THE STREAK STOPS HERE: Raptors winning streak, Calderon's free throw streak come to an end

Bucks 96, Raptors 85
Even with home court advantage, a healthy Jose Calderon, an injured Michael Redd, even freaking Jermaine O'Neal bobbleheads for the fans, the Raps couldn't do it. The Raps went ice cold in the third quarter falling to the Milwaukee Bucks 96-85.

The played one good quarter. The first quarter. This quarter had Il Mago score 13 points, Jose Calderon threw a nice alley oop to Jamario Moon and this quarter had Andrea Bargnani pull off this fancy reverse:

The Raps were up 30-24 after the first.

Chris Bosh had a nice And 1 in the second quarter but he also had a technical foul and four turnovers in this quarter. Charlie Villanueva and Charlie Bell nailed threes to go on a 9-0 run to get up three. Milwaukee led 49-47 at the half and Charlie V had 16 pts/4rebounds at the half.

Charlie V continued his hot shooting starting off the third with a three. The Raps went cold in the third shooting 5 for 20 scoring only 12 points. It was ugly. The Bucks got up to an 18 point lead and then the Raps went on a run. JO got in going in the fourth and Jose Calderon hooked up Bargnani for the jumper to get within ten.

And then.....it happened. Jose's consecutive free throw streak ended. He missed his free throw in the fourth ending thre steak at 87, and it symbolized how the game was going. Things got a little testy, J.O. had a hard foul on Richard Jefferson and was called for his second technical as he got into it with Andrew Bogut and Charlie V leading to an O'Neal ejection. Things just fell apart in the second half, even Bargnani went cold, after scoring 13 in the first quarter he only hit one field goal for the last three quarters. The Bucks maintained their lead in the last minutes and put an end to the Raptors winning streak.

For a Bucks perspective, check out Brew Hoop

Key Notes:
Charlie V. had 26 pts, 13 rebounds and 2 blocks
Chris Bosh led the Raptors with 19 pts & 9 rebounds but also had a whopping 7 turnovers
The Raps moved to 19-29 and have a tough four game stretch
Raptors face the Magic on Sunday

Read more...

Devin Harris Shakes, Bakes But Doesn't Make

Raptors 107, Net 106

Devin Harris had his chance to put away the Raps but his wide open jumper clanked off the rim.

The New Jersey Nets made a run in the fourth but couldn't close it out as the Raptors won their third in a row.

This was an important game for the Toronto Raptors as the games leading to all-star break become very crucial. If the Raps have playoff hopes, they need to start piling on the W's. Last night's game against the Nets and the matchup against Milwaukee on Friday are games the Raps have to win because of the tough four game stretch after that. They face Orlando, Cleveland, the LA Lakers and New Orleans Hornets afterwards. So in order to build on any playoff hopes, the Raps had to stick it to VC & Devin Harris' Nets.

The Raps were at home.....oops I mean they were in their home white jersey in Jersey. I think the Nets like the red alternate road jerseys as they are a horrible 9-14 at home. Vince went off in the first going for 16 in the quarter. The Raps shot 52% but were still down 30-21 after the first.

The Raps started to get the three ball falling as Jason Kapono and Andrea Bargnani nailed threes. Chris Bosh started to get it going and hit the jumper bringing the Raps to within four. Oh yeah, I'm seeing a beard. Anthony Parker didn't shave, so immediately I had high expectations of exceptional play from AP. Bobby Simmons hit a three to get the Nets up eleven but AP answered back with a three. Jamario then hit a three to get within five. Then more AP, who hit another three. Chris Bosh hit the jumper and got the foul to get it to 52-50. At the half, Nets were up 54-50.

The Raptors were a little reckless with ball and had 10 turnovers in the first half. Anthony Parker had 16 points for the Raps, all thanks to the beard. Even though the Raps were down by four, they shot a lot better than the Nets: Raps 61 FG%, NJ 43 FG% but the Raps just turned it over too many times.

Chris Bosh got it started in the third by hitting the jumper. Jamario Moon played a decent game and had a nice block on Bobby Simmons which landed right in Jay Triano's hands. Raps got the lead 55-54 with another Parker three. Jose Calderon played well in third and had a nice alley oop to Jamario Moon. The Nets got it going again as Devin Harris blew by Anthony Parker and took it to Chris Bosh for the And 1. NJ got up 64-60. Jose Calderon continued his excellent play and had 10 points in the third quarter. The Raps went on a 8-0 run up 82-74 after three.

Devin Harris started the fourth with a three. Jose Calderon nailed the J to get up nine. Anthony Parker played excellent backup point guard, hooking up Joey Graham with the basket. Our boy, Beard-nani didn't play much of the fourth as the Raps went withh the small ball. Even though the Raps had a good lead throughout the second half, the Nets made a run at the end of the fourth. Bobby Simmons hit a three to get within four, Vince Carter hit a three to get within three and Devin Harris drove in for the layup to get it to one, down 107-106. Jose Calderon missed his jumper leaving it to NJ for the last possession. Devin Harris handled the ball in the closing seconds, broke Joey Graham's ankles but his open jumper didn't fall. Raps won their third game in a row.

Key Notes:
JOSE! had 17 pts & 11 assists

Anthony Parker: 21 pts, 6 assists, 7 boards and 1 stubbly beard
Raps' Bench aka Joey, Jason and Jermaine scored 33 pts
Raps shot 56% and NJ shot 46% from the field
Devin Harris/Vince Carter combined for 52 pts, 13 rebounds and 15 assists
Raptors had six players in double figures

Raps play the Bucks on Friday

Photo credit: (AP Photo/Bill Kostroun)

Read more...

MO' BETTER BEARD: Bearded Bargnani vs. Beardless Bargnani

Ever since the New Year, Andrea Bargnani has really stepped it up. The production from the former #1 draft pick has increased dramatically. He has moved from a Darko comparison to a Dirk comparison. In this same time frame, Andrea looks to have stopped shaving and has grown a ridiculous beard that only the Gasol brothers could be jealous of.

Here is the statistical analysis of the bearded Bargnani vs. beardless Bargnani.


