Ex-Raptor Fantasy Outlook

We all have those Ex-Raptors we love and those that we hate. Emotion is the enemy of any good fantasy player. You must leave your feelings at the door be they good or bad. You may in fact think “V.C Sucks” but if he is the best player on your draft board you need to pick him regardless. You may have been on the Jose side of Calderon vs Ford debate. But if T.J is on the board and you need a point guard you may need to take him. Same goes in reverse. Most Raptor Fans love Morris Peterson but you can not turn that love into a selection of him to early in the draft. These are just a few examples of choices you may face in your fantasy draft. So let’s break it down and give you some logic to use instead of that nasty emotion.

Vince Carter: Carter is a very interesting fantasy choice. On the one hand Vince Carter is the lone remaining member of the Nets “Big 3″. From a fantasy perspective you would think this should be a good thing. However as Raptor Fan you do know how Vince has dealt with being the man. Vince will have the chance to increase his numbers but will he take advantage of it? Oh and let’s not forget the fact the Nets are a team that is rebuilding. Anyone that knows Vince’s history has to be very careful if you are going to risk a high pick on him. It comes down to the question of do you believe that Vince Carter has changed and matured from his time in Toronto. If you do he might be worth the pick. If you don’t it is buyer beware. One last thing is the fact Phil Jackson threw Vince under the bus. This may provide motivation for Carter to show Jackson was wrong. But even though all signs may lead you to think Carter could have a big year it is taken away by the track record of the player that tells a much different story.

T.J Ford: I am still a fan of T.J Ford. But the fact I see him having a bounce back year this season is not as much about being a fan as coming to grips with the fact T.J had the worst season of his NBA Career in a lot of ways. So you can expect a better year from T.J Ford. Despite all the injury concerns that come with Ford the truth is the risk of taking Ford remains the same. Medically his condition is the same as it has been. But if T.J can remain safe and avoid hard hits he should be fine and have a very productive season. High assist totals and a improved number of points for Ford should be a lock.

Tracy McGrady: McGrady is highly talented but is always an injury concern. His back may never be good enough to have any confidence in him playing through an entire season. He may also need to play peace maker between Yao Ming and Ron Artest. The good news for T-Mac with Artest coming to Houston will mean a easier defensive assignment on most nights. It could mean a little less wear and tear and more chance to do his thing on offense. But a bad back is always a worry. This is why personally I am not someone who wants to take Tracy in my first round. If you do it is a gamble but one that could pay off. But it also could blow-up in your face.

Marcus Camby:A whole new team for Marcus. He was not exactly thrilled about it. But Camby and what he does and who he is from a fantasy perspective remains the same. If healthy he is one of the best fantasy players in the league. He fills a stat sheet like few players in the game. He has been injured plaqued through his entire career. But last season was one of the better ones for Camby from an injury prospective. The older you get the healthier you are? That goes against logic. This is why I always take a pass on Camby. But if you want to go against the logic and take him it is not a bad move. Even with slight injury concerns throughout the year when he is in your line-up you get a lot of blocks points rebounds steals the whole fantasy package.

Morris Peterson: In his second year with the Hornets Morris Peterson should be a bit better. He had a very slow start last year. But this season he should be feeling more at home as a Hornet. The key is how much of a factor can he be on a New Orleans team with a lot of weapons. Morris Peterson should give you a guy that can shot a decent number of 3’s for a good percentage. But there are a lot of those guys in the NBA these days. A late round guy in any case and someone that may even make his way to wavier wire. Moe can be a guy that gets on streaks and picking him up when he is hot can help you get a few wins along the way in head to head leagues.

Mike James:A one year fantasy stud. With the Raptors and that was about all. The same reasons the Raptors didn’t resign him have proven to be true. Mike James has never produced the numbers he did as a Raptor and I don’t think that changes any time soon. If this was an American Idol draft he is a first round pick. We all remember him rocking the Raptor exit interviews with R Kelly tune ” I believe I Can Fly”.

Rafer Alston: The problem child former street ball star. He has had his issues with the Law and is to unpredictable both on and off the floor to expect much of anything from him. Who knows what will happen with Rafer he once announced in Toronto he was giving up the game altoghter and he is a wildcard not worth the risk.

Rasho Nesterovic: How bout some love for Rasho. He is a excellent pick in the late rounds as a big. He should do very well with the Pacers and have the chance to likely start. But everyone sleeps on Rasho. So unless Tim Ducan (Cause he think’s Rasho is Awesome) is in your draft you can expect Rasho to be around late and make a nice pick up for you. We saw first hand what Rasho can do with the Raptors when he got chance to play and I think for the Pacers he will play a lot as Roy Hibbert learns the ropes of the NBA.

Hoffa… um… Actually I read in a blog he may not even be in the Russian League he played in last year. I wonder if anyone ever drafted Hoffa in a fantasy league ever? If you did NEVER ADMIIT THAT. In fact take up a new hobby. That would go for anyone that drafted Yogi Stewart, Michael Bradley, Chris Jefferies and the list goes on. But as Raptor fans these names seem to live on longer than guys that were average players on the Raptors squad.

So hope the last two days have given you some things to think about going into your fantasy drafts. I will be providing the info for our leagues as soon as the leagues start to open up. Also Tomorrow I will be interviewing Matt Devlin so the blog may not be up till late. Hopefully there will be time to get Matt’s interview up. If not it will be Friday and I will have another topic for tomorrow. I look forward to talking with Matt for a second time. He has been very willing to talk with me and reach out to you the readers of Dino Nation Blog and that is something I respect.

That is all for me. See you Tomorrow a little later than usual.

J.O Trade Is A Win For A Lot Of People.

