Raptors News

[angel_luv]

Game reports:

Spurs.com : http://www.nba.com/spurs/gameday/070226.html

Raptors.com : http://www.nba.com/raptors/news/postup_022607.html

[angel_luv]

http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/b...k.17cf41b.html
Spurs notebook: Nesterovic likes his new home

Web Posted: 02/27/2007 12:16 AM CST

Mike Monroe
Express-News

Former Spurs center Rasho Nesterovic, who scored a season-high 16 points against his old team Monday at the AT&T Center, has found a happy home with the Toronto Raptors.
The Raptors arrived in San Antonio early Sunday morning after beating Charlotte on Saturday night. After several of his teammates told Nesterovic how tired they were, he phoned coach Sam Mitc to suggest practice be scratched.





"He's been a good addition for us — just his experience and his leadership," said Mitc , who played with Nesterovic with Minnesota from 1998-2002. "Rasho called me at 2:30 in the morning and said, 'Coach, we need a day off.'

"I played with Rasho, and that's something Rasho generally wouldn't do in the past. But Rasho and I know each other well, and he can say stuff to me. He knows that. It's something you need."

Nesterovic, a 30-year-old from Slovenia who's in his eighth full NBA season, was pleased with his performance in his first game here since the Spurs traded him last summer to Toronto for Matt Bonner and Eric Williams.

He was not pleased with the way the Spurs controlled the game.

"They've been together so long they exactly know each other and how they play," said Nesterovic, who played with the Spurs for three seasons. "They're one of the best teams in the NBA, so if you want to beat them you have to be at your best, and we didn't do that."


les help: Told that Spurs coach Gregg Popovich had called off Monday's shootaround, the second such cancellation in as many games, Mitc laughed.

"Pop knows his team," Mitc said. "I'm still looking for the guy who invented shootaround anyway."

Mitc doesn't feel secure enough to cancel game-day morning practices.

"You can call them off when you've got three (championship) banners up there," Mitc said, pointing to the AT&T Center ceiling. "When you've got those banners up there, it's amazing what you can do."

Ely remains on bench: Popovich said he would like to give Melvin Ely some playing time in the coming weeks. He just doesn't know if it's possible.

Ely spent his sixth consecutive game on the inactive list since the Spurs acquired him from Charlotte for Williams and a 2009 second-round pick.

"I'd like to find a way in the next five or 10 games — or maybe even earlier — to get Melvin on the court to see if there's something there we can use this late in the year," Popovich said.

"The hard part is we want to position ourselves as well as we can for the playoffs also. ... . I don't want to put someone in the game like Melvin if he doesn't know the plays or he's not feeling comfortable and I lessen our chances of winning that particular game and affect our long-range goals.

"That's what makes it a dicey situation on how to get him the minutes."

Pippen deal unlikely: Don't expect the Spurs to sign Scottie Pippen — or anyone else for that matter.

While Pippen said he would consider signing with the Spurs if he makes good on his claim to come out of retirement — and Spurs officials maintained they would do their "due diligence" in considering him — Popovich said the team doesn't plan to make any changes to its roster.

"We're set," Popovich said.

[Slo spurs fan]

I am glad you had great evening and thanks for report V. I can´t wait for your pictures.

[angel_luv]

When I get home tonight I will resize them ( they are huge) and post them.

[angel_luv]

[angel_luv]

http://www.spurstalk.com/forums/showthread.php?t=61143
Spurs Head Coach Gregg Popovich

On the game - “We had a really good defensive half in the first half. That fueled our offensive play along with our team defense in the first half. That got us the win tonight.”
On Tim Duncan’s play - “He started last summer. He worked hard, came in early and got in shape. He feels strong and he’s performing well consistently night in and night out. Plus the guys are getting used to each other. We’re turning a corner.”

On the defensive effort on Chris Bosh - “Francisco Elson was mainly responsible. He did a great job. He stayed in front of him and kept him off the free throw line. The team defense also aided (the effort), but the main emphasis fell on Francisco. He did a really fine job.”

