My Day was Much Better than the Raptors Day

This has nothing to do with the Raptors but I am a big fan of Ricky Romero who was at the game last night, so I lied it did have something to do with the Raptors. Never the less the idea of getting to watch him pitch and cover the Raptors game seemed like a great plan for me. Last time I did this was last year when I covered the draft workouts of Tristan Thompson and Cory Joesph and hung around to watch Romero pitch that night. He got a complete game shutout that night and yesterday just gave up one run going 8 and a third innings and getting the win. The Baseball game was just great as the Jays won the series over Boston two games to one and are now 4-2 to start the season.

To bring this back to the Raptors, making the walk from the building I will always call Skydome toward the ACC, it got me thinking of what an opportunity has been lost for the Raptors. One of the Leafs was in attendance at the Jays game and he was introduced to the crowd to a loud boo. Take that in contrast to the loud cheer from the smaller crowd at the Raptors game for Ricky Romero. The point is that Leafs are in rough shape and Toronto sports fans are desperate for a winner. MLSE has not provided that in hockey, basketball and soccer. The Jays owned by soon to be part owner of MLSE Rogers, have provided a buzz of excitement and optimism surrounding the team they own.

This would have really been a chance for the Raptors to make up some ground on the giant that owns the city that is the Maple Leafs. Instead it would appear that the Jays have taken that ball and are starting to run with it. While the Raptors are optimistic for their future as well, the Jays have much more to be optimistic about. The Raptors have Jonas and whatever comes out of the draft to add to the mix next year. The Jays have a minor league system full of exciting prospects that people are high on. Obviously baseball is different and you get a chance to have more opportunities to develop players. If Jonas was a baseball player it is likely you wouldn't see him for not just this year but a view more years.

That really is off the topic somewhat, but the real point I am making is the Leafs franchise has never been in a more weak a fragile state since perhaps the days of Harold Ballard owning them. There was no basketball team back then, trying to compete for attention, but there is now. The Raptors may not get their act together in time if they do at all as it seems clear that Toronto is on verge of going back to the days of the early 90's when the Jays were the biggest thing in town. If you are not old enough to remember those days it was quite amazing. The Jays would fill Skydome on a nightly basis and have crowds pushing 50,000 every night. They are still a long way from that now but they are creating a buzz and the Raptors have absolutely no buzz at all right now.

In terms of the game last night if I was ever to be inclined to feel sorry for Jose Calderon it might be now. I mean to get cut open for a second time in a game that ultimately means little to your season already being eliminated from the post season. This in the face of your supposed star Andrea Bargnani out for a 3rd time with the same calf injury. I would bet we might see Jose back this year but I would also bet we have seen the last of Bargnani. I will say this for Calderon he does do his best to play through things and try and compete. He was at the Blue Jays game the night before and threw out the first pitch. Trying to get the rub of that Jays Magic to come over to the Raptors. It obviously didn't work.

The game itself aside from more injures to Calderon and Kleiza pretty much went as you might expect. A desperate Philly team that had been embarrassed at the hands of the Raptors a week earlier was not going to have it happen a second time. The Raptors did a good job trying to hang around for a half but the Sixers came out guns a blazing in the final quarter against an undermanned Raptors squad.

The focus seems to be towards the coming off-season now and Dwane Casey gets his first chance to guide his players through an off-season something he was not afforded with the NBA Lockout this past summer. Given the excellent job Casey has done you wonder how much it could have had an impact. Ed Davis as an example finally seems to be turning a corner. He himself based on the Lockout and injury has yet to have a full NBA off-season and training camp to improve. This year if he stays healthy for the last 7 games and throughout the summer, he should finally have that chance. I had a chance to talk with Demar DeRozan and he is looking forward to a more normal off-season and plans on spending more time in Toronto during it. You can hear all of that in an interview we did, that should be up later today or tomorrow.

I have one more game that I will be covering this season (In Person) the last one vs the New Jersey Nets on the 26th. For many Raptor fans that game can not get here soon enough. In a season that has been shorter it has seemed so much longer. It sure doesn't seem like the Raptors are better than they were last year. However they in fact have made a minor improvement in winning % and major improvement on D.

Still losing year after year can be rough. Just ask a Leaf fan if you happen not to be one. They know all about it.

