Raptors dominate Pistons down the stretch posted by Raptors Fan

It really was a nothing contretemps, a cheap elbow on James Johnson by frustrated Pistons centre Andre Drummond, but it precipitated a little shoving and pushing and jawing that was entirely a show of force by the supremely confident Raptors.

“Our team, we’re built for that,” Johnson said of the mild incident in the fourth quarter of yet another Toronto win, this one 110-100 over the Pistons here on Friday. “We’ve been brothers since the first day of pre-season. We go hard for each other. I do that for anyone of them, just like you seen Chuck (Hayes), Pat (Patterson) and GV (Greivis Vasquez) do that for me. We’re all a group, we’re all brothers, we all love each other and that’s the big reason for our success.”

Minutes earlier, Johnson had thrown down a wicked dunk over Drummond — “that was nasty, right? I cocked that joint back and banged on him,” Johnson said — that was as vicious as it was emphatic.

It had to gall Drummond no end, and when Johnson was going by him a couple of possessions later, the Pistons’ big man floored the Raptor with an elbow.

“On a play like that it could go either way, it was a hard foul,” Drummond said. “He got a dunk the play before and he was feeling good so I was just trying to protect the paint. That’s really it and it turned out to be a hard foul. Emotions were high during the game. It happens, it’s basketball. There were no hard feelings. I have nothing against him.

It immediately started a surge of Raptors towards the Pistons, who basically took a step back as the scrum developed.

2014 Toronto Raptors Preseason Report posted by Raptors Fan

Toronto Raptors missed the second round of the 2013-14 season playoffs by one possession. With 6.2 seconds remaining in Game 7, the ball was in the hands of their best player, Kyle Lowry, who made the shot, but Paul Pierce of Brooklyn Nets rejected it. Even though this was quite disappointing, the Raptors had a lot to cheer about in the season. In December, it almost ended for the team, but the Rudy Gay trade for four good players, saved the day. Demar DeRozan was awarded the all-star berth, and Lowry was clearly considered to be number one. The Raptors ended the season with a record of 48-34, which showed the franchise was progressing.

For 2014-15 season, things look promising for the Raptors. Even though DeRozan is the best player of the team, Lowry is still the force that drives the Raptors. Lowry has good decision-making skills, apart from being aggressive and a good shooter. However, any struggles or prolonged injury to Lowry would not be good for the team.

The backcourt of Toronto Raptors has been doing the major work in offense. On the other hand, the frontcourt has provided excellent protection, which ranked the team amongst the top ten in defense. Jonas Valanciunas was the main defense contributor, and his performance this season will play a major role in the success of the team. The only drawback could be his inexperience, as he sometimes was not sure about how to manage near the post.

Toronto Raptors will most probably start with Valanciunas, Amir Johnson, Terrance Ross, DeRozan, and Lowry, which is a great combination, as it features very strong backcourt and ideal overall defense. The trade of Rudy Gay during the mid-season, has brought about ideal pairing of DeRozan and Lowry, and bettered the depth of the team. All this puts the Toronto Raptors in a better position than what they were in the last season.

Slam Funk Scratch Card posted by Raptors Fan

Lovers of the NBA will be spending their Christmas holidays enthralled by the games being played over the festive season, given that less than 30 games have been played so far.  If you’re following the Eastern Conference your money will be on the Knicks or Miami Heat, although if you’re following the western conference you’ll be backing the Clippers or Oklahoma City Thunder.
But there is now more than one way to make a few bucks from basketball. The Slam Funk scratch card is an electronic version of many people’s weekly gamble. Combining disco and basketball in one smooth move, this instant win scratch card will be a hit with basketball-lovers and gamblers alike.  Click here to give some slots a try first, just to warm up, and then continue to the basketball goodness.
The 9 panels of the card hide groovy characters – 5 players and 1 cheerleader, and like any other scratch card three in a row means you’ve won a prize. The rainbow colour scheme matches their logo with a different colour background for every character. One groovy player is even spinning a disco ball!
Stakes on the card can range from $0.01 to $10 depending on how lucky you’re feeling. The payouts can range from 1x to 250x your wager meaning you can win up to $2500! To start the game just click ‘new card’, after which you can scratch each panel individually by clicking on each one, or by selecting ‘reveal all’ to show the characters automatically.
Given the disco and basketball mix when playing this game, you&rsContinue reading "Slam Funk Scratch Card"

Bulls looking Bullish over Toronto posted by Richard Kagan

The Chicago Bulls went to 16-8 with a win over the Toronto Raptors tonight.  Carlos Boozer scored a season high 34 points as the Bulls won 110-93.  Every starter contributed With Luol Deng and Derrick Rose playing strong games.  Joakim Noah had another double-double. 

Kyle Korver scored in double figures once again.  Chicago has a solid starting five and 2 or 3 solid guys coming off the bench.  Boozer gives the Bulls a low post presence and an active rebounder and takes some pressure off Noah grabbing every loose ball.  This team has some flexibililty and versatility and will win some games.  It is starting to look like not if the Bulls will make the playoffs which was a question the past few years, but how high a seed they will receive.

