Built Ford Tough

I wouldn't say that they aren't worse without him because they have only won 1 game without him in the lineup and, for all of his faults, he is the most talented player on the team. I think the real question is whether or not our future is any worse without him. That is the question that Raptor fans have been debating since he was drafted and will inevitably continue to debate for as long as he is on the team.

It is pretty much the only thing the Raptors have had going for them for the past decade. When all everybody ever talks about is how you can't keep your star players, nobody wants to play in Canada and how crappy the franchise is run (as well as how crappy the team is on the floor), the fans have to have something to be proud of. Now the only thing we have to look forward to is the possibility of getting the top draft pick in a completely watered down draft, just like the last time the Raptors had one. Being a Raptors fan rock!

The thing that made people think so little (for lack of a better word) of Griffin was because he didn't really show too much of his skill level in college because he was so much stronger and more athletic than the competition. He really did just bully his way around the paint in college (at least from what I remember), so people didn't think he was as skilled as he has shown himself to be in the NBA thus far. With Sullinger, it is basically the opposite. People don't think that he really has the athletic tools and size to compete with NBA caliber bigs. I don't think anybody questions his skill level, but they are concerned whether or not he will be able to adapt to the more athletic bigs that he will go against every night in the pros. Similar scenarios though, no doubt about it. I never really thought of that before but they are very similar with just the roles reversed basically. I actually think that Sullinger can become a very good low post player if he is able to find a way to nulify the physical disadvantages that he will have in the NBA. I didn't like him as a pro prospect coming out of high school all that much but he has definitely opened my eyes so far this year and has made me re-think my stance on him.

More skilled, less athletic version of Paul Millsap is what I see him as. Not an All-Star, but a solid double double guy who is a reliable starting power forward and 3rd option type of guy. As for him living up to the hype in the NBA, I don't see why not considering he doesn't really have much NBA hype to begin with. He started off the season as an after thought to guys like Harrison Barnes, Perry Jones, Kyrie Irving, Josh Selby, Brandon Knight and Enes Kanter. He was, if I recall, projected as a late lottery pick before the season started and has only recently moved his way up the draft board due to his great play so far. Even then, I still don't think people are really hyping him up too much. Most see him as what I mentioned above and I don't see why he can't live up to that kind of expectations. Also, a main reason for people talking about him is because so many of the other highly touted Freshman are struggling. Barnes has been awful, Knight has shown no point guard instincts, Irving is hurt, Jones has been solid, but unspectacular and Selby missed the beginning chunk of the season. Outside of Terrence Jones (and Irving when he was healthy), no Freshman really played like they were expected to, so with Sullinger meeting, and perhaps exceeding, those expectations, it is natural that he gets talked about more.

Raptors only ever take 3 players. Enes Kanter Jared Sullinger Kyrie Irving If they get the first pick (or the 2nd pick and a team like Washington gets the 1st pick) they always take Irving. If they get a pick in the 3-4 range it is always Kanter and if they fall below 4 it is always Sullinger.

You would've loved to play the Raptors a few games ago, then. Not only did they have a 10-day contract on the floor in the 4th, but he was on the floor in the 2nd and 3rd while playing nearly 20 minutes. Pretty much the ideal game from my persepective. DeRozan scores 29 points on 50% shooting and 12 trips to the line (hitting 11 of them) and the Raptors continue to fall down the standings as they are officially the 2nd worst team in the East (assuming the Nets didn't play tonight and lost). This is probably as far as they will slide, though. The Cavs have pretty much mastered the fine art of tanking. I can't wait for the day when Calderon is off of this team. He seems like a good guy and loves the city of Toronto, but I just can't stand the guy as a basketball player and, to make matters worse, he is playing nearly 40 minutes which severely cuts into Bayless' minutes. Hopefully Colangelo can ship him out before the deadline.

There was actually only 0.5 seconds left in the game. Raptors could've used some Darrick Martin tonight. What I wouldn't have given to have him as our weekly "scrub who gets way more minutes than he should" instead of Sundiata Gaines. At least then the streak would be alive.

The [expletive]tiest thing about this is that the Mavs are only like 10 games behind so the Raps are only going to hold the record of around a month. Jesus christ, being a Raptors fan is depressing.

Not to mention New Jersey beat the Cavs which means the Raptors are currently tied for the 2nd worst record in the East.

Because the play was clearly designed for Gaines. Streak comes first. PS: Its Liar.

Brb, going to go kill myself.

Worst. Day. Ever.

Who cares about that, hit a damn three!

Who cares about that, hit a damn three!

Don't get me wrong, I love the fact that the team is actually rebuilding as well. My post above may have seemed like I was against this move or something, which isn't the case at all. I love the fact that this team is going through a legitimate rebuild. This should've happened after Carter was traded, so it is long overdue. Even though Ajinca is a scrub, I like the pickup for the simple fact that the Raptors are now going to have a 2-3 month look at a former first round pick and it cost them absolutely nothing (Dallas is paying his contract, from what I believe). There is a 99% chance he completely sucks and won't be back with the team next year, but there is that 1% chance that he can actually show something worth keeping around. These are the kind of no risk/moderate reward moves that the Raptors should be making, and, for the most part, Colangelo has done a nice job of making these moves with this trade, the Wright/Beli trade and the Jack/Bayless trade.

