October 27, 2002 

RAPTORS NEED TO FILL HOLE AT CENTER

     All that talk the past two seasons about needing to get the ball inside to succeed will disappear quickly this year when it becomes apparent that the Raptors are going to need a hail of jumpers and a bunch of three-point bombs to win if they don't fill the large hole at center.  They desperately need to resolve this issue before it starts to haunt the team.  If the hole can't be filled then the few interior players on the team will wear down from their constant need to play hard defense and those players won't have the energy needed to contribute on the offensive end.  Of course, when I talk of the Raptor interior players I talk only of Antonio Davis, there is nobody else--yet.  (Vince is a superstar, but, at this point, Davis is the team leader and most important player)  If Davis needs to constantly sacrifice his body under his basket, and with Keon Clark gone and nobody coming in to replace him, he won't be able to generate those points from inside.  The scoring will almost exclusively come from the outside.   'Stop and pop' will be a familiar description this year.  If the Raptors still fancy themselves contenders (and not just a competitive team) then they'd better get Davis some help inside on defense.  They won't replace Clark's points on offense, but with suddenly a plethora of shooters for Lenny to choose from the Raptors may be able to compensate.  It will be a moot point, however, if the team struggles to keep opposing teams in the nineties, and has to constantly have to outscore the opposition to win.  In that regard they certainly aren't Dallas and can't expect to win that way. 

     Without one player capable of filling that hole the Raptors believe that they can piece that player together--no quality, get quantity.  And the Raptors just might be able pull it off.  Eric Montross has, in less than one year, gone from practice dummy to starting center.  His solid defensively play saves Davis' energy and he has the ability to keep the ball moving on offense--and contribute, at least a little, on the offensive board.    If Montross is healthy he can fill an entire half of that solid center's body all by himself.  He has become that vital to the fortunes of the franchise.   The other men vying for a piece are either young and unproven (Mamadou N'diaye), old and unproven (Nate Huffman) or the just simply unproven (Jelani McCoy).  McCoy, the former Sonic back-up and Laker benchwarmer, is being tabbed as the defacto starter. 

      How frightening is it that the team's fortunes seem to rest on the condition of Eric Montross' foot?

      Michael Bradley is also a key player this year.  Bradley has an opportunity to prove that he can play in the NBA and the reports are that in the off-season Bradley bulked up.  Good thing.  Even Keon looked like a circus strongman next to him.  Bradley has some ball-handling skills and can score, and if he's strong enough to get under the basket and battle for rebounds then he'll be able to give Davis some actual rest--something that may prove crucial if the many pieces cannot form one center. 

     As such you can expect to see Davis at center during the crucial moments of a game, but don't expect to see him there much anytime else. . 

      The strength of this team, and its depth, is definitely on the perimeter.  Carter may be experienced enough, and motivated enough, to become that top five player needed to lead this team to success.  Carter is walking around with a large $86 million chip on his shoulder and if he produces close to his potential, that 30 points per game average will compensate many deficiencies.   And if Mo Pete improves as much this season as he did last season, and continues to slash his way to the basket and not just sit outside and heave, then he and Carter can generate some of those missing points inside.  

      How good is Glen Grunwald?  Lanky and unassuming Grunwald is the best thing left behind by the Isaiah Thomas traveling narcissistic motorcade show.   After being told by ownership to treat the luxury tax like a cliff and fear death if crossed, and with such a dearth of quality big men floating around, Grunwald instead added to a strength.  He traded  dead wood and came up with solid lumber.  Murray can score.  (The Oak-head was probably the best choice of available big men but Grunwald would rather bite off his own fingers than bring the Oak-mouth back to town)  Cleveland was desperate to get rid of Lamond Murray and went around the league looking for the best offer.  The few teams that wanted, or needed,a shooter, weren't willing to part with enough dead wood to satisfy the Cavaliers.  )The Cavs don't just want to rebuild this year, they want to be bad.  They want to stink.  They are determined to be worse than the Bulls this season, be the worst team in the league, and give themselves the best chance in the lottery.  They want high-schooler Lebron James badder than a junkie needs a fix.    The Raptors had just the dead wood the Cavaliers were looking for--Yogi wood.   Murray comes in to provide a younger, quicker, and healthier version of Dell Curry, and will help Carter and Peterson with the scoring.  With JYD and his energy, three quality point guards, a couple of potential hopefuls in Bradley and N'Diaye, an experiment in  Jefferies, and an experienced coach the Raptors might have the ingredients needed to win.  If they stay healthy, of course.

     It would serve the Cavaliers right if Yogi manages to stay healthy and has that season everyone predicted for him years ago.  If he plays well they won't be able to take him out of the 'bare line-up' and he may help keep the Cavs far enough away from the James sweepstakes.  Such abhorrent business practices should not be rewarded. 

     A positive person would look at this team and see its strengths.  The team has a superstar, it has a leader, it has strength and depth on the perimeter, and a pieced-together center capable of holding its own inside.  With apparently a new sense of team unity, a new more hardened attitude, and coming off last season's dramatic conclusion the team challenges for the conference title.  The East can be won by any number of teams and the Raptors have the potential to win 48-53 games.  That number would reward them with a top seed in the playoffs and give them the best chance at making it to the Finals.  (A championship is just too optimistic)

     A negative person, of course, would not see its strengths.  That person would look at the injuries--those suffering from them and those recovering from them--and that person would look at those pieces that the Raptors are using to try and create that center, and probably laugh.  

     Calling Dr. Frankenstein.  Your skills are needed in Toronto