I caught sight of this article a day late, that’s because I can’t even be bothered to check ESPN anymore. Usually you have a quick glance on the site to catch any big headlines, but all that’s there is negative labor talk. This lockout is becoming toxic. EuroBasket being the only thing going on has worked out nicely for Valanciunas, who is getting some good press in the American media, and has probably surpassed any US-coverage the Raptors got all of last year. In fact, after Chris Bosh’s exit, I can’t remember too many times the Raptors were mentioned anywhere significant.
The quote in the title speaks to the humble nature of the big man, and if you read the article, you’ll understand that Valanciunas knows exactly where he is in the large scheme of things: at the bottom of the barrel. Despite the hype, despite the big games, he realizes that he hasn’t accomplished anything yet. The amount of work he has to put in to achieve even half of what many Raptors fans are expecting of him is staggering, but as I’ve stated right from the get-go, he’s got it all right between the ears.
The most interesting part of the article was the comparison made by his coach to Arvydas Sabonis:
“It’s not a surprise for me that he’s performing here for us because I played with Sabonis when he was the same age and we were world champions,” Chomicius said. “He was at a similar place in his development. You have to come in and bring energy and do what you know. We’ve seen that with Jonas.”
I can’t recall what Sabonis was at the age of 19, but at 22 he was coming into his own and well on his way to being one of the most skilled big men in the league. The combination of size and skill was something unique, and he was selected 24th in the 1986 draft. Jonas was selected 5th, and has a far less polished game than Sabonis had (based on video evidence, obviously didn’t see him play in 1986). What Jonas does have working for him is that he’s coming into a league where defensive big men are at a premium. The value of players like Tyson Chandler and Andrew Bynum is intriguing, and they’re seen as a key piece to a contender rather than an afterthought.
If Jonas had come into the league in 1986 with his current skill-set, the hype perhaps wouldn’t have been as high. As it stands, his defensive skill, agility, and enthusiasm for rebounding are viewed as a dynamic attributes. In short, the value of defense is rising. For the Raptors, little can serve as motivation to improve than two successive league-worst defensive records. It’s like the stars were perfectly aligned. The Raptors, who suck at defense. And the Jonas, who loves defense.
I’m interested to see how far Casey will go in repairing the defense he’s inherited. There are two approaches he can adapt, the first is predicated on the belief that the players are good enough and the system is wrong. Or he could see the personnel as the root cause of the problem. As far as I can tell, he hasn’t indicated directly or indirectly that he believes the players to be a major problem. Other than saying that he’s looking for a defensive big man, he’s been fairly mute on the possible playing time and future of players who are, rightly or wrongly, considered notoriously bad defenders. The last big interview he gave, he had one interesting quote when talking about his defense:
SI.com: Do you have the right personnel?
Casey: It’s too early now. I’ve got to have a training camp before we make that kind of decision.
I like that quote for two reasons. First, unlike Triano who went through the motions of training camp with no key decisions to make, Casey looks to use it as a test of whether a player is good enough to fit into his system. Second, there’s a hint that there are no guarantees for anyone. Which I love. And this really is the most exciting thing to look forward to next year: the uncertainty. Mostly because it breeds unpredictability, which in turn results in excitement. If you take the pulse of Raptors fans right now, there’s a general consensus that the team can’t get much worse, and that the only way to go is up. I can buy that, you can talk about all the youth and the YGZ® or whatever, however at the end of the day no matter how you slice and dice it, this is the third-worst team in the league.
Literally, anything is better than where we are right now, and in a weird twisted way, that’s got me a little excited.