On Tony Parker - “He’s 24. He’s not getting played over the limit minutes wise. We’re watching that. It’s more prevention wise. If he needs the rest, we’ll give it to him. He and Manu are the same way all the time. They’re fearless and not afraid of contact or getting banged up. We just hope they stay healthy.”

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Tim Duncan

On the game - “Yeah we really jumped on them early on and I thought we did an excellent job defensively. We didn’t let Chris (Bosh) get rolling; we pressured their shooters so we ran them off the line. They hit some shots later in the game that kind of got them back within striking distance, but all in all I thought we just did an excellent job defensively.”
It appears that you are getting a little more aggressive over the past few weeks - “Are you counting the six points I had last game or just this game? It’s the flow of the game. If people decide to let me play one on one or if they decide to double team, depending on what the defense gives is what I’m trying to say.”

Were you surprised they didn’t double-team you more? - “It’s Rasho (Nesterovic). Rasho’s awesome. I got lucky that’s all it was. He was wearing someone else out. He wasn’t wearing me out. We calculated and he scored two points on me and 14 on other people, not that I keep track, but that’s what I heard (laughing).”

On the decision to go back in midway through the fourth quarter - “It was just Pop (Gregg Popovich) putting us back in there. Just recognizing that the game wasn’t over and that they’re a very capable team. Those guys have been playing really good basketball over the last 10 or 15 games. So we came in here respecting them and I thought we did a good job of jumping on them and staying on them.”

On starting to win at home - “Yeah absolutely. That is an absolute something we came out after the break because we’ve lost way too many here at home. We’ve lost some really bad ones here and we just want to reestablish the fact that we need to be a good home team and this needs to be somewhere where people come in here and know they are going to lose games.”

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Bruce Bowen

On being able to establish the home court - “Well the first half of the season or I should say early on we didn’t do so well at home. There were a lot of times we had let downs in games where we might be up 10 or 12 points and the next thing you know in the beginning of the third quarter we’re down or beginning of the fourth quarter we’re down. It’s really hard to give away leads and then rely on your defense to bring you back into games and sometimes you come up short. We did that a lot in the first half of the season.”
On the defense the past few games - “I think guys just paying attention to detail. I think we understand that if you’re going to win on the road it’s very important that your defense is solid and what better place to start then at home because we haven’t played this well at home. So we’re trying to make adjustments as far as the mindset, being physical, paying attention to detail so we can have an opportunity come playoff time.”

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Raptors Head Coach Sam Mitc

On the game - “We just got beat. They beat us in every facet of the game of basketball. We competed through the fourth but in the end we just got it handed to us. We lost to a good team on their home floor. Hubie Brown once said that there are going to be 2 or 3 games every year were you might as well just not have shown up and hopefully this is one of those for us.”
“It disappointing because we just didn’t execute some of the things that we talked about all week. I though Rasho played well and we need to keep him playing at that level, so there are some positives we can take out of this.”

“This can happen when you are playing great veteran players. The Spurs have a lot of guys like Horry and Berry. You don’t stay in this league for 12 or 13 years for no good reason. You guys write about veteran players like they are washed up or dead sometimes and I keep trying to tell you that experience and pride takes over and can overtake exuberance and youth. They understand what they are up against as veteran players in this league.”

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Rasho Nesterovic

On the game - “They are one of the best defensive teams in the league and so you have to beat them as a team. They have three all-stars and they really know who to execute a game plan. And it’s well know that turn it on after every all-star break. They really pick up their game.”

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T.J. Ford

On the game - “We just couldn’t stop them and that put a lot of pressure on our offense. It’s like we were a split second late all-night. They are one of the best teams in the league and they really showcased that tonight and at times our inexperience showed.”

