Toronto Raptors at Charlotte Bobcats 11/9

[ziggy]

Sunday afternoon we have Chris Bosh, Jermaine O'Neal and Andrea Bargnani ( Does it bug you when guys have girl's names? ) in town against the Bobcats.

CB4 has been playing out of his mind as expected: 26ppg & 10.2 rpg

Jermaine O'Neal on the other hand doesn't seem to be living up to the hype: 11.6ppg, 5.8rpg and 43% shooting from the field. Those numbers are Primoz-esque

According to Rick Bonnell, Emeka could miss today's game. If that happens we're in deep doo-doo.
http://blogs.charlotte.com/inside_the_nba/2008/11/look-for-troubl.html

So what do you think gentlemen, do we leave this game with a .500 record?

[Muttley]

I hope we get this win. If Mek's good to go and we play D like in the Hornets game then we can win it.

[ammofan]

i am going today! is anyone else?

If we dont have mek.....then Adam better start. He will give us more than any other pf we have off the bench....

[Keetch]

I'll be there with my grandson.

Ammofan how does Ammo replace Okafor? :hypo:

I'd personnally prefer Nazr Mohammed, isn't that kind of his job description; to be ready and able if Okafor is out?

But if Larry Brown wants to start Ammo, then I'll trust in that!

[spectre]

This game is showing up unblocked on LP!

If Mek doesn't play we're screwed. If he does then I like our chances. Raps haven't been outrebounding anyone and their perimeter D has been bad. All we gotta do is hit some shots and force Bosh into shooting jumpers.

[Dead_Real]

This game is showing up unblocked on LP!

If Mek doesn't play we're screwed. If he does then I like our chances. Raps haven't been outrebounding anyone and their perimeter D has been bad. All we gotta do is hit some shots and force Bosh into shooting jumpers.
free broadband LP?

[ammofan]

Yeah Adam can replace Mek....Seriously Nazr is not gonna do better than adam as starter. We are gonna need to outscore the Raptors rather than outrebound or defend in order to win

[Muttley]

Yeah Adam can replace Mek....Seriously Nazr is not gonna do better than adam as starter. We are gonna need to outscore the Raptors rather than outrebound or defend in order to win
Are you proposing this line-up to start Ray/JRich/Adam/Gerald/Jared??

I'm not so sure about that. I think we need to start off with an actual center in there. If Mek's out, then Nazr's in. He won't be as good as Mek, but I feel he'd do fine.

Besides, just because Adam isn't one of the first guys on the court doesn't mean that he can't play a heavy load of minutes throughout the game. I think he's important to the team's scoring and he and Matt both showed they could play some defense against the Hornets.

Also, outrebounding and defending is a good way outscore the opponent. There are two ends to the BBall court (except in NY with D'Antoni, I guess).

[spectre]

free broadband LP?

I think that's free until the 11th if you can get it to work; I haven't.

I'm talking TV!

[Dead_Real]

I think that's free until the 11th if you can get it to work; I haven't.

I'm talking TV!

Cool hopefully it works online I've heard it's been having buffering issues since the start of the season.

I'm thinking with no Mek Coach Brown will go with Nazr & McMay starting but I remember Dudley doing an ok job D up against CB4 last year.

[gooze]

Are there any online links to the game?

[Jennings]

I was abou to ask the same thing. Channelsurfin has the game but it's only audio. Anyone?? That would be great if I could watch the Bobcats then watch the Panthers at 4.

[WarioVsMooChicken]

Yea that ^

I needs a way to watch it.

[Dead_Real]

I was abou to ask the same thing. Channelsurfin has the game but it's only audio. Anyone?? That would be great if I could watch the Bobcats then watch the Panthers at 4.

checking LP now to see if it's working

[Dead_Real]

It's working nba.com league pass broadband just google and sign up pretty easy

Matt Devlin calling the game

Mek is playing

[gooze]

its working thank you mod.

[Jennings]

Ok, maybe I'm stupid but only thing I see is something you pay for. Am I missing something??

[Dead_Real]

scroll down to free preview

Dudley taking it to Bosh

[bing!]

Crap, I'm gettin' the 'this service is not available in your region' message, so a link to a stream'd be nice.

