Weird stats, Alvin's next gig and Sam's too

VINCE TALOTTA/TORONTO STAR

Home sked at least ended on a happy note.

What’d that all mean? A big home finish with a nice win over a stumbling team sure left a good taste in everyone’s mouth (I get the feeling the quasi-standing ovation in the final seconds was a legit tribute) but as for a harbinger? Nothing, really.

In fact, it probably – and correctly – galled a lot of people that they’d play okay on the final night after playing so poorly on so many others throughout the course of the year. But it was a win and it beats the alternative and by the time the next regular season rolls around, it’ll be long forgotten by everyone.

Except when they read back here:

(Speaking of reading, just ‘cause they’re done at home doesn’t mean we are; we’ll be at the regular in-game blog tonight from Washington, just before 7. Be there or be square!)

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Action: Bargnani’s line

Reaction: A true anomaly.

I honestly don’t know how this happens – and this is not an indictment of the guy because I think you know how I feel about his play – but Andrea Bargnani somehow was credited with six blocked shots last night and two rebounds.

Yes, six blocks, two boards.

Don't you think you'd get three boards just by grabbing half the shots you blocked? Does it mean he blocked them and then scurried away from the ball. I don't have time, or the inclination,  to look back through too many boxscores but I guarantee you a 3-1 ratio of blocks to boards hasn't happened more than a time or two anywhere in the league this year. Or ever, maybe.

I cannot remember a weirder line than that.

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Judging from all the reports yesterday, including Michael Lee’s thorough piece in today’s Washington Post, Flip Saunders is getting the Wizards gig and that leaves Minnesota as the most likely landing spot – if there is one – for our man Sam Mitchell.

And because I know Sam rushes to the computer every morning to read this space and takes every bit of advice I have for him to heart (okay, maybe that’s a stretch), here’s a little bit of unsolicited wisdom: Don’t take a job just to get a job.

While I do think he will coach in the NBA again, and I certainly think he should coach in the NBA again, the next job he takes has to be a relatively “good” one. No teams with horrible records and dysfunctional rosters. No teams with aging veterans and no young talent. If those are the cases, he’s better off sitting at home and spending some Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment’s money for another year because getting a second chance is one thing, getting a third chance is another.

That’s why his next gig is so important for his overall career. He’s got to go somewhere where he’ll have a quick impact and success.

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Action: Alvin’s gone

Reaction: He should be back

Old favourite Alvin Williams stopped by practice on Saturday but had to get home to the family for Easter and didn’t get to yesterday’s game. But speaking with a lot of people in the organization, some of worked with him before, some who have just come to know him, it’s wildly apparent he should be on the staff somehow next year.

As an assistant coach, or a basketball development coach working guys out at practice and before games, there has to be a job for the guy. I think he’d like it, I think it’d be a great move to help the young players and I think Bryan has to make this happen.

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Now that Philly’s lot in life seems set, the pinch-hitters for Phil are writing these kinds of yarns today.

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Action: More stats weirdness

Reaction: Bargnani’s got nothing on the Sixers

Forget that six-blocks-two-rebound gem of Andrea’s and riddle me this, Bat-people.

How can the Sixers make 30 free throws in a game, get 22 offensive rebounds and still, really, have absolutely no shot to win in the final five minutes? That’s some accomplishment.

Or course, it helps that their best player, Andre Iguodala had more turnovers than the Toronto starting five combined.

I’ll say this, the Sixers, losers of five straight, are stumbling so badly into the playoffs that they could very well be swept in the first round regardless of who they play.

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Award time and we’re into the big three, stuff that I actually have votes on, stuff that matters.

Let’s start with Rookie of the Year because I’m kind of rushing to catch a flight and this one takes the least amount of thought of those remaining to do.

Criteria’s pretty simple, good first-year players with a dramatic impact on their teams.

And this one could very well be the closest to unanimous that we’re going to get this year because I can’t see anyone taking it away from Chicago’s Derrick Rose.

