khandor’s sports blog

If the Raptors actual intent this season is to try to win as many games as possible, then, Dwane Casey needs to make an adjustment in his current starting line-up.

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Casey considers changes

Following Sunday’s loss in Los Angeles, a game that was once again dominated and all but determined by a listless first-quarter Raptors performance, Casey is no longer content to stay with the status quo. At the very least he’s seriously considering changing a few pieces.

It’s not so much the mounting losses, although that’s clearly part of it, but how the losses are coming.

For the first time this year on Sunday, Casey called out one of his players for a lack of effort, clearly identifying Amir Johnson in the process.

Casey went to great lengths on Sunday to emphasize that he wasn’t placing blame on any one player. In fairness the questions Sunday left him little choice but to address the fact that Johnson played only seven minutes.

He had to explain why he wasn’t out there and the truth was Aaron Gray was running hard and ensuring DeAndre Jordan didn’t add to the number of crowd inciting lob-finishing dunks he was throwing down much to the appreciation of the Staples Center crowd.

Monday in Phoenix, though, Casey pointedly said that were any changes coming, it wasn’t going to be done to single out any individual’s performance or lack thereof.

“We still have a couple of positions we’re looking at,” Casey said. “Right now, we’re going to sleep on it again tonight. Everything we’re aiming to do is nothing that’s an indictment of any one player, it’s more of us having balance, finding the right combination to get off to quick starts and a balanced game.

“We’ve got too many ebbs and flows with the game as far as our points production, our defensive focus and the whole nine yards. That’s what we’re trying for more than: ‘Hey, it’s this one guy’ (that’s the reason) we’re not winning.”

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If, however, the Raptors actual intent this season is to try to lose as many games as possible – so that they can obtain as high a pick as possible in the 2012 NBA Draft Lottery … which is precisely what it SHOULD be – then, Dwane Casey needs to keep using DeMar DeRozan [OG] exactly how he has been used in Toronto’s line-up for all 17 games thus far this year.

Orlando Magic 98
TORONTO RAPTORS 102
Complete Game Summary

From a Raptors’ perspective …

What you should be able to take away from yesterday’s home-court victory:

- Toronto was more efficient than usual

On Defense
Orlando
Pts/98; Poss/95 [i.e. FGA/78, TO/8, and FFTA/12]; Pts/Poss = 1.032

On Offense
TORONTO
Pts/102; Poss/98 [i.e. FGA/79, TO/10 and FFTA/9]; Pts/Poss = 1.041  

Toronto’s PSPP-Diff [i.e. Points Scored Per Possession Differential]

To-date: -0.063 [i.e. Off. = 0.923; Def. = 0.986]
Yesterday: +0.009 [i.e. Off. = 1.041 (+0.118); Def. = 1.032 (-0.046)] 

In Rebounding
Orl: O-Reb/7, D-Reb/23 and T-Reb/30
TOR: O-Reb/15, D-Reb/33 and T-Reb/48

- Toronto played without Andrea Bargnani [C, Starter] … whose production was MORE THAN compensated for, collectively, by the work of Ed Davis [i.e. as the Starter], Reggie Evans [i.e. as the primary Back-up] and Joey Dorsey [i.e. as the secondary Back-up]

- Toronto played without Jose Calderon [PG, Starter] … whose production was equalized by Jerryd Bayless, as a capable temporary replacement in this role

- Toronto played without Jerry Bayless [PG, Back-up] … whose production was MORE THAN compensated for, individually, by the work of Leandro Barbosa who is a “best fit”, in the NBA, as a primary ‘change-of-pace’ Back-up PG, not a Back-up Combo Guard off the bench

- Orlando played without JJ Redick [OG], Gilbert Arenas [PG] and Chris Duhon [PG] … which meant they had NO legitimate Back-up PG in their line-up last night and were forced to use a combination of Richardson/Q  [+6] and Richardson/J [-19] in this crucial role, since they only used 8 players [i.e. including Allen/M and Anderson/R, as their 2 Bigs off the bench]

- Toronto is a favourite destination for visiting NBA players

- Toronto competed more aggressively throughout the game, and with an elevated level of Collective Determination because they did NOT have to “carry” a relatively weak Team Defender/Rebounder, who usually logs 35+ minutes at the crucial Center position

- Toronto marginally decreased its likelihood of earning as high a selection as possible in the 2011 NBA Drafft Lottery, by winning rather than losing this game … which is a sacrifice that should be MORE THAN compensated for, if the Raptors can learn the difficult lessons they NEED to learn from playing without the former No. 1 [overall] Selection in the 2006 NBA Draft Lottery and develop a Team Culture which is based on Hard Work, Defense, Rebounding and Shared Team Offense

If/when Bryan Colangelo [President/GM] realizes that the following regular rotation:

STARTERS
PG, Jose Calderon [who is more efficient, on Offense, than Jerryd Bayless]
OG, DeMar DeRozan
SF, James Johnson
PF, Amir Johnson
PF, Ed Davis

KEY SUBS
PG, Leandro Barbosa [who is a very good back-up at this position]
OG, Sonny Weems [who is a solid back-up]
SF, Linas Kleiza [who is a solid back-up]
PF, Reggie Evans [who is a solid back-up]
C, Whomever is obtained in a trade for Andrea Bargnani [or Alexis Ajinca]

RESERVES/EXTRAS/OUTS
PG, Veteran UFA [i.e. signed to a minimum contract this summer]
SF, Julian Wright [who is an easy cut to make this summer, if necessary]
PF/C, Joey Dorsey [who is an easy cut to make this summer, if necessary]
C, Solomon Alabi [who is an easy cut to make this summer, if necessary]
C, Alexis Ajinca [or whomever is obtained in a trade for Andrea Bargnani]

ADDITIONAL ASSETS
- Whomever is obtained in a trade for Jerryd Bayless [PG/OG, who is highly marketable this summer]
- 2011 NBA Draft Lottery Selection

is the best possible scenario for the Raptors, going forward from this point, then this franchise will at long last be heading in a right direction.

Led by Jose Calderon … and much better Pick and Roll/Pop defense from their collection of Bigs … the Toronto Raptors played a very solid game last night against the visiting New Orleans Hornets.

If you take a close look at:

PART I

The complete Box Score, and pay particular attention to the category of kPER, which is an exclusive creation of yours truly:

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Flagrant Fouls: None
Technical Fouls: PLAYERS: None – TEAMS (def3sec): TORONTO (1), NEWORLEANS (2) – COACHES: None
Officials: Scott Wall , John Goble , Marc Davis
Attendance: 14,704
Time of Game: 02:08

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you should be able to see clearly which specific players were most responsible for the 6-point margin of victory by the Raptors;

PART II

The Game Flow Chart

You should also be able to see clearly that, as long as the Raptors did not use specific players together – i.e. at the PG, OG and SF positions – who are ill-suited to play with one another:

they were actually a far superior team to the Hornets last night;

and,

PART III

Jay Triano’s observations at his post-game press conference

You should be able to see clearly just how important improved Pick and Roll/Pop defense from the team’s Bigs against:

i. The Picker;
ii. The original ball-handler; and,
iii. The other non-Picking Big [in various rotation situations];

actually is to the Raptors’ overall defensive efficiency.

If/when the Raptors play Team Basketball that looks LIKE THAT, then … even with their current less than stellar roster … they are certainly capable of finishing in the middle section of the league standings.

When the team’s GM says stuff like this:

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“I just know that from our standpoint we’re looking at a list of 30 or 45 players that are in this draft class and there’s nobody at 28 or 29 which is where the Miami pick was at this moment, that is going to supercede his talent level or remotely come close to it.” – Bryan Colangelo on James Johnson

Read more: http://raptorsrepublic.com/#ixzz1FBIjpcyc

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Definition: Mendacity

… It is simply astounding that not a single member of the main-stream media confronts it, full force, to expose it as the complete “sham” which it happens to be.The RIGHT question[s] to ask isn’t whether James Johnson is a “better” player than what the Raptors could, possibly, find at the low end of the 1st Round in this summer’s NBA Draft but, rather:

Q1. If that low end 2011/1st Round Draft Pick was to be “packaged” properly with a collection of additional assets, as a “deal sweetener”, per se, “Could it have MORE future value than the player James Johnson?”

and,

Q2. Why on earth is a multi-million [billion?] dollar operation like MLSE concerned with the “cost savings” involved with comparing the monetary value of adding a 2nd-yr player like James Johnson, who will be in the final year of his initial rookie-scale contract next season vs the future monetary value of the low end 1st Round Draft [obtained from Miami] which the Raptors just sent to Chicago, that would come with a guaranteed 3-year salary commitment, in the first place?

PS. Instead of concerning itself with perpetually being under the Salary Cap and the LTT, a hugely profitable operation like MLSE should simply be trying to build a championship-winning calibre franchise. Period.

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.   

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! 

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:

Put aside for the moment whether or not the Raptors should actually be trying to win as many games as possible this season, given the unique opportunity they have to obtain one of the Top 3 Selections in the 2011 NBA Draft Lottery … which, this specific year, will likely bring with it the chance to add a franchise-changing player like Harrison Barnes, or Kyrie Irving, or Jan Vesely, etc.

Instead, consider what the Raptors’ ”regular rotation” SHOULD BE right now, if the primary goal of the franchise is to win as many games as possible this season, in an effort to qualify for the playoffs for the first time in the last 3 years.

The team’s current roster includes 14 players:

POINT GUARD

#1. Jose Calderon

COMBO GUARD

#2. Jerryd Bayless and #3. Leandro Barbosa

OFF GUARDS

#4. Sonny Weems, and #5. DeMar DeRozan

SMALL FORWARDS

#6. Linas Kleiza, #7. Peja Stojakovic [injured], and #8. Julian Wright

POWER FORWARDS

#9. Reggie Evans [injured], #10. Amir Johnson, #11. Ed Davis [debut - TBD, after pre-season knee surgery], and #12. Joey Dorsey

CENTER

#13. Andrea Bargnani, and #14. Solomon Alabi 

A comparison between: [i] The Raptors Rotation vs Atlanta, and [ii] What the Raptors Rotation SHOULD BE vs Future Opponents would look like this:

Until Stojakovic and Evans are eventually able to return to the line-up, the Raptors would actually give themselves the best chance of winning games by taking advantage of:

- DeRozan’s size and athleticism at the OG position [relative to Weems] 

- Wright’s size and athleticism at the SF position [relative to DeRozan]

- Johnson’s increased agility and scoring ability at the PF position [relative to Dorsey]

- Barbosa’s speed in transition and his overall experience at the Back-up PG position [relative to Bayless]

- Weems’ size and athleticism at the Back-up OG position [relative to Barbosa]

- Davis’ size and athleticism at the Back-up PF position [relative to Kleiza]

- Bayless’ ability to score the ball at the Back-up OG/PG position [relative to Wright]

- Dorsey’s size and athleticism at the Back-up PF/C position [relative to an open roster spot]

and, in the process, diminishing the negative effects of the skill deficiencies of Andrea Bargnani [C] – who is now their best scorer – by focusing on their combined ability to Defend and Rebound at the other positions in a superior way to what they were ever able to do with Jarrett Jack [PG], Marcus Banks [PG] and David Andersen [C] on their roster. 

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PS. Since the belief of this corner is that it’s best for the Raptors to actually lose as many games as possible this season … in order to obtain the highest draft pick possible, this specific year … hopefully Jay Triano & Co. are never able to figure out for themselves the benefits of using a regular rotation like what’s been recommended here.

Comment contributor Mike D has posited an interesting question, in response to yesterday’s blog entry about whether or not the Raptors have actually upgraded the NBA talent level on their current roster:

What was Bryan Colangelo’s primary objective when he traded Jarrett Jack [PG/OG], David Andersen [C] and Marcus Banks [PG] to New Orleans, in exchange for Peja Stojakovic [SF/OG] and Jerryd Bayless [PG/OG]?

Either:

PROPOSITION A – To create increased financial flexibility for the team, while moving forward, in order to allow the younger players on the roster to develop further and improve with an eye fixed firmly on the future prospects for major on-court success, even if it means fielding a lesser talented team this season which will likely finish lower in the Eastern Conference standings than it would have otherwise. Such a “lesser-talented” team would, therefore, be more likely to secure the future rights to a high [i.e. Top 3 Selection] draft pick in the NBA’s 2011 Lottery.

or,

PROPOSITION B – To create a better team for this season with an upgraded level of NBA talent that is actually more competitive with the other middle echelon teams in the Eastern Conference and, quite possibly, more capable of qualifying for one of the bottom 3 seeds in the playoffs [i.e. No. 6, 7 or 8] – if this new edition performs up to its maximum capacity - while still providing a high degree of future financial flexibility for MLSE, should this squad actually fail to accomplish this modest on-court task. Such a “more-talented” team would, therefore, be less likely to secure the future rights to a high [i.e. Top 3 Selection] draft pick in the NBA’s 2011 Lottery.

As was indicated in yesterday’s blog entry, the belief of this corner is that PROPOSITION B was most likely at the root of Bryan Colangelo’s motivation to complete these recent trades for the Raptors.

What tangible evidence [or proof] might possibly exist in support of this specific notion?

If the Raptors, subsequently, decide to:

1. Add a veteran Center to their roster later on this season … e.g. someone like Erick Dampier, who had been available, as an unrestricted free agent until yesterday, before signing with the Miami Heat … either, via trade or free agency;

2. Use Leandro Barbosa as their primary back-up PG, behind Jose Calderon … and, ahead of Jerryd Bayless;

3. Use Peja Stojakovic as their primary perimeter shooter coming off the bench at the wing position … in conjunction with their other younger wing players, i.e. Sonny Weems, DeMar DeRozan, Linas Kleiza, Julian Wright and, now, Jerryd Bayless, rather than exclusively in arrears of them;

and,

4. Use Ed Davis [PF/C] for major minutes off the bench;

then, it will be a solid indication that PROPOSITION B may well have been the prime motivation for Bryan Colangelo, since this new edition of the Raptors would then be more likely to win a higher percentage of their remaining games this season, than they would have been if:

i. These two trades were never made, in the first place;

and/or,

ii. A. Jerryd Bayless is used as their primary back-up PG, instead of Leandro Barbosa;

ii. B. Peja Stojakovic is used only as a last resort, coming deep off their bench behind all of their younger wing players;

ii. C. Ed Davis [PF, 1st-yr] is held out of the team’s line-up for the balance of the 2010-2011 season, in order to completely rehabilitate his torn meniscus injury suffered during the pre-season;

and,

ii. D. No veteran Center is added to the roster.