This teams looks like the most complete team since the hey-dey years of Jordan and Pippen.   There are other great teams in the East, The Celtics, the Magic, and the Heat.  They are loaded with great players.  The Bulls are a tough team and will give any team a good showing.  Considering how bad the Bulls were after the zenith of Michael, that is saying something.  Derrick Rose is a budding superstar.  He is fearless, commands the ball, is dangerous with it, and can score.

Rose is very quick and has great court sense.  He creates off the dribble.  One of the best players at doing that since Michael or Scottie.  He is a driver, a slasher and can shoot from 18 feet out.  Heck, he can shoot from 22 feet out. 

This is Boozer's 7th or 8th game since returning to the lineup.  He is is game shape and now we are seeing how talented he is.  A great addition to the team.

NBA Playoffs Eastern conference posted by john howard

It's the All-Star break and time to asses where the season is at.  There are roughly 30 games left and the trading deadline is looming.  Here is a look at the playoffs if they were today.

1 Cleveland vs.  8 Chicago

2 Orlando vs   7 Miami

3 Atlanta vs 6 Charlotte

4 Boston vs 5 Toronto

Chicago looks like they have regressed overall from last year. But lately, they have started getting into the groove. Derrick Rose is unreal and they might win a game but they won't beat Cleveland.

Miami has one of the top 3 players in the game in Dwayne Wade.  This team could look different by playoff time. No matter how the team looks, it would take an incredible performance for even Wade to beat out Orlando.

Charlotte is a great story of over achieving.  They might be able to push Atlanta to a game 6, but that would be the best they could do.

The quietest success has been Toronto.  They are the 5th seed and no one is talking about them.  They have a shot to beat the Celtics if Boston is plagued with injuries.  But this has been a good year so far for the Raptors.

Boston has fallen from favorite to the 4th seed.  They still have the experience and firepower to go all the way. But, to do that everyone is going to have to get healthy and be at peak level which hasn't happened this year. Time is running out on the Celtics.

3 Atlanta has the best team in years.  They could be the underdog favorite after the first round.  A matchup with Orlando in round 2 is going to be fun.  Should they get past the Magic, they will be convinced they can beat anybody. 

Grizzlies 115, Raptors 107 posted by Brad Hurt

This just in : Zach Randolph is a beast.  Everyone who has said he would be a cancer and wouldn't play hard and is the same thug he was in Portland isn't looking very smart right now.  Randolph can single-handedly dominate the post for the Grizzlies this season.  He proved as much last night against the Toronto Raptors as the Grizz earned their first win of the season 115-107 on Friday.  Randolph led the Grizzlies with 30 points and seven rebounds.

Chris Bosh led all scorers with 37 points.  Sure, that is a high number, but the Grizzlies forced him to try to beat them single-handedly, focusing their defense on Hedo Turkoglu, who burned them in the past as a member of the Sacramento Kings.  Turkoglu managed only 14 points on 4-of-10 shooting.

The Grizzlies showed some of their youth with an inability to close the Raptors out when they built a double-digit lead in the first half, and lost the third quarter scoring battle as usual, but they outscored the visitors 39-28 in the fourth quarter to snuff out any hope of a comeback.

Along with Randolph, the Grizzlies got double figures from the other four starters, as well as 12 points and seven rebounds off the bench from rookie Demarre Carroll, who looks like he could be a stud.  Who needs DeJuan Blair when you can get a guy who will sacrifice his body for a loose ball, snatch rebounds out of nowhere and knock down a shot in the clutch?  Carroll earned a reputation as a scorer at Missouri, but he has shown there is little he can't do on the professional level, and he doesn't appear rattled yet in his first two appearances.  I'm sure his day will come, though.  It's a long season, and it drags down every rookie sooner or later.

Toronto Raptors preseason posted by john howard

I have always enjoyed the Toronto Raptors. There is something about them that catches my eye.  They always have a knack for finding talent.  They just have a hard time keeping it.  This year they managed to bring one in: Hedo Turkoglu.

This year will be a year of gelling and growing.  How long will it take for Turkoglu, Chris Bosh, Andrea Bargnani, Jose Calderon, and Jarrett Jack to gel?  The sooner the better.  This team should be one that improves throughout the year.

A lot of how much they improves relies on the progress of youngsters, DeMar DeRozan, Sonny Weems, and Marco Belinelli.   Toronto has a thin bench and one of these guys will start.  But, the other 2 will see plenty of time.  They are a shooting guard away from making the play offs and a year away from acquiring more bench help or having it develop.

This team is doing a nice job.

