I have to admit, the last few days I haven’t been following the Raptors in the media, so when I saw that Bargnani was starting over Moon, it blew me away, I didn’t see that shit coming I’ll be honest. It is shocking Smitch would make a move a move like that for the first game of the playoff series with the Magic.
Starting Bargnani was a symptom of the sickness he Raptors were suffering this afternoon. The disease is called ‘Balls’, as in, the Raptors suck balls. I have been calling for Smitch to shorten the bench, and define the rotation for the last month and change. Had no idea he was going to use one lineup for the regular season, then a totally different one for the playoffs. I’m sure Van Gundy was pleased to see Bargnani starting the game.
I guess we have our answer as to what two things BC will be doing this offseason:
- Get a new coach.
- Get someone who can start/play the small forward position.
Not a real mystery how the Magic took down the Raps, Howard dominated both paints; Orlando penetrated and kicked to the open shooter; the open shooter hit their shots; the Raptors suck balls.
Nelson more than countered Forderon’s effectiveness. I said this was a cause of concern in this series, and everyone ripped me a new *sshole. I mean, Kidd did the same thing last year. Fuck that, Felton and Quinn gave these guys serious problems in the stretch run to the playoffs - what did people think Nelson would do?
Parker and Rasho were the only guys to show up on time. In fact, Parker was carrying the burden of keeping these guys in the game until Bosh decided to show up. Bosh, statistically, had a decent game, but was really a non-factor throughout The Raptors run at the game.
Uhmm…Kapono did well. Hit a couple threes and other open shots. Errr…yea..I seriously don’t have a whole lot to contribute today, so on to the play-by-play:
1st Quarter (Stats):
- Raptors lose the tip.
- Lewis penetrates from the wing and kicks to Nelson who is wide open…he obviously burries the trey.
- Bosh forces a jumper over Lewis, leads to Turkoglu finishing the layup on the break.
- Parker curls off Bosh’s screen and nails a deep jumper.
- Turkoglu gets in the lane, and puts down a dunk in some traffic.
- Bosh steals the ball from Nelson and sends TJ in for the layup on the break.
- Lewis penetrates and kicks to Evans for a trey.
- Rasho gets into the key and hits a hook.
- Hedu penetrates and kicks to Lewis for an open trey in the corner, Raptors need a timeout…don’t take one.
- Howard hits a bank shot over Rasho.
- Turkoglu dishes to Nelson for a trey, 18-8 Orlando, Raptors timeout.
- Bosh takes it to the rack and draws a foul from Howard, hits both from the line.
- Rasho hits a jumper from the corner.
- Nelson penetrates and kicks to Evans who takes a dribble and nails the jumper.
- Parker nails a jumper inside the arc.
- Bosh turns the ball over and TJ fouls Nelson on the break, he hits both from the line.
- Moon in at the 6min mark…guess Bargnani wont be starting at 3 anymore…fucking Smitch.
- Hedu steps inside the arc and swings to an open Evans who nails a trey from the corner.
- Howard blocks Rasho in the paint right to Parker who attempts the trey and draws the foul from Hedu, he hits all three from the line.
- Lewis pump fakes and drives to the rack hitting a runner off glass over Bosh.
- Lewis pump fakes, drives baseline, spins into the lane and hits a jump hook over Bosh, wow.
- Nelson penetrates, again, and kicks to a wide open Evans for the trey, timeout Raptors.
- Bosh plays with the ball, gets out of the double, gets into the paint, draws the foul from Evans and hits the layup, hits the free throw too, wow.
- Howard blocks Bosh right at the rim.
- Lewis hits a trey in transition..
- Calderon penetrates and kicks to Parker for an open trey in the corner.
- Calderon leaves Dooling wide open, and Howard finds him for a trey…
- Dooling is wide open, and Howard finds him for a trey…kind of a broken play…Raptors…suck.
- Bosh gets into the paint, and turns it over after leaving his feet.
- Howard gets the ball deep in the paint, and hits a turn around hook over Bosh.
