I threw up in my mouth last night. That was the most disgusting defensive effort I have seen this year. 70 points in the first half?!?! The Wizards were all over the place and the Raptors were just standing still. They couldn’t defend against the backdoor cuts and Arenas, Jamison and Butler combined for 62 points. I understand that when a player like Arenas has his shot going there isn’t much you can do to stop him but at least stop the rest of the team. The Wizards joined the Bucks and Cavs in telling the Raptors that their recent loses to Toronto are not going to become the norm. Toronto beat them when they were without key players and they have played with an edge that Toronto hasn’t had.
Rebounding is becoming a very serious problem for the Raptors. They have two seven footers and Bosh isn’t far behind at 6-10, how are they getting out rebounded 49-27? How does Bosh pull down ONE rebound? You can’t win in the playoffs or the regular season without controlling the glass and the Wizards had 17 offensive rebounds. There were times when there were 3 Raptors around the net and the lone Wizard player got the ball. Humphries has been doing a good job recently and had 5 boards in 13 minutes, the same as Bargnani, Bosh and Nesterovic combined. Maybe Mitchell should give him more time as he is one of few players who are willing to get physical under the basket.
Bosh didn’t play badly last night but he isn’t getting the same fouls called. He was putting himself into the upper echelon of players who get better calls around the basket but that seems to be changing. Teams are collapsing down on him hard and fast, taking away his space and he is getting bounced around. He tried hard to bring his team back and make last night’s game competitive but he just didn’t have enough help.
Is it time to start wondering if Anthony Parker is more important to this team then people realize? Is it possible that the “Chucker” is the key to the Raptors defense? He does match up against the opposing team’s best offensive player every night and usually does a very good job. He also stretches the floor with his improving three point shot. We will see how much credit he deserves when he comes back from his sprained ankle.
I am reigning in my predictions tonight. Pau Gasol has been playing really good basketball recently and I am sure Chicago fans are cursing. I have no idea how we are going to contain him but I think that the Raptors will find a way to win as long as they play defense. 100-95 Raptors.
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2 comments:
Chris,
this picking the winner stuff is tricky. If you pick the raps to win every game except the ones against Dallas, San Antonio, and Phoenix, then you look like a slavering fanboy.
If you get a little more precise with your picks, and pick them to lose against, say, New Jersey, people will throw sticks at you in the street.
Tough roe to hoe.
I really thought they were going to bust out recently. I have been right in most of my picks and my stat lines on Bosh aren't far off either. You make some picks and see if you can hoe that roe
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