http://www.nba.com/raptors//
Ploto- Look how cool the front page graphic is:
The name tag with all the players' name on it!
Hedo and Sho- teammates again!
Last edited by angel_luv; 09-28-2009 at 02:01 PM.
That's one ugly duo LoL
Angel,
There is already a topic for "Nightmare on Elm Street" in the The Club.
You need to stop!
Sorry, couldn't resistYou need to stop!
Haha, cool.
The raptors are the , we've had some really good games versus them in the past. I wonder why so many players hate Toronto though?
Because it's Toronto
ps. Just saw the name tags...so that's where Marcus Banks went. Can't remember a player with so much hope behind him as Marcus Banks. He was supposed to save the Lakers from Smush, then the Suns from an aging Nash, now the Raptors.
Toronto is a great city!Because it's Toronto
...that's where Marcus Banks went. Can't remember a player with so much hope behind him as Marcus Banks. He was supposed to save the Lakers from Smush, then the Suns from an aging Nash, now the Raptors.
Banks isn't saving the Raptors from anything. He will spend the season on the trading block and in a suit.
hvala lepa!
www.tsn.ca/nba
ARMSTRONG: 5 KEYS TO GET RAPTORS BACK TO PLAYOFFS
I'm fired up for another season of NBA basketball. I can't believe I'm beginning my 12th season as a Toronto Raptors broadcaster. How time flies – it seems like a lifetime ago when I was ranting and raving on the sidelines as an NCAA Division 1 coach for the previous 14 years.
I've gotten to see the ups and downs of the Raptors organization over the years and as they enter their 15th year in existence, I feel like it's time for the team/organization to take that next step and not only be a playoff team but get a little roll going where they are contending for a good stretch of years to be an elite Eastern Conference team.
Remember, the Toronto Blue Jays won their first World Series in their 15th season and followed it up with another one the year after. I don't think the Raptors are at that stage in the NBA landscape going into this season but as an organization, the ultimate goal is to be an elite franchise. It's time to get on a consistent roll.
President & GM Bryan Colangelo has done an excellent job of retooling this team after a disappointing season last year. I give Colangelo credit - he's an incredibly hardworking and passionate basketball man, who reacted to what took place last year, took it personally and was bold enough to revamp this thing in one off-season. I like that style--No Nonsense!
It's training camp and everyone thinks they're going to be good. I personally think the Raptors WILL/SHOULD be good this season. I DON'T put the Raptors in the category of the Eastern Conference's top 3 teams (Magic, Celtics and the Cavs) but I DO put them in that next group that can contend for 4th thru 6th seed and win in the range of 44-48 games.
They'll be competing with the likes of the up-and-coming Atlanta Hawks, the healthy and improved Washington Wizards, the Dwyane Wade-led Miami Heat and even though Ben Gordon is gone, the Chicago Bulls have enough talent to be a player in the conference.
Here are my 5 keys to a successful Raptors season.
1. CHRIS BOSH - Time for the career year! It's a contract year and I'm tired of hearing about 2010 free agency and the nonsense of wanting to play for a 'championship contender' from LeBron, Wade, Bosh, etc. It's time to make the situation YOU'RE IN a CHAMPIONSHIP CONTENDER!! That's why you get the big $ and all the attention. Get it done!! I LOVE Chris Bosh as a player and a person. He's a winner both on and off the court. 1st class all the way. I think he's got another level of productivity, leadership, consistency and intensity that he can take his game to and LEAD his RAPTORS team to the NEXT level. The moment of truth has arrived and it's time to answer the challenge and the opportunity sitting in his lap. He's capable of doing it - NOW DO IT!!