Raptors Lack Tradition

I am not sure what I expected after 16 seasons of the Raptors being in the NBA. But this team really lacks tradition. It is always constant change. The place they call home has seen more makeovers to it's court than perhaps any other team in the same time frame. The entire colour scheme has changed. There is a lot of people that would suggest the Raptors name itself should change to Huskies. The Raptors are on their 8th coach now and there have been many changes of culture. The Raptors lack any kind of lasting identity. The Raptors really lack any kind of true rivalries. Most of the Raptors attempts at having a rival have not lasted. When it all started there was the Grizzlies who were their natural rival. They of course went to Memphis and so ended that. The Sixers and Raptors battled in one of the best playoff series in history. But soon after both teams fell on hard times and the rivalry fizzled. There have been the rivals based on guys leaving. A couple of times with the Magic based on T-Mac and Vince being part of that franchise. There was a playoff series between the two as well. The same story with the Nets as Vince was traded to them and there was one playoff series between the two, along with sharing a division. But by and large none of these have stuck. Some would say the Celtics are but that is more the bully in the school yard that has taken your lunch money for years.

When you think of the Raptors what pops in your head? Perhaps fans booing Vince or T-Mac. If the Raptors have any sort of tradition it lies more in the fans. They have always booed the guy that has left them high and dry. They have always cheered the guys that hustled and busted their butt even after they have left. A group that is always discounted but continues to show up.

This is not just the Raptors issue in fact the NBA team I had cheered for prior to the Raptors was a lot like that. The Charlotte now New Orleans Hornets. Short of a Ric Flair WOOOOO!!! I am not sure the Hornets have any real kind of tradition. When you say Hornets not any rival jumps to mind. Is this just a case of it take a long time for expansion teams to make roots. In the case of the Hornets they were up rooted and replaced by Bobcats.

But OKC has only been around for a short time and they already have some tradition. The fans don't sit until their team scores a basket. They despite having some ugly uniforms and a pretty simple logo have kept it the same. They still lack rivals but you can see some starting to grow for them vs Dallas and Memphis. Thunder Up has been made famous by the tweets of their superstar Kevin Durant.

MLSE owns one of the most traditional and iconic franchises in Hockey. The Leafs have fed off that tradition for years. After all when you have not won a championship since 1967 what else can you do. They have many rivals some old traditional ones like with the Habs, to new and more modern ones with the Sens. They even market it as "the tradition that binds us all". Yet on the Raptors side of MLSE that tradition is lacking.

Perhaps it comes down to the simple fact of not a lot of winning. Hence you have constant change to try and run away from your not so spectacular past. Whatever the reason is the fact the Raptors lack any sort of tradition is something as someone who has supported them from day one I find myself craving.

I grew up a fan of the Dallas Cowboys. They have all you could ask for in that regard. The star on the side of a silver helmet is iconic. They have traditional rivals that last no matter records of either side. You say Cowboys and Redskins and people have a long history to draw on between the two teams. You can not be a Redskins fan and like the Cowboys and the same is true if you cheer for the Cowboys if you like them you hate a number of teams Giants, Redskins, Eagles and 49ers will never be teams you cheer.

I hope that I live long enough to see the Raptors have a tradition and true identity. I am not sure a rock that sits in the dressing room is going to be it. But what the Raptors have to do is stop changing the paint on the floor, the colours on a uniform and say this is who we are and what we are. That is something that is needed. Perhaps that comes along with simple winning. But maybe you need to start establishing that before the winning comes. I don't crave 3-D logos or countless variations of uniforms. I carve something that is the same and feels like home. Feels like a good old sweater that is comfortable. In 16 years the Raptors have yet to provide that.

More Questions, Few Answers For Raptors

Could things be any more confusing for the Raptors at the moment? Let's see the major stock holder in MLSE is selling out but yet blocking Bryan Colangelo from being extended. If there is no Bryan that would mean Jay Triano's future would be up in the air as well. The team enters an off-season with a draft class that was not stacked to begin with that with a looming lockout might end up even worse than that. Oh yeah and then there is that whole if there will be a season thing. So next season things could be very different or very much the same assuming it happens at all. What a frigging mess.

I am not sure where I expected this team to be at this point back in 1995. But I am pretty confident that I expected better than this. I just hope Raptor fans do not become like Leaf fans that just becoming accepting of garbage. I always use to see a difference between the two groups of fans even though many out there like both. But there is still the difference when you look at the crowds. The ACC is not filled to the rafters for the Raptors regardless of what they do. The last game I was at was the game vs the Pacers and the attendance was listed at 14,726. It sure didn't look like it. Raptors have also given away some seats. The Raptors attendance is not to the point of some places in the NBA. But there is a noticeable difference this season.

