Raptors' wandering eye checking out playoffs

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01/06/2010 - Toronto, Canada (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - If the Toronto Raptors were courting the playoffs, one may observe a game of hard to get. The playoffs don't need the Raptors, or else that is what they would have you believe. After all, there are more than a dozen suitors, and the playoffs don't wait on anyone.

For the Raptors, perhaps there is some residual hurt still stemming from the Vince Carter missed shot that spoiled the most successful basketball team this city has experienced. Since then, the Raps have played the role of jealous ex- boyfriend, unable to move beyond the past and settling for mediocre alternatives to pass the time.

Unfortunately, every year the Raps actually get invited to the dance, they get dumped before the first song is over. Not an entire loss when you figure most high school dances start with Mariah Carey, end with Mariah Carey and are filled with songs that make you say "Is this Mariah Carey?" No offense to Mariah, just an observation.

But this isn't high school, so analogies have as much relevance here as a chaperone - they won't affect the outcome. This 2009-2010 Raptor version is much different than years past, and should be evaluated accordingly.

There is no template from previous Raptor editions for which you could compare this team - this year's roster features just three holdovers from last season's training camp and the highest-paid free agent in club history in Hedo Turkoglu. Throw in a revolving door of shooting guards, a frontcourt of shooters and a coach in his first full season on the job and you have a team that begs to be chewed up and spit out by opponents and analysts following the first twenty- some odd games.

Luckily for these dinos in purple, the NBA season is 82 games long. Over the past three weeks, the Raps have shown us a few new things. Primarily, it is safe to say that they are much better than that, yet not quite as good as this. The former being the squad that suffered through a miserable November while trying to assimilate a rotation new to each other and Jay Triano's system. The result: a 6-10 record that was digested much worse after absorbing some of the month's results.

ROCK BOTTOM

That came during an eleven-game stretch in which the Raps won just two games, allowed their opponent to score 100 or more points in each, capped off by a 31- point drubbing at the hands of the Atlanta Hawks. The scene was eerily similar to the back-breaking-thumping the Raptors endured last December in Denver that led to the firing of coach Sam Mitchell. When you consider the fact that the Hawks are arguably the fourth-best team in the Eastern Conference and would have to be an afterthought for the Raptors if they have aspirations beyond the first round, the outlook is bleak. But a closer look at the numbers tells a different story.

Of their 16 November games, the Raptors' schedule had them playing just three teams considered to be non-playoff teams at this point (Detroit, Indiana and the Clippers) and won all three games. Outside of that trio, November saw the Raps play seven of eight consecutive games on the road against the Western Conference (six of those playoff-caliber teams) and three games against Boston and Orlando. And while success in this league is predicated on beating the top teams, it was a difficult month given such a new-look roster to formulate any sort of definitive evaluation. Players-only meetings and individual soul searching have changed the trajectory of the Raptors' season.

Since the debacle in Atlanta, Toronto has won 10 of 15 games and allowed 100 or more points in eight of those games. Although it is clear the Raptors' glaring weakness is defense, both interior and on the perimeter, they have an offense with enough firepower that it is possible for them to realize some success without shutting down opposing offenses every night. Heading into play Wednesday night in Orlando, the Raps had won six of seven highlighted by a 91-86 win at home against the San Antonio Spurs.

EMERGENCE OF IL MAGO

Nicknamed "Il Mago" in his homeland of Italy, meaning "The Magician", some fans have wondered if Andrea Bargnani had taken the name literally. Making a habit of disappearing for stretches on offense and refusing to rebound has frustrated everyone that has watched the 7-footer, taken No. 1 overall in the 2006 entry draft.

His growth stunted by former coach Sam Mitchell and his attitude toward the European prodigy ,and a lack of comfort in the NBA game has seemingly dwindled away with every game that passes. Bargnani's numbers have increased steadily since Triano took the reins last season and amidst stretches of inconsistency this year, Bargnani has put his unique skill set on display for everyone to see why the hype is very much a reality.

