Asdf's RaptorsDynasty: A dynasty no more

[Its_asdf]

Shootout in Seattle leave Sonics Stumped (115-111 Raptors*)

Rashard Lewis and J.R. Smith seemed to make impossible shots everytime their team needed a big shot. Lewis had a career high 46 points, and the rookie J.R. Smith answered with a career high of his own with 37, including 5 for 5 from three-point territory. Smith is the first Raptor to hit the 30 point mark this season. Ray Allen also had 19 points, and Antonio Daniels had 18 as well. Chris Bosh backed up Smith with 17 points and 8 rebounds while Rafer Alston had a double-double with 15 points and 11 assists, while also grabbing 6 rebounds. Toronto was once again outrebounded offensively 12-4, but the Sonics only shot 11 for 16 from the line.

"Even though this was a career night for me, I would have preferred the win," said Lewis. "It was J.R. and the Raptors that walked out with the win, so the career high wasn't too special."

The Raptors jumped to an early 19-9 lead in the first quarter but Ronald Murray answered with back to back three pointers in a 10-2 run to cut the lead . Battie and Rose picked up two fouls, as Rose struggled to keep up with Lewis. The Raptors came out of the first quarter with a 31-27 lead, with J.R. Smith scoring more than half of the teams points with 18. Rashard Lewis paced the Sonics with 8.

After activated from injury, point guard Alvin Williams made his season debut, and totalled 3 points and 2 assists in 11 minutes of play. The Raptors stretched the lead back to a 41-32 deficit, but that was yet again answered by another 12-3 run by the Sonics, as Lewis began to heat up and had back to back three point plays and a dunk. Lewis finished with 28 points by halftime and scored 20 in the second quarter alone. Ray Allen was scoreless and had all 19 of his points in the second half, when J.R. Smith was mainly guarding Ronald Murray.

The third quarter was also nothing spectacular, with Seattle just trading baskets with the Raptors and Jalen Rose eventually fouled out with 10 points, 2 rebounds and 3 assists.

Seattle took a brief 87-84 lead, but J.R. Smith hit a three pointer to tie the game up. Both teams traded three point baskets and Donyell Marshall eventually split a pair of free throws to give the Raptors a 1 point 96-95 lead. Lewis answered back with 5 straight points to put the Sonics up by 107-103 with 2 minutes left. Toronto answered with an 8-0 run as Rafer Alston buried a deep three pointer, Chris Bosh completed a three point play and DeShawn Stevenson buried a 20 footer to give the Raptors a 111-107 lead with only 38 seconds remaining. Kedrick Brown hit two freethrows. Daniels hit a short J and Stevenson was intentionally fouled and hit both free throws. Daniels was fouled on a layup and could have completed a three point play but missed the freethrow and Alvin Williams ran down the clock for an impressive Raptor victory. Lewis and Smith finished the fourth quarter with a shootout as they both had 14 and 13 points in the fourth quarter alone.

"I was definitely feeling it tonight," said J.R. Smith. "I felt like I was underestimated by Ray Allen and I buried a lot of shots while playing good D on him. Then Jalen fouled out and I decided to take my game a little further."

Picture of the Game

J.R. Smith was a man posessed as he had 37 points and held Ray Allen scoreless until the second half.

Player of the Game
J.R. Smith
Min - 26
Pts - 37
Rebs - 1
Asts - 1
Stls - 0
Blks - 1
TOs - 2
PFs - 3
FG - 14/21
3ptFG - 5/5
FTs - 5/6

Boxscores

[John WB]

Big win! And very good game from J.R. Smith.

[Its_asdf]

Big win! And very good game from J.R. Smith.

Heh, thanks I guess.

[Its_asdf]

Toronto Raptors (5-4) vs Indiana Pacers (6-5) Preview

Indiana is hoping to get back into winning form as they play the Toronto Raptors in their hometown in the Conseco Fieldhouse. Toronto came off of a big win against Seattle, which saw J.R. Smith reach a new career high and lit up the scoreboards with 37 points while also making all 5 of his three point field goal attempts, which is a Raptor season high.

