Post Game: Sixers 107 Raptors 98(Preseason)

I believe we have entered the realm of preseason play. The Raptors having come up short in their first of a back to back series with the 76ers, still have a lot of work ahead of them. Perimeter defense was a glaring mark on what was a rather uneventful game. Lets look at some of the stats:

the positive:

-Bargnani scored a game high 22 points

-Amir Johnson 8points 10rebounds

-DeMar DeRozan 9points 4assists 4rebounds

-Reggie Evans showed some of his energy and quickly became the fan favorite of the evening


the negatives:

-no players other than Bargnani and Weems reached double digits in scoring

-Louis Williams scored a team high 17points and Calderon's defensive ability all but disappeared

-Belinelli was a non-factor in the game with only 9points 4assists and 4turnovers

What can we say about an inconsequential game with both Bosh and Turkoglu out and solid defensive specialist Wright nursing sore knees. Not much. Calderon still has a lot of work to do in regards to his defensive game. If he is to stop or at least slow down the likes of Rondo and Rose he will have to dig deep and stay consistent at the perimeter. The play starts with the point and if you get behind on defense from the start you will be behind for the rest of the play. As we expected Calderon played 16 minutes and took the 2nd half off. That gave Jack the opportunity to work the team. He had a fairly solid yet unspectacular game and did not force the play too much. It was sloppy and unorganized. No player on the Raptors had a perfect game.

Belinelli played 28 minutes but never had much to show. He was brought in to add that extra scoring punch off the bench, but he shot 2 of 8 from the field. It will be interesting to see if he gets his shots wednesday night.

Bargnani however had the scoring touch shooting 9 of 14 and ending the night with 22 points. He however only had 3 rebounds. If we are going to have any success this year Bargnani has to show some rebounding flair. On the offensive end he can be out of position most plays, but there really is no excuse on defense.

DeRozan was impressive and showed some of his athletic ability. He did however have some trouble keeping his man in front of him. Playing time will be the most important factor in the preseason for DeRozan. He needs to play through mistakes, learn quickly and develop fast.

Amir Johnson found his legs in transition play and contributed on the boards with a game high 10 rebounds. If he keeps that up he will see significant playing time and will be a key piece to this team. His success lies in staying out of foul trouble, something that kept him from getting his minutes in Detroit. At a mere 22 years of age he has a chance to shine and show his true skill and talent.

They will end the back to back Wednesday night at the ACC. They should try and set the pace early and get the hometown crowd into it. Belinelli needs to open his game up a bit more. Calderon will have to get the defensive aspect of his game back on track. Look for more experimenting with lineups and the rotation. The minutes should be about the same unless Wright is back in the lineup.

I'll have a brief pregame post so stay tuned.

Cool Hand Luke