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Chris Bosh

On the game - “From a team standpoint we just had a failure to execute in the 2nd quarter and didn’t play our brand of basketball. On the other hand, they played well. When they play well and we don’t, this is likely to happen. Now I just didn’t make shots. I missed some wide-open shots and a hook shot right in the middle. In the end I put a lot on myself because it’s up to me to make those shots.”
On Tim Duncan - “He looked fresh to me. He had a great 1st half. He doesn’t play a big up and down game but he will kill you with his post-up game. He’s real unselfish and he’s good at finding that open guy. But you are going to bring the double when he touches the ball or he’s going to score on you. You don’t know headed in if he’s going to have the kind of night where he’s going to drop 30 or just 12 but either way he is going to impose his will on a game.”
( End)

[angel_luv]

Raps back to work against the Rockets tonight. I am so mad the game is not on FSN... they are probably showing poker or something equally lame.

I have nothing against Poker- just hate that it is on the sports channel instead of games I want to see.

[mikejones99]

This should be the Angel and Raptor thread. Good quotes.

[resistanze]

Damn Raps really giving it to Houston. Shot like 70% in the first half, struggled in the third, then killed them in the 4th.

Kris Humphries with 16 point on 7-7 shooting?

[dave]

raptors 3rd in the east now

[angel_luv]

raptors 3rd in the east now

And movin up!

I just got home from work a little while ago. I really wanted to drive up to Houston for this game.

Sho- 8 points ( 4 of 6) from the field; 4 rebounds; an assist and a blocked shot.

It is great that Uros is getting to play, even though it is only for a few minutes.
The other game was my first time to ever see him play in person.

[angel_luv]

I saw this picture at work when I was checking the score.

[angel_luv]

http://www.torontosun.com/Sports/Bas...76318-sun.html

Anthony Parker hobbled off the practice floor yesterday in a boot cast on his way for a checkup.

The Raptors guard rolled over on his ankle in Monday's game against San Antonio when he came down on top of Spurs forward Bruce Bowen's foot.

Initial X-rays in San Antonio proved negative but he was on his way to have further diagnostic testing done yesterday in Houston.

Parker wasn't sure how serious the injury was yesterday as he stopped on his way to the appointment to talk with the Toronto media.

"I don't know, we're going to wait and see," Parker said. "It's still within the first 24 hours. We're just going to keep an open mind and treat it but I don't have any specific time frame right now. I've rolled it a couple of times this year already and this is a little bit more severe than those other times, but we'll just have to see."



Considering he wasn't putting his full weight on the ankle yesterday, although he was walking on it, there's little chance he will play in tonight's game against the Rockets.

Head coach Sam Mitc had still not made up his mind as to who would take Parker's place in the starting five.

"It will either be Mo (Peterson) or Juan (Dixon) and the only reason I'm even considering Juan is our bench has been pretty good the way it is," Mitc said. "Right now Andrea (Bargnani) and Mo and those guys play well together. But then I like Mo being a couple of inches taller (than Dixon) defending (Tracy) McGrady. But I really just haven't decided."

Peterson has not been at 100% the past couple of days. He has been unable to keep food down.

The nausea came on Sunday and while he played through it on Monday night, Peterson was still munching on crackers and sipping Gatorade yesterday. He hadn't had a full meal since Saturday night.

Forward Jorge Garbajosa, who twisted his knee in the same game, was back at practice yesterday and will play tonight.

FOND MEMORIES OF RASHO

At least one Raptor left San Antonio with his pride intact.

Centre Rasho Nesterovic played three seasons with the Spurs before being dealt to Toronto last June.

Nesterovic scored a season-high 16 points and pulled down nine boards in a 107-91 loss to his old club.

Tim Duncan, who was defending Nesterovic most of the night, unsuccessfully tried to pass the blame elsewhere.

"We calculated it and he scored two on me and 14 on other people," Duncan was quoted as saying. "Not that I keep track, I don't actually look at stats, but that's what I heard."

Bowen was having none of that.

"Tim was out there on an island the whole night and Rasho gave it to him like he did at practice every day here," Bowen said.