[spectre]

Duds doing pretty well against Bosh! Just D'ed up against in in the paint...Duds striips him, gets the ball, falls down and calls timeout!

[Dead_Real]

Crap, I'm gettin' the 'this service is not available in your region' message, so a link to a stream'd be nice.
did you sign up and activate your account ?

[x2pacalypse]

http://atdhe.net/live-tv-330.html

link for the 80% of u who dont get this game on TV

[spectre]

I got the NBA broadcast thing going...pretty cool! I wonder if it works on FSN games? If it does I'll sign up for this.

[bing!]

I already had an account, got the message with it, tried creating a new account, same thing. I've recently been having trouble with sports.yahoo.com non-live streams too, so I don't know...

EDIT: X2, thanks for the link ;)

[countryboi]

look at jordan sitting sidelines....i love it

[countryboi]

i am watching it on league pass broadband....for some reason i have account.....wonder why...oh well this thing is ten times better than justin.tv where LAG happens

[Dead_Real]

Nice pass from Raymond to Mek

[spectre]

Does Ajinca know that he's not supposed to foul as soon as he checks in?

Hah! Offensive foul!!!

Awesome! Foul on the last second chuck!

[Alex]

do i have to activate the account in order to watch the free preview? it's asking me for my TWC account number

[Dead_Real]

I just activated it and the window opened
Bosh with 2 early fouls lol

[countryboi]

do i have to activate the account in order to watch the free preview? it's asking me for my TWC account number

it didnt ask me for anything

[SWedd523]

2pac that link you put up gives me nothing but a load screen?

[countryboi]

morrison should really be playing more mins...he has been very solid in limited mins

[x2pacalypse]

2pac that link you put up gives me nothing but a load screen?

yea it was working then it stopped...fuck my life

[Dead_Real]

Raymond perfect at the line

[Alex]

can somebody please post a screenprint of where i should be for the free league pass thing. i feel like ive signed up for 10 things and still no game.

PS: a link could work too

[Alex]

http://www.nba.com/leaguepass/online.html?cid=g36

I went there, now what?

[spectre]

http://www.nba.com/leaguepass/online.html

Launch is on the right Alex.

[gooze]

nice quarter for felts.

[countryboi]

go sign up for the free preview...and fill it out..what happened after that?

[Dead_Real]

go sign up for the free preview...and fill it out..what happened after that?
launch the preview if activated it should open right up

[Alex]

http://www.nba.com/leaguepass/online.html

Launch is on the right Alex.

i clicked on that, put in my login info and it won't log me in. the same log in page just keeps coming up :rolleyes:

it's not saying that my password or sn is incorrect either. it's just not logging me in.

[Alex]

IT'S WORKING! thanks for the help guysys

[bing!]

IT'S WORKING!
I had the same problem with the login screen, what did you do to make it functional ??

[Dead_Real]

DJ looks good again

[SWedd523]

I had the same problem with the login screen, what did you do to make it functional ??

I was having problems, clicked alex's link, and the game finally popped up.

[spectre]

It's pretty clear in full screen on this laptop too. I wonder if it'll work when FSN runs the games?

[SWedd523]

This is the first game I've been able to watch...



Is the arena ALWAYS this empty?
Hammer has one of the truest shots I've seen
DJ dribbles a lot
The team already overall looks way more polished than last season


p.s. damn did Felton CLANG that jumper? haha it was loud!

[Dead_Real]

Sick passes from Raymond today

Crash driving at will 3 fouls on O'neal

[bing!]

I'm already logged in, as it clearly says so at the top of the page, but when i click launch it simply throws me to the sign in page and thus begins the inescapable loop, I put in my info and it just reloads the same page, no wrong password or e-mail message... damn.

[SWedd523]

Sick passes from Raymond today

sick spin for the and 1 for Crash. Thats sportscenter material

[spectre]

What a nice drive/floater by DJ!!!

[Dead_Real]

sick spin for the and 1 for Crash. Thats sportscenter material

He put a move on Kapono just now too really impressive these last few games

[BobCatsFanInTx]

Augustin looking like a seasoned veteren.

[dnbman]

Interesting comment from Brown about Toronto's weakness: depth at pg.