The Pacers have had a sluggish start to the season and are just one game above .500 after a 50 win season very good playoff run just a year ago. Longtime Pacer veteran Reggie Miller seems to have gone back in time as he is currently leading the Pacers in scoring (23.3), more than doubling his scoring average from last year, while shooting 49% from the field and 43% from beyond the arc. He has not averaged over 20 points per game since the 1996-1997 season. Miller is also leading his team in assists with 5.6 per game, an average that he never achieved throughout his 17 year career.

Starting 5

C - T. Battie(5.3ppg, 4.8rpg) vs J. O'Neal(19.1ppg, 10.4rpg)

PF - C. Bosh(18.3ppg, 7.3rpg) vs J. Bender(7ppg, 4.3rpg)

SF - J. Rose(16.4ppg, 5.2apg) vs R. Artest(14.2ppg, 6.2rpg)

SG - J.R. Smith(13.6ppg, 2.6rpg) vs R. Miller(23.3.5ppg, 5.6apg)

PG - R. Alston(9.8ppg, 6.1apg) vs J. Tinsley(12.7ppg, 5apg)

Key Matchup

SG - J.R. Smith(13.6ppg, 2.6rpg) vs R. Miller(23.3.5ppg, 5.6apg)

Reggie Miller, like Ray Allen a few days ago, will challenge J.R. Smith defensively as Miller is capable of hitting jumpers from anywhere on the court. J.R. showed us that he can put the clamps down defensively when he held Allen scoreless for the whole first half and whenever he was guarding him, while also scoring a career high. If all goes as planned, J.R. might be looking at another good game.

[Its_asdf]

By the way, I like how people are starting to actually pay attention to this dynasty but I would like some feedback on how my format for the recaps, previews, articles and such things like that and how I can improve them.

[Seraph]

First time a post , but I always read
Man you are doing good, I really like the previews and the monthly card

[Its_asdf]

First time a post , but I always read
Man you are doing good, I really like the previews and the monthly card

Thanks Seraph, I always check up on your dynasty too.

[Its_asdf]

Pacers Pull Off Victory over Raps (93-87 Pacers*)

With this win over the Raptors, Reggie Miller definitely proved that he's for real. Miller scored 22 of his 31 points in the first half and made all 10 of his freethrows as the Pacers sustained the lead after a Raptor push in the fourth quarter. Jermaine O'Neal had a double-double with 18 points and 11 rebounds, and Stephen Jackson also chipped in 10 off the bench. This was the Pacers third consecutive win.

Toronto was led by former Pacer Jalen Rose with 20 points and 4 rebounds while Chris Bosh had a double-double with 17 points and 13 rebounds. The Raps were cold from three point land (25%) and continued to struggle from the freethrow line (66%). Although the Raptors had outrebounded the Pacers, the Raptors still let up a poor rebounding effort, allowing the Pacers to have 12 offensive boards will only snagging 7 offensive boards themselves.

"I don't know how our guys expect us to win if we give the other team the god damn ball and don't box out," said a frustrated Sam Mitchell. "Our guys did a pretty good job rebounding defensively in the fourth quarter, but our intesity was definitely lacking in the first, second and third quarters. Our guys know better than to waste 3 full quarters and then give their best."

Jalen Rose seemed to want a little revenge against his former team, as he scored the first 8 Raptor points and the Raptors had a 17-8 lead early in the first quarter. Rose also got defensive specialist Ron Artest out with 2 fouls, but the Raptors fell asleep in the last few minutes and allowed the Pacers to take a 26-23 lead.

The Raptors were outscored 35-24 in the second quarter starting with Reggie Miller reeling off 6 straight points; a three pointer and a 3 point play. The little run ended with a Jonathan Bender dunk to create a 33-23 buldge for the Pacers in less than 1 minute. The Pacers would continue to dominate the Raptors, creating a 61-47 lead by halftime. Miller had single-handedly scored 15 this quarter, while knocking down 2 of 3 three pointers. O'Neal also had 4 offensive rebounds this quarter, and also scored 6 points off of those rebounds.

Even though the Pacers shot a dismal 27% in the third quarter, the Raptors couldn't do enough damage as they only could outscore the Pacers by 4 in the third quarter, which dented the Indiana lead to 77-67. The Raptors had countless posessions that were wasted on bad shot-clock management and unforced turnovers.

