The Goods On The Game, Vol. 29, a visit with the Kings

A fine good evening to you all, however many of you are out there in the great world of the interweb.

Love to tell you there's great big news here are Arco but that'd be a fib and no fibbing allowed. It's the usual suspects for the Raptors against the regulars of the Kings, who are without their best player in Kevin Martin.

About the only thing of note before the game is that we got to see Nathan Jawai go through his pre-game workout. Lets's say he's a ways away from helping. But it was nice to see him out there working.

Same roster for Toronto, Jake Voskuhl remains active, Hassan Adams remains on the shelft. Talking to Jay this morning made it apparent that's going to be a pretty permanent situation.

Anyway, some pre-game fresh air is in order, settle back in your seats and we'll talk in a while.

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And away we go
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Arco's a pretty dumpy arena, certainly in the bottom of five in the league and it's gone down a notch in my estimation tonight. Sitting through the national anthems (I couldn't escape), couldn't help but notice there's not a Canadian flag anywhere in the joint. There's one in every other arena in the league that I can think of and there should be one here.
Rant over.
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Watch John Salmons tonight. Was told before the game that he's a ball-stopper on offence, likes to pound it before he gets his shot. I haven't seen enough of him to know one way or the other but it's something that's worth watching.
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Fashion sense prevails. Jamario dumped the head band.
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Each of Toronto's first five possessions - outside of a Moon steal and dunk -- have gone inside. Guess they did learn from the other night in L.A.
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One of the good things about this arena in the past has been the atmosphere, loud, crazy, fans right on top of you. So far tonight? Dead. Maybe 5,000 empty seats and no energy.
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O'Neal just had one of the plays they'd like to see more of. Backed his guy down in the paint but instead of taking a little fadeaway, saw a double-team coming, kicked it Kapono for a wide open three.
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Good early post-ups. Just what Jay wanted.
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Raptors 16, Kings 11 with 5 1-2 left.
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First sub tonight is Parker for Moon, that's a bit of a switch. It has been Bargnani for O'Neal.
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Mikki Moore's in the game. Remember him from his Jersey days? I bet Bosh does. Good guy, Mikki, Make sure to come down the court before the opening tip to shake hands with the Raptors coaching stafff.
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Here comes Bargnani, wonder how his shot's going to look tonight. One never knows, does one?
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Great media seats here, right on the court, just down from the bench. Bet Zic and I get some TV time, glad I've got the good shirt and tie combo going.
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I believe the assessment that Salmons enjoys shooting the ball with frequency is bang on.
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That was a rather emphatic dunk by Bargnani, after he was fouled and took the contact.
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Big thing on Jay's to-do list this morning was to get into the Kings' bench and try to exploit their lack of depth. So far, it really hasn't happened.
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Okay, so Bargnani's got seven points and some good defence. Not a bad start.
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Toronto 30, Kings 26 after one.
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Jermaine O'Neal just had a left-handed, reverse dunk off a nice pass from Anthony Parker.
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Kings have scouted Toronto enough to know that when Solomon's in the game, it's best to put full court pressure on him, which they are doing.
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Bobby Jackson, before he had about eleventy million injuries, used to be one of the best backcourt guys off the bench in the league. Now he's a veteran at the end of a career.
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When Solomon somehow dribbled the ball out of his control and out of bounds, it was Toronto's eighth turnover of the half. And that has everything to do with why the game is tied.
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Let's just say the officiating crew of MIke Callahan, Violet Palmer and Tommy Nunez Jr. isn't going to be inducted into the refereeing Hall of Fame as a crew.
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This is quite an interesting game we're watching. Actually, it's the Boston-Golden State game I'm talking about, we get it on the courtside monitors.
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Kings 42, Raptors 39 with 5:56 'til halftime.
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The Kings are 27th in the league in three-point shooting. Tonight they look like a bunch of Dell Currys and Reggie Millers.
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Jermaine O'Neal is schooling Spencer Hawes. And he's eating Brad Miller's lunch, too.
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O'Neal just jammed a finger on his left hand. That had to hurt.
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O'Neal and Bosh have both committed turnovers trying to pass to each other under the basket. There's not a whole lot of space there for them to operate.
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That's 13 turnovers for Toronto in the first 21 minutes. Most costly.
