Tag Archive for James Johnson

Heels at the Game – Raptors Unable To “Guard The Yard”

February 9, 2012 Nat Heels at the Game

Photo Credit: APThe Raptors opened a seven game homestand with a tough 105-99 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks last night. With a slew of tough games coming up, they needed this one to set the tone at home.

All season coach has preached defensive intensity and after allowing the Bucks to shoot 56% in the first half, Dwane Casey spoke to the team after the loss, stressing “we have lost our pride guarding the yard. We have slipped.” Some blame can go on the limited practice time and the condensed schedule, but Casey put it on himself and his staff to find the time to keep instilling the fundamentals they have been preaching to this team that is still trying to find it’s identity.

The game plan was to make Jennings a non factor and the Raptors accomplished that. Casey inserted Amir Johnson in the starting lineup for match up purposes but that did not stop Drew Gooden from getting hot early, he finished the night with 20pts and 14 rbs. The Bucks not known for their offense got 35 points off the bench from Jackson and Dunleavy and 25 from Delfino who was clearly up for this one agains his former team. The Raptors won most of the hustle categories in most part thanks to James Johnson who is becoming a regular stat stuffer, but losing the rebounding battle while allowing the Bucks to shoot a high percentage was the recipe for their demise.

It doesn’t get any easier with the Celtics, Lakers, Knicks and Spurs coming up but in a season of small victories and silver linings, just getting the team back on track with the defensive mentality would be a win.

The Night in Numbers

6 Three pointers made by Carlos Delfino. The Bucks as a team shot nearly 50% from deep.

+10 in Points in the paint for the Raptors. Considering they played small for most of the game this was a positive.

19 Turnovers for the Bucks led to 20 points for the Raptors. The TO’s and 12 offensive rebounds helped the Raps get out and run, scoring 19 on the fast break.

25 Points for DeMar DeRozan who got hot early but started to fade in the second half when the Bucks brought pressure.

27 Assists on 37 made FG’s for the Raptors at a team. They were moving the ball all night, and most of that contribution came from Jose Calderon (15 ast).

6 Bucks players reached double digits in scoring including Stephen Jackson and Mike Dunleavy who came off the bench

Up Next: Celtics @ Raptors. Friday, Feb 9th 2012.
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Raptor Rant – This Offense is Offensive

January 22, 2012 Nat Raptor Rants

The Raptors have dropped seven in a row and things can get a lot worse as they kick off their longest road trip of the season today. While the team has been markedly improved on the defensive end, bottom line is, you still need to score points in this league to win. The condensed schedule has left little time to practice and with Andrea Bargnani out of the lineup, offensive production has become the biggest issue for the Raptors during this stretch.

Blake Kennedy, wrote a great post on RaptorBlog pointing out the offensive struggles we have seen this season but unlike him, I saw it coming. A new coach who preaches defense first, the minimal practice time to implement a new offense and above all, the lack of guys who can create for themselves.

Andrea Bargnani was playing at an All-Star level before he was sidelined with the calf injury and this team just doesn’t have the personnel to make up for the 20+ PPG they lose with him out. Jose Calderon has been playing like the guy who was rewarded with that fat contract but he rather stay in his comfort zone of being the distributer, a bit of a problem when he is one of the better spot up shooters on this team. The Rasual Butler experiment seems to have finally come to an end as he continues to struggle with the one thing he was brought in to do but his replacement James Johnson is not someone the team can rely on offensively.

Probably the biggest disappointment so far has been the inconsistency from DeMar DeRozan. James Herbert wrote in his defense, but no matter how you slice it, DeRozan has regressed. After the most recent loss to the Blazers, DeMar admitted he is aware of the issues — “The last couple of games I have not gotten to the line. I have to be aggressive. Just going to the contact and not trying to avoid it, that’s my main issue.” He is taking more jumpers and they each look too strong and too flat. Maybe it is the adjustment he made in order to hit the long range shot but it has hindered his mid-range game a lot. Last season DeMar developed a spin move in the lane as his go to move, he has gone away from that and his resistance to contact has led to his numbers going down in almost every offensive category.

