We Are Talking About Pizza....Not A Game.

Earlier today I mentioned about the Raptor fans yet again cheering for Pizza. It inspired me to create this video:



Here is what SVG had to say referenced in our video:

SVG, Raptors Killers and 10 Days

First let's start with last night's game. It was a disappointment on a lot of levels. Let's getting rolling with the start of that game. Going down 24-8 to the Magic after you were able to battle blow for blow with the Bulls? Yes the Raptors had an immediate response only to fall back again. Ryan Anderson has for me earned the honour and distinction of being referred to as a "Raptor Killer". He is what they now like to call a stretch 4 in the NBA. The Raptors should know all about that as they have one they practice with on a regular basis. Andrea Bargnani remember him that guy that was heading to the All-Star Game earlier in the year. My question with him is are we suppose to believe that guy is the real Bargnani? Doesn't it make more logical sense to think that might have just been a flash of brilliance and Andrea is actually more closer to what we thought he was the last 6 years.

Stan Van Gundy makes total fun of Raptor fans with just cause. It was as a result of the stupid pizza promotion and a basket made by Ed Davis. The Raptors were getting destroyed for most of the night and the crowd was pretty dead for most of the night, then for a silly three dollar slice of pizza. Stan Van Gundy told it like it was in a funny and entertaining way. It is something that we have talked about to death in this blog. Fans that cheer for pizza make all of us as Raptor fans and supporter look like a joke to the rest of the world. I get why people still boo Hedo, T-Mac and Vince. I will support people in that regard no matter what outsiders might think. Still, in terms of cheering for a three dollar slice of pizza when your team is getting pasted I will never support. It was also on a basket made by a guy who until recently has basically sleep walked his way through his second season in the NBA. Be more concerned that team play horrible and lost 117-101.

In reality the Raptors season has come down to a guy coming right from the airport and ending up in a game. You want even find a listing for Alan Anderson when you click on his name in the boxscore. But he did in 7:22 seconds of floor time what it took Solomon Alabi till March 24th to do despite being on the roster all season. What was that? Score two points. The Solomon Alabi scoring streak continued again and now stands at two games with 2 points. That makes his career total up to 12. I wake up to the huge news(not really) that Ben Uzoh is a Raptor. He averaged 3.8 points in 42 games last season with the Nets and this season He averaged 14.8 points in the D-League this year with the Vipers. Truth is the chances any of these 10 day contract guys amount to anything is highly unlikely but it makes more sense than it did to have Anthony Carter or Rasaul Butler hanging around.

There is a month to go in season as of last night. Let's face facts we have reached that point in the season where folks are more interested in the draft lottery than they are in upcoming games. This along with 9 more chances to win a free slice of pizza. What is it going to take for someone to wake up and change this promotion?

Orlando's Real Magician Is Stan Van Gundy

You have a superstar that changes his mind on if he is going to stay or go on a daily, weekly and month basis. You have a G.M that your superstar has little faith in because he really has done a lousy job. Still you find a way to win basketball games. Just like George Karl did a fantastic job last season with the back drop of the Melo Drama, Stan Van Gundy has done an even better job with the Magic. It is so ironic that he was in fact the second choice of the Magic in the first place. Billy Donovan was Magic coach for about a week before he, or was it his wife, decided that he would remain coaching at Florida. So the Magic had to settle for Stan Van Gundy. Who at the time might have not even been considered the best Van Gundy coach in his own family. He had been pushed out of Miami, so Pat Riley could ride in on his white horse and win another championship. Stan Van Gundy is never truly respected for how good he is in reality.

Orlando's second choice as coach took them to an NBA Finals and lost to the Lakers. While this season under far from ideal circumstances has taken the Magic to a 24-14 record and they sit fifth best in the conference. He dealt with his G.M making stupid trades for guys like Vince Carter, Gilbert Arenas and a much lesser version of the Hedo Turkoglu that left Orlando for big bucks here in Toronto. Stan probably has little say in what ultimately will happen to Dwight Howard by March the 15th. Still he has done the best thing that anyone could do in convincing him to stay and that is win basketball games. Stan Van Gundy has done just that. I can't help but think he feels a bit upset with Howard for wanting to leave. If not with him than with Otis Smith for letting this situation get out of hand. In many ways Van Gundy is the man in the middle. He will also be the man that has to deal with the fallout of this situation no matter what it ends up being.

