So now what?

Before we get to today's blog we have started our own store here at the Dino Nation Blog. It is away for you to support the DNB and show your loyalty. After being around for now 4 years and having to survive a NBA Lockout it was time to do this. So check out the store and see if anything tickles your fancy. More items will be made as we roll along.



Now on to what we do. The one thing that this new CBA provides that will be very interesting for all teams is an amnesty on one contract. It allows a team to buyout one of their existing contracts without penalty to the salary cap. So the Raptors could use this on anyone under contract currently which is a pool of 10 players. Obviously you can rule out a number of folks. The two names at the top of the list for this to be cashed in on would be Jose Calderon with 2 years left on his deal and Linas Kleiza who still is not ready to come back and play ball after a torn ACL from last season. He still has 3 years remaining. Most will feel this is a no brainer it should be Calderon. But there is no guarantee the Raptors have to use it on anyone. In a season where Colangelo has already downgraded expectations of what he might do with the Raptors cap space which will be significant. I could easily see the Raptors not using this clause and saving it for next season and adding to what again will be a year in which the Raptors could have even more room to play with as Barbosa and his 7.5 million will come off the cap after this year. It also would at least open the option of using it on Andrea Bargnani if he were to struggle for another season and the Raptors could not trade him. But it will not be used on Andrea now. I would think this season will be make or break in terms of Bargnani's future with the Raptors.

In terms of Free Agents the Raptors may only have really one decision to make on their own free agents. Sonny Weems is under contract for the season in Europe along with the Andrea Bargnani of France Alexis Ajinca who is likely to stay in France by choice. Julian Wright after his refusal to play under Jay Triano really should not be considered coming back although with no Weems and Kleiza not ready to go it is not the 100% slam dunk he is gone that it might have been. But the really choice the Raptors will face is what to do about Reggie Evans. He has shown great leadership in his couple years in Toronto but also has been injured for significant chunks of time. It will be interesting to see if the Raptors want him back and then if they can keep him should they. Evans is a nice role player for any team and when healthy he has still proven to be one of the top rebounders in this league.

Dwane Casey is going to have a tough task turning this team into even a decent defending team. That challenge will be even greater with a shortened training camp and the fact as training camp is going on so will NBA free agency and new players brought in will be thrown into the mix on the fly. Many said in the NFL that teams with new coaches would struggle but that has not been the case for all. Ask any fans of the 49ers about that. But teams that added a significant number of new faces did not fair as well. Ask any Eagles fan about that. So you may not like the Colangelo proclamation that the Raptors are likely not to shake up the world this year in free agency it might be a wise idea. Also if the Raptors were to shock the world and actually be better than expected the rules in terms of trades have become less restrictive and that cap room could be used in terms of trades just as easily without having to convince anyone on the greatness of Canada. Just because you sign someone and make a big splash is not guarantee of success. Joe Dumars would like to have his choices on Charlie V and Ben Gordon back I am sure. The Raptors clearly were not impressed with Hedo and had to move him along.

But if you listen to most it seems the Raptors are doomed to another season of development. Which likely means the Raptors are more in line to be competing for lottery position rather than playoff position. Whoever the Raptors end up getting will be a bargain as rookie contracts have been reduced by 18% in the new deal. They will also be coming in with the Raptors pick this season playing in Europe in Jonas Valanciunas. That also may be a reason to hold on to Bargnani as once Jonas does arrive it would give Bargnani the move to his natural position according to him of power forward. In a draft class that is expected to be packed with talent as many players took the option of another year of school rather than gambling on if the NBA would play or not this year. That combined with one of the more dynamic freshman classes in years in college basketball should lead to quite the pool of talent for this year's draft.

That is at least a quick overview of what lies ahead. For us in the Dino Nation Blog will start getting things back rolling again with interviews and all of that stuff eventually. It is hard to go from a dead stop to rolling back at 100% for everyone and that includes blogs. But will get everything up and running as your use too. It is just nice to be back and have something to talk about that does not involve Labour Negotiations.