Kid played the toughest position in the game for a young player, played it with aplomb and the Bulls, to the surprise of some, are not only off to the playoffs, they could very well finish above .500 and as high as sixth. Not bad for a team that many thought should fire its rookie coach about mid-season.

The big thing about Rose is the maturity level he showed. Can’t remember an instance where he got truly rattled for any length of time and my man KC in Chicago tells me Rose is always ready to take responsibility for his gaffes and downplays his big games. Good and humble? Pretty good combination.

But here comes the hard part, finishing out the ballot with a second- and third-place finisher.

For the longest time, I thought Russell Westbrook would be right in there for No. 1 but now I’m not even sure he makes a lot of people’s top three.

My three?

Rose is No. 1, I have to go with Brook Lopez as No. 2 and I can make a very strong case for Marc Gasol as No. 3. The two bigs are playing big minutes in tough roles and playing them extremely well. But I will say this, when it comes time to e-mail the ballot back by Wednesday, I’m going to find it awfully tough to pick between Gasol, Rudy Fernandez and Eric Gordon for that third spot.

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Okay, so we all know that Chris Bosh doesn’t drive the ball often enough and never attacks the basket and he’s a soft jump-shooting big man, he said with dripping sarcasm.

So, if that’s the case, riddle me this, folks:

How did Bosh set a new Raptor record last night by getting nine trips to the line that gave him 599 for the season? That eclipses his own record of 590, set in 2006-07.

Oh, and how’s he been to the line more than all but four guys in the entire league this season? How’s been there more often than Kobe, more often than Tim Duncan, more often than Brandon Roy or Shaquille O’Neal?

Now, I’m not a big stats guy as the only way to measure a players’ impact on a game, a season or his team.

But those are impressive numbers even to me. And really ought to silence some of the critics, shouldn’t they? They won’t, of course. But they should.

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Speaking of Bosh, and we will a lot in the next few days, he said nothing new, nothing particularly interesting and nothing particularly inflammatory after the last game.

The quotes:

“My employer right now is who it is right now. If rumours get started, I can't control that. Right now who I work for is who I play for.” Oh yeah, that meeting with Bryan this week won’t be the big one.

“I'm not indicating anything. IIt will be routine stuff. We will go over the season, assess the season. See how we can get better, see how I can get better.”

Read into that what you will, but there’s not a whole lot there to digest. Which should give the conspiracy theorists and those who like to read the minds of others all kind of fodder on a relatively slow week.

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Okay, somehow got this finished before catching the early flight to Washington but that also means I'm out of touch probably until after 11 so if you make a comment and it's an hour or two before it gets posted, don't get all antsy, I'm just travelling.

For the last time this year.

Yay!

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Comments

[pete]

Hey Doug, what's your opinion of Lawrence Frank as a coach. If he is let go, should the raptors pursue him as their next head coach?

Blogger's note: He's a pretty good coach

[jim t]

hey Doug id put rudy at 3 maybe even 2.Can we somehow get him here would port even give him up i think hed be a good fit with jose and hes reckless which i enjoy.

[Carl C.]

Hey Doug, check this list out. Players with at least 6 blocked shots, but no more than 2 rebounds in a game:
http://www.basketball-reference.com/fc/pgl_finder.cgi?request=1&player=&match=game&year_min=1987&year_max=2009&age_min=0&age_max=99&team_id=&opp_id=&game_location=&game_result=&is_starter=&pos=&c1stat=blk&c1comp=gt&c1val=6&c2stat=trb&c2comp=lt&c2val=2&c3stat=&c3comp=gt&c3val=&c4stat=&c4comp=gt&c4val=&order_by=pts

Last one to do it was Ronny Turiaf in December.

[Eric]

Bosh's performance in the fourth against the Sixers was good- or at least tough. Over the last month we've seen more of that and I'm happy. He used to be a fourth quarter dude, he took about 15 months off, but he seems to have found his niche again. It's a suggestion for the entire team but especially Chris: don't take your foot off the pedal! Down the stretch, if anything, do the opposite! I'm glad to see he's been trying.

