Everything Demar Derozan

[GameBreaker]

fixed...

-------------------

I can't wait till the dunk contest.

Thank you, sir. Lol...I think, in all honesty, DeMar and his squad are gonna be the ones to bring the hype back in it. Notice how it's DD who's getting the shift of media attention, now? He's the shortest one in the Dunk Off, now..which usually is the VISUALLY higher jumper. His team, alone, attracts attention. Dunkenstein, JUsFly..PLUS, let's not forget, DeMar got approached by LeBron and Dwight Howard on stuff they'd like to see him do. People believe in this kid, yo.

[JalenRose5]

Dawkins suggested DeRozan might have the "little guy" advantage this dunk competition because everybody else is at or close to 7 foot. LOL



See this is what I was talking about in an earlier thread. Those are competition dunks. Being a good game dunker won't win you a dunk comp. This is why I feel Blake Griffin is overrated and this is why I feel the competition is wide open for a guy like DeRozan who is bringing in experience and creativity to help him come up with his dunks.

I love Demar, he's my hope for the Raptors, but seriously, have you seen Blake Griffin Dunk? He is not overrated, he deserves all the recognition and then some! I watched him do a 360 dunk with a man in front of him! Imagine what he can do with no one there bumping him! He is an animal! rookie season averaging 23pts/13rbs/4ass! That is absolutely disgusting!!

It's gonna be incredible when the two of them come out! If Demar wants to win, he should bring an entourage, and get Drake, Kardinal, Master P or Ice Cube to sing straight outta compton and have Dawkins walk behind him like Royce Gracie and his brothers before any fight!

[huskies2raps]

I love Demar, he's my hope for the Raptors, but seriously, have you seen Blake Griffin Dunk? He is not overrated, he deserves all the recognition and then some! I watched him do a 360 dunk with a man in front of him! Imagine what he can do with no one there bumping him! He is an animal! rookie season averaging 23pts/13rbs/4ass! That is absolutely disgusting!!

I don't think it's so much that we think Blake is "over rated" - by no means is he or his dunking over rated at all; Blake is one of the greatest dunkers in the game, no question about it - i think what Apollo was saying is that just because Blake is a great in-game dunker, doesn't necessarily mean that his in game talents can translate into him flourishing in a dunk contest, where there is nobody to dunk on and he has to rely on creativity to pull off fan favourite dunks - although he's definitely got a huge advantage over the competition because of the fact that it's in LA and all.....it's going to be tough for anybody who's not Blake Griffin to get the kind of applause that Blake will get - fortunately, Demar's a Compton guy, so hopefully that will help a little

[Apollo]

Sprite Slam Dunk Contest

The Top Pick

In his first year, Blake Griffin has proven himself to be a powerhouse dunking machine. Fans watch his dunks in highlight clips and viral videos, and are already whispering about Blake Griffin being one of the greatest dunkers of all time.

The Team Player

If you think Serge Ibaka is a long-shot for winning the Sprite Slam Dunk, then you don't know who's behind him. Ibaka is fiercely dedicated to his team, and is building his entire Slam Dunk strategy around representing for the Oklahoma City Thunder.

The Family Man

If there's no better inspiration than making your family proud, JaVale McGee has the ultimate motivation to win the Sprite Slam Dunk. As the first NBA player whose mother played in the WNBA, McGee would cement a new basketball dynasty with a win.

The Veteran

Brandon Jennings officially drops out due to injury and now it's DeRozan's turn. Having Sprite Slam Dunk experience and Darryl Dawkins as a coach gives him a edge over the other contestants. Can DeMar best his second place finish from a year ago?

There has been a video posted for each competitor except DeRozan. Check in later in the week to probably see his. Am I the only one finding it funny that C-Web is coaching McGee? Webber was never a high flier. He was a good game dunker though.

[joey_hesketh]

Sprite Slam Dunk Contest



There has been a video posted for each competitor except DeRozan. Check in later in the week to probably see his. Am I the only one finding it funny that C-Web is coaching McGee? Webber was never a high flier. He was a good game dunker though.

They've been adding each guy every week. So Demar won't be til Monday. I think.
But ya I found the C-Web pick a little curious. But I also found Durant a little curious as well.
I think Blake and Demar ended up getting the best coaches, but I think this whole 'coach' thing is a little lame and gimmicky.

[.40 Cal Flakes]

This will probably end up being one of the better dunk contests in recent years.

IDK but I believe DD can steal this competition...as long as he doesn't get robbed by the NBA again!

You guys remember last years fiasco!? Several Raptors fans (myself included) reported having trouble voting online more than once due to some glitch. DD ended up losing by something like 1% of the vote...can you say "RIGGED"!

[RaptorsFan4Life]

[GameBreaker]

Here is the Trio, working on ideas for WestJet at the ACC. I just hope DeMar stays within his capabilities and what he's good at, added with new flare. If he does not look confident in his dunks, it'll show, and he'll get judged accordingly. He needs to make the fans and the crowd that's building within the NBA players, KNOW that he should win this contest. That's my opinion, still. But here is the clip. Enjoy the teaser:

LINK:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fbLCN...mbedded#at=261

[hateslosing]

There has been some talk about DD playing at three spot for a while. On the surface it doesn't look like a bad idea since DD is big enough to play the three and it would let put another two on the floor (OJ Mayo comes up alot). When you really stop and think about it though, it would set this franchise back alot to move DD to the three. He is fast enough to guard twos and his size will give him a big advantage at that position in years to come, an advantage that he will lose against three's. At the same time he will be at a massive disadvantage defensively against big threes like Gerald Wallace. It's a matter of looking at the best return: we move Derozen to the three in order to put a good scorer at the two but by doing so we hurt Derozen's game. What we should be doing as a team is not looking at volume scoring two guards but at three point shooting three's. This will allow us to spread the floor without impeding Demar's development. It's a shame Peja wasn't a few years younger because he would ave fit what we need very well. I'm not sure who we could look at in this regard, but maybe someone like Dorell Wright would fit.

[Tim W.]

If the Raptors get a guy like Mayo, then moving DeRozan would make sense. But right now it makes most sense to play him as a SG. I'd rather the Raptors got a legit SF, so that DeRozan wouldn't have to play out of position. And while he has the height, he's simply not strong enough, at this point, to be able to defend most SFs. And defense is what the Raptors need to worry about most. Not getting another scorer at SG.

[webcrawler89]

Hear hear. I agree with both, but I still feel Mayo would be a bad fit for the team. We need to draft/trade for a bigger SF. Someone like Josh Smith would be fantastic.

[WJF]

I think Derozan would get abused by post up 3's. Guys like Melo, Pierce, LeBron, and even the Beasley's and Wallace's would do damage. Then you have the guys with extra length, Durant, Gay, Deng....

I think DeMar ahould be a lock at the 2 spot for now, sure he has lots to work on, but it is the spot that best suits him going forward.

[jlongs]

It would be the same situation we have with Sonny at the 3 right now. What we need are defensive 3's who can shoot the long ball, like Ron Artest or Trevor Ariza. Of course they don't grow on trees, but yeah...if only Juju had a J...

We do need to concentrate more on defense, and perhaps change this no-defense culture we currently have. I would gladly watch a couple seasons of below 90ppg if we could at least stop teams from doing what they want.

Win > free pizza.

[Apollo]

In a couple seasons I don't think it'll really matter whether or not DeRozan is playing the 2 or 3. He just needs more bulk, experience and polish. Time will take care of that.

[Arsenalist]

Even "legit" threes will have trouble against Gerald Wallace. I'm not hung up on a players position, usage is far more important than position. If he's using pin-downs to get open and hit jumpers, he can do that at the two or three. Because of threes being taller they might be able to contest his jumper a better, but if you're a good guard in this league you should be able to get your shot off against any wing player.

Non-issue.

[TheGloveinRapsUniform]

If the Raptors get a guy like Mayo, then moving DeRozan would make sense. But right now it makes most sense to play him as a SG. I'd rather the Raptors got a legit SF, so that DeRozan wouldn't have to play out of position. And while he has the height, he's simply not strong enough, at this point, to be able to defend most SFs. And defense is what the Raptors need to worry about most. Not getting another scorer at SG.

Agree. I cringe at the thought of DD guarding Lebron, Odom, Durant and Melo. Yikes.

[Apollo]

Agree. I cringe at the thought of DD guarding Lebron, Odom, Durant and Melo. Yikes.

Does anyone on the roster prevent you from cringing when you picture them guarding LeBron, Durant or Melo?

[Apollo]

DeRozan said he's got all of his dunk contest dunks. Said Dwight gave him some ideas, but he will not be putting on any superman outfit.

Source: Holly MacKenzie's Twitter Page

[Raptorsss]

It really depends on match-ups. For instance, it was a good decision to play Bayless and Barbosa together in the last 5 minutes of the 4th. The Clippers were consistently driving to the basket and getting fouls, so it was important to have your two quickest guards guarding the 1 and 2. Also, there was no danger of Aminu using a blow-by to get past Derozan, so it made since for him to play at the 3.

However, my dream off-season scenario is the Raptors overpay to get Afflalo (restricted free-agent) this offseason, to start at the 2 and move Derozan to the 3. He's young, athletic, consistent, and a proven 3-point threat on the top offensive team in the league. He's also a plus defender (would be the best defensive guard on the team). It would be tough to pry him from Denver, but I can wish.

[Matt52]

As long as Bargnani is here, DD will not be able to play the three unless he starts throwing down bowls of 'roids for breakfast and slurping bottles of HGH for lunch followed by a box of protein bars for supper and catching and skinning live baby deer before bed.

I really like DD's game as a 2 guard. The last 2 months - at 21 years of age - his averages have been right there with OJ's first 2 seasons - albeit when OJ was 21. OJ did his thing over 2 seasons and DD is just 2 months in. Consistency is important and only time will tell if DD can sustain this. His head appears to be on much straighter than OJ's.