You can read parts one and two of the training camp series.
When Jonas Valanciunas was selected by the Raptors with the 5th pick, in 2011, the reaction among Toronto fans, as well as many in the media, was mixed, to say the least. In fact, many were downright incensed, even going to far as to label Valanciunas Bargnani 2.0. Let me be clear, I was not one of them. Jonas has always been the player I felt was most important to the future of the franchise, not just because of his potential, but because of the position he plays.
While there has been a lot of discussion about how the game has changed and the big man era is over in the NBA, San Antonio doesn’t win their Championship last year without Tim Duncan anchoring the team. And Dallas went from a contender to a first round fodder when they lost Tyson Chandler. In fact, the only team to win a Championship without a dominant big man (at least dominant defensively) since Jordan’s Bulls did it are LeBron’s Miami Heat.
Notice a pattern there?
Yes, you can certainly win a Championship without a dominant big man, but you need the best player of his generation to do it.
Now, I’ve been criticized by suggesting that Valanciunas does not have superstar potential, but that doesn’t mean I don’t think he can’t become a great player. A player I’ve compared him to in the past has been Brad Daugherty, who in just eight seasoned (his career was cut short due to injury) he made the All Star team five times and helped lead the Cleveland Cavaliers to 57 wins twice and the Eastern Conference Finals once.
Valanciunas still has a ways to go to get to Daugherty’s level, but there’s no reason to believe he can’t.
The last couple of training camps, Valanciunas’ name has been one of the first mentioned. Obviously when he was a rookie, the spotlight was on him because he was new and the next great hope for the Raptors. Last year, with the team still a lottery team, but without a draft pick, Valanciunas was still a source of discussion, wondering how much improvement he’d make in his second season.
This year is different. With the success of the team last year, there is more of a focus on how much overall improvement there will be, how DeMar DeRozan will perform after his success with Team USA and how the team will react to the higher expectations people now have of them. Basically, the kind of questions winning teams get.
For once, Valanciunas is, at least slightly, out of the limelight. But that doesn’t mean he’s taking a break.
As you will hear, Valanciunas has had a busy summer getting stronger and doing a lot of work to improve his game, including going down to Houston and working out with Hakeem Olajuwon. Terrence Ross claimed that Valanciunas had gained more muscle than any other Raptor, over the summer, and the eye test would certainly back that up. Valanciunas looks strong. Very strong, and nothing like the skinny 19 year old the Raptors drafted just three years ago.
In this short segment I had a conversation with Valanciunas that covered a variety of topics, the highlights I’ve included in this video.
Tomorrow, I will wrap up my training camp series.
