Raptors Update June 19th, 2007

Hey peoples! Sorry, i haven't been able to make a post recently but i will put all the latest happenings with the Toronto Raptors and what else is going on in the NBA into this post. The NBA Draft is coming up pretty soon as well so i will give you my mock draft on the lottery to show you who i think is going to be picked where and for what reason.

To start things off, the Raptors just made a trade a couple of days ago for Carlos Delfino from the Detroit Pistons for a couple of second round draft picks. Delfino is an Argentine who has played in Europe against many of the current Raptors and could fit in well with the Raptors style of play. He is a 6'7 Small forward/Shooting guard and will potentially replace the departing Morris Peterson on the roster. Here is a video of Delfino meeting the Toronto press. Delfino Meets Toronto Media

Well, as for the rest of the Raptors news. It has been said from a reliable league source that Andrei Kirilenko was almost traded to the Toronto Raptors in February for Mo Pete and maybe another player. Unfortunately for us that deal fell through because I for one love Kirlenko's style of play and his hard nosed defensive play and his knack to find a way to the basket would be welcome on this Raptors team. Although the deal didn't happen I see this as a step in the right direction. Bryan Colangelo seems to know what he is doing and is trying to get all the pieces he thinks will fit together to make the best Toronto Raptors possible.

On another note, CBC will be broadcasting Raptors games nationally and this is a big deal for the Raptors as games haven't been televised nationally since CTV did it way back in the day during the 2001-02 season. The formal announcement will be made 2 weeks from now when everything is finalized.

Now for the rest of the NBA, Mike James the former Raptors point guard has been traded to the Houston Rockets for Juwan Howard. This I believe is good for James as he never really fit well into Minnesota's system and is more of a combo guard than a true point that the T-Wolves needed. Hopefully for the T-wolves this trade pays off and they can pick up a nice point in the Draft and Juwan Howard will add a little veteran stability to their young lineup.

Some other rumors that are flying around regarding the T-Wolves is the trade of Superstar Kevin Garnett to Boston for Al Jefferson, Gerald Green, Theo Ratliff, the often troubled Sebastian Telfair and the 5th overall pick in this years upcoming draft. I don't think the Celtics should make this trade but then again i don't know their plans for the future. They will give up a whole lot of potential superstars for one current superstar who might or might not lead them to the promised land while teamed up with Paul Pierce. It is tough to say but let's see what happens.

Thats it for now, i'll let you know if anything else happens anytime soon.
PEACE!

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It's Over! SAN ANTONIO SPURS!!

CLEAN SWEEP! The San Antonio Spurs swept the Cleveland Cavaliers to put their names in the history books. Now I can honestly say that the Spurs are the dominant team in the NBA at the moment. They dominated against the teams that were said to be contenders and able to beat the Cavaliers and crown themselves the kings of the NBA.

Monday June 11, 2007

Game 2 of the NBA Finals was quite dissapointing. I was having a hard time trying not to fall asleep in the first half. The Cavs were down by 28 at one point, might have been more but i was hardly watching. HAHA. Tony Parker scored 30, Manu Ginobili had 25 and Tim Duncan scored 23 for the Spurs and pretty much destroyed Cleveland until the last few minutes of the 4th quarter when Cleveland brought the lead down to as little as 9 but to no avail. San Antonio were just too confident and poised in this game to let the lead slip beyond that. They did everything they were supposed to and Cleveland had a real hard time just getting to the basket. Larry Hughes was a non-factor and LeBron was not on his game. Cleveland will not win this series playing the same way they played in the first 2 games. I predict San Antonio wins this series in 5 with the Cavs stealing one at home. The Spurs are just too good and too experienced to let this championship slip out of their fingers, they might as well get the rings already!

On a side note, there are alot of rumours flying around the NBA saying that Shawn Marion will be traded to the Boston Celtics for Theo Ratliff and the 5th pick in the upcoming NBA Draft. The Suns are apparently trying to dump Marion's contract and could easily pick up a Marion type player with the 5th pick in Corey Brewer out of Florida or Jeff Green out of Georgetown. Well, thats it for now.

Peace!

NBA Finals Game 1 Recap

Well, i knew it was gonna happen... I said if the Spurs do a few key things they will win this series and that's exactly what they did. LeBron James was shut down and limited to only 14 points in over 44 minutes of playing time. That just won't get it done. Then there was Tony Parker's constant barrage at the Cleveland pg's as they struggled to contain him. He blew up for 27 points and 7 assists. Tim Duncan was his usual self scoring 24 points and 13 boards to go along with 5 monsterous blocks. San Antonio set the tone for the rest of the series in this game and let Cleveland know that it is going to be VERY hard and that the West is in fact a harder conference to play against.

LeBron acknowledged after the game that he does need to carry the weight on his shoulders in Game 2 for Cleveland to have any chance at winning this series. "If I went by one guy, another guy stepped up,'' James said. "For us to have a chance to win, I have to play better.'' The picture below is just an example of what LeBron had to go through in game 1 and what he will be facing throughout this series. IT WON'T GET EASIER!

