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The Official 2006/2007 Toronto Raptors & NBA Thread (pg. 16)
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| Porky |
| quote: | Originally posted by MarkT
^^^ there is no way in hell Minnesota is a better team than Toronto. Take off KG and they will completely fall apart. Take away ANY one player on Toronto and the team survives.
actually, if I'm reading the stats right, the Raps *would* be the 8th seed, if you project out the #s.
there are only 6 teams over .500 in the western conference. the raps record would put them in the playoffs. ok, we have easier compeition over here, you say? true. So let's say they played over there and thus we will just look at just their % against West. Conf. opponents:
while the Raps are 12-15 against the Western Conference (.444), that is actually a better winning % than 8 of the 15 teams in that conference against their own conference's teams. So, factoring out their easier schedule, and going solely by everyone's records against Western Conf. opponents, the Raps would be the 8th seed, no?
erase the Raps horrible start (i.e. they are better than their overall record indicats), and they are a better team than their overall record would suggest.
in any case, sure it will definitely benefit the team to go into the playoffs winning the Atlantic. It means playing a tier team and possibly winning a round or two...whereas if they played in the West and went in as the #7 or #8 seed, they'd prob. get smoked in the 1st round by a division champ there.
I like to look at the Raps in a positive light...not just as a fan, but because they've also accomplished what they have with virtually a *completely* revamped roster. All of the top teams in the West (Dallas, Phoenix, San Antonio, Utah) have not made *major* changes and that's a big reason for their success (on top of their obvious talent level) and Houston remains largely the same, but has had injury problems.
give the Raps another year or two and they'll be competing with those teams. Bosh, Bargnani, TJ and Calderon easily match up with their counterparts on other teams. As the |
i give colangelo alot of credit for revamping the raptors roster.. but it's a patchwork roster at best.
tj ford? while he's somewhat worth the almost $10million/year he is still a defensive liablity given his size (5'10"). most 'small' pg's are defensive liabilities to their teams (think iverson), i've never heard of any guard around 6feet that was a defensive stopper.
i actually think calderone is more than capable of leading, even given his sketchy shooting inconsistencies. but his assist/TO ratio is solid, he just needs more minutes, which are unfortunately given to a higher paid player (tj ford)
garbosa is a great glue guy, but he's 28 or 29 years old, at his prime, so his production will fall in later years.
maybe i was a bit harsh in saying that minnesota is a better team. you are right. but KG is an A+ player who can completely dominate the game. while bosh is getting there (A-), bosh still has weak games where he coasts... youth i presume.
i'm just trying to tone down the irrational exuberance from all the crazy toronto fans, b/c from a realistic perspective, the raptors are a solid team, but nothing to get super excited right now, b/c they are in a stage of growth, and havn't reach full maturity yet.
:) |
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| exstasie |
I don't enough basketball to have a decent conversation with you guys. But its good to see Toronto finally supporting the Raptors again. Even though the city is know for jumping on the bandwagon.
I remember back in the day when they use to be good. The city was crazy for the Raptors! I've been to every single playoff game so far and can't wait for the post season this year (except i'll be out of the country) :(
But I hope the Toronto fans can stay loyal and keep supporting the Raps even if they don't make it very far this year... |
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| MarkT |
| quote: | Originally posted by Porky
i give colangelo alot of credit for revamping the raptors roster.. but it's a patchwork roster at best.
tj ford? while he's somewhat worth the almost $10million/year he is still a defensive liablity given his size (5'10"). most 'small' pg's are defensive liabilities to their teams (think iverson), i've never heard of any guard around 6feet that was a defensive stopper.
i actually think calderone is more than capable of leading, even given his sketchy shooting inconsistencies. but his assist/TO ratio is solid, he just needs more minutes, which are unfortunately given to a higher paid player (tj ford)
garbosa is a great glue guy, but he's 28 or 29 years old, at his prime, so his production will fall in later years.
maybe i was a bit harsh in saying that minnesota is a better team. you are right. but KG is an A+ player who can completely dominate the game. while bosh is getting there (A-), bosh still has weak games where he coasts... youth i presume.
i'm just trying to tone down the irrational exuberance from all the crazy toronto fans, b/c from a realistic perspective, the raptors are a solid team, but nothing to get super excited right now, b/c they are in a stage of growth, and havn't reach full maturity yet.
