Tuesday, December 16th 2008 - This is your Raptor Rant!
This past week the Raptor's had a crazy schedule on and off the court. In the past 5 games the Raps managed to pick up 2 wins. A week ago, a complete crushing from Cleveland as the Cavs beat the Raptors 114-94. Toronto returned home the following night to face the surprisingly decent Indiana Pacers. Jay Triano earned his first win as head coach of the Raptors with a 101-88 victory. The Raptors then hopped on a plane again to hit the swamp. With an 0-13 shooting performance from Vince Carter, the New Jersey Nets had a slim chance to beat the Raps. The Raptors walked away with a 101-79 win, knowing they would face this team again in 3 days. New Orleans hit the ACC to take the Raptors on Sunday. With a depleted front court the Hornets were still able to beat the Raps 99-91. The Raptors, were tired for Monday night's matchup with the Nets. Their performance definitely showed it as they lacked energy and intensity for most of the game and eventually falling to the Nets 94-87.
This week coming up, there are some tough games. The Raptors host Dallas on Wednesday evening, then hit the road to play Oklahoma City, San Antonio and the L.A. Clippers. I would like to also mention the Raptors off court schedule. I was lucky enough to again be the Host of the Chris Bosh Foundation's Annual Christmas Party. There were about 500 bright eyed and happy kids there. Everyone got a great meal from Boston Pizza and everyone walked away with a present. Some even got major prizes, like autographed CB4 gear, PS3's, Xbox 360's, and so much more! On Saturday, The Raptor's Foundation unveiled their contributions to John Innes CC located downtown Toronto. There were members of the community there along with Raptor's, Will Solomon, Jose Calderon, Kris Humphries, Anthony Parker, Roko Ukic and Chris Bosh. It was great to see so many eyes light up and hearts touched by the great contributions by these foundations.
Don't forget to catch the Raptor Rant live Tuesdays @ 6.30pm on FLOW 93.5 FM or click here to listen to the podcast
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
New Coach And 5 Games In 7 Days-Oh Boy!
Tuesday December 9th, 2008 - This is your Raptor Rant!
It was exactly 6 days ago that Sam Mitchell was fired and since then, I've heard more and more talk about how the Raptors aren't really that good of a team. According to many NBA experts, analysts and Charles Barkley, the Raptors 'overachieved' one season and set the expectations too high for its followers. After winning the Atlantic Division, the Raps have been pretty much a .500 team. Which according to many, is what they are - an OK team. They are neither really good, nor really bad. Well, it's time for them to prove these people wrong...but can they?
Toronto, has had a very tough schedule so far and that doesn't change for this week. Interim head coach, Jay Triano, will really be tested with 5 games in 7 days. The first one might be the toughest against the scorching Cleveland Cavaliers. King James' minutes have come down while his team has blown out most of its opponents. Tonight will not be any different. The Raps will challenge the Cavs, in waves, but all in all Cleveland is playing fantastic basketball and should take the game by atleast 12. Next up Indiana, who are still buzzing from beating the league leading LA Lakers and a narrow loss to reigning champs, the Boston Celtics. You can bet TJ Ford will be doing all he can to get under the skin of the Raps (players and fans). I even predict a bit of a altercation with someone...just sayin! The Raptors have a sandwich of games over the weekend into Monday, with the Nets as the bread on Friday and Monday and New Orleans the meat on Sunday. All of these games are winnable but just as easily can be lost. The players seem to be happy with the freedom on offense with less set plays and more reading the defence and making decisions. This is something Jose Calderon was used to doing in Europe and in International games, so only time will show if this is something good for the Raptors.
That is your Raptor Rant, any questions, comments or concerns?
devo@flow935.com
Catch the Raptor Rant live on FLOW 93.5 FM, Tuesdays at 6:30pm or click here to listen
It was exactly 6 days ago that Sam Mitchell was fired and since then, I've heard more and more talk about how the Raptors aren't really that good of a team. According to many NBA experts, analysts and Charles Barkley, the Raptors 'overachieved' one season and set the expectations too high for its followers. After winning the Atlantic Division, the Raps have been pretty much a .500 team. Which according to many, is what they are - an OK team. They are neither really good, nor really bad. Well, it's time for them to prove these people wrong...but can they?
Toronto, has had a very tough schedule so far and that doesn't change for this week. Interim head coach, Jay Triano, will really be tested with 5 games in 7 days. The first one might be the toughest against the scorching Cleveland Cavaliers. King James' minutes have come down while his team has blown out most of its opponents. Tonight will not be any different. The Raps will challenge the Cavs, in waves, but all in all Cleveland is playing fantastic basketball and should take the game by atleast 12. Next up Indiana, who are still buzzing from beating the league leading LA Lakers and a narrow loss to reigning champs, the Boston Celtics. You can bet TJ Ford will be doing all he can to get under the skin of the Raps (players and fans). I even predict a bit of a altercation with someone...just sayin! The Raptors have a sandwich of games over the weekend into Monday, with the Nets as the bread on Friday and Monday and New Orleans the meat on Sunday. All of these games are winnable but just as easily can be lost. The players seem to be happy with the freedom on offense with less set plays and more reading the defence and making decisions. This is something Jose Calderon was used to doing in Europe and in International games, so only time will show if this is something good for the Raptors.
That is your Raptor Rant, any questions, comments or concerns?
devo@flow935.com
Catch the Raptor Rant live on FLOW 93.5 FM, Tuesdays at 6:30pm or click here to listen
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
LaLa Land, Mile High, Mormon County-Road Trip!
Tuesday December 2, 2008 - This is your Raptor Rant!
Only 3 games played since we last spoke and the Raps came out 2 and 1. Last Wednesday night at the ACC the Raptors squaked by a young, athletic Charlotte Bobcats with a 93-86 win. Friday night the Hawks were at the ACC to try and defeat the Raptors for a second time this season. Toronto had some big leads but for some reason history tends to repeat itself. In the end the Raps pulled out a 93-88 victory over Atlanta. Toronto is now on a 3 game road trip, which started in Los Angeles to take on the mighty Lakers. The final score, 112-99, doesn’t really give justice to the dominating performance the Lakers had. Kobe Bryant had 23 points, 7 assists and 5 rebounds, in 29 minutes. He didn’t need to be on the court in the fourth quarter. This game also showed the importance on Jermaine O’Neal. His inside presence on offence and defence helps CB4 in so many ways. Chris was forced to guard a pure center in Andrew Bynum, which tired him out when it came to scoring.
This upcoming week doesn’t get any easier, with the Raps in Denver tonight. The Nuggets are 12-6 and 1st in the Northwest Division. The are especially strong team at home. The trade for Chauncey Billups has given them a true point guard and someone with championship experience. The downside to the Nuggets offence is that they can shoot themselves out of a game if they get too trigger happy. The Raps need to keep them on the perimeter and defensive rebounding is going to be a huge key in this game. The Raps then hop on the plane to the land of Mormons to take on the Utah Jazz. This Jazz will be the 3rd team in as many games for the Raps, that are atleast 4 games over .500 and are continuing to surge. They are firing on all cylinders as Deron Williams and Mehmet Okur are back after missing a few games. Sunday, the Raptors are back at the ACC for a game to take on the Portland Trailblazers. The Blazers are off to a strong start this season and are proving their young talent are for real. At 12-6 and challenging Denver and Utah in the Northwest, I couldn’t imagine what would happen with a healthy Greg Oden! All in all I see the Raps winning 2 of the next 3 games IF, and a big IF, JO is healthy and playing solid minutes. They will need him in order to compete with these strong teams from the West.
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