On limited minutes and more Goofiness From Gilbert

All right.

So they couldn’t score, didn’t defend, lacked some energy and got hammered on the boards.

Guess 89-1 (pre-season included) was unrealistic from the start, wasn’t it?

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Anyway, am sure the angst will flow (a lot of you were extremely cranky after a four-point loss in Boston) but I honestly think you need to consider this:

The most any player has played in any game so far is 27 minutes, that was by DeRozan and Jack the other night against the Celtics; and there have been combinations on the court that are little more than taking chances at catching lightning in a bottle.

Most of the team’s offensive sets have yet to be unveiled in a game – we’ve seen more freelancing in three games than we’ll see in three weeks once things start for real – and to judge how they’ll run stuff and for whom can’t be done until after the Oct. 22 game against the Knicks.

Seriously, while there are no expectations for this team and it could very well turn into a long, long, long, long season, to suggest anything that’s happened in these three games makes that a certainty is simply wrong.

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I will add this:

If you ever see a regular season starting lineup of Jose Calderon, Leandro Barbosa, Julian Wright, David Andersen and Amir Johnson again, there will have been a huge rash of injuries or Jay will have suffered a pre-game seizure and they will get drilled that night.

Just sayin’

The pre-season is time to experiment, especially the first two or three games, and that’s an experiment not soon to be repeated.

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So, we’re about to hit the halfway mark of the pre-season so this question makes a lot of sense:  

Q: Hi Doug, So it feels like Bryan Colangelo is standing pat on his current roster. There hasn't been much suggestion lately of any big moves afoot. Almost makes me wonder if he is trying to make us forget that he still has a big trade exception to work with.

What's your best guess.

Do you think Bryan leaves the roster as is for a while, perhaps even until just before the trade deadline? Or is there something percolating behind the scenes?

 

 

Brenda C, Sault Ste. Marie

A: Unless they get off to a gangbusters start, I don’t think he sits and waits until February and I can tell you this 100 per cent: There are minor trade talks going on every single day even now.

I don’t know how serious they are – some things “on the backburner” was how it was put to me by a someone with a big title around there the last time I saw them, which was Saturday – but that what makes guessing when something might happen truly impossible.

For all I know, and for all anyone knows, something could happen today or it could happen in three weeks but if I know Bryan, something is going to happen.

It always does.

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Hey, we’ll be here tonight for an in-game blog thing, if I remember how to do it.

All Irregulars invited.

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Here’s why I’ve always loved Vlad Guerrero: He doesn’t get cheated and he doesn’t wear batting gloves.

Cool.

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Oh, had Tuesday’s game in Chicago been a regular season affair, you would have witnessed history, had you witnessed the game.

The 22 rebounds collared by the collection of Rodmanesque Raptors represent the fewest in any game ever played by Toronto.

The low for games that count is 24, set one night in February, 1998 against Miami.

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An entirely predictable, um, Situation on DWTS, no?

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Hmmm.

Andrea Bargnani has 11 with four boards, shoots 3-for-9 from the field, making three three-pointers.

Can’t wait for the love in the comments today.

(I keed, I keed)

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The Sixers are rolling, winners of one in a row, and Old Friend JK lit up the Celtics last night, it says here.

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You know, this whole Gilbert Arenas affair is really confusing, isn’t it?

First off, the guy’s been all but incommunicative all pre-season, save for one post-game rant where he suggested he’d be gone from the Wizards and that might be better for everyone concerned.

Then, last night, he sits out what was to be his first game at home since the gun-play suspension last year, ostensibly because his knee was acting up, which had to be a troubling sign given that it’s been years that he’s had knee issues.

Trouble is, he admitted after the game that he faked the injury, or the severity of it, at least, so Nick Young could get the start and some playing time.

Here’s the Washington Post story that lays it out.

Arenas, who is still owed about $58 million on the three years left on his deal and who has played 47 games over the past three years because of knee injuries and suspensions, could very well be the most untradeable player in all of professional sports.

Stunts like the one he pulled last night sure aren’t going to make him any more desireable anywhere in the league.

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Getting back to the Heroes Of The Hardcourt, let’s play “Guess The Starters” for tonight’s game.