The Jermaine O’Neal Trade has had a good impact for a lot of people. It is a much longer list then just O’Neal himself. This was truly one of those trades that should be a win for all sides. O’Neal has said that his time in Indiana had come to an end and he was in need of a change. After the brawl that happened in Detroit things never really would be the same. O’Neal would be handed the second largest suspension from the NBA in the aftermath of the events. There would be legal issues that would come out of it as well. That one night in Detroit would mark the end of the Pacers being thought of as a contender. There would be a list of troubles that would follow. The Pacers were starting to look like the Trailblazers who had earned the nickname of “Jailblazers” or like the Bengels in the NFL. Indiana is a pretty conservative place and people were not thrilled by this to say the least. The support for the Pacers Franchise had really bottomed out. I remember when Raptors went to play Pacers last year I was shocked at how empty it was. Looked like a game verus the Atlanta Hawks.

A lot of blame for that fell at the feet of O’Neal. He was suppose to be the leader of this team. But as he said in his press conference in Toronto there is only so much you can do. He can’t be a hall monitor as the team leader really can he? What can he do if Steven Jackson goes out to a strip club and ends up in trouble as a result. Is that J.O’s fault. If he organized the outing to the strip club it would be. However that isn’t the case here. This is not like when Minnesota Vikings had a sex party on some boats and the team’s Quarterback was a willing guest. That has not worked to well for Daunte since has it?  But if O’Neal is at home and not involved really what blame can he take. I mean it is not like he endorsed any of these events.

Beyond that O’Neal has a series of injury problems that left him MIA for the Pacers without their best player. O’Neal says that those injuries are behind him and he is in Toronto and back at 100 percent. He comes to Toronto looking for a fresh start and looking to earn back the respect of being an All Star level player in the NBA. I was not wild about the O’Neal deal at first. I am guilty of buying into all the hype that pointed the finger of blame at O’Neal with the Pacers. But his press conference in Toronto changed my mind about him. I had always said I was willing to give O’Neal a chance even though I had my doubts and concerns. I think from the attitude standpoint he has addressed my concerns pretty well. The injury thing is another matter. However nothing he can do about that until he can play some games and remain healthy. Just like T.J Ford who he was traded for. Ford also has the injury tag placed on him. The difference is you can play through a bad knee to an extent but the injuries Ford has racked up are ones that make some question if T.J should even being playing in the NBA at all. No one wants to see T.J Ford end up injured to the point he can not walk. That is the fear of some people.

However that is no doubt a factor in the departure of Ford it is not the major reason behind it. The fact that Jose Calderon did so well in that time when Ford was debating his NBA future is. T.J could not adjust to life as a back-up and was not being paid like one. You also add in the fact that the majority of the fan base had grown to love Jose and saw Ford as a disruptive force on the Raptors. I never agreed with the out of control wildfire that turned T.J Ford into the excuse for Toronto Raptors failure last season but someone needs to take the blame and T.J was it. All he ever did in Toronto was state he wanted to be the starter and he proved he can not play well in a reserve role.

But the best thing about a trade is one team may not want you, but that means another one does. T.J Ford will be #1 in Indiana. A new number(5) and a new chance, you can expect Ford to have a great bounce back season. Ford will not only be expected to be the lead point guard but a team leader. This was not a role he had in Toronto except for brief points when Chris Bosh was MIA with injury. Despite the fact some in this market tagged him the nickname “ME-J” it is not the truth of who Ford is. He will have a chance to prove that in Indiana and I am personally happy for him. I have stuck behind T.J since his days at Texas so I am not going to stop now.  He like J.O was forced into needing a change through a lot of circumstances that were out of his control and a few that were.

Rasho has never said anything about playing time ever that I recall. He just does his job and plays his game. His move to Indiana will be good for him. He should be in the starting line-up with Ford for at least the start of the year. Rasho has another rookie that will be looking to steal his job. Roy Hibbert the Raptor draft choice that we all knew was the Pacers pick. I wanted him to be a Raptor and he was but only on paper. I think Roy will be able to have a productive NBA Career but that being said he is not going to be ready to walk in and start in the NBA. Good News for Roy he has a vet like Rasho to show him the ropes in the NBA. Good News for Rasho that he will get some time to shine with the Pacers before Hibbert is ready to take over.

Nathan Jawai who was the other draft pick in the trade will benfit too. Toronto will not expect as much from him as he might have had to deal with elsewhere. The fact the Raptors gave him a two year deal speaks to that.  However it also speaks to the faith the Raptors have that they have found something in the raw Australian talent. Life in Canada should also be good for him as well. This is as I have said many times the guy that Sam Mitchell has been waiting for. He can bang on the glass and set solid picks and that is a type of guy Sam Mitchell can use.

Speaking of Sam this trade helps him out as well. We have heard Sam preach about defense for the past few seasons. I think it is clear he would have liked to have gotten a lot more out of his team on that end of the floor. Well now he has Jermaine O’Neal to send his message through. O’Neal will make this team better on defense. That should make Sam Mitchell smile. We all know the tremendous amount of respect Mitchell has for Kevin Garnett who he played with in Minnesota. Many credit Garnett with the much improved defense of the World Champion Boston Celtics. There is no reason not to think that addition of O’Neal in Toronto can not have a great impact on the Raptor defense in the same way. I am sure that was in the thought process behind this trade for Bryan Colangelo and the Raptor brain trust.

Chris Bosh gets another all-star to share the load from a standpoint of leadership as well as what it will mean on the floor. The blogs frequent guest Jack Armstrong has said a few times on Fan 590 that this was the biggest trade in Raptor History. It is a clear sign to Chris Bosh that the Raptors are looking to win a Championship. That is what this type of move says. How it turns out is in the hands of the coaches and players. But management has done it’s job. Chris Bosh has a second star to play along side him. That is something many fans and the media have said he has needed for awhile and now he has it.

