With a couple games under their belt, the weaknesses are starting to shine through the cracks. With only a few weeks and 6 more games to make things tight, Mitchell should, IMHO, be focusing on a couple things:
Perimeter Defense
First and foremost, the boys on the wing need to do a better job of defending. With only Parker and Moon capable of playing anything close to 48 minutes (probably closer to 30-32 minutes) of defense at their position, this might be a tall order.
Where this get’s sticky is when the Raptors field a line such as:
- Calderon
- Parker
- Bargnani
- Bosh
- O’Neal
With the bulk that Bargnani has put on over the summer, guarding 3’s in the NBA will be that much tougher. We saw what Turkoglu did to a leaner Bargnani in the playoffs. Imagine what he will do to him now? I’m not saying he will get be outclassed, just that he will be a liability on the wing.
It is crucial that the penetration be minimized, or at least controlled, so Bosh/O’Neal don’t have people attacking them play after play.
Aside from the penetration, giving capable wings space to pop open jumpers/treys could be a disaster.
Mitchell needs to find a way to mask the perimeter defense deficiencies, and I hate to say it, but actually using a zone defense might do the trick. Not the half-assed attempts we have seen over the last couple season. The only other real option is to bring a stopper in, a Mikael Pietrus if you like, There might be other options, I just can’t see them, prayer maybe?
Harmony Between Bosh and O’Neal
There have been some flashes so far, I’ll be the first to admit, but with so much pinned on O’Neal, more time needs to be devoted to the development of these two guys together. I understand that pre-season you play your bench more then normal, but the Raptors made a fundamental shift in strategy with O’Neals acquisition. They have to devote some time, when the games don’t mean anything, rather then hammering things out come the first few weeks of the season. I suspect the latter course would facilitate Mitchell’s early departure as the head coach.
One thing to consider is the amount of time both Bosh and O’Neal take to make a move once they get the ball. Bosh has made strides, but he isn’t as quick to make the move as he should be. And from what I remember of O’Neal, half the shot clock to get a shot off is all that comes to mind to me (true or not).
Calderon Needs to Shoot More
Not much to it, he needs to be more aggressive then he should be. Defenses know he can take it to the rack, he needs to keep them honest, and be the true triple-threat he can be. This is 100% on him, as he does have the opportunities, but elects otherwise. Fortunately for him, he shoots at such a high clip, defense stay somewhat honest, but imagine he takes more shot…I mean, I wouldn’t be so upset with the jumpers Moon takes that he shouldn’t, cause it means he will be taking less.
Technorati Tags: 2008 Raptors Pre-Season, Andrea Bargnani, Anthony Parker, Chris Bosh, Hedu Turkoglu, Jamario Moon, Jermaine O’Neal, Jose Calderon, Mikael Pietrus, Sam Mitchell
October 10th, 2008 at 1:13 pm
I think the biggest concern for the raptors is the three position and the wing. They just don’t have the talent at those positions. AP is good, but not a starter, and they are going to have to address this glaring gap in the offseason.
October 10th, 2008 at 1:57 pm
What options DO they have now? I’m guessing who we see on the wing will vary from night to night and even depend on what is happening in the game. The problem is that we have a bunch of guys who can do their thing pretty well, but no one guy who can do everything to a satisfactory degree at that position. I’m starting to wonder if Smitch might start experimenting with some of his guards at the 3… which would probably contribute to horrible game losses as a result…
Is the wishlist for our 3 just someone who can play decent perimeter defense?
October 10th, 2008 at 2:32 pm
Bargnani, Bosh and O’Neal will rarely be on the court together as per Mitchell and BC as he’s allotted approx 2/3 of the game for each of them. I don’t think anybody will ask Bargnani to defend the 3 so you don’t have to worry about that.
