A broken cadre of former Raptors return to Canada clad in blue and orange.
Let’s hop into the time machine real quick. Set the dial for December 2012.
Optimism in Raptorsland was at an all-time low. A 4-13 start to the season will do that. Being the glass-half full person that I am, I chalked the team’s misfortunes to Murphy’s Law. Everything that could have possibly gone wrong for the Raptors, did go wrong. Newly acquired point guard Kyle Lowry lost his job in the starting lineup after going down with injury. DeMar DeRozan struggled in his role as leading man. Linas Kleiza couldn’t hit a three to save his life. The Raptors weren’t necessarily good, but they had more talent than their miserable record suggested. Things had to get better.
Except they didn’t. The Raptors opened the month of December with six straight losses, highlighted by an embarrassing 32-point loss to the Utah Jazz. It was miserable. The trio Linas Kleiza, Dominic McGuire and Mikael Pietrus shared duties at small forward spot. Read that sentence again.
At the center of the maelstrom were three current Knicks: Andrea Bargnani, Jose Calderon and Quincy Acy. By no means were they the sole culprits to the Raptors’ struggles, they certainly didn’t make enough of an appreciable difference to stop the slide. I’ll never have anything but love for one of the greatest Raptors of all time in Calderon and I #fearthebeard, but if your season rides on those three, your team probably isn’t very good.
That’s where the Knicks find themselves, relying on significant contributions from complementary players in hopes of a rebound from last year’s abysmal season. Calderon could be a good fit, especially in the Triangle offense (pictured below) with his passing and spot-up abilities, but Acy is still an undersized energy big, and Bargnani is still one of the most destructive NBA players I’ve ever watched in my lifetime. That’s to say nothing of their respective defensive deficiencies, of which Raptors fans here need no reintroduction.
Again, I don’t enjoy rooting for former fan favourites like Calderon and Acy. But I can’t say that I’m optimistic about the Knicks’ chances to succeed this season, either. Who knows? Maybe the Triangle offense and Phil Jackson’s magical presence solves all their problems. I have my doubts, especially when they’re counting on the Raptors’ castoffs.
Point guard – Raptors
Matchup: Jose Calderon, Shane Larkin, Petey Pablo Prigioni vs. Kyle Lowry, Greivis Vasquez, Will Cherry (pls, no)
Unlike the start of 2012, Kyle Lowry has firmly established himself as superior to his former counterpart in Calderon. Lowry might not be as adept at creating looks for others in the pick-and-roll, but he’s literally better or just as effective at everything else.
As backup, the Knicks are sporting an odd couple with Larkin and Prigioni. Larkin is a quick speed demon who found himself trapped behind entrenched veterans in Dallas, but his stock is high in New York. He’s not particularly good at much else aside from his speed, but he’s good for a change of pace. Prigioni, on the other hand, is a 38-year-old, Argentinian clone of Calderon. He facilitates the offense and he nails his spot-ups. Prigioni’s favorite food is meat.
Shooting guard – Raptors
Matchup: J.R. Smith, Iman Shumpert, Tim Hardaway Jr. vs. DeMar DeRozan, Lou Williams, Jordan Hamilton
Always be wary of players like Smith and Hardaway Jr. They’re high variance players. On the average, their numbers won’t look great, but they can get hot at a moment’s notice. Treat them like Jay-Z and Kanye. Don’t let them get in their zones.
Conversely, Shumpert is a strong wing defender with decent ball-handling skills, but he isn’t a big threat to score. If he could ever develop a three point shot, he’ll be the heir apparent to Landry Fields that New York deserves.
Shumpert will likely play the bulk of minutes to check DeRozan. Hopefully, given that this is the final game of preseason, DeRozan can cut out the extraneous tinkering of his expanded offensive arsenal, and stick to what he does best. That means less ill-advised post-ups, and more slashing to the basket.
This is also a good game for Williams to strut his stuff against a weak defense. Presumably, Casey will treat the game like a regular season matchup, so it will be interesting to watch for Williams’ minute distribution. His quickness could also come into play to check a player like Larkin.
Small Forward – Knicks
Matchup: Carmelo Anthony, Travis Outlaw (like, for real) vs. Terrence Ross, James Johnson, BRUNOOOOO!!!!!
This is the first of many tests for James Johnson. He is one of the very few players in this league who has the size to match ‘Melo’s physicality on the wing. Johnson was brought in specifically to face matchups like this. Can he do it effectively? Keeping ‘Melo under 25 points would be a win.
For Ross, my hope is that he can stop launching terrible shots. His play creation game is clearly not yet ready. No more 1-for-6 shooting in first quarters.
Also, BRUNNOOOOOOOOO!!!
Power forward – Raptors
Matchup: Amar’e Stoudemire, Quincy Acy, Stoudemire’s wine bathtub vs. Amir Johnson, Patrick Patterson, Tyler Hansbrough
Despite his body degenerating right before our eyes, Stoudemire still has a semblance of effectiveness on offense. His touch around the basket is solid and he can stroke the midrange jumper. That shouldn’t be a big problem for Amir to handle, but Johnson has mostly sleepwalked through preseason. Hopefully, he gets it into gear on the eve of the regular season.
Acy remains a pest with his boundless energy, but although his effort is commendable, his play is weak as compared to Patterson and Hansbrough’s. Sorry, Fresh Quince.
Center – Raptors
Matchup: Samuel Dalembert, Jason Smith vs. Jonas Valanciunas, Ayy Bebe, Greg Stiemsma
Oof. Not exactly the best group of pivots. Valanciunas is the only starting calibre player, which earns the Raptors a win here. I’m looking forward to seeing more of Bebe.
Prediction: Raptors 94, Knicks 82
I want to elaborate on my prediction, but it basically boils down to the Knicks having no defense, and that they’re still grappling with the intricacies of the Triangle. There’s so many kinds. Right-angle, scalene, isosceles, equilateral. Let’s check in on their progress:
