Time for a change, except for what we do here

Damn refs.

Oh, wait, that was Tuesday.

Never mind.

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THREE POINTERS

Time for a change

Remember the other day when I mentioned that there were those in the hierarchy who thought change might be coming to the starting lineup?

I am sure their voices are louder now and should be listened to.

I wouldn’t be at all surprised if the starting lineup in Golden State on Saturday wasn’t Jose Calderon, Antoine Wright, Hedo Turkoglu, Chris Bosh and Andrea Bargnani.

It’s not entirely a knock against Jarrett or DeMar – and Lord knows there’s enough under-performing going on now that everyone shares the blame – but it’s got to be time to do something to see if they can find a spark.

There’s still a quarter of the season to go and that’s plenty of time and they remain right in the thick of a race for fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth.

But the events of the past couple of weeks, plus some private conversations I’ve had with a bunch of people, leads me to believe change is afoot.

And, frankly, I think it should be.

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One step back

Actually, it’s more like a dozen steps back and it speaks entirely to what transpired early in the third quarter last night, when a winnable game went away.

In every NBA game, when a team rebounds a miss and starts heading up the court, you usually hear someone on the bench yell:

“Stop the ball, stop the ball.”

Yeah, right. Not if you’re the Raptors last night.

Their transition defence was so bad it was laughable.

On one play, Tyreke Evans was leading a break and going about 55 feet straight ahead with the ball. At least three Raptors were back but did even one move into Evans’s path to slow him?

Nope.

Dude went right to the rim through all of ‘em, was fouled, completed an and-one and it was 55-48.

That’s the kind of lax defence we saw in November and it looked to have been corrected in December, January and February.

Not so much.

That’s simply effort and smarts and if they don’t have that, they have no chance.

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To a screeching halt

That was Toronto’s offence and that’s been the issue now for more than two weeks.

The ball simply doesn’t move and, what’s worse, neither do the players.

Chris Bosh was a big culprit last night, spending too much time sizing up his man rather than making a decisive move but he was hardly alone.

Jarrett Jack was the same with a handful of early jumpers, Turk took a bit too long on some possessions and Jose probably fired up a couple too many jumpers coming off high screens when he could have driven or passed.

And unless they figure that one out, recall the days of crisp ball movement, late-clock open shots and sharing, they’re dead.

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A wee bit more before I have to head to the airport

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What do I think?

Putrid, stinky and smelly.

Turk’s an albatross around a franchise’s neck and not only shouldn’t Jarrett be starting, neither should Jose and if they don’t fire Triano and get a real coach, this franchise will be doomed forever.

Oh yeah, and Bosh is so leaving it’s not even funny and what are they going to do then?

There. Everyone happy?

Seriously, there was a we bit of mud slung around these parts yesterday because, apparently, there isn’t enough ranting and raving and going off the handle to satisfy some of the screamers among you.

Guess what? There’s not going to be and if that’s not good enough, well, that’s not good enough.

What we do here is not yell and scream.

Yes, Turkoglu’s playing poorly; yes, sometimes the players don’t play well; yes, sometimes the coaching moves don’t pay off.

And you can get all your dander up and go nuts; I’m more of a big-picture, voice of relative reason and I simply don’t have the passion a lot of you do.

Sorry, but that’s not going to change.

What we do here is a bit complex.

I hope we inform and entertain a bit; give you some insight into why things happen (that those things often don’t agree with your opinion is not something I can control) and, perchance, give you a look at things you might not get.

The other stuff? Well, there are other places you can go to hear writers go off and you’re welcome to them.

I think we do all right here so I see no reason to change.

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No, I don’t think they can catch Boston, in case anyone wants to ask again.

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Tough week for Jose, no?

A technical foul the other day against Philly and the cut under his eye suggested perhaps his argument was valid.

Then last night he gets a questionable Flagrant I call while being smacked on the lip and some more blood is shed.

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Sorry about the in-game thing last night. Wireless went kablooey and by the time I pushed buttons and reset things, swore a bit and turned a few things on and off (surefire technological methods for fixing things in my limited knowledge), the game was just about over.

I blame Super Dog.

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Long flight ahead to San Francisco so I have no idea when we’ll get to comments and the like but I will. That’s after I get settled and perhaps find some for a coffee at the Buena Vista.

Remind me to tell you the Buena Vista story tomorrow morning, would you? It’s not bad but I’m pressed for time and space at the moment.

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If you’re lying around today with nothing to do and have some questions, here’s where you send them to the mailbag. Please, though, limit rants to a couple of hundred words.

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Comments

[nobody]

"I wouldn’t be at all surprised if the starting lineup in Golden State on Saturday wasn’t Jose Calderon, Antoine Wright, Hedo Turkoglu, Chris Bosh and Andrea Bargnani."