The Raptors slowly inched close in the fourth quarter, cutting the lead to 84-79. Reggie Miller and Jermaine O'Neal both were fouled on consecutive posessions and made their freethrows, while Jalen Rose only answered with one at the other end. Stephen Jackson made a 3 pointer to create an 11 point deficit, but the Raptors battled back as Rose reeled off 6 straight points. Fred Jones stole the ball and fed O'Neal for a fastbreak dunk and Alvin Williams airballed a three pointer at the other end. Tony Battie split his pair of freethrows and Jalen Rose missed a three pointer as time expired.

Picture of the Game

Reggie Miller simply lit up the Raptors in the second quarter.

Other Pictures
Rose was exchanged to the Bulls for Ron Artest, and extracts some revenge on him
Jonathan Bender with 1 of his 5 blocks
Bosh and O'Neal battled all game long
The Raps turned the ball over when it mattered most

Player of the Game
R. Miller
Min - 25
Pts - 31
Rebs - 3
Asts - 0
Stls - 1
Blks - 2
TOs - 0
PFs - 0
FG - 9/15
3ptFG - 3/4
FTs - 10/10

Boxscores

[John WB]

A loss. That sucks. Now you're what, down to .500 again?

[Rip32]

Tough loss but it seems like game in and game out you get consistant production from Rose and Bosh but JR Smith and Rafer Alston are really quiet some nights. Theres too much incositancy...

[Its_asdf]

A loss. That sucks. Now you're what, down to .500 again?

Yep, it kinda does suck, but hey at least its realistic

Tough loss but it seems like game in and game out you get consistant production from Rose and Bosh but JR Smith and Rafer Alston are really quiet some nights. Theres too much incositancy...

Alston is kind of inconsistent, but I don't really try to make him put him big numbers, I'm trying to make him distribute the ball and get some assists...... Sometimes I just don't give Smith the ball that much, so maybe I should start passing to him more......

[Its_asdf]

Charlotte Bobcats (1-14) vs Toronto Raptors (5-5) Preview

The Toronto Raptors are going to try and take care of business and avoid a 2 game losing skid when they play the expansion Charlotte Bobcats. Toronto suffered from a loss to Indiana to bring them back to .500 a week ago, with Jalen Rose dropping 20 points on his former mates and Chris Bosh had another good game with 17 points and 13 rebounds.

The Charlotte Bobcats are doing as expected for an expansion team, and thats losing. The 'Cats have dropped 12 straight, and have lost 14 games overall, with only 1 win. However, Charlotte has had superb play their prized rookie big man, Emeka Okafor. Okafor was the second overall pick at the 2004 draft, and has been tearing it up for the Bobcats, as he is averaging 21.5 points per game and 11.3 rebounds per game. Okafor has also won consecutive Eastern Conference Player of the Month awards and very well on pace to winning the Got Milk? Rookie of the Year Award. This will be Okafor's first return from a strained calf muscle that made him miss one game.

Notes to Know:
-The Raptors head coach, Sam Mitchell, enjoyed a brief stay as an assistant coach for the Charlotte Bobcats, but over the summer the Raptors managed to recruit him for coaching duty just in time.
-Kareem Rush, the sixth man 3-point marksmen for the Charlotte Bobcats, is originally drafted by Toronto, but his trade rights were traded to the Los Angeles Lakers along with Tracy Murray for Lindsey Hunter and Chris Jefferies.
-Bobcats head coach Bernie Bickerstaff originally drafted Raptor swingman Jalen Rose with the 13 overall pick in the 1994 draft when he was general manager of the Denver Nuggets.