He also is one of the more entertaining coaches to watch on an NBA Sideline. He never looks completely happy even if his team happens to be up 20 or down 20. Howard in the past has said he wishes that Stan would be more positive with the team. I just think the chances of that happening are about as good as Dwight leading the league in free throw percentage. What Van Gundy has been able to do with a line-up that by Dwight Howard's standards is not good enough is pretty impressive. When Ryan Anderson is your team's top scorer behind Dwight that speaks to Howard's unhappiness and to Van Gundy's ability to coach. It is not meant to demean what Anderson has done at all. He has been one of the few players on this Magic roster, to show improvement and be worth more than what they are paying him.

While this could be the last time you see Dwight Howard in a Magic Jersey at the ACC you will still see Stan Van Gundy when the Magic return to Toronto on March 26th after the trade deadline. It makes you wonder when Stan Van Gundy will have enough and want to go to a better place that respects him for what he is. Which is one of the better coaches in the NBA. Doc Rivers cut his teeth in coaching in Orlando before landing the job in Boston. Van Gundy had his chance at title stolen from him in Miami, he had another chance to get a ring in Orlando with a group with less talent overall. His record overall speaks to how good a coach he is with a record in his 8th season coaching of 358-193 and a playoff record of 47-35. He has never missed the playoffs in a full season that he has coached. That would appear to be the case this season as well regardless of the fate of Dwight Howard.

The Raptors can only hope that Dwane Casey can someday have a record that looks as impressive as the one Van Gundy has in his career. He likely doesn't get the full credit he deserves based on the fact he has always had a star player to carry the load for his teams. However he finds a way to get the most from that and demands a lot of everyone, from the best player on the team, to the last guy on his bench. However the guy that Van Gundy is the most hard on is actually himself. He is one of the more under appreciated coaches in the NBA. Dwight Howard owes Van Gundy a ton of credit for pushing him to do more and be more. It would be very easy for a guy like Dwight to just get by on his obvious gifts and talents. But even in a season in which he has had one foot half out the door, Stan Van Gundy has still got the best out of Dwight Howard. Which is impressive and something the Raptors never could do with Vince Carter.

As for the Raptors chances tonight? They could be a lot better on March 26th after the trade deadline than they will be tonight. Last I checked Dwight Howard will still be showing up in an Orlando Jersey. He is a force that Raptor fans are all to aware of. He had some of his best games in the NBA battling against his friend Chris Bosh, with both having some pretty memorable battles. Now his Magic team face a situation similar to one the Raptors had with Chris Bosh. The Raptors ultimately never traded Bosh and went all in for a push for the playoffs. Bosh would get injured and the playoffs never came. He would exit stage left for Miami. The Magic should make the playoffs no matter what at this point. However, do they do it with Howard and risk watching him walk like Bosh and James did in Toronto and Cleveland? That is a question that Otis Smith needs to have an answer for by March 15th.

Christmas Edition Of 3 up and 3 Down

Ok I am not even close to ready for Christmas.....YIKES!!! So will keep it short today with 3 Up and 3 Down with a Christmas Twist.

Santa's Good List:

1. Steve Nash is doing it again. Throw out his birth certificate it doesn't matter. Nash has had another M.V.P worthy season as we close in on the Christmas Break. He has been great and a thrill to watch on a nightly basis. Canada's greatest baller has proven he is far from done. If he would just say yes to playing in the summer for Canada that would be the cherry on top.

2. Stan Van Gundy is never happy and probably does not belong on Santa's good list. However the ends justify the means. Despite an injury to his starting point guard, having to deal with the good and bad of Vinsanity and not having Rashard Lewis for the first 10 games..Still SVG finds a way to win. Magic Fans have to send Billy Donovan's wife a Christmas card ever year they have SVG. Donovan based on his wife's encouragement gave up the Magic head coaching job after a week after accepting it. To early to tell if Portland fans will be doing the same with Hedo's wife for the next 5 years.

3. Jarrett Jack has been vocal and playing at a high level. No Jose....No Problem. Jack in 2010 will be your Raptors starting point guard. It is just a matter of when and not if he will be now. Still no idea on when Jose could return but it is clear that Jack deserves to keep his starting spot. Just as clear as it was for Jose fans that he deserved it when T.J Ford returned from injury. Jack has been a straight shooter and you get no B.S and a heck of a point guard. It is a New Jack New Year on the way you can Marcus Banks on it!!!

and Lump of Coal

1. Chicago Bulls have been a bitter disappointment. Blowing a 35 point lead and losing to the Kings? Oh man that is not good. Chin up Chuck Swirsky but the Bulls are really hurting hard. There had all of those Kobe Bryant rumours a few seasons ago. If they were true the Bulls should have made the deal. Now they wait and hope for 2010 free agency help next year.

