Yardbarker: Jason Kapono

Raptors Inter Squad Game Wraps Up Camp In Ottawa

Sat, 04 Oct 2008 18:17:11 -0500

Toronto Raptors but a wrap on camp in Ottawa with an inter-squad game for about 1500 lucky fans in Ottawa. Carleton U's Ravens Nest was jam packed with Raptor Fans excited to get the first look at Jermaine O'Neal and Chris Bosh together on the floor. The Raptors start their Pres season vs Cavs on Tuesday.

Jack Armstrong Visits the Dino Nation Blog

Thu, 02 Oct 2008 00:31:33 -0500

Jack Armstrong visits the Dino Nation Blog and you can list and read what he has to say about the Toronto Raptors. Including if healthy the Raptors could make the Eastern Conference Finals? Thoughts on Jermaine O'Neal, Chris Bosh and a lot more

Toronto Raptors Fantasy Team Preview

Wed, 01 Oct 2008 19:42:55 -0500

In the newest installation of the Fantasy Lounge NBA Draft Kit, Eno Sarris takes a look at the Raptors. The fact that Jose Calderon is good bet for top-five point guard production is no surprise. However, what Sarris says about the forwards may surprise you.

Raptors Making Gambles To Be A Success In 08/09

Wed, 24 Sep 2008 14:01:47 -0500

Bryan Colangelo is a guy who believes in High Risk and High Reward. That may never be more so than with his current roster with the 08/09 Raptors. Dino Nation Blog breaks it down.

More fall movies coming to the NBA

Thu, 11 Sep 2008 07:51:48 -0500

Over the next several weeks you will start to see some eagerly anticipated films portraying one of the current Raptors in the poster. Time to start off with a bang (from a really big shooter).

Raptor Fantasy Guide For 2008/09

Tue, 09 Sep 2008 14:14:11 -0500

Raptor fan or not this is a guide for you to use when considering selecting a Raptor in your fantasy draft. We also offer congrats to a girl who had he fantasy come through in making the Raptor Dance Pak.

Back To School On Raps With Paul Jones

Mon, 01 Sep 2008 23:59:06 -0500

Raptors Radio Play by Play Man Paul Jones visits Dino Nation Blog to talk about a variety of topics on the 08/09 Raptors.

Some Keys To Raptor Success?

Wed, 27 Aug 2008 15:01:01 -0500

Some things that may lead to Raptor success as we wait for the real answers and the start of training camp just 5 weeks away.

Return to Normalcy, Return to Relevancy

Wed, 27 Aug 2008 00:33:08 -0500

The Bargnani Experiment

Mon, 25 Aug 2008 21:00:53 -0500

Do you know which Bargnani we will get this season? I sure as hell don't.