2. DEFENCE AND REBOUNDING - You only get what you demand. Jay Triano and his staff need to be very demanding of their team this year to make sure everyone is accountable and giving 100% in these vital areas. The additions of Reggie Evans, Jarrett Jack, Antoine Wright and Rasho Nesterovic will allow this team to change the culture of a team a year ago that didn't pay the price in these areas. If this team makes the sacrifices necessary in these areas, they'll have a great shot to have a nice team. If they don't pay the price here, we'll be looking at an inconsistent team that will only be able to win when the offence is clicking on a certain night. Defence and rebounding equal consistent, night-in and night-out positive performances. Everyone wants to go to heaven but no one wants to die to get there!!! --- You want wins?? Pay the price or else!!!
3. GOOD HEALTH - Bosh & Hedu Turkoglu are missing some practice time right now. No big deal in my eyes. Oct 28 vs. Cavs is what counts. They've gotta stay healthy as a team and can't have Jose Calderon playing at 60% like last year. The margin of error here is too slim. Not as loaded as the Celtics, Cavs and Magic. All the little things need to work for you and good health is a HUGE factor.
4. CHEMISTRY - Love the additions that Colangelo has made with lots of new faces. Now it's time to get them to all be cohesive. Be patient. That will take time. Roles need to be established, competed for and accepted over time and as each passing day goes by from October to November to December, this team has more than enough offence to be good. It just has to be fluid and all fit the plan over time. Creep, crawl, walk and then run. This might take some time but I foresee once this group 'gets it', they'll be fun to watch.
5. GRIT/TOUGHNESS - Last year's team didn't have it. They watched the playoffs from home. Want to be in the playoffs and go deep?? Do the dirty work that it takes on the nights you don't feel 100% and you're tired and just grinding your way through it. The best teams steal games every year because they're simply tougher and want it more than their opponent. It goes a long way towards turning a good season into a great season. In the words of the great Bill Russell "Hustle is a talent because not everyone does it." Pay the price=Fun season!!!
Look forward to calling 50 Raptors game this season on TSN and TSN2 - should be fun. Enjoy!!!
Thanks, Lefty.
You are more than welcomeThanks, Lefty.
Maybe I'm mistaken but isnt there something about taxes being higher in Canada?
Now, that Rasho has made this public information, I will post my public congratulations to him on the birth of his beautiful daughter.
http://www.canada.com/sports/Nestero...781/story.htmlRasho Nesterovic gave a lot of thought to moving closer to home this year.
His family increased to four with the birth of his daughter Teodora, his second child after son Nikola. The slumping economy meant NBA teams were being more frugal than usual, putting the 33-year-old centre in a position of looking for a team after a year with the Indiana Pacers. Moving closer to his native Slovenia seemed to make a lot of sense.
Instead, he chose his other home.
“Like I’ve said a million times,” Nesterovic said, “I never felt homesick when I was in Toronto.”
So Nesterovic returned to Toronto, signing a one-year deal for $1.9 million US. Nesterovic was in Toronto from 2006-08, starting 112 regular-season games and six playoff games.
Nesterovic was universally liked in the dressing room for his understated humour and his professionalism, so Raptors president and general manager Bryan Colangelo never wanted to get rid of him in the first place. He did so before last season to acquire Jermaine O’Neal, but did not hesitate to bring him back.
“The stability, leadership and presence that Rasho has both in the locker and on the floor, it’s really clear to us that it’s a nice piece to have,” Colangelo said. “We lacked that after he left.”
“I’ve always liked him,” Raptors coach Jay Triano added. “He’s one of my favourite players, one of my favourite people in the NBA.”
The deal was mutually beneficial, more than most. At the end of last year, the Raptors’ first big man off the bench behind Chris Bosh and Andrea Bargnani was Pops Mensah-Bonsu — “an undersized power forward” as Colangelo put it. Nesterovic, though, wanted to come back to Toronto.
Nikola was born in Toronto and Nesterovic never got rid of his home in Toronto even after the trade.
“I like Toronto,” Nesterovic said. “Who knows? Maybe I’ll move and live here (permanently).”
