This week coming up will be a strong test with Jose Calderon Questionable still with his hamstring and the latest report has him not playing in Orlando or Miami. Perhaps he will play again when the Nets come to visit on Friday the 21st or Sunday the 23rd. Either way, we hope he gets back to 100% and doesn’t rush back too early as we need him healthy.
As mentioned, this week we have the Magic and Dwight Howard and a rematch against the Heat in back to back games. I look for the Magic to challenge our back court and I am sure that Smitch will be looking down the bench hoping to see Jose there. As it stands, the team is in the hands of Will Solomon and Anthony Parker to run. I believe that Smitch will keep the trio of Andrea Bargnani and Chris Bosh and Jermaine O’Neal up front to put the pressure defensively on Dwight Howard who can be taken out of games with fouls as we saw the other night. Putting the three bigs up front puts the pressure squarely on Hedu Turkoglu and Rashard Lewis to defend them both inside and on the wing. Bargs should take Lewis off his game with his range and his length.
I hope Smitch realizes that there are not many teams that this lineup won’t work against. The rematch against the Heat should give the Raptors time to solidify this rotation before the Nets and the Fragile One pay a visit to the ACC. The Nets are surprising teams this year with their two wins over the Hawks, but with Josh Boone and Eduardo Najera both listed as questionable, our front line could prove over-whelming to the depleted Nets.
I am looking forward to the game against the Magic as we shall see if we have improved since the tough playoff series in the spring. As much as i would love to see Jose play, I think our front line has a real shot at creating havoc in the Magic’s defensive plan.
As this is my first installment, i wish to thank RaptorsTalk.com for the opportunity to contribute to the forum. I love feedback and hope to provide lots of ideas to discuss. Thank you.
Technorati Tags: Andrea Bargnani, Anthony Parker, Chris Bosh, Dwight Howard, Eduardo Najera, Heat, Jermaine O’Neal, Jose Calderon Questionable, Josh Boone, Magic, Miami, Orlando, Raptors, Rashard Lewis, Will Solomon
November 18th, 2008 at 3:22 pm
i’m going on record as saying a loss to new jersey is absolutely inexcusable. i don’t expect it, but it would be a disaster.
Raps Fans last blog post..Nov. 18/08 - Raptors Weekly Preview
November 18th, 2008 at 5:10 pm
let’s worry about that after our Florida swing! what do you think about tonights game? i do agree a loss to the Nets would not be a step forward in any way at this point.
November 18th, 2008 at 5:38 pm
I would not look past the Nets, they have beaten Detroit and Atlanta (twice) this season. They may be moer trouble than Orlando.
November 18th, 2008 at 6:49 pm
True Gino, but i think they will not be able to handle our front court and it appears that Jose will be back by friday. so i think it is a very winnable game and i critical divisional game at this point in the season.
November 18th, 2008 at 6:52 pm
more trouble than Orlando? i dont think so! the raptors match up a lot better with NJ than Orlando. NJ doesnt have much low post defense to handle Bosh/bargnani/Oneil, but their guard combo is better than the raps with harris and VC.
as for orlando, if the raps can cut down the wide open 3’s that killed them in the playoffs then they should be able to pull something off. DHOW is a monster though
November 18th, 2008 at 7:16 pm
I disagree. NJ will have its hands full against the big 3 but its the Raps who will have to contain a driven carter (who always shows up against the Raps), plus, the Raps defence at the guards has been terrible and JOse has not been great (I think Harris will go off in this game). I think this is a game that the Raps will get exposed in again. I hope I am wrong and you guys are right. But lets remember that the two teams that have exposed their defensive weaknesses (Det and Atl) have both fallen to NJ. I agree with Rapshater that we are better up front, but its been our perimeter defence that has been a total joke this season.
In the Orlando case, it was the disappearance of Bosh and the terrible perimeter defence (open 3’s) that allowed their collapse last season. They are hungry for that game and have something to prove. JO will be very important in that game. But I am afraid that their inability to contain Lewis and Turkoglu last season have not been addressed. Again, I hope I am wrong but this week does not look good.
November 18th, 2008 at 7:42 pm
I’m also dubious about how much of a defensive impact O’Neal will have against Orlando if his perimeter players can’t keep the ball in front of the defense. If he has to help on every dribble penetration then there’s no hope of containing Dwight Howard, he’ll just roll to the front of the rim and dunk the ensuing pass or get an offensive rebound on the missed runner/jumper and dunk the ball. The dribble penetration is the killer blow.