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Alex English, a second ago: "Jamario, get in the game."
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Jake Voskuhl's the best cheerleader they've had on the bench in a long, long time. Always offereing encouragement.
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Bosh is going to get the rest of the half off after getting his third foul with 90 seconds to go.
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O'Neal's having an excellent first half. lf he wasn't, this one might be over.
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Sacramento 56, Toronto 51 at halftime.
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A nice little 7-0 Toronto run right after a Hawes three-pointer to open the half was just the kind of run they need. An O'Neal three-point play and a Calderon offensive rebound of missed Bosh bunny were the hustle plays they have to make.
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It's like I'm listening to the game on the radio sitting right next to Smith and Jones. They do a good job.
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Raptors will be shooting bonus free throws for the final 7:29 of the half. The ball pretty much has to go inside on every possession, doesn't it?
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Raps go up 65-61 and Jay stands up and says: "That's the kind of energy we need." If only he could get it all night every night.
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Wow. Jose is schooling Beno Udrih. Wonder how many times he's done that internationally?
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Bosh's jumper looks off tonight, short on every shot.
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Toronto 67, Sacramento 66 with six minutes left.
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Jermaine O'Neal has 23, his season high is 24 and Marty McNeal of the Sacramento Bee, one of the most entertaining writers on the beat, just turned to us and said: "I tell everyone, I guarantee whatever team comes in here, someone gets a season high." There were some colourful adjectives, too.
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No subs so far this quarter (eight minutes) for Toronto.
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O'Neal gets his season high. Marty crows.
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Bosh just got his fourth foul and with Bargnani at the table, he comes in for Bosh instead of O'Neal, who he was sent to get.
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None of the Kings is going to lead the NBA, or even the Pacific Division, in assists.
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There's some foul trouble coming for Toronto. Bosh has four, O'Neal has four and they've got Joey Graham at the four and Bargnani at the five.
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I do see Hump has some kind of bandage or heat pack on his back. Maybe that's why we aren't seeing him.
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Speaking of Hump, here he comes. Guess he's healthy after all.
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Two big plays in a row by Bargnani, who's keeping up a running conversation, or at least a series of tough looks, with Mikki Moore.
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Raptors 85, Kings 82 after three.
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The more observant of you will notice Mike Evans isn't on the bench. He's had a death in the family and will be away for a few days.
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Not only is Hump back, so is his hair. Looks like he's going for the Wally Dow look again.
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Eric Smith: "Maybe Big Sexy is back." Then he suggests maybe Raptor fans across the land will grow Hump Hair. I somehow doubt it.
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Toronto is buying a lot of time with O'Neal, Bosh and Calderon on the bench. This is a pretty crucial portion of the game, too.
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AP sure picked a good time to make his first shot. Putting Toronto up seven with about nine minutes left.
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Getting Jose and O'Neal back with just under eight minutes to go is a good idea. And Bosh has to follow them very quickly.
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Man. Joey just has a baseline dunk that's as good as any by any Raptor ever who wasn't named Carter. For real.
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Bosh just got his fifth with 6:16 left. And now he's got to sit down. Took a bad foul on an Udrih pump fake.
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Raptors 94, Kings 91 with 6 1-2 left.
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Hassan Adams has the white towel draped around his neck over the sports coat. Or, as Jonesy just said, the Bundini Brown look.
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The Raptors are out-rebounding the Kings.
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Joey gets to finish this game because they like the way he's defending. What they don't like is him missing an easy layup up four with 90 seconds left.
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This has turned into a good game with some intensity. And shows that O'Neal has something left 'cause this might be the best game by a true Toronto centre since ... well, since a very, very long time ago.
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Imagine that, an O'Neal defensive play ices the game with less than 24 seconds to go. Big night for him.
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Toronto 107, Kings 101
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Comments

[Kyron]

Hey Doug, you're on TV. :) I think that was the most TV time they've ever given you, a whole 20 seconds or so

[Brian]

Wow, TSN just flashed Bargnani's December numbers.