"NBAz in 7 Dayz"

In case you haven't heard, another 'Big Three' are in the headlines. Manu Ginobli, Tony Parker and Tim Duncan are all suffering from one injury or another and the San Antonio Spurs have no timeline for their return. Talk about bad timing. Or is it? Each player has legitimate injuries which need healing and time off. On the flipside, if they took a little extra time before the playoffs to rest, it wouldn't be the first time a team rested its top players. Look at LeBron in his last year with Cleveland: this move didn't work in their favour but Cleveland was also not in the spot that San Antonio is now. The Spurs are also without Antonio McDyess (sore back). A whack of injuries all at once comes as a surprise since there are 9 games left in the season and the Spurs have been relatively injury free up until this point. Even Spurs Coach Gregg Popovich admits in the case of McDyess, his extended rest may have something to do with the playoffs on the horizon. San Antonio's next game is Thursday against Boston. Coach Popovich thinks maybe Tony Parker and his left knee contusion could heal and make the line-up by then. However, he doesn't know when Ginobili and his left quad contusion will return or Tim Duncan and his sprained ankle for that matter. Maybe this is all a part of their strategy - to make their opponents think they are fallible and create the false confidence the Spurs are going to wobble into the playoffs. Fat chance. If I were Coach Popovich, I would be milking the time off for my starters and giving them the time to rest. Having the best record in the league right now gives you that luxury.

Someone who will not be living 'La Vida Luxury' in Cleveland Tuesday night is LeBron James. Let's talk about the second homecoming of the Miami Heat, Julian Wright and his misguidance and the Sacramento Kings in what could be their final days.

Wright not so Right

If you were an OK player making decent money playing professional basketball on a losing team, would you make the colossal mistake of refusing to play or would you fight for your right to be there? I would take the latter but Julian Wright of the Toronto Raptors didn't. He really is a good guy which is why this news came as a shock to me. In the Raptors' 138-100 loss to Golden State last Friday, Julian Wright is listed as "DNP [Did Not Play] - Coach's decision". Do we really believe Jay Triano woke up Friday morning and said, "Hmmm. Not feelin' JW today - he's a scratch". This is what I don't get. Julian Wright is making close to $3 million right now with one year left in his contract. I can see how anyone would not want to play against the Warriors and get pumped by almost forty points. Maybe the Raptors dealing a fair share of "DNPs" to Wright is their way of suspending him or 'dealing with it internally' as they put it, but it still doesn't sit right with me. Maybe they are giving him a chance because he is a good guy, knowing if they set him free now they would not realistically get anything to help him or the Raptors? All I know is, if this happened in the world outside professional sports, it would get you fired. End of Story.

"No Place Like Home" - LeBron James

This is what popped up on my Facebook news feed as soon as I checked it this morning. Knowing he is returning to Cleveland Tuesday night, I checked out some of the comments following. Most contained expletives either for or against. I will not dignify or legitimize them by a re-post here. However this one stood out for me as the one intelligent argument out of the over 900 posted: "Cleveland fans, you knew he was a free agent at the end of the season, you knew he could well move somewhere else. He did, did that honestly surprise you? He hadn't won a championship in Cleveland and he went where he thought he would have the best chance of winning. Get over it now, someone else will come along eventually". Someone else will come along eventually? Maybe. Are they getting over it? Yes and no. Cleveland Head Coach Byron Scott doesn't think the hype will be at the level it was last time but he understands the anger still exists and says both the fans and the team remember what happened last time they met Miami. The team has changed, too remember. Familiar faces for LeBron like Antawn Jamison and Anderson Varejao are both out for the remainder of the season due to injury. Plus, the Cavs traded Mo Williams, Jamario Moon and released Leon Powe since LeBron was last in town. Daniel Gibson, J.J. Hickson and Anthony Parker are the three remaining healthy players who actually played with LeBron. It seems like the fans and the team are moving on but clearly the goal for the team and Cavs fans alike remains the same: beat LeBron James and the Miami Heat.

Sacramento Kings saying goodbye?

