Who said 60??? I don't even remember 50?..
Who said 60??? I don't even remember 50?..
Yahoo! and ESPN I think... Loads of analysts thought that after our division leading year, we were going to keep increasing, and after our little slump people still thought we could get 50. I remember cause I was telling my friends how they were nuts...Apollo wrote:
We are fed up with the US predictions.
I don't know if we win 1 or 70 (?!?!?) games. All I want to watch is the team playing.
I enjoyed very much the game at Montreal, the atmosphere was great, the team was better i believe.
Of course nobody could stop Amare. But the defensive play in general was much better than the previous pre-season games.
I believe that the team will not be worse than last year. Ok, we don't have Bosh. Everybody asks who will take 11 rebounds and score 24 points per game. I could answer that Evans may take 11 rebounds per game, and maybe Bargniani-Barbosa-Kleiza trio could score more than 24 per game.
I don't know I just looking forward to tip-off.
The only thing that makes me believe that this year may be more difficult than last one, is that some playoff contenders of the past years like Chicago, Miami and New York, strengthened their teams much.
This year, our division is going to be super tough. 12 games against Boston, New York and New Jersey will be pretty tough. 76ers won't pose too much of a threat but they have young talent and will definitely have one W against us...
I can guarentee that non of those analyst have watched as many raptors basketball games then myself or half the people on the board. YOur telling me that these analyst with 29 teams are going to watch 7 preseason games of the team they predict to finish last in the eastern conference. Come on shake your head! The raptors are as good or better then new york, philidelphia, new jersey, detroit, washington and indians. The season will dictate who's better not these talking heads. Almost all these morons had the bucks in the bottom three of the eastern conference last year.
Toronto will compete and their will be very little that seperates these 7 teams. At this point based on the preseason they would have just as much chance to be better then all these teams as anyone of those teams.
If life was so simple it would be easy to say that with bosh and turk gone we would fall off a cliff. The fact that these two were such bad leaders and chemistry killers kills this arguement.
Its obvious that the team has better chemistry and is better suited to play together then last years team. A reduction of talent doesn't mean they will fall of the cliff. Depth and skill aren't to bad as compared to their eastern conference peers.
Raps will be alot worse than 40-42 and its got little to do with Bosh moreso that the east got a lot tougher....
Knicks,Indy,Washington and NJ all going to be better ESP Wiz and Nets so not only are we LESS talented as a roster
but several teams got more talented and more talented than us.....i cant wait to here the reasons in mid Jan were losing by 20 at home but trust me folks its coming....but it shouldnt bother yall cuz it means Harrison Barnes is on the way
Hell, I thought we were going to win 50 games, at least, last year.. I'm sure many of us did, I don't think there was any reason to doubt that we couldn't with all the hype Turk was getting, we had a sold starting 5 with great depth.. Wouldn't fault anyone for making that prediction..
I don't think anyone can really judge how we'll do this year, so I agree with not caring about what ESPN or anyone else thinks. I think we have the ability to win if we really focus on our defense and bring the intensity every game. Our team has a lot of chemistry, and we really work together on offense really well.. If we can translate that to the defensive end, we'll be alright.
Nobody on the entire internet predicted 50 wins last year, let alone 60 which is one of more idiotic statements I can remember. The raps are somewhat of a contradiction. They have essentially improved across the board, they are more balanced, have better chemistry, are deeper and have several young player's (Derozan, Weems) posed for mini breakout seasons, but yet that doesn't seem to translate into wins. Bosh was a born loser, but he was still dipped in gold up to his neck. Losing Bosh should result in a few losses as he did win a few games by putting the team on his back, but the additions of Kleiza and Barbosa should soften the offensive burden and the addition by subtraction of Hedo can't be measured in simple or advanced statistics.