Apparently, Brown told the reporter that Toronto was going to have trouble because of lack of depth. If that's the case, Brown may want to keep both DJ and Felton around for a bit, rather than look to trade Felton like some have been suggesting.

Of course, that can't last long term for money reasons, but it's an interesting comment by Brown.

[BobCatsFanInTx]

Augustin is in the zone Baby!

[SWedd523]

45-40

great first half so far. This team really is looking a lot better than it was last year

[countryboi]

looks like we are really going at their lack of quickness at the pg position

[WarioVsMooChicken]

Yea, Bosh and O-Neal usually kill us.

We're looking good.

[Dead_Real]

looks like we are really going at their lack of quickness at the pg position

DJ with 11 , Raymond with 10

[GamecockBobcat]

hey guys i am the old CaptainCrunch and want to start posting about the bobcats again. i'm listening to the game right now, have any of ya'll found the game on the internet?

[bing!]

Raptor-Stomping machine is in the house tonight, let's keep it up. :biggrin:

[Dead_Real]

Dudley is productive must like playing against the Raps

[Jennings]

Thanks for the League Pass info guys! We are playing pretty dam good. You can see the influence of LB. I love it.

[dnbman]

hey guys i am the old CaptainCrunch and want to start posting about the bobcats again. i'm listening to the game right now, have any of ya'll found the game on the internet?

I saw a guy at Williams Brice with a Bobcat t-shirt on yesterday. Any chance that was you?

By the way, look at the first few pages and you'll see a couple of feed options.

[Muttley]

Yeah, this LP broadband is working nicely now. That Charles Barkley commercial is funny. The 'Cats are playing well.

[GamecockBobcat]

Okay nice I found the link. And no I was wearing a Garnet South Carolina shirt.

[Dead_Real]

Night and day compared to preseason

[SWedd523]

lol I swear if Morrison doesn't jack up a shot as soon as he gets it:D

[Dead_Real]

We could win this if Bosh doesn't decide to takeover.

[bing!]

^ hungry for points, what can I say, the guy missed an entire season worth of games last year.

[dnbman]

lol I swear if Morrison doesn't jack up a shot as soon as he gets it:D

I know what you mean, but he's been playing really wall off the ball and getting other guys looks during the regular season.

He's starting to look like a real asset.

[SWedd523]

I know what you mean, but he's been playing really wall off the ball and getting other guys looks during the regular season.

He's starting to look like a real asset.

I'm not complaining:biggrin:

It's just funny to see him pull it no matter what, he just catches and BAM, jumper!

[Dead_Real]

wow Crash got owned by Bosh

[SWedd523]

We're getting outrebounded and have a lower FG%. The boys need to keep playing tough and move the ball so we can keep this win

[WarioVsMooChicken]

We've played like half this game without a PF or C

Awesome

[GamecockBobcat]

come on Bobcats! Lets get a "W"

[Dead_Real]

Falling apart here :(

[bing!]

^ a severe understatement...

[CaptainCrunch]

yeah, this is pretty bad

[CaptainCrunch]

gheez, raptors are up by 7 now

[CaptainCrunch]

gheez, raptors are up by 7 now

make that 9

[Dead_Real]

Bosh taking over.

[bing!]

.333, sounds nice after a dismal shooting performance by the Cats.

[ohara831]

Monumental 4th qtr collapse.

[CaptainCrunch]

ok guys, i'm out of here. really really really disappointing loss. talk to you guys later.

[SWedd523]

Wow Bosh dropped 30 and 15 on us...

We started good, but fell apart late. Typical for a team that isn't used to having a lead and doesn't know much about winning. We'll fix that with time

[Muttley]

This is absurd.

[WarioVsMooChicken]

17 Straight points...

[Alex]

26-12 in the 4th quarter

We allowed them to go on a 17-0 run down the stretch.

So much for going 3-3...

[BobCatsFanInTx]

Larry has to do something to keep these guys from having such mental lapses. They just don't handle adversity very well. Of coarse their is no such thing as a home court advantage when your arena is practically empty and devoid of any energy. It might help the Bobcats win a few more home games if they had a some fans to fill the seats. I am sure the energy and fans helped the team overcome the Hornets the other night.

[spectre]

Wow Bosh kicked our ass.

