I'm back! The Raptors make a BIG splash!!

Well I'm finally back!! And I promise I will post almost everyday! Wow! There is a lot to get to talk about because the Raptors have finally made a huge move. The first great move the Raptors made was trading for Jermaine O'neal! Wow! I didn't see that one coming. The Toronto Raptors traded TJ Ford, Rasho Nesterovic, Maceo Baston and Roy Hibbert for Jermaine O'Neal and Nathan Jawai.

With this move the Raptors addressed toughness, rebounding, defense, and leadership. Jermaine O'Neal brings much needed toughness to the Raptors. Last year, we were probably the softest team in the NBA. But with this move we have become tougher and stronger down low. The best thing that this deal addresses is rebounding! Finally! Thank you God! With deal we become better rebounders. You do not understand the frustration when your team cannot rebound! Rebounding was a huge issue for this team. I truly believe that rebounding was the achillies heal of this team! We lost many games because we could not rebound the ball! Argh! It was the most frustrating thing ever! If you read my other posts, I constantly complained about rebounding! And by the grace of God, we finally get it in Jermaine O'Neal! This move also brings defense! No longer can teams drive to the hoop at will. They will now have to deal with two giants-Chris Bosh and Jermaine O'neal! The wing defenders can now guard tight without having too worry too much about getting beat. And if they do get beat they can trust that O'Neal or Bosh will be waiting for them.

Jermaine O'Neal is a 6 time all-star! With him and Bosh together, they make it arguably the best front court in the league! O'Neal can score and play defense. If one of them gets double teamed they can pass it to the open man in Kapono, Calderon or Parker. They will be draining 3's at will! It will cause such match up problems that teams will have to choose their poison. Bosh or O'Neal or a 3 in your face. Pick one!!

Now I'm not getting too excited. O'Neal does have a history of injury problems. But all signs point that he is healthy. If he stays healthy I will predict that the Raptors will make it to the Eastern Conference Finals and meet Boston! The Raptors have a solid lineup! There is concern with the wing players. Is Parker, Kapono and Moon good enough? They are not the worst but they aren't the best either. Parker is pretty good. Moon can block shots! Kapono can hit 3's. But I feel that we need one more star player in either the SG or the SF position to become real championship contenders.

This trade brings us a step closer but I don't believe to a Championship..not just yet anyways. I think we are missing one more piece to the puzzle- a star wingman. Our bench is pretty solid. Coming off the bench we will have: Bargnani, Kapono, Adams, Ukic, Jawai, and Humpries. A pretty good bench.

I think the starting lineups will be like this:

Calderon
Parker
Moon
Bosh
O'Neal

6. Bargnani
7. Kapono
8. Ukic
9. Adams
10. Jawai
11. Humphries
12. Graham
13. ?

I think the 13th spot will go to Damon Stoudamaire. That would be cool to see!

It will also be cool to hear a new announcer in Matt Devlin! Good luck Chuck in Chicago!

This is looking to be a great year for Raptor basketball! One can only hope that we stay healthy. If we do, we will be a force to be reckoned with!

Dave