Losing streak hits 13...what's wrong with Vince and his Raptors?

bengaboyz

What do you think is wrong with the Toronto Raptors? ...is it the coach? ...is it team chemistry? ...or are they just a bunch of highly-paid underachievers? ...papasok pa kaya sila sa playoffs?
c'mon n' speak ur mind.

The Rock

It's all of the above, plus something CNN's NBA analyst and former Heat and Bulls coach Kevin Loughery mentioned. He said that the veterans on the team seem to have lost confidence in Vince Carter and his questionable leadership qualities. He takes so many bad shots and doesn't make them, that the veterans wonder why the offense is so concentrated on him alone. Lenny Wilkens has never seen a losing steak of these proportions in all his years of coaching and unless he figures out what's wrong soon, the Raptors and their high payroll won't be entering the playoffs.

Bakafool

Hmm ... the problem I think starts with the offense. Vince takes bad shots and doesn't drive to the basket. The usual offensive sets dont have a lot of movement. Usually, they'll dump it into AD and let him do his thing. When he's jammed, he has difficulty passing out which prevents them from swinging the ball to the weak side or to a person who's open for the jumper. Only MoPete cuts to the basket. Then there's the other absolutely ridiculous offensive set I just don't understand. When they look for Vince, he'll usually come off a screen and recieve the ball at the top of the key ... totally useless in my opinion. One other thing is that they dont recognize mismatches quickly or often enough. Sometimes, someone smaller will guard Vince and he doesn't post him up. He'll make some move then take the jumper instead. All these offensive problems have killed them. Tsk tsk, these problems are all so obvious, but they haven't changed anything even from the beginning of the season. Turnovers dont help either. :mad:

Nerfy

Ever since VC strained his quadriceps, the Raptors didnt know who to turn to for offense, and I think thats what started the losing streak. Theyve relied on him for so long (yes, he takes akward shots, but he still is their leading scorer) that when he got injured, no one was willing to step up.

Defense doesnt seem to be the problem, the Raptors are ranked well in terms of defense and rebounding.

Now that VC is back in the lineup, their schedule has been filled with above winning teams... Detroit, Philadelphia, Dallas, etc.

I think they need to play Memphis, Atlanta, or any of those bottom teams to get their confidence back. Im sure one win is all it takes for them to get back on track.

bengaboyz

I'd like to think it has something to do with all those injuries..but I don't know. However I will be brave enough (or foolish) to predict that they will come out of their funk tonight against their game with the Heat in Miami.

bluetaurus

What's happening to Toronto is classic proof that talent alone is not enough to win in the NBA. I mean, Vince Carter is a terrific and exciting player, but as mentioned by so many others, he is not a leader, one in the mold of Michael Jordan who can inspire his teammates to play better or provide him the necessary support when opposing teams concentrate their defense on him. Charles Oakley was right all along when he criticized Carter last season for not stepping up in the playoffs against the New York Knicks. To Carter's credit, he did step up and led his team to victory over the Knicks. But it seems that the man who doesn't fail to electrify the crowd with his out-of-this-world dunks lacks an intangible quality that makes true champions: leadership. It's true that his play is hampered by an injury, but even when he is HEALTHY, the Raptors are losing. I am quite certain that Lenny Wilkens will get all the heat and might even get booted out as coach for his team's miserable performance, but the players are the ones to blame. Wilkens can only do so much. What to do? Carter must understand that he doesn't have to score tons of points every single game. He can start making passes to open teammates who can shoot, like Alvin Williams, Chris Childs or Morris Peterson, by setting them up. Toronto will get nowhere if the other four players just watch Carter try to score. If Carter can get his teammates score especially during the crucial stages of a game, they will feel good about themselves and start playing better in the process knowing that their superstar relies on them and trusts them. If nothing happens at the end of this season, perhaps Vince Carter will need a different surrounding and a different supporting cast.

sixxx

--->this is terrible!....this is a wasted season for the raptors!....i think they dug themselves a grave with their 13th loss...somebody rescue this team...or maybe ask the other teams to give them a break!:D

the reason behind the losing streak? it's pretty simple - the Raps dont have the talent to compete. Period. They have Vince Carter, and unfortunately, you have to realize that ONE player is not going to win you ANY titles...It makes it very easy for other teams to defend, since they know WHO to stop...MoPete, Alvin Williams, Childs, Montross, Hakeem, Keon Clark......these guys aren't "dangerous" enough to consistently put up points comparable to Vince....i think MoPete isn't great yet, but if you give him some open looks, he'll make more shots....by making the offensive less predictable, he'll get that....Antonio Davis is the most consistent player besides Vince, but he's not as talented....i think they need to trade Vince (stop whining v. carter fanatics! ) or some other guys and get top notch players in return!:smokedvl:

9ino

LOSING STREAK IS OVER PANALO NA SILA SA HEAT 83-74!!!
:bounce2:

Bakafool

Haaayy salamat!

The Rock

Now that they've broken the streak, here's hoping they start winning some games to get back into the playoff hunt. NBA Commish David Stern would probably hate it if somebody like Vince missed the playoffs.:rolleyes:

Road Dogg

"Dr. Funk" Vince Carter and the Toronto Raptors snapped their 13-game losing streak when they won against Miami, 83-74. Antonio Davis led Toronto with 23 points and 10 boards while Carter has 16 points.