Arsenalists last blog post..Early “statement game” against Philly + PER madness
October 10th, 2008 at 2:39 pm
AP is a legit starter in the NBA
Moon may not be… but has to be here due to the lack of D we have at all 3 small postions (especailly PG)
I think AP gets a bad rap he is clearly our 4th best player and can guard his postion. He is not Bruce Bowen, but he is not going to cost us any games. Jose has to keep oposing PG’s from getting to the rack. Moon will do a good job defending SF’s. I think Mitchell has figured out that this starting lineup is his best defensive lineup. With Moon, Bosh and Oneal our defensive front court should be very good.
Kapono comming off the bench becomes a neccessity due to his defensive weakness (against other subs he can be far more effective on both sides of the floor)
This Raps team is as good as any team not named Boston in the East and can beat them in the playoffs as we match well against them.
Stop worrying fans. We are good, really good.
Are we perfect? No.
Could we upgrade at the wing? Sure
However due to the cap there are not many teams that are perfect.
GO Raps.
Stop worrying fans and get ready for the best season in the franchise history.
Our bigs are the best in the NBA, our PG play will very good, and the wings will be good enough to get us wins.
SEE YOU GUYS AT THE FINALS.
October 10th, 2008 at 6:51 pm
For both pre-season and early regular season games …..
I’m looking primarily at (1) what shape Jermaine is in (2) how Bargnani is trying to score and his overall game.
Secondarily I’m looking at the defense of Parker and Moon. See if Jamario can take that next step forward … and if Parker can regain (fully or partially) his D from his first season.
Thirdly, the new faces on the bench plus how Kapono is playing.
Daves last blog post..Power Rankings
October 11th, 2008 at 3:02 am
I dunno… AP is only getting older…
October 11th, 2008 at 11:19 am
he is darien, but i still think he has a solid contribution to offer if he isn’t overplayed (i.e. 35+ minutes a game).
October 11th, 2008 at 1:02 pm
After the two preseason games (don’t tell me it is still early like those guys never played in NBA or basketball for that matter) I am less then optimistic.
I liked Kris Humphries and Andrea Bargnani. Solomon and Ukic are promising. We have to believe in Calderon and Bosh (do we have a choice?)!
Moon and Parker will not be as good as during their first season with Raptors. Hassan Adams? Who? Jason Kapono sucks and to bad that Mr. GM will never admit he screwed up. Send both of them to Russia and bring back Delfino.Joey Graham is a sick joke. How much longer? Willie Solomon? Who? Nathan Jawai: weak heart in big body? What about brain?
Sam Mitchell? The man is already tired, concerned, frightened, pissed of, disappointed…Those impressive bags under his eyes…I would say get rid of him, but who else? And what about mighty millionaire Mr. Jermaine O’Neal and his workout for several months in Vegas? Guy can’t jump!? He looks totally out of shape? Scary!
Raptors I still love you!
October 11th, 2008 at 1:24 pm
lol @ steve
very negative steve, but i see your point with every single person you mentioned. i wonder what you would be saying if they lost the two pre-season games?
philly will be a good test tomorrow, really looking forward to it.
October 11th, 2008 at 11:47 pm
Raps fan have the tendency to be worried about perimeter D… thats because we envision the 2007-2008 raps , guys our starting line up is tight and we can match up very well defencively with ANY nba team. calderon can play D , will solomon can back him up against good scoring PGs, AP is a very solid TEAM defencive player, having JO and Bosh will help him alot, Moon is Moon! Hassan Adams, Joey graham(fingers crossed), Will solomon and maybe not roko himself but his size will help alot. no need to worry about JO and Bosh , andrea will(I truly believe) put the efforts to play good D and Hump is SO underrated hell have a breakout season on both ends of the floor.
JO & CB4 harmony will come in time , in a raps offencive system theres always good flow, by MAXIMUM after the all star break those two will either dominate or have an edge on any bigs duo in the league.
Calderon, PLEASE JOSE shoot more ! if hes Agressive theres 2 outcomes
1: he scores , scores and scores
2: he has 10-15 assists per night
AS SIMPLE AS THAT !!
He s unselfish and makes very smart decisions, if he attracts the plays draw-n-kick raptor fans will forget the lose of TJ in no time.
October 12th, 2008 at 1:50 pm
Hassan Adams. Where did we get this guy from?