It is not yet a done deal but it looks like after 26 years of being in Sacramento, the Kings may be on the move. Sacramento Mayor and former NBA player Kevin Johnson describes the franchise's possible move to Anaheim as a slow and painful death. He met with Kings' owners Joe and Gavin Maloof last month and feels the team is on the move after this season. This is where things get a little weird for me. So after years of not getting public money to build a new arena, Kings owners began talking to Anaheim officials to see what their options were. Yet Mayor Johnson maintains that his city needs to focus on building a new arena with or without the Kings. This raises some major red flags if I was an NBA fan and voter living in Sacramento. If Kevin Johnson is the Mayor of Sacramento and he believes his city's true destiny is to be a professional sports town and the only thing standing in their way is a new arena, why couldn't someone with his obvious background make it happen? The crux of the issue surrounds public funding of a new arena. Joe and Gavin Maloof want it and Mayor Johnson wants to kinda-sorta-maybe give it. If the voters don't want public money used for the arena and this has been on the table for years, how does Mayor Johnson make his dreams of being the leader of a professional sports city or even keep his job for that matter?

Now, Kings owner Joe Maloof is making his first public comments about his franchise's possible move to Anaheim. According to a letter written by a city official to Anaheim's City Manager, the move could ruin Sacramento financially if the Kings default on a $73 million dollar (US funds) loan from the city. To put more salt on the wound, the letter also asks Anaheim to stop negotiations with the Kings. Clearly this did not sit well with Joe Maloof who told the Orange County Register he wishes Sacramento and Mayor Kevin Johnson would stay out of his business, saying the team has never missed a payment and is in good standing. In any case, Sacramento's season finale is April 13th at home against the Lakers - a game that could be its last in Sacramento. (Deep breath).

Thanks for joining me again today. Keep your comments and suggestions coming by following me on Twitter (@ddegraauw) and on Facebook (Danielle de Graauw). Remember to join me here on Thursday when we will be discussing our NBA Rookie of the Year picks. See you then and have a great week.

Scrappy But A Loss For Raptors

I covered this one for The Score so if you want a blow by blow account of this one head over to the link to the liveblog on The Score. It has been a rough weekend for me battling a cold and trying to stay healthy. Raptors have been battling to do the same in terms of getting people healthy. No Bayless, Weems or Bargnani today. I will just offer a few thoughts on this one that was a Celtics win 93-79.

First thing for me in this game was how would DeRozan do?

Coming off a career high going against a player in Ray Allen who has caused him fits in his young NBA career. The answer was pretty good scoring wise with 27. He should have had more in terms of he missed 3 free throws and should have got more calls then he did. He had 5 turnovers which is not good but he was looking for his team mates and not just focused on getting his. Celtics are very good on D and against a lesser team a few of those turnovers would be assists against bad teams. The defence has a long way to go. But even with some of the greatest stars in this game the last thing they developed was strong defence. He did have 3 steals in this game and as he learns can really be effective when he learns how jump the passing lanes when opportunities are there. I said at the beginning of this season the most important thing this Raptor season would be the development of DeRozan and I still believe it. The signs that he can become very good are growing and he is a guy that works very hard. I am confident that Demar can be very good in this league.

I am Sorry Jay Triano....

I admit that I am starting change my opinion of Jay Triano. This team with all it's injuries could just roll over and die and no one would be surprised. However this team is playing hard for Jay Triano. That is one of the things I respected the most about Sam Mitchell, he demanded his team play hard and if they didn't he would place your butt on the bench. Jay Triano's team is playing hard for him. This team did not do that with Chris Bosh. Is it Bosh's fault or Jay's for not being as demanding as he is now when Bosh was here. Jack Armstrong said to me when we were talking about Triano that you can't coach on egg shells. Well this year Triano isn't and the team as a whole is better for it. The difference in 3 games vs Boston has been eye opening from this season to last season. In the games last season Boston basically punked the Raptors and they knew they could go out and push them around. This season the Celtics have had to earn everything and no longer seems like a bully of the Raptors. Toronto is the only team in the Atlantic to beat Boston. I may never be the biggest Jay Triano supporter. I still have some issues. But if this team will give this effort then I will live with my issues about Jay. At the end of day the record is not good but if Triano carries on in this direction the Raptors can be a team that with better talent both through development and adding new players can be successful under him. I was not convinced of that in the past. Is he the answer to win an NBA title or coach this team when the day comes they are a legit contender? Not sure on that. But for the moment he is getting the most out of the team more often than he doesn't

Little Moves Work Well For B.C....

