Raptors Lacking Creativity and Defense on The Wings

The Raptors have had many big names at the wing positions in years past. Players like Vince Carter, Tracy McGrady, and Jalen Rose come to mind almost instantly.

While Jamario Moon and Joey Graham occasionally make you fall off your chair with their athletic ability, neither player would ever be confused for a complete basketball player.

However, what the Raptors need more sorely than another Carter, McGrady, or Rose, is another Doug Christie. They lack a player who can truly do everything well. What they currently have is a group of individuals who can merely be considered the truest of specialists.

With Jason Kapono, the Raptors have a player who's shooting touch rivals that of Stojakovic, and Ray Allen. However, he's an atrocious individual defender, and lacks the ability to create for others. Outside of a system that caters to his strengths, he becomes a liability. Under Mitchell, he's been just that.

In Moon, the Raptors have a player many would consider a prototypical small forward upon first glance. He's long, rebounds well, alters shots, and is a sensationally gifted athlete. However, his background limits him in terms of how developed his basketball skills are.

At the moment, his development of fundamentals matches that of some college freshmen. He's raw, and it doesn't help that he's 28, about 10 years older than your average college freshman.

Further compounding the issue is his lack of desire for compensating for his inexperience or short-comings through study, or hard work. We can't say how hard he works because only he, and the Raptors coaching staff know that.

However, through the analysis of interviews and various performances, he seems completely unwilling to play smarter. In this sense at least, you see a sharp difference between him and Bruce Bowen for instance.

While Bowen may know each wing player's tendencies, and be able to tell you more about that player than their own coach, Jamario Moon at times appears that he doesn't even know his opponents strengths and weaknesses, which would be the most basic, superficial form of scouting.

All too often, he'll fly past a player on the pump fake who's odds of hitting the shot he was faking were less than ten percent. Or he'll settle for a jump shot against a player who's notorious for having poor lateral quickness.

The Raptors also added former Net, Hassan Adams this off-season, in part to fill the gap left by Carlos Delfino. Adams may have a reputation for being a defensive minded player, and a solid athlete, but his offense is limited to a very inconsistent shooting stroke, and put-backs.

To play Adams, or Moon, you're essentially playing four on five on the offensive end. Unlike Bowen, a defensive specialist for the Spurs, they cannot be relied on to make shots consistently to avoid having teams sag off of them. Furthermore, they're not Bowen on defense either, or even Trevor Ariza.

To play these average defensive players, who can't contribute on offense efficiently enough to include them in the offense renders the Raptors helpless, and thus they must rely on Kapono who then allows easy penetration which leads to cheap fouls. This has the Raptors in the penalty within minutes.

Anthony Parker is the lone player on this team who can make the claim that he would be a rotation player on virtually every team in this league. Guys like Kapono, Adams, Graham, and Moon would hardly find five minutes on an elite team.

However, Parker can only do so much. The harsh reality is that the team plays 48 minutes of basketball, and gets 96 minutes from its collection of wing players.

Parker can play 30 minutes per contest, but to rely on the aforementioned players for 66 minutes is simply suicide. It really doesn't matter how many times O'Neal, Bargnani, and Bosh can recover in time to block the shots. Once that band of defense is broken, the Raptors are in trouble.

The players who are not defensive liabilities are offensive ones. Thus, if Adams is given minutes and doesn't give up the constant penetration that Kapono does, the Raptors are forced to play a man short on offense, or bank on Adam's jump shot which is pretty bad.

The Solution

1. Hide Kapono

Find a way to cover Kapono on defense, while making a system on offense which can make use of his shooting ability. This system is not this erratic double-team every one who has the ball routine the Raptors have been doing all preseason, but something a little more effective. Perhaps, they can have Kapono consistently forcing players one way or another, and have a system in place, through which he will be able to force the offensive player into a trap, and then rotate over.

Kapono is a smart player, and he certainly knows how to play this game. He knows angles, he fills spaces, and overall is a pretty good team defender. He simply lacks the ability to keep people in front of him. Any wing player with even the slightest ability to penetrate will easily leave him in the dust. In this regard, his lateral quickness is closer to a seven footer's.

Under Mitchell, barring a miracle, this likely will not happen. It hasn't in the preseason, and surely if the preseason is a time to test anything, it would be to test potential solutions to Kapono's defensive woes.