[angel_luv]

I put this in here since Barry talks about the Raps.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/dailyd...ilydime-070227

Spurs Getting Their Act Together
by Jon Barry
ESPN.com

Answering a few questions after Monday's game in which the San Antonio Spurs dispatched the Toronto Raptors, 107-91 …
What's the latest inside word from Brent Barry, the Spurs guard?

I talked to my brother right after the All-Star break. He told me that he couldn't put his finger on the reason why, but he thinks the team will take off.

What signs do you see of this?

I think the two road wins they earned at the end of the first half, right before the All-Star break, beating Detroit and New Jersey, were crucial. A good sign of a revival for a team that had its struggles in the first half.

The thrashing of the Raptors gave them a season-high six wins in a row. Are we seeing a revving-up process?

Spurs coach Gregg Popovich had said earlier in the year about how important it is to be playing your best ball in April. That's all well and good, but if you're not the 1 or 2 seed in the West, the row you have to hoe is difficult.

At their current No. 3 seed, you're looking at a first-round matchup most likely with the Lakers, or maybe the Rockets or Jazz. Then you have to go through Dallas and Phoenix in the next two rounds.

It's hard to believe a team could beat them both. But you can't count out a team that has three players like Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili and Tim Duncan.

The centers in the Spurs' lineup have been revamped compared to last year's team. The Wrath of Rasho (Nesterovic, the exiled Spurs center who scored a season-high 18 points for the Raps) was felt early on. How are the new middlemen working out for the Spurs?
They decided to go with Fabricio Oberto and Francisco Elson over Nesterovic and Nazr Mohammed. Earlier this year, when I had asked Popovich about losing Rasho, he made a point of saying that they chose to do it.

So, the numbers from the new centers are basically the same, but the interior D is not. Elson is not a Nesterovic or Mohammad in terms of size. I always liked the Spurs' approach of using ball pressure to funnel guys into two 7-footers like David Robinson and Duncan.

A total of 10 international players saw time in this game, including Spain's World Champion members Jorge Garbajosa and Jose Calderon. The latter had a hard time with France's Parker (27 points). Good call by the NBA to broadcast this one on its international channel?

Oh yeah. I thought I was watching an Olympic game.

The Raptors, though carried early by Rasho, didn't have a great night. Still, they came in with the best record (18-7) in the East in 2007. Good things ahead for the Atlantic Division leaders?

They got a test against one of the better teams from the West. They're not ready for that big Western stage, but they're in the East, and they're going to be in the playoffs and will get some good experience. I give credit to coach Sam Mitc for recognizing this team couldn't go with a wild, take-100-shots approach it started this year with. It didn't work, they recognized it, changed their approach and have been better for it.

Could the Raps take a playoff series as, say, the No. 4 seed?

They could. To me, Detroit is distancing itself from the rest of the field. But a 7 beating a 2 wouldn't surprise me. Washington could beat any of the East teams. And what if Dwyane Wade came back and the Heat had the eight spot to face Detroit in the first round? The East is up for grabs.

ESPN analyst Jon Barry retired last year after 14 years in the NBA.

[angel_luv]

http://www.torontosun.com/Sports/Bas...85697-sun.html

Fri, March 2, 2007

Family first for RaptorBargnani scheduled to fly home, will miss two games
By STEVE BUFFERY, SUN MEDIA




Sadly, Raptors rookie Andrea Bargnani will not enjoy his NBA Eastern Conference rookie-of-the-month award very much.

The Toronto forward, who won the award for the second consecutive month (January and February) was scheduled to fly home to Italy last night because of an illness in the family.

The Rome native missed yesterday's practice at the Air Canada Centre after the club flew to Toronto overnight from Houston and will miss tonight's game at the Air Canada Centre against the Milwaukee Bucks and tomorrow's contest in Cleveland against the Cavaliers. He is slated to return on Sunday and should be in uniform for Toronto's matchup in Washington on Tuesday against the Wizards.

Raptors management declined to discuss specifics of the illness, wanting to respect Bargnani's privacy, but sources said that it is serious, but is neither his mother nor father who is ill.

