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hvala Velik!
http://www.madsci.org/posts/archives...9498.Cs.r.html
The Heat are just terrible right now.
hvala Velik!
Rasho with yet another nice game off the bench, but the Raptors lose to Cleveland 90-83.
8-13
16 points
7 rebounds
2 assists
1 steal
Bargnani
0-5
0 points
1 rebound
I saw that.
Great work by Sho. Stinks that the Raps lost. They need to win out the rest of the season and get some momentum for the play offs.
They've fallen to the 6th seed, probably the ideal seed for them. The challenge now is not falling down to the 7th and 8th seeds, where they'd be swept in the 1st round.
Kapono really sucks defensively.
When Bargnani goes cold he goes ice cold.
Come on Raps.
Get it together.
I refuse to accept that we are a below .500 team. Work it out!
And please, avoid Orlando in the first round.
Andrea had 16 points in the 1st and 16 in a game. Damn! After the 1st I thought he was going for 50 tonight.
Out of Boston, Detroit, Orlando and Cleveland (East Top4), Toronto plays the best against Orlando.
What that really means is: out of those four teams, Orlando is the least likely to sweep them in the first round.
The Raptors D is horrible, how they are even in the playoff hunt is beyond me.
Rap fans who is better? Ford or Calderon?
Hard to say; I really like both.
I would say Calderon is a better 3 pt shooter, while TJ is quiker.
Both have leadership and run the systems very well.
This is one of the best PG duos in the league
I met Sho for the first time four years ago today.
I'm not a big Raptors fan, but I like them because Rasho plays there.
In my opinion Calderon's a better shooter(you can just look at the FG, FT & 3PT %). Then as a rebounder they are both on the same way. Even though I think that T.J. is a little better rebounder. I could say that Jose is a better passer, but I think there is no big difference. Ford's averaging 5,7 AST, while Calderon is at 8,4 AST. But Jose is playing about 10 minutes more than T.J. Better ball controller is Calderon, you can see that just if you look at TO per game.
So..., I'd pick Jose Calderon.
Change is coming to the Raptors starting lineup tonight.
Rasho Nesterovic and T.J. Ford are in and Andrea Bargnani and Jose Calderon are out for the struggling squad as it faces the Detroit Pistons at the Air Canada Centre.
The switch of Nesterovic for Bargnani is not a huge surprise given their play of late but changing point guards with only a dozen games left in the regular season is a big gamble and comes at the suggestion of the player being demoted.
After watching Ford struggle to find his way in a backup role, Calderon suggested – and coach Sam Mitc agreed – that the move be made to kick-start Ford and, hopefully, the team as a whole.
Ford hasn't started a game since Dec. 12, a night when he suffered serious back and neck injuries after being clubbed to the floor by Atlanta's Al Horford.
The 25-year-old missed Toronto's next 24 games and also missed a couple of games with a strained abdominal muscle.
His play of late has been spotty, as he's found it difficult to adapt to a backup role. He's been dominating the ball on offence, trying to force himself on the game instead of simply running the offence.
Calderon, a restricted free agent at the end of the season, met with Mitc and president Bryan Colangelo on Tuesday to discuss the switch. He sees the same things the coaches, teammates and fans do – that Ford is uncomfortable with the second unit and the team's play in deteriorating.
Toronto has won just three times in its last 14 games.
Nesterovic has proven over the last dozen games that he's worthy of being in the starting lineup. Inserted after Chris Bosh went out with a sore knee, the 31-year-old veteran averaged 13.2 points and 7.3 rebounds per game in 10 games. Overall as a starter this season, he's averaging eight points and six rebounds; he averaged four points and three rebounds coming off the bench.
Aside Bargnani's a 16-point first quarter against Denver on Sunday – the only points he scored in the game – the second-year centre has been wildly inconsistent this season.
With just 12 games left in the regular season, the Raptors are battling Washington and Philadelphia for fifth, sixth and seventh place in the Eastern Conference. Toronto takes a 35-35 record into tonight's home game.
http://www.thestar.com/Sports/article/350985
The Toronto Raptors are going back to a familiar formula.
Coach Sam Mitc is inserting T.J. Ford and Rasho Nesterovic into the startling lineup against Detroit Wednesday night. Jose Calderon and Andrea Bargnani will come off the bench.
The Ford move is the most interesting of the two swaps. Calderon asked Mitc to replace him in the lineup with Ford, saying that both players excelled in the opposite roles.
Ford has certainly struggled as a backup. He has either played too fast or too slow for his teammates since coming back from a neck injury, among other ailments, on Feb. 22. But the Raptors had their greatest success last year with Ford and Nesterovic in the starting lineup. That lineup led the Raptors to an Atlantic Division le, with Jorge Garbajosa operating in the small-forward role Jamario Moon now occupies.
Nesterovic's promotion was more predictable. He started 10 games when Chris Bosh was sidelined earlier this month with a right-knee injury, and averaged 11.4 points and 7.3 rebounds per game. Bargnani, meanwhile, has struggled all year, and has shot just 31% from the floor over his last six games.
Bargnani began the year as a starter, but was replaced by Nesterovic five games into the season. Mitc gave Bargnani the spot back in December, with an eye toward developing the labouring centre. But he has not found consistency, and is being demoted.
http://network.nationalpost.com/np/b...r-raptors.aspx
Wow, a player suggesting someone should take his starting spot, you don't see that often. In any league.
Props to Jose. I've seen a decline in his APG lately, maybe it really is time for a change.
Yeah but I think his minutes went down too. It seems to me that he played much better before Ford came back.
Raptors win! 89-82
Rasho with 15 points; 9 rebounds; 4 blocks; and 2 assists. Raps +11 with Rasho in the game (best on the team) and he played 46 minutes and 27 seconds. Some nice play with TJ and Jose playing together in the fourth quarter.
Pistons played their very best game. Came out with passion and energy and intensity. They shot well and played amazing defense. Raptors just too good.
I think it will be Detroit vs Toronto in the first round. Philly is so hot that they won't drop. Atlanta, NJ, and Chicago are just fighting for the 8th spot.
It will either be Detroit vs Washington or Detroit vs Toronto in the first round.
Sho had a great game - 15 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assists, and 4blocked shots.
edit: Ploto beat me, per usual.
Oh well, stats like those bear repeating.
I wish they would show defensive highlights:
http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...15764974056017
It's not as significant as the moves made yesterday, but the Raptors are making roster noises again.
One day after shaking up the starting lineup, team sources say Toronto will sign free agent Linton Johnson to a 10-day contract today, bringing in the 6-foot-8 forward to add more athleticism and depth to the wing positions.
To make room for the addition of Johnson, the Raptors are going to waive veteran guard Darrick Martin but keep him in the organization in some capacity.
Johnson is a 27-year old who spent part of this season with the Phoenix Suns after bouncing around a handful of other NBA organizations. Finances, or roster "fit" have always precluded him from sticking long-term with any of the organizations he's been with.
In six games with the Suns this season, Johnson averaged 2.5 points and 2.2 rebounds.
Undrafted after spending four years at Tulane, Johnson's also been with Chicago, San Antonio, New Jersey and New Orleans in the last five seasons.
How he fits into Toronto's long-term plans is unclear. But he will be given a chance to compete with Jamario Moon, Carlos Delfino and Jason Kapono for playing time at small forward and, perhaps, address some defensive deficiencies at that position.
Yesterday, the Raptors moved regulars Jose Calderon and Andrea Bargnani out of the starting five, inserting T.J. Ford and Rasho Nesterovic. Toronto beat Detroit 89-82 last night with the revamped lineup.
http://www.thestar.com/Sports/article/377416
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