Hate to be a grammar nazi, but I think you have an extra negative in that statement. Seems you meant to write:
"I wouldn't be at all surprised if the starting lineup...*was* Jose Calderon, ..."
Unless, of course, you mean to say that you *don't* think that will be the new starting lineup on Saturday.

[The J]

Hmm... It's 1:30ish right now and the comments aren't up yet. While I assume it's due to your travelling, might I suggest after last nights game you just don't put them up at all. I don't think anybody needs to see them.
PS: Apparently we are not alone. Even the mighty Celtics got booed out of the Gah-den last night.

Blogger's note: Travel, that's all it was

[Richard]

Whew... what a complete meltdown. I can't remember a game where they so completely crashed and burned from the first half to the next. I have to say before the game I was leery of the collapse as it is not an unusual occurrence in this team's recent history to follow up a great game - win or lose - with mediocrity when playing a "lesser" opponent . But once they got off to a good start I was sucked in to believing that they had perhaps overcome the tendency to take teams lightly and expect to ride their superior talent to victory. My bad.
After 60 games of a season a team IS what it is. All the lip service doesn't change that. They are a team with a fair amount of talent and skill, but on far too many occasions they choose to rely solely on those attributes. Only when they choose to commit to consistent hard work on the defensive end will they break through. There are many examples of teams with less talent, skill and experience that are performing at a higher level - Charlotte, Oklahoma City, Milwaukee, Memphis, even include Portland considering all the injuries they have endured. I realize some of these teams are fighting for their playoff lives too and carry records similar to the Raps but much less was expected of them when assessing their talent. The reason these teams have exceeded anyone's expectations is commitment to defense and defense first. They get after it. Pure and simple. And the Raptors, and all involved with them, know, see and talk about it, yet no sustained commitment is made.

The funny thing is after most games the focus is on offensive breakdowns. Last night for example was, "they got selfish..." "lack of ball movement..." "they
didn't make shots..." All true but in my opinion less vital than the casual defense they participated in throughout the second half.

The problem for this team is how do you change the mentality? How do you temper their ego and instill mental toughness? I don't think you keep changing pieces, but what then? Can mental toughness be manufactured? ...Overnight?

They'll sneak into the playoffs (because Chicago has injuries and a similar commitment - especially without Noah in their line-up) but they're destined to do the one and done dance again. I sincerely hope I'm wrong. But suspect all that will happen is I'll be sucked in... again.

[GM]

I agree completely with your take on the ball movement. I put most of the blame on Chris Bosh, strange as that seems, just because he's the focal part of the offense, but, yes, not the sole blame. It seems he's trying to shoot his way back into game shape. Sure, defense is a problem, too, but I think the Raps get their energy from their offense. If they can correct that -- helping teammates score -- I bet they will also start helping teammates on defense.

But when things are going stinky, as they were last night, why not try different things? Is Marcus Banks so bad that he shouldn't even get a chance to play some D? Is Marco Belinelli so bad that he shouldn't get in until it's a blowout?

I just hope they get it figured out before I drive six hours to Portland on Sunday!

[Mike kovacs]

A comment about coming back from injury. Everyone forgets that it is actually more games 'missed' than the ones where the player doesn't dress. I wonder if the coaches sometimes forget this too - hold a player back an extra game because it isn't winnable or it is on the road - this only puts back the time it takes to get back into game-shape. What do you think Doug?

Blogger's note: I think they take into consideration schedule and days between games when they look at return dates and that probably does slow recovery time

[GM]

Oh, I forgot another dig at the refs! Just because the refs weren't a factor yesterday doesn't mean they weren't the night before. In fact, it's precisely because of games last night that the refs shouldn't stand up for star players. The good teams are going to win their share of blowout games anyway. They don't need help in close games. The middling and bad teams won't. There's a chance the Raps wouldn't have won in LA even without those star-favouring calls, but we'll never know.

[Ted Hockney]

Doug, here's that reminder for you to tell us that Buena Vista story. (It's not about the Buena Vista Social Club, is it? I love that group.)

And how's this for a promo? Whenever the Raptors give up a hundred points or more, Pizza Pizza gives every fan a free soother!

[doug]

I just watched (well listened as BC was on phone) BC's interview with Bob on connected, BC was in LA watching Pac 10 championship and he raised a point that I have been thinking about the last week or so....and one in which I asked you in a pre-game bliog, and that is what influence do agents have...BC stated that during the all-star break maybe certain players got into agents ears and visa versa and complained about their playing time or lack thereof, very illuminating as since the all-star break the team is not playing as a team and there are obvious chasms....there is something going on and BC alluded to it, nice candid statement on his behalf, plus stated that it his time maybe tomorrow for him to have a team meeting.....plus i am not accusiing or saying anything but even on a self-conscious level Bosh is 20 games minimum away from the biggest payday of his career, he has seen devastating injuries occur (Garbo) and from a not serious ankle injury to not playing a agressive kind of ball he can play it will be a issue or should be a talking point if it continues to occur...maybe another agent getting in someone's ear, as when a player cashes in so does a agent...just thoughts echoed by BC...there are issues

[david998]

When Kevin O'Neill was hired the raps had a collection of athletes who could score but could not defend.
But he took that team and made them a responsible,if not good, defensive team.
My question is,if my analysis is accurate, do you think that this collection of players could improve markedly defensively if another coach like O'neill ran the team.
( I do accept that under O'neill the offense became predictable and stagnant but does that necessarily follow?