2. Hedo Tukoglu has been a bitter disappointment. He is starting to turn the corner we hope. However with only a few games left in 2009 he will overall be disappointing. Let's hope he can turn it around but for now he is on the naughty list. He still has lots of money to spend for the holidays so don't feel to bad for him.

3. The Eastern Conference also gets a lump of coal. The top 4 teams are not deserving but as a whole it is the same old sorry East. Will I ever live long enough to see an Eastern Conference where you need to be better than .500 to make the playoffs? I am starting to wonder as year after year the bottom of the East Playoffs is embarrassing. Come on Eastern Conference pick it up and give me some pride that the team I cover is in the East.

O.K that is it....pray for me as I brave the crazy last minute shopping madness. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays just 1 more game before the break tomorrow vs Pistons at the Palace.

V.C Hate Will Never Die

Raptors fell short in the 4th quarter and lost to the Magic for the 2nd time this season 104-96. Vince Carter when approached about being honoured as part of the 15th anniversary celebration took a pass and said thanks but no thanks. This for people that truly hate Vince would not surprise them in the slightest. After all the reason some people hate Vince so much and they questioned is ability to show up for games when he was here. I think in this case I don't blame Vince at all for taking a pass. A few weeks ago when news this might happen leaked out I was shocked that the Raptors would even go there. Yes you can not tell the story of the Toronto Raptors without mentioning Vince Carter. However the Raptors know, Vince knows and the entire NBA know that when Vince comes to T.O he is going to get booed. So much so that the makers of NBA LIVE 10 made it part of their video game. V.C hate if it's in the game it is in the game.

Why some feel the need to tell people how they should feel is beyond me. If you want to boo Vince Carter who am I to tell you not to do that. Who is anyone to tell you that. I have be accused of being a Vince Carter hater. I am not and personally I never would boo him myself. I don't hate Vince the fact is I pity him in many ways. You may say why on earth would you pity someone that has millions and is a star in the NBA. The reason is pretty simple actually. Vince Carter should be in the conversation with Kobe and Lebron as the greatest players in the game. But he is not and why? The answer is Vince has never taken his massive talent base and used it to it's full potential. He could have been one of the greatest to play this game. Instead of pushing to be that, Vince was more concerned about winning a slam dunk title and playing in All Star Games. When you think about what Vince will be remembered for, it would be more than likely one of 2 things that will be the greatest accomplishment of Vince Carter's career. It will be the Slam Dunk title he won in Oakland or it will be a dunk in the Olympics where he jumped over a french draft choice of the New York Knicks that never would be a factor in the NBA. While Kobe lives and breathes to win titles and M.V.P's, and Lebron is looking for a title ring and a billion dollars. What does Vince do? The same things he always has done. He smiles, shakes hands and cracks jokes and once in awhile reminds you how good he can be. Vince Carter could have and likely should have had a hall of fame type career. But instead you are not even certain if he would get his number retired by the team that launched his NBA Career. Vince Carter is frustrating for many because if they could have the skills that he had they would live in a gym and try to get every last drop out of them.

Vince Carter is not a bad person because of it. He did a lot of good for people in his time here. People often forget that aspect of things. Still at the end of the day for whatever reason you choose to dislike him that is your personal choice. Stan Van Gundy chimed in on this whole circus that is Vince coming to Toronto. He said that they see it as a joke and he thinks people just boo for the sake of booing. That half the people booing likely never saw him play in his time here. Normally I love Stan and am happy to agree with him on most things. However on this one he is out to lunch. Is there a small element of what he is talking about. Sure there is some who just follow the crowd so to speak. However there is a true bitter feeling for many that boo and it is something that will never go away. It's not Stan's fault he just doesn't truly understand.

I wonder what Chris Bosh thought as the Boos rained down on V.C. If he is thinking of ending his days in Toronto he could be thinking that could be me. If that ends up being true it would be sad to me. While Vince never has used his full talent as mentioned above. I think Chris Bosh has built himself into a superstar. He has worked hard to be an all-star and for everything he has got. I think when Chris Bosh goes out on that floor you get the best he has to give on a given night and you have got that from day 1 to today. No matter what Chris ends up doing at the end of this season. I find it hard to believe I would ever want to boo him for any reason.

