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11 reasons not to hate the WNBA

Ammo — Mon, 06 Sep 2010 18:33:24 GMT

I will admit it. I was so ball hungry yesterday that I managed to catch the 4th quarter of a WNBA playoff game. I have to admit that I wasn't disappointed. It was sold out, loud, hard fought and Seattle made a 12 point comback with about 3 minutes left to win to go to the finals.

Like most guys, I can't say I'd pay to go to a WNBA game if Toronto had a but since it is mostly dudes on this website, I'll post this as an ode so that some of you will manu up (or man down) and watch the WNBA.

11 Reasons Why You Should Stop Crapping On the WNBA - 11Points.com

Smith's New Article about David Andersen

js12 — Mon, 06 Sep 2010 15:52:27 GMT

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Andersen, who was Australia�s leading rebounder and second-leading scorer at the world championship, does seem to have the kind of skills that would endear him to a Raptor team that likes players who can play multiple positions and the 6-foot-11 Andersen fits that bill.

�I suppose I�m a versatile big guy,� he said. �I can swing between the four-five, I�m pretty tall, I can defend fives and fours. It�s a matter of me coming in and finding my slot on the team and where I fit in. I�m a big guy who can mix it up inside and outside.�

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Andersen�s role with the Raptors is completely unknown with three weeks left before training camp.

Toronto already has Andrea Bargnani and Amir Johnson as expected frontcourt starters and drafted a young big man in Ed Davis, who is definitely going to get playing time. And if Toronto chooses to use Linas Kleiza at power forward, it�s unlikely that Andersen will be a significant player in Toronto.

New Raptor David Andersen thinks he?ll fit in - thestar.com

Makes me still wonder: what was the point in bringing in Andersen? BC must have brought him in for reasons other than an expiring contract. In the world championships, I was very impressed with his rebounding especially on the offensive side.

Linas doesn't sound like he's from Europe

Adobo — Sun, 05 Sep 2010 23:42:39 GMT

YouTube- Broadcast Yourself.

Vince Carter

shadoweagle19 — Sun, 05 Sep 2010 18:18:35 GMT

I think its time to stop the booing of VC..i think we should give hima standing ovation and clap signaling that were done with him and time to move on to Chris Bosh...Instead of booing VC we should focus on booing Bosh.

No More "Young Gunz"

Dark Knight — Sun, 05 Sep 2010 16:19:03 GMT

:reporter:

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The NBA won't allow the Raptors to market DeMar DeRozan, Sonny Weems, and Amir Johnson as "The Young Gunz" next season. Details on Saturday.
3:45 PM Sep 3rd via web

Alex Kennedy (AlexKennedyNBA) on Twitter

Thoughts? Any new nicknames floating out there you might want to post? :D

A History of the Raptors

kishan13 — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 23:50:55 GMT

Part I: A History of the Raptors | Raptors Republic - ESPN TrueHoop's Raptors Blog - Part 1

Part II: A History of the Raptors | Raptors Republic - ESPN TrueHoop's Raptors Blog - Part 2

Its actually really funny

Have the Raps solved some of their problems?

jeffb — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 22:05:12 GMT

Interesting points brought up Courtesy of poster Novi13 (RealGm):

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Losing Bosh aside, Raptors have solved many problems
by novi13 on Sat Sep 04, 2010 2:32 pm

There were many problems with this team last year.

1. Inconsistancy/General soft play at the small forward spot
2. Lack of offense/slashing/creation from the perimeter
3. Playing 2 power forwards at once
4. Lack of interior defense
5. Chemistry

The one problem still left on the table is a lack of superstar, but that is one problem we've had for almost a decade now. I think we can do fairly well with this group.

1. I think Linas is a step up from the Hedo of last year, especially if the two are expected to play off the ball. He's going to rebound more, he's tougher, he's younger and has much more to prove.

2. DeMar's improvement should lead to more PT. Sonny should get better. Barbosa is a one man fast break. There is more creativity on the wings now than there has been in many many years.