Bargnani is coming off one of his best game's of the season, in Toronto's 106-90 victory over the Houston Rockets on Wednesday night, scoring 20 points in 33 minutes off the bench. He is averaging 11.1 points this season and is a contender, along with teammate Jorge Garbajosa, for NBA rookie-of-the-year honours. His minutes will likely be taken up by Kris Humphries, who scored 16 points off the bench on Wednesday.



Still, the Raptors will miss the big rookie's presence. Shooting guard Anthony Parker will miss his second consecutive game tonight because of a sprained right ankle.

"He has been playing great," said all-star forward Chris Bosh, of Bargnani. "Against (Houston) he was fantastic from the three and the two. I think he's really starting to get comfortable, he's starting to find what he can do well. He has being unselfish. Everybody's being unselfish, but Andrea is really helping us out and I think he's starting to prove why he's the No.1 pick (in 2006).

"I think (him and I) can really start to build on something great here," Bosh added.

ROOKIE OF THE MONTH

Bargnani is the third Raptors player to win the award twice, joining Vince Carter (March and April, 1999) and Damon Stoudamire (November 1995, January 1996). In February, he helped the Raptors to a 9-3 record, posting averages of 14.3 points, 3.9 rebounds and 28.7 minutes in 12 games. He shot 51% (62-for-122) from the field, 48% (29-for-60) from three-point range and 83% (19-for-23) from the line during the month and led the team's bench in scoring seven times.

Garbajosa won the award for December. This is the first time Toronto has claimed three rookie-of-the-month awards in a season.

The Raptors, now 31-26 on the season, and fourth overall in the Eastern Conference, have not lost two games in a row since Jan. 3 against the Phoenix Suns.

"That really's important because teams take you seriously," Bosh said. "They know when they come in here, or when we go into their house, that they're going to have a tough game on their hands.

"When we move the basketball we're a tough team to beat and we just have to keep doing that," he added. "And once we keep doing that, the sky's the limit for this team."

[angel_luv]

Raps back home. Play against the Bucks tonight.

[Rip-Hamilton32]

i don't think anyone expected the raps to make the playoffs never mind 3rd place, but they don't have the playoff experience to go very deep IMO

[angel_luv]

i don't think anyone expected the raps to make the playoffs never mind 3rd place, but they don't have the playoff experience to go very deep IMO

I did.

The play offs are rough no question.
However the Raptors are doing well and will benefit from having the rest of regular season to fine tune skills and further gel as a group.

It would be a mistake for any team to take them completely take them for granted.

It will be fun to watch this team make its run. Dajmo Raptors.

[angel_luv]

Two Questions:

First, where did all the rest of you Raptors fan posters disappear to?
Secondly, for those who saw the game, what happened tonight- were the Bucks hot or were we sloppy?

[lefty]

Two Questions:

First, where did all the rest of you Raptors fan posters disappear to?
Secondly, for those who saw the game, what happened tonight- were the Bucks hot or were we sloppy?

I'm here!

[angel_luv]

[velik_m]

Slokar is getting some playing time

[Rip-Hamilton32]

Two Questions:

First, where did all the rest of you Raptors fan posters disappear to?
Secondly, for those who saw the game, what happened tonight- were the Bucks hot or were we sloppy?

raps took 31 threes last night, and bosh didn't get enough touches the game was close in the first half but the bucks pulled away by shooting a few 3s and never looked back, raps just shot poorly and bucks shoot pretty good

[angel_luv]

Thanks. Welcome back guys.
I read Coach Mitc 's post game statements... his summary and yours are pretty much the same.

Ugh- how annoying to lose to the Bucks.

Oh well... next!

[RaptorsFan]

Bosh had touches, the Bucks just played great D, doubling him immediately and forcing him to pass out or stripped the ball away from him. But the team really fell in love with the 3 in the 4th too, it was just pathetic to watch them brick 3 after 3 after 3. This was probably the most disheartening game of the season from a Raptors perspective.