I’m going with Calderon, DeRozan, Kleiza, Bargnani and, well, let’s go back to Evans since it’s his old team they’re facing.

Fun game, isn’t it?

Who do you like?

(And, remember, it’s still the experimental stage of the pre-season).

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I’m thinking a Phillies-Rangers World Series would be pretty cool, no?

Although the chance to possibly see Roy Halladay pitch against A.J. Burnett in the ultimate series is pretty intriguing. Almost as intriguing as Halladay-Cliff Lee.

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Okay, enough rambling.

You do some now.

Mail. Here. Please.

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Comments

[Matty-Pix]

-The lineup i'd like to have a look at before the season starts is Calderon, DeRozan, Kleiza, Amir, Bargnani (but Reggie may end up being the better balance to Il Mago, with Amir bringing more bench fire).
Also, Bargnani had 3 blocks last night ... just sayin'

[kelsey]

Good day all,

Cliff pitched a gem last night, The loss solidfies the breaking up of Tampa Bay.

John Wall will be a real star..Cousins also looking really good. Blake Griffin could he actually raise the lowely Clippers (maybe)

Yes it was truely a preseason game for the Raptors last night. Starting line up said it all. But the doesnt matter the lineup, this Raptor team cant rebound, oh my!!. This will truely be a long season and is the best thing. Toronto need's a #1 to #5 pick a player that can be a star or heavy impact.

Doug and all others, I will not stop talking about Bargnani good or bad. I heard so many of these people on the Raptors Blog talking about how El Mago! The Magician is going to lead Raptors, Bosh sucks etc, Bosh is greedy etc, Raptors dont need Bosh etc...No Bosh to hate on now..I made a mistake yesterday and I have to appolgize, Toronto needs to keep Bargnani (play him 40 mintues!!) so this team can tank to the very bottom depth's of the NBA and hopefully get a top pick. It will be tough to watch but its necessary for future growth of the team.

Hopefully Barbosa can still bring the continued energy, Derozan still needs to up his game. Weems need to stay focused and take reasonable shots.. Jack needs to stay calm and run the offense. Jose needs to pass before dribbling the whole clock out, also keep his value up so he can be shipped out.

Its a tough year but I will still watch all of the games good or bad. True fan and not a band waggon jumper. Now please let me hear all the good things Mr Bargnani will do again or how Im a arm chair coach/gm!!!!!!

[Bill in NS]

I say Jay should go with Jose, DeMar, Linas, Andrea...and (never thought I would say this as I was a sceptic) Joey Dorsey. I don't think I can watch Evans get his shot blocked any more, nor can I watch Amir turn it over on the dribble, Give Joey 25 minutes tonight.

I know people will be bashing Andrea again for a poor game, but at least he had some rebounds and blocks, Weems shot the ball often and scored OK, but he did not have one other stat in the books at all. I can't wait till we start running some sets, the last two games have been hard to watch.

[pk]

Calderon, DeRozan, Kleiza, Dorsey (That's right, I said it), Bargnani.
I just think that Amir and Reggie's energy is more suited for the 2nd unit.
Jack, Barbo, Weems, Reggie, Amir - what a 2nd unit.

[Kevin A.]

Halladay-Lincecum, Halladay-Lee, Halladay-Burnett, Halladay-Sabbathia.

Those are all some pretty intriguing match-ups.

[pain777pas]

@kelsey
I too like what Wall and Griffin's play so far. They look like solid position players. Not suprised by the Raptors right now. Barbosa will be key to the Raptors getting some wins. The team needs Derozan, Jack, Weems, Kleiza and Andrea to start if they want to win. Have Johnson, Barbosa, Jose, and Andersen or Dorsey in their to keep the starters fresh. This team can only win if coached well. The talent is not evident that they will be able to consistently beat anyone. I could not believe the rebounding last night. I knew Bosh leaving was a considerable loss but they were outrebounded 19 to 39 at one point. The Bulls went to the line about 29 times to their 10 or something. I just gave up watching the development of a debacle. There is no excuse the team has to rebound by commitee. I just was dumb founded by the stats because you can see its evident that they cannot win basketball games playing like that. Doug, I don't mean to rant but seriously the rebounding is a cause for some concern if you can't trust Dorsey, Johnson and Evans to be on the floor all the time. I will not lose faith because I believe that Barbosa will be able to justify me watching the team and the emergence of Kleiza, Weems and Demar.

