Catch 22 for Raptors

A Catch 22 for our purposes is a situation in which the desired outcome is impossible to obtain because of self contradiction.
The Raptors want to win a championship, however they lack the wing talent to score late in the game.
Face it- Bosh is a great player. An All-star, maybe even one of the best big men in the league. But he is NOT able to create his own shots and score when we need him to (See Kevin Garnett).
The Raptors have a wealth of big men talent, but are very limited in their guards- can you trust Calderon, Parker, Kapono or (shudder) Moon to fool a Bruce Bowen type defender and knock down the big shot deep in the playoffs? Not as an diss to Bosh but it is the nature of his position that he is not expected to do this all on his own.
The unfortunate truth is their are no quick All-Star guards for the taking, and if they were on the market they would demand what the Raptors cannot afford to give up. The Raptors don't have enough chips to make the big move which they need in order to win.
Unless BC can make something drastic change it looks like the 2nd round is the best we can hope for and that is a real shame.

Perimeter Defence Costs Raptors- Bargnani Goes Off!

The story tonight was defence, or lack thereof when it counted. All season the Raptors have won games largely on their strong interior D and have lived despite their poor work on the perimeter. Tonight the 76ers knocked down outside shots and it cost us the game. The Raptors fought hard and got it within reach, but credit to Philly for battling right back with some big shots. Andrea Bargnani was spectacular tonight, unquestionably his best game of the year mabye EVER! He looked great driving at will to the basket and getting fouled. He even stepped up his D with a pair of huge swats. This was a massive step in his development and he is really becoming a two-headed monster. JO had a very complete game and Bosh put up his usual stellar numbers. The Raptors shot poorly from long range 5/21, and could not put up what they were giving up. Jamario Moon looked awful refusing to drive and constantly taking outside shots. AP started off very slow but caught his stride later in the game. Elton Brand played much better than the last time they met, and although Philly did not dominate the rebounds like last time they played a more complete game. They spread the ball well to their shooters who stepped up to the challenge tonight. They finished 6/11 from the 3 point line largely uncontested. The story of this game may turn out to be Jose Calderon leaving early after what was said to be a leg cramp. His absence forced Will Solomon and Roko Ukic to take the lead role and they looked unorganized and sloppy. Philly's transition offence sealed the deal tonight with countless points off of long rebounds. Fortunately the Raptors are off until Sunday when D-Wade and Beasley come to the ACC, and will have plenty of time to fix these gaping holes in their defence.

Live Game Blog

3rd Quarter
-Raptors have come out shooting the ball again and are falling behind. When will they learn to play aggressive giving their star CB some touches?
-They have the opportunity to shoot free throws the entire quarter but instead Mitchell puts in another shooter in Kapono
-Where is Andrea Bargnani who was playing so well and aggressive?
2nd Quarter
-Bargnani with the dunk of the year!
-Andrea Bargnani getting it done on both ends of the floor, playing very aggressively and doing a great job on the glass
-Raptors are right back in this one thanks to their tough D
-Why can't Moon drive more often? He looks great when he does
-Can't say enough for them battling back into this game. That is how you win- through defence and pounding the ball in with our advantage of Bosh Jo and AB
1st Quarter:
-Raptors came out of the gate sloppy turning the ball over twice.
-Parker has the confidence to take that wide open three even when its not falling which he should- the only way to get out of a slump is to keep on shooting.
-JO has brought a great intensity to this team as seen by his hustling back on fast break
-Anybody else notice JO has oven mitts for hands?
-Elton Brand just wanting it more and getting it done
-Raptors are not getting bailed out like they have in past games
-Very bad sign as Calderon walks off the court gingerly. They can't afford to lose him at this point
Pre Game:
Raps need to bounce back from a tough loss- this is the first time this year we will see how they can respond to a situation like this. Philly is very hungry for a win as they have started out poorly. Dalembert destroyed in the post last time they played, look for the Raptors to match their intensity we saw against Boston defensively for them to succeed tonight. Bosh, new vid out, is the cornerstone of this team and needs to carry them down the stretch of a game defended well or not. He is our star and needs touches. Philadelphia is a very dangerous team and this is by no means a gimme for the Raptors. The 76ers need this game badly to put them back where they want to be among the Eastern Conference and will play with a lot of energy. The Raptors were fortunate in the first game for the 76ers shot poorly, that could be the difference tonight.