Beardless Bargnani (15 games before New Years Eve)
Averaged: 7.5 ppg, 31% FG pctg , 23% 3PT pctg, 3.2 rebounds
(picture from 12/29 game vs. Golden State)

Notable games:
Dec 5th @ Utah: 7 pts on 3-12 shooting, 6 rebounds
Dec 10th vs Ind: 0 pts on 0-4 shooting, 4 rebounds
Dec 17th vs Dal: 3 pts on 1-5 shooting, 3 rebounds
Dec 20th @ SA: 2 pts on 1-5 shooting, 2 rebounds
Dec 22nd @ LAC: 3 pts on 1-5 shooting, 1 rebound
Dec 29th @ GSW: 7 pts on 3-8 shooting, 6 rebounds

Words to describe Beard-less Bargs' play:
No confidence, hesitant, soft, no defense, can't rebound, sucks, Darko, Kwame, Bust-nani, inconstistent, defensive liability






"There is no chin behind Andrea Bargnani's beard. There is only another fist."


Bearded Bargs (15 games after New Years Eve)
Averages: 21 ppg, 52% FG pctg , 49% 3PT pctg, 6.7 rebounds

Notable games:
Dec 31st vs Den: 26 pts, 6 rebounds
Jan 4th @Mil: 21 pts, 5 threes, 8 rebounds
Jan 7th @ Was: 25 pts, 4 threes, 4 rebounds, 2 blocks
Jan 12th @ Bos: 23 pts, 8 rebounds
Jan 14th vs Chi: 31 pts on 10-14 shooting, 10 rebounds
Jan 19th @ Atl: 20 pts, 10 rebounds
Jan 25th vs Sac: 24 pts, 7 rebounds

Words to describe Bearded Bargs' play:
Confident, Tough, talented scorer, swagger, consistent, gritty, Rebel Without A Cause

Other Notable Beards:
Chuck Norris, Sean Connery, Clint Eastwood, Abe Lincoln, Mr.T



Ever since the growth of the beard, here are the percentage improvements on Bargnani's stats:

Scoring is up 184%
Assists are up 110%
Rebounds up 108%
3 pt percentage up 62%
FG percentage up 113%

Toughness is up 400% (just watch below)

When all else fails in life, grow a freaking beard.

Read more...

FEAR THE BEARD: Bargnani and his beard score 13 in the third

Raptors 113, Kings 97

Andrea Bargnani scored 24 as the Raps downed the Kings 113-97.

Going into this game, the Sacramento Kings were 0-17 against the Eastern Conference. The game was close until the half. The Kings had six threes in the first quarter but the Raps managed to stay with the Kings as Chris Bosh had six points in the first quarter. By halftime, the Raps were up 56-53 and Chris Bosh had 17.

In the third Jose was hype to be back , he got the steal, passing it to Anthony Parker for the dunk. By the mid third quarter, Chris Bosh had 23 pts and 6 rebounds. Andrea Bargnani nailed a three to get up 71-62 on the Kings. He scored 13 points in the third quarter as the Raps went on a 21-6 run. Andrea Bargnani got into a scuffle with Francisco Garcia after a hard foul under the basket. Bargs went face to face with Garcia when Joey Graham got in the middle, Garcia was called for the technical. Bargs' hot third quarter put the Raps up 87-74 after three quarters. Chris Bosh also had an excellent game and started the fourth quarter with a jumper and the and 1. The Raps led it the rest of the way as the Raps outscored the Kings 57-44 in the second half. The Raps shot 52% for the game as they got back to back wins.

Jawai Watch - Nathan Jawai made an appearance in fourth quarter garbage time.

The line: 1:49 of garbage time, 0 points, 1 foul, 1 airball

It may be a little pre-mature but I'd like to give Nathan Jawai a new nickname as "The Toronto Human Victory Cigar".

Key Notes:
Toronto Raptors outrebounded the Kings 43-32
Chris Bosh had 31 and 8 boards
Andrea Bargnani had 24 pts, 7 rebounds
The Parker/Calderon combo: 11-18 shooting, 27 pts, 15 assists, 8 boards, 4 steals

Jose: 0 turnovers
Jermaine O'Neal double double: 11 pts, 10 boards
John Salmons led the Kings with 21 pts, 7 rebounds

The Sacramento Kings are now 0-18 against the Eastern Conference and now face Boston & Cleveland

Check out Raptors Republic for the roll call.

Raps play VC and the Nets on Wednesday.

Photo credit: (Photo by Ron Turenne/NBAE via Getty Images)

Read more...

Take A Shot of Jose!!

Raptors 114, Bulls 94


...because Jose sank some shots.

Jose made his return, A.P. moved back into the shooting guard slot and J.O was ready to showcase for Pat Riley as the Raps were ready to get revenge on the Bulls last night. And guess what? The Raps didn't blow it. They actually ended their 7 game losing streak, finishing off the Bulls 114-94. The Raps actually fixed some of their mistakes and played some good D. Jose Calderon didn't show any signs of rust.

The game started and my girlfriend got a glimpse of Bulls coach, Vinny Del Negro and was like "Is that Luke Wilson?" I've never seen the resemblance until she mentioned it.

Derrick Rose is too freaking quick, he just blew by the Raps for easy layups. Jose came out strong passing the ball to get everyone good shots and he nailed his jumpers, I mean all of them. The Raps looked so much better without Roko/Solomon running the point. Joey Graham had a nice jam to get the Raps an early lead 24-17. Tyrus Thomas then had a block on Chris Bosh and then just posterized Jermaine O'Neal.

Good showcasing J.O., we're never going to get Marion.

Raps shot 66% from the field and the Raps led 28-25 after the first.

The Raps continued to have good ball movement. Jose continued to look good as he found Jason Kapono for the three to get up 34-27 on the Bulls. Bulls made a run, Nocioni nailed a three to get within three. Bulls outscored the Raps 31-26, as the score was knotted at 54 at the half.