- 43-23 Magic at the end of the first.
2nd Quarter (Stats):
- Bargnani takes the feed from Calderon and rips through the lane for a dunk.
- Bogans dribbles past 3 Raptors and easily lays it up in the paint.
- Calderon gets fouled or something, hits both from the line.
- Dooling comes off Hedu’s screen and hits an open jumper.
- Bogans hits an open jumper…Turkoglu found him nicely…again…this is out of hand.
- Calderon steps inside the arc and knocks down a jumper.
- Rasho tips back Calderon’s missed layup.
- Turkoglu fakes the trey, drives past Rasho and Bargnani, and dunks in the paint and draws the foul, + 1 (misses the FT).
- Dooling swings to an open Bogans for another open trey.
- Dooling finally misses an open trey off of Turkoglu’s penetration.
- Rasho hits a turn around hook in the paint.
- Lewis lobs the ball to Howard, the grabs it inbetween 3 Raptors, and puts it down.
- I wonder if I should have a banana or an avocado…?
- TJ gets into the paint, and drops a pass off to Rasho for a hook, Magic timeout.
- Bosh is forced into a bad shot by Lewis on the perimeter…go to the FRICKEN RACK MAN!
- Kapono nails a trey from the elbow extended…he was right open.
- Evans gets it right back off of Lewis’ drive and kick.
- Bosh steals Lewis’ bad skip pass, leads to a Kapono trey in transition, Magic timeout.
- Kapono gets open off the inbounds, and hits a short jumper off glass.
- Rasho puts up a brick from 4 feet.
- Bosh bricks a jumper…
- Ford draws the foul on the drive.
- Parker takes the feed from Ford, goes to the baseline and dunks it.
- Bosh finally battles in the paint but doesn’t get the ball as TJ jacks a trey.
- Raptors finish the 2nd on a 14-3 run, cutting the lead to 60-47 heading into the half.
3rd Quarter (Stats):
- TJ gets out on in transition, and draws the foul on Lewis, hits both from the line.
- Nelson hits Howard (who is deep in the post) with an entry pass that turns into a two-handed dunk.
- Bosh cleans up Parkers turnover, hits the layup and draws the foul on Howard, hits it from the line, 9 point game.
- Howard spins right and draws the foul, hits both from the line.
- Nelson skips to Hedu for a trey. He was somewhat open running baseline and curling to the elbow extended.
- Bosh drives in traffic and draws the foul, hits both from the line.
- Lewis nails a trey from Nelson’s penetration.
- Parker steals the ball from Nelson, and nails the trey on the break.
- Ford penetrates and kicks to Bargnani for a trey, 9 point game again.
- Howard grabs an offensive board in traffic, and put down a nasty two-hander.
- Howard blocks Rasho again, then Orlando forces the Raptors into a 24 second violation.
- Nelson easily penetrates and lays it up.
- Bosh finds Rasho in the paint for a hook.
- Nelson easily penetrates again, through 4 guys, and lays it up.
- Bosh grabs an offensive board, and draws a foul on the put back, hits both from the line.
- Parker rips an offensive board away from Howard.
- Bosh commits a charge on Lewis.
- Rasho lobs an alley-oop to Bosh for a tip in.
- Howard gets the ball deep in the post and draws the foul. Hits both from the line.
- Parker penetrates and kicks out to Rasho for an 18 footer.
- Calderon goes backdoor to Parker for the layup.
- Howard grabs an offensive board, and gets fouled on the way up, hits both from the line.
- Calderon airballs the ball, then Bosh gets called for the foul on Howard, he hits 1 of 2 from the line.
- Calderon steps inside the arc and nails a jumper.
- Dooling gets into the paint, and returns the favour.
- Kapono hits a jumper in transition.
- Turkoglu loses his defender with the pump fake and hits a runner in the paint.
- Howard blocks Calderon on the layup attempt, man is a beast.
- 85-75 Orlando lead heading into the 4th.