In his fifth season in the league, Bargnani is averaging career-highs in points, rebounds, blocks and field goal percentage. And further, his evolution as a player is not only evidenced in the box score. His voice can now be heard among Raptors barking out defensive assignments and observing opponents' offensive schemes. For the first time in his career, he seems comfortable on the floor and very much the leader he was touted as during his years with Benetton Treviso in the Italian League, while surrounded by men years his senior.

A key to the success of the team will be the continued emergence of Il Mago. Perhaps his biggest shot, as a Raptor as they fight to remain in the playoff picture, came December 30 at home to Charlotte. With a one-point lead in the closing seconds, team leader and star Chris Bosh found Bargnani on the perimeter where he promptly drilled a 3-pointer that sent the Air Canada Centre into a frenzy. After watching that game, the final play and his reaction that ensued, it was apparent the Italian was carrying a swagger usually reserved for superstars. His confidence seems to act as a precursor to his game at both ends of the floor. Anyone that has watched Bargnani throughout his career can attest to the fact that the more he is involved, the better he plays. Not exactly earth-shattering analysis for any player in the NBA, but consider the stats.

Through his first 255 games in the NBA, Bargnani boasts career averages of 13 points and 4.6 rebounds a game, skewed heavily by his first two years in the league. Of the 255 games, he has had 18 or more shot attempts in just 20 contests, 13 of them coming at the helm of Triano. During games in which he gets at least 18 shots, he is averaging 22.3 points and 6.8 rebounds per game. Although there is an obvious correlation between shot attempts and points, these numbers not only suggest he shoots at a higher percentage the more shots he gets, but he becomes more active at both ends of the floor. For Toronto fans, his progression as a player should serve notice of him living up to the lofty expectations the franchise had for him as the top player drafted in 06.

Should Triano find a way to incorporate oft-injured point guard Jose Calderon into the rotation following his return - even if that role is off the bench - the Raptors find themselves with room for optimism in the final four months of the season. Still a top perimeter defender away from legitimizing this roster for the postseason, GM Bryan Colangelo now has a much better picture of his team than what November painted.

For the first time in a while, this Raptor team might be talented enough to play hard to get.

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The NFL preseason is approaching. Time for players, coaches and teams to turn over a new leaf. General managers have hired some new coaches, while coaches have added some offensive and defensive assistants to try and improve things. Here’s a look at some changes to look for in the preseason.

New York Jets: The Jets were one of the surprise teams in the NFL last season, making the playoffs under hard-driving first-year coach Eric Mangini. Mangini rebuilt the offensive line with rookies D'Brickashaw Ferguson (the No. 4 pick in the 2007 Draft) and Ohio State center (the 29th pick in the first round). This season he upgraded the defense with rookie linebacker David Harris (Michigan) while the secondary picked up a much needed top-notch corner in Pitt CB Darrelle Revis (No. 14 overall).

The Jets have added balance to the offense for QB Chad Pennington with RB Thomas Jones, essentially stolen from the Bears. He will upgrade a New York ground game that was 20th in rushing with a weak 3.5 yards per carry. They have their first true feature back since Curtis Martin. Offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer prefers ball control, like his father Marty. In preseason, behind Pennington you’ll see second-year QB Kellen Clemens and mobile newcomer QB Marques Tuiasosopo.

Jacksonville Jaguars: The heat is on Jack Del Rio in Jacksonville as the Jaguars flopped last season despite a ton of talent. Keep in mind that under Del Rio the Jaguars have been outstanding in preseason with a 12-4 SU, 11-5 ATS August mark. online football betting Their defense is loaded, it’s the offense that has been stuck in first gear the last few years.

Enter a new offensive coordinator in Dirk Koetter, the former Boise State and Arizona State pass-happy coach. He will try and upgrade a passing game that ranked 24th last season. Del Rio has criticized wide receivers and Matt Jones this summer, both of whom have battled injuries. It will be interesting to watch the “new” Jaguars passing game in preseason.

Arizona Cardinals: Word out of Arizona is that the players like new coach Ken Whisenhunt, who was the Steelers offensive coordinator last year. We think of Arizona as all-passing because their running game has been awful of late because of a poor offensive line. However, keep an eye on the running game in preseason as they’ve made a lot of changes.