What will it look like on the other side of an NBA lockout? Baseball got totally rocked by the work stoppage in 1994. Attendance for the Blue Jays has never been the same. That is only 2 years removed after a World Series and it has been on the steady decline ever since until this past season where I think they started to win a few fans back. The Raptors have never won anything, in fact the Raptors have never even be close to winning anything. Slam Dunk titles, Division Title, couple Rookie of the Year Awards, and a GM and Coach of the Year award do not count. When you look at things Raptors fans have ever reason to feel frustrated and fed up if you have been on this ride since it started.

The Raptors have also still not solved the fundamental problem with this franchise. You may hate Chris Bosh now, You may hate Vince Carter till you die. But the Raptors have not solved the fundamental issue of how to keep a star player in this town. The new CBA may help them solve the problem that they have not been able to solve themselves in 16 years. At least you hope that is the case. I mean Demar DeRozan has not even reached the peak of what he will be and I already hear some folks talking about "when he leaves". Which is a shame because it robs you of the true enjoyment of watching a player grow and get better fully. The drafting of Andrea Bargnani if he had turned into what they had hoped might have been the answer. But he isn't that star player and franchise guy to build the team around. The fact he wants to stay or go is a moot point. If you look at the NBA as a whole has there been an NBA Team led to an NBA Title by a foreign player? Dirk came close but as of yet has not got it yet. You could make argument that technically the Spurs have with Tim Duncan from the Virgin Islands. He along with a cast of talent that was foreign based has won.

But for a team to win without U.S based talent is like going to a gun fight with a butter knife. While basketball has grown and is a much more global game the best players in this game still come from the U.S. Make a list of the top 20 players in the NBA and you are still going to have a list dominated by Americans. This whole chicken and egg argument on if players like Toronto and want to play here is really getting old. Here is the reality as I see it. Guys like Toronto as a city. It will always be one of the top cities players visit. But living and playing is a different thing. While losing is part of the problem and winning can solve things that is not a long term answer unless you win consistently. There are inconveniences to living in Canada that even we as Canadians put up with. Take a simple example from the last few days. ESPN aired the documentary on "The Fab 5" and here in Canada you needed to be resourceful to see it. I noticed Ed Davis was not thrilled he could not turn on his T.V and just watch it. I am with him. American Players learn what we all in Canada have known for a long time. T.V is this country is a joke. Networks hide behind the CRTC and Canadian content rules keeping out networks like ESPN and commercials from the Super Bowl. There are lots of stupid and outdated rules when it comes to television.

If you follow me on Twitter you have seen this topic come up and how the sports coverage in this country is so hockey driven. If these networks are so confident that everyone is this country wants 26 hours of hockey programming in a 24 hour day then open up the border. Let ESPN in this country let other U.S Networks in this country. Have true competition. But that is not going to happen. Simple things like that make a difference for U.S players. The other issue for players is taxes. Now I am far from an expert here to understand this. But here is what I do know if there is a perception the tax situation is bad here for players. As far as the players are concerned the perception is the reality. Which makes it the Raptors reality to change it.

There will be lots of time to talk about all these things. But at the end of it all the Raptor Franchise is in a state of organized chaos at this point. When all of that chaos comes to an end whoever is running this team better have some answers on how to fix this thing. Raptor fans have had enough of false hope and false expectations. They want and demand more. There is a reason the Leafs have not won since 1967 because there is no motivation for them to win. As long as the money keeps rolling in there really isn't a lot of motivation to go all out and try to win. Empty seats, lower ratings send a clear message. Raptor fans do that...Leaf fans don't.

"Basketball Beyond The Floor"

Hockey. A word which is like a dagger to some basketball fans but a way to make a point for others. I am comparing today's book for discussion to the Toronto Maple Leafs. You get really excited and hopeful at the beginning of the season as a fan of the team and of the game. However, as the season wears on, you are pushing against your sensibilities to find a way to make it to the end of the season, much less the first round of the playoffs. Rebound Rules: The Art of Success 2.0 by Rick Pitino with Pat Forde has its moments but was really a disappointment by the end. Rick Pitino describes what he went through professionally and personally to write this book and I appreciate how he told some very personal stories to illustrate how to move past the fear of failure. However, after getting about halfway through the book, it just seemed like the "you can do it" speech we've all heard before. He has already written four books along the lines of this topic which shows people are listening to what he has to say enough for he and the publisher to still make a living off his written word. I said last week I wanted to see if this book could hold a candle to The Gold Standard. Let's just say if this were an MMA match-up, The Gold Standard would be George St. Pierre and Rebound Rules would be Dion Phaneuf. Both very tough dudes, but George comes out on top by a long shot. Let's get into some key areas.

