<table width="506" border="0" align="center" style="border-style: solid; border-width: 0pt; background-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> <tbody> <tr align="center"> <td colspan="5"><font color="#ffffff">Philadelphia 76ers (0-0) @ Toronto Raptors (0-0)</font></td> </tr> <tr align="center"> <td colspan="5"><font color="#ffffff">October 31st, 2007</font></td> </tr> <tr align="center"> <td colspan="5"><font color="#ffffff">7:00 PM EST, The Score, Fan590.com</font> </td> </tr> <tr align="center"> <td colspan="5"></td> </tr> <tr> <td align="center"> <div style="text-align: center;"></div> </td> <td align="center"> <div style="text-align: center;"></div> </td> <td align="center"> <div style="text-align: center;"></div> </td> <td> <div style="text-align: center;"></div> </td> <td align="center"> <div style="text-align: center;"></div> </td> </tr> <tr> <td align="center"> <div style="text-align: center;"></div> </td> <td align="center"> <div style="text-align: center;"></div> </td> <td align="center"> <div style="text-align: center;"></div> </td> <td align="center"></td> <td align="center"> <div style="text-align: center;"></div> </td> </tr> <tr align="center"> <td colspan="5"></td> </tr> <tr align="center"> <td colspan="5"> <font color="#ffffff">Game Notes:</font></p> <font color="#ffffff">Samuel Dalembert is expected to play after missing preseason action due to a stress fracture in his </font><font color="#ffffff">left foot, an injury he played through during international competition with Team Canada this summer.</font></p> <font color="#ffffff">Andrea Bargnani is expected to make his first start at centre. Playing against a big rebounding </font><font color="#ffffff">and shotblocking machine like Dalembert should test his</font> <font color="#ffffff">readiness for that new challenge.</font></p> <font color="#ffffff">Jason Kapono makes his debut for the Raptors while rookie</font> <font color="#ffffff">Jason Smith debuts for the Sixers.</font></p> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table>
Good job with the game thread speeds. </p> Raptors will win this game, I'm sure. It will be interesting to see how Bargnani does as a starter.</p> Raptors 102 - 87 Sixers</p> Bosh 25pts 8rbs 3assts AI 17pts 6rbs 4assts</p>
Iggy usually goes off on us so I would expect 20+ points and a few threes.</p> Feels like we've been waiting a lifetime for this season!</p>
This has seemed like a extra long offseason. I'm going to go with Toronto winning 106-82. I hope I'm not too overconfident here but I'm sure the crowd is going to be in a frenzy tomorrow night.</p>
Prediction: 102-93 Raptors.</p> I think the Raptors will win this game, but it won't be a walk in the park. I think the Sixers will surprise some teams because they are such an underdog. Iggy has been known to be a Raptor killer and can create for himself and others. I see Bosh onlyu playing about 25 minutes because coming off an injury Mitchell will ease him in. I fully expect Bargnani to have a big game.</p> State Line:</p> Bosh - 18 points, 9 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block</p> Bargnani - 23 points, 8 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block</p> Ford - 15 points, 11 assists, 5 rebounds</p> Parker - 13 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists</p> Garbo - 8 points, 5 rebounds</p> Calderon - 12 points, 8 assists</p> </p>
I think everyone is underrating the sixers a little here. Iggy is set to have a breakout season, and the only real position that the sixers starters are outmatched at is PF. The sixers might even have a little more offense off the bench than the raptors do too. I think its gonna be pretty close</p>
I like the sixers, I think they are finally going about rebuilding the right way. Also it makes such a difference to have player Andre Miller who can run an offense. That being said the raptors should win easily tomorrow night but I look forward to watching philly progress over the year, Louis Williams should be a fun player to watch.</p>
Yea, I don't think its a knock on the Sixers. They're rebuilding the team the proper way and will be a good team in a few years if they keep it up. But the Raps are just too deep and they've finished out their preseason strong. I'm curious to see how Bargnani plays in the starting lineup. Also, I'm not sure if this is true, but I heard that near the end of the Leafs game against Washington (when they were getting blown out) fans at the top were chanting "Let's Go Raptors!" That's awesome. And great job with the preview, speeds.</p>
Damn, it looks like I'll be missing most of this game. All well, I'll catch the game in an hour tomorrow. Make sure you guys post your thoughts!</p> Is this the year that Sammy really breaks out?</p>
