Raptors Dynasty {Kudos to those who can keep it up - over}

[Mini ShaQ]

That will be great man... Thanks alot... We'll have you playing in no time

[joeygraham]

Oh and I'm sorry coaches - I stole your role...I jacked up the defense on pre-camp...I hope that sits well with you...if not, then I can always reload the dynasty.

EDIT: I have to reload, so the pre-camp has not been done yet.

[.LA.]

Everything seems to be taking place. Things should be great. If you guys don't mind the suggestion, I think you should go after Forward, Marcus Haislip. He is young and athletic and should be helpful. Good luck.

[Mini ShaQ]

Actually he is one of my prime targets...
thanks for the imput...

[Mini ShaQ]

Ok guys, time to log off... I'll check back in the morning and get to work... for now... I'm out!

[joeygraham]

Evidently, I missed Matin. He'll get the list of Free Agents tomorrow I guess.

How bout a little press leak on who they are looking at...

Marcus Haislip
Arthur Johnson
Jerome Moiso
Roger Mason Jr
Chris Jeffries
J.R. Bremer
Vladimir Stepania
Jelani McCoy
Courtney Alexander
Jeff Trepagnier

[.LA.]

^^ Great choices, should be a test to your GM's on who to go with.

[Emiliano]

Starting Line-Up

C Chris Bosh
PF Donyell Marshall
SF Morris Peterson
SG Jalen Rose
PG Rafer Alston

Before going to the bench, I want to know what you guys are gonna do with Marshall. Do you want him to play at all since some of you guys are interested on releasing him or trading him or should I play him for this game?

Bench

Our 6th man for the first game can be Lamond Murray(SG/SF)
This is the bench team:

C Loren Woods/Aaron Williams/Pape Sow
PF Matt Bonner
SF Eric Williams
SG Lamond Murray
PG Milt Palacio

Tell me how the first game goes so I know if this line-up is right. This is my first try at this roster so when mkballer and sensation come, we can do better.

[joeygraham]

Thanks Emiliano. I think we're playing Marshall. I hope there isn't a flurry of transactions in the first 30 seconds of this dynasty. But now I have a line-up to use, so thank you.

Additionally, I just want to know how I should play it - I'll sorta fly a subpattern (meaning I'll just make subs on the fly) - but should I be hitting from outside? First-2nd-3rd options? I'm assuming you want the play run through the point guard, but if I'm wrong, lemme know. This is the trial run. We're all new at this. This is part of the fun - the fine tuning.

I'm heading out for a couple of hours for dinner and tennis, but upon my return, hopefully there will be something for me to go on to play the opening game. If not, the stats will speak for themselves.

And to LA, yep, I'm really interested to see who they go with. We have a lot of guys up front and the options in the front court are overall better on the FA market, but at point, we have Rafer and some guy named Milt/ Mr. Subpar. So it is a difficult choice, you are right.

[Emiliano]

Ok, we have good 3 point shooters so I wouldnt mind the team taking 3's. Take as many 3's as you want since it is the first game and from then on we'll see who to go with. The plays I want them run by the guards. Shooting guard or point guard. They can both bring it up the court and call a play. Oh and good luck with your tennis match

[Sac-1]

I'm going to take a look at the list right now guys...i'll get back to you in about 30 to 60 minutes

[joeygraham]

I hopefully will play the first game tonight - if not, I will give this same speech tomorrow. We will be without our newest signee for the first game. Your starting line-up is posted above and will be posted for the game.

[Keo]

I'll make my press onference interview later guys.

[mkballer]

Hey guys I am active dont worry its just I live in the UK so the time that you are logged on I am in the land of nod . It is difficult to work with the coaches when we live of different sides of the world lol. I will be posted what I think our depth chart should be later on.

[joeygraham]

The season has begun! The first game has been played. Recap will be put here. And for the coaches, I have a log of time and score for Raptors substitutions.

For posting, I have some screenshots from the game and stats which will go up. How do I make thumbnails, or should I just link the photos/put them right in the thread?

[Sac-1]

Hey guys i'm back it took me longer than i thought and i was finally able to get the list down to 3 but i can't tell you who they are until later because Matin saw my top six and we cut it down to 3.........i will tell you who they are as soon as Matin replys to my PM

[Keo]

Great. ^^

[joeygraham]

Atkins’ Deadly Aim Buries Raptors 85-77
Lakers' defense makes up for unproductive night for Bryant

[Toronto Box Score] [Los Angeles Box Score]

Los Angeles, CA – The Los Toronto Raptors did not open up their 2004-2005 campaign the way they wanted. With the overhaul of the coaching and front office staff, the Raptors looked a little unsteady. In spite of that, they did put up a good performance.