The NBA Draft's Five Best Second Overall Picks Since 1984 & Sammy Sosa Is a Joke and He Does Not Deserve Induction into the HOF posted by Colin Linneweber

The NBA Draft's Five Best Second Overall Picks Since 1984

The Los Angeles Clippers are expected to pick former Oklahoma Sooners star Blake Griffin Thursday with the first overall selection in the 2009 NBA Draft at the WaMu Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

However, there is not a consensus projection for the No. 2 pick and basketball analysts remain largely uncertain who the Memphis Grizzlies will choose tomorrow in Gotham.

In recognition of the NBA Draft, I have decided to rank the five most accomplished players selected second overall in the past quarter century.

1) Jason Kidd

Kidd, 36, attended the University of California and helped resurrect the Golden Bears dormant basketball program with his stellar play at the point guard position.

After being honored as a First Team All-American as a sophomore, Kidd declared for the NBA Draft and was selected 2nd overall by the Dallas Mavericks in 1994.

Unfortunately, the Bay Area native’s initial stint with the Mavericks didn’t materialize as most anticipated it would.

According to legend, singer Toni Braxton went to the Mavs team hotel to meet Kidd after a game.

However, instead of rendezvousing with Kidd, Braxton instead left with his Dallas teammate Jimmy Jackson and the two purportedly fornicated until the wee hours.

Subsequently, Kidd loathed Jackson and he demanded an escape from “Big D.”

Kidd, a 9-time All-Star and 6-time All-NBA nomination, was traded to the Phoenix Suns at the conclusion of the 1996 season and his career began to truly ascend in the desert.

The 5 Best Second Overall Selections in the NBA Draft Since 1984 posted by Colin Linneweber

The Los Angeles Clippers are expected to pick former Oklahoma Sooners star Blake Griffin Thursday with the first overall selection in the 2009 NBA Draft at the WaMu Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City. 

However, there is not a consensus projection for the No. 2 pick and basketball analysts remain largely uncertain who the Memphis Grizzlies will choose tomorrow in Gotham.

In recognition of the NBA Draft, I have decided to rank the five most accomplished players selected second overall in the past quarter century.


1)  Jason Kidd 

Kidd, 36, attended the University of California and helped resurrect the Golden Bears dormant basketball program with his stellar play at the point guard position. 

After being honored as a First Team All-American as a sophomore, Kidd declared for the NBA Draft and was selected second overall by the Dallas Mavericks in 1994. 

Unfortunately, the Bay Area native’s initial stint with the Mavericks didn’t materialize as most anticipated it would. 

According to legend, singer Toni Braxton went to the Mavs team hotel to meet Kidd for a date after a game. 

 However, instead of rendezvousing with Kidd, Braxton instead left with his Dallas teammate Jimmy Jackson and the two purportedly fornicated until the wee hours. 

Subsequently, Kidd loathed Jackson and he demanded an escape from “Big D.” 

Kidd, a 9-time All-Star and 6-time All-NBA nomination, was traded to the Phoenix Suns at the conclusion of the 1996 season and his career began to truly ascend in the desert. 

Toronto Raptors and the draft. posted by john howard

The Raptors had a horrible season finishing third from the bottom in the East.  Anthony Parker, Shawn Marion, and Jake Voskhul are all free agents.  That is 2 starters and a top bench player.  That leaves a shaky starting lineup:

PG--JOSE CALERSON  SG--JASON KOPONO  SF--JEOY GRAHAM  PF---CHRIS BOSH  C--ANDREA BARNANI

And a very weak bench.  Things may get worse before they get better.  I don't know of any trades, but perhaps a splash in free agency. It's not a big market this year.  And next year, Bosh is a free agent.  So the draft is the best bet for now.  The Raptors have the 9th pick in the draft.  There is bad news and great news with the 9th pick.  Of the past 14 drafts 7 have produced startes, 5 bench players and 3 flops.  The bad news is out of the top 10 picks, the 9 spot produces the least amount of startes and the most number of busts.  The great news is that the 7 starters are all-starts.  Picking first or third also produced 7 all-starts in that same span.  The 9th pick has yielded just as many all-starts as the 2nd, 6th, 7th, and 8th combined! So, the 9th spot is truly a hit or miss.  There isn't much in between.

The top 2 choices on mock boards appear to be either Gerald Henderson from Duke or Tyreke Evans from Memphis.  Both are sf/sg type guys who are athletic.  An all-star to go along side Bosh would be great.  This team is definately retooling.

NBA Summer League recap: Timberwolves 81, Raptors 79

Minnesota Timberwolves upset top-seeded and previously unbeaten Toronto Raptors to advance to semifinals of NBA Summer League tournament [read full article]

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AP source: Magic get Bismack Biyombo for 4 years, $72million (Yahoo Sports)

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AP Source: DeMar DeRozan staying with Raptors (The Associated Press)

DeMar DeRozan turned the biggest year of his career into a very big contract. The All-Star shooting guard is staying with the Toronto Raptors and agreed early Friday on the basic framework of a five-year deal, a person with knowledge of the negotiations told The Associated Press. DeRozan and the Raptors still had some financial terms to complete but the sides agreed that he would be staying put, according to the person who spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the talks were ongoing. [read full article]

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