If that’s a typical Charlotte game, then the Bobcat Bet is doomed.
33% from the field? Felton, Richardson, and Wallace going 7-38 (including Felton’s puketastic 0-8)? Those names might as well be Robinson, Marbury, and Crawford, ’cause that’s Knicks-level futility. Sam Vincent’s go-to play is even more pathetic than Sam Mitchell’s: The isolation jumpshot led to many, many one-and-done’s.
Nothing really good to say about this Charlotte performance. Okafor got into foul trouble as expected, Jeff McInnis played 31 painful minutes, and Jared Dudley (who?) shined alone with three steals to go along with over 50% shooting and a double-double.
Our boys whupped those Pussies™ good (those Googling ”Kris Humphries whips pussy” are in for a surprise). The lead began at 12-2 and was never threatened. Even with the Raptor’s supernatural ability to erase large leads in the blink of an eye, something signalled to the ACC faithful that the Big Orange Machine (under repair) just wasn’t up to play spoiler tonight.
Notes from the game:
– Joey’s starting!! Apparently every other power forward on the Raptors had their limbs severed overnight. Sure, I understand playing small-ball, but you gotta start Humph in that spot, Sammy! Consider the options: Reward the Big Sexy for his contributions, or drop a little-used (for good reason) player out of the current rotation into a starting role and cross your fingers. Joey had an okay game considering, but I agree (to a point) with Doug Smith’s blog post today, an excerpt from which is below:
He [Joey] sort of walks out of bounds to catch a ball that’s going out anyway and the move gives it back to Charlotte and Sam’s angst was incredible. I thought his head might explode. But the next time down the court, Joey takes a pass from Parker, I believe it was, spins and dunks in maybe the nicest play of the game. Good Joey-Bad Joey. You gotta love him. Or hate him.
This sequence drove me to double up on $10 beers. I share Doug’s frustration, but disagree about having emotional options. For me, it all boils down to these three questions:
- How can you love a guy that can’t be trusted with the ball?
- How can you love a guy that can’t keep his head in the game for 2 possessions in a row?
- How can you love a guy that looks totally lost on the court more than 75% of the time?
Everyone talks about Joey’s upside, but I hate to break it to you folks, this is it. As good as it gets. Why do I say that? If it were going to get better a)it would have already or b) he would have shown some improvement.
Even the most beautiful girl can be totally insane. That’s Joey Graham: Crazy/Beautiful.
– Where’s Juan? Again, no Dixon, which confuses the hell out of me, especially becuase he was the only Raptor out there 45 minutes before tipoff, (didn’t want to fight for a TJ bobblehead) working with one of the assistants on his 3-pt shot and his one dribble pull-up jumper. I wonder if that was a coach-prompted shootaround or if it was Juan trying to impress Sam and co. by willing to put in the extra work?
– Jockey on the court! Anyone else notice Tommy Nunez Jr. is really, really tiny? Like ‘too short to ride the ferris wheel’ tiny.
It’s hilarious that he was involved in breaking up the Malice at the Palace. It’s like one of the parents from ‘Little People Big World’ intervening in a fight with his kids.
– Showoff, Shut Down. The seats behind mine are usually given to friends/family of the visiting team, so it always makes for an interesting dynamic to have someone rooting for the opposition kicking the back of my chair. Last night I was chatting up the woman behind me, who turns out is the sister of Ime Udoka of the Spurs. Of course, I tried to impress her with my NBA knowledge: “Udoka…wasn’t he with Golden State last year?” Of course, he was not. He was in Portland. My fault; I didn’t tell her that I get her brother and Ike Diogu mixed up (not because they’re similar players, but because I can’t pronounce either of their names). Anyway, she knows Sam Vincent from his Portland days, who gave her the tickets. She had two Raptor-related things to say:
1. As Humph stepped on the court: “Who’s that? What college did he go to?”
2. After Calderon sliced in for a layup: “Is that the Argentinian guy you have?”
Ignorance is indeed adorable. I filled her in on Raptors lore wherever I could, and told her where to get her free pizza*.
* Turns out I wasted ten minutes of the game determining the Pizza Pizza closest to her hotel.
– Jeff McInnis is an awful point guard. Not just becuase it looks like he’s got one of these hanging off his head, not because he’s slow, has no court vision, but because the dude can’t even dribble with his left hand! How does a non-ambidextrous PG make the NBA?
On one possession he got in for the open lay-in on the left side, yet threw it up with his right! Come on, that’s more embarrassing than anything I coul
d find on his Girlfriend Blog. And man, watching McInnis battling it out against Derrick Martin was even more hilarious than when DMart faced off against Eric Snow. It’s like watching the ballboys play ones during a lull in varsity practice.
Those are three shitty, shitty basketball players.
– The stats might not reflect it, but Jamario was the clear winner of the Alabamarama Rim Rockin’ Showdown™. Both blocks were on Gerald, but even more noteworthy were the half-dozen altered/contested shots Jamario had. Wallace ended up 4-13. Super Jamario is a game-changer on the defensive end – this is indisputable. (and no, I don’t dig this attempt to make ‘Apollo 33’ his nickname. It’s a stretch, and then some.)
SWAT!
– I miss the Axe Raptors Dance Pak. The Irish Springs Dance Pak just doesn’t roll off the tongue. What, did Oil of Olay say no?
– The Spanish Fly is flying. There’s not one player on the Bobcats roster than can cover Jose Calderon. He could have had 30 if he wasn’t so darned disciplined. One assist away from another double-double. 12 and 9, to go along with 7 rebounds and 3 steals.
– Derrick Martin played almost 14 minutes of basketball without a respirator. He’s going to sleep like a baby tonight.
*************
The road ahead gets bumpy. Phx, Boston, Houston, and Dallas in the next four. Going 2-2 is a best case scenario, and we’ll need Bosh, Bargnani, and TJ to stay competitive. Stay tuned for Super Suns Fun Time Game Day Post tomorrow!
P.S. Oh, and Charlotte’s now 6-10. Felt obliged to post this.