Hard to win anyway when Swish & Crash combine for 7 of 26. That trade talk really seems to be screwing with Crash.

[Dead_Real]

We needed someone to step it up and sadly no one did tough L considering we led for most of the game.

[Alex]

Larry has to do something to keep these guys from having such mental lapses. They just don't handle adversity very well. Of coarse their is no such thing as a home court advantage when your arena is practically empty and devoid of any energy. It might help the Bobcats win a few more home games if they had a some fans to fill the seats. I am sure the energy and fans helped the team overcome the Hornets the other night.

what energy the other night? there were like 10,000 empty seats.

[bing!]

There's one thing I don't understand, if one of your (or more) starters is having a cold spell, why not give more minutes to some of the guys on the bench (Matt was more than decent with 10ish minutes in the game, save his two TOs, and on a side note, where the hell was Shannon tonight ??)

[Dead_Real]

what energy the other night? there were like 10,000 empty seats.
The crowd reactions came off amazing on TV in that 4th quarter empty or not

[ammofan]

okay I am really mad now.
What the heck is the deal wih Loser Brown thinking he has to put in our starters even if they have not done anything??????
He had Morrison/Carroll/Felton/Dudley/Okafor and we were winning even when TOR started to make a run.
Then he puts in the starters who all sucked today(Except Felton) and also put in DJ. DJ air balled a 3 and got blocked quite a few times. Gerald was non-existent and J-Rich was like J-Miss.
Now I will admit, Morrison missed a few shots but he brought energy into the game and you actually noticed he was playing unlike Wallace.......

[ammofan]

Oh yeah.....and then we give up at the end with 3 minutes left by putting in Frenchie and Shannon Brown.....
And another thing is how JD comes down the court with 20 seconds left and holds the ball(like you do to show good sportsmenship when WINNING) I dont think he should've done that when down by 10 or whatever it was. At least throw it up and make it look like we dont suck so much

[BobCatsFanInTx]

what energy the other night? there were like 10,000 empty seats.Yeah, but it seemed from what many said, the TWC Arena had a lot more energy than the crowd would lead one to believe. Today there was absolutely no energy in the arena and it was really really dead. Hard to maintain any intensity when nobody is at home showing more than a slow nearly dead pulse of emotion. This team is inexperienced and needs all the help and lift they can get from the fans. This talk of the Bobcats having to win first is crap. This is only their fifth season and they are on their third head coach. They aren't going to light it up this soon in their growth. No young team that has to deal with this lame duck treatment is going to be a contender.

Drafting is an inexact science so those thinking that somehow the team should have a Superstar is stupid. In the last few drafts before this year very few teams got much more than a good basketball player. Could we have gotten a star? Yes. Superstar like LeBron James? Not likely. Bernie Bickerstaff as a head coach did what he needed to do. He gave this team maturity early and had them playing with passion. Fine Ham Biscuit set this team back quite a ways in one season as head coach. The people of NC and SC need to realize that the cats are once again a work in progress. Watching them this year it is obvious how much they are growing.

My thinking is that the FO should make trades if the team isn't at least 500 or close to 500 by the end of this month. LB can get it done if the FO takes his advice and gets him the type of players that fit his coaching skills. Still, as of now I would not make any major trades til later in the season and til we get the proper value for a player like Crash. Since Curry is talked about that means teams aren't willing to give anything of value in return for Crash.We don't need to get screwed.

[Marvel]

I'm thinking if Wallace is on the trade block than so should J-Rich he has been really inconsistent lately and as our primary scorer/star that isn't acceptable and loses games.CONSISTENCY ladies and gentlemen is the cure here.

[ammofan]

agreed Marvel...

[Keetch]

Well now I don't know where to begin....so here goes....

About the crowd. If you think its dead in the Arena then get off your duff and go down there and watch the game and get drunk and yell your brains out; or drink cokes and yell your brains out, but please quit complaining.

Here's what I saw...a Sunday afternoon game that brought out a lot of young families with their kids, in some cases very young kids; and as far as I can tell, everyone seemed to be having a good time. There were more seats filled in the Arena than I thought there would be. Overall I thought it was a good day at the park.