[Perry]

As a coach myself, I've already seen what Jose Calderon can do as a starter. I have no interest in seeing it again. Jose's has been terrific off the bench and that's where I would keep him because he was equally ineffective as a starter. If there are people who think the state of affairs was worse in November, guess who was 'leading' the team back then? At least Jarrett can stay in front of his man on a semi-regular basis, even make defensive plays at times, get to the rim on offense and (especially) lead the break and create easy baskets. Much understated. Jose's inability (refusal?) to do any of those things was well-documented. It would be a crime to forget it now.

I think it's odd that players like Antoine Wright, Jarrett Jack, Reggie Evans, Amir Johnson, Demar Derozan and Sonny Weems indeed look so passive these days (relatively). They sure look a lot like Raptor teams of the recent past, don't they? As if they're fighting through some malaise, some heavy burden preventing them from leaving it out on the floor. If I had to hazard a guess, I'd attribute it to longstanding culture around these parts. To me, it's no coincidence that these previously spirited and fiery soldiers have seemingly lost an edge. Complacency is not only a team killer, it's also contagious. This team has historically set the bar too low and I'm not at all surprised to see such inconsistency creep into their game now- in spite of the roster turnover of last summer.

[Norrin Radd]

I am glad that there are many people that share my view on disagreeing with Doug regarding putting Jose back into the starting lineup....not sure why Doug has such love for Jose when clearly he hasn't played as well as he has in previous years and will get worse as he gets older....he will get worse....his best years are gone..he's nothing but a jump shooter who needs a pick to get open....he is best for the Raptors when he comes off the bench.....to even suggest that Jack should be replaced by Jose is ridiculous....if anybody should be replaced from the starting lineup, it's Hedo....or should I say HeDon't.

[Aditya]

Buena Vista eh doug....grand life...!!!

[Michel G]

I was pretty pissed off last night. I don't think I've ever switch a Raps game off before the end, win or lose, but I did last night. But it's strange how a day will give you perspective. I'm watching the Bulls playing Orlando right now and they're down 30+ in the first half. And they're in the same position as the Raps, fighting for a playoff spot, blah, blah, blah... Changing lineups might help Doug, but this is a time that the guys have to look in the mirror and remember what has made them a winning team. Like you said, move the damn ball and work hard. Is that so hard to do?

[Mike]

Calderon has been one of our absolute worst throughout this bad stretch whilst Jack has been holding us together...please explain how giving Calderon Jacks starting role helps?

Also, if DeMar goes to the bench do you see him getting more looks on offense? I like it when he gets more touches, he seems to do something that not many others are willing to do - take it to the ring and finish strong.

[JHP]

I wish you the best on the West coast trip and hope you can find a couple good places to eat (upscale lodging would be nice as well). As usual the Toronto Raptors are kind of on a West coast trip. There in body but not mind. Since the team for whatever reasons has decided to fight for the 9/10 place in the standings you might as well play tourist and enjoy the West coast. The only people I feel sorry for are the season ticket holders. Maybe they can send them a refund and base any further ticket increases on them making the playoffs. Which at this point I serious doubt they will make and I do not blame the coach. I do blame the players and only because at times this year they did win games. Oh to be a Nets fan (eliminated from playoffs before March madness). At least they made no excuses and tanked from day one. Hopefully Chris does not get too upset by his soon to be ex team members. Hopefully the GM can get something in a sign and trade but somehow I doubt it. I do wish Chris the best but realize the team stinks with him and obviously can stink without him.

[Yama F]

Doug, I understand the lack of criticism and the "you are never as good as you think you are and you are never as bad as you think you are" approach you are taking in your blog based on the fact that you would like to maintain a relationship with the Raptors. Nobody wants you to have a short writing career. While I think a lot of times it's good to put a damper on "hot" fanatics that want to fire everyone in the organization. But sometimes to me, you come across as almost a mouth piece of the organization. I would be hard pressed to see you really critique even the obvious objectively.

That was my two center.

[Earl]

Most of the Raps look like they're sleepwalking lately.
I'd really like to see more of Marco.
He's an out-of-control player sometimes, true.
But at least he's fun to watch.

Man, now I sound like a Golden State fan.