The old expression in sports is the team that gets the best player wins the trade. But in this case I think both teams the Pacers and Raptors can consider they have won. What a win would be for both is different as well. For the Pacers a win is getting more fans back in the building and being in mix for a playoff spot in the east. Toronto is thinking much higher and without a first round playoff win there will not be to many people calling this trade a success in Toronto. But both teams should have a good shot a reaching those goals and making the fans happy. That is what any organization hopes for when the make a major trade. More wins and happy fans which will turn into more money for the franchise. After all what Pacer fan doesn’t want a brand new Ford #5 Jersey and what Raptor Fan is not excited to get a #6 Jermaine O’Neal Jersey. Also makes a Toronto vs Indiana match-up a lot more interesting on the schedule as far as selling tickets.

Canada Rewind

Canada Falls Hard In Opener

It is 6am and hard to keep my eyes open but there is basektball to be played. Canada in general would get into some foul trouble and Slovenia was making shots from the line that was the major story of the first half. Both Andy Rautins and Derrick Anderson had 3 fouls. The Ex-Raptors for Slovenia Both had good starts to the game. Rasho and Uros Slokar. It was hard to follow the first quarter be cause there was no commentators. I swear this was not me being half awake. Joel Anthony would lead Canada to a rally in the second quarter but Slovenia would push back to have a decent size lead of 41-34.

Ex-Raptor Uros Slokar would start the second half with a dunk extending the lead to 9 points. The next time down the floor Slovenia would nail a 3 point shot pushing the lead to 12 there largest of the game. Canada was really having trouble and Slovenia was making shots from beyond the arc. Canada was on the brink of getting put out of this game for good. Joel Anthony had a block and it would lead to an easy transition bucket. Canada was missing chances on the offensive end and could not provide the offense required for a rally. Another heartbreaking 3 point shot would extend the lead to 15 for Solvenia late in the 3rd quarter leading 64-49 

Andy Rautins hit a 3 pointer to start the 4th quarter and Canada would need a lot more of that if they hoped to climb back in this game. Sam Dalembert was out there on the floor but really not a big factor in this game and with Solvenia up double digits he was not going to be able to help much at this point. Slovenia pushed there advantage back up to 16 with yet another 3 point shot and Canada was really in trouble and did just not seem like they could recover. Slovenia was playing a great inside out game with Rasho and Slokar on the inside and pleanty of shooters on the outside dropping 3 point shots. You could see the frustration on the face of head coach Leo Rautins as his team was also making silly mistakes and turnovers. Rasho Nesterovic would exit the game with his team having the game well in hand up 78-62 with just 3 minutes left to play.  Slovenia would advance to the quarter-finals with the win as a result of defeating Korea and now today Canada. While team Canada would face a must win game vs Korea tomorrow in order to advance in the tournament to the quarter-finals. The final score was 86-70 for Slovenia.

Slovenia shot 58% from the field and 89% from the free throw line 24-27. Canada struggled shooting just 43% from the field and just 31% from beyond the arc. Slovenia was able to make 8 long bombs and they all seemed to come at the worst time for Canada. Sam Dalembet had just 4 points and Joel Anthony just 9. Rowan Barrett the returning veteran had 16 points to lead the Canada cause on the score sheet. For the complete boxscore click on link below:

Canada vs Slovenia

For those who would like to see it for yourself, you can catch the re-air of this game on The Score at 9pm.

Raptors vs Nuggets and Raptors in Athens

Raptors Start Slow and End The Same Way

The Toronto Raptors dropped their second summer league game to the Denver Nuggets. The Nuggets out scored the Raptors 28-14 in the first quarter on route to a 90-79 win. Joel Bosh saw some playing time but did not score going 0-2 in just 4 minutes of play.Nathan Jawai did debut, there was an error on NBA.Com and he is listed as Jawad Williams. Jawai played 19 minutes had 2 point and a few rebounds. Sorry for the mistake. Thanks to a fellow blogger for pointing out the mistake. Joey Graham lead the way for the Raptors for the second game in a row with 16 points and 7 rebounds. He also got his shots in on people as he had 7 fouls. John Lucas got some serious minutes in this game(32) but again shot poorly despite getting 11 points. For the complete boxscore and recap check them out below:

Raps vs Nuggets Boxscore

Game Recap

NBA Ref Scandal Is Back In The News

David Stern has always said that Tim Donaghy acted alone.Did He? For details on the story here is a link to it on Yahoo:

Tim Donaghy the Latest News

Olympic Qualifying Tournament Report

Canada will get started in their quest to make it to China tomorrow. The man who will be key in that effort is the Sixers Sam Dalembert. He is a great person as I found out first hand here in Hamilton when Canada was here getting prepared to take on the world in Anthens, Greece. In getting ready for the match-up tomorrow you may want to read this interview I found on the FIBA basketball website. To get yourself ready to cheer on Sam and the rest of team Canada. So just click on the link to read Sam’s thoughts as he heads into this tournament looking to help Canada make it all the way to the 2008 Olympics in China :

Sam Dalembert Interview

Keep Up To Date On Tournament

To keep update on all the action from Greece you can use this link for the home page to the Olympic Qualifying Tournament in which 3 of the 12 teams in action will advance to China to be part of the Olympic Basketball Tournament that will have U.S.A, China, Argentina and the defending World Champions from Spain among the teams already in the Tournament:

Home Page For Olympic Qualifying Tournament

Raptors Past, Present and Future Already in Action

Raptors Second round pick from last season Giorgos Printezis who was acquired from the Spurs as part of draft day trade in 2007 draft.  He was in action for Greece at the qualifying tournament for Olympics in his home country. He had 10 points and 3 rebounds as part of a win for the home side 119-62 over Lebanon. Roko Ukic who will be Jose Calderon’s back-up this season did not play in a win for his country Croatia defeated Cameroon 93-79. Ex-Raptor Rasho Nesterovic had 28 points (High Scorer On The Day In Tournament) in a win over Korea. Slovenia will be taking on team Canada tomorrow.

Busy Times Ahead

Canada Basketball and Vegas Summer league are on the way. First off let’s start with Team Canada:

Ooooo The Germans…No Sweat.