The Raps looked like Raps' past opponents in the third. This time around, it was the Bulls falling apart and not the Raps. Bargs and Jose were nailing shots as the Raps went on 15-1 run. Jose Calderon was perfect from the floor going 6 for 6. Bargs hit another three to get the Raps a 10 point lead. Nocioni nailed a three to end the run and then Bulls went on an 8-0 run to get within four. Raps up 83-74 after three.

The wheels started to fall off for the Raps again in the fourth. Ben Gordon nailed a J to get it to a five point game and then the Bulls went on a 16-6 run to get within one. Derrick Rose who scored 17 in the fourth at the last game, was non-apparent in the fourth and sat most of the quarter. Anthony Parker came up big, nailing his corner threes to build the Raps lead, as the Raps went on another run getting back up to ten. Jose was clutch in this game, going 8 for 9 from the field as the Raps finished off the Bulls on a 23-4 run.

Key Notes:
Jose Calderon was unstoppable in his return: 23 points, 10 assists, 0 turnovers, 9-10 from the floor in 29 minutes of action
Bargs had 22 pts, 5 assists
Joey Graham had 16 points
The Bulls had 23 turnovers
Kirk Hinrich had 17 pts, 5 rebounds and 7 assist off of the bench for the Bulls
Raps shot 56% from the floor

Raps are home against Sacamento on Sunday

Read more...

Prince Punishes the Raps

Pistons 95, Raps 76

Raps got blown out by the Pistons last night, leading to their 7th loss in a row as the Raps just fell apart in the second half. The Raps stayed close in the first two quarters only to get outscored 30-19 in the third quarter. This was the first game that the Pistons had Rip Hamilton coming off of the bench. Jermaine O'Neal made his return to coming off the bench for the Raps.


Nathan Jawai made his NBA debut last night. The Aussie Baby Shaq got the ball in the post only to be called for a travel.


His line: 3:05 minutes, 1 turnover


Yep, that's how exciting the game was, the Nathan Jawai's 3 minutes of garbage time was the highlight of the night.


Key Notes:


Joey Graham sucked. Your starting shooting guard had 0 points in 22 min. Need I explain more? If the Raps even think about winning a game, Joey Graham has to do something.


Rodney Stuckey didn't suck. He took it to the Raptor guards going for 17 pts & 7 assists. Iverson got the start at the two and Rip Hamilton was last night's sixth man. The Billups-Iverson trade has really displayed what type of talent this kid has.


Roko Ukic sucked. He also had a donut off of the bench (0 pts, 3 assists, 2 reb). Sometimes he looks unstoppable on the the floor and then sometimes you just have to cringe when he tries to create his own offense. On back to back possessions, Roko decided to get the offense going on his own but had no luck.


Tayshaun Prince didn't suck. Tayshaun just torched the Raps for 25 pts on 11-16 shooting.


The Raptors in the second half sucked. The Raps only scored 33 points in the second half and gave up 49 to the Pistons. They got killed on the boards....Raps defense, Raps offense were just terrible all the way through.


The Bosh/Bargnani comobo didn't suck. They weren't great but Bosh/Bargs did their thing offensively. Bosh started off strong and finished with 19 pts & 5 rebounds. Bargs had 16 pts 6 rebounds.


But 12 combined rebounds from the Raps Bigs (O'Neal/Bosh/Bargnani)? That's horrible.


Rasheed Wallace sucked. 'Sheed didn't get anything going offensively, which I guess the Raps Bigs did do something right defensively. Rasheed finished with three points on 1-6 shooting.


Jason Maxiell didn't suck. J-Max had 16 points and 11 rebounds off the bench. Wow, he played better than anyone on the Raps roster last night. Jason Maxiell eats babies.


The Raps have to do something soon, this Marion-O'Neal trade has to happen or the Raps just have to start thinking about next year's draft. Raps play the Bulls on Friday.

Read more...

Pacers pull a "Raptor" by blowing lead but Pacers hold on to win...

Pacers 111, Raptors 104

Man, the Pacers pulled off a Raptor-esque performance by blowing their 24 point lead after the third quarter. It all started with a 10-1 run by the Raps in the first. Jermaine O'Neal made his first appearance in Indiana and got a mixed review with both boos and claps. After the first quarter, the game was tied 20-20.
In the second is where the wheels started to fall off for the Raps. The Raps fell behind 41-30 and then the Pacers started to hit the threes. Danny Granger hit a big three, Troy Murphy had an open three and then Dunleavy hit a three. The Raps defense was too slow, and their shots were just ugly as nothing was falling for the Raps. The Pacers were up 56-42 at half.

Jamario Moon started the third quarter with an airball. Toronto continued to turn the ball over and Troy Murphy hit a three to get up 81-59 on the Raps. Former Raptor, TJ Ford hit a late jumper to end off the third up 24 points.

In the fourth, Bosh started off with back to back baskets as the Raps went on a 11-0 run to start the fourth. Bargs continued to struggle shooting 4-13. Raps contined to rally as AP passed to an open Bosh for the dunk. Toronto continued to go on a 17-5 run. Then Bargs hit a three to make the game close to get within nine. Jason Kapono hit an open three and then Danny Granger who was 7-22 missed an open three. Bosh continued to go on a tear and hit two free thrown to get within three. Then Anthony Parker hit a jumper to get within 1. Even though the Raps made the 4th quarter run, the Pacers hit key free throws to put the Raps away.

Key Notes:
Toronto had 20 turnovers leading to 29 Pacer points
Danny Granger had 23 pts on 8-24 shooting
Bosh had 25 pts, 16 rebounds
Jermaine O'Neal had 2 points and 7 boards in his return

Raps are home to Phoenix on Sunday.

Photo Credit: (Photo by Ron Hoskins/NBAE via Getty Images)

Read more...

UNBELIEVA-BULL: Rose's 17 in the 4th outshines Bargs' career night

Bulls 102, Raps 98

Bargs was large. He played so well, he even tipped in a basket for the Bulls. Andrea Bargnani had a career night but this was another heart-breaker. The Raps came out flat in the first, falling as much as 12 pts behind the Bulls. After one, the Bulls led 27-18, outrebounding the Raps 14-6.