http://www.nba.com/games/20071031/PHITOR/preview.html</p> <div class="articleHeadline">Defending Atlantic-Division Champion Raptors Host 76ers</div> <div class="articleByline">By PAUL DIGIACOMO, STATS Senior Editor</div> <div class="articleTimeStamp">Posted Oct 31 2007 10:03AM</div> <div class="articleTools"> <span class="tools"> Print</span> <script language="javascript" src="http://www.nba.com/js/emailStory.js"></script> <script language="javascript"> document.write("<span class=tools> E-mail</span> <div class="rightColBoxW"><br clear="all" /> <div class="rightColBox"> <div class="rightColInBox"> <ul id="relatedLinks"> [*]Raptors Home [*]76ers Home [/list] </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="articleSubhead">2006-07 Stats at a Glance</div> <div class="articleBody"> For the first time, the Toronto Raptors will open a season as the defending Atlantic Division champions. The Philadelphia 76ers, meanwhile, will start without Allen Iverson on their roster for the first time in 12 years.</p> Toronto begins its quest to win its second straight title in the much-improved Atlantic, while Philadelphia tries to build off its strong finish to 2006-07 when the teams meet at Air Canada Centre on Wednesday.</p> The Raptors went 27-55 in 2005-06, but a 47-35 record last season enabled them to win the Atlantic by six games over New Jersey - the division winner in four of the previous five seasons.</p> Toronto earned the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference, but went on to lose to the Nets in six games in the first round - the Raptors' first trip to the postseason since 2001-02.</p> The team was led by All-Star forward Chris Bosh and point guard T.J. Ford, who played in his first season in Toronto after being acquired from Milwaukee for forward Charlie Villanueva in June 2006.</p> Bosh set career highs with 22.6 points and 10.7 rebounds per game in his fourth season, while Ford posted career bests in games (75), points (14.0) and assists (7.9). Bosh, though, was held to 17.5 points on 39.6 percent shooting in his first trip to the playoffs and Ford averaged just 4.0 assists in the six postseason games.</p> With that experience under its belt, Toronto expects to have an even better season.</p> "One of our goals is to win our division again, be one of the best teams in the East, have the best record in the East, get back to the playoffs and get out of the first round, and then we'll take it from there," Ford said.</p> Standing in the Raptors' way is a Boston team that acquired Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen in the offseason and is considered the favorite to win the division. New Jersey also is expected to contend, and New York dealt for Zach Randolph in an effort to return to the playoffs. Philadelphia also thinks it can make a run after going 18-11 following the All-Star break last season.</p> "What's changed? There's no new story. It's the same old thing," Bosh said. "I don't think we're in a position to get upset, because we've been here before, we ought to like just being able to come in and play basketball with no expectations. There's no pressure in that."</p> Toronto added Jason Kapono and Carlos Delfino in the offseason and with Andrea Bargnani - the top overall pick in the 2006 draft - likely to improve on a strong rookie season, the Raptors think they have enough depth to win another division title.</p> "A lot of teams, you take away the top two, three options and they have a tough time scoring," Kapono said. "We're 10, 12 deep. It's tough to take away our top 10."</p> Philadelphia may not be as deep, but it learned how to play without Iverson after he was dealt to Denver last Dec. 19 in a six-player trade that sent Andre Miller to the Sixers.</p> They were 5-18 at the time of the trade and went 12-18 in their first 30 games after, but finished strong after the break to end with a 35-47 record and a third-place finish in the Atlantic.</p> Andre Iguodala emerged as Philadelphia's go-to guy, as he set career highs with 18.2 points and 5.7 assists per game. Iguodala, the ninth overall pick in the 2004 draft, averaged 19.6 points after the Iverson trade and Miller posted 13.6 points and 7.3 assists in 57 games with the 76ers.</p> Coach Maurice Cheeks liked the way Philadelphia ended last season, but wants his team to remember the feeling of starting the season in a horrible slump.</p> "Right now, what we're trying to do is put them in the position to understand what it takes to play," Cheeks said. "It takes more effort, it takes know-how, but we've got to put them in that position every day. Not beat it into their brain, but put it into habits that they understand the defensive end of the floor, because habit becomes, after you do it time and time again, you have to sustain it.</p> "This time, we're going to stay on it, be on it, be consistent at it."