News And Views On The Raptors At The Halfway Mark
By RaptortalkAt halftime of the Raptors vs. Pacers game, there was an interesting conversation on the FAN 590 between the FAN's Eric Smith and Doug Smith of the Toronto Star.
There made a number of observations about the Toronto Raptors at the halfway mark of the season, though most of the comments below were courtesy of everyone's favorite beat grunt:
Bargnani is a huge bright spot in a difficult season
1. It is 95% certain that Colangelo will make a trade before the deadline
2. Bryan is working hard to trade JO. He’s looking for 5 to 7 solid games in which he can showcase Jermaine.
3. For the Raptors to have had any chance to stay in the hunt, they needed Jose and Jermaine to both play at least 70 games each. That won’t happen.
4. With the current poor performance, Bryan does not have many valuable trading chips – no team wants our scrubs
5. Parker and his expiring contract is Colangelo’s most sought after asset (other than Bosh, Bargnani & Calderon who are not available)
6. Bryan is looking for a 2/3 because he knows it’s the team’s #1 most glaring weakness
7. Anthony Parker’s skills have definitely eroded. He is a step or two slower.
8. Jamario Moon has shown no improvement over last season. Joey and Kapono have not shown much either
9. Back-up point guard play, while improved lately, is a major disappointment. Bryan thought Solomon would be better.
10. Only way Jay Triano becomes the full-time head coach is if he makes a miraculous run and leads the team to the playoffs.
11. Bryan pulled the trigger on Sam Mitchell too early
12. Doug predicted 48 wins. That is now impossible. A playoff spot is remotely within reach, but highly unlikely. No point in squeaking into the playoffs, only to get blown out by Boston, Orlando or Cleveland.
All in all, the season has been a huge disappointment for fans, players and management alike.
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