4th Quarter (Stats):
- Calderon finds Kapono behind the arc, and nails the trey.
- Parker curls off the screen and draws the foul on Evans on the shot, hits both from the line.
- Bargnani fouls Howard under the basket, he hits 1 of 2 from the line.
- Kapono nails another trey from the corner, 5 point Magic lead!
- Turkoglu poss up Parker and hits a fade away in the paint to stop the bleeding.
- Hedu finds Howard under the rim for a two-hander, lead back to 9.
- Howard grabs Hedu’s missed layup, and puts it back.
- Kapono forces a trey, and bricks the shit out of it.
- Howard puts back Evans’ missed trey with a nasty dunk, Raptors timeout (Magic by 13).
- Rasho turns the ball over, and Nelson lays it up on the break.
- Parker penetrates and kicks to Calderon for a trey.
- Nelson gets into the paint, and draws the foul on JC…hits both from the line.
- Delfino grabs an offensive board in traffic.
- Bosh draws the foul on Howard on the drive.
- Bosh gets fouled taking it to the paint by Nelson, hits both from the line.
- Parker gets fouled shooting the trey (Hedu foul) hits 2 of 3 from the line.
- Nelson forces a jumper over Parker with the shot clocking winding down…sticks it…
- Turkoglu tips the missed layup in, 3 times, before it goes in.
- Nelson gets into the paint, and draws the foul on the jumper, hits both…both are daggers, I’m done taking notes.
Technorati Tags: Andrea Bargnani, Anthony Parker, Carlos Delfino, Chris Bosh, Chris Quinn, Dwight Howard, Hedu Turkoglu, Jamario Moon, Jameer Nelson, Jason Kapono, Jason Kidd, Jose Calderon, Keeyon Dooling, Keith Bogans, Maurice Evans, Rashard Lewis, Sam Mitchell, TJ Ford
+0
April 20th, 2008 at 8:15 pm
You didn’t miss anything. Nobody knew until just before the game. Seemingly TJ didn’t know until he heard Bargs announced.
I still don’t mind the move. Throw in a curveball and see what happens.
At my dinner tonight, a guy called the Raptors defence 7-11 style. Wide open for your convenience all day and all night.
AltRaps’s last blog post..Scotts Shots - Game 1 vs Orlando
April 20th, 2008 at 9:02 pm
I guess lower expectations would be in order.
Coaching change - probably 1 more year
Draft Pick - hopefully better then the 1st round pick
Let’s hope they compete better in Toronto.
April 20th, 2008 at 9:25 pm
What’s the point of experimenting with a brand new starting lineup in Game 1 of the NBA playoffs? He took out our best defender and we got scorched in the first quarter, Bargnani couldn’t guard Turkoglu and contributed nothing on offense. There is not a single reason to start Bargnani. None.
If Mitchell thought he could use his size over Turkoglu at the 3 he’s sadly mistaken because Bargnani doesn’t know how to use any of his length or size, not on offense or defense. There was no rhyme or reason behind this change and goes to show that Mitchell is simply shooting arrows in the dark.
Playing from behind takes a toll on a team mentally and physically, even if the Raps took the lead in the fourth they wouldn’t have had enough to pull through.
Arsenalist’s last blog post..Game 1: Horrible defense, lack of plan kills off Raptors
April 20th, 2008 at 10:03 pm
I thought it was a good play by Sam to switch Barngani into the starting lineup. The situation called for desperate measures. Team hasn’t been playing up to it’s capabilities and it’s not like Moon faired any better defending Hedo during the regular season. What was Hedo averaging against the Raps? 20, 8 and 8. Something along those lines. Unfortunately he had a bad game. It’ll be interesting to see if Sam stays with him for the next game. I’d be okay with Bargnani being given a second crack of the whip.
I gotta say I was very surprised to see Jameer Nelson outplay TJ Ford and Calderon. TJ doesn’t look confident out there, he’s not playing like he did early in the year.