Observations:

Being there with my grandson; I had my first up close encounter with Rufus. He came over and gave us both high fives and then patted me on the shoulder. I felt truly charmed.

The team came out in good spirits overall, but Wallace got miffed early when he missed some free throws. It was so bad that LB took him out. Wallace went over and sat next to MJ and immediately got an earfull. As soon as MJ was done, LB came over and gave him some too, lol. But Wallace never really recovered. He had a funk going as he does sometimes. I don't think its the trade rumors, because I've seen it before, but it could be who knows.

Larry Brown particularly was VERY spirited in the first half, pushing his team on and constantly into the game. I swear he's the true sixth man. The boys were right there with him. I was SO impressed with Felton's and DJ's speed with the ball....

Chris Paul the other night showed me what all-star quickness is; I was in awe. He has a lateral move that is freaking instantaneous. I saw him create five feet of freedom from Felton and DJ numerous times with that sidestep. Its not quite a cross over, because crossing-over takes time. This is INSTANT. Anyway; Felton and DJ don't have that lateral move, but they have similar quickness straight ahead; and its impressive to watch as well. They both had it going in the first half; penetrating the paint and dishing...

I've not been in Ammo's camp since we drafted him. What I've seen is a guy who thinks too much and was mechanical in movement. Note the "was". It is clear that Adam is finding his Mojo and fluidity on the court. His confidence shows in his ability to move on both defense, where his positioning is much better and on offense where he's protecting the ball when he has it and moving very well without it. Adam Morrison has become an asset. Go figure.

In the post-game interview on the radio, Larry Brown mentioned that "this is the team we have right now" and then let the "short-handed" words out. It's clear he feels he's playing short-handed; whether because of Sean May or otherwise.

That showed in the second half today. I thought the team fatigued early and fell victim to Toronto's defensive intensity. Both Ray and DJ got caught up in pressure defense and traps and didn't execute out of it well. Crash was still funked out and JRich couldn't find space too shoot. Ammofan may be right; that Ammo could have helped; but I think it was Toronto sensing blood and All-Star Awesome Player Chris Bosh taking over. That happens with players of his caliber. It was something to see.

When the Raptors weren't trapping at half court, they were clogging the middle so that DJ and Ray couldn't drive and dish. That seemed to leave the guys frustrated and tired.

Overall I think this team has the talent and emerging skill/intelligence to contend on most nights. I swear in the 1st half we looked like by far the better team. But it will take major effort to pull wins and major smarts as well. The game the Bobcats are now playing is vastly different from last year, and its A GREAT DEAL OF FUN TO WATCH. This team is getting there and can be nasty good at times. So y'all come on out and watch some NBA basketball in Charlotte!

I was planning on selling a lot of my tix this year. Now I'm having some serious second thoughts. I LOVE this team!

[spectre]

Good stuff Keetch! Thanks for the breakdown.

[Dunk]

I was at the arena as well. It was a Sunday afternoon so a lot of families were in attendance. Right now, the city just isn't into the team and probably won't be until they start winning.

The team, IMO, just seems to move a lot faster with DJ at the helm. He'll be the starter by mid-season. I think he's just plain better than Felton. He just seems quicker and can dish better. At least it looks that way to me in person.

We need something to happen at the four. Just seeing how we handle things under the basket, it's ugly. If we can hit our shots, that opens it up for penetration and we do okay. Otherwise, we don't have anyone who can bang or handle a team that's big under the basket. It felt like Bosh got about 25 rebounds. Obviously we knew this but seeing it in-person a couple times now makes it even more apparent.

[ammofan]

I was at the arena as well. It was a Sunday afternoon so a lot of families were in attendance.

i forgot to post what happened to me and my dad today. We were sitting in the Upper Level like section 223 I think and then this one guy comes and is talking to us. He says he is a salesman for the cats and whatever. he asked how many games we go to and then he asks us if we want to sit down low today! I was like "heck yeah"! lol
So we go down have a good conversation with the guy on the way down and he gave us "Comp" seats section 110 seats 5-6 row l. Great seats behind basketball by TOR bench.
They did this with a few people today because I saw them bringing other people down too.

[TheBeagle]

Good stuff Keetch! Thanks for the breakdown. I concur! John Delong in the heyday of the Charlotte Hornets wishes he did as good analysis as Keetch does in the Journal!!