Starting 5

C - T. Battie(5.3ppg, 4.1rpg) vs E. Okafor(21.5ppg, 11.3rpg)

PF - C. Bosh(18.2ppg, 7.9rpg) vs P. Brezec(14ppg, 11.6rpg)

SF - J. Rose(16.8ppg, 4.9apg) vs G. Wallace(3.9ppg, 2.6rpg)

SG - J.R. Smith(13.2ppg, 2.8rpg) vs J. Kapono(4ppg, 0.5apg)

PG - R. Alston(9.7ppg, 6.0apg) vs B. Knight(12ppg, 6apg)

Key Matchup

PF - C. Bosh(18.2ppg, 7.9rpg) vs E. Okafor(21.5ppg, 11.3rpg)

Although Okafor is starting at the centre position, we will probably see Bernie Bickerstaff juggle his lines a bit and maybe put back Emeka back at the 4. Chris Bosh, the Raptor's own promising young big man, has quickness and athletiscm on his side, but if Emeka turns the matchup into a power game down low, expect Bosh and his wiry frame to take a harder beating inside and might find more difficulties on defense, since Okafor's main offensive weapon is his strength and Bosh's game is based more on finesse and jumpshots.

[AlwaysWhat,NeverWhy]

Nice write-ups, easy to read, along with a pleasant-looking format... Good Job

My guess is you'll eventually make the playoffs, every one of us get a wee bit better at Live when playing the last crucial games of the season, no?

Keep up the fine recaps, I'm following your dynasty till the end, bud... even if I don't post much...

GHiven my posts at General Discussion, if I start responding to every dynasty, people are going to start calling me names ... like COOLMac... j/k

[John WB]

You should win that game.

[Its_asdf]

Nice write-ups, easy to read, along with a pleasant-looking format... Good Job

My guess is you'll eventually make the playoffs, every one of us get a wee bit better at Live when playing the last crucial games of the season, no?

Keep up the fine recaps, I'm following your dynasty till the end, bud... even if I don't post much...

GHiven my posts at General Discussion, if I start responding to every dynasty, people are going to start calling me names ... like COOLMac... j/k

Thanks, I would also get pretty pissed if someone called me COOLMac.....

You should win that game.

Thanks for the encouragement

Frankly I've been quite busy with a few oral presentations and tests these few days in school, so I couldn't really update..... I was about to update this baby on Tuesday or Wednesday, but both times I played the game crashed. (With less than 10 freakin' seconds left in the fourth quarter!!!!!!!)

Anyways, I apologize for not updating sooner.

[pHLo]

yeah, big dynasty
I'll be checking this dynasty of my fav-team more often from now on

[Its_asdf]

Raptors Bury Bobcats (99-82 Toronto*)

Although Toronto struggled through the first two quarters, the Raptors eventually made Charlotte look like an expansion team. Toronto scorched the Bobcats while hitting 50% from the field and 53% from three as the Raps scored 55 second half points compared to 35 by Charlotte. Chris Bosh was one rebound shy of a 20 point 10 rebound performance, while Jalen Rose and J.R. Smith each had 19. Bosh, Smith and Rose were the only players to score in double figures for the Raptors.

Rookie sensation Emeka Okafor was limited 19 minutes of playing time and picked up 5 fouls to only 8 points, but had 10 rebounds. Jason Kapono picked up the slack a little bit, as he led the Bobcats with 18 points including 3 of 8 from three point territory. Charlotte has fell to 1-15 and have lost 13 straight games.

"Coach definitely gave us a wake up call," said Jalen Rose. "Sam told us that we had to realize that we could beat this team if we put our minds to it and that we were just making mental errors and underestimating them. When we played together as a team and shared the ball, we could make good things happen."

Toronto obviously was feeling a little too confident playing the Bobcats in the opening quarter, as they let the Bobcats race to a 25-23 lead by the end of the quarter. Both teams shot over 50% but the Raptors were suffering from their normal rebounding problems early on and it showed, as Okafor got an offensive rebound with almost no one around him in the paint and tipped it in at the end of the quarter.

Frustrated with the lack of defesive play of his starters, Sam Mitchell re-shuffled the lineup completely and benched all of the starters. This seemed to work just a little bit, as the Raptors reeled off 13 points on 5 for 7 shooting in the first few minutes. While the Raptors eventually caught up in the rebounding category, things didn't go too smoothly in this quarter as Donyell Marshall picked up 2 fouls and Matt Bonner sustained an arm injury. The Raptors took a brief 36-33 lead on an Alvin Williams 3 pointer, but it wasn't enough as the Bobcats scored the last 7 points and the Raptors missed their last 7 shots to re-give a 47-44 lead to the Bobcats at the halftime break.