What I also don't get is why people get so bent when Vince and Demar DeRozan get mentioned in the same sentence. I don't think Demar or anyone was saying he is better than Vince right now. Vince won rookie of the year and had a breakout first season. Things can change but at this point you would not think Demar is on that quick a rise to the top. He shouldn't be as he only played a year in college. Vince was older and more NBA ready when he came to Toronto. What Demar is for me is the next one. Will he ever be as good as Vince it is far to early to tell. If pressed to come up with an answer to the question I would say no. However that does not mean Demar can't still be Heir Canada. The man who one day will be king. There is no question that Demar can be capable of doing some of the things Vince did. I think he can win a dunk contest some day. He can bring the excitement and wow factor that Vince once did. I don't think we will ever hear Demar say dunking is overrated. Vince Carter will always be a part of the story of the Raptors. However that does not mean there can not be a new chapter for Demar. Vince Carter and his legacy is not something that needs to be protected like he was a God. V.C was not a Jordan and about the only thing they share in a school they attended and the fact both have won a Dunk Contest. Actually they both are Olympic Gold Medalists as well. Personally when Demar said "Air Canada" was back I applauded the kid. Let him dream big and give him the chance to get there. I am confident that he will work hard to make it happen. Demar in terms of work ethic is much more like Bosh than he is Carter.

I guess the point to all this is no one has the right to tell you how to be a fan and what you care to boo or cheer. The WWE has given the tag of Bizzaroworld to Toronto. This is because the fans in Toronto often by design would screw up the WWE Plot lines by Cheering when they should have been booing and vice versa. The NBA is not scripted entertainment and no one should try to script the fans that fill the arena. The greatest thing about what I do is getting to write about a team that has passionate and crazy fans. That is a great thing and I am not about to do anything to insult that passion and tell you what and who to be passionate about. In this blog I have never taken away my passion for the people I respect and enjoy. So it would not make any sense to tell you what to think or do in that way. You may like Jose Calderon and think I am far to hard on him. That is cool. You might have liked Joey Graham when he was here. Whatever it is that is your right and do not let anyone tell you what to feel or think.

I do my best to entertain and inform folks. But what you take away from what is written or the interviews is always up to you. I just want folks to remain passionate and for this team to be successful. I love what I do and the fact that I am writing on my Birthday should speak to how much I do love what I am doing. So for all the people who are trying to end what I guess is ANTI-VINSANITY....you have no chance to stop it anymore than you did stopping VINSANITY itself. Raptor fans are not robots and they will do what they feel. If this team does not perform how they feel they should they will boo. When you look at how Atlanta is begging just to get fans, just be thankful for the fact, that fans and having passion is not a problem here. So embrace it, do not try to mold it or shape it. Just let it be. After all that has been Vince's attitude for awhile so he says. I am not sure If I believe him. Deep down I think he hopes it will all just go away but it never does. Unlike his Cousin Tracy McGrady who LOVED all that came with being public enemy #1. Vince has never been comfortable with it...much like he never truly seemed to be comfortable with being the leader of this basketball team when he was here.

Lakers Are Defending Champs...Let Off-Season Begin

So the L.A Lakers have won the NBA finals in 5 games over the Orlando Magic. Kobe Bryant has his Championship on his own with no Shaq. Who may be going to team up with Lebron in Cleveland? Oh yes the season of rumours and nonsense is here. Chris Bosh will be front and center in all of the nonsense that is the NBA off-season. Some love the rumours and all the talk and buzz. I personally am not a fan of it. If I could hit a fast forward button to the Draft and then to next season I would. Trevor Ariza on the now Championship Lakers would be a dream catch for the Raptors in the off-season if you ask me. Rumours have already started that Toronto may be a landing spot for Hedo Turkoglu. This is just scratching the surface of the many rumours that most of which will never come through. ESPN actually makes money off the Rumour mill having folks pay cash to be ESPN Insiders. I will pass and save my money.

I want to say just a few thoughts on NBA Finals.

Kobe deserved this title and anyone that thinks otherwise was not watching how hard this guy was pushing and how bad he wanted this.

Phil Jackson may have ten rings but I still think Red Aeurbach is the best there was and likely will ever be. Congrats to Phil on the accomplishment and that hat with the X reminded me of a younger Spike Lee rocking a Malcolm X hat. But 10 titles is impressive. It takes talent to manage star players and not everyone can do that.

Magic deserve respect. I hear people saying what an awful Finals this was. I could not disagree more. You had 2 games go to Overtime and the Magic showed that a bounce here or a bounce there and they could have made this a much different series. They will learn and hopefully grow from this experience.

