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ESPN Hollinger's Prediction
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Demar doesn't like the prediction apparently.
Who the hell is John Hollinger!? #Clown
— DeMar DeRozan (@DeMar_DeRozan) October 25, 2012
Biggest Raptors fan from the Land Down Under
@alexhaggispinch
Toronto Raptors
Sydney Swans, Melbourne Storm
Dallas Cowboys, Dallas Stars, LA Angels of Anaheim
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alexaussie wrote: View PostDemar doesn't like the prediction apparently.
Who the hell is John Hollinger!? #Clown
— DeMar DeRozan (@DeMar_DeRozan) October 25, 2012
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alexaussie wrote: View PostDemar doesn't like the prediction apparently.
Who the hell is John Hollinger!? #Clown
— DeMar DeRozan (@DeMar_DeRozan) October 25, 2012
Twitter: @ReubenJRD • NBA, Raptors writer for Daily Hive Vancouver, Toronto.
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The Raptors kind of remind me of last years Rockets team. That team missed the playoffs but had a 34-32 record (so were above .500). They were also in a harder conference than the Raptors are.
Comparing Rosters, I would say the teams are fairly close:
Point Guard:
Raptors - Lowry, Calderon, Lucas
Rockets - Lowry, Dragic, Flynn
You'd almost say Raptors are better here, but I'd consider this a wash. Both Dragic/Calderon can start and are effective off the bench. Flynn was horrible, and Lucas should be better.. but their 3rd stringers so won't really matter much to be honest. I'd consider this a tie.
Shooting Guard:
Raptors: DeRozan, Ross
Rockets: Martin, Lee
I'd give the advantage to the Rockets, but Martin only played in 40 games (2/3 of the season), and only scored about 17ppg. Not a defense stud by any means, so DeMar could duplicate some of what Martin provided. Lee is a very good player and I wish we had him, thus I'd give the Rockets the edge, but not by much.
Small Forward:
Raptors: Fields, Kleiza, Anderson
Rockets: Parsons, Budinger, Patterson
Neither team had stud wings.. Parsons/Budinger made a nice little two headed monster, but neither would blow you away (Budinger had a nice 3fg%). Fields has the glue-type mentality.. just needs a better shooting percentage, and Kleiza could give you some offense. I'd give the Rockets the edge here, but again not by much.
Power Forward:
Raptors: Bargnani, Johnson, Davis
Rockets: Scola, Hill
Scola in my opinion is a more traditional PF than Bargnani so comparing the two is a bit difficult, but Bargnani provides better offense and helps create space for the other guys. Scola however is dirty and can grab a few boards. Neither are defensive gems. Hill was okay as a backup, I'd rather have Johnson/Davis. I'd give the edge to the Raptors here, but not by much.
Center:
Raptors: JV, Gray
Rockets: Dalembert, Camby
JV is a rookie so hard to assess, but he did well against Dalembert in preseason.. Camby only played in 19 games last season so was pretty much a no show.. I believe that JV/Dalembert are a wash here, and with Camby not playing much would pretty much equal what Gray would do for Toronto this year. I'd consider this a tie.
Coach:
Raptors: Casey
Rockets: McHale
As a homer I'd choose Casey in this battle, but McHale was a heck of a player and I wish he was around to help show JV some post moves.. but from what I've heard he's not very well liked by his team typically.. and I've seen what Casey did last year with pretty much the same roster Triano had, and it was pretty miraculous. Also if I recall McHale took over Casey's job in Minny after Casey got fired, and did a horrendous job. Raptors win this one.
My point behind this is that Toronto and Houston look very similar yet Houston was above .500 and was scratching the playoffs out in the West. So it's not completely inconceivable for Toronto this year to have a semi decent record this season either. I'm still not entirely convinced we'll be a playoff team because of the other improvements in the East, but a 37/38/39 win season may not be too much of a reach.
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planetmars wrote: View PostSmall Forward:
Raptors: Fields, Kleiza, Anderson
Rockets: Parsons, Budinger, Patterson
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One positive thing about finishing 9th or 10th in the East is that it discharges the lottery draft pick owed to Houston in the Kyle Lowry trade quickly, without much of a cost. Of course, it would be better to be perpetually in the playoffs for the next 5-7 years. I'm not sure, but if the Raptors don't have a lottery pick for the next 5-7 years, does that mean that they have to give Houston a non-lottery pick at some point?
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