</p> Philadelphia drafted 19-year-old forward Thaddeus Young with the 12th overall pick in June's draft and 7-foot forward Jason Smith with the 20th selection to improve its frontcourt. It also acquired forward Reggie Evans from the Nuggets on Sept. 10.</p> The Sixers also will have center Samuel Dalembert and forward Shavlik Randolph available after both spent the offseason rehabbing injuries. Dalembert had foot surgery after averaging career highs of 10.7 points and 8.9 rebounds last season, while Randolph played in just 13 games because of a broken left ankle.</p> <div> Copyright 2007 by STATS LLC and Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited</div> </div> <a name="stats"></a> <table width="475" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"> <tbody> <tr> <td align="center"><hr width="75%" size="2" color="#193682" align="center" /> </td> </tr> <tr> <td align="center" class="subMatchUp"> 2007-08 Stats at a Glance</td> </tr> <tr> <td align="center"> <table border="0"> <tbody> <tr> <td width="235" align="center"></td> <td width="5" align="center">@</td> <td width="235" align="center"></td> </tr> <tr> <td width="235" nowrap="nowrap" align="center">News | Players | Stats | Schedule</td> <td width="5" align="center"></td> <td width="235" nowrap="nowrap" align="center">News | Players | Stats | Schedule</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </td> </tr> <tr> <td align="center"> <table border="0"> <tbody> <tr> <td width="235" nowrap="nowrap" align="center"> <table width="100%" cellpadding="2" border="0"> <tbody> <tr> <td class="inTxtB" colspan="2">Philadelphia 76ers - 2006</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxtB">Record:</td> <td class="inTxt">35 - 47 (.427)</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxtB">Standings:</td> <td class="inTxt">Third, Atlantic</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxtB">At Home:</td> <td class="inTxt">21 - 20</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxtB">At Road:</td> <td class="inTxt">14 - 27</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxtB">Streak:</td> <td class="inTxt">W 1</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </td> <td width="5" align="center"></td> <td width="235" nowrap="nowrap" align="center"> <table width="100%" cellpadding="2" border="0"> <tbody> <tr> <td class="inTxtB" colspan="2">Toronto Raptors - 2006</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxtB">Record:</td> <td class="inTxt">47 - 35 (.573)</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxtB">Standings:</td> <td class="inTxt">First, Atlantic</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxtB">At Home:</td> <td class="inTxt">30 - 11</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxtB">At Road:</td> <td class="inTxt">17 - 24</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxtB">Streak:</td> <td class="inTxt">L 2</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </td> </tr> <tr> <td align="center"> <table border="0"> <tbody> <tr> <td width="235" nowrap="nowrap"> <table width="100%" cellpadding="2" border="0"> <tbody> <tr> <td align="center" class="hr" colspan="4">Season - 2006</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxtB">PPG:</td> <td class="inTxt">94.9</td> <td class="inTxtB">Opp PPG:</td> <td class="inTxt">98.0</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxtB">FG%:</td> <td class="inTxt">.458</td> <td class="inTxtB">Opp FG%:</td> <td class="inTxt">.463</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxtB">RPG:</td> <td class="inTxt">39.7</td> <td class="inTxtB">Opp RPG:</td> <td class="inTxt">41.1</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </td> <td width="5" align="center"></td> <td width="235" nowrap="nowrap"> <table width="100%" cellpadding="2" border="0"> <tbody> <tr> <td align="center" class="hr" colspan="4">Season - 2006</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxtB">PPG:</td> <td class="inTxt">99.5</td> <td class="inTxtB">Opp PPG:</td> <td class="inTxt">98.5</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxtB">FG%:</td> <td class="inTxt">.463</td> <td class="inTxtB">Opp FG%:</td> <td class="inTxt">.463</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxtB">RPG:</td> <td class="inTxt">39.5</td> <td class="inTxtB">Opp RPG:</td> <td class="inTxt">42.5</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </td> </tr> <tr> <td align="left">Back to Top</td> </tr> <tr> <td align="center"> <table border="0"> <tbody> <tr> <td width="235" valign="top" nowrap="nowrap"> <table width="100%" cellpadding="2" border="0"> <tbody> <tr> <td width="115" class="inTxtB">Player</td> <td width="30" class="inTxtB">G</td> <td width="30" class="inTxtB">PPG</td> <td width="30" class="inTxtB">RPG</td> <td width="30" class="inTxtB">APG</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Iguodala, A</td> <td class="inTxt">76</td> <td class="inTxt">18.2</td> <td