3. No longer the issue. Davis and Amir may be physically power forwards but their game is more like that of a modern hybrid 4/5. They play close, finish well. We no longer have 2 players launching jumpers from the 4/5 spot. If Bargnani plays closer to the basket as well, it will lead to much better spacing. Carlisimo once said that Rasho and Duncan couldn't co-exist because they were essentially used to operating in the same areas. Well, so were Bosh and Bargnani for the most part and this is now a problem we no longer have.

4. Davis, Bargnani, Amir.. these are all average to above average shot-blockers. Removing Bosh and Evans from the mix means an automatic gain in the shot-blocking department, which should translate to better overall defense as well.

5. I think the Bosh "will he leave?" cloud is now gone, as is the disgruntled Hedo, the complaining Belinelli (if in fact he was complaining). Everyone who didn't want to be here is no longer here. That solves that.

Now, if we ever use that TPE, our expirings.. future firsts, I wonder what this team could be.

Thoughts?

RealGM • View topic - Losing Bosh aside, Raptors have solved many problems

Hoopsworld: Weems' Time to Shine

js12 — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 14:08:33 GMT

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"First of all, I'm glad that Bryan Colangelo even gave me the chance to showcase what I could do," Weems told HOOPSWORLD. "It took them awhile but they really let me go out there and let me play like I know I can so I felt really comfortable. It just bad timing for me when I was in Denver. I tore my groin during my senior year and that's one thing that you really have to have surgery on and give time to heal. I gave it time but I tried to come back too fast and I hurt something else. But I'm just glad I got the opportunity with the Raptors to show that I belong in the NBA."

Weems saw his role increase last season but he knows he'll have to do more this year with Bosh gone. While his decision to join the Heat was surprising, Weems wasn't shocked to see Bosh leave Toronto.

"We pretty much knew that Chris wasn't coming back," Weems said. "He felt that his time was up in Toronto and he felt that he gave Toronto everything that he had and it was time for him to move on for himself, to better his career, so he did that. With him going to the Miami Heat, I think that was a decision he made to go on with his career. He's at the point where it's not about getting another contract or anything like that, it's about winning championships. Now he's at the point where he has a chance to do that in Miami and I wish him nothing but the best of luck."

Interesting how he says they knew Bosh was gonna leave.

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"I think this season is going to be a learning season for us but as the years progress, I think we're going to be better as a unit and better as a team," Weems said. "If the organization keeps the young guys around, if they want us, and want to keep going in this route then I'm looking forward to it. They seem really committed to keeping us together, that's what I hope [happens]. This year is going to be a learning season for us and then in the years to come, we're going to be one of the best teams in the league."

That will largely depend on the development of "The Young Gunz" � the nickname given to Weems, DeRozan, and Johnson last season.

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"Unfortunately, we'll probably have to change the name because the NBA isn't going to let us use the 'Young Gunz' thing. So we'll change the name but it's just something we took and ran with it but we enjoy every minute of it. The fans love it, we love it, and our organization is starting to love it. They tried to market it out there. [Willis] started it all and we're just running with it," Weems said with a laugh.

Lol, changing Young Gunz nickname.

http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?story_id=17241

Raptors Bleacher Report Preview

Blaze — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 17:07:25 GMT

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The Toronto Raptors had a tough offseason at the hands of free agency by losing out on their superstar in Chris Bosh who has been the anchor of the Raptors franchise since joining them as a rookie in the 2003-04 season. Since joining the team, the Raptors have made two postseasons and won their first division title in franchise history.

The past two seasons have been a disappointment as they failed to break .500 and faltered late last season in a bid for another post season appearance. Bosh obviously knew that if he was ever going to win, he would need to join a different team that was destined to win games. By teaming up with Dwyane Wade and LeBron James in Miami, he got his wish.

The city of Toronto however is now suffering at the loss of their star.

They will now have to look towards a new offensive leader and with no Turkoglu on the team anymore either, they'll have to reach. Their former No. 1 pick in Andrea Bargnani will have to take on the role as scoring leader considering he has been the second in command and is coming off of a career season where he averaged 17 points and six rebounds.