Team Canada in a tune up for the Olympic last chance qualifier in Athens Greece took on Dirk Nowitzki and the Germans. Who have recently added the Clippers Chris Kaman to their roster. Despite Dirk having 33 points it was Team Canada lead by Miami Heat’s Joel Anthony who had 22 points to lead Canada to a comeback win 91-86. The game was in Hamburg Germany and to say the least that is an impressive road win for the men in red and white. Kaman was dressed but did not see action for the Germans. Carl English was also key for Canada and had this to say about the win for his team:

They were a great test for us and each step is getting us ready for Greece

Sam Dalembert also was back on the floor. He may have a new team mate in the form of Elton Brand that is a scary duo as well for the Atlantic next season. But for now Sam is focused on leading his Team Canada to make it to China.

I mentioned yesterday that Score Televison Network deserves some thanks from basketball fans. They have come through for fans of Canada basketball. They will be broadcasting the tournament from Greece and showing it Live and later that day in Prime Time. The Score should also be announcing something that Raptor Fans will be happy about as well very soon. Some of the smart folks out there have figured this one out. I will just say it has something to do with a good friend of this blog and leave it at that.

As for Canada they play in a group with Slovenia which features now Ex-Raptor Rasho Nesterovic and South Korea.  You can catch these games live on THE SCORE at 6am.

July 15 Slovenia

July 16 South Korea

I will warn you right now if you plan on watching the re-airs make sure not to read this blog till after. I know it sucks when you find out the result of a game before it happens. A quick story on that from the life of the Dino Nation Blogger. I in my days in High School had a part time job at a video store. I had to work the day of the Dallas Cowboys playoff game vs the Detroit Lions. But I had my VCR set and was going to rush home after work and watch the game. So, everything was going well and I was serving my last customer before my shift was over. He looked really upset and I asked what was wrong? He replied by saying he was upset over the way the Cowboys sucked today!!! OH NO. So that was that.

So because of my national pride and my love of what I do the plan is to get up at 6am and watch these games and provide a full CANADA REWIND not unlike the RAPTOR REWINDS you will find after every Raptor Game here at Dino Nation Blog. If I feel I am awake enough I may even do podcasts as well as I do with Raptor Games. So you have been warned if you plan on watching the re-airs of the games which will be at 9pm for the July 15th game and 10pm for the July 16th game.

If Canada advances beyond that The Score will air the rest of the games that Canada will be involved. Hopefully that means a lot of games as it will be required to get to China. Thanks to Canada Basketball’s Website www.basketball.ca for the info on the game vs Germany. On that site you can find lots of info on all the National programs. Canada just recently announced the roster for their Junior Men’s team that is also going to be in action soon. They train right here in Hamilton. I am looking into doing something on this team in the future. I will keep you posted.

Raps Prepare For Summer League

As of yet no word on the coverage of Raptors Summer League games. But as I mentioned in the past, Raps TV has showed the games but they ususally wait till after summer league as completed. But if you can’t wait for results NBA.Com and many of the news sites for the NBA will have recaps and boxscores.

I posted the schedule for the Raps a few days ago as well as the roster. I am excited to get a look at a number of guys, Joel Bosh, John Lucas, Hassan Adams and Nathan Jawai. I did not mention Joey Graham because if I have it right in my knowledge of Joey. I expect we will see the GOOD JOEY GRAHAM and I do not want to get built up and be crushed at the RETURN of BAD JOEY. But to be serious, Joey Graham really needs to make the switch stay on or his days as a Raptor and in the NBA could be growing short. He does not have to look far for an example of how hard it can be to stay in the league. Stephen Graham his twin brother has been on more teams than most of use can remember. I do not understand Joey and I don’t think I ever will. But still it will be interesting to see how things go. Sam Mitchell said yesterday that training camp starts today in Las Vegas. You can see how pumped up Sam Mitchell was about the trade for Jermaine O’Neal. He may even suit up and take Joey Graham to school if he is not impressed. Mitchell was a former NBA Player after all and he did say once in a press conference he had a good 10 mins left in him. So make a note of that Joey Graham and the rest of you folks on the roster.

Some Other Things Of Note From Dino Blogger:

I did something yesterday and I really just got working so hard I forgot to mention it. I decided to make a Dino Nation Blog Hall Of Fame. I wanted to do it to honour the folks who deserve it. I work very hard but without people taking what I do in a serious way it would not matter. The first 3 inductees will not be a surprise to anyone that reads this blog on a regular basis. I won’t spoil the surprise for those who want to see who they are. You can find the Page off to the right on the Home Page of the blog. It is located right under Dino Nation Blog History page. So please go check it out if you are interested. As for the Future of the Hall of Fame? Can you get in? It really has no rules to get put in. So I would say if you are a loyal reader of the blog it could be possible. I have no plan on when I will be doing this again. I just will add folks as I feel the need or desire too. We have had a short but very productive history and I wanted some thing to establish that.

This will not get you into the HALL OF FAME. But it won’t hurt your chances. Just my daily plug for the fact I am bring back your mail to the blog. So send me those questions and comments. We always have room for more just like JELLO. So it is dinonationblogger@hotmail.com

Lastly In the past little while I have been focused mostly on the Raptors and Canada Basketball. I have been paying attention to the rest of the league as well. Just have not been writing about it. But I will once I have some chance to fit it into the mix. The Atlantic Divison is changing a lot and I will likely start there. If you want to help in having some more talk about NBA. Feel free in the above to ask a question on something NBA related it does not have to be a Raptor Question to be part of the Mail Bag Feature.

