It has only been two weeks since the Celtics won the title and it feels like months already since there was basketball on TV. The dog days of summer are approaching and it gets harder and harder to generate some blog fodder. There is so little news coming out each day that everyone exhausts the different angles within a few hours. All that does is leave all of the sports blogs to spit out the same thing and hoping that they are the one that gets read.

On the Raptors front the summer is going as expected. T.J. is gone and Jose is in full time. The team is starting to look more different by the day and they are making the moves to address what they lacked last season.

Adding Jermaine O’Neil could be a great move if he is in fact 100% healthy because he will take care of the rebounding and defense that the team did not have. If Sam Mitchell can find a way for Bosh and O’Neil to complement each other instead of getting in each others way, the Raps instantly have one of the best front lines in the East. If Bargnani all of a sudden turns into what we think he should be, well that makes it all even better.

Imagine Bosh, O’Neil and Bargnani, all at the top of the game, playing well with one another. Yep that seems pretty awesome to me. Bargnani is a good passer for a big man and I think they need to use a lot more high-low plays where Bargs just passes over the top to either Bosh or O’Neil. Makes me think of Webber and Howard at Michigan.

With Bargnani most likely the starting small forward (for now) that means that Moon will take his athleticism and hustle to the bench where I think he will be a much better fit. He can come in and block shots and have a few throw downs and not be out there too long and forced into spots of taking bad jumpers. He has the skill set to be a very strong sixth man in the NBA for years to come.

i don’t really know how the shooting guard will play out. I mean AP is the guy I think but based on the playoff run of Jason Kapono maybe he would be the one to start. Granted he is also a great weapon off the bench but he will be a great asset to open up the floor for Bosh and O’Neil. Parker’s D is a lot better so that will most likely be the deciding factor for Mitchell.

I am really hoping this Ukic guy works out at least enough to back up Calderon otherwise the new starting PG is going to be burnt out by Christmas. He has the ability to play 37-40 minutes but not every night. Delfino most likely won’t be around to be a temporary ball handler so that means they need Ukic to at least do better than Darrick Martin did last year.

This team is by far done tinkering and they still have some money to play with. A backup PG and maybe another small forward would be nice but we will see what BC does.

The Arsenalist is liking the idea of Jarvis Hayes as a good pickup and I can’t argue with that. There are not enough minutes in Detroit for him and he would add solid depth off the bench.

The ideas are running pretty low for the blog these days so hopefully the Raptors can at least keep things fresh until the Olympics get here.

In other news, Baron Davis is heading to the Clippers which I think is a big shock. Golden State is one of those teams stuck in a bad spot. They are good enough to be a top team, they are just stuck in the West. They could easily be in the top eight this year but Baron decides to go elsewhere.

Maybe he can be the one to turn around that franchise and help Elton Brand out. It now makes the West even better and more deep. I am starting to think it is the Mavericks that are going to be looking from the outside when the playoffs roll around.

At least The Beard did not head to the East because there are already enough teams reloading and making it harder for the Raptors to make the playoffs.

Popularity: 1% [?]

If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!

BallHype: hype it up!

More Cuzoogle