RAPTOR FANS: PLEASE BE OPTIMISTIC

So, it has been a few months since I have scribed my thoughts on the things that matter to me most in the world of sports (particularly basketball). For those that are actually interested in my thoughts and have asked me in person why I haven't blogged in these past few months. My only and shameful excuse is that I was busy with work and school. I underestimated how much interest there was in this blog and thus slacked off a little. My apologies!!! I have also been writing for a website (www.thedashingfellows.com) as a contributing writer and have shifted a bit of my focus to that.

A lot has been going on in Raptorland. Here we are again sitting at the doorstep of yet another losing season and the dinos are currently sitting in the second to last position in the eastern conference. If any one of you are like me and truly do care about this team then you must have gone through a plethora of emotions during this season.

You probably started off the season being very optimistic. The pundits and pseudo-know-it-alls managed to convince all of us that this years edition of the Raps were good enough to finish the season in the middle of the pack. Place anywhere from fourth to sixth place; make the playoffs and maybe even make it out of the first round. The fact that the team started the season by winning their first three games also added to the illusion but ever since that mark, the team has shown that they really are what they are.

"They are NOT who we thought they were"

I had to pay a little humorous homage to the infamous public rant by Dennis Green back in October of 2006 after his team failed to secure a victory against a much better Chicago Bears team.

The Raptors are not who we thought they were. Even though we added Jermaine O'Neal to the fold; we should have known better that the teams make-up was not built to withstand the test of more physically and athletically gifted teams in the league. Although the expectations were high, the shocker for me is the fact that we lost this many games and are just sitting one spot above the Washington Wizards. The Raps are not good enough to meet the preseason expectations but are most definitely not this bad to be in this current position. Let's be honest here; if the Wizards had Gilbert Arenas playing all season and were not plagued with numerous injuries to a lot of their core players, they would be sitting above us and we would be the ones sitting in the last place. I take a look at the standings and see Milwaukee, Indiana, New Jersey and New York ahead of us. Does anyone serious think that these teams are better than the Raptors. One thing that these teams have in common and of which we are serious lacking is the ultra-athletic wing player. Richard Jefferson, Danny Granger, Vince Carter and Al Harrington. Pre-Shawn Marion; all we had on the wing were Anthony Parker, Joey Graham and Jason Kapono. SERIOUSLY??? These three are good players that should be coming off the bench for us. They would be the perfect backup for a team that has an any one of the wing players from the aforementioned teams named above.

This leads me to the 2009 NBA draft. With this season rapidly coming to an end, it's natural for teams that will be spending the month of April doing nothing to start looking forward tot he next season. Team scouts are not the only ones that keep an eye out for college ballers that might be declaring for the draft. Fans like me actually make mental notes and sometimes even write down the name and specifics of college players that I feel will be a good fit for the Raptors. Based on the teams area of need and sometimes based on a guess-timation of draft class and team draft position. For those that have read an earlier post that I wrote about team success being on the wing, then it shouldn't be a surprise when you read the list of potential draft-able players that I feel our Raptors should pick if they are available. I personally like these three players and strongly feel that they will be able to make an immediate contribution to the Raps.

Gerald Henderson. SG, 6'5. Duke
Henderson is an athletic wing player with the toughness that the Raptors badly need in that position. If anyone doubts how tough this kid is - please check out this link from YouTube in which he gives Tyler Hansbrough a "little love tap."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5glRSAUVCQ
Don't just typecast him as a goon that can "throw them bows", he is also a very talented played that can fill up the basket in bunches. He plays great defense and can literally jump right out of the gym.

James Harden. SG, 6'5. Arizona
Lefties are revered in the world of sports. This lefty is a smooth operator that averages 21ppg and 5rpg for the Wildcats. Harden is a flat out scorer that can do a little bit of everything really well - except play solid defense. I am not too worried about his defense since everything I have seen, read and heard about him states that he is an extreme hard worker and competitor. He has often handled the point guard responsibilities for his team in order to create mismatches.

Demar DeRozan. SG, 6'6. USC
DeRozan is the baller that intrigues me the most. His extremely freakish athletic ability makes me overlook all his deficiencies; and trust me, their are a few. He is not a good shooter. His dribbling skills need a lot of work and he often relies on fast breaking opportunities to get his points. With that said, he honestly has the biggest upside of all three of my picks ans for that matter of many of the players that will be drafted. (An obvious exception is Blake Griffin. Okay. A quick B-Griff rant: If in some miraculous way, the Raps secure the first overall pick and pick Griffin. I would be absolutely overjoyed. He plays the same position as Bosh and will have to play right away because he is that good a player. I say we trade Bosh and get some good pieces to put beside Griffin, Bargnani and Calderon. Draft picks of other players would do. I am boldly saying this right now that I would take Griffin right now over Bosh. I need to stress that I think the world of CB4 but the pending 2010 drama is the main reason why I say this. There is no guarantee that Bosh will stay and if we get the first pick then he becomes a great trading asset. End of rant!!!) DeRozans shooting form is not awkward and he is athletically gifted enough to work on his in-between game and dribbling skills. He will make a good pro; hopefully it's with the Raptors.

I am still very much interested in how this season unfolds. The Raps have won four of the last five games and are again showing that they are not as bad as their record indicates but at the same time are showing that the needs on the wing should be addressed in next years draft or through trades. After a roller-coast of emotions that had me initially optimistic, then skeptical followed by disappointment and eventually pessimism. I have come full circle back to optimism. After all, I am a true Toronto Raptor fan and I honestly believe in next years team.