The Raps just got killed on the offensive boards in the first half, the Bulls had 10 offensive boards versus the Raps' donut. The Raps made a run in the second that started with a huge Jamario Moon block on Kirk Hinrich as the Raps got within four. Will Solomon then hit a jumper to get within one and then he followed it with an alley oop pass to Jamario Moon to take the lead. Bargs had it going scoring 10 points in the second quarter alone. The Raps took the lead at 48-47 at halftime. Bulls outrebounded the Raps 26-11 and killed them on the offensive boards 12-1.
The third quarter had the Raps bench struggling and settling for too many jumpers. Bosh/Bargnani carried the load scoring 14 of the Raps 18 points. Roko Ukic had a late layup to get up 71-68 at the end of the third.

The Bulls started off on a 7-0 run to start the fourth. The Bulls had good ball movement passing it around until they found a high percentage shot. The Bulls were just killing the Raps in the paint. Then the Raps got back on a run again, AP hit a three to get within one. AP was clutch in the fourth as he hit another jumper to take the lead. Derrick Rose was amazing, he was just so quick and explosive, he just drove to the basket with ease. Chris Bosh had a nice cut to the basket for the dunk, as the score was 98-96 Bulls. Derrick Rose and Anthony Parker traded baskets and then the Bulls had the ball with 15 seconds left. Kirk Hinrich had a bad inbounds pass which led to a Chris Bosh steal. Toronto got the ball to Chris Bosh, down 2, but Joakim Noah stuck to him and blocked Bosh's jumper. Bulls Win, Bulls Win, Bulls Win, break out the salami and cheese that ball game was over.

Key Notes:
Andrea Bargnani had a career high 31 points and 10 rebounds
Derrick Rose had 25 points and 10 assists and scored 17 in the fourth quarter
Luol Deng had 16 points and 14 rebounds
Chris Bosh had 25 points and 4 rebounds

Raps are @ Indiana on Friday.


Photo credit: (Photo by Ron Turenne/NBAE via Getty Images)

Read more...

Paul P with Thirty Nine as the C's Defeat the Raps For the Fourth Time

Celtics, 115, Raptors 109 (OT)

Suprisingly, the Raps had the lead early on. Andrea Bargnani had 3 fouls in the second as the Raps were up 41-35. The Raps bench played an important factor in the first half with Roko Ukic, Jason Kapono and Joey Graham all hitting shots. The trio from the bench had a combined 20 points in the first half. The Raps shot 54% from the field and also outrebounded the C's in the first half. The Bosh/Bargnani combo also played well combining for 20 pts and 11 rebounds.


In the third, Brian Scalabrine hit back to back shots to knock the Raps lead down to four. But then the Raps managed to build their lead back up, Anthony Parker hit a late shot clock jumper and then Bargs hit a three to get up ten. Andrea has been a beast lately playing with so much confidence, I really don't know what they plan on doing when J.O. returns. In the late third quarter, Paul Pierce just took over getting the C's within two. The Raps led 74-70 afer three.

To start off the fourth, Gabe Pruitt hit an open three to get the C's a lead. Then Bosh had a sick dunk on Big Baby Davis. The Raps were a little cold, Roko tried to make plays but his shot wasn't falling. I've never seen anyone play such good defense on Bosh better than KG. He just gets right in his face every play. KG & Ray Allen hit back to back baskets to get up 4. The Raps were cold, only 2 for 14 in 9 minutes. Rajon Rondo had a nice layup, faking the pass and then driving to the hoop.

The last minute of the fourth was pretty exciting. First Will Solomon hit a three to get within 2. Paul Pierce nailed a jumper and then Bargs had the pump fake on KG and hit the j, to make the score 92-90 for the Celtics. Pierce went to the line for free throws and went 1/2 to put the Celtics to get up 93-90. The last play was chaos, Bosh tried to knock the rebound out and it got to parker, passed to Kapono and then Kapono dished it to Bargs for the three and then whoosh. Tie game with 1 second left.

The overtime period was all Paul Pierce and the Celtics as they went on to beat the Raps 115-109. Raps have the Bulls on Wednesday.



Key notes:

Andrea Bargnani scored 23 pts, 8 rebounds

Paul Pierce had 39 pts, 9 rebounds, 4 assists

Roko Ukic had 16 points off of the Raps bench





Photo credit: (Photo by Brian Babineau/NBAE via Getty Images)

Read more...

Celtics with Almost a 4th Quarter Collapse, but Ray Allen's Eight Triples Cripple the Raps

Celtics 94, Raps 88

Good effort. Going into the game, the Raps were the hot team and the Celtics not so hot. The Raps offense had been on fire, averaging 100 points/game in their last five. The Celtics on the other hand have been losers of four in a row. There were a few lineup changes today, Jose Calderon was back in the Raps starting five. For the C's, Kendrick Perkins was out and Brian Scalabrine started in his place.

Raps started off the first well, Jamario Moon hit a three to put the Raps up 12-6. And then.....Jesus came out on Sunday. Jesus Shuttlesworth AKA Ray Allen started to drop some treys on the Raps. The Celtics hit back to back threes to tie it back up at 12. Ray Allen went 5/5 in the first quarter from three point land. The Raps only shot 37%. 32-20 after 1.

The Celtics got up 42-24 on the Raps until Bargnani hit a three and then Anthony Parker hit another triple to get with 10. Things got a little physical as Joey Graham and Brian Scalabrine knocked heads. It was pretty cool, the ACC just erupted with a "JOEY, JOEY, JOEY" chant. As the crowd got excited, the Raps went on a run to get it down to 42-34. And then to top it off, Joey Graham dunked on Brian Scalabrine to get within six as the Raps went on a 10-0 run. But the Celtics went back on a run as Rajon Rondo had a ridiculous dunk on Will Solomon. Celtics were up 54-41 at halftime.

