Next year's Toronto Raptors team

I find that when discussing next year’s Raptors team and how they are going to perform in the years to come, it is a topic that is both exciting to some while at the same time meaningless to others. Currently the Raptors are sitting at 30 wins and 48 losses and fifth in the Atlantic division. Because of these current standings the Raptors also only have about a 5.3% chance of getting their draft pick next year which would have been in the top three. Even though the season is almost over and it is clear that this wasn’t one of the better seasons for the Raptors. This season has definitely had its own ups and downs in terms of excitement and news stories. The beginning of the season was pretty much like how the end of the season has been turning out. There were some wins, some surprising upsets, but at the end of it all there was still mostly losses. Of course when I say excitement and news worthy stories I am talking about when Toronto surprised everybody by trading with Memphis to gain Rudy Gay. This was hard for some, because in doing so we lost Jose Calderon. Jose was a steady player for the Raptors and even though he was traded he left with nothing but love in his heart for the city, its team and its people.

When Gay first came to Toronto there was uproar and everything seemed to be turning around for the Raptors and it was working in their favour. It seemed as though Gay brought with him all of the hype and intensity that he was signed on for. Toronto was excited and the whole team was playing much better together; specifically DeMar DeRozan. This has been one of his best seasons and he has put up respectable numbers almost every game he’s played. Another big topic of discussion that had been swirling around the Toronto Raptors was Andrea Barnani and whether or not he would still be a Raptor. He was out for the majority of the season in the beginning and again in the end. And the little time that he did spend on the court didn’t really help out anybody; not himself or the raptors. I believe that he will be traded next year for sure in attempts to retrieve anybody that could help the raptors even if it’s just by a little.
One of the few good things that did come from this poor season is that with Andrea out and the raptors poor streak, a lot of the developing players on Toronto received a chance to step up and show what they’ve got. In looking forward to next year’s Raptors team it is very possible that they will have become a force to be reckoned with and will probably make it to the playoffs. Players like Terrence Ross, Jonas Valanciunas, Alan Anderson, Ahmir Johnson, Kyle Lowry, John Lucas III, Quincy Acey, and of course DeRozan and Gay are all players that will work hard to make sure our team is stronger than ever and moves forward. The Raptors are a young team and are loaded with so much potential that if they truly play their best then they might be able to stand up against any other team when they reach their prime. I believe that the raptors will only get better from here on out and that we should allow them to grow so that will become the team that everyone wants them to be.

Loses, win for bench

With four consecutive losses in a row and two back to back losses against the New York Knicks it would seem as the Toronto Raptors have given all they can for this season and are struggling just to simply be able to keep the games close enough to be interesting. After the raptors had that up and down seven day win and then lose pattern, they went on to lose the last four games in a row; a loss of 108-91 against the Heat, 107-101 against the Bobcats, and 99-94 followed by 110-84 against the Knicks. Sadly Rudy Gay was not able to play in the second game against New York due to his reoccurring back spasms, This might be one of the reasons why the score was so widely spread out at the end of the game.
The only positive outcome that one might be able to draw from the way that the Toronto Raptors have been playing recently and how the rest of the season is looking for them is the fact that their usual bench players are able to receive a lot more playing time than they ever would have if the tables were turned. Players that are receiving more playing time are players like Terrence Ross, Landry Fields, John Lucass III, Alan Anderson, and Sebastian Telfair. As you can see this is the Majority of the bench that I have just listed. Although their playing time is still nothing compared to the amount of minutes our starters receive it is still well needed minutes that they are happy to go in for. In times like these where a team is losing and it might seem as though there is no hope to catch up in a specific game, the bench players cannot let this affect them and when they get the chance to go on the court they need to make sure that they show everything that they are capable of doing.  By doing so they allow the coaches and everyone to see that they might one day be able to go into the game under more serious circumstances and maybe one day even become a starter if they continue to improve and support their team.Their are two players that i believe should be a focus for the Raptors and they are Terrance Ross and Jonas Valanciunas. I believe that everyone should keep an eye on these two because they have will go far and they have not yet come close to their overall potential.

New Slam Dunk Champ / Grizzlies Loss

This past weekend was an exciting one, not only for the Toronto Raptors but for the entire NBA. This is because it was the All-Star weekend. Fans and players from all different cities and countries gathered together to witness the NBA’s best players in action. Certain events that were held were things like the celebrity game, where comedian Kevin Heart was voted mvp for the second year in a row.  Other events were the rising stars challenge, the three-point shootout, the skills challenge, the shooting stars competition, and of course the NBA all-star game etc. However out of all of the events that took part over this past weekend, the one that stands out most to Raptor fan is definitely the Sprite slam dunk contest; where its 2013 champion was none other than our very own Terrence Ross. Ross’ participation in the competition was due to all of his fans voting for him and creating a tremendous amount of buzz over the internet through the use of Twitter hash tags #LetRossDunk and #RossShallDunk. His first dunk made fans a little nervous as he had almost run out of time before he finally completed his dunk. But none the less he refused to settle and made the dunk that he had planned on. In doing so it seemed the judges acknowledge his determination and gave him a perfect score. Another memorable moment is when Ross surprised everyone by coming out in a throwback #15 Vince Carter jersey to perform his third dunk which secured his spot in the finals. No doubt with thoughts of the former Raptors star player, Ross’ final dunk was between his legs with the added difficulty of jumping over a young fan. All of these spectacular dunks awarded Terrence Ross with the Slam Dunk championship and once again showed the world that Toronto has some amazing basketball players.
In the latest news, our Raptors team went up against the Memphis Grizzlies and are new star player Rudy Gay had to play against his former team face to face for the first time. Although Gay has been explosive and nothing but good for the Raptors, it would seem as though his old team new all of his moves and were able to keep him completely scoreless for the entire first quarter. After this rough start though we started getting back into the swing of things and playing the way we have been that led to our 5 game winning streak, something that the Raptors have not been able to do for years. The game was tied in the fourth quarter at 77 with 4 minutes to play. However even with this push by the raptors to tie the game it was not enough to pull ahead and the Grizzlies won the game 88-82. This now puts the Grizzlies on a 5 game winning streak and ended the Raptors run who are now 7-2 with Gay.