Huge block by Davis on Randolph. Ok, maybe not huge in the general sense, but for the Raptors it was a huge block. DeRozan with a very nice spin and layup as well. Him and Bargs with the combined 52 points. None of that matters, though, the Raptors have yet to hit a 3 in this game. The streak can't end.

Good god, look at this: The Raptors are basically going to put out a lineup of the D-League All-Stars tonight. Jesus christ. At least Weems is back!

Trade is officially completed. Toronto should rename their team to the Toronto Scrubs. I mean, good god, Alabi, Ajinca, Gaines, Kleiza, Wright and Trey Johnson (just signed him)? I wanted a tank, but this is ridiculous.

Like usual, I'll miss the majority of this game due to class, but hopefully the Raptors can be a bit more competitive than they have been as of late. I'm all for the losses, don't get me wrong, but getting absolutely torched on a consistent basis is definitely not something I like to see. Losses like that can really wreck a young players confidence and that is something I would like to avoid. Oh yeah, if the Raptos lose tonight they will be tied for 2nd last in the East (as well all know Jersey will beat the Cavs, considering Cleveland would be happy with losing every game from here on out). Pick is getting better by the day.

This was posted on RealGM and I found it pretty interesting. If you recall, Bargnani missed 4 games in a row a couple weeks back and in those games, the scores were (Raptor point total first, opponent second): Small sample size and raw scoring numbers don't tell the whole story, I know. Other factors obviously played a part in these numbers as well (such as Calderon not being in the lineup for a couple). However, from a very simplistic point of view, I just found it interesting how the Raptors are basically screwed with Bargnani in the lineup due them being abused defensively and on the glass, but they are screwed without him in the lineup because nobody (other than maybe DeRozan) can score the ball worth a damn. Seeing this made me go over to 82games.com and take a look at some more numbers. Defense: Pts per 100 Poss. On Floor: 115.2 Off Floor: 108.9 Difference: +6.3 Offense: Pts per 100 Poss. On Floor: 108.1 Off Floor: 106.6 Difference: +1.6 Offensive Rebounding On Floor: 28.9% Off Floor 32.9% Difference: -3.9% Defensive Rebounding On Floor: 70.9% Off Floor 71.2% Difference: -0.4% Total Rebounding On Floor: 49.9% Off Floor 52.1% Difference: -2.1% Effective FG% On Floor: 50.9% Off Floor: 48.8% Difference: +2.1% Effective FG% Allowed On Floor: 52.7% Off Floor: 51.7% Difference: +1.0% To avoid making this post too long and dull, I'll stop with the numbers as they are all basically showing the exact same thing. With Bargnani on the floor, the Raptors defense is horrific, but they are a solid offensive team. With Bargnani off the floor, the Raptors defense is competent, but they are a brutal offensive team. So which is the lesser of two evils? I'm mainly just rambling/ranting here and I don't expect any real discussion from this thread. Just found these numbers interesting.

Raptors felt sorry for Kobe's sorry supporting cast so they decided that they would let him drop 81 on them.

I'm talking about during All-Star Weekend, not the end of the season All-Rookie Team (which I know he won't make). His numbers, with rookie rankings in brackers, are: 6.2 ppg (14th) 6.2 rpg (4th) 1.04 bpg (2nd)* 56.7 FG% (5th) 21.5 mpg (10th) 3 Double Doubles (6th) *is actually 3rd but the rookie leader has only played in 1 game, so I didn't count him* So do you think he will be able to join DeRozan in the Rookie Challenge during All-Star Weekend? Or will his injury earlier in the season keep him off of the team? Or is he simply not deserving of making the team injury or not? I don't think that the Raptors have ever had a player on both the rookie team and the sophomore team during the same season, so it would be great to see him make the team and join DeRozan in the game. EDIT: Now that I think about it, I think Moon and Bargnani were on the Rookie and Sophomore teams respectively a few years back, so it wouldn't be the first time the Raptors have had this happen.

Some of these were somewhat humerous. Yes, this is how sad it is to be a Raptors fan. I actually find some of these comments midly entertaining. Can we just fast forward the next 5 months and get to the draft already?

To be fair, the Raptors management probably had just as much say in Peja not playing for the team, or having the "injury", as much as Peja himself did. Both sides realized that there was no real future for Peja on this team and both of them would be better off if he didn't even play as it would be more beneficial for the Raptors to give those minutes to guys like Kleiza, Wright, DeRozan, Johnson and Davis instead of Stojakovic while there was no point in Peja suiting up considering he was going to be either traded or bought out once the 60-day rule expired. This isn't the first time that a situation like this will have occured, and it sure as hell won't be the last time that it will either.

I'm sure everybody knew this, or at the very least suspected this, but I found it funny how bluntly Jones put it: http://www.sportsnet.ca/basketball/2011/01/21/jones_blog/ Some other interesting comments from him about just how professional Stojakovic was during his time "with" the Raptors: He also compared Peja to Alonzo Mourning, back when the Raptors traded for him in the Carter deal: Probably not thread worthy, but whatever. I found his sour grapes pretty amusing so I figured I'd post it.