Gavin Inkster, basketball bets consultant

2008 has certainly been one of the most disappointing years ever for Raptors fans. While not as devastating as Vince’s rim out against Philly in 2001 or Calderon’s pass to beat the buzzer getting picked off in 2007, this season has been a disaster when compared to fan expectations.

Jose Calderon was expected to thrive in the absence of T.J. Ford, Jermaine O’Neal was supposed to dominate the boards and provide consistent points from the paint, and the rest of the team was going to continue to improve upon their efforts from last season.

Calderon has been consistently providing assists, but has not contributed much beyond that. O’Neal has been an all-around let down; at 21 million dollars you would hope for more than 14 points per game and 7.5 rebounds per game.

As for the rest of the team, poor seasons by both Jamario Moon and Anthony Parker and another inconsistent year from Andrea Bargnani have resulted in a terrible year for the Raps.

The only piece of the team that has been consistently excellent has been Chris Bosh, as always, but the team has to improve otherwise he will be on his way out of town in 2010.

The season is far from over, and a playoff spot is still possible for this team, as long as three things happen: Parker starts to play like he did in 2007-08, O’Neal stays healthy and continues to improve his play, and the whole team starts to play defence.

If all of those things happen, Toronto will be able to defy the NBA sports betting odds and steal a playoff spot at the last minute. If not, expect huge changes in the off-season. Here’s hoping that 2009 is kinder to the Raptors than 2008.

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