Raptors desperately need a second scorer. They had a great run early in the fourth and pulled it within reach. They had the momentum, Orlando looked nervous, and the only thing I saw was uncertainty. The Raptors had no idea where their next basket was coming from while Bosh was on the bench. Someone like Corey Maggette, an out and out bullish scorer who gets easy baskets for you, he’d be a nice fit. Clipps need a point and have Thornton waiting in the wings, something could be worked out.
nbaroundtable’s last blog post..Game 1: Detroit vs Philadelphia
April 21st, 2008 at 12:48 am
i have to agree with arsenalist, things weren’t desperate yet. it was game 1 for crying out loud. bargnani hasn’t started or played the three yet all season, then all of a sudden he is supposed to cover hedu? really bad call on smitch’s part.
the raptors need some rebounding an interior defense/shot blocking. maggette wont fix everything. rasho/bosh don’t intimidate in the lane, until that is solved, it is open season in the paint for the opposing team.
April 21st, 2008 at 9:27 am
The only reason Smitch started Bargnani was because Colangelo was calling for it, expect Smitch to go back to his new rotation. Bargnani is just as bad of a 1st overall pick as Kwame Brown….gj Colangelo.
April 21st, 2008 at 9:49 am
are you guessing on that tom, or do you know something we don’t?
at least kwame brown has been usefull for every team he played on. washington got caron butler for him, the lakers got gasol for him, and the grizzlies will get cap relief from him.
April 21st, 2008 at 10:37 am
The Raptors second leading scorer is Anthony Parker at 12.5 points per game. That makes him the lowest scoring second option in the league.
Only 4 teams have a second scorer below 17ppg - Seattle (Wilcox 13.4), Cleveland (Ilguaskas 14.1), Minnesota (McCants 14.9) and Memphis (Mike Miller 16.4). Three of those teams finished with a bottom four record in the league.
Now that’s a pretty big margin. 25 other teams have a second scorer above 17ppg and the Raptors best option is Parker at 12.5 points. There’s far too heavy a burden to put on Bosh.
It’s easier to limit Bosh during the playoffs. The opposition has the time to only concentrate on one team, and in this case one scorer. They come up with better ways to limit his space. Especially relevant to Bosh because he’s primarily a penetrating big man from 16-18 feet inwards. We saw the Magic send Jameer Nelson over to cut off the lanes several times in the second half. The Magic will get better at that as the series goes on, like New Jersey did last year.
Diversity offensively is a huge seperation factor for success in the playoffs. The Raptors don’t have it, it should be their first priority.
nbaroundtable’s last blog post..Game 1: Boston vs Atlanta
April 21st, 2008 at 10:42 am
the raps need to take the positives out of this game. the magic shot an unnreal percentage inthe first half, including 9 three’s in the first quarter. they simply shot the lights out, but the raps did bounce back and bring it within 5. it might have been a different game if bosh didnt get into foul trouble, but what the raps need is somebody to come off the bench and drive to the basket…enough of this jacking up 3’s like they’re going outta style. kapono was on fire, but if there was someone like bargs to come in and drive to the basket and get fouled, then they would slow the game down and close the gap.
game 2 should be better, but if the raps dont start playing some tough D and boxing out the’ll be done in 4
April 21st, 2008 at 11:04 am
way to break it down nbaroundtable…the raptors are the only team that would start moon at small forward too, so i’m not very surprised. but, i wouldn’t mind wilcox on this team, he would be nice lining up with bosh in the front court.
April 21st, 2008 at 6:57 pm
———————————————————————-
re: “Step By Step, Possession By Possession,”
———————————————————————-
The average basketball ‘fan’ has no idea what determines Winners from Losers in an NBA game.
Read that quote again and again … and then actually listen to what the best NBA coaches have to say when they give an explanation for THE reason their team won or lost a specific game.
In the NBA, teams Win and/or Lose games because of changes in momentum, and specific individual player match-ups AND the scoring situations they create which a team takes advantage of by making open shots.
