khandor’s sports blog

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.

Early today, the New York Knicks waived Corey Brewer/SF and claimed Derrick Brown/SF-PF off waivers … which means that other teams in the NBA with W-L records that are worse than New York’s also had a chance to add either player to their rosters, if they wished to do so.

Approximately 2 weeks ago, Prof. David Berri explained on his blog that he thinks one of the main problems which the Raptors have faced during Bryan Colangelo’s tenure as GM is accurate player evaluations, based on his own “Wins Produced” metric.

With this possibility in-mind …

You are cordially invited to provide your own personal rankings [i.e. from Nos. 1-7] for the following list of players:

DeMar DeRozan [Toronto Raptors]
James Johnson [Toronto Raptors]
Sonny Weems [Toronto Raptors]
Linas Kleiza [Toronto Raptors]
Julian Wright [Toronto Raptors]
Derrick Brown [New York Knicks; waived by the Bobcats]
Corey Brewer [?; waived by the Knicks]

each of whom the Raptors – currently performing as one the worst defensive teams in the entire NBA – had the opportunity to, either, add or delete from their roster over the course of the last 7 days …

based on which one is the best basketball player, overall, when considering all three [3] main phases of the game [i.e. Offense, Defense and Rebounding].

In all likelihood, regular visitors to this space, already know the answer to this question, from the perspective of yours truly.

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:redro esrever ni REWSNA ehT [t'nod uoy esac ni tsuJ]

GO/smeeW ynnoS 7 ,FS/nosnhoJ semaJ 6 ,FS-GP/thgirW nailuJ 5 ,FS-FP/azielK saniL 4 ,GO/nazoReD raMeD 3 ,FS/rewerB yeroC 2 , FP-FS/nworB kcirreD 1 (-:

For those NBA observers with a keen interest in the statistical evaluation of all 30 teams, at the unofficial half-way point of the regular season schedule:

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TORONTO RAPTORS PERSPECTIVE

According to what was said by Bryan Colangelo & Co., in the aftermath of Chris Bosh’s departure last summer, as an unrestricted free agent, the 2010-2011 season was supposed to be about two specific things:

Toronto Raptors’ Media Day 2010 Recap – Raptors HQ

1. Still competing for a lower tier playoff position;

and, 

2. The continuing “development” of their core group of young players … e.g. Andrea Bargnani/C, DeMar DeRozan/OG-SF, Amir Johnson/PF, Linas Kleiza/SF-PF, Sonny Weems/OG-SF and Ed Davis/PF … from a defensive and rebounding perspective. 

After 56 games, the “2010-2011 Objectives” scorecard now reads, “0-2″.

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.   

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.

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: