Good game, good time, and a visit from Lady Karma

Now, that was entertaining basketball, wasn’t it?

A bit of everything, some ‘wow’ moments, not decided until the last second and I’m pretty sure as a night out or a night in front of the TV, everyone has to admit it was worth the time to watch.

And solace in a piece of free pizza today! -

THREE POINTERS

The right play?

The best thing these guys run is high screen-roll and I don’t have any issue with them running with Jose and the game on the line.

Yes, Jay even opened himself to second-guessing by wondering if he needed to have the ball in Leandro’s hands with eight seconds left (you can read his quote about it in here) but hindsight’s hindsight and as the play unfolded, it seemed to me to be the right one.

Trouble is, they didn’t get the layup or the call and after watching the replay a handful of times, I don’t think there was a foul there. Horford defended it really well and it was one of those things that just didn’t work out.

What the Hawks did that was practically unnoticed, though, was defend everyone else quite well. They didn’t leave a shooter open, there were no obvious passes for Jose to make and it was just a good defensive play all around.

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Costly sequences

Long before the Bibby shot and the failed drive and Bargnani’s last-ditch shot, there were a couple of moments when the HOTH botched a couple of plays that, in retrospect, were important.

In one, they come down on a break with numbers and instead of making the easy play, a lob goes awry and the Hawks end up converting a bucket at the other end.

About a minute later, DeMar back-rims a dunk when he could have probably laid the ball in and Atlanta turns that into a basket at the other end.

Now, they may not have seemed significant at the time but they were in the end.

I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a Raptors team commit more turnovers on fast-breaks than this one does.

Jay alluded to it early in the season, saying he was frustrated by the desire to make spectacular plays rather than smart, easy ones and it’s still an issue.

One that needs to be resolved.

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Saving timeouts

Jamal Crawford makes three free throws with about 53 seconds left to put Atlanta up one (it seemed a rather impressive theatrical move to get the call now that I think of it) and I’m sure everyone in the joint expected the Raptors to call a timeout.

Except that they didn’t because I know Jay figured he’d need every one at his disposal in the final minute and there was no need to blow one right then.

Turned out to be a pretty good move, too, since the Raptors went down, ran a high screen with Johnson and Calderon and got a big three-point play out of it.

Now, if we could just convince every NBA coach to eschew timeouts like that more often – and even later in the game – finishes to close games might be a whole lot more fun.

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More? I’ve got a bit more.

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Remember way back before the season began? I said I thought I could develop an affinity for the Clippers because they might be fun to watch and a good story out west?

Well, I came off that in a hurry when the started so slowly and Donald Sterling reaffirmed his position as the worst owner in all of sports and Baron Davis continued to steal money after attending the Boris Diaw School of Conditioning.

Maybe it’s time to rethink? Saw a bunch of their win over Heat and they were kind of fun to watch and Blake Griffin might be the best story in the league this year.

Oh, wait. Sterling’s still Sterling and Davis seems to try about every fourth game.

To hell with ‘em.

But Griffin’s something else.

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I trust the folks who took in the game in the MGD Best Seats In The House thing had a good time? Thanks again to the beer folks for passing on the tickets and, yes, we’ll do it again sometime.

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I’d love to tell you how the Atlanta Journal-Constitution played up that game but they didn’t have anyone here to chronicle it.

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This comes from the mail and goes to a point in the game:

Q: Doug, a strategy question for you.

1 second left in the game, Atlanta is up by one, shooting from the stripe. They make the first - wouldn't it have made more sense to intentionally miss the second shot?

It seems that that one second would be spent fighting for the rebound - or at least some of the time wouldn't be there to make a play. Instead they make the shot and give the Raps a full second to make a three.

Am I missing something fundamental?

 

Thane B, Toronto

A: Lots of debate about this one and I guess you could go either way.

Personally, in my opinion, you make the shot and take your chances on a desperation three at the buzzer because in that case, the worst you can have is overtime.

Let’s say the Hawks miss and the Raptors rebound the ball 8-10ths of a second left and with a timeout remaining.

Now, not only does a crazy three-pointer lose you the game, the two-point hole opens up myriad other possibilities for Toronto out of the timeout.

Now, if Toronto’s out of timeouts and it’d take a 90-foot heave to win, I might miss but the way the situation played out, I’d have done the same thing.

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Oh yeah, LeBron James sprains ankle in loss to Clippers.

Karma? Yes, she’s a bitch.

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Couple of little reminders.

We’ll do a Question and Answer thingy here tomorrow at noon if anyone’s interested.

And I know there are people out there who promised me questions and hellos in the mailbag (you know who you are) and it’s still pretty bare over there.

Write. Click. Send.

Thank you.

-

Dang.

I forgot to finish my MLS Mock SuperDraft.

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At no time in last night’s game did I look out on the court and think Joe Johnson should have come out of the summer as the highest paid free agent of a class that included LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Amare Stoudemire and Chris Bosh.

But he did.

And I’m still amazed.

-

 

 

Comments

[MJ Walker]

Just a great game to watch--a little bit of everything. To my way of thinking the call on Amir for the moving scren was the key call in the entire game. I am not sure but had that call been made the whole game. Kind of makes you wonder. Perhaps Jose should have jumped into Horford or Bargs should have fallen down after taking the last three.

[Brent]

good call on the X-Factors last night in the IGBT Doug - Barbosa and Crawford!!

[AT]

Great Game... when you lose by one it's too difficult to look at every little play but the two fouls past the 3 point line (I think both Demar) were killers.... if the shot doesn't go in and Rap score, its another 5 point swing... on the other hand, do you think they should have called Amir on an illegal screen? Sure it wasn't good but really did not impact if Jose scores or not, they would have switched the screen anyway.

But I think we should be very optimistic with this group, Raps have never been able to match up well against an athletic Hawks teams over the last few years but they did great last night. Hopefully BC can swing something significant before the deadline without affecting the core group of this team and we can let them make a playoff run in the lowly eastern conference and look forward to next season.

[sam]

The was one heck of a game.
The pivotable play was the foul called on Amir with about 10 seconds left in the game. To my untrained eye it looked as though he had his feet firmly planted and the Hawks player performed an Oscar worthy performance. I could be a bit biased though.

Are Amir's Back troubles a thing of the past?

Blogger's note: Yes, they seem to be

[Josh]

Had a great time in the MGD seats Doug! One of the best games I've been to. Thanks again!

Blogger's note: Glad you enjoyed the night.

[joe]

Doug,
What are your thoughts on this Hawks team. Have they hit their peak as a group or will they be able to take the next step? Also, do you think Joe Johnson's contract will become an albatross if and when a hard cap comes into play? Thanks

Blogger's note: They might be the fifth best team in the East; sixth if the Knicks make a move at the deadline

[Dallas]

Good Morning Doug

Great game, tough ending though. Could you ask the players, especially the non north american players such as Andrea, Jose, Kleiza, Barbosa, even Peja, if they've thought about the possible lock out and whether they would play with European clubs if there was a work stoppage in the NBA.

I had just read a quote from Kirlenko that he would go play in Russia, and I think even Jennings had mentioned it a while back. But it's an interesting question that's really not been discussed. I know you've said you don't believe there will be a work stoppage, but I would still appreciate if you could ask.

Thanks.

[adam]

normally i hate when people point out typos etc, but Doug.. i must have read this paragraph about 4 times to see if i'm just sleepy..

Well, I came off that in a hurry when the started so slowly and Donald Sterling reaffirmed his position as the worst owner in all of sports and Baron Davis continued to steal money after attending the Boris Diaw School of Conditioning.

lol.

love ur blog, it's my morning wake up. keep up the good work!

Blogger's note: "They" started so slowly and I'll fix it

[Derek S]

Morning Doug,
Damn that Mike Bibby! Even when he has a relatively quiet game, he still manages to hit a dagger at a key moment - something he's seemed to have a knack of doing against the Raps.

I was at the game last night and I noticed that for most of the Raps scoring, it was all about "streaky" play. DeRozan started off great in the first quarter, then cooled off dramatically. Bargnani started off slow, then heated up as the game went on. Barbosa and Johnson were quiet in the first half, but heated up in the 2nd half.

To that end, I was surprised in the 2nd half of the game, when DeRozan had cooled off offensively and seemed to be getting killed on defense (the veteran guards on the Hawks seemed to draw him into quiet a few "rookie" fouls) - why didn't Jay go to Julian Wright for a few minutes? The Raps seemed to be scoring without too much difficulty, and could've (I thought) used Julian's defensive toughness to change things up. That was the only real criticism that I had from the Raps perspective.

As you alluded to, its 20/20 hindsight, but that game wasn't so much decided in the final 2 minutes, as it was decided in a number of small plays throughout the game where the Raps had numerous chances to go ahead or pad their lead, but some bad decisions and sloppy play throughout the game cost them in the end. All things considered - Atlanta is a team that the Raps have always seemed to have a hard time with (due to their athleticism), even dating back to when we had Bosh on this team. So in contrast to previous years, and even earlier this year when they walked all over us, I thought being able to hang with them to the final seconds was a "step forward" for the Raps.

My favorite moment of the game last night (maybe of the decade) - in a close game with both teams trading buckets in the waning seconds, the Raps score a bucket that puts them over 100 points, and there is NO mention of "free pizza". No announcer screaming it, no flashing message on the scoreboard - NOTHING. The fans were actually cheering for buckets (not for pizza). Hallelujah!!! Maybe there's some hope for this fan base yet (however I'm not holding my breath after just one example).

[ptboscott]

agree that it was a great game and i wonder if jay gets major props today from the naysayers about the great coaching job (zone defense, timeouts etc).
couldn't help but think that there was no way that moving screen foul would have been called if it was crawford, bibby, joe johnston etc.

[Rob.V]

The was one heck of a game.
The pivotable play was the foul called on Amir with about 10 seconds left in the game. To my untrained eye it looked as though he had his feet firmly planted and the Hawks player performed an Oscar worthy performance. I could be a bit biased though.

@ Sam. I was upset at the game last night as Crawford clearly "sold" that call however I just checked the play out a few minutes ago and Amir was still moving his feet (but do they call that on KG or Gasol?).

Hopefully the kids learned something from that game though. Doug was dead on with that DeRozan slam that didn't go down. I guess as he gets older he'll understand that when things aren't going well on a particular night... you make the safe play.

But as bad as our record is right now heres the positive spin. I'd much rather be the Raptors than the Hawks because the Hawks (as constructed-with long contracts in place) are destined NEVER to get past the 2nd round in the playoffs.

Mind you, the Raptors as constructed - are destined never to win 32 games!. Shoot, maybe I take that back.

[JHK]

Good call on x-factors indeed.
Last night's game went exactly the way I wanted - exciting game and we come up just short.
Here we come Perry Jones or Kyrie Irving - I'll be happy with either of the two.

[jc]

Hey Doug,
couldn't agree more on your assessment on that other exciting game last night. Griffin was something to watch and it was nice to see him do that something to the Heat. Karma indeed.

[CC]

Great game last night. I think the turning point last night was Crawford's 3pt shot maybe 8 feet behind the arc and 2 seconds left in the shot clock. The raps played great defense on the that sequence and were up 4pts and if I'm not mistaken less than a minute to go right? That was a killer.

On Jose last drive, i think there was no foul, reply showed no foul but honestly Doug, if that was Nash or Wade or the "superstars" in the league, do you think the officials still won't make that call?

[james]

Baron Davis was certainly engaged last night. I like your sly reference to karma. And it's been a couple of years since the Raptors weren't run off the court by the Hawks.

[kelsey]

Crucial errors last night, Demarr missed dunk, Demarr fouling a 3point shooting Crawford, Screen play and why I ask why Jose going left trying to finish with his right. There was no foul...JAY TRIANO must explain why Barbosa didnt have the BALL at the end of the game.. Barbosa was tearing it up!!! Why Jay WHY!!!

Klezia is way to up and down. Raptors still need a 3 as Weems, Klezia and the rest just dont cut it!!!!

Blogger's note: Um, read the story; the explanation is there but why do I get the sense it won't be satisfactory?

[D-Mac Ottawa]

Morning Doug,
What a game. Isn't b-ball just the grandest dang sport under the sun?
The biggest 'wow' moment for me was Barbo's steal at midcourt. He first spun away from the pass lane, then pivoted – it was a blur indeed – right back into the pass. Wham! I think that may be the best steal I've ever seen, period (okay, Bird to DJ was the most exciting, but Barbo's was an absolute marvel technically).
The Raps lost this one at the line (the 3-point fouls by DeRoz and Amir were huge), and because DeRoz fizzled (or was D'd into fizzle mode) for three quarters. They also got out-boarded uncharacteristically this time, 40-33.
I thought the last call, unfortunately, was a good one, though there were three suspect calls earlier: Amir getting called on the pick was the biggie, Andrea's 3-second defensive call was mighty quick, and it looked like DeRoz had a clean swipe at the ball to take it from Jamal at mid-court somewhere right in between those other two calls. But them's the breaks (Atlanta probably has its own list).
This is just a fun team to watch, and if they keep playing as hard as they have been, the breaks will start coming their way. (And, oh yeah, LeBron? Them's the breaks, Karma Lou!)
Cheers. Go Raps!

[Pipit]

Doug, you talked about a lot of costly sequences but I'm surprised that you don't mention the crucial play of the game that mostly decided the outcome. That is the moronic call of the referee on Amir Johnson because of an illegal screen. Whether it is a foul or not, it's a stupid call by the referee. You don't call something like that in the dying minutes of a close game especially if there is no distinct advantage that happened because of that screen. But what hurts the most is after doing a slow mo a couple of times in my PVR, it wasn't even an illegal screen. It was just a good acting job by Crawford. Things like this doesn't happen on Popovich, Rivers, Sloan, Van Gundy and Jackson's teams. And if did, game will come to a halt after a barrage of complains and raining saliva on the referee's face. As for Triano, he's there in the bench as meek as a lamb.

Blogger's note: Surely to all that's good in the world you're not thinking the refs made the call (which was the right one) because Jay is the coach?

[Pipit]

Lots of debate about Thane's question, Doug? Are you kidding me? There shouldn't be. It's a no brainer. If the Raptors still has timeout play and the opposing team has a chance to have a 3 point lead due to a foul throw, you always take the option of having a 3 point lead rather than having a two. You don't put the game in the line or a chance even how remote it is. But this whole scenario would change if the Raptors doesn't have a timeout left. Other than that, there shouldn't be anymore debate, Doug. Case close!

[m]

It snowed again here in Alberta, damn that Triano!

Blogger's note: Ding! Ding! Ding!

[kelsey]

Doug I read your portion of Jays explantion and I listened to him in the post game. Its just my opinion from a Arm chair GM.

UM!! Obviously I cant compare with Triano and his basketball knowledge, however I support the team, organization by purchasing merchandise, tickets and watching there games. So I feel I could give my opinion. Bottom line 2nd guess or not, you give the hot hand or top player the last play. Just my feeling, Jose is to weak and not known for attacking the rack, so of coarse he wouldnt get a call..

Good game good play call but wrong player for the play!!!

[Wallace]

Hi Doug,

It was indeed a great game to watch. Wouldn't it be equally great if NBA referees were instructed to call the games straight. Teams that don't have stars or who have poor won/loss records are expected to lose....and way too often the officials seem to make sure that happens. Question is...is that precisely what David Stern wants? The game officials clearly have the talent and ability to call an even game (mistakes included), so what other conclusion can you draw?