class="inTxt">5.7</td> <td class="inTxt">5.7</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Korver, K</td> <td class="inTxt">74</td> <td class="inTxt">14.4</td> <td class="inTxt">3.5</td> <td class="inTxt">1.4</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Miller, A</td> <td class="inTxt">80</td> <td class="inTxt">13.4</td> <td class="inTxt">4.4</td> <td class="inTxt">7.8</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Green, W</td> <td class="inTxt">74</td> <td class="inTxt">11.3</td> <td class="inTxt">2.1</td> <td class="inTxt">1.5</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Dalembert, S</td> <td class="inTxt">82</td> <td class="inTxt">10.7</td> <td class="inTxt">8.9</td> <td class="inTxt">0.8</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Smith, J</td> <td class="inTxt">65</td> <td class="inTxt">8.5</td> <td class="inTxt">6.2</td> <td class="inTxt">0.8</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Carney, R</td> <td class="inTxt">67</td> <td class="inTxt">6.6</td> <td class="inTxt">1.9</td> <td class="inTxt">0.4</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Hunter, S</td> <td class="inTxt">70</td> <td class="inTxt">6.4</td> <td class="inTxt">4.8</td> <td class="inTxt">0.4</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Randolph, S</td> <td class="inTxt">13</td> <td class="inTxt">4.5</td> <td class="inTxt">4.2</td> <td class="inTxt">0.3</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Williams, L</td> <td class="inTxt">61</td> <td class="inTxt">4.3</td> <td class="inTxt">1.1</td> <td class="inTxt">1.8</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Ollie, K</td> <td class="inTxt">53</td> <td class="inTxt">3.8</td> <td class="inTxt">1.4</td> <td class="inTxt">2.5</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Henderson, A</td> <td class="inTxt">38</td> <td class="inTxt">3.1</td> <td class="inTxt">2.8</td> <td class="inTxt">0.3</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Jones, B</td> <td class="inTxt">44</td> <td class="inTxt">2.5</td> <td class="inTxt">1.3</td> <td class="inTxt">0.4</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Amundson, L</td> <td class="inTxt">11</td> <td class="inTxt">1.5</td> <td class="inTxt">2.5</td> <td class="inTxt">0.1</td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="5"> <table width="100%"> <tbody> <tr> <td width="80" class="ch">Head Coach:</td> <td>Maurice Cheeks</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </td> <td width="5" align="center"></td> <td width="235" valign="top" nowrap="nowrap"> <table width="100%" cellpadding="2" border="0"> <tbody> <tr> <td width="115" class="inTxtB">Player</td> <td width="30" class="inTxtB">G</td> <td width="30" class="inTxtB">PPG</td> <td width="30" class="inTxtB">RPG</td> <td width="30" class="inTxtB">APG</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Bosh, C</td> <td class="inTxt">69</td> <td class="inTxt">22.6</td> <td class="inTxt">10.7</td> <td class="inTxt">2.5</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Ford, T</td> <td class="inTxt">75</td> <td class="inTxt">14.0</td> <td class="inTxt">3.1</td> <td class="inTxt">7.9</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Parker, A</td> <td class="inTxt">73</td> <td class="inTxt">12.4</td> <td class="inTxt">3.9</td> <td class="inTxt">2.1</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Bargnani, A</td> <td class="inTxt">65</td> <td class="inTxt">11.6</td> <td class="inTxt">3.9</td> <td class="inTxt">0.8</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Dixon, J</td> <td class="inTxt">81</td> <td class="inTxt">9.6</td> <td class="inTxt">2.0</td> <td class="inTxt">1.5</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Peterson, M</td> <td class="inTxt">71</td> <td class="inTxt">8.9</td> <td class="inTxt">3.3</td> <td class="inTxt">0.7</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Calderon, J</td> <td class="inTxt">77</td> <td class="inTxt">8.7</td> <td class="inTxt">1.7</td> <td class="inTxt">5.0</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Garbajosa, J</td> <td class="inTxt">67</td> <td class="inTxt">8.5</td> <td class="inTxt">4.9</td> <td class="inTxt">1.9</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Graham, J</td> <td class="inTxt">79</td> <td class="inTxt">6.4</td> <td class="inTxt">3.1</td> <td class="inTxt">0.6</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Nesterovic, R</td> <td class="inTxt">80</td> <td class="inTxt">6.2</td> <td class="inTxt">4.5</td> <td class="inTxt">0.9</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Humphries, K</td> <td class="inTxt">60</td> <td class="inTxt">3.8</td> <td class="inTxt">3.1</td> <td class="inTxt">0.3</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Jackson, L</td> <td class="inTxt">13</td> <td class="inTxt">3.7</td> <td class="inTxt">0.8</td> <td