Well, ill give you an update on what's going on in the rest of the NBA tommorow and let's hope this series gets more interesting but in order for this to happen LeBron needs to score 50 in game 2. That's it for today, talk to you guys later.

PEACE!

NBA Rumors

I am posting some NBA Rumors that are flying around. Let me know what you think about them.

Knicks Interested IN SHEED
New York Daily News

Rasheed Wallace's exit in the Eastern Conference Finals may make him a candidate to be traded and if he is available, Isiah Thomas will certainly attempt to acquire the power forward. When Thomas first assumed control of the Knicks, he twice tried to trade for Wallace, who instead landed in Atlanta and then Detroit. Thomas never got over losing Wallace to his former teammate, Pistons GM Joe Dumars, and has told associates that Wallace would have made the Knicks a perennial playoff team. Thomas has his sights set on Jermaine O'Neal, Kevin Garnett and Pau Gasol, but Wallace is a more realistic option.

Artest or Bibby to be dealt this summer?

Sacramento Bee
After speaking with several people associated with the team, it seems to be a done deal to Martin McNeal of the Sacramento Bee that either Ron Artest or Mike Bibby will be traded this offseason. The Kings reportedly came close to dealing Bibby in February.

Heat might seek Artest or Bibby
Miami Herald
Several NBA people close to the Heat expect Miami will explore acquiring Sacramento's Ron Artest or impending Seattle free agent Rashard Lewis -- two elite 27-year-old small forwards. But it's highly questionable if the Heat has enough to satisfy the Kings or Sonics. The Heat has not made a trade offer for Artest, but discussions with the Kings are expected, an official with one of the teams said. Two officials said Pat Riley isn't deterred by Artest's past off-court issues. The Kings will consider moving Artest but don't feel compelled. An official in contact with Kings management said Sacramento isn't enamored with Miami's available assets, which could require a third team's inclusion. Artest (18.8 points, 6.5 rebounds last season) is due $7.8 million for next season and has an $8.45 million player option for '08-09. Although the Heat loves Lewis' skills, there's some skepticism internally about whether Miami -- which is above the salary cap -- would have enough to interest Seattle in a sign-and-trade. Numerous teams covet him, including Orlando -- which will have lots of cap space if it doesn't sign Darko Milicic -- Houston and New York. Seattle says it wants to keep Lewis, but the expected drafting of Kevin Durant could change that.

NBA FINALS TIME!

Damn, i don't know if you guys watched Game 6 of the Eastern Finals but damn did Detroit struggle and this could be the end of their "Dynasty." Chauncey "Mr. Big Shot" Billups struggled the entire game and had only 1 assist to go along with only 9 points in just under 44 minutes, and Tayshaun Prince had only 5 points in just under 40 minutes. Those kind of numbers from the Pistons stars are just not going to cut it in an elimination game. Billups is a free agent at the end of the year and most likely will be going elsewhere as well as Chris Webber whose experiment in Detroit didn't go as well as he had hoped. Rasheed Wallace's antics and constant ejections might be a reason why he might be traded as well during the offseason. Joe Dumars (Pistons GM) will have to destroy and rebuild this team and i doubt they will be the powerhouse they once were for at least a few years. Sad to see the New Age Bad Boys have to go out like that.

As for the Cavaliers, this is the beginning of a wonderful time in Cleveland. Their superstar is just 22 years young and is yet to dominate the League. Despite that they have a contending team that had the 2nd best record in the East and are going to the NBA Finals. They have a good mix of youth and experience and are not likely going to be taken off their high horse for a while. Lebron James was ecstatic after the win in Game 6 as can be seen in this picture.
Now as for the NBA Finals matchup between the Cavs and the Spurs, it is tough to say who will come out on top. Only because the Cavaliers have beaten the Spurs in their only two matchups during the regular season and both games were fairly close. In the end, the determining factor for the Spurs in my opinion will be San Antonio's ability to shut down LeBron and Tony Parker exposing the weakness of Cleveland's Point Guard position. For the Cavaliers I believe LeBron HAS to step up and carry the weight on his young but broad shoulders and they have to get bench production as they got in the Pistons series. It will be an interesting match-up and I can't wait till Thursday rolls around to watch Game 1 at 7pm Eastern on ABC.


ps. Leave me a comment on who you think will win the series and why. thanks for reading :D


Peace!

Eastern Finals Game 5!!

WOWWWWWW... Game 5 of the Pistons vs. Cavs series was just NASTY! King James lived up to his title for SURE! 25 straight points for the Cavs and a stat line of 48, 9 and 7 with 2 steals to top it off in only 51 minutes! Thats what i call EFFICIENCY. This series has started to interest me and I will be watching the next game for sure!

Who knows, Cleveland might pull a minor upset and Lebron could be in his first NBA Finals ever.

LeBron James might have just saved the NBA as everybody will want to watch what develops with this series. Thats it for now.

Peace!