Preseason Basketball

Summer is officially over [aside from the weather aspect], and the new basketball season is just around the corner. A lot happened over the offseason, and it's difficult to tell who will emerge as the league elite. The West is loaded as usual, with the Spurs, Rockets, Jazz, Suns, and Mavs all capable of making the finals, and the Lakers and Nuggets are as dangerous as anyone in the league. The East doesn't quite have that depth, but do have very good teams that will battle it out for a spot in the losers circle of the finals. Boston, Detroit, Chicago, Cleveland, and even Toronto have a chance, with Washington, New Jersey, and Orlando rounding out the playoff picture. None of these teams can really be considered favourites, and as we saw last year with Lebron Cleveland making the finals, ANY team in the East can keep playing into June.

So, have the Reptors done anything to improve on their 47 win season last year? Absolutely. No, they did not land an all-star [though Kapono did participate in the weekend festivities], and they didn't have a pick in the draft. But as Mike Ulmer pointed out on his nba.com/raptors blog, their biggest change and best weapon for the new season might be the development of Andrea Bargnani. The last few games of last years playoff series and the first few games of the preseason seem to suggest that he is on his way to improving on last years numbers. I would put money on him improving in nearly every category this year. Bosh and Barg will form a formidable duo for years to come, and they will still be reaching their prime when teams like Boston, New Jersey, and Detroit begin their rebuilding years. The Raptors are a young team, and with each year their core will get better. Ford, Bosh, Bargnani all still have many years until they reach their peak, and many of their foreign players like Calderon and Garbo should improve with having another year of NBA ball under their belts.

The most intriguing battle that will be taking place from now until Halloween, and probably for weeks after that, is who will emerge as the starter at the 3 spot. Right now, it seems like it is Kapono's to lose, but I can easily see some tweaking during the season depending on who the Raptors opponent happens to be. In some situations, it may make more sense for Kapono and his long-range threat to come off the bench [considering they will already have sharpshooters like Parker and Bargnani on the floor], and have a slasher like Delfino or Graham start. The great thing about this Raptors team is that they possess unparalleled depth. Their second team could beat almost any other second unit, and their 10-15 could probably be competitive with many teams' 6-10. Therefore, depending on the matchups on any given night, Sam Mitchell could tweak the starting lineup without much of a dropoff in production.

Most 'experts' are picking the Raptors to finish in the middle of the pack in the Eastern Conference playoff picture, anywhere from 5th to 7th. Most don't expect them to win the division again, but many think they will put up a fight for it. A team like Boston might be great in the regular season, but they may also be the perfect team to play in the playoffs. They lack depth, and their 3 stars all have many years on our 3 stars... so the grind of a long season may catch up to them at the wrong time. The Raptors may be underdogs going into the playoffs, but after another year of Ford/Calderon at the helm, another year of Bargnani's Italian trash talking, and another year of Bosh's revenge [see: Bosh's 06-07 playoff performance], and the Raptors will be ready and prepared for anything.