class="inTxt">1.0</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Martin, D</td> <td class="inTxt">31</td> <td class="inTxt">3.0</td> <td class="inTxt">0.4</td> <td class="inTxt">1.4</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Slokar, U</td> <td class="inTxt">20</td> <td class="inTxt">1.9</td> <td class="inTxt">0.7</td> <td class="inTxt">0.1</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Sow, P</td> <td class="inTxt">7</td> <td class="inTxt">1.4</td> <td class="inTxt">1.6</td> <td class="inTxt">0.3</td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="5"> <table width="100%"> <tbody> <tr> <td width="80" class="ch">Head Coach:</td> <td>Sam Mitchell</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </td> </tr> <tr> <td align="center"> <table cellpadding="2" border="0"> <tbody> <tr> <td width="190" class="inTxtB">Tonight's Games</td> <td width="60" class="inTxtB">Time (ET)</td> <td width="90" class="inTxtB">Nat'l TV</td> <td width="100" align="center" class="inTxtB">Game Notes</td> <td width="35" class="inTxtB"></td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Philadelphia @ Toronto</td> <td class="inTxt">7:00 pm</td> <td class="inTxt">SCORE ,NBALP</td> <td align="center" class="inTxt">PHI | TOR</td> <td class="inTxt">Preview</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Milwaukee @ Orlando</td> <td class="inTxt">7:00 pm</td> <td class="inTxt">NBALP</td> <td align="center" class="inTxt">MIL | ORL</td> <td class="inTxt">Preview</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Washington @ Indiana</td> <td class="inTxt">7:00 pm</td> <td class="inTxt">NBALP</td> <td align="center" class="inTxt">WAS | IND</td> <td class="inTxt">Preview</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Chicago @ New Jersey</td> <td class="inTxt">7:30 pm</td> <td class="inTxt">NBALP</td> <td align="center" class="inTxt">CHI | NJN</td> <td class="inTxt">Preview</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Dallas @ Cleveland</td> <td class="inTxt">8:00 pm</td> <td class="inTxt">ESPN</td> <td align="center" class="inTxt">DAL | CLE</td> <td class="inTxt">Preview</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">San Antonio @ Memphis</td> <td class="inTxt">8:00 pm</td> <td class="inTxt">NBALP</td> <td align="center" class="inTxt">SAS | MEM</td> <td class="inTxt">Preview</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Sacramento @ New Orleans</td> <td class="inTxt">8:00 pm</td> <td class="inTxt">NBALP</td> <td align="center" class="inTxt">SAC | NOH</td> <td class="inTxt">Preview</td> </tr> <tr> <td class="inTxt">Seattle @ Denver</td> <td class="inTxt">10:30 pm</td> <td class="inTxt">ESPN</td> <td align="center" class="inTxt">SEA | DEN</td> <td class="inTxt">Preview</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </td> <td></td> </tr> <tr> <td align="left">Full Scoreboard</td> </tr> <tr> <td align="center"> <table width="100%" cellpadding="0" border="0"> <tbody> <tr> <td width="50%" align="left">Back to Top</td> <td align="right">Oct 31 2007 10:03AM</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </p>
http://www.nba.com/raptors/news/boshcp_103107.html</p> Bosh, Raptors Excited For Season</p> TORONTO (CP) -- Chris Bosh has good reason to be excited about Wednesday night, when the curtain goes up on the Toronto Raptors' new season. ``This is the first time since I've been here that we've come off a winning season in a home opener,'' Bosh said with a grin Tuesday. ``I'm expecting it to be good.'' Bosh begins his fourth campaign in Toronto when the Raptors host the visiting Philadelphia 76ers at the Air Canada Centre on Wednesday (The Score, 7 p.m. ET). Toronto is coming off one of its best seasons in franchise history, going 47-35 and capturing the Atlantic Division title, and consensus among the players is that this year's team is even better. ``It's a different look this year, but I think we're going to be effective. We're doing a great job of playing off of each other, just reading different situations. I think we're going to be a tough team to scout,'' Bosh said. ``One thing I'm really proud about this team is, we've accepted playing defence this year. We really want to stop people and we're going to put that to the test.'' The Raptors were one of the feel-good stories around the league last season, assembling a winning season out of their unselfish playing style. With virtually interchangeable point guards T.J. Ford and Jose Calderon running the offence, Bosh said the team-first approach continues to be the Raptors' greatest weapon. ``That's the most important part of our team,'' Bosh said. ``We're unselfish, we move the ball, we pass the ball, we're tough to guard. We even have chemistry on defence, that makes it tough for other teams to score on us. ``We know that things can go really wrong when you get individual egos everywhere.'' Jason Kapono, the former Miami Heat sharp-shooter the Raptors signed in the off-season, said there is a significant difference in the egos - or lack thereof - in Toronto, compared to other teams around the league. ``It's rare to find that on an NBA team, where people genuinely like each other and genuinely like to play together,'' said Kapono. ``With the NBA based around money and contracts, a lot of teams get caught up in that and that's not something that you need to help the team win. ``The unselfish attitude that the guys share here is a key reason why they won so many games last year.'' Kapono is expected to start at small forward Wednesday, alongside Bosh, Andrea Bargnani (centre), Ford (point guard), and Anthony Parker (shooting guard). Despite last season's success, and the fact the Raptors go into this year with almost their entire roster intact, there's not much optimism about Canada's lone NBA franchise among experts around the league. Most pre-season polls pick the Boston Celtics, with their revamped roster that includes Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen, to win the Atlantic Division. Almost everyone is picking the Raptors to finish lower than last year. Bosh, for one, isn't surprised. ``When you do those pre-season polls, it's whoever has the most stars on your team,'' Bosh said. ``We lack star power but we're a good basketball team. We work well as a unit, because we don't have two or three possible all-stars, I think we're in the latter part of everybody's mind.'' Raptors coach Sam Mitchell, who was definitely in regular-season form Tuesday, arguing at length with reporters, refused to speculate how his team might fare. ``People keep asking me to predict this year's team (compared) to last year's team. When we play 82 games, I'll let you know the difference,'' said Mitchell, at his belligerent best. ``This year's team hasn't done anything. Last year's team won 47 games, won the Atlantic and qualified for the playoffs. This year's team hasn't done anything.'' The health of Bosh will once again be one of the key factors upon which the success or failure of his team rests. The 23-year-old was sidelined by a nagging knee injury in three pre-season matchups, and then played just 15 minutes total in the final two games of the exhibition season. ``I feel like I'm 100 per cent, I'm going to be out doing my best,'' Bosh said. ``I'm going to go all out, I think the only pain will be in my lungs.'' Mitchell though said Bosh is not 100 per cent, and that the team staff will be keeping a close eye on their star player. ``Chris has got to be honest and let us know when he gets fatigued, because we don't want him out there playing tired and reinjuring himself playing when he's not got gas in the tank to go,'' Mitchell said. Last year Bosh was hampered by plantar fasciitis in the early going, and the Raptors opened the season 2-8. They're determined not to allow that to happen this time around. ``It's important to get off to a good start period,'' said Ford. ``Good to get the confidence going.'' The Raptors face some familiar Eastern Conference rivals right out of the gate. After Wednesday's opener, they play the Nets in New Jersey on Friday, the team that knocked them out of the first round of last season's playoffs, then return home to battle Boston on Sunday. ``It's going to be a good test for us early,'' Bosh said. ``We're going to see what the division is about, and they're going to see what we're about.''</p>
im pumped, expecting a good loud crowd and a win from the raptors. i have a feeling sixers wont be easy to put away.</p>
They better box out Reggie Evans in this game. I don't like the matchups the Raptors have to defend Reggie from the glass. Rasho doesn't work hard enough and the other guys are light in the backside to hold position on Reggie. If he pulled down 15 boards I would not be surprised.</p> Raptors should win this game and get the season started on a positive note. Let's see how the chemistry develops between Bosh and Andrea during the course of the season. If those two can co-exist and both produce the Raptors will be a legit contender for the Eastern conference crown.</p>
It's game time boys. 2 hours homie! If we win, tomorrow, I wear my Juan Dixon jersey. Also, I would like the Raptors to pay attention to Willie Green. He has really flew under the radar in terms of who we should focus on. He is solid from behind the arc, and is always scoring on us. If we can keep him and Iggy under control, then we got this.</p> <font color="#ff0000"><font size="6">LETS GO RAPTORS!</font></font></p>
Dug out my "Atlantic Division Champions" t-shirt from the closet. I've been waiting for this game for about 4 months now. Can't wait.</p>
I just made an 100 dollar bet with one of my friends (a sixers fan) that the Raptors would win. Oh boy, they better win.</p>