[Kent]

@ Wallace, regarding your question..."is that precisely what David Stern wants?" The answer is YES! This is the way the NBA has always been and always will be. Personally, I have no problem with it. Stars win games and get calls in the NBA; it's the Raptor's own problem for not having any.

[GM]

* Oh, so much to say... When Amir got called for a couple fouls earlier in the game, I thought they were bogus so I rewound the old PVR and rewatched. Turns out the refs were right. Go figure! On his last foul, on the illegal screen call, I rewound and rewatched. Turns out the ref was wrong. I know any call is justifiable after the fact (maybe his feet weren't quite stationary), but it certainly wasn't obvious and seemed to have no effect on the game. The Hawks were being disrespectful to the game (in my opinion) by flopping anytime a Raptor got near them. If no Hawk fell to the floor on that screen, it wouldn't be called. This is the biggest problem with NBA officiating, I think. It's like they don't see the actual play; they just see someone fall down so they assume it was a foul. Like those two "fouls" on the 3-point shots. Basketball is a contact sport and there will be lots of contact, but if it's incidental, let it be.
* That last point might seemingly contradict my next one: The non-call on Jose. But you can't comment on a single play without looking at the whole. Possessions don't occur in a vacuum. It's arguable Jose wasn't fouled on that play. It's also arguable he was. He was fouled just as much as Amir was on Amir's three-point play earlier. And he was certainly fouled as much as Crawford was on his two 3-point attempts. So, yeah, on that one play, in a vacuum, maybe Jose wasn't fouled. But all you can expect out of refs is consistency. If it's called one way at one end of the court, it's got to be called the same way at the other end.
* Awesome job on the DSIGBT last night, Doug. I often wonder why you (and the TV crew) bother with keys to the game and key matchups and all that since they rarely if ever pan out. It seems like idle time- and space-filler to me. But you nailed them last night!
* Barbosa was a joy to watch last night. Just wondering, though: Is he a veteran or a young guy? All this talk that Peja would take away from the development of the young guys and here we had Barbosa dominating the ball. I'm all for it if he's going well, but couldn't that argument be used against him, too? Isn't he taking away the development of the young guys, too? I know he's under 30, so maybe he's in the future plans. Hope so. People talk about the loss of Stoudamire on Phoenix, but I think the Suns also miss Leandro.
* For most of the second half I was screaming at the TV (well, muttering under my breath because I don't want my wife to know how emotionally invested I am in a silly game) for them to sit DeRozan down. If he were just invisible, I wouldn't have had a problem. But he was really bad and costing the team. Hopefully he'll bounce back in the next game.
* @doug, I meant no insult to you yesterday when I was talking about the asterisks. It was LeBron who used them in his Tweet which prompted me to give my opinion on them, not you. But your example of saying 'frig' in front of a child doesn't seem to be parallel. When you say 'frig', they hear 'frig'. When you write 'f***', they don't hear (in their head) 'frig', if you get my drift. They hear the actual swear word. And I'm someone who's never once uttered a swear word (or even 'frig') in front of my six-year-old, but have no problem with colourful language. He'll hear and read them enough when he's older.
* also @doug, going back to yesterday, I stand by my assertion that Phil Jackson was being a jerk in beating up the hapless Cavs so handily. “We had a defensive goal,” Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. “We wanted to try and limit them to as few points as possible.” Stay classy, Phil! This wasn't the Phoenix Suns or Orlando Magic they were playing. The Cavs are decimated and one of the worst teams in the league. Why have such a goal when they could easily win by 20 without trying to smother them?
* Okay, I'm done now.

Blogger's note: Can we say Barbosa's a "tweener?"

[Marius]

Hi Doug,
Love the blog!
What is the Raptors' Gain(es) from the Sundiata signing?