A few weeks down and the Raptors are exactly the team I thought they would be – showing little signs of improvement. At 4 wins and 7 losses, the current Raptors are barely watchable. I won’t write a long drawn out article on the positives and negatives. Rather, I’ll give you three things that piss me off about this team in 60 seconds or less.
“This is not a democracy on offence”: The first few weeks I’ve noted that Andrea looked hesitant with the ball. When he is hot, the Raptors role players (garbage) continue to forget about him. Guys like Anthony Carter, James Johnson, and even Leandro Barbosa are taking shots that should be passed to Andrea (or DeRozan). Casey has said the team’s offence is not a democracy, but that hasn’t proven true in crunch time. If Andrea is going to be successful and take the next step to elite status, he needs to become more aggressive in the fourth quarter. Does he warrant votes on all-star ballots? Perhaps, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t under-achieving – still!
Is DeRozan taking a step backward? So far this season I don’t like what I am seeing from Double D. Casey is trying to get him to become the defensive stopper but I see it negatively affecting his game. That said, I’ll acknowledge that we’re only eleven losses into the season and he’s playing for a new coach. My expectations are for him to hit the 20/8 level this season, which may be too lofty. At this point he is averaging one fewer FGA per game and with increased minutes over the last two his FG% has suffered thus far.
Johnson the new “Junk Yard Dog”: Granted, the guy shows a lot of hustle with some numbers to prove it. Unfortunately he’s getting carried away and taking far too many AWFUL shots. If Casey can get him to tone down his game and focus on being a hustle/steals/boards/lay-ups kinda guy he has a future with this team. Please, Raptor Nation; don’t develop blind love for a hustle guy that on most teams would be on the IR.
Through the first week couple weeks of the season the Raptors managed to win their home opener against the worst team in the NBA, followed by three consecutive losses. Since then it very much has looked the same – a victory followed by a few losses. Despite some decent play, the Raptors don’t have the guns to stick with even the mid-ranked teams in the league. While the future in 2012/2013 is bright(ish), watch the current Raptors games at your own risk depending on your tolerance level. Watching the games may cost you a new TV after you throw your converter through it, or worse, a night in jail after your neighbours call the police from listening to you scream loud enough to make them think you’re having a domestic dispute.
and that is the last word…