Coming from a time-out situation, at the 10:15 mark of the 4th Quarter in yesterday’s game between Orlando & Toronto, the Magic ran an isolation Post-up play for Hedo Turkoglu on the Right Block vs Anthony Parker, when the Raptors had closed Orlando’s lead to just 5 pts.
When the Raptors faked a cover-down and, instead, stayed home on Orlando’s shooters … Hedo faked baseline and turned toward his Right shoulder - into the middle of the lane - for a Turn-around, fall-away Jump Shot that struck nothing but net … and stemmed the tide of momentum the Raptors had built up by cutting into Orlando’s lead, decisively, with Chris Bosh sitting on Toronto’s bench with 4 fouls.
This most critical possession of the game was then followed by the following sequence of 6 possessions (combined) for the two teams:
* Tor … Rasho Nesterovic missed a driving layup shot … Tor 83, ORL 90
* ORL … D12 made a dunk, coming off a high middle pick & roll … Tor 83, ORL 92
* Tor … Jose Calderon missed a 3pt Shot, at the top of the key … Tor 83, ORL 92
* ORL … Hedo Turkoglu missed a driving layup, which D12 rebounded & put back … Tor 83, ORL 94
* Tor … Jason Kapono missed a 3pt Shot, off the dribble … Tor 83, ORL 94
* ORL … Tor was called for a Defensive 3 Second Violation … Lewis missed the FT … but, after inbounding the ball, D12 rebounded Bogans missed 3pt Shot and finished the sequence with a 2nd put back (this time a dunk)
after which this game WAS DONE … at the 8:08 mark of the 4th Quarter.
In the NBA, teams Win and/or Lose games because of changes in momentum, and specific individual player match-ups AND the scoring situations they create which a team takes advantage of by making open shots … FULL STOP.
khandor’s last blog post..De-constructing the mystery that is Chris Bosh
April 21st, 2008 at 8:12 pm
Man, I have read from hoopshype that smitch would surely get fired after this season…
Melvin’s last blog post..The upset…
April 21st, 2008 at 8:49 pm
We need someone on trhe boards and well you really cant stop D12 so you double him and if he attempt U JUMP not watch.Has anyone thought of Kris Hump guarding D12 i mean he’s perfect this guy stressed Shaq last year. Kris n bosh can do a decent job blocking. I dont think delfino can match this series.Kapono def. matches this series he’s a grea three point threat
Next year plans:
Tell sam this is his final year (he’ll coach better)
Draft or trade for a center cause rahso is gettin old (Samuel Dalembert , Hasheem Thambeet, Jamaal Magloire)
Clear/Trade players: Brezec ,Graham,Baston,TJ!!!!!
SF position:MIKAEL PEITRUS!!!!
April 21st, 2008 at 11:15 pm
nice coverage there khandor. it was frustrating to see the raptors claw back to within 5, then let it get out of hand so quickly.
Vinthulan: i really like pietrus. he would fit in nicely with the raptors. i have been pining for him all year!
April 22nd, 2008 at 5:10 am
I liked the Bargnani starting move, but thought that Mitchell would actually still play Moon for a decent time…3 minutes!!?? Jameer Nelson came out a man on a mission and no one can blame him. He certainly made his presence felt and you gotta give him his due while our point guards sucked in comparison to what they normally do. Bosh said after that the point guards didn’t know what play to run and were confused because apparently Smitch inserted some new plays..can’t wait for game 2!
TimeIntact’s last blog post..How to not follow the game plan: Magic 114-100 over Raps
April 22nd, 2008 at 10:12 am
Raps Fan,
You’re most welcome.
khandor’s last blog post..An icon in the making
April 22nd, 2008 at 12:34 pm
Reason we lost… Raptors didnt have any defence, Bargnani is still learning. Moon is 27 years old and knows how to defend better then all the raptor roster. Smitch made a big mistake, im sure bargnani can go on fire if he wants to. he doesnt get the ball allot anymore.
I hope moon can start tonight, we’ll see how everything goes