Raptors Are Undefeated!

Posted on October 29, 2009 | No Comments

Well, it’s just one game, but what a game it was. This was probably one of the games I was most interested in seeing because I was anxious to see how the Raptors unique front line would be defended. I figured if Bargnani and Bosh shot well, they’d have a good chance. Bosh didn’t shoot well from the field (but did live on the foul line, again), but Bargnani showed why he can be such a dangerous offensive player. He scored in a variety of ways and made it impossible for the Cleveland big men to guard him. Of all the rebounding and defensive weaknesses the Raptors front line has, it’s the matchups problems that they pose on offense that makes them so dangerous. And tonight they showed why.

Still, it’s one game and anyone expecting to see this every night will be disappointed. Bargnani will not shoot 11-15 from the field and 2-3 from beyond the arc every game. He still didn’t get to the line nearly enough, only had five rebounds, and allowed far too many offensive rebounds by the Cavs big men. What we saw from him was incredibly promising, though. He drove the ball well and looked comfortable in the post, for once. And he defended well, as well.

In fact, I think the biggest surprise for most people would be how well they played defense. The big men hedged out on the screen very well, and, except for that period in the third when Cleveland came back, they got out on the shooters. Calderon, as I expected (and predicted), was able to mostly keep his man in front of him and never looked overmatched. Bosh played very well on the defensive end, hustling and using his newfound bulk to good use. I think Bosh will make huge strides in this area this year. Now I say most people would be surprised, but loyal readers would know I predicted they would become a pretty good defensive team. Now, much like Bargnani’s shooting, this isn’t going to happen every night. Not yet. We’ll see them struggle defensively, at times, especially early on, but as tonight showed, they have the ability to be a very good defensive team.

It wasn’t just good defensive that I predicted. Take a look at the other prediction that came true, at least for one night…

The Cavs would struggle on the offensive and defensive ends

Belinelli has what it takes to play as well as he did tonight

Raptors are a better team than they showed in preseason.

Again, it’s just one game, and my predictions look pretty good right now, but it’s a long season and I still expect the Raptors to struggle for a while. Let’s hope it’s not for long, however.

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