Raptor Camp Preview

The Raptors camp begins this week and this year is a pivotal one for the franchise. If everything comes together the team will make the playoffs, win a round or two, re-sign Bosh after the season and be a contender for years to come with Triano as coach. If the team starts off slow, the season could quickly become a disaster, the Bosh speculation will be a daily distraction with him leaving the team via trade or free agency, Triano’s run as coach will be short lived and next summer will be another massive rebuild.

To get ready for the season Colangelo performed a major makeover. Only three significant players are left from last year’s team. The job of the coaches during camp is critical and not easy. They have to construct a Raptor team that is tougher than any in recent memory. The team has to play defense every night, hit the boards and reduce uncontested shots and easy drives to the basket by the opposition. The team is eleven deep with players that are worthy of being in the rotation, but that number will have to be whittled down to a tighter rotation.

The biggest wildcard for the team is the first round pick DeMar DeRozan. For the team to reach its potential DeRozan should be the starting shooting guard. He adds athleticism that the team sorely needs at the wing positions. Even if his shooting touch does not develop in year one his physical skills should let him guard opposition guards straight up and he has the quickness to drive to the basket. The team will give him every chance to earn a starting job and he may even be able to guard some small forwards late in games. Should DeRozan not be ready to start Belinelli can, but he would be better coming off the bench and providing instant offense as part of the second unit.

Calderon appears to have recovered from the injuries that slowed him down last year and should be able to resume the play that made him a top point guard the previous season. Jack provides a very capable back up at the point and can fill in as a starter in the event of injury given Calderon time to fully recover. Calderon and Jack will also see court time together on occasion when the Raptors want to go small.

Up front the starters are Bosh, Bargnani and Turkoglu. If Bargnani can pick up where he left off last year he will provide more then most fans expect. Together, the three will provide defensive match up problems for the opposition but the question will be their rebounding and defense.

The conventional wisdom is that Evans and Nesterovic will be the main two bigs off the bench. Both are solid veterans, eat space, and Evans will add a touch of toughness that the fans have not seen since the Oakley days. Antoine Wright may be a defensive specialist late in games, but the surprise here could be Amir Johnson. Not much is expected of Johnson, but if the Raptors can bring out some of the potential that made him an NBA draft choice at 18 he could be a high energy player to play defense and pound the glass off the bench. Johnson may well disappear and fall out of the NBA but he could prove to be a diamond in the rough that Triano and Iavaroni may be able to reclaim.

This preseason most eyes will be watching Turkoglu to see how he fits and Bosh to see if he will emerge as a true superstar that can carry a team on his shoulders. While these will be the high profile stories of camp it will also be fascinating to see how ready DeRozan is, if Bargnani can pick up from where he left off last season, and how the rest of the rotation shapes up.

This is a big year for the Raptors and with the changes Colangelo made this off season there are no shortage of stories to follow.