In addition to what’s been written here the last two days … concerning these two trades by the Raptors … these are two specific comments which were left by yours truly last night at two other Raptors-related blogs:

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[at Tim W's "The Picket Fence"]

Using Jose Calderon as the starting PG [30+ MPG] for the Raptors, instantaneously makes them a better team than they were with Jarrett Jack in that same role with Calderon coming off the bench for only 20+ MPG.

As does using Barbosa as the primary back-up PG, in arrears of Calderon.

If the Raptors decide to use Bayless as their primary back-up PG, in arrears of Calderon … rather than Barbosa … then, the current Raptors team will actually be worse off than they were when Jack was “the starter” and Calderon his primary “back-up”.

How Bayless actually gets used by the Raptors for the rest of this season will tell a great deal about the intent of Bryan Colangelo when these two trades were made.

===========================

[at Devin Dignam's "Nbeh?"]

The Raptors W-L Record/Win% prior to completing these two trades was 4-9/.308.

It will now be very interesting to see how these numbers will compare to their W-L Record/Win% for the remainder of the season.

In contrast to what it says here, IMO, these two trades will actually increase the likelihood of the Raptors failing to finish in one of the bottom two positions in the Eastern Conference standings this season … which, in turn, will mean that they will not be picking in one of the top three positions in the 2011 NBA Draft, when franchise-changing players like Harrison Barnes [SF] and, possibly, Kyrie Irving [PG] are scheduled to be available.

When it comes to projecting forward … as opposed to looking backwards … it’s amazing just how mis-guided some so-called ‘stats-based’ basketball analyses can actually turn out to be.

===========================

In summary …

If PROPOSITION A is actually correct, what you should expect to see from the Raptors the rest of this season is:

- Jerryd Bayless being used as their primary back-up PG, not Leandro Barbosa
- Peja Stojakovic not being used very much, if at all
- Ed Davis not being used a significant number of minutes
- No veteran back-up Center being added to the roster AND
- The team winning LESS-THAN .308 of its remaining games this year … since Jerryd Bayless and Peja Stojakovic are inferior players compared to Jarrett Jack, David Andersen and Marcus Banks. 

However, if PROPOSITION B is actually correct, what you should expect to see from the Raptors is:

- Leandro Barbosa being used as their primary back-up PG, not Jerryd Bayless
- Peja Stojakovic being used quite a bit, as their best 3PT-shooter
- Ed Davis being used a significant number of minutes, as their best interior shot-blocker and post scorer 
- A veteran back-up Center being added to the roster AND
- The team winning MORE-THAN .308 of its remaining games this year … since:

I. Jose Calderon is a more effective Starting PG - who makes each of his teammates into more effective players at the offensive end of the floor - compared to Jarrett Jack;

II. Leandro Barbosa is a more effective back-up PG – who makes each of his teammates into more effective players at the offensive end of the floor – compared to Jerryd Bayless [who has now been traded 3 times, since entering the NBA in the 2008 NBA Draft, by 3 different organizations - i.e. Indiana, Portland and New Orleans - each of which was looking to fill a void at the PG position, when it first acquired him, and is now in a better position to succeed than Toronto];

III. Peja Stojakovic is a more effective 3PT-shooter than Jarrett Jack, David Andersen and Marcus Banks;

and,

IV. Ed Davis is a more effective interior shot-blocker, and post scorer, than David Andersen.

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It is also interesting to note that one consistent aspect of Bryan Colangelo’s tenure with the Raptors has been his reluctance to make a full commitment to the building-up this franchise from “square one”, gradually over a number of years. Instead, what he has shown is his interest in always “hedging his bets”, in the name of creating/maintaining “increased financial flexibility” for MLSE going forward. 

In the comments section of yesterday’s blog entry, concerning the state of the Raptors, more than one contributor indicated their belief that the Raptors’ recent transactions may have actually “weakened” their roster for the current season, and asked if the specific take of this corner could be explained in further detail.

To wit:

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The two trades which the Raptors completed over the weekend have improved their functional NBA talent level in the following ways:

OPTION I