SVG is a good coach too. He may not be a Zen Master in his life but Stan Van Gundy did a hell of a coaching job to get his team to this point. SVG deserves respect for all he has done.

Orlando has a Jose and T.J situation to deal with. Hopefully they handle it better than we did in Toronto. Rafer and Jameer can make a great 1-2 punch if everyone let's it happen. Question will be will they?

This series made Trevor Ariza a very rich young man no matter where he signs.


That is my quick take on things post finals. I am sure with a night's sleep I will have more thoughts tomorrow.

Hello Again To Jack Armstrong

On his radio show the Game Plan the topic of who is your favourite analyst in sports. Many Raptors fans would answer that question with the name Jack Armstrong. I would be one of them. Jack has been a guest many times on the Dino Nation Blog. Even with the addition of his radio show, his own blog and all the stuff he already did with Raptors and now TSN he has continued to come talk with us. It is a special treat to have him pay us a visit. I had planned to talk a bit about Jeff and Stan Van Gundy. A bit on the Orlando Magic as the spoiler to the final that everyone seems to have selected of Cavs vs Lakers. Along with some Raptor related topics. We did get through all of that. We never got around to the draft but Jack said he will return to talk about the draft at some point between the lottery and the draft. Jack still covers college basketball as he is a former college coach which most are well aware. So he is a good person to talk with about that. But this conversation is a good one as well as Jack talks about his take on the future of CB4, Why he never lost faith in Andrea and Jay Triano and his future with Raps.




So Jack will be back in early June to talk about the draft and more on the Raps off-season. Perhaps some thoughts on the playoffs as well. If you have not checked out his radio show in the afternoon with Doug Maclean. They talk sports every afternoon from 2-4pm on Game Plan on Fan 590. You even hear me call in once in awhile. I am happy for all the success their show has had and wish Jack and Doug both nothing but the best going forward with it. So just because the Raptors are done does not mean Jack is and that is a great thing for all sports fans. After all this is going to be a very interesting off-season for the Raptors. I would venture to say the most important in the history of this franchise. Jack will be on the air giving his take on the Raps and all the other things happening in sports and that is good news. I use to miss Jack in the off-season but no longer have too.

Raptors Rewind- Superman In The House Edition

The Raptors face a Magic team as I said in the set-up to this game is on a roll. I was impressed by the Magic heading into this season. I think people in Raptorland under estimated this team last season and did not give them credit for being a good basketball team. I personally learned my lesson and was one of the few that were giving the Magic some much deserved love in the pre-season leading into this 08/09 season. I called for Stan Van Gundy to win coach of the year and Dwight Howard to be M.V.P. The Magic had a very slow start to the season and it was looking like I was nuts. But look at them now winners of 9 of their last 10 basketball games. In the Eastern Conference all the talk is about the Cavs and Celtics and on a national stage the Magic are being over looked just like they were locally here in Toronto last year. Don't sleep on the Orlando Magic because they have talent and are a solid basketball team built around an amazing talent in Dwight Howard. Chris Bosh no doubt feels happy for his friend and his success. However given the state of things in Toronto he must be more disappointed with his situation. He will have to carry the load today with no Jermaine O'Neal and Jose Calderon. Bosh in his career has had 7 career 40 points or more games and 3 of them have been against the Magic. If Bosh is going to get any help it will have to come from Andrea Bargnani. He has done well in replacing O'Neal in the starting line-up. Despite the fact that some including me have thought he may just not be in the long term future for the Raptors he has played some of his best basketball of the season in these last few games. The Raptors will need that to continue to have any chance at success. They will also need Will Solomon to play at a high level and not fall apart as he did earlier in the year against Orlando. The odds are long for the Raptors today to get a win. That is the reality of things but if they did manage to win it would be impressive to say the least. The Magic road record is impressive to say the least. So let's see what happens and if Raptors can find a way to ground Superman. But even if they can Magic have many options from 3 point range to many to mention.

1st Quarter

Magic win the opening tap and Rashard Lewis misses a 3 pointer but Dwight Howard gets the offensive rebound and put back score. Andrea Bargnani would miss but follow his shot and score off the rebound. Bargnani would nail a 3 pointer in response to a Magic score. But quickly back the other way Dwight Howard would get a dunk. Chris Bosh would look to get in on the party making his first jumper of the day. Jameer Nelson would miss an attempt and Anthony Parker back in the starting line-up would make his first attempt of the day. Dwight Howard would get fouled but score anyway and make the free throw. The score was tied at 9. Will Solomon would drive at Howard and score and draw the second foul on Howard. So the Raptors had a 12-9 lead but more importantly Howard was taking an early seat after a hot start.