The Raptors played with a little more execution and defence, as they held the Bobcats to 30% shooting and to only 14 points in the beginning of the second half. The Raptors had a 66-61 lead after the third quarter, which was led by the Raptor point guard Rafer Alston. Alston had all 8 of his points this quarter and 2 assists.

Charlotte seemed to give up in the fourth quarter, when the Raptors took their first double-digit lead of the night early on in the fourth quarter. J.R. Smith scored 8 points this quarter along with Jalen Rose's 7 points to outscore the 'Cats by 12. Both J.R. and Jalen led two minature runs at the beginning and at the end of the quarter to seal the deal as Jalen Rose ended the last Raptor posession with a dunk.

"Our guys seemed out of it in the second half," Bobcats head coach Bernie Bickerstaff had said. "I know we aren't going to win that many games this year, but I find it very hard trying to get my guys to keep fighting out there."

Picture of the Game

J.R. Smith and co. elevated their game in the second half.

Other Pictures
DeShawn Stevenson welcomes Emeka to the NBA via posterization.
Matt Bonner got hurt, but should be ok for next game.
Brezec was a load inside with 4 offensive boards, but couldn't get it done over Tony Battie.
Rising stars Bosh and Okafor fighting for position.

Player of the Game
C. Bosh
Min - 28
Pts - 20
Rebs - 9
Asts - 2
Stls - 1
Blks - 0
TOs - 0
PFs - 0
FG - 9/16
3ptFG - 0/0
FTs - 2/3

Boxscores

[John WB]

Good win.

[misow]

Nice perf for C.Bosh

[Its_asdf]

Good win.

Nice perf for C.Bosh

Thanks guys, I appreciate it.

[Its_asdf]

Raptors Article: No Vince? No Problem

Out of all of the painful, playoff-less offseasons the Raptor fans had to live with after tasting success for a brief period of time, it is without a doubt that this was probably one of the most disappointing ones. The fans had to endure drafting a centre with the 8th overall pick that wasn't even close to the top 10 in terms of ability, while watching their so called "super-star" requesting a trade and eventually went to New Jersey in exchange for a few bums. It seemed like every critic believed the Raptors wouldn't be even close to .500, and that the Raptors would be absolutely left out in the playoff race. Were they wrong so far this season? Hell yeah.

With the Raptors one game above .500 midway through January and the thick of the playoff race, the one thing that many people never really counted on was the development of a certain power foward named Chris Bosh. No one really thought that Bosh would explode into a near 20-10 guy (18.4ppg, 8rpg). A reason for all of this? Sure Vince has left Toronto and may have given Bosh a little more opportunities, but you should thank rookie coach Sam Mitchell, for moving Bosh back to the power foward posiiton, where he was most comfortable and could do most of his damage. For all of the hype surrounding the Lebron, Carmelo and Dwyane battle, sometimes you have to wonder why Bosh's name isn't mentioned.


Bosh has taken huge leaps this year.

Another factor for this somewhat of a surprise season for the Raptors would be the trades that Raptors GM Rob Babcock has made earlier on this season. Although we applaud Rob for sending Mo Pete and Lamond "I like to shoot" Murray to New Orleans for J.R. Smith and Dale Davis, everyone is still probably scratching their heads and wondering "What is the Hornets management smoking?" since Toronto has obviously gotten the better deal there in terms of salary cap flexibility and talent. The second trade saw Eric Williams, Milt Palacio and Loren Woods get shipped off to the Magic for DeShawn Stevenson and Tony Battie. Although both Battie and Stevenson's numbers aren't too impressive, (but neither are Eric's, Milt's or Loren's), Battie has been a huge addition to the Raptors front court and is probably the closest thing that the Raptors had to a good centre since Antonio Davis. DeShawn has also shown a few bright spots, bringing in a bundle of energy and hustle (JYD, remember him?) that the Raptors bench so sorely needed.

Although at times inconsistent, J.R. Smith (left) is looking like a perfect piece to the Raptors puzzle. Tony Battie, (right) is a good stable inside presence that brings some relief in the middle.