The third quarter was all Celtics as Ray Allen continued to hit threes. Boston outscored the Raps 21-14 in the 3rd, leading the Raps by 18, 73-55. In the fourth quarter, the Celtics went cold. They started off 0/7 until Ray Allen hit a shot to end the Raps 11-2 run. Joey Graham hit a basket to cut the Celtics lead down from 20 to 10 points. The Raps got hot in the fourth, going 6/8 and then Joey Graham had a block on Rajon Rondo that lead to a Chris Bosh dunk. The Raps continued to make a push when Andrea Bargnani hit a three with 1:30 left in the game to get within five. Kapono hit a late three to get it to 92-88 but the Celtics managed to maintain their lead. Final, C's won 94-88.

Key Notes:
Raps shot 28 for 74, 37% for the game
Ray Allen had 8 of the Celtics' 10 threes, he finished with 36 points
Rajon Rondo and KG both had double doubles
The Killer B's: Andrea Bargnani had 17 pts & 9 rebounds, Bosh had 15 pts & 11 boards

For a Celtics perspective, check out RedsArmy

The Raps are at Boston on Monday.


Photo credit: (Photo by Ron Turenne/NBAE via Getty Images)

Read more...

Fo Shizzle, Raptizzle Beat the Grizzle

Final Score: Raps 103, Grizz 82

Raps are on a streak! Raps are now winners of 4 of the last 5 and it's a great time for the Raps to get on this streak since they are facing the slumping Celtics on Sunday. Now that game can result in one of two ways: Celtics can continue to slump on Sunday afternoon or they can finally wake up and just demolish the Raps.

Unfortunately, I didn't catch last night's game since I was in attendance at the home opener of the Halifax Rainmen. The Rainmen are a local PBL (Premier Basketball League) basketball team based in Halifax. An interesting tidbit about this minor basketball league is that former Houston Rocket and TNT analyst Kenny Smith is the commissioner.

Key Notes from the Raps-Grizz Game:

Chris Bosh - 32 pts, 10 reb, 3 blocks , 11/13 from the floor, 10/12 from the line
Bargnani - 21 pts, 8 reb, 2 blocks
Raps outrebounded the Grizz 38-33
Rudy Gay led the Memphis Grizzlies with 22 pts
Raps outscored the Grizz 56-38 in the second half

For an extensive recap, check out these blogs:

Raptors Forum - Raps vs. Grizzlies - Post-game
Raptors Repbulic - God smiles on Chris Bosh

Next Game, Sunday afternoon: Celtics - Raps

Read more...

Nobody beats the Wiz......actually most teams do, they're freaking 7-27

Final score: Raptors 99, Wiz 93

Ok, first off Hassan Adams was traded yesterday. He was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers along with cash for a future second round draft pick. He was then immediately waived by the Clippers as the headlines read "Clippers acquire, waive Hassan Adams" I'm sure there's a logical explanation but I'm not exactly sure what it is.

Anyhow, Raptors were shorthanded for the night. No Jose, no J.O., no Jamario (attending the birth of mini-Jamario) and no Hassan Adams. So the Raps were short 3 starters and 1 cheerleader. Joey Graham, Will Solomon and Andrea Bargnani got the start. Jake Voskuhl replaced Hassan Adams as the bench cheerleader.

So the Raps were down to nine players but they were facing the lowly 7-26 Wizards. If the Raps could pull off a win, it would have to be against the Wizards who were on the end of a back to back. And the Raps lucked out, the Wiz looked flat from the start. Andrea Bargnani got another start at centre and showed more of his Dirk-side and not hit Darko-side last night. The Raps quickly got off to a hot start getting up 10-2 on the Wizards from the start. The Raps could barely miss a shot in the first quarter, Will Solomon was hitting shots, Bargs was hitting shots and the Raps as a team shot freaking 70% in the first quarter. They were had a lead up as big as 21-8 and finished the first quarter 27-16.

In the second, Andrea & Anthony Parker got the Raps up to 46-25 after hitting back to back threes with 4 minutes left in the quarter. That's when I thought, "OK, this is where the Raps will begin to blow the lead" And it happened, the Wiz went on a 9-0 run to knock the lead down to 12. Antwawn Jamison led the way to the second half as the Wiz trailed the Raps 50-38 at the half.

The third quarter got a little sloppy for the Raps. Andray Blatche hit a jumper to get within 8 as the Raps turned the ball over too many times. And then Bosh, Will Solomon and Andrea Bargnani got the Raps offense going again to get the lead back up 73-60. I was sure that this quarter was going to be the one that the Raps were going to blow but they held their ground and built their lead again. Andrea Bargnani had 15 points at this point going 6/7 from the field.

The fourth quarter was all Jamison as he was hitting jumpers to lead the Wiz back into the game. Five minutes into the fourth, the Wiz were only down five as the Raps continued to turn the ball over. But from that point on, Raps kept their compsure as Andrea Bargnani was "on" in the 4th hitting his shots down the stretch.

Key notes:
Bargs had a nice game, 25 pts, 4 rebounds
Antawn Jamison had 32 pts, 7 rebounds for the Wiz
Raps actually outrebounded a team beating the Wiz 39-28 on the boards
Toronto had a horrible 20 turnovers
The Wizards never had a lead during this game

For a Wiz perspective check out Bullets Forever

Raps beat the Wiz and the take on the Grizz on Friday.


Photo credit: (Photo by Ned Dishman/NBAE via Getty Images)

Read more...

WE WILL, WE WILL ROKO U...

The 26-7 Orlando Magic came into town as winners of 9 of their last 10 games. The Toronto Raptors were winners of 3 of their last 10. Normally, I would think this would be another L for the Raps but I had new outlook on this game. It's 2009 and the Raps are 1-0 for the new year. Today's starters for the Raptors looked a little different: Anthony Parker, Will Solomon and Jamario Moon were all starting with Jermaine O'Neal and Jose Calderon sitting out due to injury. This meant more run for Will Solomon and Roko Ukic at the point guard position.

First Half Pleasure & Pain

Pleasure - The G's were Money
The Magic had an early 17-14 lead on the Raptors seven minutes into the game but the Raptors guards put an end to it. The combo of Anthony Parker and Will Solomon went 6 for 6 from the field as the Raptors went on a 20-5 run from that point. Roko Ukic came into the game in the late first quarter hitting a shot and extended the Raptor lead to 15. By the end of the first, the guards (Parker-Solomon-Ukic) were 7 of 8 from the field and the Raps led 34-22. Raps had the hot hand shooting 66% and their defense held the Orlando Magic to only 40% shooting.