“There was always an expression of interest in returning,” Colangelo said. “We had a little bit of an indication of him liking Toronto just by him keeping his place, and talking about spending some time here later in his life.
“That probably helped our cause.”
The phrase “consummate professional” follows Nesterovic around. His is not known for his athleticism, but he is sound defensively and is big enough to defend some of the league’s stronger centres, despite losing a few pounds this summer. He can also hit the mid-range jumper.
However, Nesterovic’s minutes should be more limited than they were during his last tour in Toronto. In addition to Bosh and Bargnani, the Raptors have Reggie Evans, an exceptional rebounder, and athletic forward Amir Johnson in the front court.
But perhaps Nesterovic’s biggest role with this team will be as a tutor, if an unconventional one. Two years ago, the team looked to Nesterovic to help Bargnani improve.
“He sets the example and he comes and plays hard,” Raptors assistant coach Alex English, who works extensively with the team’s big men, said. “That forces them to play hard. And he’ll get on them. He’ll let them know: ‘C’mon, do what you’ve got to do.’ ”
http://www.thestar.com/sports/basket...rticle/704898#At his perch on the top row of the bleachers in Carleton University's gym, Jasmin Repesa accepts visitors and welcomes conversation.
Bryan Colangelo stops by as the Raptors conclude a training camp scrimmage; Marc Iavaroni wanders by after the session is over; Jay Triano has a word a few minutes later.
Repesa is being afforded unfettered access to the Raptors' coaches during training camp because they believe you can never have enough sets of eyes watching what's going on.
It is fitting, seeing how Repesa is considered one of the great minds of European basketball.
Fresh off coaching Croatia to a spot in next year's world basketball championship, taking a year off from a 15-year career with some of Europe's top club teams, Repesa is providing a little bit of insight to what's transpiring on the court.
"I really respect him," Triano said of the 48-year-old Repesa, who will be at the Raptors' camp until the end of next week.
"I told my coaches, make sure you go talk to him. We can learn a lot from guys, especially guys who have coached in Europe for a long time.
"I try to talk to him every day and value him being here."
Repesa, who is a long-time friend of Raptors vice-president Maurizio Gherardini and coached Lottomatica Roma when Toronto faced that team in a 2007 exhibition game, isn't trying to impose anything on Triano and his staff.
But he has also been around long enough to know that all coaches like to chat about their team and the game and he relishes the opportunity to provide input.
"It's my first experience to see on a little bit longer period an NBA team," Repesa said. "Not only how they are practising but the organization and everything about the team.
"I'm enjoying how they are practising, how they have an excellent atmosphere, how guys focus on their job; they are practising very hard."
Repesa's one of a handful of coaches who have taken in a practice or two this week, although he is the one who has been around the longest.
Triano has invited CIS coaches to sit in on practice and Canadian national team coach Leo Rautins was in town for a couple of workouts. It's all part of Triano's outreach program.
"The coaching thing is a fraternity and from the small things or little things they say and see you might get some ideas," he said.
Raptors president and general manager Bryan Colangelo is familiar with Repesa from scouting forays and the fact he coached Roko Ukic in Rome a couple of seasons ago. The connection goes a bit deeper: Repesa coached Raptor newcomer Marco Belinelli, then 17, in Bologna about six years ago.
"We have good, open relations with coaches in various parts of the world," Colangelo said.
"Basketball's about sharing and building a knowledge base and he's got a great pedigree, a lot of history."
Congrats to Sho and Mrs. Sho.
Teodora is a prety name. I wonder what it means?
Congrats to Sho and Mrs. Sho.
Teodora is a prety name. I wonder what it means?
It's a female version of Theodore. But you probably know that.
I didn't know that, but I like the name Theodore.It's a female version of Theodore. But you probably know that.
I am considering it as a middle name for one of my future sons- when God blesses me with him.
Gift from God
That she is.
It was public long time ago...
http://www.spurstalk.com/forums/show...&postcount=569
There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
