It's hard to prepare for what awaits; and what of Marco?

Man, it’s early out here.

Not an awful lot of stuff off Thursday, actually; long travel day for one of us, a day off for the guys who actually count.

But anyway …

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You know what the worst possible thing for the Raptors might be right now?

The Golden State Warriors.

Really. A team with an unorthodox style of play, guys who don’t have a thing to play for except fun and frivolity and a coach who can run out combinations of players that would appear to make no sense whatsoever.

If there’s one thing Jay and his staff pride themselves on, it’s preparation, knowing what the other team likes to run, having counters for what they do and having stuff in on offence to exploit mismatches.

And I know yesterday they were a bit perplexed because you really have no idea what the Warriors will.

As one of ‘em put it:

“They don’t run anything. How do you prepare? You put your guys on the treadmill ‘cause all they’ll do is run you?”

And there’s the big issue – and the big danger – for Saturday night.

The Raptors aren’t a bad team and can be quite competitive when they get teams that play a more traditional, halfcourt style. Like the Lakers, or Cleveland, or Dallas or San Antonio or the like.

Teams like Golden State? Teams that go all helter-skelter? Not so much.

What’s why tomorrow could be 140-138.

Or 135-78.

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This might have been a bit dicey.

When the Raptors arrived at their ritzy San Francisco hotel, they found the Portland Trail Blazers sitting there waiting.

Portland was in town to face Golden State over in Oakland on Thursday night.

Wonder if the Blazers looked oddly at Hedo when he was hanging around the lobby.

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Oh, can we get a bit more mail over here. Thanks. With games Saturday and Sunday nights, not sure when I’ll get it up, it might end up being an early Sunday morning bonus.

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More time for Marco?

Not sure right now how Marco’s back is – we won’t find out until much later today out here after practice – but if he’s okay, it’ll be interesting to see how Jay uses him tomorrow night against the Warriors.

You know how Jay likes to let players get a shot against their former team – to the point of getting Reggie Evans back a week earlier than expected so he could face the Sixers – and Marco has some history in Golden State.

Figure on Belinelli getting some early run, if he’s healthy.

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Speaking of San Francisco, here’s what the Chronicle had off Thursday’s loss to Portland.

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Buena Vista story time.

For those who don’t know it, it’s a San Francisco landmark known since 1952 for its Irish coffee; in fact, it boasts about having the finest brew this side of Ireland and they are very particular about how it’s made: Warm the glass first, fill three-quarters with hot water, two sugar cubes, a jigger of Irish Whiskey and topped with a collar of lightly whipped whipping cream.

(Late add: Yes, they put some coffee in there, guess it doesn't go without saying)

Anyway, it’s a bit of a rundown place you have to see and last season, on an off-day here, one of the team’s broadcasters (who shall remain nameless) and I do our duty and show up.

So, as Jack (oops) and I are sitting there through three, four, maybe five of these concoctions we do what we do, strike up a conversation with the fella on the other side of the serving area, a guy who happened to a hoops fan. Blah, blah, blah, blah, we prattle on and take our leave.

Next night, Raptors play the Warriors and, if you recall, Jermaine O’Neal first was felled by a flu bug before banging knees with someone and sitting out a half.

But it’s the flu that we’re told is the reason he’s done.

Well, we get back a couple of days later and an e-mail arrives and it says something like:

“I see Jermaine didn’t play because of the flu. Hope he didn’t get the same kind of flu you and Jack might have had.”

It was from the Buena Vista bartender.

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Here’s one thing to watch for Saturday night.

How they get along.

It seems to me there’s some more of the finger-pointing and subtle digs that we saw in November creeping into the picture now and that’s a troubling sign indeed.

Of course, as I’ve mentioned before, nothing helps “chemistry” more than a win or two and nothing hurts it more than continued losses so it could go the other way quite easily and quite quickly.

But right now, the body language I’m seeing and the reading between the lines that I’m doing is showing a team not with a break but one with at least a non-displaced hairline fracture.

It can heal, but it might take time.

And some wins.

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Comments

[Norrin Radd]

Loved Feschuk's article this morning...now there's a journalist who is not afraid to rock the boat. I know a lot of you may not like his style and I'm sure a lot of Raptors don't like his articles but I enjoy them...

"But there is clearly much more to Toronto's poor play than a rusty return by Bosh and the comatose Hedo Turkoglu. And certainly, at the very least, there is this: Triano is employing a flabby rotation that continues to tolerate repeated lapses from unfocused players who would be, under a less sympathetic coach, riding the pine. "

He hit the nail right on the head with that statement! Jay's too soft to bench players for not putting out effort...and I don't mean players like Demar...I mean his "star" players...players like Hedo, Jose, Andrea.....Jose can give the other team layup drills during games and he will still be out there closing out 4th quarters.

