Official Unveiling of J.O.

Let’s see if I can remember how to do this – my last entry was almost a week ago. Obviously, some big things were announced in the past few days. The Raptors made the Hassan Adams signing official, as well as inking second round draft pick Nathan Jawai to a two-year guaranteed-money contract. Roko Ukic also appears to be a lock to come to Toronto from his European team and I’m sure all the specifics are worked out already. However, I think I’m going to put the final nail in the coffin of the “J.O. to T.O.” week. Basically, it’s just my interpretation of Wednesday’s press conference and what I gathered from it.

1. Bryan Colangelo and Sam Mitchell both looked visibly excited about the move even though they’ve known about it for pretty much two weeks before it was made official. B.C. made a good point about it being uncommon to find a 12-year veteran with extensive playoff experience without giving up a lot in return. Sam’s comment about how he jokes with other coaches that his ‘draft pick’ this year can average 20 points and 10 rebounds (a reference to #17 going to Indiana in the form of Roy Hibbert) was pretty funny. However, the important things that were outlined are exactly what we can envision Sam Mitchell being when he was an active player (for those that have seen his playing days): capable of defending, rebounding and being a veteran leader. J.O. obviously has a lot more star power and scoring ability, though. I’m sure Sam and B.C. didn’t mean to say Chris Bosh and Jermaine O’Neal will be equal to the tandem of David Robinson and Tim Duncan but just hearing those two names in the same sentence as a Raptors duo should make Toronto fans excited. It’s only logical to play from the inside out on virtually every play next season when you boast arguably the best frontcourt in the NBA.

2. Jermaine sounded excited about the ‘rebirth’ as well. By the time the season gets going, he’ll be 30 years old so if his knee is indeed healthy, he’s still in the physical prime of his career despite having over a decade of experience under his belt. Also, he’s missed so many games in the past three or four seasons that he may be a bit more ‘fresh’ than other guys entering the season. He sounds dedicated to doing all the right things on the court and maybe more importantly – off of it as well. It’s good to hear him acknowledge the fan support he’s gotten in Las Vegas, Philadelphia and now Toronto because Raptors fans do roll deep. I was taken aback by how composed and eloquently J.O. spoke on Wednesday. I had heard him in interviews and post-game scrums before and I’m not insinuating I thought he was an idiot but he really seems like the type of natural veteran leader this team needs. Chris Bosh is an amazing talent and he’s grown into a leadership role out of necessity but a veteran with Conference Finals experience can’t hurt the cause. J.O. seems like he’s looking for some personal vindication this season, as evidenced by his statement about not being 50 years old, contrary to popular belief. He’ll never admit it, but he’ll be playing with a chip on his shoulder.

3. I found it very interesting that O’Neal kept talking about competing for a Championship, attaining a ring, etc. He was asked about the Boston Celtics’ run and how sacrifice plays into what a team can do when it has a deep talent pool. When I first heard of the trade, I thought it’d immediately make the Raptors a better team and probably a top four seed in the East again but a Championship contender? I thought they’d definitely need a swingman for that and I believe they still do. However, it’s hard to really grasp the impact of this move until October and November when we see the team play. Even then, their chemistry and flow won’t be found until maybe January as they learn each other’s games and places within the offence and defense. That got me thinking: is this just overexcitement and confidence from O’Neal, which is understandable considering the big change in his life? Or can the Raptors really be THAT good to the point where they can compete with Boston and Detroit in 2008-2009? I’m confident that when it comes down to it, the Celtics are still superior but the unknown is exciting. O’Neal also promised Matt Devlin that he’d be able to answer the question of “What are the chances of winning the Championship?” after two weeks of training camp. I guess in mid-October, we’ll know for sure just how confident J.O. is.

4. It was refreshing to hear O’Neal talk about all of his strengths and the things he enjoys doing: blocking and altering shots, taking charges, clogging up the middle and taking up space, crashing the glass for rebounds, etc. This is exactly the type of player the Raptors needed to anchor the inside and while a swingman was also very important, unless you’re talking about acquiring one of the league’s premier talents that can single-handedly go off on any given night, there’s little chance someone at the two or three position could have such a far-reaching impact on the entire team dynamics. The Raps needed rebounding desperately and the seven-footer that was here before J.O. couldn’t even muster five per game. Jamario Moon was the second leading rebounder on the team, which I don’t think will happen again this coming season. He was also the main defensive force because of his length and athleticism, as well as activity around the court. Imagine what he’ll be capable of now that opposing teams have to worry about O’Neal in the middle? It’s scary to picture if you’re an opponent.

