Post Pre-Game and Post-Game

I missed the pre-game post for last nights Raptors game, so here is the 'post' pre-game post and the post-game post all in one. Before the game, questions swirled around the starting 5, specifically at the 3 spot. While this is still the preseason, and the entire starting 5 gets shuffled because Bosh is out, the fight for the right to start at the 3 [and the 5 too?] will be played until someone proves Smitch that he's the man. The battle gets increasingly complicated with even Parker struggling at the 2, but his defensive smarts and 'high basketball IQ' makes it doubtful he will lose his starting spot. Rasho has come to camp in great shape, which comes after a terrific off-season with the Slovenian national team. Colangelo certainly doesn't want to stunt Bargnani's growth, however, and having him come off the bench, even as the 6th man, might be something they can do for the first month, but likely seldomly after that. So, going into last night's game, the final score wouldn't matter as much as who among Delfino, Kapono, and Graham stands out the most, and if Bargnani can play well enough to prove that he can start at the centre position from the outset. Rebounding plays a big part in games against international opponents, as they love to shoot'em'up from downtown, so if Bargnani can't get a half-dozen rebounds against a three point shooting team, there may be cause for concern [and Smitch might have to run another big-man-only practice].
With the game now over, and the Raptors victorious, has anything been settled? The bigger question, it seems, is CAN anything be settled in a preseason tilt? Kapono, the starter, shot 50% from 3 for the game and 5-9 overall; Joey had 4 points and 2 boards in only 13 minutes; and Delfino had 7 points and 6 rebounds in 17 minutes. Based on this performance, if the Raptors need a scorer, Kapono is their man [1 assist, 1 rebound, 1 steal to round out the stat-sheet], but if they need rebounds, defense, and just a bit of scoring, they may look to Delfino [no assists or steals, but three of his rebounds came on the offensive end]. If Delfino can show Mitchell in practice that he can put together a strong performance consistently, than he might have a better shot at playing more minutes.
Bargnani and Rasho both put together solid performances, although with Bosh out, both are likely to play at the same time more often than when Bosh returns. Bargnani struggled a bit with his shot [as he did at the beginning of last season], but did end up with 8 points, 8 rebounds, 1 blocked shot, and only 1 turnover. Rasho shot 6-9 from the field for 12 points, and also added 8 rebounds. This is, however, just the preseason. The Hump got 8 rebounds as well, to go along with 12 points, but lets hope that Doug Smith's column doesn't get flooded with people saying that Hump should start, etc etc. And what about the player most fans seem to have beef with? Well, TJ Ford was the player of the game last night, pouring in 13 points, adding 11 assists, and committing only 2 turnovers in 24 minutes of play.
As for the overall performance of the Raptors, it was poor at best. Nothing against Zalgiris, but the Raptors have to show more spirit against international opponents. Of course, it couldnt have helped with the pro-Lithuanian crowd being almost as large as the pro-Raptors crowd.