Raptors County speaks with Sam Dalembert

We were priveliged enough to speak briefly with Sam about Chris Bosh and what it means for him to play in Canada. Next time they come in we will have more time to talk as we were limited severely today as Sam needed to head to the arena.

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Lesson From The Champs

The Raptors came up short in the final moments against the Boston Celtics tonight in heartbreaking fashion. The theme tonight was finishing a game, and the Raptors could not handle the pressure of going toe-to-toe with the NBA Champs tonight. It is very simple- to win on the road, no matter how good defence you play (in which they played excellent tonight), you have to be able to score down the stretch. Tonight was a flashback to what we've seen so many times in the past, and what has haunted us in the playoffs- inability to close tight games out. Perhaps this can be accredited to a lack of a 'money' playmaker to turn too down the stretch. Bosh, Calderon and JO are great during regulation, but when a great defensive team like Boston locks up they were not there to answer back. Paul Pierce was dynamite in the last few minutes making impossible looking contested shots. In the last minute however, the Raptors allowed him to easily drive to the hoop, with help coming late and gave up an easy bucket. That put the game out of reach, and the Raptors surrendered a 16 point lead to give the game away. This ending spoiled a great first half of the game for JO who put up 19 points, but was shut out in the 2nd ending with 23. Chris Bosh was quiet all night, and did not even touch the ball late. The Raptors will need to find somebody to step up late in order to avoid this being a recurring event.

Raptors Tame 'Cats in Charlotte

With Michael Jordan in the stands, the Raptors received exceptional contributions from Andrea Bargnani, Chris Bosh and Jamario Moon to defeat the hopeless-looking Bobcats. Down by 10 points late in the 3rd Quarter, the Raptors went on an absolute run, outscoring Charlotte 17-0 at one point. The Bobcats must be able to put a game like this away if they want to be respectable. Andrea Bargnani had a solid 4th Quarter, and along with Moon played solid energetic defence down the stretch. Chris Bosh retained his superstar form, and is quickly becoming among the select few 'Dominant' big men. Another tough test goes tonight as the Raptors travel to Bean-Town for what they hope is a clash of eastern conference powers.

Raptors begin 3-game road trip in the ATL

The Toronto Raptors will begin an important 3-game swing tonight against a good, young team in Atlanta. The Hawks athleticism will likely give Sam big problems tonight. Look for JO to continue slowly, it will take some time until he regains his form on the offensive side of the ball. He must make up for this lack of production with an extra effort defensively and minimize his low-percentage shots for the Raptors to be successful this weekend. Look for an interesting matchup with Al Horford inside. Would like to see the Raps swing the ball more opening up the inside for Bosh to get some easy points. It will be interesting to see how Sam manages the pg position between Roko, Solomon and an overworked Calderon. This is a nice challenge for the young season, and we will get a good read how the Raptors come into a tough road game different from last year. It will be interesting to see how different this team actually is from last years edition. Keep your fingers crossed for the TSN2 thing to work out this week or their will be plenty of angry fans. Jack Armstrong and Matt Devlin have been doing an excellent job so far.
Next Post likely won't be until late Saturday or Sunday.

Lest We Forget

November the 11'th is Remembrance Day

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved, and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders Fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders Fields.

- John McCrae

We must not forget those brave soldiers who fought and died for our freedom in WW1. This is also Holocaust Education Week- the remembrance for the 6 million Jews who were murdered systematically in the Holocaust by Nazi Germany and its collaborators during WW2. There are things much more important than basketball, and we shouldn't lose perspective. Never Again
For more information visit http://www.holocausteducationweek.com/

And We Are Up!

It is a momentous occasion that RaptorsCountry.com is now up and booming. There will be daily content, and we will get some interviews with players and media as soon as we can!
Stay tuned for much, much more!

Raptors best interest for a McCain victory

The Toronto Raptors are 2-0 alltime the day after a Republican Victory. They therefore have an 100% chance of defeating the Pistons tomorrow if McCain wins.