Pleasure - Andrea Bargnani
I don't know where this Andrea Bargnani has been, but I like it. More confidence, more swagger...we should have seen this a long time ago. Bargs played some decent defense on Dwight Howard and he also hit a big three to get up 38-26 on the Magic.

Pain - The infamous Toronto Raptors lead blowing
Dwight Howard started to get get things going with big dunks down low and had 18 points by mid second quarter. Jameer Nelson started to hit shots and knocked the Raptors lead down to only 6. Hedo Turkoglu continued the run and hit a jumper while Jameer Nelson hit another shot to get it down to a one-possession game. The Raps were lucky enough to have Will Solomon hit a jumper in the closing minutes of the second to put the Raps back up by seven. The Raps were up 56-49 at the half and were on pace to a 100 point game...which usually leads to Raptor wins.


Second Half Pleasure & Pain

Pain - Magic Eight Ball, No...More like Magic Three Ball
The Magic wouldn't go away and stayed in it with the three ball. Rashard Lewis came into the third quarter and hit a three and then the three ball came from everywhere. Everytime the Raps would double team Dwight Howard, there were open bodies on the three point line waiting for a shot. Rashard Lewis, Jameer Nelson, Courtney Lee all hit threes and then with 40 seconds to go in the third, Dwight Howard came down with the ferocious jam to take the lead 78-77. At the end of the third, the Magic were 12 for 26 from three point land vs. the Raps 2 for 9 from three point land. The Magic finished with 15 threes in the game.

Pleasure - AP
Anthony Paker finally got it going, he had 14 points by mid third quarter. I've never seen this guy dunk so much until this game, the Magic just didn't defend him at all. He finished with 26 points going 13-15 from the field.

Pleasure - Raps actually maintaing composure
The Raps didn't seem to get rattled when the Magic came back. They kept their ground and actually played well down the stretch. Jamario had played great defense and got some key defensive boards. Andrea Bargnani was all over the place, hitting a three to get the Raps up by ten and then stole the ball and took it to the basket for a layup. And then when he got doubled, he dished it to Bosh for the dunk.

Pain - The Magic fought back
Dwight Howard had a big game (he finished with 39 points) and got it going in the 4th. Stan Van Gundy put in JJ Redick to get the offense going and he hit threes. Then Rashard Lewis hit another big three, his 6th three of the game.

Pleasure - Toronto clutch down the stretch
Bosh hit both free throws with 2:27 left to tie the game at 101. Up to the fourth quarter, the Raps were 18 for 18 from the free throw line. Bosh was key at the end of the fourth, grabbing key rebounds and hit a crazy almost And-1 circus shot (thanks to hoopdoctors.com)

Pleasure - We Will, We Will Roko U
Roko Ukic was important at the end and it was actually the first time fans got to see Roko in a decisive portion of a Raps game. Roko hit a key jumper in the closing minutes to seal the win as the Raps won 108-102.

For a Magic perspective, check out thirdquartercollapse.com The Raps are at Milwaukee tomorrow night.


Photo credit: (Photo by Ron Turenne/NBAE via Getty Images)

Read more...

Rockets Couldn't Stop It, The Rockets Couldn't Stop, Raps Kept Ticking and Tocking.....

....Raps worked it all around the clock.

I guess the Raps played a full 48 minutes of good basketball. Wow. A Raps blowout? Hassan Adams got minutes?

I don't know....Yao, TMac and Artest all played. The Raps were short J.O. and Jose Calderon and the Raps still won against the Houston Rockets. That is just nuts.

The Raps either played a really good game or the Rockets just played a really bad one. I think it was a little of both. Andrea Batgnani took advantage with his speed and shooting ability against Yao Ming. With Andrea being a three point threat, it drew Yao out to the three point line, opening opportunities for shots down low. This led to an early 14 point lead over the Rockets. Former Raptors, Rafer Alston and Tracy McGrady were non-factors with a combined 12 points.

Jose Calderon left in the first and came back in the second quarter but then left soon after with a strained hamstring. The Rockets were able to make a run as Carl Landry hit a jumper to get within 2. Ron Artest had a hot hand for the Rockets and had three threes in the first half with his third three bringing the Rockets to within one point. Will Solomon get some extra run with the Calderon injury and had nice pass to Joey Graham down low with the easy layup. Raps as usual played a good first half and led by ten, 48-38 at halftime.

In the second half, Bargnani used his speed against Yao, beating him down to the Raps offensive end, getting some easy opportunities. Jamario Moon had a nice open slam with one minute left in the third quarter. Toronto built up their lead 68-49. Jake Voskuhl played some great defense where his defensive plays led to some great shots. The fourth quarter was just garbage time and the Raps emptied their bench. Every member of the Toronto Raptors roster had at least one basket. The Toronto Raptors just blew out the Rockets, 94-73.

Key Notes
The Houston Rockets were a horrible 28 for 82, shooting only 34%
Andrea Bargnani and Chris Bosh eached scored 19
Every Raptor had at least one basket
Jake Voskuhl had a good defensive game: 3 pts, 8 boards and 1 block in 17 min of action

Hopefully 2009 leads to more of this type of Raptors basketball. Orlando is up on Sunday in Toronto.

Read more...

Happy Ne-new Year! Nene scores 21 in Nuggs New Years Eve win

Well at least it wasn't a 39 point loss and no head coach was fired. The Raps were without Jason Kapono (thigh injury) and Jermaine O'Neal (knee injury) in the starting lineup last night. Andrea Bargnani and Anthony Parker filled the gaps for the Raps who were playing their first home game after their 6-game Western road trip. Denver head coach, George Karl was going for his 900th career coaching win.