[Tom]

Hey Doug,

Couple of questions. The impression that I got from hearing the comments after the last game from Wright and Jack is that the players might be questioning the coach and his strategies. Could Jay be losing the ear or respect of the players? And second, at what point does Bosh stand up as captain and address the other players and try to rally the troups? I hear that Wallace in Charlotte did something like this and it seemed to work.

Have a great time this weekend.

Blogger's note: They're losing, everyone's grumpy but no one's lost anybody that I can see.

[D-Mac Ottawa]

Morning, Doug, and happy Left Coast to you,
Perfect set-up, perfect timing, since it's time to shakes things up anyway, for Jay to "run out combinations of players that would appear to make no sense whatsoever." Chances are pretty good I'll never be an NBA coach, cuz my starting five would be Marcus and Marco, CB4, Bargs and Amir. Turn 'em loose, substitute at will based entirely on defensive (not offensive) effectiveness, find out who's hungry and willing to battle, then set the starting five and tighter rotations for Sunday based on what happens Saturday. Cheers! Go Raps!

[Lazaros O.]

So the Warriors don't run anything. What does this say about Nelly as a coach? Well, I guess the answer is in their record. But wasn't Nelly once considered a genius? How did he drift so far away from the NBA coaching mainstream and why are the Warriors keeping him around?

[Z]

They don't put any coffee in their Irish coffee? ;)

[Ryan M. in Ottawa]

@D-Mac

That line-up is so incredibly insane that Don Nelson could have come up with it...Brilliant!!

[Hope Caper]

Hey Doug, Bad chemistry is not what they need right now. These guys are just gelling so I'm saying it's a slump which happens from time to time. You can't control them just play through them.
You had pointed out that Bosh was communicating in the back court and certainly when he went out that went with him. It would be interesting if you can find out if he has picked that up since his retun.
Your rabble rousing colleague likes to quote Wright a lot and made the inference rather strongly that Wright has been campaigning for DeRozen's job. I don't recall you mentioning this. That would sound rather -ummm- fractious for a team mate and destabilizing to the team in general. Is this for real or a mirage in Feschuk's mind?
Peronally for a line up change I would look at Jose, Jack, Weems\Wright, Bargs, and Bosh. Let Banks and Hedo run the second group. Banks brings it up and Hedo can make his passes 1/2 court to Amir, Evans\Rasho, and DD\Belli.
The only fly in the ointment is defence. Unfortunately on TV I can't get a grasp of these guys' abilities whereas you see the big picture. Do you see any flaws in these lineups?

[Penny]

Doug - I was very impressed to see your blog here by 10:00 my time which is only 6 am in California - talk about commitment! I know you have said in the past that Jose's defense is not as bad as people think and I agree with that and it is obvious that other commenters (word?) to this blog do as well. Why then do you think so many other commenters see his defense as atrocious and blame him for every loss - even the Sacramento game which was lost at the beginning of the 3rd Q when he wasn't even on the floor.

Blogger's note: I cannot figure some things out, no

[dave]

Slainte to a good game but did I read right? No coffee in the Irish? Anyhow, enjoy

[AK]

Doug,

Are you at liberty to identify the recipients of the pointing fingers?

AK

Blogger's note: They're losing, everyone's ticked at everyone now and then.

[greg]

i agree with feschuk, this team needs a tighter rotation, developing time is over its now crunch time. Weems should be getting more minutes he has earned it, Turk, less unless he improves his level of play.

The jose - jack backcourt has got to go also, especially in the 4th. Using it against a team running tyreke evans seemed bizarre. Bargnani , Bosh, definately needs to step up their game, and reggie needs to play less at this point, focus more on the player in the best form, thats Amir. At least Amir has some offensive skill.

It was really annoying seeing Reggie given the ball far away from the hoop and no other players coming in to bail him out, knowing he can't do much on offense and needed someone to pass the ball to. And for once, when Bargnani is hitting shots i would like to see his teammates actually give him the ball while he's hot. This team seems to shoot first and pass if there is no other option.

Right now i feel the rotation should be Bosh, Bargnani, Turk, Weems, Jack, Jose,Belinelli,Amir, Wright. Thats 9 players, Turk's minutes would have to be earned at this point. He is really in poor form.

derozan, reggie, rasho, Banks can come in if someone is not available in that group. I would probably play Banks and Rasho in a few posessions where their skill is needed, but just throwing in guys to give them 'minutes' at this point is counter productive, so is protecting egos, if you are not playing well you should not be playing over guys who are playing well. That's the difference between now and November.