The first quarter saw the Raptors in utter chaos, unable to buy a bucket and were doubled up 24-12 by the end. Chucky Atkins almost outscored Toronto single-handedly with his outside shot, netting 10 points. While the second quarter saw more Laker domination, it was promising to see franchise cornerstone Chris Bosh elevate his game with eight points and three rebounds. The team looked more cohesive and gelled; point guard Rafer Alston picked up his passing adding four assists and contributing to many other plays. Jalen Rose became the true surprise of the half, both in the positive and negative. He was a gem on defense, mostly responsible for holding superstar Kobe Bryant to three points on 1-for-7 shooting, one rebound and four assists on offense, well below expectations. Even when slotted at small forward, he often would switch over to guard Kobe. On the flip side, he ended the half scoreless on 0-for-7 shooting and racked up just one board and two assists, while coughing up two turnovers. Halftime honours were garnered to Chris Bosh and Lamar Odom, who had 12 points, eight rebounds and two steals. Chucky Atkins ended the half with 15 points.

The seconds half saw a little more life breathed into the Raptors. Down 50-33 at the midpoint, the Raptors were led by Rose’s resurgence on the offensive end, chiefly his dominant third quarter performance. He scored, dished and again provided superb defense, albeit spending much time at the three. Donyell Marshall also begun impacting the game on both ends of the court. The Raptors found themselves down by 13 with just one quarter left to play, but now filled with hope.
And that hope slipped away with the three-point happy Morris Peterson. Having shot 2-of-4 from beyond the arc in the first half, he took another eight trey attempts, hitting only two. Donyell Marshall’s three-point shooting also figured into play, but he went 2-6 and drew big defenders out of the post, allowing Bosh to up his rebound total. The Raptors pulled within six points of the Lakers, but Kobe Bryant began raining down shots, and eventually a 10 point spread seemed insurmountable. LA ended up taking it 85-77 behind Chucky Atkins’ game-high 24 point performance (7-15, 4-5 for three-pointers), 5 rebounds and two assists, earning him player of the game. The Raptors were led by Chris Bosh’s team-high 20 points (9-12) and 10 rebounds.

Highlights:
Rose tearing it up in the 3rd quarter
Rose hits the open three after running over Chucky Atkins
Bosh jamming inside
Atkins lighting it up from outside
Marshall hits the three with Mihm in his face down the stretch

Coaches and managers avaiable for comment after game one.

[.LA.]

Ah tough loss guys, but the Rap's show promise. A big game by Bosh was a nice touch. And you held down Kobe. Don't sweat it, the Rap's will be back. Thinking back now, I wish I would have jumped on this and joined the staff. Ah well, being a frequent reader will have to do.

[joeygraham]

Half-time stats, player of the game/half and quarter-by-quarter screens are available here for those interested.


And .LA., we can still use another assistant coach if you are interested. Evidently, I need someone more to curb my three-point barrages.

[.LA.]

Meh, thanks but no thanks, I don't really think I could catchup with the other coaches all the time. I will think it over though. Thanks for the offer.

[joeygraham]

NP, LA. And great dynasty btw. Really, really solid. And I love the sig, as I also said on your thread. But I do. It's southern fried chicken awesome.

[.LA.]

Haha, so true.

As for your three point problem, I say you should go for some cheap roleplayers. Charlie Ward comes to mind, and Kyle Korver could be a huge spark off the bench. Just depends what moves you are looking to.

[mkballer]

Head coach comments

Positives

Chris Bosh - He is our main guy without a doubt. Excellent game with 20 points and 10 rebs. I think most of our offensive set plays are going to have to be run for him.

Jalen Rose defence - He proved today that he can defend the best of them guarding Kobe and limiting him to 15 points.

Rafer Alston assists - 7 assists today, not bad at all.

Keeping fouls to a limit - It was pleasing to see the team only gave away 6 fouls during the whole game, no silly and cheap fouls. Also not to many turnovers were commited either.

Negatives

Trigger happy 3 pointers - This has to stop immediately. There is no excuse for shooting 36 treys im one game no matter how many you hit. The team need specific set plays run to Bosh mainly. Although plays for everyone will be run, we do not need silly 3 point attempts.

Weak Bench - Something has to be done to strengthen the current bench we have. Nobody on the bench was able to score more than 3 points. We need to make some trades or sign some FAs. I would like us to get someone who can give us a real spark of the bench because right now we are having depend on the starting 5 for almost all our points, rebs etc.

Rebounding - Other than Bosh we dont have a big body who is able to rebound at a high level, hench Mihm and Odom getting 9 and 10 rebounds respectively for the Lakers. We need another big body to help out Chris. Maybe a center so we can move Bosh down to pf his main position.

Point Guard - Rafer Alston didnt have a bad game. But he didnt make the impact that we needed him to. 7 assists was good, but it was his 8 3 point attempts and his defence which let him down. Allowing Atkins to score 24 points was disappointing. Yes Atkins is a good shooter, but we will come up against much tougher point guards like Nash, Bibby and Baron Davis to name a few.



Please make comments about my opinions whether you agree or not. Everyone is entitled to make a comment or add their ideas so please go ahead.

[joeygraham]

I think it's just a matter of taking less. I mean, I've lined up 4 three point shooters and had one as my 6th man (my starting line-up right now). It's just a matter of watching it. Like if Rose is 0/7 in the first half, mostly 3s, I should not be taking them with him. Mo-Pete was 2-4; more than respectable. So it's a matter of cutting down the number of shots. And making them count.