Prediction #3

Posted on October 14, 2009 | No Comments

CHRIS BOSH WILL BE THE ONLY RAPTOR All-STAR, BUT NOT THE ONLY RAPTOR AT ALL-STAR WEEKEND

The Raptors are in an enviable position, and one that they’ve never been in before in franchise history. They will have four possible All-Stars on the roster that could end up in Dallas this February. Bosh is a four time All-Star, both Calderon and Turkoglu have been mentioned before in All-Star conversations (some say Turkoglu got shafted last year), and Bargnani is in the enviable position of being an above average center in a conference devoid of above average centers- one could say a league of them, as well. Unfortunately, that doesn’t mean they’ll actually send any more players than usual.

There are simply too many, more high profile guards in the East for Calderon to make his first All-Star appearance. Wade is a shoe in. Vince will probably get voted on again now that he’s on a winning team, again. Joe Johnson now seems to be a perennial All-Star. Rondo, after exploding during the playoffs, should make it as a reserve. The last spot would either go to Gilbert Arenas or Derrick Rose, possibly both, depending on if the NBA wants to send 6 guards to the All-Star game (they’re allowed 2 starters, 2 bench players and 2 wildcards, so it could happen).

Turkoglu loses out in much the same way. LeBron and Garnett are good bets to repeat as getting voted on. Bosh is a shoe in and Danny Granger deserves another All-Star berth if he has a similar year as last year. That leaves one spot, at most. A lot will depend on the records of certain teams, but do you leave out Paul Pierce over Turkoglu? Or Caron Butler, should the Wizards play well? Would Orlando send three players to the All-Star game, including another appearance by Rashard Lewis?

Bargnani might well have made it had Shaq not been traded East. When you’ve got Samuel Dalembert, Kendrick Perkins, Andrew Bogut (if he can stay healthy) and Joakim Noah, there’s really not all that much competition. Not that they are good players, but if they weren’t centers, no one would be mentioning them for the All-Star team. Unfortunately, Shaq IS in the East, and that means the two centers will be Howard and Shaq.

Of course, an All-Star appearance isn’t the only way to get to the All-Star game weekend. Numerous Raptors have participated in All-Star Weekend, most recently Jamario Moon and Jason Kapono. And the Raptors do have a few possibilities for the Slam Dunk and Three Point Shooting competitions. Bargnani, Calderon and Belinelli will probably be the best, and most prolific, three point shooters on the team. Of those three, I think Bargnani would be the most successful. He’s a set shooter, which is what you need to be to win, and he doesn’t expend much energy on his shot. If he does get in, I think his chances of winning would be pretty good. If there was a competition where you had to shoot threes off balance, I’d pick Belinelli to win.

Sonny Weems and DeMar DeRozan have won slam dunk competitions in the past before arriving to the NBA. They have huge hops and have already wowed fans with their exploits. Personally, I think Weems is the better dunker of the two, and if he continues to be a fan favourite, there’s no reason to think he can’t represent the Raptors in the Slam Dunk contest. He’d have a tough time winning, as I haven’t seen how creative he is, and that’s what wins. Getting up high is one thing, amazing people by doing something they haven’t seen before is another.