The tough part about coming home for the Raps was having to go against the Chauncey Billups and the Denver Nuggets shorthanded. Nene made his return to the Nuggets after missing their last game due to injury and came out strong. The Raps played a good first half against Nene's Nuggets and were only down three at halftime. In the third quarter, Jose Calderon hit a three to go up on the Nuggets by one and then hit another three later in the quarter to get up three. The third quarter remained tight until Denver made a push to go up by eight at the end of the third. Andrea Bargnani who has been up and down this season, performed well filling in for J.O at centre. He had 11 points in the first half and continued to hit shots in the second half. In the fourth quarter, Anthony Parker found Joey Graham for the open layup to get within two with only 4 minutes left. And then Chauncey Billups, Mr. Big Shot hit a big shot three to get up by six on the Raps. In the final seconds, Anthony Parker hit a three to get within four but the Raps couldn't get any closer as the Nuggets won 114-107.

Key Notes
Denver had 7 players in double figures
All of the Raptors starters were in double figures
Andrea Bargnani broke out with 26 pts, 6 boards and 5 blocks
Bosh had 24 pts and 11 boards
Nene led the Nuggets with 21 points and 7 rebounds

The Raps have another tough home matchup as they face the Houston Rockets Friday night.


Photo credit: (Photo by Ron Turenne/NBAE via Getty Images)

Read more...

Marco Belinelli & Andrea Bargnani Nike Spot

I must admit that I had never seen Golden State's Marco Belinelli play until last night's Toronto Raptors-Golden State Warriors game. I found out that he's Italian and a teammate of Andrea Bargnani on the Italian national team. I did a little searching and found this Nike ad with both Bells and Bargs.

I'm not sure exactly what Andrea is saying but it kind of sounds like this:

Read more...

Raps Get Whacked By Jersey

This game was the last time Toronto would face the Nets for the regular season and this was also the "rubber" match as the series was tied 1-1. There was some good and bad, so here it is in Pleasure & Pain format.


Pleasure - The Raps started out really well jumping on the Nets from the get go. They started out on a 9-0 run until NJ called a timeout. Vince scored a basket out of the timeout but the Raps continued to make a run getting up 16-2 on the Nets including a nice alley oop from Jose Calderon to Jamario Moon. Jermaine O'Neal played well in the first as well. The Raps played a good first quarter and had the lead 28-20 in the first.

Pain - The Raps couldn't shut down Vince like the last game, and VC scored all of the Nets first 7 points.


Pleasure - It was good to see good plays from all around the roster: Roko had a sweet dish to JO, Bosh had a nice block on Trenton Hassell and Joey Graham had a sick "Graham slam". Ever since the coaching change, Joey has been playing with more energy and confidence and his game has really stepped up.

Pain - The Nets were able to chip away at the Raps lead and Yi was able to bring it within two with a three. The Raps stunk it up on the offensive boards as the Nets beat the Raps on second chance points 14-0 which lead to a Nets 1 point lead at halftime. I'm not a fan of Jamario's outside jumpers and three attempts either, I think he's got the hops and should attack the basket more. I've seen a lot of Jamario missed outside jumpers when he could probably attempt for a better shot.


Pleasure - The Raps came back in the third outscoring the Nets 25-17 and were up by 7 at the end of the 3rd. Joey Graham continued to look active and Andrea was more aggressive driving to the basket and playing good defense. It was good to see him tussle with Vince when trying to get a rebound, it shows his grit that we've rarely seen from him.

Pain - Andrea Bargnani played well last night but looks like he has been suffering the Greg Oden disease and not looking confident in his game. Like Oden, people have been dogging them since they were both #1 draft picks and haven't been meeting the high expectations.


Pleasure - Here came the famous Raptor "lead-blowing" and the Raps again blew their lead but managed to get big shots to stay in the game. Jason Kapono continued to hit the big threes, Jose hit big shots and Bosh hit a big three during the closing minutes.

Pain - Devin Harris scored 14 of his 20 points the 4th. The D started to break down again and the Raps continued to go back to their bad habits of settling for jumpers. Nets regained the lead and the Raps continued to turn the ball over with careless passes and bad shots. The Raps again were outrebounded by the opponent (for the 13th straight game), and were outrebounded 54-38. The Nets ended up building their lead to 10 with 3 minutes left and closed out the Raps 94-87


Pleasure - The Raps again had 6 players in double figures including 5 threes form Kapono. All starters had double figures along with Andrea's 10 points off the bench.

Pain - Toronto wasn't able to shut down Vince and Devin Harris like the last game and gave up as the duo combined for 40 points. Ryan Anderson from the Nets had a great game going for 21 points, 9 rebounds with 3 threes and some big shots down the stretch. And yes, the biggest pain was for Raps fans as VC got the better of us again.


The Raps are home to Dallas on Wednesday.



Photo Credit: (Photo by Ron Turenne/NBAE via Getty Images)

Read more...

Ring Around the Posey, With A Pocketful of Six Threes

What a tough matchup for Toronto with CP3 and his New Orleans Hornets in town. It was a Jose Calderon-Chris Paul point guard matchup and it was also the return of MoPete to Toronto, one of the Raps' all-time faves. Unfortunately, he was a DNP - Coach's Decision.

The first quarter had the Raps playing good D holding Paul and the Hornets to only 22 pts. I think Raps play well when they hold opponents to under 25 pts per quarter. James Posey hit some big shots early on in the first.

The play of the day? AP with the sweet dish to Jermaine Oneal.

In the second quarter, Raps came out strong building up on their lead of 8 points until.....

Posey hit another big three.
Posey again with a three.
Again, Posey with the 3 to tie it at 44, the Hornets went on a 17-4 run

James Posey had 5 threes at the half...ouch. James Posey has been a great addition to the Hornets with his championship experience with Miami and Boston. Chris Paul was great too, as he just drove down the lane, the Toronto defense would collapse and then he just kicked it out to any of their outside shooters. As far as Toronto, Andrea Bargnani is looking more and more like "Bust"-nani as he continues to be ineffective both offensively and defensively. He needs to become more consistent with his efforts as you never what you're going to get form him from game to game. Raps managed to lose their lead (again) and trailed 51-46 to the Hornets at the half. New Orleans had shot 51% at the half.