5. I was interested in hearing about the entire chronology of Jermaine’s knee injury. Two and a half years ago, he suffered a meniscus tear and didn’t want to have surgery at the time. Because he was playing on it, the tear became worse and compromised the health of the knee. J.O. then had surgery last summer and came back from the operation too soon in order to be back for the start of training camp because the Pacers were starting off with their new head coach, Jim O’Brien. Even though the surgery was a complete success, the knee had some bruising on it, as well as swelling that almost immobilized the entire leg from the ankle to the thigh when it got very bad. This caused O’Neal to sit out for 43 straight games in 2007-2008 before returning for the final ten. He called it a ‘career move’ in order to help the knee recover properly so he wouldn’t jeopardize the rest of his playing career, which is totally understandable from his perspective. He’s been at his home in Las Vegas at the basketball academy since then, working out and getting back to the form he was in that got him six straight All-Star appearances. Knowing that he took the necessary time off and the Raptors’ doctors cleared him after rigorous tests should ease everyone’s minds. I’m sure B.C. wouldn’t have pulled the trigger on the deal if there was any more structural damage, since $44 million was riding on the acquisition. 6. When O’Neal talked to Paul Jones, he noted that defense is what the Raps need to focus on the most. High-scoring teams that don’t put an emphasis on D don’t really walk out of the Finals with a ring. Hell, how many of the high-scoring teams even make it to the Finals? We’ve seen the Phoenix Suns knocked out of the playoffs without one Finals appearance for four straight seasons now. It’s clear Jermaine sees something special on this team if everything can fall into place and he talked about the potential for a ‘special year’, where statistics and numbers wouldn’t gauge success – the only number that would matter would be wins. He talked about being viewed as a Champion when his career is over so here’s to hoping he’s viewed as one in the Raptors’ red and white. 7. As for his other teammates, it was good to hear him say in a very clear way that this is Chris Bosh’s team. I didn’t expect him to say anything different but it was just nice for him to answer the question in a straightforward way when he could have said, “This is an entire team effort” or something. In the end, we all know it comes back to CB4. He’s the guy who’s played a significant part in helping to build this franchise back up and he deserves to be the face of it. With that said, O’Neal also seems intrigued by Andrea Bargnani. They’ll be working out together at the academy in Vegas for a while over the summer so I hope J.O. can knock some physicality and toughness into him. O’Neal seems to realize the importance of what Andrea can bring off the bench with his shooting abilities and versatility. If he goes back to his rookie season production or even builds on that, the Raptors will have themselves a solid sixth man. Coming off the bench will be good for him now – there is no uncertainty about his role.

All in all, it was an exciting unveiling by management. We all knew about it since June 25^th or so and the wait was agonizingly long due to the league’s ridiculous moratorium on player movement but it was worth it. Things are definitely looking as good for the Raptors as they ever have heading into a season. Is this a ‘complete’ team? No, it’s probably not. Can it compete for a Conference Championship? I think Boston, Cleveland, Detroit and Philadelphia (possibly) might have something to say about that but we won’t know until next May and I think that’s the exciting part of this whole thing. Everyone’s got a shot in July and the sky’s the limit. I really need to see how every roster in the league shakes down at the end of August before I make any win projections but like people have noted, finishing .500 would probably be viewed as a failure next season. I’m actually looking at a franchise record in wins, which would mean 48 or more. We’ll see.

Jose Re-Ups

This is by no means ‘minor’ news but it’s a little anticlimactic. Even though we knew of the J.O. move more than two weeks ago, it was still exciting to welcome a new player with so much to talk about. On the other hand, we knew there was an extremely high probability that Jose Calderon would be back with the Raptors this coming season. It was virtually confirmed when T.J. Ford was moved to Indiana. The official figures haven’t been leaked yet but everyone has been saying something in the neighbourhood of a $40 million contract over five years. I think that’s extremely fair for the Raptors and it’s actually a bargain compared to what Calderon might’ve gotten if he actually allowed the free agent market to decide his value. He could’ve gotten something like $10 million if Corey Maggette can get that much from the Warriors. Either way, it’s good to have Jose back, he deserves it and he carries himself with class. If there’s one thing Raptor fans can be proud of, it’s the fact the team is filled with quality people. From the very top, you really won’t be able to find a ‘bad apple’, so to speak.

Free Agent Tidbits

1. Elton Brand, that move was not cool. No one can blame Brand for taking the money but he really should not have let the Los Angeles Clippers on, which it appears he did. He sent out text messages to teammates after the Baron Davis signing and seemed exciting about starting something special. He also appeared to have been having illegal discussions with the Clippers management about a deal, which goes against the collective bargaining agreement since Brand has a registered agent. Basically, it was almost as if two deals were on the table. Brand’s agent accuses the Clippers of not following the system correctly, as well as not putting forth their best offer from the very beginning. The Philadelphia 76ers offered considerably more money and Brand took it. If Andre Iguodala stays in Philly, that team could make some noise. They still have holes and questionable depth, as well as the fact they might have to change their fast-paced system but getting Brand is huge for them in the East. I think with Iggy, they’re an automatic lock for a playoff spot again this year.

2. Corey Maggette going to the Warriors makes total sense to me. He won’t be winning there as much as he could have in Boston or San Antonio but he’ll make more money, which should be a priority for him. He’s been in the league for a while now and he’s in his prime so he should be getting a raise from the $8.4 million he made this past season. The 5-year, $50 million contract he’s getting from Golden State may be a bit inflated but I think he deserves it and playing for the mid-level exception would’ve been unfair to him financially.

There are some other smaller signings like the Nets getting Eduardo Najera and Jarvis Hayes – both of whom are decent players – but I don’t think it’ll help Jersey escape the bottom few spots of the East this year. Mickael Pietrus ended up signing with Orlando, which I think makes them slightly better when it comes to defense on the wing but he’s not going to be a huge upgrade over anyone they had.

That’s it for this entry. It’s sort of in between short and long so it should please everyone. Enjoy. Until next time..

-Mark R.

[The Raptor Core]