[James Online]

If Marco plays tomorrow, Raptors fans will see that he was much appreciated here. There will be a good ovation for him, even though he was here only a short time. Fans here called him "Rocky," and when he was shooting free throws, or having a good run on the court, they'd yell, "Rocky, Rocky, Rocky...."

There is a group of us who love Marco's game and personality. We support him all the way and will be out in full force tomorrow night at the game with tee shirts, Italian team (Bologna) jerseys, signs, and more!

Rocky!

[steve]

Doug,

Are you at liberty to identify the recipients of the pointing fingers?

AK

Blogger's note: They're losing, everyone's ticked at everyone now and then.

This response really seems like you're dodging the question. while we know everyone is ticked at everyone now and then, do none of the players seem more ticked at the moment? i know you're loathe to point fingers, but it seems weird to raise the point but not give any kind of clear picture about the specifics. for instance, are people upset with hedo? i would be. are there particular relationships that seem tenser than others? just hope you'll give us a little more to chew on. thanks.

Blogger's note: Okay, over the course of a game Bosh might get ticked at Jarrett, Jarrett might get ticked at Andrea, Andrea might get ticked at Hedo, others might get ticked at Hedo, Antoine might be mad at someone who misses a defensive assignment, Jarrett might be mad about coming out of a game. It's tough times for everyone now

[Pipit]

As much as I like Jay to represent our only Canadian team in the NBA, it's time for him to go if the Raptors want to go deeper in the playoffs and contend. The Raps need a coach who is not only good with the X's and O's of the game but also had a strong personality to deal with everybody's ego. Someone who demands respect not only to his players but also with officials. Most of the time the team get victimized by poor officiating which always cost them the game. I do remember one instance wherein Jay softly talking to an official about a call and this official shouted at him with an authoritarian voice telling him his wrong. The bottomline for is respect and Jay doesn't demand that. Even his players with no history of major clashes with coaches are starting to criticize him now. This will get ugly especially if they keep on losing. Doug, how do you grade Jay in terms of working and demanding respect with the officials?

Blogger's note: I think -- no, I know -- he gets far more respect than you think. Can't quantify it, though, so I presume that won't be satisfactory.
I'll say a C; average

[doug]

Jat needn't go anywhere in my opinion he has strengths and weaknesses , just to fire a guy because he doesn't rant and rave on the sidelines isn't the best move...I've said this since the start of thes eason and I still stick by it, a guy like Wright by his quotable nature does far more harm to a team then good.....he undermines, he crates uncertainity in otehr players minds, unrest and just keeps stirring the pot....he's a cancer and Jay needs to cut his time not reward him and BC if he trult wanted to help the team should have done something with Wright long ago....he's a conniver....manipulator...if you keep putting in digs on your coach long enough, and the coach doesn't respond other players see it, and follow suit, example Jack...not to many players rip Phil or Sloan etc... if iw as Jay Wright wouls sit at teh end of the bench and not play a minute....Wright wants the coach to be more assertive well there you go, cheers...

[doug]

plus you see where Gilbert Arenas has also requested a switch in numbers from 0 to number 6....both Russell and the Doc have seen first LeBron and now Arenas wanting to share their number shameful...be intersting to see if the league accepts Arenas's request..

[T I]

Doug missed your blog post yesterday (which was a solid one by the way) so posting on today's comments instead. With respect to your wireless. For future reference, on your macbook, turn airport off then back on at the top right of your screen (it's the signal strength symbol). If that doesn't work, I'd suggest unplugging your cable modem and wireless router for 15 seconds then get them back up and running, that will solve 90% of problems it sounds like you were having. On other option is that you may have accidentaly hit the 'standby' button on your cable modem? Just some suggestions.

On to the court.. it was too hard to watch the whole 3rd quarter against the kings the other night.. i turned it off probably with 3 or 4 min left in the quarter. It kills me to see them play so effortlessly and lacklustre against opponents they 'should' be able to beat. I feel like the 3rd quarter has hurt them in at least a dozen games or so this season. My question is, do they just sit there in the locker room and rest and come out sleeping? Maybe they can pump up some tunes in the dressing room to stay awake?? Any idea what goes down in their usual half-time routine besides Jose passing out Gatorades?

Keep up the good work!

[T I]

One more point i forgot to add is that I've notice that Turk (at least from my eyes) seems reluctant to give the ball to Bargnani quite often... Is it just me? I've seen countless times over the last few weeks, Bargnani demanding the ball with his hand in the air and turk decides to ignore him (even at times when Bargnani has been hot). Am I losing it here or have others noticed this? I guess what i'm saying is, I'd like to see Turk play on the second unit. He is an immovable contract for the next few years, they have time to patch up any "hurt feelings". But in my opinion, he doesn't fit with the starting line-up PERIOD.