Team Preview #15: Toronto Raptors

Sun, 24 Aug 2008 07:21:59 -0500

It's time for you to chime in. What will Jose Calderon's fantasy ranking be at the end of the '08-09 season? LAST SEASON The Raptors finished 41-41, but lost in the 1st Round of the Playoffs for the 2nd year in a row. Toronto's 90.2 pace factor ranked just 22nd in the league, but they still finished 13th in scoring thanks to excellent team shooting percentages: 46.8% FG (7th), 39.2% 3P (2nd), and 81.2% FT (2nd). They also finished 5th in assists despite committing the 2nd fewest number of turnovers (more on Calderon below). OFFSEASON MOVES Key Additions: Jermaine O'Neal, Roko Ukic, Will Solomon, Hassan Adams, Nathan Jawai Key Losses: TJ Ford, Rasho Nesterovic, Carlos Delfino, Jorge Garbajosa On draft day '08, Toronto made a bold move by trading away TJ Ford, Nesterovic, and their 1st round pick (Roy Hibbert) to Indiana for the oft-injured Jermaine O'Neal and 2nd round pick Nathan Jawai. If healthy, O'Neal will likely be the Raptors' new starting center. Jawai is a 21-year old big man (6-10, 285) called the "Aussie Shaq" by some, yet he blocked just 1 shot per game in the Australian League. The loss of Ford opens up more minutes for Jose Calderon at point guard, but they will also get help from Roko Leni Ukic ('05 draft pick from Croatia who recently agreed to a 3-year deal) and Will Solomon ('01 draft pick who has been playing in Turkey & Israel). At shooting guard, the Raptors will miss Carlos Delfino, who signed a 3-year, $30 million deal with a Russian League club. To replace his defense, they signed the athletic Hassan Adams to a 2-year deal. After an injury-plagued '07-08, the Raptors decided to buy-out the remaining year of Garbajosa's contract. ROTATION / PLAYING TIME At point guard, Calderon averaged 30.3 mpg last season, but he played 34.4 minutes in 56 starts and 38.9 minutes in January when TJ Ford was hurt. So I'll project 36 mpg for Jose while Ukic & Solomon battle for the remaining minutes. At shooting guard, Anthony Parker started all 82 games and averaged 32.1 minutes last season. I'm expecting a slight increase to 33-34 thanks to Delfino's departure. I'm not sure if Hassan Adams is ready for big minutes, so I'll project a modest 10 minutes of action for him off the bench. At small forward, Jamario Moon saw 27.8 minutes of action as a rookie. I'm projecting an increase to around 30 mpg in '08-09. Backing him up will be Jason Kapono, who played 18.9 mpg last season. I'm projecting an increase to 20-22 minutes as he makes up for some of Delfino's outside shooting. 3-time All-Star Chris Bosh played just 36.2 mpg last season, his lowest average since his rookie year. Injuries played a part in that, so expect his minutes to bounce back to 38 if he can stay healthy. 6-time All-Star Jermaine O'Neal was also plagued by injuries last season, as he missed 40 games and played just 28.7 mpg, his lowest average in 8 years. IF he can stay healthy (a big if considering he's missed 122 games the past 4 years), you can pencil him in for 34-35 minutes. If former #1 pick Andrea Bargnani can shake off his miserable '07-08 season (another big if), he'll be the first big man off the bench. Still, his 23.8 mpg average from last season is sure to fall due to the arrival of O'Neal. Kris Humphries (13.3 minutes) had a decent '07-08 season, and he'll get his share of playing time as well. DON'T SLEEP ON: Jamario Moon What do LeBron James, Rudy Gay, Shawn Marion, Andrei Kirilenko, Danny Granger, Rasheed Wallace, Shane Battier, and Jamario Moon have in common? They were the only players to average 1+ steal, 1+ block, and .5 or more threes per game last season. That's an exclusive group, but Battier & Moon are much less heralded players, partly because both failed to average double digits in scoring last season. Indeed, Moon's 8.5 ppg average was nothing to write home about, but he also helped out fantasy teams by pulling down 6+ boards and shooting 48.5% from the field. I'm optimistic about Moon's 2nd NBA season because his stats actually improved after the All-Star break, despite playing fewer minutes and opponents being more familiar with him. For example, before the break, he averaged .4 made threes and .8 turnovers while shooting 46.2% FG, 29.7% 3P, and 70.0% FT. After the break, he averaged .7 made threes and just .4 turnovers, while shooting 52.3% FG, 36.2% 3P, and 80.0% FT. If you ask me, those Post All-Star improvements indicate that Moon played with much more confidence after proving that he belongs in the NBA (as opposed to the CBA, USBL, LNBP, or any other league that he previously played in). When you factor in Delfino's departure and a possible increase in playing time for '08-09, that makes Moon an intriguing mid-round pick if you already have some big-time scorers. BE CAREFUL OF: Jose Calderon It's not often that a player goes from being picked outside of the Top 100 one year (average draft position of 104.7 according to ESPN) to being a Top 20 pick the next, but that's exactly what might happen with Jose Calderon. The Spanish point guard was one of the top value picks of '07-08, but I'm warning you to be careful because it's hard to exceed value when expectations are set too high. And for knowledgeable fantasy hoops fans, expectations seem to be floating somewhere between the stratosphere and thermosphere right now. For example, just look at Dr. A's recent column, where he states that Calderon "probably should be" the 4th point guard taken in your draft because "the sky's the limit" for him this season. I think the only player I've said "the sky's the limit" for is LeBron James, so I think we need to examine this Calderon fellow. First, let's take a look at 3 sets of stats for Jose from last season. 82 game averages: 30.3 min, 11.2 points, 8.3 assists, 1.1 steals, 1.0 threes, 1.5 turnovers, 51.9% FG, 42.9% 3P, 90.8% FT 56 games as starter: 34.4 min, 13.0 points, 9.1 assists, 1.2 steals, 1.2 threes, 1.9 turnovers, 53.1% FG, 45.3% 3P, 91.1% FT 13 games in January: 38.9 min, 14.9 points, 10.4 assists, 1.8 steals, 1.8 threes, 2.2 turnovers, 55.1% FG, 51.1% 3P, 96.9% FT The first set of numbers is solid, the second set is outstanding, and the third set is mind-blowing. And that latter set is key, because TJ Ford was injured on December 11th and returned on February 4th. So if you see a fantasy hoops head drooling come October, he's most likely looking at those January split stats. But I ask you: has Calderon's ceiling been set by that third set of numbers or is the sky really the limit? Let's start with that impressive 96.9% free throw shooting. The last time a player shot that well from the line over an entire season (minimum 100 attempts) was… NEVER. The NBA record is owned by Calvin Murphy, when he shot 95.8% in '80-81 (2nd place goes to Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf's 95.6% FT in '93-94). Now let's examine that superb 55.1% field goal shooting. The last time a guard shot that well from the field over an entire season (minimum 500 attempts) while making 1 three per game was… NEVER. John Stockton came closest to doing that, when he shot 54.2% FG in '94-95 while making 1.2 threes per game. Of course, what makes Calderon so valuable in 9-cat leagues is his brilliant assist-to-turnover ratio, which was 5.38 for the '07-08 season (4.82 for January). The last time someone dished out 9+ assists per game while posting an assist-to-turnover ratio of 5.0 or better was… Muggsy Bogues in '89-90, when he averaged a sweet 10.7 assists to just 1.8 turnovers (5.94 ratio). But besides Muggsy's exceptional season, no one else has even come close to posting a 5+ ass/to ratio while averaging 9+ assists per game. So again I ask you: has Calderon's ceiling already been set, or is he going to summon the forces of Calvin Murphy, John Stockton, and Muggsy Bogues and put together one of the most impressive statistical seasons ever by a point guard? I'm not saying that he won't be one of the top fantasy PG's for '08-09, but I AM saying to be careful with your projections and expectations. It wouldn't surprise me if Calderon is a 1st round pick in some 9-cat leagues and a 2nd rounder in some 8-cat leagues, but for him to have that kind of value he is going to have to put up some mesospheric numbers. What will Jose Calderon's fantasy ranking be at the end of the '08-09 season? Click on the link to vote!