Glad to hear it was a nice enough crowd today....I honestly expected the paid attendance to be 9K for such an early game on a Sunday. I really have nothing to say since I was working today and the game wasn't televised: I was able to get to the radio twice and heard they were up by 10 with 5 or so minutes to go in the 3rd, and then they were down by 7 with a minute or so to go in the game with Bosh hitting a jumper to put 'em up by 9 and I cut it off in anger.

I don't know if I agree with the attendance comments, BobcatsfaninETX, but otherwise, I really liked the post, and agree with it!!! +1

Marvel, also is right with the consistency being such a problem.

I also agree with Keetch about Gerald....I've seen him get in these moods before (last year's home game vs. Spurs, is one I remember) where he just gets down and can't get out of it; it could be the stress of trade talks is adding to it, but I'm skeptical.

I also don't understand Larry's rotations at times: Ammo and Matt should've been seeing more PT since Gerald and JR were so off, or at the very least, JR, since Gerald expends such energy on the defensive end, especially when playing the 4. DJ's numbers looked good, but I don't know how he looked.

Saw his postgame comments on bobcats.com, and yeah, Coach is still getting his digs at FO for some inside help! I swear if a big trade is needed, if we can't get value for Gerald, then I agree JR should be shopped and see if an improvement over Eddy Curry can't be made.

Anyway, let's bounce back Tuesday!

[BIGCatBobcat]

I had a good time at the game today. Until those final 5 minutes or something, they just looked flat and they weren't selling anymore beer. I left. Ammofan, must be nice. I like the seats in the "Rock the Rooftop" area but lower level is fantsatic. Never been moved up except when I had the broken leg 2 years ago. Anyway, 2 guys in the 7' range and athletic like O'Neal and Bosh will wear out Mek and Gerald every time. Ajinca just isn't ready yet but I see promise. I don't even want to mention the guy who started at the 4 for us opening night in Cleveland or wherever but I told the guy who sits beside me that we really could use a guy in the 6'10" range who is a little bit north of 225, a little north I said. Actually that might be incredibly skinny. We need help at that spot but I am not willing to give up what it would take to get a truly good one in trade. We're in too many games with what we've got and just need a little help, not an overhaul.

[Keetch]

DJ had one sick move in the first half when he dribbled down the sideline and made a cut inside, into the paint; but when he hit the wall of bigs, he VERY quick spin/dribbled out with the ball and popped a jumper (swish).

It was sweet.

I'm not sure "inconsistancy" is the right word here. This team is getting better; but it still has flaws; they're still learning real coaching and they need a 4 bad. What happens with that is sometimes teams on the other side figure out how to beat you and it happens. That's not necessarily inconsistancy. That's the ebb and flow of professional athletes coached by professional coaches. It's tough and competitive out there, and nobody gives away anything. I didn't see this game as inconsistant. I saw it as strategic on both sides; with Toronto's superior frontline taking control in the second half....leaving our coach to admit he's "short-handed", i.e.; there wasn't much strategy he could employ when the other side had it going inside.

I really thought it was a pretty good game; win or lose.

[spectre]

Did you guys notice how well we were driving/kicking it out, esp. at the beginning of the 3rd? It was outstanding! Gotta hand it to Smitch tho; he adjusted and clogged the paint with his bigs and took it away…and we were lost and confused on what to do after that.


Sign of some good things coming!

[Keetch]

I couldn't agree more Spectre. I've been just AMAZED at the improved movement with this team, on both ends of the court. This is definitely not your run-of-the-mill Ham Biscuit Bobcats.

This talk about inconsistency is so "last year".....the effort is back; its just that that doesn't guarantee wins...it does in a way guarantee better times though.

[Muttley]

This talk about inconsistency is so "last year".....the effort is back;

Thank you, Keetch and Spectre for bringing some sanity back to these forums! I think the inconsistency we might be seeing is just IMPROVEMENT! Sometimes we play well, then other times we go back to playing the way we did last season. The thing is, the team may look "inconsistent" as the length of time that we play like ass decreases.

Face it folks, the Bobcats have been playing better basketball lately (as Keetch and Spectre have pointed out).