Bargnani would be a good four or fifth man on a good team. You don't "build" around him. Of course we're building around him!! He does not know how to lead a team. He certainly does not have what it takes to lead a team to a championship and isn't that what it's about? His skill is all-world, his leadership is not and by golly would I be ecstatic if they moved him for other pieces this summer!

He had six blocks but how much were they worth? At any point, did it seem like the Sixers were conscious of him down there? That's the true value of plays/blocks- the Multiplier effect!!- and Bargnani doesn't have one. I still think about a Bosh/Jermaine O'Neal/Josh Howard/Calderon core that was talked about earlier this year and shrug my shoulders. That would have been a great show. This team has better skills but that one would know how to WIN. At some point I feel this bridge has to be crossed. We don't know how to win. All we have is statistics. We need Alvin Williams.

[Travis]

OJ Mayo gets no love in the rookie rankings?

NONE AT ALL?

Blogger's note: I'm sure he'll get lots; just not in my top three

[Ivan Kolev]

Hey Doug. Just wanted to say thank you, it's been a blast following our hoopsters through your blog during the year. Could've been even better if they were good, but hey, there's always next season :)
Peace!

[SY]

Hi Doug,

Speaking of the offseason, I totally agree w/ you that we should go for Luol Deng now (given that the Raptors can't re-sign half of its rosters to make a run @ Jefferson - which is my #1 choice). Do you think the Bulls will accept a package of Kapono + (either Humpries, Banks or Graham) + a 2nd rounder for Deng? Also, where do you see Deng in the next few years? Just a good starter? An allstar?

Thanks.
-SY

Blogger's note: Not unless Paxson has an "episode"

[Mark L]

Doug, did the players throw their shoes into the crowd last night?

Blogger's note: Didn't notice, actually; did see Jose stop and sign autographs on his way off the court. Not sure if he had footwear on or not

[Alex]

I recall how high you were on Fernandez before the season began, and you're high on him now. However, nba.com (not necessarily a better source at all) has him in their "top 3 most inconsistent rookies," or something like that. I think he's a fine player, but he definitely shows flashes of greatness along with long periods of quiet. Courtney Lee is also contributing to a playoff team, but I digress....

I think it would be hard for anyone to admit, but do you think saving face affects a lot of late-season work in sports journalism? I find on-air broadcasters to be particularly defensive of past declarations.

Blogger's note: If you're talking about awards, votes are anonymous, don't see a face-saving thing in there.

[Jamie]

Alvin Williams rejoining the organization is the greatest news I've read on this blog in months!! Now there is a character guy with marbles!

Blogger's note: It's not done, but it should be

[Paul]

I'm with Ivan. Thanks Doug!

[lukasz]

hey doug, i got an idea of why bosh gets to the line so often. he misses the feild goal for a 3 point play. who do you think makes the most three point plays in the league.

Blogger's note: I presume Dwight Howard. But, wait, now Bosh gets to the line enough, he just doesn't get there the right way?

[GM]

If one of your criteria for ROY is dramatic impact on your team, I don't see how Gasol could get consideration. If it isn't, then I'd still have Eric Gordon above him.

Since the Raptors played yesterday and are on the road tonight, should we expect the kind of crap performance we saw in Indiana? I hope not, but I fear so.

[Benny]

Doug just wondering if you think Bosh's refusal to commit one way or another to his future is essentially the same thing as saying no to renewing in Toronto, based on the organization's past history? In other words, given the risk should the organization treat a non-answer as the same thing as saying he is leaving, and then act to recover some value for the asset, rather than getting nothing like they have in the past?

Blogger's note: I think he's got a year left on his contract, he'd like to see what moves the GM might make this summer to improve a mediocre team and it;'s entirely understandable. And, no, the organization should strive to get better so its best player wants to stay as he did, need I remind everyone, the last time he had the chance to go.