Even though Carter is traded to the Nets and is getting MVP type numbers and is the leader in the Atlantic division, The Raptors didn't actually need him. Vince was never very vocal and his leadership was almost non-existent, Jalen Rose has been given the Raptors title of a leader. Seeing new life, Jalen has become of the all-around leader and the go-to guy in the fourth quarter for the Raptors. Jalen definitely isn't close to Vince in terms of talent and ability, but you can gurantee that Jalen will play to his hardest and to the best of his ability, which was always questioned from Vince after his injuries.


Jalen doesn't like to go down without a fight.

What do you think guys? I'm not very good at writing long-ass articles, but at least I tried to write one.

[John WB]

Nice.

[Its_asdf]

Toronto Raptors (6-5) vs Sacramento Kings (4-9) Preview

The Toronto Raptors will start a 5 game road trip at the Arco Arena and face the slumping Sarcamento Kings. Toronto's previous game had them blowout the expansion Charlotte Bobcats by 17 in a 99-82 victory. Chris Bosh had 20 points and 9 rebounds, while Jalen Rose and J.R. Smith each had 19. Although Smith had 19 points last game, Sam Mitchell has decided to go with DeShawn Stevenson at the shooting guard position.

"It had to do with the energy of our team. We have very inconsistent energy at the beginning of games and it can sometimes hurt us in the long run," replied Sam Mitchell when asked about the shuffle in the lineup. "J.R. has been fabulous, but we needed a change to get us over those sluggish first and second quarters."

Sacramento has been struggling as of late, losing two consecutive games and have fallen to 4-9. Sacramento has traded star power foward Chris Webber to Philadelphia for Kenny Thomas, Corliss Williamson and Brian Skinner. With Webber traded, point guard Mike Bibby has taken the reins of the team, leading the Kings in points (18.7) and assists (6.9) and is also ranked 8th in three point field goals made and shoots an efficient 42% from beyond the arc. European sharpshooter Pedja Stojakovic was last year's leading scorer for the Kings, but has been limited to 7 games due to nagging injuries and is averaging only 7.7 points per game off the bench. To compensate for the loss of Pedja, the Kings traded Doug Christie, who was one of their better perimeter defenders in Sac-town, for Cuttino Mobley of the Orlando Magic. Mobley has filled in nicely offensively for the Kings with 18.1 points per game.

Notes to Know:
-Starting small foward Corliss Williamson for the Kings was originally a King until traded to Toronto for a brief 42 game stay. He was traded later on at the trade deadline to Detriot were he eventually won the sixth man of year award and also won a championship ring last year.........
-Brian Skinner was also with the Raptors for a little while, but never played a single game for them and was traded to Cleveland in a three team deal. Don Maclean was aquired by the Raptors in that deal.
-Matt Bonner was injured in the game against Charlotte and is listed day-to-day with a sore wrist, but might be eligible for play.

Starting 5

C - T. Battie(5.5ppg, 5.1rpg) vs B. Miller(17.4ppg, 11.5rpg)

PF - C. Bosh(18.4ppg, 8rpg) vs D. Songaila(6.9ppg, 7.2rpg)

SF - J. Rose(17ppg, 5apg) vs C. Williamson(8.8ppg, 5.9rpg)

SG - D. Stevenson(4.5ppg, 1.3rpg) vs C. Mobley(18.1ppg, 3.6apg)

PG - R. Alston(9.5ppg, 5.8apg) vs M. Bibby(18.7ppg, 6.9apg)

Key Matchup

C - T. Battie(5.5ppg, 5.1rpg) vs B. Miller(17.4ppg, 11.5rpg)

Toronto has had its fair share of rebounding problems, especially early on in the beginning of the games. Tony Battie will have to step it up against Brad Miller, who is a rebounding juggernaut. Brad is currently 3rd in the league in rebounds per game and Tony Battie will have to do whatever it takes to keep Miller out of the paint, especially on the offfensive boards. Don't forget that Brad is also the third leading scorer on the team and averages 17.4 points a night, but can also pass the ball exceptionally well for a big man and gets around 4 assists per game.

[John WB]

Wow! Kings record sucks.

[Rip32]

Yeah they look like the kings of the 90s. Blow the hell outta them.