

- “chase” vs any cut made by his individual check which does not involve the use of a single, double or staggered set of screens

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Kudos to the Hawks’ Larry Drew, Jamal Crawford, Al Horford, Josh Smith and Mike Bibby for doing each of their jobs properly and executing this basic offensive play! 

According to a published report today, from ESPN, the Raptors are now listed amongst a large group of teams that have recently expressed interest in obtaining Omri Casspi [SF] from the Sacramento Kings.

In the opinion of yours truly, there has been a relatively easy way for the Raptors to acquire Mr. Casspi …

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Trade proposal for Raptors fans, plus others, to consider 

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since as far back as December 10, 2010 …

and set themselves up properly for an extended run of success, as a legitimate contender, in the upper echelon of the Eastern Conference, for the next decade, if their management team has the wherewithal to make it happen.

The Raptors and the Celtics will each be playing tonight’s game without several of their preferred “starters” in the line-up. 

Prior Games This Season:

Sun Nov 21, 2010, TORONTO 102, Boston 101 [Bos -5; Rondo/DNP-inj]
Fri Nov 26, 2010, Toronto 101, BOSTON 110 [Bos -10]
Sun Jan 02, 2011, TORONTO 79, Boston 93 [Bos -5.5; Garnett/DNP-inj]

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Published Wagering Line

Opening: BOSTON CELTICS -9.5/-110

Current: BOSTON CELTICS -9/-106 [as of 5:00 PM today]

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KSS Prognostication

Despite the fact that Boston will have no player available this evening who can function as a sound Individual Match-up vs Andrea Bargnani [C] … whenever he works away from the basket, as a perimeter Big, on offense … the Celtics should still be able to win tonight’s game, by at least 10 points, if Rajon Rondo can:

A. Play 30+ minutes;

and,

B. Take full advantage of the Raptors poor Transition Defense whenever Toronto’s starting Center is on the floor. 

At the 35 game mark this season, the Cavaliers’ W-L record looks like this:

8 Wins, 27 Losses, .229 Win%

However …

When you compare how Cleveland has fared, so far:

IN CATEGORY 1 GAMES

- When Jamario Moon has been used for more than 20 minutes

6 Wins, 9 losses [Win%/.333];

versus, how Cleveland has fared, so far:

IN CATEGORY 2 GAMES

- When Jamario Moon has been used for less than 20 minutes [or not played at all]

2 Wins, 18 losses [Win%/.100];

the picture begins to take on a slightly different focus.

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Although Byron Scott might not actually “like” different aspects of Mr. Moon’s individual character, or his limited positionally-specific skill-set … if the Cavs’ head coach truly wants to win a higher percentage of games for what’s left of the 2010-2011 season, then … he will need to start using the resources which are at his disposal in a different way than he has since Jamario Moon was removed from the Cavaliers starting line-up, and then relegated to the bench, as a non-rotation player.

Toronto Raptors 120
CLEVELAND CAVALIERS 105
Complete Game Info

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SUBSTITUTION CHART

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From the Raptors’ perspective …

How the good and bad played out, in last night’s game: