SkywalkerAC

BC came to the Raps in a perfectly timed move, as you would expect from the savvy business man. He lucked out on a draft pick but he had space to work with and previous relationships to bring with him to the table.

He was able to revamp the team nicely in the offseason, more than able to compete against a fading (or turning over) Eastern Conference.

And what's to come next?

Well, tell me this- already armed with a full contingent of roleplayers, how difficult is it going to be for Mr Colangelo to build around the trio of Ford, Bosh, and Bargnani as they, and the rest of the team, continue to develop?

The rise of BC as GM of the Raptors- he's making it look so easy. He's already looking like exec of the year for this season.

It just feels good to know that OUR team is being run well. Who's talking about Peddie now?

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speedythief

After the last two games I think it is clear that there is still a lot of work to do--and we're talking about two wins.

Unless this team can find someone to (to steal a line from Ford) ignite our senses, we are a go-nowhere team. If it is a new coach or a couple of new players, whatever it takes, we need to get some passion back into this team.

If Fred Jones could dunk (he pretty much can't dunk in a game) he might be the right kind of energy-infusing player for us. If only.

SkywalkerAC

Oh, of course there's a ton a work ahead for this team but it's the type of work that BC will take in stride.

These have been ugly, even deflating wins but this team really doesn't have much experience playing from ahead.

Fact is that BC is going to be working his *** off running this organization and it's only going to look easy. I think we're set up nicely as we approach the all-star break of BC's first year.

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AC

seifer0406

The Raptors are maybe 1-2 trades/free agents signings away from being pretty much set. They have decent players at C/PF/PG and an above average bench. With another decent perimeter player the Raps will be good enough to win the East in a couple of years imo. I don't think BC has that much work in front of him though. The Raps roster right now just needs time for the young players to develop. Bosh is already an all-star, Bargnani is perhaps 2 years away from being close to his potential, and TJ Ford should get better next year.

narrator

Bargnani looked good tonight against Boston (IMO). I'm liking how he's developing and has been playing for the last month or so. I do think the Raptors need at least one player to come off the bench and be the spark for them, to keep the energy up, like Barbosa does in Phoenix (esp. recently... guess they didn't need Banks after all, heh). I think there is a hole at the 2 and/or 3 because I don't see Graham as a starter and Jones, as has been mentioned, can't really dunk in games.

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ballocks

i think the obsession with a wing star is overblown. we tend to ignore the fact that we have two bona fide 7'0" stars (one of whom is a superstar already; the other for whom we'll have to wait) and a top 10 point guard in the nba. if our team's primary weakness happens to be in wing scoring, so be it- we're stressing other areas of the team at the moment. if bargnani and bosh can somehow manage to elevate each other's play to the ideal level, that's just as good. imagine how complicated it would've been had bargnani, bosh and villanueva had to compete for the same role(s).

i think the bryan colangelo signing was good for both the man himself and the organization. if rob babcock had been kept around for another year, these same moves (the exact same ones) might've been met with more skepticism, but with a new chief we seem to let him take all the credit. i guess it's convenient to do so.

those of us who've been around these parts for years will know what the true story is, but suffice it to say that the 'peripheral' fans are satisfied with colangelo. i don't know whether that says more about colangelo or the fans. but either way, it doesn't much matter imo.

peace

shookem

I'm just happy that for the first time in a long time the Raps no longer "need a pass first PG and a C".

Between PJ and Roko, who do you think has a better chance at being our scoring wing?

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seifer0406

If we're comparing Roko and PJ, Roko has a better chance since PJ doesn't have much of an offensive game and offense isn't his speciality. Both of them are going to be bench players at best though imo.

ColinBeehler

i dont think BC has any room to relax at all. To get, and stay, on top of the teams that get Greg Oden and Kevin Durant. Not to mention a team like Chicago that is young, and has the pieces to make a deal that structures them more like a title contender. Dirk Nowitzky, Steve Nash, Allen Iverson aren't slowing down much at all and play for teams with relatively young cores. This is not going to be easy by any means, but we do have three huge pieces to to start the building of a title contender.

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shookem

/\/\/\

It's even crazier to think the Suns could get the fourth overall pick this year too!

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FanOfAll8472

This question is premature and the answer is very, very obvious. The Raptors would be the 4th seed if the playoffs started today, but they've only played 37 of the 82 games. The Raptors haven't made the playoffs yet and even after the Raptors make the playoffs, everyone knows that the toughest task for all parties involved is winning the championship. An even harder task than rebuilding a team is improving a playoff team to make it a championship squad. Ask Pat Riley, Donnie Walsh, the Maloof brothers, Joe Dumars, even Bryan Colangelo himself knows the challenges of molding the team into an absolute winner. So in short, yes, of course, BC has his work cut out for him. What's next? Building a perennial playoff team.

narrator

A 2 and/or a 3 who can shoot and play defense consistently would be nice. I like Parker (forgot about him in my post above) but I think the Raptors need someone to provide that from the bench (Peterson is nice and I hope he sticks around).

10 kinds of off-topic, but holy elitist, Batman. In response, Babcock never would have made the moves Colangelo did. But that's just my opinion. He was a horrible GM and I'm glad he's gone. Colangelo has a track record of doing what he needs to to succeed.

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"If you are reading this then this warning is for you. Every word you read of this is useless fine print is another second off your life. Don't you have other things to do? Is your life so empty that you honestly can't think of a better way to spend these moments? Or are you so impressed with authority that you give respect and credence to all who claim it? Do you read everything you're supposed to read? Do you think everything you're supposed to think? Buy what you're told you should want? Get out of your apartment. Meet a member of the opposite sex. Stop the excessive shopping and masturbation. Quit your job. Start a fight. Prove you're alive. If you don't claim your humanity you will become a statistic. You have been warned."

chairman5

Tor is lacking a Shane Battier

every1 on the team except calderon, mo pete and graham are horrendous defenders and undersized vs their matchups