You know that phrase, basketball is a game of runs? Well the Raptors have yet to find  a way to avoid 5 minute offensive dry spells to make their runs count. Until they can get consistant production from guys not named Andrea Bargnani, they are going to be a tough team to watch. Hellloooo (Jack Armstrong voice) Kevin O’Neill era revisited!

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Raptors Play Big, Silence The Wolves

January 10, 2012 Nat Heels at the Game

Photo Credit: APNot gonna lie. I walked into the Air Canada Centre tonight looking forward to watching the Kevin Love – Ricky Rubio show, and walked away with a new found appreciation for the heart and hustle of Amir Johnson. Postgame, coach Casey revealed that Amir was dealing with the flu but it sure didn’t affect his game. Aside from putting up 19 points and 11 rebounds, Amir had Kevin Love on lockdown. He made sure Love earned everything — that ended up being a poor, 3-16 from the field.

Amir wasn’t the only Raptor to impress, Andrea Bargnani continued to silence his critics, putting together his third 30 point game of the season. The Timberwolves bit on Andrea’s fake at the 3 point line all night and he rarely settled for the jumper. He put that quick first step to use and went to the hoop early and often. Tallying 31 points to go with 9 rebounds, one has to think this new version of Bargnani is here to stay. While the Raptor bigs carried the load offensively, the play of James Johnson cannot be overlooked. He made use of his five fouls and showed again why he should soon get that starting SF spot over Rasual Butler who has surely left his jump shot south of the border.

For most of the night it felt like the Raptors were dominating but the scoreboard told a different story. They had managed to contain Rubio & Co. for the most part but the additional free throws and three’s kept the Timberwolves in the game. The Raptors upped the ante on defense in the 4th, and Minny managed just six made field goals in the frame. There were moments where Rubio dazzled but his counterpart and mentor Calderon, held his own. The Raptors’ starters logged major minutes in order to close this one out but may be running on fumes as they hop on a plane and prepare to face the Wizards in less than 24 hours.

The Night in Numbers

9 blocks for the Raptors as a team. James Johnson, who was in the zone all night tied a career high with 4.
75-37 the Raptors starters outscored the Timberwolves’ starting five. 50 of the 75 coming from Bargnani and A. Johnson.
34% FG for the Wolves. The revamped Raptors D was in full effect tonight. This is the fifth time in nine games the Raptors have held an opponent to under 40% from the floor. They only pulled that off five times all of last season. They shot 44% on the night.
3 made three’s for the Raptors. The team struggled from deep going just 3 of 19. Minnesota made 5 of their 8 three’s in the first quarter.
9 points for DeMar Derozan who is struggling to find consistency on the offensive end. He did attack the basket more once that jumper wasn’t falling.
20 second chance points for the Raptors who crashed the offensive boards hard tonight. Amir Johnson had 8 ORB’s and the Raptors had 14 as a team.
45 minutes of playing time for Bargnani. He made the most of them but it is to be seen how the legs hold up in he second and third games of the back to back to back.
26 FT’s made by the Raptors. The team stayed aggressive when the 3 ball was not falling and got to the line 28 times. Barbosa was perfect from the line going 9-9.

Top 10 tweets from the #RTZ chat on twitter (LINK)

Up Next: Raptors @ Wizards. Tuesday, 10th Jan. 2012. 7PM
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Raptors Can’t Keep Pace At Home

December 29, 2011 Nat Heels at the Game

Talk about sensory overload. An early 6PM start to kick off their home opener, the Raptors introduced the team to a spectacle of pyrotechnics set to the tune of Headlines by Drake. The Canadian content didn’t stop there as Jamaal Magloire took to centre court to address the sold out crowd who were later treated to a halftime show by Kardinal Official. The show stealer though was Justin Bieber who sat courtside to take in the game and even bricked a 3 from Jimmer range during a time out. All the hoopla aside, there was an NBA game to be played so on to that…

Remember that whole thing about small victories and silver linings I mentioned before the season kicked off? Well tonight was full of them as the Raptors dropped a close one to the Pacers, 90-85. Another slow start from DeRozan combined with a struggling Calderon found the team in a 8 point hole going into the fourth. The fact that they were in this position had nothing to do with their defense, which picked up where they left off in Cleveland. Rather, the Raptors struggles came on the offensive end where the lack of practice time and a full length preseason were evident.

