Posted by McK1:
Posted by djsunyc:
Posted by McK1:
what do the people in Toronto feel about the decision to take Bargnani no. 1 now?
they refer to him as bustnani...bc's gonna have to live with that one for a while...
is it sam's fault or is he just not that good?
when bargs was drafted, bc called him a project. so they knew this going in. last season, he came off the bench and they ran the pick and pop with him at the top of the key. he fit well into this role and actually got better as the season went along.
this year, they wanted to make him a center so he can play with bosh at the same time. when bosh was recovering from knee issues this summer, bargs was the focus of the team and he flourished...almost making it *his* team...but it was short lived as bosh came back and bargs hurt his leg.
then bargs came back and was asked to play center, dribble drive more, and play in the post more. at the same time, the team was trying to win every game and re-acclimate bosh after his injury. bargs play suffered as he was trying to learn the position on the fly (never playing center in his life) in the midst of nba games. his play dropped off dramatically as they stopped using him on the pick and pop outside, defenses adjusted, and he was trying to do new things. he has shown flashes in some games this year where he was doing many different things - passing, taking players off the dribble, drawing fouls and hitting jumpers. his defense is not that bad when he guards someone 1-on-1. he uses his body well in post defense. his help defense may be the worst i've ever seen tho.
then he got into a little bit of smitch's doghouse and his confidence got shot. he would pick up 2 quick fouls early and smitch would bench him for a good part of the game. also, a big thing with the raptors is chemistry...as jose + bosh flourished into a very poor man's version of stockton/malone, tj came back and then the chemistry they had for last year and 1/2 of this year got disrupted and he kind of got lost a bit. at times, he was just another jump shooter out there just hanging out on the perimeter with no plays run for him whatsoever...lost with no role on the team.
then smitch, after only playing bargs at center all year, decides to start him today at SF and guard hedo.
so...in summation...bargs had a really good rookie season as he got better as the season went on. he was hitting big shots and seemed unfazed. then he they tried to expand his game and play another position and he had alot of trouble doing it. he also fell victim to being a young developing player on a team that's trying to win as well. smitch is trying to win games and bargs is raw so he had less patience with him. so i say it's a combination of both...bargs has to work on his game big time. and they are making him stay in the states this summer to work with a big man coach and work with john lucas. but smitch's coaching has ALOT to be desired...as exhibited by what he did today - changed the starting lineup, putting bargs on hedo, then constantly doubling dwight in the post leaving every 3 point shooter open. i personally think he and bosh don't mesh that well together and that also has a lot to do with it.
where does that leave bargs? looks like it might be a make or break year in terms of the "fans" reaction towards him this upcoming season. alot of them already jumped ship but some are willing to wait. but he will get every opportunity as colangelo took him with the first pick so he won't just get rid of him quick. the raptors don't have a big man coach either. smitch's playbook is very limited and the raptors are easy to defend. they get by being one of the worst reboudning/defensive teams by not turning the ball over and being efficient - hence being a .500 team...but that's another discussion altogether.
[Edited by - djsunyc on 04-20-2008 4:31 PM][Edited by - djsunyc on 04-20-2008 4:33 PM]
4/20/2008 5:10 PM