Giving Credit where Credit is Due

According to Rick Pitino, the purpose of Rebound Rules is to give the reader tools to mount a comeback when previous methods of overcoming mistakes or tragedy don't work. He says when we are afraid, fear takes over and we make bad decisions. Further, he says being "relentlessly positive" can be the only way to defeat the power of negativity. Blah. Blah. Blah. We have heard this story before. But to give him credit, he did what a lot of coaches today might never do: admit to his mistakes. As a coach, Rick Pitino says he made 3 key mistakes:

(1) He made too many spontaneous decisions about players.

(2) He took shortcuts. He said if he didn't have the talent he wanted on the team, he should have persevered with what he had.

(3) He beat himself up about mistakes.

These are three key points to remember this season when following the Toronto Raptors or any other team in the NBA for that matter. Some of the greatest NBA coaches of all time handle #3 very well and I think this is the key to their success. Look very carefully at the answers coaches and players give this season and how they evaluate their successes, failures and who gets the credit. One of the handful of things I liked about this book is Rick Pitino's take on honesty as a coach: "One thing you must do in the face of adversity is to be honest with yourself, and with the people you are trying to lead. Acknowledge the difficult spot you're in and commence digging out of it". Note to self: Buy Brian Colangelo a shovel for Christmas.

Going Beneath the Surface

This is the single most line in the book which stood out for me: "Don't work as if you are overqualified for your job". In other words, don't think certain tasks are beneath you like changing your role on the team to beat a certain opponent, even if it means less glory or less playing time. The perfect example of this is when we have agents advocating on behalf of their clients for more playing time. Instead of thinking of what it takes for the team to win, the individual player is looking out for number one. This is the point we were discussing last week with The Gold Standard. Players should fight for more playing time by their actions on the court, not by their words. In Rebound Rules, Rick Pitino describes a former college player of his, Edgar Sosa. Rick Pitino said Edgar had a few powerful nights in scoring, but then just rode the wave after that thinking scoring was the only means to success: "I told him that after being involved in eight NBA drafts, pro coaches, scouts, and general managers did not discuss scoring averages when evaluating players...(instead) Does this player make other people better, and would he make our team better?" This is true but I am sure the fact a player consistently puts points up on the board has some bargaining power.

Corruption is the Rotten Apple

"The steps toward improvement generally require seeking and accepting feedback from colleagues and superiors - that's why we watch film of every game and every practice, for feedback on our performance and how to better it" (Rick Pitino). Now, if everyone on the team buys into this practice, it works. However, there's always the chance of one rotten apple spoiling the whole bunch. This is wear Rick Pitino discussed team chemistry and what corrupts it: (1) Jealousy; (2) Cynicism; (3) Inflated Ego; (4) Inflexible Personality; (5) Discipline Deficiency; (6) Lack of Passion; (7) Excuse Making; (8) Front Running. These are all key points, again, to keep in the back of your mind this season - especially when evaluating the Miami Heat. This team is expected to win because of The Big Three and I would hazard to guess if any of these issues come up if they hit a bad patch and what excuses they will give if the NBA Championship eludes them. Just something to think about.

Flick Pick of the Week

I'm giving you a "good laugh" flick pick this week. If you haven't already, watch "Semi-Pro" starring Will Ferrel and Woody Harrelson. It's about the owner/coach/player of the ABA's Flint Michigan Tropics (played by Ferrel) and how they join the NBA. It might be a stretch for those who aren't huge fans of Will Ferrel but I think he's hilarious and enjoyed it.

Next week we will be discussing Condition the NBA Way written by 14 strength and conditioning coaches of the NBA. It was published in 1994, so it will be interesting to see how relevant it is for today's athletes.

Also, there are only a few weeks left for "Basketball Beyond the Floor" then it will hibernate until next summer. A new feature, "Behind Enemy Lines" will take its place here on the DNB. This new feature will take a look at the Toronto Raptors' opponents for the coming week. We'll discuss everything from strategy to news makers to things to watch for. So mark down Thursday, October 21 on your calendar since this is when the new feature will begin. Until then, we will continue our "Basketball Beyond the Floor" discussions. See you on Tuesday for another serving of "Jiggly Bits".