ESPN has the raps too low for how they will end up performing, but it's not an unrealistic position based on thier current talent and the superfisical reductions of 'star' talent in Bosh and Turk. The raps actually overachieved last year, but this year the East hasn't actually improved, but regressed closer to the mean. There aren't any easy wins in the East other than Detroit and soon to be Charlotte, but the great teams got greater, the good teams stayed good and the bad teams got signifigantly better. The season will depend on coaching, health and the continued progression of the young gunz.
Yes many predicted we would win near 50. And just for you to know, we were on track to win 50 around the all-star break, everything just fell apart after... And those who predicted 60 said because our players were a year older, Bargnani had his break-out season, we got the biggest free-agent in Turkoglu that should have brought us to the second round at least. Obviously it didn't pan out...
tsn = espn canada. they have about as much basketball knowledge as the nfl network does (probably less)
TSN Basketball is essentially Chris Chisolm (who's quite well informed). Everybody else, is just the same comentators from RaptorsTV erm... NBATV Canada.
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Yea Chisholm I like but I don't think he's ever been on TV adding in his analysis and commentary. It's always the same crew that does hockey...and honestly, it's laughable listening to those guys talk ball.
Some of them think the Nets or Philly will make playoffs.
Just saying.
So... Um... What do you think now?
Four games in and three ass kickings later are is anyone changing their views on the team? ... Maybe, I don't know, taking a more realistic view?
Now at 2-9, good for a tie for second last, has anyone changed their view of the team?
http://espn.go.com/nba/standings/_/group/1
The Raptors have dropped from 4th in offense last season to 17th this season and improved their defense from 27th last season to 23rd this season.
Last edited by Apollo; Wed Nov 17th, 2010 at 09:17 AM. Reason: Link to standings
wow
Last edited by Legalize-It; Wed Nov 17th, 2010 at 08:28 PM.
bc said 50 - but his opinion is hardly worth anything
You guys have to remember that The Toronto Raptors struggle with building a standard NBA-Like team. Example, why do you think the Raps always have Europeans and South Americans? Because no American basketball players enjoy the fan-base and marketing of Toronto. I do believe this is the best team they have in years. Want to know why? Barbosa will bring a Phoenix type style to the team. He will get the young onez to run faster, turn the ball over less, and dominate fast break points. Barbosa, Kleiza, Derozan, Bargnani, Weems, Calderon are all guys that can get 15+ Ppg. I expect to get quoted for this part but I do believe Amir Johnson, is better then Bosh. "WOAH?! What the Fook?! Are you saying Amir is better than Bosh?". I do believe so. Amir is not a crybaby, he comes off the bench and produces double-doubles on good days, hes a 6'9 PF that can most likely beat Shaquille O'neal in an offensive rebounding competition!.
Ill break down my eastern conference seeds...:
1. Boston (Unless Allen or Pierce get hurt of course)
2. Orlando
3. Miami (GL getting 1st or 2nd with a terrible Point guard.)
4. Chicago (Assuming Boozer doesn't injure himself again)
5. Milwaukee
6. Atlanta
7. Toronto (Keep rebounding Reggie!)
8. Indiana (This team is actually quite good!)
No American players enjoy Toronto's fan base? They hate our team's fans? Dude, no matter where you are in the world and what sport you play, the fans are what get you pumped for games. Nothing would be worse to a pro athlete than playing to an empty house. Toronto has excellent fans. Despite the lack of talent and the expected poor record the attendance at games is pretty solid.
Maybe a superstar might think twice about playing in Toronto because of endorsements and the development of his personal "brand" (puke), if that is what you are referring to by marketing, but I think this really only applies to the top handful of players who have a marketable brand. No player in Toronto has to worry about that. Vince had solid endorsements. If the player is good enough it doesn't matter where he plays.
I think Toronto has foreign players because it fits into whatever strategy Colangelo is employing. It is a conscience decision by Colangelo. It has nothing to do with players not wanting to play here. That tired argument is BS. Bayless was giddy with excitement by coming to Toronto. Peja seemed down right depressed. It is all about an individual player's attitude.
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Source: Jerome Williams Hits The Nail On The Head", Raptors Republic Forums
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