[Dan w]

I would rather see Joey Dorsey or David Anderson start over Evans. His offense is so bad it negates anything he does on defense. Plus his man is free to double team whoever has the ball. I'm looking forward to seeing Ed Davis in the lineup. In summer league he seemed like a smart player who understands his skill set.

[D-Mac Ottawa]

Morning Doug,
Wow, "freelancing" is right. That was one butt ugly affair, and Jarrett was scary bad. Interesting to see how consistently good Andersen has been though.
Don't suppose 1-89 is very realistic either, eh, but could these guys be a one-hit wonder? Can JayT and The Journeymen crack the Top 40? Should they change their tune from funk to hip-hop and their name to Klewliss? Will Rich Peddie and The Deep Pocket Boys wrangle a grammy for (worst) record of the year? Tune in for another smash hit season from Doug and The Irregulars.
Cheers. Go Klewliss!

[Johnn19]

Raptors/Bulls
One team was experimenting, a total disaster decision by the Coach, and the other was playing a regular NBA game, with Noah 40 mins, and Rose 35 mins, and the results very predictable.
When Jay gets down to deciding who will start for the Raptors this season we may have some idea what this team is capable of, but before that nothing means nothing.

[Jack]

"Get off Bargnani's back.. it's been only three stinkin' pre-season games!"

I was looking for that paragraph in your blog today.

[Paul B]

trade Bargs for Arenas!! Sorry, Doug, didn't have to, but wanted to. same PPG, but at least Arenas has some personality to spice up this year's version of Raps and the Restless!

[Kadz]

Gilbert for Calderon and Evans?

I keed, I keed!

[CC]

Jose, Klieza, Andrea, Andersen, Amir...

[graham]

think Dorsey needs to get some significant minutes and determine if he is a rotation guy or bench fodder -- then either he or Evans is traded as either one is going to play behind Davis once he is fit and both are not needed.

[David]

Is it reasonable to assume that Reggie being used as a starter - a role he never played in Philadelphia before or after Elton Brand's arrival - is really to keep a place warm for Ed Davis? In other words, keep Amir on the second unit, because that's the role he's going to play, while Davis will get the same kind of affirmative action DeRozan got much of last season?

That's the only reason I can figure for starting a guy so skill-challenged as Reggie and then actually giving him more shots than the other four guys on the floor.

[Don M]

Rather have Bargs start at PF-his naturally position-no matter what line-ups Jay has. Until they get a natural centre, Amir and Anderson have to play that position. Still do not think either PG is the right one for this team, especially as a player with heavy minutes. Amir, Weems, Jack, DeMar and Dorsey seems to be a good line up combination. Lots of activity with good rebounding. This would leave Calderon, Bargs(PF), Anderson, Barbosa and Kleiza to form another unit. Which line up starts and finishes I have no idea, toss a coin I guess. I don't believe that Evans should be on either lineup and should eventually be traded, especially with Davis coming back to play PF.

[GM]

Lots of love for Barbosa and Kleiza, I'm seeing. That's good. But will that ever extend to the man who brought them here? No one ever plays connect the dots when it's a positive, do they?

Doug, I know you're not a big +/- guy, but a lot of the doom-and-gloomers who post here are and are quick to point out whenever Calderon's +/- is worse than Jack's, or whenever Bargnani's is horrible. So I'm just saying all the starters were minuses last night, but the best of the lot (at -1) was Jose (Jack was -18) and the best on the team was Bargnani at +4. That's all. I know it doesn't mean much, but you can't use the stat only when it suits your purposes, people.

