Everybody either hates this guy or really likes him, I used to really like him but over time his homerisms got to me and he started to get a little annoying. I emailed him a couple times and asked him to give me five minutes of his time to chat hoops and nothing more. He hesitated a little at first but finally agreed to give me five minutes. I requested to meet at a Tim Hortons; he said he would’ve liked to but he has two full-time jobs and time was of the essence. Finally he suggested the phone would be the best way to go. After a few email exchanges, he finally called my house by using *67. Smart guy. No recording allowed and I was too slow to jot down everything he was saying so I’m paraphrasing as accurately as I can.
In my very limited time, I asked him why he didn’t criticize Vince Carter when he was with the Raptors and waited until he was with the Nets to do so. He denied this claim and said that when Vince was a detriment to the team in Toronto he did point it out, but once he was with the Nets his play deteriorated to the degree where it “became much easier to criticize him”. He pointed out that just like the fans that cheered for him when he was here are booing him now, he is no different. I asked him flat out, did Vince Carter put this franchise on the map? He said, “yes, absolutely”.
I asked him what the Raptors will do in the playoffs, Chuck said he expects the Raptors to win their first round series. I asked him to pick a winner between the Raptors and Bulls if they were to meet. He said he’d “go with the Raptors even if they didn’t have home court advantage” and that the Raptors matchup extremely well with the Bulls. I disagreed but we didn’t have time to argue.
Then I wanted him to pick the franchise player for the Raptors in five years, would it be Bargnani or Bosh. He wouldn’t pick one even after I prodded him for a little while. He kept saying “Bargnani, Bosh and TJ Ford are the core of this team” and they must stick together for future success. I asked him to pick only one player who he would label as untradeable. He wouldn’t bite. He said when we talk about Bosh or Bargnani, “they’re not at the level of someone like Jabbar or Jordan that you can label as untradeable”. He likes to think of the Raptors as “building around a core rather than a player”, which is a mistake we might have made with Vince Carter.
I asked him Bruce Bowen was a dirty player. He said “no, definitely not” and I responded that I had a few YouTube clips that strongly prove otherwise. He said Bruce Bowen is a tough defender that “knows how to play his position” and that the injuries that happen because of him are “bang-bang plays” where he doesn’t really have an option. He disagreed that the Anthony Parker injury was a malicious play at all .
I asked him whether the success the Raptors and Sam Mitchell are having this year had more to do with Sam Mitchell or the plain fact that we have better players than last year. He said we have “different personnel and that has been the primary difference” and Sam Mitchell’s philosophy is in line with the players on the team. Finally I asked him what the differences between Lenny Wilkens’ and Sam Mitchell’s offense is, if any. He chuckled and said they’re “two very different philosophies and than when Lenny Wilkens’ was here, we worked more post-up”. I wanted to disagree but we ran out of time.
I asked him what the worst arena in the league to watch a game was and he said that “they all seem good to him because he sits courtside” and couldn’t pick one.
Granted, nothing enlightening, but the fact that the guy took time out to talk to a nobody fan for five minutes says a lot about him. I’ve criticized the guy for being a homer in the past and maybe he is, but when you talk to him, you realize that he firmly believes in his assessments and really won’t budge.
I wanted to ask him about the Toronto media, All-Star game and more but there wasn’t much time so I asked him to give me another “interview” before the playoffs and he agreed.
