Official Toronto Raptors Thread.

So far, looks like the Knicks will have the highest chance of grabbing Oden at #1 next year. They're the only team near the bottom of the league that didn't make significant changes this offseason, it could be argued that they declined by giving Jeffries a heavy contract.

off topic but anyways doesnt that pick go to chicago?

Chicago can switch picks with the Knicks if they want. Man Bulls scored huge in that Curry deal. Can you imagine them having a top 3 pick, and adding it to the team they already have! Wow.

wut do u mean they can switch?

Switch...I don't quit understand that. Do you mean, trade it for money? or ?

No, it means at any point after the lottery, the Bulls have the option to trade their first round pick to New York for their first round pick, even if the Knicks don't want to.

It was part of the Eddy Curry deal, so I guess the Knicks were assuming that Curry was going to make them a top team and this part of the deal wouldn't have mattered.

Update from Spain vs. Germany:

- Jose Calderon was "MVP of the game" with 20 points and 6 assists.
- Jorge Garbajosa had 12 points and a team-high 7 rebounds. He was most noted for his defense on Dirk Nowitzki, holding him to only 14 points.

Stats line:

Calderon 28 min 20 PTS 8/9 FG 2/3 3PT 1 REB 6 AS 2 STL 2 TO

Garbajosa 34 min 12 PTS 4/6 FG 4/5 3PT 7 REB 1 AS 1 STL 1 TO

Garbajosa has been shooting very well from three point range all tournament. I'm convinced that this guy will be a very, very valuable contributor for the Raptors.

Continued good news

Update from Spain vs. Germany:

- Jose Calderon was "MVP of the game" with 20 points and 6 assists.
- Jorge Garbajosa had 12 points and a team-high 7 rebounds. He was most noted for his defense on Dirk Nowitzki, holding him to only 14 points.

Stats line:

Calderon 28 min 20 PTS 8/9 FG 2/3 3PT 1 REB 6 AS 2 STL 2 TO

Garbajosa 34 min 12 PTS 4/6 FG 4/5 3PT 7 REB 1 AS 1 STL 1 TO

Garbajosa has been shooting very well from three point range all tournament. I'm convinced that this guy will be a very, very valuable contributor for the Raptors.

Continued good news

yay thanks for the info

That's a pretty good stat line for Calderon. The 2/3 from downtown is encouraging to see. Even though the international 3 point line is closer than the NBA, it still shows us that he has improved his outside shooting. Garbajosa had a nice game himself. Holding Dirk to 14 points shows us he is a physical defender, and should add some bulk and much need defense to the Raptors lineup in the 06-07 season.

How come Calderon does so well in international games and stuff, but once he plays on an NBA franchise, he is average? Maybe it has somethign to do with playing ime and that stupid Sam Mitchell.

I'm about to watch that game on NBA TV, Spain Vs Germany, I wanna see Calderon do his thang!! I actually think he's a great PG!!

How come Calderon does so well in international games and stuff, but once he plays on an NBA franchise, he is average? Maybe it has somethign to do with playing ime and that stupid Sam Mitchell.

yea sam mitchell is stupid

I'm pretty sure Garbejosa (sp?) did pretty well. I read that he contained Dirk very well. Calderon and garbejosa will be awsome this upcoming season if Mitchell uses his players right. Also, one of the German guards said something about Calderon being the MVP of that game and that he played extrememly well.

Calderon wil do great this upcoming season and Garbejosa will be a very nice addition to our team, but I hope he can play an inside game as well as he plays an outside game.

No, it means at any point after the lottery, the Bulls have the option to trade their first round pick to New York for their first round pick, even if the Knicks don't want to.

Bulls also get New York's 2nd round pick in both 2007 and 2009 in addition to swapping their pick with New York's in 2007.

Could be one of the worst trades in history along with Olden Polynice for the rookie Scottie Pippen.

How come Calderon does so well in international games and stuff, but once he plays on an NBA franchise, he is average? Maybe it has somethign to do with playing ime and that stupid Sam Mitchell.

The international game is very different from NBA. The NBA game takes a while to get used to, and Jose was just a rookie. He was also dealing with a heel injury that affected his foot speed. Also, Calderon is just average with an NBA franchise because he plays a very different role on the Raptors. On the Spanish National Team, he's a starting point guard, but on the Raptors, he's a backup point guard. He still showed us some flashes of brilliance very early last season, but then he couldn't regain his confidence.

On a different note, if Sam Mitchell doesn't atleast get the Raptors to the eighth seed, I see a coaching change.

I see a coaching change before the All-Star Break. Sam Mitchell can't run a team, especially a young one. YOung players tend to sometimes do what ever they want on the floor and have to learn, and Mitchell is not capable of teaching.

Mitchell hasn't exactly been given the talent to develop, outside of Bosh, Charlie and Graham. No coach can make below average players into stars.

Everyone else over the past two years have been fill ins or young players trying to prove themselves, like Bonner and Sow.

And if you look at the league in general right now, pretty much all you need to win is one superstar who can drive and draw fouls, and four other guys to get out of the way.

T.J. Ford might bring some leadership and floor management to the team, he's one of the more talented young point guards.

Hopefully some international experience prepares Calderon for a better season too.

I see a coaching change before the All-Star Break. Sam Mitchell can't run a team, especially a young one. YOung players tend to sometimes do what ever they want on the floor and have to learn, and Mitchell is not capable of teaching.

iKe7in's right, Mitchell wasn't exactly given an abundance of talent the last few years. This is his chance to shine, and I really see him lasting till the end of the season, where his contract expires. He will probably be replaced.

From what I learned with Mitchell, he's a very good motivater, works well with young players and pushes them, and is very vocal. The downside is his defensive and offensive sets, and his substitution patterns, which I'm hoping he'll improve and utilize with the new players.

NEW COURT

That's horrible.

I like this logo better than the original Raptor one, but I agree, it is pretty plain. If they added some red in there with some purple maybe it'd look a lot better.

NEW COURT

Thats not real, its at Union Station, its painted on the floor or something. Also, if it is real, there have been no confimations of it being so.

BTW: I like the Raptors logo, yes I mean the dinosuar. I actually like it, and don't mind the prurple at all.

It's going to be like that, this was found on ticketmaster

I'm just wondering, why Toronto were called the Raptors to begin with? Do dinosaurs have a special significance in toronto? Pardon my ignorance.

I don't mind the new court, but that black is dull. Purple would definitely bring it out, but I think they're phasing out the purple. If they put red to it, then it would help some, but I would be seeing too much red

I'm just wondering, why Toronto were called the Raptors to begin with? Do dinosaurs have a special significance in toronto? Pardon my ignorance.

I know dinosaurs are well known in Alberta (there's even a dinosaur named after the province), and maybe the same could be said in Ontario. Maybe someone else would know for sure.

I was hoping the claw would be red too. Also hipn, I heard on the Fan 590 Eric Smith (Radio announcer for the Raptors) confirmed that there are going to be new jerseys and the Raptors logo at center court is going to be replaced by the claw.