Andrea Bargnani carried the offensive load for the first half where the team mustered up just 34 points (Fans better get used to these low scoring affairs). Unlike previous seasons though, the Raptors remained focused on the defensive end holding the Pacers to just 38 points in the same span. They loosened up the D a little in the 3rd, but a late 4th quarter run put the team in a position to tie the game up. Considering this is a learning process and the system is fairly new, this team battled to the end when many times they could have just given up. These are the things you want to see in a team that is rebuilding. Getting the fundamentals right and the offense will follow.

After the game, Dwane Casey said he was happy with the way they played, feels they are right there and with time together as a unit, they are headed in the right direction.

The Night in Numbers

21 points for Bargnani has him join Bosh and Carter as the only Raptors players to score 20 points or more in 4 home openers. (via @RaptorsPR)
54% from the free throw line. Not going to cut it on most nights, especially when they only got there 13 times as a team.
2 straight games the Raptors have shot a better percentage from the field than their opponent. Tonight they held the Pacers to 39.5%
13 steals against a young, athletic team is another example of the effort the Raptors are bringing on the defensive end.
10 Fastbreak points registered by the Raptors who did not record a single point in that category against the Cavaliers.
0 first half points for DeMar though he ended the night with 22. Through 2 games, he has scored just 4 first half points.
22 second chance points for the Pacers to go along with the 16 points they got off 19 Raptors turnovers.

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Raptors Open The Season With A Well-Executed Plan

December 27, 2011 Nat Raptor Raves

First game recap of the season and I am still feeling out the best way to do this. There are enough traditional breakdowns from print media so I am going to bring you a short game recap followed by “The Night in Numbers” – a breakdown of the stats from the boxscore, and a “The Starting 5″ – Five players/things that stood out in the game.

The Raptors kicked off their season on a high note getting the 104-96 W over the Cavaliers. Sure, beating a squad of lesser talent isn’t something to write home about but there were so many good things happening on the floor for the Raptors it’s hard not to feel optimistic.

Leading up to the game, all we have heard about is how new head coach Dwane Casey is trying to change the culture and instill a defensive mentality into a team that has always struggled with the concept. Last night fans finally got to see the plan being put into action. 9 blocks, out-rebounding the opponent, shooting a better percentage than the opponent, and communicating on the floor (Bargnani got caught doing that on camera! BOOM). I was so focused looking out for the changes on the defensive end I didn’t get to fully appreciate the offensive efficiency and ball movement from the Raptors. Jose played the role of distributor perfectly, DeMar made an impact in the 4th quarter, Bargnani stayed focused on both ends of the floor, Johnson & Johnson were the perfect blend of energy and execution, and Ed Davis earned himself some more playing time.

This was one of the winnable games and though this season is not going to be measured by wins and losses, it is sure nice for a young team to get off on the right foot.

The Night in Numbers

53% The Raptors were hot from all over. For a team that was at the bottom shooting 3′s last season, they hit 43% of those. On the other end of the floor they held the Cavs to shooting just 41%
10 players saw the floor and each of them recorded at least 1 assist.
+8 on the boards. 9 of the 10 guys who played last night grabbed at least 1 rebound.
35 assists on 42 made FG’s. Not only were the Raptors moving the ball, they ended up finding the right guy to finish each time.
7 of the 10 guys who saw playing time scored in double figures, led by Jose and DeMar who had 15 a piece.
7-7 from the floor for Ed Davis. Should earn him some additional playing time in game 2.
2 Players (Jose, Amir) recorded double double’s. The 13-13 from Amir is not as surprising as the 15-11 from Jose considering who he is passing the ball to…

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