Rebounding is going to pose itself as a huge problem for the Raptors due to the fact that there are none aside from Amir Johnson. Bargs is statistically the worst rebounding center in NBA history at only five per game for his career because he spends most of his time outside of the paint. Imagine a shooting guard in a center's body and you get Andrea Bargnani's commitment to rebounding.

The Raptors could look towards newly acquired Soloman Alabi who will back up Bargnani, but could provide the team a rebounder in the paint that they will desperately need. Alabi averaged six rebounds and two blocks in 26 minutes per game in his final season at the collegiate level. He should see plenty of time on the court for the Raptors due to their lack of reliable defensive center.

Toronto does have something to look forward to in second year player DeMar DeRozan who impressed last season in limited minutes. DeRozan only averaged 21 minutes of playing time last year, but averaged eight points on 50 percent shooting and three rebounds as a guard/forward combo. As a shooting guard, his 6'7" frame will be used as an advantage over smaller shooting guards who are unable to keep up with him.

DeRozan could use some work on his jump shot and other offensive assets, but being compared to Kobe Bryant out of college is a hard reputation to live up to. He has shown flashes of brilliance, including the last game of the season in his first game of significant minutes. In 37 minutes he scored 24 points and grabbed nine rebounds in a winning effort.

The Raptors did benefit somewhat off of the Turkoglu trade by not only giving DeRozan more playing time in the future, but receiving swing man Leandro Barbosa in the deal. The former Phoenix Sun has been regarded as one of the top sixth men in the league, but had his season derailed last year by injuries allowing him to play in only 44 games and averaging 10 points in the process.

Barbosa's quickness and agility will fit very well into a Raptors system that is similar to that of the Suns and Knicks, which features a run and gun offensive style. Barbosa is not new to this and has benefited off of this style as he has played seven seasons of the system it is based off of.

The point guard position was split last year as Jose Calderon and Jarret Jack shared time, but it could be Jack who ends up starting in place of Calderon. Jack is a more reliable passing threat, but Jose is by far the better passer. Calderon has averaged as much as nine assists in his time with Toronto, but is a defensive liability on a team that could use it as times.

Jack is a better offensive threat and averaged 12 points on 48 percent shooting last year, but his passing ability is no where near that of Calderon. Jack averaged five assists last season, but coughed up two turnovers in the process. It is this reason why Calderon will probably regain his role in the starting lineup.

Toronto smartly tried to go after a power forward in this past draft and got one out of Ed Davis from North Carolina. He is undersized at 6'9", but he possesses a terrific offensive game and is an astounding rebounder and shot blocker as well. Davis's stock dropped last season as his Tar Heels suffered, but at 12 points, nine rebounds, and three blocks per game, the Raptors could use Davis in the future.

He might not turn into Chris Bosh, but it is a good start for a team that is in desperate need of a rebounder and shot blocker.

The Raptors may have to suffer for the next few seasons before they can get back on the right track, but they do have a plethora of young players that are ready to take over where Bosh left off. It's sad to see the Raptors faithful deceived again by a former idol, but they'll need to begin to surround DeRozan and Davis with talent now if they want them to remain in Toronto.

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Prediction

24-58

Toronto Raptors: 30 NBA Team Previews in 30 Days | Bleacher Report

A rather negative to break down, but most are nowadays.

If Toronto had another all star could we get Melo? (if the rumours are true)

halphbreedballer — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 03:01:04 GMT

Like if we had the same team plus ummm lets say Dwight Howard?

So let say our starting line up would be:

Jack/Jose
DeRo/Barbosa
Kleiza/Weems
AB/AJ/Davis
Howard/Anderson

Could we get Melo?

To come here just because of Howard?

If we traded:

AB
DeRo
Jack
Kleiza
Wright
& 1 or 2 of our picks

4

Melo & JR Smith

Our line up would be like this:

Jose/Banks
JR/Barbosa
Melo/Weems
AJ/Davis
Howard/Anderson

I am asking could we get Melo or is it because we are in Canada that we still would have no chance?

Or do you think if we were bonafide winners who knows, does winning solve everything?