Finally the Swirsk has returned to Toronto....

Tonight the Raps face off against the 16-22 Chicago Bulls but this also means the return of The Swirsk, Chuck Swirsky, former Raps announcer.


After having Chuck as the announcer of the Raps for so many years, it just seems weird of having the new guy in Matt Devlin in there. Don't get me wrong Matt Devlin is a great announcer but I was just a fan of the originality that Chuck had brought. Be it "Another MP3 Download" (for a Morris Peterson three) or "The Red Rocket" (for former Raptor Matt Bonner) it just made the Raps broadcast that more enjoyable to watch. I know Devlin doing his best for the nicknames but the "Rockin' Roko" or "Will the Thrill" nicknames just doesn't cut it. Anyhow, it will be nice to see Swirsk back in Toronto.

Welcome back, Swirsk.




Check out TSN's Top 10 Chuck Swirsky Tribute:

Also check out our "Curse of No-Swirsk", this season's Chuck Swirsky calls if he was sill in T.O.

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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!

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Balance Toi drops Cinquante Cinq!

Big night last night in the NBA.

First of all, the Raps-Pistons game was a good one, Jose Calderon kept the Raps in the game down the stretch but the Pistons were just too dominant for the Raps. I also have to mention........I miss Chuck Swirsky. When the Raps are making runs, the Chuck Swirsky calls are what make Raps games that much more exciting. Matt Devlin doesn't cut it, we need more "C - B - 4!!!" or "SICK WICKED AND NASTY!" calls. Chuck Swirsky was as much part of the Raptors as Chris Bosh and I miss the Swirsk and his calls.

Last night had a few 40+ point scorers and...No, one of them wasn't Melo scoring 44 for Obama. He ended up with 28 and an L against the Warriors. And oh yeah, Melo got a haircut!

Amare "STAT" Stoudemire had a sick line last night: 49 points, 11 boards, 6 assists, 5 steals and 2 blocks!

Lebron ....also sick: 41 points, 9 boards, 6 assists and 4 steals

And the high scorer of the night:

Balance Toi......Tony Parker!

55 points, 10 assists and 7 dimes in the double OT win. Career high for TP.

As the resident Spurs fan....I was watching the box score and couldn't believe TP's stats but what suprised me more was that the 0-3 Spurs (worst start since '74) needed double OT to squeak a win over the Minnesota Timberwolves?! I never usually worry about the Spurs during the regular season but when I see Roger Mason as the third highest scorer, I'm starting to worry. Manu, we need you back!

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NBA OPENING DAY!

Celtics tip-off against the Cavs.......Bucks at Chicago......and Greg Oden's season debut against Kobe and the Lakers.

Raps start tomorrow against the Sixers and their home debut is against Golden State Warriors on Halloween night.

Check out Chris Bosh at FLOW 93.5 in Toronto sporting an old school Toronto Blue Jays cap:

Check Chuck Swirsky's blog, for the Bulls in his new home of Chicago: CHUCK CHECKS IN.

Coming soon, look out for the first HOOPHEADSNORTH season predictions.

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Bosh-J.O., the 2008 Twin Towers?

• NBA preseason is here! I caught the Raptors debut in Toronto against Mike D'antoni's Knicks. Raps look a little different this year; no Delfino, no TJ, no Rasho, no Garbajosa, no Primoz but they do have J.O. in the lineup this time around. They've been comparing the Bosh-J.O. combo to my fave twin towers, Tim Duncan and David "The Admiral" Robinson. They looked a little rusty in the win, but when you have two bigs trying to co-exist, it may take a little time for the chemistry to come around. Raps take on Elton Brand and the new-look Sixers tonight.
• It was my first time to check out Matt Devlin (Chuck Swirsky's replacement) and his play by play. I'd say he was alright, nothing special. I'll give him a few more games before I can really give an opinion on his announcing, we're gonna miss Chuck Swirsky and his "Swirsky-isms"
• I just finished watching the Nets-Heat game in London.....very exciting game for the London crowd. NJ beat the Heat 94-92.
• If you haven't check Chris Bosh's video blogs, check them out on youtube or at chris-bosh.com, I hear he's battling Baron Davis for video blog supremacy.
• My annual fantasy hoops league is up and running again this year. The league name is Hali Hoops Vol.VI on Yahoo! fantasy sports. In its fifth season, I have taken home 3 championships but fell to a disappointing 4th last season, I got to get my research game on for the draft next week, I'll keep you posted. Hoopheadsnorth co-writer U-E came in second last season.
• As far as the video games scene, Ive tested out both NBA 2K9 and NBA Live '09 for the XBOX 360. And I know EA has come out with some big improvements this year but 2K9 gameplay is so much better and realisitic. EA graphics look a lot better but in terms of gameplay, 2K9 has it hands down again.

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