Joey Dorsey had 13 points and 13 boards and was a late season pick up for Colangelo. 30 NBA teams could have had him. Bryan took a shot and has found a decent player that will battle on the glass and fill a role for you. B.C kinda missed the boat on Marco Bellinelli but in true B.C fashion he did not take long to correct his mistake. Julian Wright got off to a bad start as a Raptor. But he is quickly gaining respect for his effort energy and hustle and many Raptor fans want to see Julian Wright get more minutes. B.C has always done a solid job at finding role players for the Raptors roster. It is the big moves that have been the problem. I am not sure Kleiza is considered a big move but I remain unimpressed with his play. Granted he has picked it up with Weems out. I still just think he forces his game at times and is not as good a 3 point shooter as he thinks he is or this team thinks he is. Barbosa struggled today but I liked that move much more as he unloaded another mistake in Hedo Turkoglu. B.C next big moves have to be right. This off-season once the CBA is sorted out is going to define the Raptors future for the next 5 years. If Colangelo misses after setting himself up with cap flexibility with the Peja contract and Bosh Trade exception that will be the final straw in terms of Colangelo.

Raptors Getting Some Warriors....

Amir Johnson and Jerryd Bayless have shown toughness that we have not seen since Alvin Williams wore a jersey and not a suit for the Toronto Raptors. Bayless could not go today likely because he pushed it to hard to try to play. While Amir with a bad back has played through the pain and played like a champ while doing it. Even Jose Calderon today I will give some credit for sticking with it and playing through pain. When you have guys willing to pay the price and play through pain it makes it hard for anyone else to not do the same. It can be a fine line between being hurt and injured and I would rather have a guy that pushes that line to the limit than a guy like Vince Carter.

This Team Can Rebound....

One of the many concerns I had heading into this season was could this team compete on the boards night in and night out. The answers appears to be yes they can. Andrea Bargnani still might not be rebounding it and being injured he really won't. But Johnson, Dorsey, Davis are all working hard on the glass. It is rubbing off on others too DeRozan had 6 today...Kleiza had 9. Raptors have becoming when they are playing at their best a scrappy team that will battle on the boards. They lost the game today but won the battle on boards. Also they are getting after it on the offensive glass and getting points out of it.

At the end of the day the Raptors will not be a playoff team. But they are showing more of the intangibles it takes to be one than a team that fell a game short of post season last year. It seems easy to stick the blame for that all on Bosh. But in reality it is also how others acted in relation to him that was part of the problem. Nothing was stopping people from stepping up and doing the right things. I will give you an example from the Raptors past. Vince Carter was injured and out for the rest of the season. The Raptors playoff chances looked bleak. But Antonio Davis would lead this group on an incredible run and make the post season. They were minus Chris Childs meltdown almost able to upset the Pistons winning in 5 games....back in the old days before 7 game first round series. No one stepped up when Bosh went down and did that for that Raptor team. Now with him out of the picture some guys are stepping up and some are expected and others are not.

Ok so that didn't have a lot to do with the game today. But they are some important observations sparked from watching today. Also you have to give it to Raptor fans with a sellout for a team that is 11-21 prior to today's tip. Granted I am sure a lot of Celtics fans helped make that happen, but still the Raptors continue to draw fans in what is a challenging season at best. Raptor fans are some of the best in the NBA and they deserve a winner.

Raptor Fans Can Walk A Little Taller Today

In a season that did not promise much in terms of expectations and has had few great moments to it. Last night in Dallas of all places, where the Raptors had not won in ten tries, fans were given something great to remember. The Raptors were a beat up bunch of Dinos heading into this one. Even without Dirk Nowitzki playing, most of us if not all of us expected the under manned Raptors to get hammered by one of the best teams in the NBA minus it's top player. After all the Raptors with more healthy bodies were no match for the Memphis Grizzlies.

But something pretty unexpected and magical happened last night. You first had Ed Davis, the Raptors lottery pick come through with the best night of his young NBA career. In just game 14 of his NBA Career to date, he put up 17 points had 12 rebounds and 3 block and 3 steals. It was one of those moments where it can cause you to be hopefully for the future, for both Davis and the Raptors. You also had Amir Johnson playing with a bad back and logging 42 and half minutes. You had Jerryd Bayless turn an ankle but refuse to take a seat with no Jose Calderon. Only to injury the ankle later and not be able to continue. It was the first time in a long time in terms of toughness someone reminded me of Alvin Williams. I have joked in this blog before if someone shot Alvin in the first half of a game he would have the bullet removed and play the second half. It has been a long time since we have seen such collective grit from the Raptors. I would be just as proud of there effort today in a defeat as I am in the fact they won.

