Raps Have A Lot To Play For In Game 3
The reasons the Raptors need to win Game 3 as far as this series go is obvious. But there are a lot more reasons beyond that. The begin and maybe end with Sam Mitchell. I often say that in today’s modern world perception is reality. When a few people were making rumbles about Sam Mitchell job security in Toronto it was something that even Sam Mitchell could laugh off. But like a snowball rolling down a hill it just keeps getting bigger. If Sam hopes to avoid the avalanche of attackers on his job it needs to start with a win tonight in game 3. You can see Mitchell is getting less and less tolerant of the media and their questions. He said yesterday it doesn’t matter what I say or do you guys are still going write what you write. I learned a long time ago I can’t win with all of you. So I am trying to win a basketball game that is my focus and that is it. That was not a direct quote but It is very close to what he said. The media may be killing the best thing that ever came into their world. I mean Sam Mitchell is one thing that everyone can agree on and that is quotable. He is not your average coach that will spit out the typical lines that mean nothing. Sam is a unique personality.
His team has always been thought to have his back. Most importantly Chris Bosh the team’s franchise player. Even he is taking heat now. Whispers that he is not a franchise player and Toronto needs to seriously look at their superstar player. You got to be joking right? I mean people take Stephen A Smith to task for his comments but now some Raptor fans if they know it or not have been influenced by his stupidity. Chris Bosh stuck with this franchise and did exactly the opposite of what Vince Carter did. Bosh stood up and said he was going to be part of the solution in Toronto and help re-build the Raptors. Yet fans throw him under the bus too. You can’t have it both ways if you hate Vince for quitting on Toronto, you need to love Chris Bosh for doing the opposite. If not then how is anyone suppose to take you seriously or respect you at all. My views in this blog remain constant and I refuse to flip flop an opinion based on the way the wind appears to be blowing. I hope that gives you the readers an element of respect for me even if you may not agree with what is being expressed. I sure hope so.
One of the biggest things readers may have issue with would be my support of T.J Ford. Even I am concerned with Ford’s play of late. He needs to understand that he may be playing to remain with the Raptors. I don’t know if it matters to Ford. But I think of it like this. T.J do you want to let someone else determine your future or do you? Because it might be cool to start and all but what would it be like to be the starting point guard of a lousy team in New York, Miami or worse places. Is that what you want? I don’t think it is or hope it is not. Even if Ford goes to the bench tonight the best thing he can do for himself is to play as hard as he can on both ends of the floor. T.J is not doing a thing to give his supports any kind of fuel to come to his aid.
Then of course there is Andrea Bargnani. He has been a huge disappointment to all and he should be thankful he plays basketball and not soccer. Why you ask? Well soccer fans tend to be far more brutal in there displeasure. But even basketball fans have their limits. Andrea is pushing many fans to them. John Lucas will have a huge task in front of him with Bargnani and Ford if he remains with the Raptors. Both players are in need of some mental re-programming and in Bargnani’s case he needs to add a complete new element to his game. A low post game and the occasional rebound would be nice. To me Bargnani has been the biggest disappointment of this season. You a rapidly approaching a game of NBA Russian Roulette. Bargnani and his value are very fragile and despite what people are saying I think Bryan Colangelo needs to act sooner rather then later if he hopes to get value for Bargnani in a trade. If the Raptors do not see the type of progress they require in the summer then Bargnani needs to go.If you wait to long he will not have any trade value beyond the amount of jerseys he can sell for a team in Italy.
It is very rare that you can say a crowd can have a legit impact on a game. But if you have a ticket to tonight’s game you matter. The Raptors starts have been well documented in this series. The collective voice of the ACC crowd can be a powerful thing as Chris Bosh in his comments and U-tube video made obvious. He thinks that you matter and that you can help him and his team. You as a collective group can also hurt his team and I think he knows that too. So even though the media has painted a bleak picture do not let that stop you from supporting the team that you have declared you support. So do your part and at least if you do the media can’t blame you for anything. Go Raps Go. Shout it loud and proud.
Dino Blogger Notes For Readers:
That is about it for the Raptors for now. I have a few blogger notes for you all now. I first have an apology to hand out. Seems I forgot to mention the first winner of our Dino Nation Fantasy League. It was my former Co-Host on the Radio Joe Goralewski so everyone give him all a hand. Next season if you want to take on Joe and the Dino Blogger we will be starting a Fantasy Keeper League that will go on for as long as this blog goes on which hopefully will be many years. I also wanted to thank LiveHive for choosing the Dino Nation Blog to work with in bringing you info on Raptors Shot Caller. I just want to explain why from my position this was a good thing to do. They are in partnership with the Raptors and by this blog working with them it is the hope it will open up doors for this blog to bring you better coverage of the Toronto Raptors. It was a choice made not only thinking of myself but of all you loyal readers of the Dino Nation Blog. I can not tell you what this will mean for the blog exactly but I hope it will be a big step forward for us all. If things do come about I will keep you all in the loop. Best way to stay informed about the blog beyond what is written here is to join our facebook group. I value the opinions of my readers and invite you to be active in what you read each day. The group on facebook and your comments count and are all taken seriously by me. That is all till it is time for Raptor Rewind. So CHEER LOUD AND STRONG and hopefully I will be talking about a win.
Tags: T.J Ford, Chris Bosh, Andrea Bargnani, Sam Mitchell, Raptor Fans, Toronto Media, Dino Nation Fantasy B-Ball