UPDATE:
Turns out my words were prophetic- you can "thank" American voters for the Raptors loss last night

Iverson to Pistons

Allen Iverson is officialy a member of the Detroit Pistons, swapped for Chauncey Billups, Antonio McDyess and a washing machine in Chiekh Samb. The trade works very well for Detroit who will now take on Iverson's expiring contract. This alows Dumars to work with roughly 20 Million this off-season, and retain their solid youth in Stuckey, Maxiell, Prince and Hamilton. For Denver, the move is a bit of a mystery, but they must believe that with the talent they have all that is missing is somebody to get them the ball. AI a shoot-first point guard simply wasn't getting the job done, and now he has a shot with an experienced team to make it to his second NBA Finals. They will have to get past the Raptors Wednesday, no word whether AI will suit up.

New Website!

This will now become www.RaptorsCountry.com !!
Get ready because I expect some interviews to be posted in the next week!
E-mail address to contact me is admin@raptorscountry.com

Calderon Provides Dagger at Bradley Center

Jose Calderon capped off an extraordinary night with a clutch 3-pointer that silenced the crowd and put the game on ice. The Raptors are now 3-0 for the first time since 2004, and the optimist still sees room for improvement. The Defense was there, and despite a lapse of energy during the 4th quarter the Raptors held on. Once again, the Raptors played tough and physical D, not giving the Bucks anything easy in the paint. Andrea Bargnani is a perfect example of how the intensity on Defense has changed from last year; Sam appears to finally gotten the message across that shooting the lights out every night isn't the best way to win games. Still, the Raptors are very dependent on their perimeter game, counting on big shots from Calderon and Jamario Moon of all people in the 4th quarter. That is definitely something they will want to look at, because Moon is not your best option late in the game to sink a three. Sometimes they need to have a reminder who was in the Slam Dunk contest and 3-Point Winner respectively. Tough to get a read from tonight- the Raps were fortunate to get a win in diffucult circumstances, and playing poorly. However, Milwaukee is not a great team but they kept it close and very near stole the game late. The Raptors need to close out a game like this at the beginning of the 4th quarter. Mitchell chose to keep his starters in for big minutes and the fatigue was very evident late. Perhaps if Ukic had played some more minutes in the 3rd the Raptors would have fresh legs closing out the game and an easier time. Anthony Parker must get some recognition for his shut-out defense which kept Michael Redd in check shooting just 7-19 with 19 points. It was unsettling that rookie Luc Mbah-a-Moute and Andrew Bogut had an easy time late in the game, but some of that can be accredited to JO fouling out early in the 4th. Doesn't matter how you win as long as you win, and it will be an easy flight home for Mitchell and crew. 3-0 never felt so sweet until tomorrow when they look at the tape, and look forward to Detroit Wednesay night at the ACC. 

Player of the Game:

Jose Calderon 8-15 25 pts 8 ast

Calderon showed that last season was a glimpse of his capability as an every game starting pg. He made big plays all game and had ice in his vains knocking down the winning three. Wednesday will be an intersting test to see how he can hold up defensively against one of the best in Chauncey Billups.

At The Half

Sloppy play to end the half by both teams. Raps have relied on big stops thus far in the year and it looks like they have showed up tonight ready to defend. Again we are witnessing a block party in Milwaukee. Calderon has kept us in the game with his long-range ability even though he's not shooting his expected percentage. A few bad fouls have kept this game close, but the Raptors will take what they have considering the circumstance of a back-to-back and Milwaukee's home opener. Have to cover the perimeter shots- Raps have been fortunate the Bucks aren't hitting their open looks, but that type of play will catch up to us eventually. Raps have kept the crowd from being a factor thus far and look poised to become 3-0 for what has to be the first time in a while.

1st Quarter Bites

Who are the Raptors playing tonight? Looks like a mix between the Texas Longhorns and Chicago Bulls- and they say the purple Dino jerseys were bad. 

Raps started out looking like they haven't shaken off last nights emotion. Sloppy Bucks offense kept them in a game where things could be much worse by now. Charlie V looks poised for a big game- seems Villanueva always gets jacked up for a Bucks-Raps contest. 

Update- Starting to see more physical play particularly on offense- if only Bosh took it hard to the hoop like that more often- and taught Bargnani, Moon and Graham while he was at it!

More to come at the half and make sure to read the post game coverage!