[Steph]

The time has come for Jay and the Raptors to see who they really are. This illusion that nothing matters right now is false. Everything matters. Last nights starting line up provided exactly what we all expected, a loss. What was there to learn about that? The result may not matter, but how the game is played does. And I didn’t see anything we could learn from last nights game. Rebounding was a very big issue last year and promises to be worst this year. If we were going to throw a game we should have at the very least worked on something that we desperately need to work on and tried to out rebound one of the better rebounding teams from last year.
..
There is nothing to be learned about using player combinations that will never be used during the season. Everything matters, and the season will be difficult enough to watch as it is without watching Jay fiddle around without seeming to have a clue as to what he wants to do, or what he has to work with.
..
I like Jay, I watch every game I can and record those that I can’t see live, and I like your blog, I read it everyday. But to think that the pre season is so meaningless that we would trot out last night’s starting line up is an insult to Raptor fans.
..
Just my opinion.

[kelsey]

@ Steph I agree, even if its preseason, let that line play later on in the game. This team is nowhere good enough in preseason to put out these line ups that would never start. I like Jay Triano, Alex English and Asst GM Gherhardini, but I think they all go out the door after this year. If Colangelo doesnt pull something with Jose and Evans. Then he goes to. I will only rate Triano if he really places ineffective players on the pine.

Reggie cant be a starter at all. No chance, 2nd not to his fault but he touches the ball to much. Lets see what Dorsey can do!!!!

@CC
Calderon, Bargnani and Anderson in starting line up who mentioned this, you must really want raptors to tank season??

[Dennis]

I find it funny how Bob Mc.Cowan describes many Raptor media as Raptor apologist... you're defintely one of them...I read quite a bit on the NBA and the consensus is the Raps will be in contention for the Harrison Barnes sweepstakes...but your sure drinking the kool-aid...ok its the pre-season...but how do you explain the lack of effort...this team will struggle to win 20 games...there is no one who will command a double team, that's where they will miss Bosh the most...teams will key on Andrea and he's not tough enough to fight thru it...he will miss Bosh the most because those easy points he got because of Bosh' presence will be gone...your the so called expert Doug but i bet you the Raps won't win 15...especially with Triano already making excuses for Andrea instead of calling him out

Blogger's note: Have your cheque ready for the Jim Proudfoot Corner of The Star Christmas Fund, I will. Don't chicken out, now. That would be entirely cheap and chicken and being afraid to back up your words. I'll be looking for it in April. Don't let us all down by backing out.

[Lorie]

Hi Doug,
About that "Rodmanesque" ability to rebound - can it be a learned skill or do you think it might be more of an instinctual thing that some, like the Divine Dennis, were born to perform with flair, artistry and most importantly - consistency? (And is The Star Christmas Fund open for donations yet?)

Blogger's note: We're not open yet; and technique can be learned but it's also instinctual to a degree.

[Dadeo]

Lots of teams put out starting lineups that you're never going to see in the regular season. There is lots to be learned by watching players (especially players competing for the last couple of rotation spots) play significant minutes in a real game...even if its a pretend season game. Thats the beauty of preseason, they get to experiment without affecting the outcome of a regular season game.

[kelsey]

Hey Hey Dennis, All over Doug like That...

Wow I back up Doug lets make sure you keep that bet about 15 wins.

But Doug lets be fair, there is nothing to say that any player on this team has improved from last year

Listen I dislike Bargnani on this team maybe more than anybody but I cant see the team being that horrid. Its not like they have only goofs. They have guys like Barbosa,Kleiza and others who are trying to re-establish there name. Generally speaking who though Milwaukee would do what they did, with that being said. They had Scott Skiles as a coach and hustle players who get 2nd chance points.....But Dennis really I hate, hate to say it but we need this team to bottom out!!!

[Paul B]

no Q&A today??

[The J]

That was a scary game. But the scarier part is that while that wasn't the Raptors at their regular season best, it also wasn't the Bulls ath their regular season best. In other words, while it could get better, it could also get a lot worse. Ooh..Scary!
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With rebounding being a certain issue I wonder if it would be worthwhile to throw the team out there for one preseason game with one goal: to win the battle of the boards. The score wouldn't matter, they could lose by 50, but the goal would be to go after every single rebound. And if they lost that battle, then Triano could bench those who didn't hustle after the team goal. It would be worth it to drive in the importance of rebounding and let them see how it leads to better offense.