The Future Beyond This Deal

I am offering you some advice. If you ever have a chance to play poker against Bryan Colangelo do not do it. I mean it could be a costly venture for you. Bryan is a very cool cat in every sense of the word. He held his pre-draft press conference yesterday and was very happy to talk about the Raptors and lay out a number of things that could happen for his basketball club. Knowing all along that he was about to pull of a major deal with the Indiana Pacers. It is not like he lied at all. He said in his press conference that there were 2 deals on the table for T.J Ford that teams were waiting to hear back from him on to be done. One can assume that the deals were the one they took for Jermaine O’Neal and the other likely was the other deal that had been widely speculated for Boris Diaw. There was also talk of a Ford for Maggette deal that could have been out there as well. In the end the Raptors went with the deal with the Pacers. What they left on the table may never be known. But it is clear that Bryan Colangelo was successful in giving himself several options to move T.J Ford.

Some Things To Understand About This Deal

First of all the draft pick at number 17. Technically speaking the Raptors can not trade this pick based on the fact that they had no first round pick in last year’s NBA DRAFT. So tonight when pick number 17 comes along the Toronto Raptors will select for the Pacers. When that happens the draft rights to that player will become part of this deal. The best example for Raptor fans to understand this is ironically another deal with the Pacers and Raptors from the past. When the Raptors traded for Antonio Davis they also had to pick for the Pacers and selected Johnathan Bender. This ended up being a very successful for the Raptors.

Second, this deal will not be final till July 9th. Why? Again another issue of a CBA nature. Ford was in the first year of his new deal that he signed when he became a Raptor. So under the CBA that makes Ford what is called a BYC (Base Year Compensation Player ) which means only half of his contract could count in any trade. This ends on July 9th. Thus the reason for the delay.

Lastly there is an issue with the numbers matching in this deal. That is why there is a player to be named later(Rumoured to be Graham or Baston) coming from the Raptors to the Pacers. This is because in the CBA any trade must be within 100,000 dollars for any teams that are over the NBA CAP number. Which both the Pacers and Raptors sit currently.

Update Note(Draft Day 1pm): ESPN is Reporting the The Raptors may have acquired a 2nd round pick from Pacers in this deal at #41 and that player to be named later is Maceo Baston For Details Read the Story on Real GM

Update(Draft Day 5pm) Real Gm is reporting that O’Neal has confirmed the the Trade to Toronto ….Details from Real GM

Hopefully that clears things up for you. Sports is a business and these things can get very complicated at times. But none of these things should impact on this deal being done. There is also a matter of medicals and all of that. But it is safe to assume both teams have already researched the injury issues that would be of concern with both Ford and O’Neal.

Some Things To Consider Beyond The Trade

Many including myself may have some concerns about this deal but these things may help change your mind a bit. They did mine at least:

Jermaine O’Neal and his 45 million over the next 2 years would expire at the same point that a number of Major Contracts would expire. Chris Bosh, Lebron James, Dwyane Wade and a number of others. So even if O’Neal did not work out well perhaps the end game is the contract room he would create for a very key off-season 2 years from now. Something to consider moving forward. Should the Raptors have cap room to be active in trying to acquire another major player as well as re-signing Bosh. O’Neal should at the very least help Raptors maintain their status as a playoff team in the east.

People also may have read in the past my desire to bring Ron Artest to the Raptors. Well this deal may help that become more realistic. First off it will not happen right away as Artest has decided he will not opt out of the last year of his current deal with the Kings. It is based on the fact that this offseason very few teams have money to spend beyond the mid level. So looking forward to the trade deadline it would make sense that the Kings will be looking to move Artest. Ron has expressed regret about things not working out with O’Neal with the Pacers so a chance of reunion in Toronto would likely interest him. For the Raptors it would give them a test drive with Ron Artest. You could evaluate if you think he can keep his head screwed on straight and if he can he will help the Raptors in a push to the playoffs. They could look to re-sign Artest after this season. If it did not work the Raptors would gain about 7 million dollars of cap space to add for next off-season. It is a low risk option to see if the Artest idea is going to work.

Also Chris Bosh seems to be behind this deal which ultimately is important as he is going to have to build a relationship with O’Neal in order for this deal to be successful for the Toronto Raptors.

What About The Draft?

So are the Raptors out of the draft now? For now they are out with no pick currently. But there are people looking to unload picks in the draft and Bryan Colangelo did mention the idea of moving down from 17 in his press conference. So could the Raps make a deal to get back in and perhaps target a player they like. I think this could happen and it may be for the guy I have wanted all along. Roy Hibbert could be still there in the 20’s and Colangelo did say that he felt of all the centers in the draft he was the most ready to contribute now. Based on the deal he made for O’Neal it would seem that is what Colangelo is looking to do. So don’t be surprised if the Raptors at least attempt to re-enter this draft. Even if not for Hibbert there was a list of about 10-12 guys that Colangelo talked about yesterday. You may even see the Raptors look to get a pick early in the second round. This would allow them to select someone without having to guarntee a contract to them which has it’s advantages. Being such a deep draft there could still be a very solid player early in round 2. These our some reason still to watch the NBA DRAFT from a Raptors point of view. It also is reason to show up for the blog’s DRAFT PARTY. I honestly do believe these things though it is not an attempt by me to save the draft party. Besides there is lots to talk about with Raptors pick or no pick now that this deal has happened.

What Now For T.J Ford

I understand many our happy to see T.J Ford out the door in Toronto. I am not as many of you know he is a guy I have always been a fan of. That is not going to change for me. I liked T.J as a Longhorn, Buck, Raptor and now Pacer. I think he has ended up back in another point guard battle at least for the moment. Jammal Tinsley is still a Pacer and will no doubt be not thrilled to see T.J come in from the north and take his job. Larry Bird said he has no plans to trade Tinsley now was that just talk to down play rumours of the O’Neal trade. I have a feeling we will find out. I am sad to see Ford go and really think that not enough fans respected the things he did in his short time with this franchise. He is a quality point guard and he may not win a contest of who is the better person with Jose Calderon. But he is not a bad person like many painted him to be. Ask D.J Augstine who will be drafted tonight how good a guy T.J Ford is and you will hear how much T.J has helped him get ready for this moment in his life. So for all of you that call Ford “ME-J” it really is not the case at all. He is just a guy that believes he is a starter and drives himself to compete hard to be the best. I respect that and always will.

