The Early Report on Good Reggie, Bad Reggie, Bargnani, DeMar, Sonny, Amir and Others
By RaptorTalkTwo games into preseason and two losses, but no need to panic. Let’s wait for Chris Bosh and Hedo Turkoglu to make an appearance before getting worried that my prediction of 50 wins ain’t never gonna happen.
The Raptors still need name tags, because no one knows the other guy. Basketball is a team game based on how the team performs as a unit – a cohesive unit where timing and understanding your teammates is everything.
Right now the Raptors really don’t understand each other in a basketball sense which explains why their offence has largely been stagnant for most of the past 96 minutes. Giving heavy minutes to a group of offensively-challenged guys on the back-end of your roster doesn’t help either.
While many familiar faces are gone, the memory of Joey Graham still lingers. Except now its "Good Reggie/ Bad Reggie" with a visual reminder courtesy of Sonny. More on that below.
Sonny Weems has real hops and he looks like Joey Graham
Having said that, there are still a lot of positives that should excite Raptor fans.
Bargnani: Andrea has come into camp confident and ready to play. Bargs is looking very comfortable and every bit a player who is only going to improve on last year’s performance. Can’t wait to see him on the floor with Bosh and Hedo.
Jack: Looks like another nice move by Bryan. He certainly appears to be a solid point guard who can play off the ball as well on the point. He has a tough edge to him and can start if Calderon is unable to go.
DeRozan: He’s only played two games and he’s making mistakes – but on balance this kid has the tools to be a solid NBA player. He works hard, plays decent D for a rookie and has a decent jump shot to complement his great hops. It will be fun to watch him develop.
Evans: The motor is always running. Hustle, hustle and more hustle. He gets after it constantly in a way that I have not seen before on the Raptors – not even with Oakley. Plus, he is very adept at stepping into the passing lanes and intercepting kick-outs to the wings. Good Reggie!
Amir: Another guy who hustles and gets after it. A lot more athletic than Evans, he brings a skillset that the Raptor need from their back-up bigs. Best of all, he’s only 22 years old.
Sonny Weems: Incredible hops. Not sure he’ll see many minutes once the season starts, but this kid just may develop into a keeper. Damn, if he doesn't look like Joey Graham!
No, I’m not looking at everything through 'Jalen Rose' colored glasses. There are some negative signs that can’t be ignored.
Calderon: The first game in London may be the worst game of his life. Jose was horrible. Period. His defence was still suspect and his four ‘official’ turnovers were closer to six by my count. He’s 15 lbs. lighter and he’s been inactive for five months, but he should be better than that. The good news is that game two was a better effort because it couldn’t be worse.
Reggie: The chants of “Reggie, Reggie” will die down real quick if he doesn’t realize very soon that he’s not a freakin’ point guard. How many times did we see him take down a great board or steal the ball from an unexpecting Sixer- only to watch him give it all back because he thinks he’s the reincarnation of Curley Neal. Jay’s got to tell him to “Grab the damn ball, STOP and hand it immediately to anyone who is not named Reggie Evans”. Bad Reggie!
Turkuglo: While Bosh is set to return by the weekend, there is still no definitive timetable for Hedo’s return. The longer he sits out, the more I think that his absence is less about fatigue and more about problems with his knees.
Next up for me is to be sitting centre court on Sunday at ACC to watch the Raptors take on the Wizards which means Thanksgiving Dinner has to wait until Monday.
Posted by RaptorTalk at 10/7/2009 10:55 PM 
Categories: General Raptor Talk
Tags: Reggie Evans Raptors Bargnani
Categories: General Raptor Talk
Tags: Reggie Evans Raptors Bargnani
I'm starting to think Hedo got PAID and has "unofficially" retired from the NBA as a Toronto Raptor! I hope Bosh can mesh with the group. DeMar isn't as aggressive as I expected true he's still learning. Hope the youngin's aren't too fast paced for Turk. Hopefully we'll see more of Weems and Johnson. Reggie's the man. My impression of him pushing the ball up the court might be because coach is constantly telling the guys to run. Two losses. Missing 3 key guys. We'll be alright. Great read. Shocked u got it up so quick. ~ROUNDER
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its always good reggie in my eyes...i cried when he got traded from the sixers. toronto stop the complaining...and appreciate what u have infront of u. a raw, blood sweat and tears type player who is a force 2 b wreckined with. I miss u reggie.. and i cant even watch the sixers now!
RaptorTalk: Two in the RaptorTalk family were born in Iowa - so we love Hawkeyes!!!
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It's NOT good Reggie, bad Reggie - It is all hustle all the time Reggie!
No need to look at what Reggie can't do - Look at what Reggie does do cause he does that really well.
RaptorTalk: I love 90% of what Reggie does - the hustle, the boards, the energy.
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