Back to the usual blather

After a day for everyone to catch their breath, we offer this a bit later that usual but it felt good to sleep for a wee bit of extended time.

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So what do we all make of Chris Bosh’s torrid start to the season?

The numbers, as we showed in the paper today, are quite something and I think the one I’m most impressed with is the more than four offensive rebounds he’s getting per game. We haven’t seen that kind of aggression on the offensive glass over an extended period in years.

But what I found most interesting in the 10-minute chat we had in a corner of the Energy Solutions Arena locker room the other night was his contention that a large part of his transformation came about because he wanted to really be considered among the elite in the league.

Ego-driven, it is. And, to me, that’s a very good thing.

All the best players in every sport have a lot of “me” about them, a bit of selfishness and a cockiness that makes them stand out. Bosh really hasn’t shown much of that, he’s talked it a little bit in the past but he’s never really displayed it on a consistent basis. Now? He is.

No, his game is far from perfect and he fully admits to a couple of brain freezes on defence that cost his team buckets and he knows that has to improve. But there is an edge to him this year that can only help.

He remains the team’s best player – by far – and if the best player has an edge to him, you’d think it would eventually rub off onto some of his teammates.

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You all remember Ira, right? My guy at the South Florida Sun-Sentinel?

Well, here’s what he’s got to say today before this big one.

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Speaking of travel heck, I want to personally thank United Airlines for screwing things up yesterday by having the plane that was coming to get us in Salt Lake be late so we were late getting to Chicago and the connection home was missed.

Nothing like a 15-hour travel day to end a week-long trip.

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Here’s the thing.

You read my mail and you’d think this is the worst 5-7 team in the history of basketball. More Nets-like than you could imagine.

Guess what?

They’re not the elite but they’re not with the dregs and isn’t that what everyone expected when this whole exercise began? Not sure what kind of instant gratification everyone was thinking about over the first three weeks of the season but, two below .500 now is about where they should be.

This is, in my opinion, still about a 43-win team, all things being equal, and being 5-7 now may not equate mathematically to that number but, in the reality of an NBA season and the vagaries of the schedule, I still think it does.

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You saw Dave’s piece on Reggie Evans, I presume.

And there you have it: No one knows for certain when he’ll be back so the questions can end, right?

Let me also say this: Reggie is good and he’s tough and he’ll answer a lot of needs this team has. But, please, don’t think that he minute he’s back in uniform that things will magically turn around and be good every second of every game.

Fans sometimes have this ability to over-estimate the value of missing pieces and turn them into something they’re not.

The Raptors will get consistently good when everybody – chief among them the other 11 guys in uniform – put out a consistent effort every night.

It’s on guys like Bosh and Bargnani, Calderon and Turkoglu, DeRozan, Bellinelli, Wright and Johnson and Jack to be better more often.

Yes, Reggie helps; no, he doesn’t get it going better all the time just by himself.

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Only a few days left to enter our nifty contest. If I were you, I’d click here and try to get in on the fun.

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We all have read, or heard, that the Knicks have some interest in Allen Iverson, who cleared waivers last night.

Well, the whispers I was hearing at a couple of places on the road trip was that Miami might be in the mix, too. Not sure how that fits – well, I’m not sure how Iverson fits anywhere, to tell you the truth – but I do know he’d probably get his wish to be a starter.

The thing would be if he’d try to dominate the ball on a team with Dwyane Wade, that’s where trouble lurks.

But we will know tonight where Iverson will land.

Under waiver rules, teams put “claims” in on players who are on waivers and if there are more than one claim on a player when that period ends, the team with the worst record is “awarded him.”

So, if the Knicks and Heat want him, well, he’s off to New York.

Might make the pre-game period tonight a little more interesting as we wait around and see what happens.

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Speaking of pre-game period, we’re back to some kind of normal schedule around here.

We’ll try to knock off a 1 p.m. chat; we’ll try to get an episode of GruntTV on the air and then the regular game drill tonight.

We’re also going to put together a Sunday mailbag (I believe blowing off practice tomorrow will be in my best interest) so if you’ve got some non-game specific queries send ‘em along.

And by that, I mean questions that aren’t: “Well, they sucked in the first quarter in Utah, here’s 250 words on why I think that way. “What do you say?”

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As I’m sitting out the missed connection at O’Hare yesterday, in the cramped little Air Canada corner by Gate E1, I’m thinking just how much I dislike that airport.