[Jerry C]

Thanks Doug , for helping to make this season interesting. My 2 cents about the team looking ( mostly ) forward is:
1. It is too early to think about Bosh's future unless he makes it known that he has made a decision. I expect his decision will be based a lot on how next year turns out.
2. Bargnani has proved that he belongs as a NBA starter, with potential to be an all star.
3. Bosh, Bargnani , and Calderon are an excellent base on which to build a team.
4. Very much needed a starting 2 and 3 , possibly Marion at 3 if the price is not too high , and a more consistent bench.
5. It doesn't look great now but a few changes , as noted above, can move this team to a solid 2nd round playoff team next year.
6. BC is being patient and building a team the right way , so far he gets a B or B+.

[Lazaros O.]

Doug, have you been to RFD, a block north of Verizon Center? Great beer selection, but godawful food.

Blogger's note: No, Clyde's is the personal post-game fave here.

[SMD]

Hey Eric,,,,
Andrea is 23 or 24 years old. There are signs of toughness and confidence we didn't see earlier this season. . .His play is night and day from last year. Jose, AP and Bosh provide the leadership. . . While Andrea continues to adapt to living in North America and the NBA game plus score 20 plus a night -

You might be under appreciating what the Raptors have in this guy and what roll he's had in the past compared to where he is today. At the beginning of the season his roll wasn't clearly defined. Hard to show leadership if you are unsure of when and where you are playing. I'd rather have a young and growing Andrea than an often injured O'Neal.
It took Jose a few years to get to where he is - I think there are some paralells between the two -
CheerS

[jeeff]

nice link from carl c. if we're going for stats esoterica, that link shows that bargnani is the first to make at least 6 blocks, no more than 2 rebounds PLUS a 3-pointer since manute bol in 1991! there's gotta be an award for that one.... or maybe not.

[Lucas]

Thanks Doug for your daily blog all season long, if the readers could cast any vote, I am sure you would get the top MVG (Most Valuable Grunt) award in the Toronto Raptors Media

[Penny]

Are you planning on doing a blog on the refereeing situation - best refs, worst refs, most biased against Europeans refs (Bargnani sure seems to get a lot of cheap fouls called against him). Love the blog.

[Jack]

The season is almost over so we should just play 'Let's Speculate'. What do you think would happen with the Bosh situation next year?
I'd say he's gonna be traded, maybe in the middle of the season but BC will see to it that the Raptors get value in return. I don't see him being the top banana here. Bargnani will be the cornerstone of this franchise while BC is here running the show. He's BC's draftee. Bosh is not.

[Bball]

Doug, when are the Raptors allowed to negotiate a contract extension with Bargnani - is it this summer of next summer? Thanks.

Blogger's note: This summer, for one that kicks in after the next year, I believe

[Rob.V]

@ Eric (Bargnani), and by golly would I be ecstatic if they moved him for other pieces this summer.

What pieces would you trade your starting center for?

Keep in mind:

A) he's a proven to be one of the best scoring big men in the league.

B) He's improving on D with every game that passes.

C) He has a unique skill set that most other GM's wish they had.

D) Intagibles - If he continues to develop his game (some toughness, and a slight mean streak) as he matures we could have the leagues next Rasheed Wallace on our hands!

Seriously - what pieces do you trade a kid with this talent level for?

Oh, and not to mention that we still have no clue if our other 22-10 (big) is going to be with the team?

[Jughead]

Boogie Williams! My all-time favourite Raptor! Jack Armstrong said it best when he said that the man has ice water in his veins. :)

I would love to see him return to the organization in some capacity like an assistant coach. The grit and determination he always brought is something our team was sorely lacking this season and even if he could impart just a little of that on next year's edition of the Raptors, it would be more than we've shown all year this season.

[Peter]

Doug, is it true that the Raptors have signed Douby until the end of next year?

Blogger's note: No, it's not true