:) |
I agree that Calderon is the better "pure" PG...no doubt in my mind, in fact. His size is definitely an advantage. If Toronto can somehow get he and TJ to continue to (apparently) happily co-exist, we're set at PG for many years. If Toronto could only keep one, I really hope they would choose Calderon though. Given our other roster moves, Ford for Charlie V was still an excellent move.
Garbo is needed (along with Rasho and Parker) to balance out the youth, I think. Maybe Slokar pans out?
Colangelo (not alone though) has a solid foundation...but I agree that the fickle Toronto fans do need to chill out a bit though and relax with their expectations.
If the Raps win one round, and competitively go out in the 2nd, I'll be reasonably happy...but they could (should?) win two, given the conference competition. Anything beyond that would be gravy. |
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| infinity HiGH |
| Well the Raptors win again. Knicks have been on fire lately so I was a little worried about this game, but the Raptors woke up in the 3rd quarter and really took the game over. Good win. |
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| infinity HiGH |
| quote: | Originally posted by Porky
i'm going to be an ass and say this
but
i don't really give too much respect to the raptors for being the 4th playoff seed in the LEAST-ern conference, winning their division with a .540% record.
sure they have some up and coming stars like calderone and bosh (deserved all star) and bargnani, but the raps don't compell me as 'must watch' tv as say Phoenix would. |
Have you actually watched the Raptors play? They're much more entertaining than most other teams in the league because of their team play. Comparing them to teams like the Suns, Mavs or Spurs though, is a joke. True, sometimes they're really frustrating to watch because they're still a young team that has a lot of learning to do.
You say people shouldn't get excited over them...WTF? Nobody expected the Raptors to get this good this fast, so they're actually exceeding everybody's expectations. People around the league are even talking about them and how much of a threat they really could be once they get going.
As for the "inflated" record. Again, have you actually followed the Raptors this season? They had one of the toughest schedules in the first half of the season. I can't figure out how their record could be "inflated". |
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| Porky |
| quote: | Originally posted by infinity HiGH
Have you actually watched the Raptors play? They're much more entertaining than most other teams in the league because of their team play. Comparing them to teams like the Suns, Mavs or Spurs though, is a joke. |
yea, i have watched the Raps play... they're ok
i would turn down a girl for a Dallas - Phoenix thriller, but not for a Raptors game! hell no! ;) |
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| infinity HiGH |
| quote: | Originally posted by Porky
yea, i have watched the Raps play... they're ok
i would turn down a girl for a Dallas - Phoenix thriller, but not for a Raptors game! hell no! ;) |
Dude, Dallas and Phoenix are a completely different caliber. Speaking of which though, HOLY was last nights Dallas-Phoenix game insane. |
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| Porky |
| quote: | Originally posted by infinity HiGH
Dallas and Phoenix are a completely different caliber. |
so pete, u agree with me then? ;)
western conference finals this year is going to be epic! |
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| TO guy |
Bargnani out with appendicitus, could be trouble, hope he's back on the court soon!
SOURCE |
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| EvilTree |
| quote: | Originally posted by TO guy
Bargnani out with appendicitus, could be trouble, hope he's back on the court soon!
SOURCE |
Eh. Raps have depth.
Don't see too much trouble losing Bargnani, unless the entire bench decides to be crap.
Depends on how long Bargnani is out, this'll hurt his chance for Rookie of the Year. (though Roy seems to be in the forefront right now) |
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| MarkT |
| this is Graham and MoPete's chance to step up and MoPete is playing for a contract, so...here's hoping. |
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| Porky |
| quote: | Originally posted by MarkT
this is Graham and MoPete's chance to step up and MoPete is playing for a contract, so...here's hoping. |
the raps have been alot more effective with mopete's minutes limited to 20min/game |
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