Too spread out but too crowded; the $10 little sandwich and bottle of water was a bit much to take and there just seems to be a bad vibe around the place.

Comments

[Lindsay]

" Hi Doug,

Do you think that Bosh's Ego will drive him out of Toronto seeking a new home in more media-centered city like New York?
thanks

Blogger's note: I'll let you know in July"

Classic that is good stuff right there.

[The J]

I think the thing with Bosh is that he needed to do something more radical if he truelly wanted to get better. The weight gain, and the focussed intensity was the only way he could ever be elite. I think people were starting to notice that as good as he was, statistically he had plateaud, with no real change in his numbers over the past few seasons. Add to that a major injury per season, and the question becomes how will he fare over the years? Has he already hit his peak? The league is littered with Jermaine O'neal, Elton Brand, K-Mart, types who become liabilities before they reach 30 (big contracts, reduced output and constant injuries). There are only a couple of KG and Duncan types, and getting physically stonger is the only way he will ever get there.

[Ted S]

I beginning to wonder what credentials Marc Iavaroni has to be a "defensive" coach of this team. Statistically all of his teams (as head or assistant) have been porous. Isn't it strange how this team is packaged in pre-season as "protecting our house" this year, or the "run and gun" Raps of 3 seasons ago. In each case, 12 games, in they end up being polar opposites? If defense wins championships, this team may never be further.....ok maybe not that bad, but not close to the top either.

The fans have no choice but to pour their hopes and expectations in Evans. Otherwise we just aren't that good.

[sara]

I think Triano should try to move Bargnani to the bench and start Amir alongside Bosh.The combo Amir/Bosh should work way better than the BB combo. And Andrea seems to have more chemistry with Belinelli and the 2.nd unit.

[Chris]

Absolutely the defense needs to get better. But they'll never be an elite defensive team and with the way they score they don't have to be. They just have to be good enough to get stops when it counts.

[Andre]

Next step for bosh: Get better defensively.

You know what this team really needs? A scary athletic shot blocker. With the defense they play, and the blow-bys calderon and hedo let by, he would clean up the mess... What do you think doug?

Blogger's note: Yeah, I think these guys and probably 25 other teams could use a scary athletic shot-blocker

[Don M.]

Defense is always there with focus and effort, game in and game out. However, Offence can come and go from game to game. Therefore it makes sense to have a good mix of defensive players on both lines. Just listen to Oak, he knows what he is talking about. A 7' center shooting 3's that come and go, compared to a Brook Lopez, who can play the inside game on both ends of the floor. I know who I would choose. I have always felt that Bosh is a tweener, not quite a pf or center. Give me a Blake Griffin at pf anyday. Place Bosh at SF or trade him or let him walk. One way players such as Turk, Calderon and Bargnani will never lead the Raps to a championship. I will make this statement for years to come until they make the necessary changes. Oh, by the way, unlike you, I have 40 years of playing the game as a combo guard, and believe in playing both ends of the floor. I have been there and done it. Don M. from Riverview NB.

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[greg]

watching this team play defence is a painful experience for a basketball fan but watching them play offence is great most of the time. Seeing that the raptors have played 4 home games to start the season and 12!! on the road all against teams out west, 5 and 7 isnt so bad. Looking at how other teams in the east do against the west in the past few seasons that is about right. We are 3 and 1 against eastern rivals so far, all at home. Can people save the panic until maybe mid december?

As for Bosh, he is a big man its not fair to compair his game to D Wade who is a wing player and can create his own shots as a result of his position. Big men in the league are more reliant on wing players, and thats what T.O. needs , better production from the wings which is why we got Hedo.

[The J]

That is a good question, why is Marc Iavaroni the defensive coach? How could anyone from the D'Antoni system be considered a "defensive" coach? Isn't that essentially saying, "hey we don't play defense"?

Oh well, Reggie Evans will fix everything. He will single-handedly take the worst-defensive team in the league and make them a defensive powerhouse. He's like Bill Russell, KG, Bruce Bowen and Jesus all rolled into one.

[John Thatcher]

Can you ask the "new" Bosh to start winning some games?

And if you replace Bosh on this team with any of those guys he wants to be comapared with, we would be a much much greater team.

You'll disagree, obviously. But deep down you know I'm right, and that's why I do not like your work.

Blogger's note: And yet you take the time to read and write and ask favours. I'm honoured.