TOP 12 REASONS WHY THE US MENS BASKETBALL TEAM WON'T WIN GOLD

Tue, 01 Jul 2008 23:02:46 -0500

by DMtShooter, Five Tool Tool

12. Critical error of selecting four point guards and just three big men causes complete collapse of morale

11. Kobe's teammates just aren't talented enough

10. Refs in the medal round are from Iraq, Iran and North Korea

9. There's no way that Jason Kidd can defend Angola's Milton Barros one on one

8. Presence of Head Coach Mike Krzyzewski means that most of America will actually be rooting against the team

7. American NBA players curl into the fetal position when confonted with the horrors of zone defense

6. LeBron James and Jay-Z will be distracted by a rap battle with Sarunas Jasikevicius and Mister Sinister

5. Three point and free throw shooting always goes to hell when players have to shoot in metric

4. Can't hope to compete with Spain and Argentine's incredible "Fall Down And Cry Like A Little Girl For A Call" technique

3. USA Select team (Aaron Brooks, Channing Frye, Jeff Green, Devin Harris, Andre Iguodala, Al Jefferson, Jason Kapono, David Lee and JJ Redick) left their confidence shaken in warm-ups

2. Brutal every-other-day schedule will destroy NBA players who are used to their playoffs lasting six months

1. If things start going badly for the home team, they've got a very impressive bench

Friday the 13th: Best Jason's in the NBA

Fri, 13 Jun 2008 07:20:59 -0500

In honour of Friday the 13th, the interns were given the task of listing the best five Jason's in the NBA. Did they do a good job? You decide.