6.5 points per game, 3.3 rebounds, 28.3% field goal %, 13.8% 3 point field goal %, and 23.4 minutes per game.

For the season, he is averaging 9.6 points per game, and 4.4 rebounds per game.

I knew he has been brutal this month but those numbers are beyond pathetic. He looks O.K. physically, so I have to think that it is him losing his confidence and not knowing what role he has to play on the team. A trade is not even possible with his recent production, so what can be done to turn it around for him?

Btw, I am really enjoying watching this game on TSNHD and not on my computer. Doug, any news breaking on Rogers/TSN2 on the left coast?

[Kevin]

Hey Doug,
Ask Frank if he misses covering wrestling? That was some of his best work.

Blogger's note: Of course he does, that was one wild ride back in the day.

[Rich]

How can the Raps be shooting 53% (almost 10 percentage points better than the Kings) and be losing by 5 points! These turnovers have got to stop! There's another...make it 13!

[Kevin]

7.3 seconds left and Moon touch fouls a guy driving. Earlier in the game guys were driving down the lane and no one wants to hit them. Put Voskuhl in for just two minutes please.

[mike s]

Did I just see Moon shy away from taking a charge on the Kings last possession, and it turned into a 3 point play? Well...apparently Jamario should have been asking for a heart, and not a brain.

[Doug]

hey I am watchibng the Kings feed...who is there announcer Kayte Christenson, forget the game we neeed to hire her...you seen her???

[rob]

Doug,
How bad are the raptors!! we are getting schooled by one of the worst team of the nba..
no way we r making the playoffs...

[sb]

Doug...

Let me preface this comment with the following:

1) I am hoping you and yours had a great Christmas yesterday. All the best for the rest of the holidays to you!

2) I love your work...every aspect of it is part of my daily ritual.

3) I agree with pretty much everything you stand on your soapbox for.

BUT...looking at your post above regarding the pregame formalities at Arco, I am wondering if you actually thought about what you wrote, prior to slamming Sac-town for their lack of respect for Canada?

"...sitting through the national anthems..."

"...(I couldn't escape)..."

I understand that you might typically need to continue working during the anthems but, then again, perhaps not if you would normally "escape"?

I agree with your rant, but you weren't helping your argument with how you presented it, in my opinion.

Regardless, please don't stop your (otherwise) excellent work...safe travels on this road trip.

[Jamie]

Hey Doug, I think i've asked already tonight, but do you know of any good reason why solomon is getting the backup minutes instead of roko?

Blogger's note: Asked Jay about it today, check the blog in the morning

[Mike S]

Hey Doug,

What's going on with Jermaine O'Neal? Are the Raps promoting flashback fridays now too?

[SM]

Hey Doug,
Wheres the love for Adams? He's a pretty good cheerleader too ya know!

[Rish]

O'Neal has had more touches in each of the last three games than he's had all season...is Jay running for set plays for him?

[LS]

"I have to think that it is him losing his confidence and not knowing what role he has to play on the team. "
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So this confusion causes him to miss shots, turn the ball over, not rebound at all and not put in a consistent effort on D? Wow. If that's the case then Bargnani might be the most mentally fragile athlete in pro sports.

I think it has more to do with him just not being a good player. After being consistently below average for 2+ seasons, that seems like a more logical reason.

[GM]

Hmm... Wally Dow? The best I can come up with a cross between Wally Cleaver and Tony Dow, the guy who played him. I can't even guess who Bundini Brown might be.

I was so hoping Jamario would come over and get in Bosh's face after he bit on Udrih's pump fake late in the shot clock.

Blogger's note: Dang. Yes, I meantTony Dow and, not surprisingly, I didn't get another note correcting me. Bundini Brown was one of Ali's early trainers/mentors/advisors/hangers-on .

[Rav]

Loved the Bundini Brown reference..hehe...