I have no problem with Dwight scoring out of one-on-one moves in the low post. He doesn’t score enough there for me to worry about that. It’s the plays where the defense breaks down and he is gifted an easy dunk or some silly double team comes and gifts a 40% three point shooter an open look. I want to see Dwight go one-on-one in the low post. Give him all the shots he wants and let’s see him keep his defense/rebounding at the same level, let’s see how comfortable his teammates are at playing off of him now that he’s shooting more than 11 shots a night and dominating the ball. Let’s see how many turnovers he picks up. Let’s see how many baskets he makes when he’s forced to create his own shot. Let’s see how good that low post footwork is (bad footwork). Let’s see how many plays Jermaine/Bosh can keep him 5-6 feet away from the rim by the time he shoots, and let’s see how many of those shots miss. Make him work for it …. stop assuming he can do it.
The one advantage in having Jermaine in the lineup is rebounding. As I said, Howard will still be a killer on the offensive glass if dribble penetration occurs, but at least the Raptors will put up a much tougher fight than in the playoffs last season. The inability to play Rasho big minutes because of the floundering offense left the team unable to compete on the backboards (coupled with the wings lack of rebounding - flashbacks of Kapono) …. with Jermaine in town and having two bigs play 30+ minutes it’ll be a lot smoother this time around. Hopefully the team can now keep the likes of Hedo/Lewis off the glass instead of letting them masquerade as high quality rebounders.
November 18th, 2008 at 7:47 pm
Raps Fan,
How have you been liking Mickael Pietrus?
- Almost 15ppg in 27 minutes
- Numerous clutch shots in fourth quarters
- 50% from the field. 45% from three, almost half his attempts for downtown. A TS% of 65%. 90% from the FT line.
- Almost four rebounds plus high quality defense for good measure.
Pietrus is having one heck of a start for the Magic.
I can’t see him keeping up this pace but clearly he enjoys the offense Orlando run, it appears to suit him too. Exciting fit. I’m very happy he found a home after those years in GSW where he didn’t truly fit in.
November 18th, 2008 at 8:08 pm
Pietrus is out, i like our chances tonight!
November 18th, 2008 at 10:44 pm
Ah well, a bright start that couldn’t be maintained. Six main reasons for the loss tonight as I see it:
(1) Pick and roll defense
(2) Dribble penetration
(3) Defending the three point line
(4) Solomon’s turnovers and the team’s turnovers overall, but particularly Solomon
(5) The lack of supporting scoring options for Bosh. Late in the third only two players had more than five points (Jermaine/Solomon). He didn’t have enough scoring help to win this game.
(6) Terrible decision making from the players in the fourth quarter. How they went away from Bosh when he was red hot for I don’t know how many possessions (guessing 6-8 possessions) was atrocious. The point guard and the wings have to do better directing the offense.
I thought the rebounding effort and the defense on Dwight Howard was encouraging.
Jermaine’s performance in the first half was excellent, in the second half was good defensively and poor offensively. Still 16 points, 10 rebounds, 4 blocked shots in 26 minutes is very nice.
Bosh was excellent. He caught fire in the second half, at one point he was 8-9 from the field (the point when his teammates stopped passing him the ball). Great game.
Daves last blog post..Game Time: Orlando vs Toronto
November 19th, 2008 at 2:11 am
I have an idea! Lets be successful in the first half, but then completely forget what made us successful in the 2nd half. I dont understand how this happens to the raptors?
when the 3rd started the raptors forgot about Bosh. why solomon hand to leave his feet to pass the ball most of the time was frustrating. come back Calderon
November 19th, 2008 at 8:07 am
I want to share the funniest thing I’ve heard in my life ever…. I was watching NBA Inside Stuff, with Ahmad Rashad, Gary Payton, and some other dude. And they were reviewing the Miami and Toronto Game, and I’m not sure who said this but when they were showing clips of Will Solomon, one of the guys said:
“Will Solomon reminds me of Chauncey Billups…”
I roared out laughing…. I had tears rolling down my eyes, everything became blurry, and after five minutes of gasping for air, I began stumbling reaching for an anchor…..
Will Solomon reminds me of Chauncey Billups… wow….. That is similar to saying Jamario Moon reminds of Lebron James….Joey Graham reminds of Kobe Bryant……..
I almost changed watching this sport when I heard that….
Damn….
PLEASE BRING BACK JOSE CALDERONE AND TRADE FOR A 3…..I FEEL SOOO SORRY FOR BOSH… THE GUY IS PLAYING LIKE IN ANOTHER DIMENSION!!!!
November 19th, 2008 at 8:08 am
dave, i have been loving pietrus. he was a steal at the mid-level. you forgot to mention his perimeter defense and ability to take it to the rack. i agree he probably wont keep that pace up for the season, but what a great signing that was.
and again dave, you hit the nail on the head with te 6 reasons. the dribble penetration kills the raptors. that and orlando has a knack for getting a lot of open looks when playing the raptors…also solomon sucks, lol.
November 19th, 2008 at 8:12 am
P.S. the look on Ahmad’s face after that was said… Priceless!!!!!