[dave]

http://www.theonion.com/content/news_briefs/chris_bosh_out_for_season

Breaking news?

[Richard]

Today's assignment for each and every Raptor player and coach should be to sit down after practice and personally write a note of sympathy to each and every Chicago Bull, then thank their lucky stars that they both reside in the eastern conference.

[Kevin A.]

Hi Doug,

This slide started around the time when Reggie made his introduction into the line-up. To be fair, this also coincided with Bosh going down with an injury. do you think Reggie's insertion into the line-up has rocked any of the chemistry this team had, or do you think Bosh being down has been a bigger factor?

[Perry]

T I, I think that's very observant of you. Ironically, I see it as one of the reasons why Turkoglu is important for this team. When it comes to Bargnani, I see Turkoglu as the only player willing to challenge him- it might be out of line... or it might be the tough love that he needs.

Here's what I've noticed over the course of this season. 1) In the off times that Andrea decides to put his bum in the post against a smaller defender, he sets up on the wrong foot. As the entry pass is delivered, the defender then often overplays to his advantage, forcing Andrea to waste time as he corrects himself and his angle. By the time he does, he's sometimes out of rhythm and/or forgets his teammates, ultimately losing control and leading to a wasted possession. In the end, his post positioning has always had issues; you'd think it would come naturally. It's those fundamentals that, in my view, prevent him from becoming a spectacular player.

2) Similarly, when he's facing up, Andrea's triple-threat position is often weak. He doesn't fool his defender as much as he should. He holds the ball at the right level but that's the only thing he does right, in my opinion. The rest of his body is a dead giveaway as to what he plans to do. He might be off balance. His shoulders might be slumped when he plans to drive. His eyes telegraph his intentions too early- unless he throws a fireball into an unsuspecting teammate. For a perimeter 7 ft'er, perfecting his triple-threat mechanics should have been a priority a long time ago.

3) Finally, for a team that employs so much of the high p&r offense with Jose Calderon, it's sometimes painful to watch Andrea set the high screen. It's like he doesn't know why he's setting the screen. As a coach, when I ask a player to set a screen in an offensive set, they seem to hear either one of two messages: "Go stand there!" or "Take him out!" The first misses the point. The second is desirable. But with Bargnani, all I've seen recently is the former. He stands next to columns of air, usually off balance, before arbitrarily deciding whether he should roll hard or pop out.

These are all symptoms of a player who's learning. But in my opinion, he's taking too long- perhaps because he's rarely been challenged by the leaders of the team. If Turkoglu is giving Bargnani some 'bad cop' treatment to move him up the curve a little faster, I'm all for it. Because it doesn't appear that anyone else is doing it.

[thedudeabides]

actually T i've noticed the same thing, but even more so with jack. so many times he just ignores an open andrea. i actually think it's amazing that andrea is doing as well as he is this season, because it seems like he has to get everything on his own. i don't know why they don't go to him more for offence.

[HopeCaper]

Perry, nice analysis. I would modify the AB criticism as some of that falls on the passer. As in when AB gets the ball. No question he is sometimes a little slow but to be fair sometimes he is a little faster than expected. The good news is that he has improved every year and I don't see that stopping. Regardless I really hope these guys get it going and have a nice run to playoffs.

[Nilay]

Doug probably wont post this but I will write it anyways...Doug has been a supporter of Jose and Jay the entire season so it wont anytime soon. Last week while the entire Raptors nation was looking for some changes to the starting line up (such as Derozan) you Doug thought changing Jarret for Jose will happen...which really makes no sense as this team was playing the best basketball of the season when Jose was injured and Marcus was coming off the bench as the back up. Also Doug seems to think the combo guard system late in games is a good move on Triano's part which also makes no sense as many teams have quick point guards and bigger 2guards than the Raptors... and lets all be clear Jose's defence has been horrible at best on many nights, I have never seen a point guard get blown by as many times as Jose has this year. I understand that the Raps like to play help defence but there has got to be a point where you have to guard your man straight up especially at the end of games but for Jose its like he is expecting one of his teamates to be there knowing he will get blown by at the end of games that is unacceptable! Sorry Doug I know every one Fans and writers alike have favorites but the facts are facts there really isnt that much difference between Jarret and Jose just that Jarret plays better D and he can drive the Ball to the hoop and that 2 things the Raps really need. Other than that Doug you are doing a great job and find your articles and blogs entertaining.

Peace Brotha!

Blogger's note: Yeah, peace. And check your revisionist history about me and the opinion of Jarrett and Jose.