The new coach brings in Russ Grimm to coach the offensive line (Grimm did a marvelous job building the Steelers line). They took Penn State OT Levi Jones in the first round and signed two offensive linemen, Mike Gandy and Al Johnson, to provide depth. Reggie Wells was moved from right tackle to left guard and they want more speed out of the offensive line for pulling and traps, a Pittsburgh staple under Bill Cowher.

Atlanta Falcons: While all the attention has been focused on QB Mike Vick’s off-field problems, new coach Bobby Petrino is revamping the Falcons from an all-running team to a more balanced one. Petrino likes the experience of backup QB Joey Harrington and he has veteran backup Chris Redman, who used to play for Petrino at Louisville and knows his offenses better than anyone. Petrino wants Vick to be more of a pocket passer.

The addition of FB Ovie Mughelli is a sign Petrino wants a power rushing attack behind a physical fullback and newcomer WR Joe Horn should upgrade what was a below average wideout corps. Petrino is changing their old zone-blocking scheme to a more traditional in-line blocking scheme and the offensive line is bigger. Rookie DE Jamaal Anderson was grabbed in the first round and the secondary got younger with former Auburn cornerback David Irons, who the Falcons think was a steal as a sixth-round pick.

Cleveland Browns: The 2007 Browns look like a double-edged sword. There was the excitement of the offseason, trading for RB Jamel Lewis, upgrading the offensive line with Wisconsin’s Joe Thomas (the No. 2 pick in the draft) and free agent LG Eric Steinbach, then trading for Notre Dame QB Brady Quinn when he fell to No. 22. GM Phil Savage and head coach Romeo Crennel feel they have a talented, balanced offense with these new pieces, plus TE >Kellen Winslow and WR Braylon Edwards.

However, were these moves made in desperation? And were they foolish ones? The Browns gave up their 2008 first-round pick for Quinn and we all know QBs take time to develop. And even first-round QBs can be busts (Joey Harrington, Akili Smith). We also don’t know if the offensive line is that much improved (31st in rushing in 2007) and they did nothing to improve a defense that was awful against the run (142 yds pg allowed).

The Browns have a new offensive coordinator in Rob Chudzinski. This is a young offense and Quinn looked tentative, indecisive and inaccurate early in camp. Crennel will play Charlie Frye, Quinn and Derek Anderson in preseason. And there is a mixed bag for rookie QBs receiving significant starts: Tim Couch (14), Kerry Collins (13), Ben Roethlisberger (13), Vince Young (13), Joey Harrington (12), Matt Leinart (11) and Kyle Boller (nine). While all the focus will be on the Browns new-look offense, I’m more concerned with the defense.

Carolina Panthers: Coach Jon Fox loves the ground game, but Carolina has made some interesting changes for 2007. Fox fired offensive coordinator Dan Henning and brings in Jeff Davidson to run the offense. Davidson has brought in zone-blocking schemes to the Panther offense, a dramatic change for a system that's been built around a power-running style.

In zone-blocking, offensive linemen are responsible for blocking any defender who appears in their zone, instead of focusing on one defender. The Broncos and Falcons have had success with the system, which features smaller, more athletic offensive linemen and can create running lanes on the inside and outside. Keep an eye in preseason on how Carolina adjusts as it will take time to learn the system. Fox has been one of the top coaches in preseason, with a 15-5 SU, 12-7-1 ATS August record.

Dallas Cowboys: WR Terrell Owens is still here, but QB Drew Bledsoe and Bill Parcells are gone. New head coach Wade Phillips takes over, replacing Parcells. He ran the Chargers defense last season. Phillips was chosen by teary-eyed owner Jerry Jones partly because he is one of the best 3-4 coaches in football and the Cowboys have loaded up on players for that scheme.

Remember that Phillips was blitz-happy with the Chargers last season and early reports out of the Dallas camp have mentioned how the Cowboys have been blitzing a lot, a departure from Parcells. The theme of the 2007 Dallas defense appears to be one of attack.

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