GT: Wed Nov 25 Bobcats Vs Raptors 7PM

[tsherkin]

Sad thing?

"Pack the paint" is, at least in principle, the defensive principle our idiot head coach espouses, even though without other elements supporting it, it's stupid.

Our help defense is awful, we don't have a single above-average man defender in the starting 5 and for the love of god, we have the WORST defender in the league at the point and the worst help defender in the league at the 5 (Bargs).

Hedo, I can understand; he's athletically outmatched at the 3, and that's fine, he tries. And in Orlando, he was a good team defender, but he's not in Toronto because our coaching sucks and our players are AWFUL on D.

I HATE, absolutely HATE, this year's team.

[WaydownSouth]

Raptors defense is beyond awful..... It's truely the worst I've seen in a long long time. I'm not sure if even the best defender in the league, actually, the history of the NBA could help their sorry excuse for defense.

Weak perimeter defense, and then there are more holes in their front court defense than in a brothel, and there are a tonne of holes in a brothel......

[Battery]

Sad thing?

"Pack the paint" is, at least in principle, the defensive principle our idiot head coach espouses, even though without other elements supporting it, it's stupid.

Our help defense is awful, we don't have a single above-average man defender in the starting 5 and for the love of god, we have the WORST defender in the league at the point and the worst help defender in the league at the 5 (Bargs).

Hedo, I can understand; he's athletically outmatched at the 3, and that's fine, he tries. And in Orlando, he was a good team defender, but he's not in Toronto because our coaching sucks and our players are AWFUL on D.

I HATE, absolutely HATE, this year's team.

ahhh...........it's amazing how quickly things change.


You guys should sign Allen Iverson.

[tsherkin]

What would that do, Battery?

Or are you just kidding?

We need defense. We need to have Andrea Bargnani killed, so Bryan Colangelo can move past his man-crush and make this team play some effing defense and hit the effing glass.

[Battery]

What would that do, Battery?

Or are you just kidding?

We need defense. We need to have Andrea Bargnani killed, so Bryan Colangelo can move past his man-crush and make this team play some effing defense and hit the effing glass.

You get offered Allen Iverson when outsiders perceive your team as sh*t. Don't worry, he'll kill your offense too. Put you in prime lottery position.

Anyway, we tried to warn you before the season started that the Raptors were crapola because of their bad defense. You need to watch more Charlotte Bobcats basketball. We play serious defense down here. And yes, Tyson Chandler says hi.......6 times.

[arh1109]

What would that do, Battery?

Or are you just kidding?

We need defense. We need to have Andrea Bargnani killed, so Bryan Colangelo can move past his man-crush and make this team play some effing defense and hit the effing glass.

Two things: Grab a Marcus Camby type center and bring Bargs off the bench and you'll be back to playoff basketball.

[fatlever]

bargs can work and bosh can work, but bargs + bosh cant work. you cant have two jumpshooting soft 7-footers playing 35+ mins. especially when your pg is not defending anyone.

interesting situation in toronto. i wonder what kind of deal the rapts could get for bosh at the trade deadline.

[Walt Cronkite]

Free Rasho

[Paydro70]

I would give the Raptors the entire roster for Bosh... if that means anything.

[Fred Williamson]

Felton+Chandler+Diaw for Bosh+Banks+Evans

[amcoolio]

I wouldn't.... but if they want Diaw/Chandler/Augustin for Bosh/Banks/Evans, then by all means.

[thruthefire]

Wallace, Diaw, and Henderson for Bosh, Weems, and O'Bryant.

Or just Wallace and Diaw for Bosh.

[amcoolio]

Trading Wallace, although his value is super high, is a risky move right now IMO. I think Jackson-Wallace-Bosh-Mohammad though with Larry Brown coaching is as good as it gets in the East though.

[Battery]

I would give the Raptors the entire roster for Bosh... if that means anything.

For a PF who is soft on defense? For all of his great offensive play, he's done nothing to elevate that team. No leadership and no defense. It starts on the defensive end and when your best player plays no defense, makes it hard on the rest of the team to develop a defensive mindset.

Our team could probably cover for him, but if you take out Crash who has already developed a great chemistry with S-Jax, then you're taking out a big chunk of our aggressiveness on both ends of the floor.

And I don't even know why you would think about a major trade right now when our team has played BY FAR the best it has since they entered the league. Opposing teams are playing SCARED when they dribble up court and see our defense pressure. I've never seen a teams defense force another team into as many perimeter turnovers as we're forcing right now.

We're finally playing the way all of us dreamed about when we were stinking up the court, and now you're talking about giving it back...for a player who's led his own team into the toilet. I don't get it.

[Paydro70]

Being a merely OK defender is completely acceptable when you are a top 10 offensive threat in the NBA. Bosh is outperforming his matchup in PER by TEN so far this year... that's rarefied air, occupied by superstars or near-superstars only.

Typically the objection to blowing up the team is that we're unlikely to sign a star free agent... in theory, that is what we would be doing in my hypothetical. We've always wanted a go-to guy, an offensive force that commands double-teams and opens up things for everyone else. Well, that's what Bosh is.

Right now, the team might be good enough to make the playoffs. I emphasize might, because I remember previous stretches of excellent play which ultimately amounted to nothing. If, god help us, we are the Nets' first win, for instance, the entire board will be singing a different tune. Even if the team DOES turn out to be plus-.500, realistically we're still looking at a first-round exit as the 6-7 seed.

If we want to win a championship at some point, we need a star, and I think that Bosh is good enough to be the clear #1 guy on a championship roster.

Anyway all of this is moot, since we're NOT going to be trading for Bosh, who would NOT be interested in a sign-and-trade that locks him up long-term.

[arh1109]

Bosh is a matchup nightmare. So glad that he's not able to drop 35 on us every game anymore. If we replaced Diaw with Bosh we would be contenders that's for sure.

[Battery]

Being a merely OK defender is completely acceptable when you are a top 10 offensive threat in the NBA. Bosh is outperforming his matchup in PER by TEN so far this year... that's rarefied air, occupied by superstars or near-superstars only.

This is where you and I differ greatly. I don't understand why you consider this important?

[Paydro70]

I used PER margin as a shorthand to counteract the "Bosh is a bad defender" argument. Bosh can be a bad defender, though I don't think he is, if he outperforms his counterpart by a sufficiently wide margin. Call it the Steve Nash theorem.

[SWedd523]

Being a merely OK defender is completely acceptable when you are a top 10 offensive threat in the NBA. Bosh is outperforming his matchup in PER by TEN so far this year... that's rarefied air, occupied by superstars or near-superstars only.

This is where you and I differ greatly. I don't understand why you consider this important?

Though he may not be an average defender, he more than makes up for that on the offensive end by such a wide margin that he covers his deficiencies.

[spectre_]

Wiretap headline:

Raptors Might Tweak Defensive Scheme

I don't know which is funnier...the "might" or the "tweak"! And what "defensive scheme"?