The Raptors showed pride which when you are 10-20 (heading into last night) in the NBA is seldom seen from teams with a record such as that. In a season that has had few bright moments this may perhaps be the brightest. It wasn't the established guys on this team in Bargnani and Calderon that were part of it. It was the new young wave of talent that Colangelo has built. I hope Jose was taking notes on the bench and Bargnani was watching this from where ever he was. This is what Raptor fans want and crave. Julian Wright has a small fan base among hardcore Raptor fans. Why? It is simple because he gives all that he has when he is on the floor. Including last night taking a big charge down the stretch in a win. Why was Matt Bonner popular, aside from his Chuck Swirsky given nickname of the "Red Rocket"? The answer is people believed he gave all that he had on the floor ever single night. Unlike a Bosh or a Carter or even a T-Mac these guys don't talk about it they are about it in terms of effort. You put the heart and desire of guys like Alvin Williams, Jerome Williams, Matt Bonner or Julian Wright into a Vince Carter or a Bosh you would have a player that could be an M.V.P. Bill Russell the great Celtic legend said that "hustle is a talent cause not everyone does it." Heart is also a talent cause not everyone plays with it.

In a season that likely will not have many memorable moments when we look back on it 5 years from now this was perhaps one of them. At a point when Raptor fans had become tired of the losing and had probably lost a bit of their desire and passion, their team gave them some reason to be proud of them. Raptor fans have always really only asked for a few things. They want you to love the city and the country. They want you to go out and bust your tail and try to win. That really is all they want at the end of the day. The hard worker will always have a path to be a fan favourite in Toronto.

While this is as the saying goes just 1 game of 82, last night was more than that. It was a sign that this team will keep fighting and scrapping hard. I also want to give credit to Jay Triano. I have never been comfortable with Jay as the coach. I have had my doubts from time to time. However one of the things I admired about the Raptors under Sam Mitchell was that they would play hard or they wouldn't be playing long for Sam. The fact this team gave that effort under Jay Triano is a credit to him as well. He clearly has his teams full attention and is getting the effort out of them on more nights than he doesn't. While the win loss record is not good the fact this continues in terms of effort is good. Many teams once they reach a certain point turn it on cruise control in the NBA. The Raptors clearly have not done that and are quite literally putting their banged up bodies on the line to prove it.

If you did not enjoy last night's game, then I am not sure what it would take for you to enjoy a game. There was a fight in this team that has been lacking even in the some of the years they were better than they currently are. If those teams had this fight, they might have actually got out of a first round of the playoffs. While the playoffs are not in this squads short term future. When they do built to the point that they are a playoff team let's hope they keep this fire and fight they have shown.

As the title says, today as a Raptor fan you can walk a little taller and feel a little more pride than you likely have in a long time. That was a game worthy of it. The Raptors may have nothing left for the Rockets and lose by 25 but they gave all they had to get a win vs Dallas and that should be commended regardless of what happens on Friday.

Raptors Shuffle Deck- Trade Marco For Wright

ESPN's Mark Stein is reporting the Toronto Raptors have traded Marco Belinelli for Julian Wright. Marco Belinelli was deep in the Raptor doghouse for most of last season and had fallen out of the rotation for the most part. Wright has spent his career with the Hornets and averaged just 4 ppg and last season played in 68 games and started 14 for the Hornets. In his 3 years with New Orleans has averaged just 12 minutes of floor time.

This is a minor move and nothing really to start jumping up and down about. But it does at least give the indication that the Raptors are still searching to make moves and improve the roster for next season. It does not address the issue at Center. Wright at 6 foot 8 can play at the small forward and add some depth that is lacking at that position though.

The Raptors announced that they indeed will be holding training camp at campus of UBC in British Columbia from October 1-6. This is the first time the Raptors have ventured west for camp after 2 years of holding training camp in Ottawa. Raptors will also be taking on the Suns in an exhibition game during their stay out west. Raps will officially start camp in Toronto at ACC from September 28-30th.

So a little news for you to chew on during these dog days of August.