Rashard Lewis would score from long range and the game was back to even at 12-12. Anthony Parker would dunk it home on a feed from Bosh and the Raptors looked solid early with a 14-12 lead and Howard a spectator. Magic had made a few uncharacteristic turnovers early on. This latest one the Raptors could not cash is on it as Bargnani missed a 3 pointer. Hedo Turkoglu would make a 3 pointer and the Magic were in front 15-14. Jameer Nelso would get fouled and head to the line looking to extend the lead with he would making both. Anthony Parker was off to a nice start as he drove to the basket and scored in response. Will Solomon on the next trip would stop and pop for 2 points and he would do the same the next time down the floor and the Raptors were taking advantage of Magic miscues and lead 20-17. Chris Bosh would take it at Rashard Lewis and draw the foul on him and make a pair from the line. Raptors lead 22-17 and looked good. Maybe they were better than I thought against the Rockets. The Rockets were bad no doubt but it seems the Raptors were just as good based on this early performance. Bosh was back at the line adding to the lead. Jamario Moon would make a very tough jumper and the Raptors lead had grown to 26-17. This was not what I was expecting to see but am happy to be seeing it. Still this was being done with Dwight Howard looking on.

Chris Bosh continued the Raptor run with another basket and the Raptor lead was 28-17. Tony Battie would finally end the run with a basket for the Magic.But the Raptors kept rolling as AP would score a 2 point shot. Roko Ukic who had checked in for Solomon did the same as he did with back to back baskets. The Raptor lead had grown to 15 points. Kieth Bogans would hit a 3 pointer to draw the Magic slightly closer. Shockingly you score after one quarter of play it was the Raptors leading 34-22.

2nd Quarter

Jake Voskhul, Joey Graham and Jason Kapono had checked in to start the 2nd quarter. Dwight Howard was back in the game for the Magic as well and he would get to know Jake Voskhul right awat as he would get fouled. Howard would go 1-2 from the line for the first point of the quarter. Rashard Lewis would hit a 3-ball and the Magic had started the quarter on a bit of a roll. But Roko Ukic would find Bargnani for a dunk of a Magic turnover in transition. Bargnani would hit another basket with a mid-range jumper to restore the Raptor 12 point lead. Roko Ukic would drive and score and the Raptors were putting the boots to the Magic much like they had Houston. Can some one tell me what is going on here because I am at a loss. The Raptors were playing good to great defense and creating turnovers. It was hard to believe what you were watching to be honest.

Joey Graham was being aggressive on defense and he got rewarded with a basket on offense. Graham was not done as he would answer a Howard bucket with a mid range jumper. Courtney Lee would get a 3 pointer for the Magic and they badly needed it. Raptors had a 44-31 lead. Jake Voskhul would once again lay the wood on Superman and send him to the line. Howard would have a rare 2-2 effort from the line. Will Solomon was back in game and he scored. Soloic? doesn't sound like Forderon but it was sure looking like it today. Bosh was back on the floor now as well. Dwight Howard had a dunk and he had 16 points despite being limited in minutes by fouls. Howard was getting his but the rest of the Magic looked flat and not bringing much to the party.

Dwight Howard continued to score with ease and pulled the Magic back to 9 down. Andrea Bargnani would answer on the other end with a basket. Magic were struggling from beyond the arc that was made evident as Hedo Turkoglu miss a wide open 3 pointer. Andrea Bargnani would get fouled and was at the line and made a pair. He had 13 points and was playing well again. Jameer Nelson would answer with a jump shot for the Magic and cut it to single digits again. Nelso would later hit a 3 ball and the once 15 point Raptor lead had been cut to just 6 with score 50-44. Triano had seen enough to call a time-out and try and get this team back on track. It had been a tremedous first half effort and it was going down the tubes late in the half. Out of the time out the Raptors went to Bosh who had been silent since early. Bosh would be mugged but no foul call. Instead the ball would go out of bounds and the Raptors with a short shot clock could not score. Hedo Turkoglu would score answered by Anthony Parker. However Jameer Nelson was heating up and he made antother 3 pointer and that was the lead 3. Chris Bosh would get a call the next time up the floor and cash in 2-2 form the line and Raptors lead 54-49. Will Solomon was able to score on a jumper thanks to some hustle as the Raptors got a second chance to score after an A.P missed runner in the lane. Magic missed a couple long range bombs and the Raptors had a chance to build the lead back to 9 points. However Bosh would miss a fading jumper. Still the Raptors were hanging on and had a 56-49 lead at the half.