Also I want to speak about Rasho as well. He never got enough credit in his time here as well. He was a solid person for this franchise and was a true professional in his time here. He did whatever was asked of him and was always someone the Raptors could count on and be confident in whatever he was asked he would do. This was something Ford was unable to do and is ultimately why we have reached the point we are at. I always knew that if the Raptors were going to acquire a major contract it would mean the end of Rasho and as much as I am sad to see T.J go. I am also going to miss Rasho as well. Yes sports is a business but it is made up of people and I as many fans do grow some kind of emotions towards these people.

Update: June 27- T.J On His Time With Raps on Fan 590

Some Final Thoughts

But as I stated in my first blog on this trade. I am a Raptor fan first beyond any player that is on the roster. I also said and will be willing to allow Jermaine O’Neal to show me the stuff I have come to think about him are not right. I am willing to give anyone a chance at a clean slate. Mark of the Raptors Core suggested that O’Neal could indeed have a re-birth not unlike the one Vince Carter had upon being traded to New Jersey. That could indeed happen and if it does and he can remain healthy as Carter has done for the most part this trade can be a huge success for the Raptors. I still am very uneasy about it I am not going to lie. But given some time to come to terms with all of this. I am a little bit more willing to wait and see.

After all it is no secret I have a high value for T.J Ford and have concerns about Jose Calderon going forward. But much like the departure of Chuck Swirsky to Chicago it is something that I am going to come to terms with in time. There is no question that based on O’Neal being a big name this will gain the Raptors a lot of attention. Here is hoping that Jermaine O’Neal can be a healthy and productive Raptor. After all Bryan Colangelo is banking on this happening. I also think that Sam Mitchell could be a good fit as a coach for O’Neal and push him to get the most out of him. It is clear the last few years in Indiana that was not happpening. I point back to the Brawl at the Palace that to me at least seemed to change O’Neal and he never got back to being the same player he was prior to that night. A change of setting to an entire new country may be good for him on and off the floor. Time will tell and the Raptors still have some things left to do. They now have a second star for Chris Bosh to play with. Would it be my choice for that second star? Not really but that being said it was clear that this was needed for the Raptors to reach a new level. I also am happy this will most likely make Andrea Bargnani a bench player and could allow him to play more at his natural spot at the 4 when Bosh is taking a blow. I think this will be a good thing for him as well as it seems clear he was not ready for the challenge of being a starter in the NBA at this point.

Hope to See You all at the Draft Party and see what people have to say about all of this. Click Here at 6:45 or Later. Draft is on the Score starting at 7pm.

Ford Deal Done? Jermaine O’Neal To Raptors

 

Ford On Way To Indiana?

Yahoo is reporting that the deal of a few days that was reported is actually been agreed to by both parties. The reason this can not be made offical would be the fact that the Raptors did not have a first round selection in last year’s draft and thus to meet the requirements of the league would have to technically draft at the 17th pick for the Pacers. NBA teams are not allowed to trade two consecutive years first round picks under league rules. In addition there is an issue with Ford’s contract that will not allow this deal to be final til July 9th.

The Detail of this trade seem to be a ever changing. As of right now the deal is as follows:

To Toronto:

C/PF Jermaine O’Neal

#41 pick in tonight’s NBA DRAFT

To Indiana:

Pg T.J Ford

C Rasho Nesterovic

PF Maceo Baston

#17 in Tonight’s Draft

ESPN Via Real Gm Link For Details

I wrote about this trade when it was first talked about in case you missed it here is a link to my thoughts of the deal which have not changed in 48 hours.

Dino Nation Blog on O’Neal/Ford Trade

Say It Ain’t So…O’Neal A Raptor?

Seems it is going to be a busy week for the Raptors and in turn yours truly. I was going to leave this for tomorrow but this story is getting far to much play in the media to leave it alone. So in case you have been under a rock and missed the news. There is a major rumour that the Toronto Raptors are in talks to acquire Jermaine O’Neal. The deal would be for T.J Ford, Rasho Nesterovic and the Raptors First Round Pick in Thursday’s NBA Draft.

I don’t think anyone is unaware that I am a supporter of T.J Ford. That being said I have grown to accept the fact that the chances of him being a Raptor are about as good as a snowman not melting on Miami Beach. That being said I am not a fan of this deal at all. Jermaine O’Neal is not a guy that I am a fan of at all. He is just as much of an injury risk of as Ford. There is no question that O’Neal is a big name but he to me is a guy on the down side of his career. O’Neal is also a guy with a very troublesome attitude to me as well. This is a huge risk to me and not one worth investing 45 million dollars in for the next 2 years. I am much more on board with the deal that would bring Boris Diaw here from the Suns. If there is any truth to that at all.

I am not sold on O’Neal in any way shape or form. Could a change of venue make O’Neal a different player and have a better outlook. It is possible and I am not willing to throw anyone under a bus without at least giving them a chance to prove me wrong. Still the injury factor is not something that will change. Unless you think that O’Neal was doing a bit of a Vince Carter type act based on his unhappy feelings in Indiana. But he clearly has some issues and does not have a body that matches the age on his Birth Certificate.

There was a point and time where Chris Bosh was compared on par with O’Neal and since that point Bosh has been on the rise and O’Neal has been on the decline. Chris Bosh was named to Team U.S.A today and there was a time that O’Neal would have been in that conversation. But not now and same can be said for NBA All Star Games. Bosh is a regular in the East Roster and O’Neal is no longer a guy considered.

I do seem to be in the minority on this topic. But I admit that O’Neal has never been a player that I was high on even when he was a high quality player. Many will feel that this is about T.J going to me. But it is not about that to me at all. From a value standpoint this is getting a heck of a lot for T.J Ford. If I thought O’Neal was worth that value of his contract this would be a slam dunk victory for the Raptors. All this being said this is something that has not happened and could just be something 24 hours from now that will be an after thought.

