Jones on Raptors: Time to look ahead
Posted March 12, 2012 6:03 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Raptors coach Dwane Casey makes the occasional reference to the “basketball gods” and if you’re a Toronto fan, you have to believe they are just testing to see if he’s up to theold adage, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.
Why? Because shortly after welcoming Andrea Bargnani back to the line-up, Casey watched his starting point guard Jose Calderon sprain his right ankle which will keep him out for an indefinite period of time.
It makes it tough for Casey (and general manager Bryan Colangelo) to make proper evaluations of their squad because as Bargnani works his way back into playing shape, the man who gets him the ball and runs the offence is on the shelf.
Calderon will not achieve his goal of playing in all 66 games due to the injury.
The result of the setback also means that, for the time being at least, the trade rumours surrounding Calderon may be laid to rest. The loss of the Spaniard is also difficult for Casey and his Raptors because although it may not win you games, good guard play can keep you close in many contests.
In the team’s first outing without Calderon against the Milwuakee Bucks, Jerryd Bayless was inserted into the starting line-up for the beginning of his audition period to prove he can indeed be a point guard and run an NBA team. Bayless, who has missed 17 games himself, had a solid outing from a numbers standpoint contributing 16 points and six assists with only one turnover. Mind you, the team did have nine turnovers and only six assists in the second half, but not all of that was due to point guard play.
Were there instances where he missed the open man and didn’t deliver the ball at the right time? Did Bayless’ score-first mentality show itself in some instances? The answer to both queries is yes, but regardless of who he’s playing with, it’s going to take him some time to develop some chemistry and learn to work with his teammates in his new role. The one trait that Bayless possesses that Calderon only uses selectively is that he is able to occasionally break down defenses to produce more dynamic assists. Every move that Bayless and Gary Forbes, (who has now been elevated to the back up point role), make will be micro-analyzed until Calderon returns.
Bayless and Forbes combined for 23 points and eight assists with just two turnovers but keep an eye on the field-goal attempts. Bayless had 13 in the game against Milwaukee. In his 39 games, Calderon attempted 13 or more field goals only five times while still managing an average of eight assists in those contests. Shot attempts and timely deliveries, if even just to make a simple pass to move the ball and continue the offence will no doubt be examined closely by the coaching staff.
To Bayless’ credit, he spends large amounts of time working with assistant coach Johnny Davis watching video in an attempt to learn the idiosyncrasies of playing the point guard position.
Hmmm, is it me or are we hearing less and less about New York Knicks point guard Jeremey Lin? Well I suppose five straight losses will do that and now people are tuning to head coach Mike D’Antoni and saying, Insert link
http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/basketball/knicks/problems-mount-ny-knicks-mike-antoni-fix-article-1.1037302 “you’re the coach, fix it.”
In fairness the Knicks are having difficulty figuring it out and recapturing the chemistry they had established when Carmelo Anthony was sitting on the bench with an injury. NBA defenses now also have a book on Lin, as they are forcing him to play defence, go to his left hand, taking advantage of him by double-teaming him at times in screen-and-roll situations and deflecting some of his passes.
However, the Knicks do still hold down a playoff spot as they remain in eighth in front of the Bucks.
Has anybody noticed that Dwight Howard is still in Orlando?
Don’t look now but the team is playing well having defeated Chicago and Indiana with Miami up next. The Magic sit in the third spot in the Eastern Conference, which is a much more comfortable place than general manager Otis Smith, who is still between a rock and a hard place with Thursday’s trade deadline bearing down on him.
You can get the latest Dwight Howard update here Insert link http://www.orlandosentinel.com/sports/blogs/sentinel-sports-now/os-dwight-howard-trade-orlando-magic,0,2407727.story but I still say that if he is undecided, don’t trade Howard and call his bluff. Do all you can to sign him but in the end, if he wants to leave that badly, dare him to walk away and leave about $35 million in Orlando on the way out the door.
As one member of the Magic organization mused, “I’m not sure what else he wants, he has it all here.”
And that he does by being “the man” in a warm weather city, in a state where there are friendly tax laws and an organization that is trying all it can to win. Stay tuned, we’ll know more on Mar. 16th.
