Raptors 2014-2015 season

[jayswin]

This is the straw that broke the camels back for me and this sport. Too bad I was really getting into basketball, but it's pretty clear the officiating is too much of a negative, if not for incompetence then for purpousful negligence.

[Acey]

Ref incompetency is not a new thing. But when they spend so much time reviewing and still get it wrong? Abysmal.

[Sammymydog1]

As exciting as that game was, and it seemed like a playoff game, it was really hard to watch with all the delays & call reviews. I could not beleive that they gave Portland a clear path call after denying the Raps clear path just prior. And JV could not get a call if he was being raped at centre court.

[octothorp]

To me, both plays should have been clear-path fouls. Unfortunate ending, but Raptors have nobody but themselves to blame for squandering that big fourth-quarter lead. There were some terrible decisions with taking lower-percentage shots in transition, trying for the backbreaker, that ended up going the other way and letting Portland cut the lead quickly. This team is staggeringly effective when playing at a very slow pace in the clutch. But when they play uptempo in the clutch, they tend to get outscored. And I understand the logic in taking JV out for better perimeter defence, but when Toronto's own perimeter offense is not clicking, I think it's worth it to keep him in and slow the tempo down, given that he was getting everything he wanted in the post.
I think this game shows why this team needs DeRozan: even if his game isn't super-efficient, it's consistent compared to other guard options like Vasquez, Williams, and Ross. And when you've got a lead, you need consistency.

[Acey]

Worried about the Raps ability to deal with adversity against good teams. Falling apart a bit for Kyle tonight against Curry.

[St. Pats]

They really just aren't there yet. Good teams can blow them out. They are still playoff fodder. Should just enjoy the ride but I think with a good trade or two from MU they could come out of the East. I hope there are some teams dumping at the deadline. They decided the tank wasn't the way to go so they will have to trade their way to success. Unless MU figures they can pick up some top notch free agents.

[Machiavelli]

Yeesh...giving up a ton of points lately.

[bluejays]

It really is showing now. They are simply a tier below elite. Where they're being exposed is on interior defence through either being timid, or guys simply blowing by them and them standing around. They've forgotten to collapse down low and sometimes they're just afraid of getting hit. Amir is frankly useless when it comes to footwork and that's among the biggest reasons for this recent failure. Not to mention the need for elite-level scoring. All this primarily shows how weak the East is. I know it sounds like an overreaction, but this is hardly an elite team. They're certainly on to something with having a great bench, but when it comes playoff time, there's no room for inconsistency - the big boys have to come out to play, and it's those elite big boys the Raps need, but don't really have.

[killer_carlson]

I dont think the Raptors know if they have the big boys or not. The entire offence is built around wing players shooting threes or driving to the lane. The 4 and 5 position are complete after thoughts on offence.

And does JV ever get 4th quarter minutes?

[octothorp]

Originally Posted by fleury

It really is showing now. They are simply a tier below elite. Where they're being exposed is on interior defence through either being timid, or guys simply blowing by them and them standing around. They've forgotten to collapse down low and sometimes they're just afraid of getting hit. Amir is frankly useless when it comes to footwork and that's among the biggest reasons for this recent failure. Not to mention the need for elite-level scoring. All this primarily shows how weak the East is. I know it sounds like an overreaction, but this is hardly an elite team. They're certainly on to something with having a great bench, but when it comes playoff time, there's no room for inconsistency - the big boys have to come out to play, and it's those elite big boys the Raps need, but don't really have.

I agree with the 'below elite' assessment. I keep telling reminding myself that this was what I expected to be a plateau year before they have all those upcoming expirings so that they can add another big piece this offseason. Win one round this year and this season is a success for me. That said, there's no reason they can't win a playoff series against any EC team not named the Bulls (and if they can avoid playing the Bulls until the third round, when injury woes might play a larger role, who knows?). But they need a PF force to really be a contender. I love Amir's heart and hustle, but you can't be a contender when one of your starters is so rarely 100%.

The next month is an insanely easy schedule: home to Atlanta, @ Washington and @Memphis, but 13 games against losing (or nearly losing) teams. So they should rack up the wins again and still be holding a top seed by the allstar break.

[St. Pats]

Don't know what the reason is but they haven't shown up at all for the last 3 games. They only play in spurts once they are down 10 pts or more. When PsychoT is the most noticeable player on the floor they are in trouble.

Duldrums affect all teams but they don't have the talent to withstand laziness.

[pria(kin)16]

I don't understand how Casey is managing JV. Not a minute in the 4th quarter last night. He's a third year pro, what are they hiding him from?

[bluejays]

Originally Posted by St. Pats

Don't know what the reason is but they haven't shown up at all for the last 3 games. They only play in spurts once they are down 10 pts or more. When PsychoT is the most noticeable player on the floor they are in trouble.

Duldrums affect all teams but they don't have the talent to withstand laziness.

One of the benefits of having such a deep lineup is that if somebody comes out cold, they always have someone on the bench to go to. For this recent stretch though, almost nobody has showed up. No need to panic but it really sucks to see such a flat turnout as well as the lazy shots.

[no_joke]

Definitely in a rough patch right now. Not just struggling against good teams but also sub .500 ones now. Zach Lowe of Grantland breaks down the Raptors' weaknesses on D in this article (with pictures!):
http://grantland.com/the-triangle/th...s-master-plan/

Excerpt:
The Raptors know that their defense, barely ahead of the much-mocked Cavs at 22nd in points allowed per possession, isn’t good enough for them to do serious postseason damage. “Our defense has slacked off,” Lowry says. “There are a few things we need to clean up, and we just gotta play harder.”

Casey’s scheme is demanding. Teams over the last half-decade have rushed to imitate Tom Thibodeau’s Bulls, who play a conservative style designed to avoid rotations. The Bulls want to snuff a pick-and-roll by having the defender on the ball literally stand between the ball handler and the screen:

If you can’t use a screen, you can’t shift the ball from one side of the floor to the other or gash the middle of the court — stuff that forces defenses to scramble.

The Raptors (mostly) don’t play like that. They’re happy to let you use picks, even if that strategy yields the middle. Toronto volunteers itself into help situations. Its defense is one big wager: You’re going to make us rotate, and we’re going to do it better than you think.

“That’s our scheme,” Lowry says. “We show. We rotate. It’s what coach teaches us. It’s hard work, but it’s what we do.”

It’s a dangerous game, one that requires precise five-man synchronization. No one can be a half-second late on a rotation, shift over to the wrong offensive player, blow a closeout, or gamble his way out of the play.

The problem is, Toronto hasn’t brought that precision consistently, and it doesn’t have enough rim protection to bail it out when enemies drive the lane. Williams and Greivis Vasquez try hard, but they can’t keep opponents in front of them, and each struggles at times to track both his man and the ball:

[kmart]

Originally Posted by fleury

It really is showing now. They are simply a tier below elite. Where they're being exposed is on interior defence through either being timid, or guys simply blowing by them and them standing around. They've forgotten to collapse down low and sometimes they're just afraid of getting hit. Amir is frankly useless when it comes to footwork and that's among the biggest reasons for this recent failure. Not to mention the need for elite-level scoring. All this primarily shows how weak the East is. I know it sounds like an overreaction, but this is hardly an elite team. They're certainly on to something with having a great bench, but when it comes playoff time, there's no room for inconsistency - the big boys have to come out to play, and it's those elite big boys the Raps need, but don't really have.

They were always below elite, but they're also at the next level. However, I don't think its fair to make an assessment on this team without DeRozan and after they came off a tough 6 game road trip (nearly beating Portland as well). DeRozan's shot selection isn't always the greatest, but he does take a large burden off the shoulders of Lowry, who looks tired on the court. Also Grevis and Lou Williams are awful defensively in comparison to DeRozan, even though DeRozan may only be a decent defender.



The stats say we need DeRozan back to keep our competitiveness in the east. Funny thing is that some of you wanted him gone in the offseason. It would be hard to replace him and this tough stretch is proving it.

[St. Pats]

Getting worse instead of better. Defense is the main problem and DD don't help that one iota. He will help in that he forces another player to the 2nd unit and their depth helps them beat the bad teams.

But to get anywhere MU needs to be the big gun .

[bluejays]

I watched last nights game and what a difference from the start of the season. I know it's just one recent example but anyone who thinks Lowry is that clutch guy once again needs to look last nights game where he was forcing trying to be THE MAN, and he was not only blocked the first time, but has the ball ripped from him at half court the second time, when other guys were better suited for a scoring play. We can't have that type of selfish play. None of these guys are clutch which is why it's important to develop multiple weapons instead of pushing Lowry. Argh, so frustrating.

[St. Pats]

Originally Posted by fleury

I watched last nights game and what a difference from the start of the season. I know it's just one recent example but anyone who thinks Lowry is that clutch guy once again needs to look last nights game where he was forcing trying to be THE MAN, and he was not only blocked the first time, but has the ball ripped from him at half court the second time, when other guys were better suited for a scoring play. We can't have that type of selfish play. None of these guys are clutch which is why it's important to develop multiple weapons instead of pushing Lowry. Argh, so frustrating.

Well he felt he had to go into HERO mode when DD went down. Really the two of them need to tone it down. They should go back to what made them good in the first place which was sharing the ball. Hawks are doing it to a tee and have taken over first place. Another team with no stars.

[Senator Clay Davis]

The Hawks are the Spurs East though with Mike Budenholzer, a Popovich disciple, running their team. I'm actually really excited for when the Popovich system infiltrates more and more NBA teams and kills hero ball/the star system for good.

[kmart]

Originally Posted by St. Pats

Getting worse instead of better. Defense is the main problem and DD don't help that one iota. He will help in that he forces another player to the 2nd unit and their depth helps them beat the bad teams.

But to get anywhere MU needs to be the big gun .

That's not a very valid statement when the stats clearly show that DeRozan helps their defense. He may only be average on ball and a good off ball defender, but Lou Williams and Grevis Vasquez are awful defensively. Between the 2 bench players they make DeRozan look like he's Bruce Bowen. Yes, DeRozan helps the defense. They went through one stretch where they lost to good teams without their All star guard now that he's back, it would be fair to make an assessment starting now, not when the Raptors had to start bench worthy players.

I'm excited for the game against the Hawks as well. Their ball movement is unreal and Horford, although he's not flashy, is a all star big man. If he wasn't playing for Atlanta he would truly get more coverage and be one of the stars in this league.