What is clear from this is that T.J Ford has more value than most would have expected. The other issue in all of this would be in a draft class that seems to have some good players out there that I think can help this team address some of it’s needs I am not that happy about a something that sees Raptors trading out of the draft. It does fit the Bryan Colangelo mold of risk taking though. He took a risk in getting Ford in the first place. I would see this as an even bigger risk in his departure.

Doug Smith’s Blog on This Topic

An Update (June 25th 7pm) Yahoo is saying Deal is done For JO/Ford

Parker Leaving For Europe?

The other story is one that quite frankly I do not understand. Anthony Parker has said to have signed with a team in Greece to play for them next season. Yet he still has a valid NBA contract for next year with the Toronto Raptors. Unless he has quietly been bought out by the Raptors which would make little sense. How this can go down if it is indeed true does not make sense to me. The NBA would not be to pleased to have players under contract to their league signing contracts elsewhere. It may all make sense when all the smoke clears but as for right now it is a complete mud puddle to me. Just the fact this is out there would suggest that Parker knows he was not part of the Raptors plans going forward. But for a guy that has seemed to be a very classy stand-up indivdual this seems odd to me. I see Parker as a guy that would believe in honouring his contract and in a sense his word. If this is true it would seem that my impression of Anthony Parker was not an accurate one. I mean the guy did commericals with Dora and Sponge Bob how much more squeeky clean could he be?

So I guess the best advice for this week is check the Dino Nation Blog often as it would seem there will be lots of news and rumours right up until the Draft Party we are having on Thursday. Which ironically if this trade for O’Neal is true the Raptors would have no picks in. Talk about being a buzz kill on the Draft Party. SO SAY IT AIN’T SO. At least give me a rumour that says Raps will get back in this draft if they trade out.

Sam Mitchell Is Staying In T.O

Bryan Colangelo Says Sam Is Safe

On locker cleanout day big news for Sam Mitchell fans or foes. It has been clearly stated that Sam Mitchell is the coach of the Toronto Raptors. Bryan Colangelo made it clear that Sam Mitchell is the coach and their is no plan to change that. Here is the proof:

“All things should be put to rest right now. I have absolutely no plans to make a coaching change right now.”

“Nobody’s saying it’s all Sam Mitchell’s fault. Nobody’s saying it’s all Bryan Colangelo’s fault. Nobody’s saying it’s all Andrea Bargnani’s fault. It’s a collective effort in everything we do.”

“He’s the coach of this basketball team.”

The rumors of his job being on the line in the Orlando series and prior to that by members of the media. I said in this blog that ultimately only Bryan Colangelo knows Sam’s fate. Now we all do based on his comments today. I respect Colangelo as a man of his word and do not expect this to change.

T.J Ford is a much different issue. I as a Ford fan have some advice for T.J. PLEASE SHUT UP. I am being honest about it because T.J opens his mouth and inserts his foot. It is just the fact that whatever he says will be compared to what Jose Calderon says and that battle is one that Ford loses everytime. Ford talks about himself as relates to the team. How he can help the team. Jose talks team first and people will always respect that approach more. It is a mistake to think both guys don’t want to win. They do and anyone that wants to question Ford as a guy that doesn’t want to win needs to shake their head. His issue with what his role will be is not an issue to me. I want a guy who thinks and wants to be the starter. But I think T.J must listen hard and long to what Bryan and Sam have to say. If they offer him a chance to compete to be the starter with the understanding that it is an open competition in which he or Jose can win. Honestly that is all Ford can ask for. If it does not go his way he must learn to come to terms with that. I have no doubt where and when T.J Ford plays next year he will be at a much higher level from what we saw this season. It was a very tough year for T.J. People can toss that aside but I will not. The guy love him or hate him almost lost his career. He had to fight fear and return to the floor. He has a warrior mentality that is not easily found on this Raptor team. Jose Calderon has earned all the praise that has come his way. He will get a huge raise to return to the Raptors. That is not even a question.

The major thing to me is that both point guards need to improve on the defensive end of the floor. I honestly feel it is a major mistake to move Ford in the offseason. There is no rush to make this deal. Despite what you may read. You also read that Sam Mitchell was getting fired and that day may come but it is not coming soon. Same thing may apply to the trading of T.J Ford. No one knows what Roko Ukic is or will be. Till we have an understanding of that you can not risk trading Ford in my opinion. Ukic as well will not address the major concern for me at the point guard postion which is defence. He is tall and could develop into a good defender but in year one in the NBA will that happen? Seems very unlikely.

The major issues to me are two. We need a Vince Carter like small forward that is like the Vince we saw in his rookie year. A free agent that can slash to the hoop and draw fouls and dunk. A solid defender as part of that package would be nice too. I think Carlos Delfino will not get resigned and be moved on. Moon should remain and I would think Kapono as well. Anothny Parker could be the odd man on the trading block.

The other issue is the need for a real big. Rasho is big for sure but with his contract he may be required to pull of a deal to add to the talent base that will remain. I think I have the answer to the need for a big and it is not Bargnani. Roy Hibbert out of Georgetown in my opinion would make an excellent selection for the Raptors. He has the size as 7ft 2 and 273 pounds to be a force on the glass and a shot blocker on defence. I think he would be an excellent fit for Toronto and should be available depending on which mock draft you believe in.

Speaking of Bargnani he better use his time with John Lucas wisely this summer. He must improve and be far better. Colangelo seems commited to Andrea and his development but my worry is his value goes way down if he goes back in the tank next year. Make or break summer for Bargnani.

Based on Bryan Colangelo’s comments to not be shocked if you see Jorge Garbajosa have his contract bought out. I base this on a comment made by Colangelo about garbo’s particaption in China for Spain. He said the if Garbajosa is under contract to the Toronto Raptors he would not be playing for Spain. My guess is he will play for Spain because he will no longer be a Raptor and will have his contract bought out. You really can’t trade him based on the fact that no one is sure he will ever be able to play at the level of his lone season in 06-07.

