Part two of our roundtable, where Blake, Zarar and Will get together to create that honest-to-goodness content.
All the memes are true. The struggle is real for these here Raptors bloggers. We turned to the roundtable format on Friday in part one, where we discussed Amir vs. Patterson, most impactful offseason transaction and the battle at eighth-man. I guess this is part two (of my confessions, just when I thought I said…)
1. Biggest weakness?
Zarar: There’s not much over at center after Valanciunas. Bebe is too raw, very unproven, and has not been well-reviewed. It’s difficult to see him being a defensive anchor for the second-unit, and he has no discernible offensive talent beyond 1-foot. On the positive side, we haven’t gotten any worse, it just feels like a missed opportunity.
Blake: I don’t think the team has a roster hole so much as a tactical weakness at certain times. While the offense was effective overall last year , the team’s most heavily used fivesome has a bit of a floor spacing issue (see question two). With DeRozan, Amir Johnson and Valanciunas all on the floor together, Lowry and Ross are the only 3-point threats. That lineup managed an O-Rating of 106.7 and shot an unlikely 40 percent from long range last season, but from an Xs and Os standpoint, it’s a tough group to scheme for.
Said differently, “NO WEAKNESS SUCKA.”
Will: The biggest weakness on the Raptors is that they don’t necessarily excel on either end of the floor. The Raptors are a fringe top-10 team on both offense and defense, but are prone to bouts of ineffectiveness. That owes in part to their relatively blasse talent level. Not to spark the “transcendental talent” debate (no, really, don’t start that again), but the Raptors are a well-balanced team with many good talents, though none great. Put it another way, I’m nit-picking, and the team is fine.
2. Most likely to breakout — Jonas Valanciunas or Terrence Ross?
Zarar: Jonas Valanciunas, because he doesn’t let one bad game affect a stretch of games. Ross’s bounce-back time from having poor games seems much higher, and since shooting is all about confidence, Ross is more likely to stammer his way through the season than Valanciunas, who is also buoyed by his showing at FIBA.6. How many games won? How many playoff series won?
Blake: Do we want to play linguistic gymnastics? Valanciunas is now a known commodity and Ross is perhaps further from his ultimate ceiling, so Ross has the largest capacity to grow and “breakout.” He’s also probably a more important piece, given the team’s general strength at other positions and need for Ross to develop into, at worst, a more reliable 3-and-D guy. That said, Valanciunas has a higher overall ceiling and has a clear path to improvement with more touches and defensive experience. I’d say Valanciunas’ numbers take a bigger jump, but Ross’ development is more appreciable.
Will: The biggest jump for Valanciunas to make is on the defensive end, and that is a steady process that comes with age, so I’ll go with Terrence Ross. Small forward was a position of weakness for the Raptors last season, owing in-part to Ross’ inconsistency and inflexibility. Ross made good on his promise as a three-point shooter last season, so the next step is for him to start driving. Here’s a fun fact: Andrea Bargnani averaged more drives per game than Ross did last season. Bargs, with his stupid pump fake + drive + travel/death/missed layups drove more often than Ross. If Ross can actually start attacking the basket, he’ll become much more dangerous on offense.
3. How many games won? How many playoff series won?
Zarar: 46 wins – Some of the extremely shitty teams in the East mask the overall competitiveness of the conference, and I’m thinking the chemistry the Raptors have offsets some of that, so I’m going to pick a win total shade under last season. They win a round – I’m calling a defeat of the Heat in five games.
Blake: Let’s keep last season’s optimism rolling: while the Bulls and Cavaliers are a step above the Raptors, they manage to take care of the dregs of the conference and maintain their 2013-14 chemistry. They take a minor step back with a 47-35 record but still win the Atlantic and, most importantly for the franchise, they win their second playoff series ever before bowing out to the Bulls in round two.
Will: Let’s go with 50 wins. Excitement is high in Raptorsland, and there’s good reason for that. But it’s also important to not lose perspective. Yes, the team did go 42-22 after the Rudy Gay trade, but they were also the league’s best fourth quarter team, which was likely due in large part to luck. Last year’s squad also dodged major injuries to their starting staff, and I have my concerns about Patrick Patterson, Kyle Lowry and Amir Johnson’s health. Having said all that, I still think they snag the third seed and beat the Hornets in a hard-fought first-round playoff series. Then, they push the Bulls to six games before bowing out.
