Winning, Chris Bosh, Point Guards and the future!

7 wins to 1 loss

This was, is and will be the stretch that was/is going to define the season of the Toronto Raptors and more importantly both the short and long term future of a franchise in need of something positive and tangible in a city desperate for sporting hope.

Could you expect anymore from this team over the last 8 games? Well, yes. The loss to a team without 3 of it's starters and 4 out of their 6 best players is still unfortunate at best and more realistic worrisome when taking into account the fact they looked like they were playing scared for most of the night.

That loss Massachusetts aside there is some good barley brewing in Toronto these days. The first 5 games during this stretch were against sub par opponents with records below .500 however a win is a win and the fact there were no mental blips is encouraging. Through that stretch though, and especially after the Boston loss I was still steadfast in my opinion of the Raptors being the NBA Mendoza line.

Two wins can really give you some perspective can't it? Most were calling the San Antonio win a statement game because of the fact the Raptors still hadn't won against a top tier opponent. However, being at home, with Tim Duncan not starting starting and the Spurs seemingly taking a win for granted during much of the first half I was still not convinced of these Raptors' defensive merits I have been hearing about.

Last night was a statement as far as this space is concerned. The stars were aligned and a blow out was looming. Aside from the fact that what Orlando does best (shoot 3 point shots) is one of the things that Toronto does worst (give up open 3 point shots), Toronto had come off a big win at home, was feeling quite proud of itself and was playing on the road against a team that has owned them, a let down was probable.

Orlando was coming off of two straight losses to teams in Chicago and Indiana that shouldn't be able to touch Orlando. Vince Carter had come off 3 straight poor games shooting well below .40% from the field and one could just see the story unfolding the way it always seems too.

Something happened though that is quite intriguing going forward. The Raptors showed some serious 'intestinal fortitude' and more importantly and surprisingly mental toughness at various points in the contest. While most remember that the Dino's were up after 1 quarter and the half the game did not start out well for the Raptors. Howard was a human dunk machine and it looked like he was going to dominate and the defence would be swiss cheese like in consistency. It would have been easy for the Raptors to fold like origami.

Toronto got good quick after that. In what has become a staple in wins, the 2nd quarter showed the Raptors forcing turnovers and playing an effective running game which built up a lead. Andrea Bargnani played some absolutely inspired defence and helped to force 9 turnovers by Dwight Howard and frustrate him most of the night.

Bargnani's offense was also solid if not spectacular most of the night punctuated by hitting two big 3 point shots at the end of the game which for all intensive purposes won Toronto the game.

That was a statement, and a good one at that.

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Calderjack vs Jackeron

Of course as only Toronto could produce, one of the biggest story lines around the team (around meaning externally and most definitely not internally yet) is yet another point guard controversy. While the term 'controversy' may be a little strong at this point there sure seems to be a lot of talk and opine about the subject.

This goes out to Jay Triano. Do yourself and favour and protect your behind, no one will persecute for sticking with the old 'not broke, don't fix' adage. At this point many are pointing to the fact that with Jarrett Jack as the teams starting point guard the team is winning and playing much better defence.

I think for the most part saying Calderon's absence has been the golden fleece thats made the Raptors click and win games borders on 'Gilbert-ism' in wisdom. Toronto has played bad teams, and won. If Calderon was the starter they probably would have done the same thing.

At the same time I do believe that Jack bring more balance to the starting line up from a defensive perspective, combine that with the fact that Calderon has proven to be a game changer in the past coming off the bench and the team is winning and the answer is clear; stick with what is working.

If the team looses a couple at some point it is a perfect opportunity to insert your 8 million dollar a year point guard back into the starting position and the business end of the sport makes sense again.

The bottom line is that there is not enough of a discrepancy between these two players and the minutes that they will play to name a definitive starter. Both men are high in character and have shown the ability to swallow their pride.

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Tis the season!

Were fast approaching a most exciting time of the year where trade speculation is rampant and every player on every roster is trade bait for LeBron, Kobe, Wade and even Bosh. If your a Raptor fan looking for movement then you will most likely be disappointed this year and for good reason.

The last 8 games have given a lot of the fans hope, more importantly, rightly or wrongly they have also affirmed Bryan Colangelo's vision of this team being a legitimate playoff contender.

We can debate the merits of whether or not you or I think that Jose Calderon is a legitimate #1 elite point guard, or whether or not this team, the way it's presently built, can contend in the playoffs and make it past the first round but the bottom line is not what we think, but what Colangelo believes.

Calderon is here to stay, Colangelo signed him to the contract he now has and at this point he is the point guard of a playoff team.

Chris Bosh? Do not even think about it. Colangelo still believes he has a chance at signing him at seasons end. If the team continues to prove over the next few months I think the former executive of the year has a real shot. Bosh has talked openly many times about how he thinks teams should stay intact and build internally like great teams of yesteryear.

The only thing Colangelo may be looking to is a starting caliber shooting guard on the last year of his contract that the Raptors could get for cheap, but those players don't grow on trees and it is more likely the Raptors keep the status quo and let DeRozen, Weems and Belinelli develop on the wing.

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Looking ahead

The rest of the month break down as follows:

6 home games (Boston, Dallas, Milwaukee, LA Lakers, Miami, Indiana)
6 away games (Philadelphia, Indiana, New York, Cleveland, Milwaukee, New York)

7 games against teams sub .500 (Milwaukee x2, New York x2, Indiana x2, Philadelphia)
5 games against teams over .500 (Boston, Dallas, LA, Miami, Cleveland)

Therefore if the math took care of itself (which is a big if) the Raptors would be sitting at a record of 25-23 setting up a very favourable February which also may coincide with the return of Reggie Evans.

There are many if's still to be cleared up, and the games still have to be played but combine the schedule with the recent play and there is room for definitive hope in Toronto.

- J.Moore