In the second half, Posey hit another 3 in the 3rd quarter for a total of 6 threes for the game. Raps defense played good D in the second half but were only down 8 to New Orleans 80-72 after the third. In the 4th, Jose hit a big three with 6 min left to pull within 6. The Raps stayed close but missed some key shots at the end. I'm not too crazy on Bosh's three attempts in the closing minutes when they're down. Hornets ended up closing out the Raps 99-91

It was a loss but a loss to a very good Western Conference team. It wasn't disappointing as the Raps played good ball and were competitive to the end. Bosh, Calderon and J.O. all had great games. Bosh had 25pts-8reb-6asst, J.O. had 19pts-7reb and Jose had 22pts, 7 assists going 8-8 from the field. For the Hornets, David West led the way with 29pts, 9 boards.

As a side note, the CBC crew announced that the Raptors signed Jake Voskuhl and can play as soon as tomorrow against the Nets.


Photo credit: (AP Photo/The Canadian Press,Frank Gunn)

Read more...

A THEORY ON THE RAPS WOES: THE CURSE OF NO-SWIRSK

With the Raps losing five in a row and struggling to compete, I am reminded that they sorely miss the creative play-by-play calling of Chuck Swirsky, who moved on to do radio commentary for the Chicago Bulls at the start of the season. Now, we've all heard 18 Parkerville Court, oh my Bosh and another MP3 download (#3 Mo Peete when he was with the Raps), which we at HoopHeadsNorth affectionately call “Swirsky-isms”, from season's past. Let's take a moment and venture into a parallel universe, where the Raps are leading the league, have a 20 game winning streak going and the Swirsk is calling the Raps game versus the Pacers tonight. What would we hear him say? Hmmm...




10 - “What a block by the Raptor's Jermaine man in the middle!”

9 - “Oooh! Calderon! Numero ochoooooooo mama what a pass by Jose!”

8 - “Joey throws down a Graham slam!”

7 - “A-B-7! It's as easy as 1-2-3, Do re mi, Bargnani with another threeahhhballlzzaahhh like the meeeattaballlzahh!”

6 - “And 1 for Moon! Granger picks up the foul going for the block, but its-a 33, Jamario! - (in a super mario voice – Swirsk had pizza tonight and seems to be riding out the Italian theme)

5 - “J-Kap caps another one! Quick on the trigga coming off a CB-4 screen!” (Swirsk has been brushing up on his gangsta rap)

4 - “Hassan Adams! Leo, I'm gonna need a SAM Adams after that move!”

3 - “Everybody, do the Humphries hump, watch #43 do the humphries hump! People say “Yo Humphries! You're real funny-lookin'. That's aiight 'cause he gets things cookin'” (Apparently, he's been brushing up on his early 90's hip hop as well. Digital Underground WHAT!)

2 - “Roko with the slam over Rasho! He will, he will Roko U, Indiana! Raps routing the Pacers!”
(Roko throwing it down over Rasho?!? Rout for the Raps?!? Remember, parallel universe. On that note, Ukic also went through the legs and 360'ed before his dunk. Cut to Brian Colangelo by the tunnel SMILING.)

1 - “Will Solomon Grundy sinks a shot on a Wednesday bring on the Nets on a Friday! It's salami and cheese time Leo!”

Swirsk also said, “Oh my Bosh!” about 50 times on this night, as the crowd chanted M-V-P! M-V-P on multiple occasions...

If each Raptor fan chants all ten of these once, maybe just maybe, the Curse of No-Swirsk will be lifted and the Raps can begin the turn around tonight against the Pacers and beyond. May reality collide with this parallel universe. Strength and honour!

Read more...

Iron LA Lakers KO Little Raps

Ok, just to start off, those goggles that Vlad-Rad wear are pretty darn cool. They are very 90’s Antoine Carr-esque.



Raps vs. Lakers result: Mike Tyson beat Little Mac.
The Raps got knocked out by the Lakers 112-99. It wasn’t an ugly beating as some thought it would be and on a positive note, it turned to be somewhat of a good display for the Raps.

Here’s the post-fight recap:

Did they follow Doc Louis’ advice? Yes & No

Did they copy Detroit?
Raps were unable to copy the Pistons and hold the Lakers to under 100pts which means they didn’t defend well. Lakers shot 51% from the field and they also outrebounded the Raps 54-36. If you play a team that averages almost 108 ppg, you have to play tighter defense and hold them to 25 pts per quarter or less to compete. The Lakers ended up scoring 32 in the first.

Did they increase offensive production?
Yes they did. There was a well-balanced attack from the starting lineup where all Raps starters scored in double figures. Bosh & Jose both had 12 pts, Bargnani had 14 & 11 boards, Moon finished with 11 and AP led the way with 19.

Did they take advantage of injuries?
Well, this didn’t work in the Raps favor. There seemed to be a lot of talk of J.O. starting against the Lakers but turned out that he had to sit out. To add to that, Andrew Bynum was good to go for this game and he put on a good showing with 18pts & 10 reb. Had J.O. started, it probably would have affected the Raps gameplay. Chris Bosh was forced to deal with Pau and Bynum guarding him where J.O. may have been able to relieve some of that pressure.

Did they let Kobe score 81?
No, he only ended up with 23 in 29 minutes. I don’t know if it was good defense or that Kobe sat out most of the 4th with the game in hand. Either way, he didnt light up the Raps for another 81.

Did Bosh prove his MVP worthiness against the Lakers & the reigning MVP?
Yes and No. Bosh's teammates played better but Bosh’s game was rusty, settling for jumpers as opposed to driving to the hoop.....and his jumper was ugly last night. Unfortunately, he had a brick wall to face with Pau and Andrew Bynum. Did it expose his ineffectiveness against a stellar team? Maybe.

In summary, the Raps put up a good effort against a tough team in the Lakers. They were able to pull it close at times but Lakers would go on a run. Andrea Bargnani seems to look better each game and looking more comfortable with his game. Raps were also able to get decent production out of their bench from Jason Kapono and Joey Graham. Raps have Denver (Tuesday) and Utah (Friday) up next.

Read more...