So the first game is in the bag and the opinions have already started flying all around Raptors land. Here’s my take:
This game looked as much like a typical Raptors game as you’re going to find. The flow of the game and the way it was played shows exactly who we are as a team:
- A deep, deep team that has 12 guys capable of making an impact on any given night.
Sam Mitchell played all 12 guys, and I’m glad he did. Conventional wisdom says that you need an 8-9 man rotation with set minutes to be an elite team in this league. I feel like if Mitchell finds the right combinations, that doesn’t have to be a case. I enjoy seeing all twelve guys see some playing time, especially early in the season. Later on, if it’s becoming apparent that a couple of guys are dragging the team down and not fitting in, go ahead and sit them, but last night I didn’t see a single guy who looked out of place. Garbajosa did admittedly look a little slower and just about as confused as I’ve ever seen him on both ends of the court, but he’s not exactly a guy you think should be riding the pine all year. I’d like to see him slowly bumped up to 15-20 minutes a night and see how it goes. A big part of his struggles might’ve been due to him playing with the second stringers. Most of his action last year came with Bosh and Parker on the court. Either way, Mitchell has said that 12 guys seeing action won’t be an every-time occurrence, but I hope he keeps giving everyone a good look. These November games are important, but the true test of this team comes in April. With all the talent the Raptors have, I think they can afford to fiddle around for a couple months. If it creates an extra couple of losses, it will still be worth it if it goes towards finding the perfect balance by the end of the year.
- A talented offensive team that can flat-out score to the tune of 58 points in a half almost at will.
This might be a slight overstatement, but at the same time, with guys like Iguodala and Dalembert, Philadelphia is far from a disaster on the defensive end of the court. It’s hard for anyone to contend with a team that has 4 guys on the court who shoot the ball as well as Bargnani, Kapono, Parker, and Ford do. They all looked gelled, and obviously Bargnani continues to show flashes of absolute dominance. I stated earlier that I’d still prefer to see Nesterovic starting, and I’ll stand by that for now, but there’s no doubt Andrea’s a difference maker on the offensive end. I’ll argue that most of his points would be scored by someone else if he was on the bench, but I can’t say that they’d ALL be replaceable.
- And an out of sync defense that fails nearly every time when the opposition begins to grind out the game and push them hard on every possession.
Surrendering leads is a part of basketball. It’s rare to see a team hold onto a 20-point lead all game without the other team making some kind of a push. I’m not going to start spouting bullshit phrases like ‘Defense holds leads and wins games’, because we all know that regardless of the score, offense and defense always carry the same weight. But when you’ve got a defense that can be taken advantage of the way this one can, well, it puts a lot of pressure on the offense. The Raptors are far from a terrible team on the defensive end, in fact, statistically they’re very solid. But the 76’ers exposed a huge hole, mainly the way we can be attacked relentlessly and not hold up against teams that are going to do all the little things on the offensive end. When teams get away from taking quick jumpers and actually run down the shot-clock, it’s very easy to get a high percentage shot against us. Eventually, our holes open up and someone misses an assignment. When the 76’ers were making their comeback, they were doing this type of thing on EVERY POSSESSION. It’s unrealistic for a team to do this for 48 minutes, because it takes such a toll on you as an offensive player, but at the same time, if a team comes along that the Raptors can’t pull away on, there’s a decent enough chance that they’re going to pull away on us come 4th quarter.
So my final take: The guys played pretty darn well. They came out ready to go and the shots fell because of it. This is an extremely fun team to watch and seeing these guys put on a show for the home opener is a pretty cool thing. At no points during the game, even when we held a couple one-point leads with just minutes left did I feel we were in jeopardy of losing. It’s nice to have that kind of confidence in your team, and it was put there by each and every one of their 47 wins from last year.
Some other quick-hits:
- Definitely not a fan of the new introduction music. I’ll take Rage over Kanye any day of the week. But more than that, I’d like a song that’s a little bit faster and a little bit harder. Inspiring lyrics are great and all, but if I’m a basketball player, I want to be running onto the court with some rock pumping through the building.
- A little odd seeing Calderon and Ford’s lines for the game. It would seem a little more appropriate with their numbers swapped. But either way, they both looked effective and efficient on the court, so no complaints.
- What’s with all the talk of Andrea Bargnani being emotionless? I really thought this had been put aside last season, but apparently not. Look, the guy may be fairly “blank” when it comes to standing in the huddle or walking onto the court, but when someone makes a big play, you can see it on Andrea’s face as well as anyone elses. He’s got a mean streak when he’s on the court, and it’s probably my favourite thing about him. The guy can be damn intense.
- Why the media is still using standard Points-Per-Game and Points-Per-Game-Allowed when determining where a team ranks amongst the league is beyond me. Looking up Offensive and Defensive Efficiency stats isn’t that hard boys…
- It’ll be interesting to see the ratings come Sunday. I don’t remember the last time CBC had a Raptors game.(Edit: It is indeed the first NBA game ever televised on CBC). Hopefully the possibility of such a wide audience will spark some interest and maybe grab a few people who wouldn’t normally give TSN or SportsNet a look. Though with “Football Armageddon!!!!!!” cutting into the second half of the Raps game, it may not get the attention it deserves from most sports fans. Ratings from the Score for the opener were about 126 000, edging out last years opener.
Have to love this quote from Sam Mitchell
“Like I told the coaches, it took me a while to adjust to Carlos because … it looks like he’s laid back the way he plays but he really is playing hard. I’m a different type of personality and I told the coaches early on, make sure it’s not me because it could very well be me and what I want a guy to look like but you have to be who you are, as long as you get the job done.” If anyone can figure out what the hell that means, let me know.