[Tim W.]

Good game. The Raptors seem to be getting it that they have to pound the ball inside to win. I thought Bargnani played pretty well until I looked at the box score. 14 pts, 22 minutes and zero rebounds. In 22 minutes you'd think he'd get one accidentally. He's seven feet! I remember why I never liked him in the first place.

[Dana, Hopewell Cape, NB]

Hey Doug,
I guess the Bargs haters love stats. Maybe they should expand their repetoire and listen to the competition. Certainly Miller and Natt felt bargs was doing enough. There seems to be some selective blindness when it comes to stats too as they dump on the Italian Stallion for no rebounds and ignore the output and his defence. Parker and Graham got some serious time but they didn't look so good stats-wise either. Number 7 changes shots regularly and doesn't get any credit on the sheet. I have been saying since they got this kid that he is going to be a good one and the comparisons to Dirk are not out of line.
I gotta go back to Jack who made the observation a few games ago that the bigs are getting the ball too high and it is nice to see them executing down low. Certainly O'neal and Bargs benefit from it. Doug, what's your take on the help D? It looks like the players like it.

Blogger's note: They do like it.

[Tim W.]

I would LOVE for BArgnani to play well. And using the "they're just stats" defense doesn't really work here . Bargnani is 7 feet and can't get a rebound in 22 minutes of play?? That's unacceptable, especially when one of your teams weakesses is rebounding. Yes, he played some good defense but part of defense is getting boards, which he didn't do. I'm sick of people defending a third year player who should be farther along, doesn't rebound, stays outside way too much and has far too many games where he does
Nothing at all. His biggest problem is probably he is a PF on a team with a PF that plays close to 40 minutes. On another team, he would probably be a better player, but not on the same team as Bosh.

[Tim W.]

Dana, I agree that stats can often be misleading. A person who gets a lot of steals isn't necessarily a good defender. a player can get a lot of points but not necessarily to the benefit of the team. The problem with your defense of Bargnani is that a seven footer is expected to grab boards no matter what else he does out there. PG's are expected to get assists and big men are expected to rebound and if they play well, that will happen. Pat Riley even has a famous quote: "No rebounds, no rings." You ask every coach in the league whether they would want a 7 footer who can hit from three or a 7 footer who will get you 10 boards a game, and all (but maybe Don Nelson) who want the rebounder. You get rebounds through two things: Effort and position. Bargnani doesn't give the effort on the boards and he doesn't understand positioning.

And these comparisons to Dirk have to stop. Dirk was a better player right from the beginning. Dirk was a better rebounder right from his rookie year (and got better), and Dirk, despite taking so many outside shots always got to the line at a solid rate. Bargnani's rebounds per minute were the same his first two years, and it was far too low for a big man) and are slightly better this season, but below what Dirk did in his rookie season.

The best way to tell how good someone is at getting to the line is to divide their free throws attempted by their shots taken. This will tell you how many free throws a player is taking in comparison to how many shots he takes. By doing it this way, it means it doesn't matter how much a player is involved in the offense, because it's in comparison to his own shots taken. Dirk has always been very good at getting to the line. For every shot he's taken, he's gotten to the line about .40 times his entire career, which is what a top scorer usually does (you can check this out, if you like). Bosh in his rookie season had a ft to fg ratio of .40, as well. This was a great indicator that he could be a very good scorer in the league. Bargnani was .22 in his rookie season and is currently sitting at .25. And it is EXTREMELY rare for a player to make big improvements in this area. Like once in a decade, rare. He will never be a top scorer in this league. Ever. To be a top scorer, you have to be able to manufacture points, because your shot is not always going to be falling. Dirk has always been able to manufacture points, as has Bosh. Andrea cannot. That's why he'll always be an inconsistent scorer. I think he's got a chance to be a scorer in the high teens, and a good player, but he'll never do it on the Raptors, as long as Bosh is on the team, and he'll never be an All-Star because his biggest strength is scoring, and he's never going to be a top one. He doesn't rebound well enough to make up for that fact.