Sportacularly yours,

The Vicarious Athlete

The Game In Transition/Success Is On The Wings.

Basketball is a game that is most enjoyed when it's in transition. Perpetual motion and fast breaking styles were the norm back in the 80's. Teams were reaching the hundred point mark by the end of the third quarter and most centers in the game back then could run the floor like small forwards and shooting guards. The game went through a change during the mid nineties when team execs felt the need to slow down the game and thought that big centers that clogged the lane was the ticket to success.

I have been following basketball for a long time and I have often heard many experts state that in order to win a championship, a team needs a dominating big man. A good center that can go to work in the low post and draw double teams in order to open up the perimeter game for the wing players. I couldn't disagree more with this notion. Maybe this could have been a requirement back in the 70's and 80's but the game of basketball has evolved since then. These days, the game is dominated by ultra-athletic wing men and forwards with the skill set of some wing players. The majority of young centers coming into the league today have a paucity of skill sets. In other words, they are extremely raw and require a few years before they become.......ripe!!! Even after maturation, these new centers will not be able to dominate and take over a game as the centers of old used to. After Shaquile O'Neal retires, the game of basketball will be rid of the very last player to clog the middle and slow down the game. I should note that I am not writing this to bash O'Neal and other great centers. I am just noticing a trend that can not be ignored. In order for most teams to be successful, they will need to have good wing players and role playing or moderately talented post player.

Shaquile O'Neal, the last true big man will retire in the next couple of years and thus will end the string of dominant big men to play in the league. Shaq's pending retirement will officially close the chapter on a long line of great centers. Centers like Moses Malone, Patrick Ewing, Wilt Chamberlain, David Robinson, Willis Reed, Kareem Abdul Jabbar and my favorite player of all time; Hakeem Olajuwon. These big men were the cornerstone of their respective teams and even though they did not all win a championship ring in their careers, it was a certainty that their teams would have been worse off without them.

A few years ago the Phoenix Suns brought back a trend that was last used by the New Jersey Nets with Jason Kidd running the point; and before the Nets, it was the Golden State Warriors with their RUN TMC brand of basketball. None of these teams had a traditional big man guarding the post. Instead, they ran an offence that required fast and athletic wing players that could improvise and create something out of erratic play. More and more teams are realizing that in order to stay competitive, they will need to find a way to incorporate various elements of the run and gun style that is predicated on being athletic on the wing. With this style of basketball, traditional big men will become seldom used and often will be relegated to being the grab-a-rebound and the block-a-shot role. In order for teams today to be successful, they must invest in their perimeter play instead of their post play. I am not suggesting that the post player will become obsolete in the new NBA but rather, the center position will become more of a complimentary one to the wing position. Teams will still want and need big men but the focus will be on a big man that can run the floor, grab rebounds and get garbage points though put backs.

Here is further breakdown of my analysis. In the closing moments of a very tight game, a wing player can provide more offensive options for his teammates. A dribble drive offense requires perpetual motion from all members of the team by creating mismatches and confusion because it draws positional players away from their guarding assignments and comfort zone. It requires that the point guard bring the ball up the middle and passing to the wing players. The wing player now has a plethora of options based on how the defense reacts. He can choose to shoot; if his man leaves enough room to get a shot off. Drive to either his left or right; if his man rushes at him in anticipation of a shot. This dribble-drive will draw the opposing post players to collapse on him. He can now elevate to get his shot off in the middle of the key, pass to his very open big man, kick the ball out to the baseline or top of key for an open shot, or......another dribble drive possibility. Many teams in the league will soon be adjusting and installing a variation of the dribble drive offense that sometimes looks like a team is fast breaking at all times. It will be a revelation one day when the catalyst wing man in this scenario is actually a big man a la "Disco" Dirk Nowitzki.

Did I say revelation. As in, it will one day happen? Pardon me because "it" already happens. Albeit, only a few teams have players that combine the physical stature with this skill set.

The new breed of centers will player more like Dirk Nowitzki. They will be able to shoot the long ball, put the ball on the floor and dribble to the hoop from twenty feet out. They will be versatile like kevin Garnett and play defense on a point guard from half court. Block shots and grab the rebound in one move and then lead the fast break. The new big man will play more like a 6'6 wing man.

The game has changed a few times in the last twenty years. The influx of young players coming into the league that knew how to dunk before they made their first three point shot is forcing teams to play a game that is transition in style. This makes for a very exiting brand of basketball for the fans that want to see more running and gunning. Teams will evolve and almost every positional player will be interchangeable with almost all the positions; it is my opinion that some day in the near future, teams will look to think further outside of the box (Pun intended...Get it??.....C'mon!!!The box. As in the low post being known as "the box") when it comes to the type of players that will best fit their style on offense.

Ten years from now, you and I might go to a basketball game and hear the announcer introduce the starting lineup for our team.......

....starting at small forward, 7 foot 2 from Timbuktuuuuu...........

You look at me and I look and you. We simultaneously chime "our starting wing man is 7'2. That's amazing!"

That's when the NBA would truly be "were amazing happens!!!"

...ahem. Not saying it isn't amazing as it is right now.

Sportacularly yours,

The Vicarious Athlete