Bryan Colangelo was talking at halftime. He was in full spin mode it would seem. He was asked if he would ever consider trading Chris Bosh but he said No to that suggestion. Colangelo down played all the trade rumours that were out there. He talked about the difficulties in making a trade. He also taked about the idea of Carlos Delfino and he suggested that he would be interested in having him back but suggested that would likely happen next year as opposed to this year. He continued to defend Andrea Bargnani and talked about him still being young and learning. When he was asked if the only players he would not move at this point were Calderon and Bosh he did a masterful job of ducking the question. But based on his comments on Bargnani it seems he is still not ready to give up on him. He did say the now standard line that he is always looking to improve the team and do what he can to make it better. Colangelo is a very smart guy in talking with the media and he never truly makes any mistakes.

Jack Armstrong followed up on the comments of Colangelo and talked about how Carlos Delfino would be a nice fit for this team and could play some time at the point guard position for the Raptors and add some needed grit. He also talked about how Andrea as he sees it will be a 5 in this league going forward. He said you can see him responding to more minutes and oppurtunity. I can not argue the point as Bargnani has been putting in consistent performances the last few games playing at the 5. But the question will be what happens when O'Neal returns and how will that be handled. I mentioned a few days ago it could end up being a very trick and toxic situation if not handled correctly. So that was a more interesting halftime than you average one. But it was on to the second half and see if the Raptors could continue to shock with a great perfomance against the Magic.

3rd Quarter

It was a good start as the Raptors went right to Bosh and he had a two handed throw down. The Magic on their first possesion would turn it over. In fact they would have back to back turnovers to start the 3rd quarter to the dismay of both Dwight Howard and Stan Van Gundy. Bosh meanwhile had scored the first 4 points of the quarter as he made a jump shot. Dwight Howard would score in response but quickly after that picked up his 3rd foul of the afternoon. Raptor led 60-51 early in the 3rd. Jameer Nelson who was a factor late in the first half, found his way to the line and made a pair from the line. Anthony Parker would come back with a score for the home side. Rashard Lewis would answer that with a 3 pointer and Raptors lead had been cut to just 6 points. Anthony Parker would respond with a jumper and he was 7-8 from the field on the day. In a season that he has struggled he was having one of his best performances of it on this day. He had 14 points and the Raptors lead was 64-56.

Magic made another turnover as a pass went sailing out of bounds. The Raptors could not turn that mistake into points on the other end. Rashard Lewis just keeps shooting and he made his 4th shoot from beyond the arc on the afternoon. Anthony Parker would answer that with a Parker dunk. Stan Van Gundy had seen enough of parker scoring and took Bogans who was gaurding him out of the game. Andrea Bargnani though would hit a 3 pointer and he would score diving to the basket for another 2 points. The Raptors continued to lead 71-61. Magic would make there way to the line to 4 made free throws and the lead was cut back to 6 points. Chris Bosh would get a score in response on a feed from Andrea. But Jameer Nelson had a 3 point answer for that and Raptors were fighting hard to stay in front. Anthony Parker would get another basket to push the lead back to 7 point where in began to start the quarter. Dwight Howard would score to make it 75- 70 for the Raptors. Rashard Lewis would follow up with 3 pointer number 5 for him on the day and the Raptor lead was down to just 2 points. Jay Triano would call a time out and try to get things back on track. Orlando was using the 3 point shot to stay in this game. Nelson and Lewis were the key contributors to the 11 made 3 pointers for Orlando.

Jake Voskhul had checked in and missed a jump shot badly. But the next time the Raptors would be able to hook up Parker for another dunk via the Ukic pass. Courtney Lee would answer that with another 3 pointer for the Magic. A steal and a dunk by Dwight Howard and Orlando had their first lead since 17-16 in the first quarter. So after a really solid effort from the Raptors they would find themselves down 1 point after 3 quarters. It almost did not seem fair as the Raptors had really earned a better fate to this point. The problem was the perimeter defense that had been the same issue that saw the Magic bounce Toronto from the playoffs in April.

