Game Recap: Raptors 127, Magic 110
Defense? We don’t need no stinkin’ defense.
It was a little bit into the third quarter when I looked up at the scoreboard and poked my buddy at the shoulder. The board read that Chris Bosh had 29 points and I said to my friend, “Wow, I never realized he was even close to that.” My friend said the same thing and that it was possibly the quietest 40 point night he’s ever seen. The thing is, while Chris Bosh seemingly effortlessly threw in 40 points, the rest of his teammates contributed so the scoring was more or less spread out throughout the team.
Of course, our local and league elite 50-40-90 point guard (that’s percentages from the field, three, and free throw line) managed to give the team well needed boosts of offense throughout the game. Quickly showing no signs of slowing down, Jose Calderon once again proved just how essential he is to the Raptors’ offense. He found the guys on the floor in every nook and cranny, allowing guys such as Moon to make clear back door cuts, and Carlos Delfino to hoist the ball beyond the arc. In fact, the drop off was so significant throughout the game that Jose Calderon was asked to play almost 38 minutes after a nice, long vacation in the Bahamas. Throw some Rasho Nesterovic into the mix as he did a great job challenging Dwight Howard consistently throughout the game, and the Raptors were able to have a sizable lead throughout most of the game.
With the Magic though, there is no way to do things easily. Howard had the Raptors in fits with some great offensive rebounding and decent free throw shooting. From all the way up in the Sprite Zone, Dwight had his own share of supporters. The heckling was harsh and consistent, and even though Dwight had a great night with 37 points and 15 rebounds (10 offensive!), the fans gave it to the Howard supporters and even started a “Howard Sucks” chant that ended up spreading throughout the entire arena as Howard was making some free throws. Maurice Evans and Jameer Nelson provided some effective offense as well, and allowed the Magic a few runs while Juan Dixon and the bench were on the floor.
However, in my eyes, it wasn’t all rosy tonight. Little mistakes like Jamario Moon’s failure to consistently attack the basket while defenders were in his way, regression of Andrea Bargnani’s play, and poor ball movement while Juan Dixon was on the floor would have caused the Raptors to play a much tighter game against a better team. The concern about Moon’s failure to attack the hoop seemed to have been downplayed by some of the fans at the game. It’s enthralling, for sure, when a player can make dynamic moves like he can, but the problem is that he’s unable to put fear in a team. Bargnani got away from getting to the free throw line, missed some shots, and just couldn’t match up well against a power center like Howard. Finally, Juan Dixon’s lack of ability at the point was underlined especially by the poor play of Jason Kapono, who was on fire while T.J. Ford was playing. The difference and need of a guy like T.J. to come in and make the bench better cannot be understated. As we enter the final leg of the season, the starters are going to feel the wear of the season just that more seriously. A suitable backup is just going to be that important for the Raptors to insure that their starters will be able to play well in the playoffs.
With this win, the Raptors close the gap just a little more against the Magic. Can they catch third? Well, it’s possible, but the season is still long, and there are many games yet to be played. With T.J. on the mend yet again, the Raptors have a trade deadline coming up where they may be looking for yet another point guard to enter the ranks of the team. However, I believe that the more pressing matter has got to be defense at the wing position and rebounding. If anyone can swing a deal with the likes of Humphries, Dixon, Graham, and Martin, it’s Bryan. Let’s just hope there’s something out there within the next 12 hours.
Next Game: Toronto @ New York
Comments
By Connor on February 21st, 2008 at 7:28 am
Really now, how many centre’s in the NBA can match up against Howard? You can’t really blame this on Bargnani…
By rashad on February 21st, 2008 at 8:04 am
How about Stan Van Gundy throwing Dwight Howard’s defense under the bus for the second time in two weeks?
By Kinnon Yee on February 21st, 2008 at 10:04 am
Connor - Boxing out and things like that were kinda absent. I realize on a lot of plays, Moon really was the guy that let the whole defense fall apart by not preventing the penetration, but at the same time, Bargs had to do something better than what he was doing yesterday. He was pretty slow on rotations and didn’t find a body like he was before the all star break. That’s why I’m mentioning it.
Rashad - He didn’t really. In the post game, he said he doesn’t blame Howard like he did a week ago, but just that he had no solution for Bosh, and that it was on him because he thought Howard could do a one-on-one job. He mentioned that it was largely his own fault for not throwing more double teams at Bosh.
By Johnn19 on February 21st, 2008 at 12:08 pm
The difference in the game and between the teams was at Point Guard. Jose is the master of the pick and roll with Bosh, and the Majic PG’s just could not guard him, and he controlled the game, scored when he was open, and passed to the open man. I thought Sam made a good adjustment with Delfino playing some PG with Jose @ 2 in the 4th when Orlando was doubling him. Carlos made 2 nice passes to Jose for 2-3’s to seal the game. Jose is shooting the lights out!!!
By Anthony RapFan on February 21st, 2008 at 4:27 pm
Good game, but still agonizing in the 4th quarter. I’ll Give Bargs the February Mulligan since he ALMOST had a power dunk, but he better not lay an egg again, naw he will.
!TRADE TRADE TRADE TRADE!
Juan Dixon —> Detroit
For Primoz Brezec (C) 7′0″
The trade was a “safe” and a minuture trade. I do not know the length of Brezec’s contract, but it is small. I remember mentioning before that we can make Bench GEM acquisitions during the trade deadline. If this is the closest we can get, it is fine with me. Brezec is being neglected due to injury and being the 12th man. He exploded with the Bobcats 1st year with 12-14pt sand 9-10rebs a game. Ever since some string of injuries, he disappeared. He is still young and joining the Euro-Raps and a good Eastern European poulation in TDot might give him a shot of confidence. Rasho can relate to him, so can Bargnani as well, and also Maurizio Gherardini might have a good Euro profile on what can make Brezec a better player. Can it inspire him to contribute to the team? It all depends……
AT LEAST we got a big man.
By Kinnon Yee on February 21st, 2008 at 9:54 pm
Johnn19 - I’ve said it last year, and I’ll keep saying it, that I’ve always believed that Calderon is a better pure point guard than most in the league. He has a real “Steve Nash” ability without the turnover aspect, and is just so good at keeping a steady and good dribble position that it’s really hard for other point guards to steal from him. It’s just scary how his dribbling is a true weapon that has no weaknesses.
Anthony - I don’t think he really adds much other than another sparring partner for Bargs in practice. He doesn’t hurt the Raptors for sure, and the good thing is that Carlos will be forced to play some more point, which is probably a better option than Dixon.
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