Those are the opening thoughts on what should be a VERY INTERESTING off season for the Raptors. I have done a podcast but have had issues uploading it. If I am able to figure it out I will add it to this post. I repeated many of the ideas in this blog in case I don’t.  Sorry about the delay today. But I had fire alarms going off all morning as they were testing them where I live. I also had some other things in life to take care of. I am working on getting our new writer all set to go as well. Hopefully he will be able to get his stuff on here very soon. He is excited to take part and I am excited as well. Hopefully you all will get excited by what he brings to the blog. So Sam Mitchell press conferences live on…thank God for that because i can’t tell you how many luaghs Sam has given me over his time in Toronto. I like Sam as a person and am happy he is staying with the Raptors. Some may be angry about this news but I am not among them.

See You in Orlando???

Air Jamario Set Course For Florida

 

By the end of this night the Toronto Raptors could have their playoff outlook secured. It will take 2 things for that to happen. The first is a win over Miami and then hope for Cleveland to win on the road vs the Sixers. Cleveland would have the King in the line-up. The Raptors had their King of Canada Chris Bosh and he was big yesterday in a lose to Detroit. But regardless of the out of town scoreboard the Raptors had there fate in their own hands which is all you can ask for at this time of year. That being said If Sam Mitchell could rest some people on Wednesday in Chicago he would not complain one bit. Bosh has been playing heavy minutes down the stretch and if things work out having him not needed to play that much in Chicago would be good news.

 

If you can name 5 players on the current Miami roster you are far more a basketball nut then you Dino Nation Blogger. No Marion and No Wade and a cast of No Names. No offence to Ricky Davis but when he is the best player on the floor for your team you have issues. Pat Riley is going to the Hall of Fame this summer but it had zero to do with the 07-08 Miami Heat basketball team. All this being said the Miami Heat started the game on a 7-2 run. It was Fan Appreciation night at the Air Canada Centre but were not feeling very much of that with the Raptors early effort. But the Raptors would settle down and start getting after it. Raptors were back to a 10-10 score and they were coming off a back to back but still this was the Miami Heat. A team that the Raptors flat out embarrassed on a couple of occasions this season. But this collection of Heat players were hanging in and actually had a lead. Jose Calderon would check in for a frustrated T.J Ford. The Raptors would take their first lead since 2-0 with just over 2 minutes to play in the 1st quarter. A defensive blunder would give the Heat a 3 point lead at the end of the first quarter. Sam Mitchell wanted his team to foul with the foul they had to give. But It ended in a basket and foul shot for Jason Williams and a heat 28-25 lead after one.

 

The easy win the Raptor fans were hoping for was turning out not to be so easy. The Raptors were playing down to the level of competition that was on the floor against them and that needed to change and the sooner the better. Raptors were making some defensive plays with 6 blocks in less then a quarter and a half of play. But the negative was the shots they were not blocking were uncontested open looks. T.J Ford would return and looked to one of his new favourite targets in Rasho Nesterovic. An easy two for Rasho but the defence as on many nights was the major concern. Still where would the Raptors be without Rasho. I am not being funny with that he has become a big part of what this Raptor team is all about. The lack of purpose and direction would continue as the Heat had a 7 point advantage late in the half. Raps would cut the lead down to 4 points but this was an awful first half performance. 

If you were expecting the Raptors to storm out of halftime break and take over you were not alone. But that is not what happened.  the Heat would extend the lead to 7 points T.J Ford had seen enough and decided to do it himself. Sometimes not a wise choice by Ford but he was a big reason in what got the Raptors back in this game. T.J was even able to nail a three point shot at the end of the shot clock. Raps finally were back in front. Ricky Davis a guy of questionable character at times in his NBA career (When with the Cavs he took a shot at the wrong basket to get a rebound to get a Triple Double on the Night) was playing hard for the Heat. refusing to let the Raptors run away and hide with the lead.  As for that other game the Cavs Davis’ former team were leading the Sixers by 6.  Meanwhile the Raptors had their largest lead of the game at 5 points. Raptors had a chance to take an 8 point lead into the final quarter but Bargnani would misfire and they would have to settle for a 70-64 lead after 3 quarters.  

Raptors were not doing anything to impress anyone so far but they were in the position they needed to be and that is all that matters. There was just not any point you could feel confident in the Toronto Raptors on this night. They had a 10 point lead only to watch Miami to close to 5 points. But the Raptor would extend that lead on back to back scores by Jason Kapono. He had a three pointer and a jumper for 2 points and the Raptors had a 12 point lead with under 6 minutes to play. Kapono has his struggles recently but had 11 points so far on this night. It would be nice to think he could find his game as he could be a key weapon in the playoffs for Toronto. If Orlando was going to be the Raptors first round Match-up it may be even more important to have Kapono firing on all cylinders. Orlando can shot the 3 point shot very well just like Toronto. Jose Calderon would convert a steal into a fast break lay-up off the Delfino theft. The Raptors now were up 14 points and I finally could feel a little safer in thinking the Raptors would win this basketball game. The attention now would turn to Philly and the Cavs. The Raptors would walk away with a victory and looked to be minutes away from facing the Orlando Magic as Cleveland was looking to clinch home court advantage over Washington for the playoffs. Raptors Final Score was 91-76. Drama down the stretch in Philly. But in the end the Cavs pull out a last second 91-90 win and the Raptors are heading to Orlando by way of Chicago. Cleveland orginally thought they lost but a foul on Canadian Sameul Dalembert would be what would give Cleveland the 2 free throws that they made to win. Canada thanks you Sam even if people is Philly don’t. Thoughts on Orlando series tomorrow but the Raptors end up again with the people’s choice in a first round match-up.  Last year didn’t work out to well but this year just might.

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