Raps vs. Magic - Game 3 Preview

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 08:19:48 -0500

All things considered, the Raptors really haven't played that bad basketball over their first two playoff games this year. They have had two absolutely terrible quarters, which happen to be the first quarters of both games, but outside of those first two quarters, they have outscored the Magic 162-140. Until Hedo hit his miracle shot to put the Magic up in Game 2, he hadn't done anything in the second half and the Raptors had done a pretty good job controlling the Magic offense. They had a horrible last play and some defensive lapses were clearly evident, but I don't think the situation is as bad as everybody seems to think it is. If the Raptors are able to win on home court and even it up, I think they'll take the series. I know, I'm the only person saying that and I know that the numbers are heavily against them, but when it comes to the playoffs, momentum has everything to do with everything. If you start getting your opponent to question themselves, you're already halfway there. While the Raptors didn't win Game 2, if they had, you would probably hear people talking about the great job the Raptors did in splitting away from home. So 2 points one way or the other defines how well or how poorly a team played? Let's keep it in perspective. Let's not kid ourselves though, the Raptors have some serious work to do in order to come out strong in the first quarter. Right now, nothing is working for them in the first quarter. They can't stop anybody, they can't get anything started, they're a mess. Sam has said that he is going to shake up the lineup, which will most likely mean that Jose will start, Rasho will sit and Kapono will be in. They really do need to get a better first 8 minutes from the PG position, as TJ has not been attacking the way he usually does, which is strange. If anything, you would expect TJ to be trying to do too much. Instead, we are watching TJ pull up for jumpers. Speaking of pulling up for jumpers, Kapono will most likely be in, because when a guy has so much confidence in his shot that he will put on the breaks and spot up for a jumper on a 3 on 1, you have to find a way to get him as many minutes as possible. They key for Bargnani will be to stay active. Too many times on offense and defence, we see Bargs standing around. He has to learn to bring the game to himself, to try to work the flow of the game into his part of the court. At this point in the series, I think it would be a good idea to go with TJ and Jose on the court at the same time for extended periods of time. We have seen that when the Raptors are attacking, the Magic cannot handle their speed. It's not even close. We saw Hedo and Nelson get into foul trouble because they had magnetic feet and I don't think it would be that hard to get them into that situation again. Jameer Nelson also thinks he is the cow's teat right now, which has led to him trying to hot dog, which has then led to him turning the ball over. Belief in yourself is a dangerous thing. A little too much placed in the wrong spot and all of a sudden, you can go from the hero to the goat in (say it with me) a millisecond. Jameer Nelson just can't handle speed. He thinks he can, but he can't. If the Raptors go small with Jose and TJ on the floor at the same time, the Magic could be exposed. This might mean that AP would see a little less time on the floor, but you can't have a guy who is supposed to be taking shots out there not taking shots. That's just wasting your space on the floor. Either shoot it or sit. AP's defensive game is decent, but it's not good enough that he is going to win playing time on it. I also think it would be a good idea to get Jamario some more PT, but only if he is going to attack the rim. He can fly with the best of them, but his problem all season has been getting him to realize that he is not a SG. I would love to see him challenge D12, just go up and try to dunk on him. If it doesn't work, hey, you're a rookie who tried, but if it works, you'll get the Starks over Jordan treatment…and then maybe Leo and Chuck will start talking about how much they love your body…er…awkward. Anyway, I don't think the situation is as dire as everyone seems to have made it out to be (I mean, really, trade Bosh talk? Come on.). True, the Magic won more games on the road than at home this season, but that was the regular season. Totally different situation. For example, the Raptors typically serve themselves up to their opponent in the 3rd quarter…but in the playoffs, they have been doing it in the first. See? Totall different. Enjoy the game!