By Walter Dubowec

Something tells me the Toronto Raptors GM Bryan Colangelo must have a degree in Chemistry.

Bryan’s bio says he attended Cornell University and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management and Applied Economics. Again, I can’t shake the thought that chemistry must have been his major.

Doug Smith of the Toronto Star used to describe previous Raptor teams as ‘chemistry experiments gone wrong’. There appeared to be a solid nucleus of talent. On paper the team looked good. Yet outside of a couple of seasons, the Grunwald-era Raptors were generally sub par at best.

Looking back on the 2006-07 NBA season it appears that Bryan Colangelo is a master chemist. The nine new players who had to be integrated into the line-up, along with Juan Dixon and Luke Jackson who joined later – all gelled perfectly.
                                                                                                                                                                                             
                 

Many experts looked at Bryan’s off-season makeover as a collection of lateral moves. That’s an understandable point of view for those who don’t understand the importance of team chemistry. Building a winning NBA team is not like building an NBA fantasy team where individual talent and stats determine your success.

Clearly, the latest editions of the USA dream teams are discovering this harsh reality. In international competition where a premium is placed on team basketball, the America’s talent laden squads are continually being taken to school by teams like Spain, Greece, Argentina and others who do not have anywhere near the individual talent level. That being said, they continue to win and win and win.

Bryan has put together a team in the truest sense of the word. One that plays the European style almost as well as any team in the Association.

Last October, Bryan Colangelo sat down with CBC Sports. Looking back, his comments were almost prophetic. They proved the Raptors’ 47 win season was no fluke or accident. Bryan knew what he was doing.

Colangelo said, “I think we have the kind of group that’s going to come together quickly. Nine new faces would generally mean it's going to take a little time to come together. But I think in the case here with the professionals we have, and our emphasis to play a certain style, I think it’s conducive to getting everybody involved. You want wins. And I would certainly like to think we’re a playoff team.”
 
The GM went on describe the skill-set he is looking for in the Raptors, “In the European style, pretty much everybody can shoot the ball. I think guards and ‘bigs’ are somewhat interchangeable. Most ‘bigs’ over there can shoot the ball, and that is something Jorge Garbajosa, Chris Bosh and young Andrea Bargnani can do. But even when you bring a defender away from the basket, you have to have the up-tempo guards who can get in the seams and ultimately kick out to the shooters or be able to finish. I think we have a good combination of the two.”

Under the watchful eye of master chemist, Bryan Colangelo – the future looks bright for the Toronto Raptors.