4th Quarter

Chris Bosh would start the 4th quarter on the bench hoping to be able to lead the charge down the stretch to an unexpected win. Both teams would fail to score on their opening efforts of the quarter. It would take over two minutes in the quarter to get a score but it would be a thunderous Dwight Howard dunk that would break open the score sheet. Raptors would get to the line and make a pair of free throws. Howard would drive and score and draw a foul on Andrea Bargnani. Howard had 33 in the game and that was a season high. Jamario Moon would make a 3 pointer and J.J Redick would answer with a 3-ball of his own. Jason Kapono would make a basket and be fouled by J.J and have a chance to cut the Magic lead back to 1 after a time out on the floor.

Raptor point guards had combined for 17 points and 8 assists with just 2 turnovers. Kapono meanwhile would make his free throw and it was 86-85 Orlando. Chris Bosh was waiting to check in but before he could he would see Jason Kapono make a shot and give his team the lead. Andrea Bargnani had picked up 3 fouls in the quarter and had 4 in the game that was a concern. Reddick the former Duke star would score and Oklahoma State Cowboy alum Joey G would respond and it was Raptor leading 89-88. Dwight Howard who didn't go to college was at the line and could only make 1-2 and we were tied at 89. The Raptors would respond by Roko Ukic getting to the line and he would make both of his and the Raptors lead 91-89 with 6:48 to play. J.J Redick made a big 3 pointer to put the Magic back into the lead. Anthony Parker normally takes a lot of 3's but today he was a dunking machine as he had another exposing Redick on the defensive end. Raptors would have lead 93-92 with 5:57 left in regulation time.

Some more key free throws for Rashard Lewis that he would make to put Orlando back on top. That foul was not on Bargnani but the next time down the floor after a Raptor miss it would be. Howard would make both frome the line and he had 36 points and Andrea had 5 fouls and Jay Triano would take Bargnani out of the game. Anthony Parker would make a 3 pointer and tie the score at 95. The Superman show would continue on the other end as he would score again. Roko Ukic would make his way to the line again in response and make a few more key free throws and we were tied at 97. Dwight Howard would get back to the line and he would go 1-2. Joey Graham would miss a runner in the lane. The Magic would not be able to make the Raptors pay. Anthony Parker scored again to give the Raptors the lead he had 26 points. Rashard Lewis would answer with a 3 point bomb and the Magic were back on top 101-99 with 2:59 to go. This was a heck of an entertaining basketball game for one that a lot of folks would have though could have been a Magic blowout victory. It was anything but that though as the Raptors were fighting hard for a win.

Chris Bosh had got himself to the line with a chance to tie the score. He would make the first and the second and we were even again at 101-101. Antrhony Parker getting it done on defense as well with a steal. It would lead to a Bosh drive and what was thought to be a score. But instead it would be a fould and no basket. Bosh would make both clutch free throws and the Raptors lead 103-101 with just over 2 minutes to play. Howard would head to the line foulded by Bosh which would be his 4th. Howard could only go 1-2 again. He would be really scary if he could ever figure out how to make free throws. He had 39 points despite missing 7 free throws on the day. Roko Ukic was remaining in this game down the stretch and playing well. Parker would have a rare miss and the Magic would have a chance to take the lead. The Raptors forced the Magic to burn a time out with a trap on Hedo in the corner and 4 seconds left on the shot clock and 1:25 in the 4th. Rashard Lewis was forced into a turnover and the Raptors had another chance to extend the lead but could not. But the Magic again failed to take the lead. Roko Ukic would not allow the Raptors to miss 3 times as he would hit the biggest shot of his young NBA career. Raptors had a 105-102 lead with 38.1 seconds to play. J.J Redick would take and miss a 3 pointer and Chris Bosh would grab the rebound and be fouled and sent to the line. He would make the first that would make it a 2 possesion game. He would make the second as well. Moon would block a desprate 3-ball attempt from Turkoglu. Bosh would grab it again and be sent to the line where he would split a pair. Raptors had a 108-102 lead. There was only 9.2 seconds left and this would be a huge win for the Raptors to have heading to Milwaukee. Rashard Lewis would throw up one more 3-ball that would not fall. The Raptors win and shock their fans and the Magic. I really can not believe the effort of this basketball team playing without two of it's stars. You have to look at this boxscore to believe that this took place because it was that amazing.

Raps/Magic Boxscore

The Raptors have a remarkable homestand in which they win 2 of 3 against Houston and now Orlando. I have to say I am pretty shocked by all of this. After I go pinch myself to make sure I am awake I will have more to say about this in the blog tomorrow. But I like you am a happy camper and will just close by saying this was a great effort and a team win and I am going to enjoy it as should you.