By the way, kaya "Dr. Funk" coz of his new Nike commercial.

9ino

Originally posted by Road Dogg
"Dr. Funk" Vince Carter and the Toronto Raptors snapped their 13-game losing streak when they won against Miami, 83-74. Antonio Davis led Toronto with 23 points and 10 boards while Carter has 16 points.

By the way, kaya "Dr. Funk" coz of his new Nike commercial.

o yeah napanood ko nga ung commercial n yun.......kulit eh no......mga afros...:glee:

Road Dogg

Originally posted by 9ino


o yeah napanood ko nga ung commercial n yun.......kulit eh no......mga afros...:glee:

Yeah baby! Dr. Funk! :glee:

caloy

Hahaha! It seems 'Dr. Funk' is appropriate considering the funk they've been the past 13 games before tonight's win.

I dunno sixx, I think Toronto is pretty talented enough. Alvin William is a good point guard. Davis was an all-star. JYD and Keon bring bring energy off the bench. They're definitely more talented that some of the teams in the east which have better records than them.

Its all about the leadership! VC has to get it in his head that this is his team and he has to start playing like it. Damn, he has such potential but he's wasting it all away with his attitude. He's got to start taking responsibility for this team. He once got pissed off that MJ didn't annoint him as the second coming. MJ was right. Until Carter acquires that fire and passion for the game that MJ has, ain't no way he's gonna be considered in the same breath as MJ....

bengaboyz

Yesss...nanalo rin...heheh
I predicted a win because it was in the papers this morning that the team had a players only meeting after they lost to the Mavs in Dallas last night. Apparently a lot of frustrations were aired out by the players about everyones effort..or lack of it...during the losing skid taking a load off their collective chests. Why they waited 13 games before having this meeting beats the hell out of me, but hopefully, as mentioned earlier in this thread, they'll be able to string a few wins to get back into playoff contention. I think also that a lot of the observations mentioned above have valid points regarding leadership and style of offence etc. Again, hopefully Vince will take it upon himself to become more of a team leader and not just the team scorer. Then again he's still young and maybe this is all part of the growing up process. Let's see how they conduct themselves in their next few games. Next stop: Sunday vs the Magic in Orlando

sixxx

Originally posted by caloy
Its all about the leadership! VC has to get it in his head that this is his team and he has to start playing like it. Damn, he has such potential but he's wasting it all away with his attitude. He's got to start taking responsibility for this team. He once got pissed off that MJ didn't annoint him as the second coming. MJ was right. Until Carter acquires that fire and passion for the game that MJ has, ain't no way he's gonna be considered in the same breath as MJ....

--->ok so just trade vince carter then!:D...congrats nga pala panalo niyo sa miami!*okay*

kidcharlemagne

Question: what's wrong with Vince Carter and the Raptors?

Answer: the same thing that's been ailing the NBA for the last five seasons.

Let's face it, NBA basketball has become nothing more than an extended ESPN highlight reel. This is the worst season talent-wise that I've seen the league, and I've been a fan for the last 26 years. I began watching NBA basketball in 1976, when it was still exclusively being shown in Shakey's Pizza places and I was in the 3rd grade.

My honest assessment is that the 1977 NBA champions, the Washington Bullets of Elvin Hayes, Wes Unseld, Bobby Dandridge, and Kevin Porter, could have easily whipped the behinds of the Lakers and especially the Nets today. And I'm not even talking about the '86 Celtics of Larry, Kevin, and Robert, nor the 87-88 Showtime Lakers nor the 89-90 Bad Boys of Detroit. THEY ALL SUCK, and it's only a matter of time before the US Dream Team finally gets beaten in international competition.

Sobra sa sarsa ang laro ngayon at di na ako natutuwa. Puro yung magagandang dunk, behind the neck pass, at kung anu-ano pang pagsasalamangka ang kinagigiliwan ng mga fans ngayon.

What happened to play execution? I've noticed that every other pick or screen is being called for an offensive foul. What happened to perimeter shooting? Napansin ko pababa nang pababa ang average field goal percentages, while those who get all the attention nowadays are trashtalkers and whiners. What happened to sustaining excellence? Until he got sidelined because of his creaking knees, MJ was poised to lead the Wizards to a playoff run, and he's supposed to be a relic of the distant past, di ba?

With all the supporting cast that Vince Carter has in his team, he should be leading the Raptors atop the Eastern Conference and readying themselves for playoff seeding. Instead...

Marami pang bigas na kakainin ang mga NBA superstars ngayon bago nila mapantayan ang alamat nina Bill Russell, Dave Cowens, Rick Barry, Bill Walton, Dr. J, and all the other all-time greats.

Tmac_1

interesting match next game vs Orlando. galing din sa panalo ang Magic after a 4 game skid of their own. let's see who wins. sana Magic!

bronze33

:cheers: at last the raptors won!

Bakafool

Talo nanaman. Man, they suck. They have the best standing offense in the league. No cutters, no movement and Vince is a baby. Bad trip talaga. :mad:

bengaboyz

oo nga. Tmac was great. Underachievers tlga raptors...nkaka-tamad panuorin. Carter may not as well have played..he was a non factor. Good game by the Magic.