FIO Preview: Toronto Raptors

2008-2009 Toronto Raptors season preview and fantasy impact, courtesy of Fantasy Insider Online. Read the team preview here in the Yard, and then visit the FIO link for the rest. - John Karalis Last Season Recap: The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly The Raptors started last year with a ton of promise. And before the assembly of the Big Three in Boston, they were looked at as the cream of the Atlantic Division crop. But injuries and inconsistent play knocked them down a peg. Instead of building on a 47-win season, the Raptors took a step backward and finished at an even 41-41. Every time Toronto seemed to be ready to make a run, someone would get hurt or someone would get cold. At one point, Toronto was eight games above .500 and seemingly poised to make a run, and then Chris Bosh got injured, and back down to mediocrity they came. In the midst of finding players to plug injury holes, the Raptors stumbled upon an early breakout player (and fan favorite) in Jamario Moon, and the point guard position was finally solidified when Jose Calderon won the job. Sometimes, it takes an injury to help the team figure things out, and T.J. Ford's 31-game absence opened everyone's eyes to the fact that the Raptors were better with Calderon running the show. But in the end, it was a ton of injuries, coupled with the continued struggles of Andrea Bargnani, that really sunk the Raptors. Chris Bosh, T.J. Ford and Jorge Garbajosa all missed varying degrees of time to injury, and all were counted on to bring the team to the next level. Add to that some head-scratching decision making by Sam Mitchell, and you've got the makings for regression. 2008 Draft Impact (None) The Raptors traded their only draft pick to Indiana for Jermaine O'Neal. Off-Season Impact Moves The Raptors made one of the biggest splashes of the offseason by sending T.J. Ford, Rasho Nesterovic, Maceo Baston and the 17th pick (Roy Hibbert) to Indiana for Jermaine O'Neal. The move means the Raptors upgrade Nesterovic and clear out the playing time for Calderon to take over. Now, Calderon, Chris Bosh and O'Neal make up one of the more formidable trios in the league. Preview for the 2008-2009 Season Team MVP: Jose Calderon, PG - The Raps will have a very good frontcourt (provided it stays healthy), but they will need Calderon to make this team move. If he's running the show effectively and mixing his scoring with feeding the bigs, we're looking at a pretty good team. And because so much attention will have to be paid to Bosh and O'Neal, Calderon will have just enough extra space to get his shots off. Everyone will be paying attention to the low post in Toronto, and Calderon will sneak in and be the guy who has the best season. Breakout Player: Andrea Bargnani, F/C - People will forget that he broke out of the gate with back-to-back 20 point games. And he had 19 games of 15 points or more. The problem was that Bargnani had many more games in the single-digits. But the point is that Bargnani is CAPABLE of playing very well and being a big contributor. Now that he's no longer starting, the pressure of being a starter will be off. He'll be coming off the bench and will be facing, generally, bench talent. That combination should open things up for Bargnani to get better shots in more comfortable situations. Bust Player: Jason Kapono, G/F - This might not be Kapono's fault. The Raptors really didn't seem to know how to work him into the offense last season. He took, and made, about half as many three-point shots last season as he did in his last year with Miami. Kapono SHOULD be a spot-up outlet for Bosh or Calderon when either gets stopped in the lane. That should be good for 3 three-point attempts per game. If he doesn't get that, then he, and maybe even the Raptors, are a bust. Playoff Contender or Pretender? The Raptors have enough to be a 4th or 5th seed. With Calderon, O'Neal, and Bosh, the Raptors have a pretty good core. If they use Kapono properly, he could chip in 10-12 points per game. If Bargnani figures out his game, he could be a 16 ppg player who creates match-up problems. It's possible that if the Raptors luck turns this year, and the injury bug bites someone else, then the team will be able to make a run come spring time.