2. Just tell Joey Graham you love him

Out of every player on the wing position, the only player who's game can ever truly translate to that of a complete player is Graham. He can shoot the ball, he rebounds well, he has athletic ability, he has a mean streak at times, and he is an amazingly hard worker.

Graham's issues are mental. He seems to make a lot of rookie mistakes, and considering he was a rookie in 2005, it gets a little vexing. He lacks the handle to truly penetrate, but at the small forward position, this isn't a need. He has shown the ability to slash with his explosiveness.

He gets to the line with his brute strength, and might have one of the best basketball bodies in the NBA. What he needs to do is add some fluidity to his game. His body looks like that of a shorter LeBron James, and with some work, he might be able to at least contain a guy like James.

Unlike Kapono, Adams, and Moon, Graham's game doesn't need a complete re-tooling, and nor does the Raptors system need to be re-worked to incorporate him. If he can stop over thinking, you have your solution. If you were to get some consistency out of Graham, his contributions could turn this team from playoff bound team to contender overnight.

3. Bribe Jamario Moon

Seriously. He has a new kid on the way. Add some clause in his contract that states that you'll give him free sneakers every time he studies the players he's going to face the day before the game. Okay, this is a joke. He's just a really gifted, dumb player. He can contribute, but not as a starter. His role should be like that of an eleventh man who comes in to change the momentum of a game.

To rely on him to defend, and make open shots for over twenty minutes a night is going to hurt the Raptors more than it helps them. With O'Neal and an improved Bosh, his off-ball defense also becomes redundant, and the need for a better on-ball defender rises in order to compliment O'Neal and Bosh.

4. Make a Trade: Now

This team boasts the worst collection of wing players in the league. They're lacking defensively, in experience, and in their ability to create for others. One might argue that this is what made Doug Christie such an integral component of the Raptors during his stint in the great white north.

The following is a listing of some players the Raptors could look for if they aren't entirely content with gambling on Graham.

Trevor Ariza

Ariza is a long forward who brings a lot of what Moon gives, while giving you solid individual defense as well. At 23 years old however, you'll be able to live with letting him make a few mistakes due to his immense potential. He's sitting behind Radmanovic, Odom, Bryant, and perhaps Walton, and he's talented enough to warrant a starting spot on the Raptors right now.

Julian Wright

Another young player, Wright is absolutely a great athlete. I'll make a bold statement. He's going to get some scouts fired for all the teams that passed him up. While his offensive package is limited to slashing right now, and he's very turnover prone, he more than makes up for it with his defense.

His turnover rate will decline with age, and he has the makings of a great defensive stopper in the NBA who slashes. He won't come cheap, but he might be worth the bill, even if you have to overpay a bit.

Fransisco Garcia

Garcia is a good shooter, and at the same time, he's creative off the bounce. He is a decent defensive player, and the Kings will be using him as a primary backup this season. He may be available considering the Kings might be thinking Lottery right now. If they're not--they should start.

Ronnie Brewer

This is a bit of a stretch, as he is a major piece of Utah's future. However, if Colangelo is creative, he may be able to pry Brewer away from Salt Lake City, and it'd be a worthwhile gamble. Brewer is quite possibly the most underrated player in the league today. He'd be a great starter for this team, and would be a great piece heading forward.

Mike Miller

Miller is a guy who can play multiple positions, which means he'd ideal for the Raptors who seriously lack quality depth. He can handle the ball in spurts, he can play either wing position, and he can create for other players.

In Miller, the Raptors would be getting a better defensive version of Kapono, who can create off the bounce, and can get to the rim as he did more than ever before last season. He would certainly not come cheap, but by adding a first rounder and a couple of spare parts, the Raptors may be able to convince the Wolves that Lottery balls are worth more than wins at this point.

Ron Artest/Shane Battier

The Rockets might want to hold on to both of them considering McGrady's durability issues, but if the Raptors can give them a rotation wing player in return as well as some extras, they may be happy to give the Raptors a starting small forward.

While Artest figures to be a major part of the Houston offense, and there is a belief that he'll be a good guy under Adelman, the rest of the Rockets organization might want to spare themselves of this potential head ache. For the Raptors, with O'Neal already here, no player on this list fits better than Artest.

If Battier is the target, the Raptors would get one of the best guys in the league off the court, and a very smart defensive player who can be a big part of a title contender-- the ultimate bench mark the Raptors should be looking at in any transaction.

John Salmons

Salmons is an upgrade over any player the Raptors currently have at the small forward, and he's like a homeless LeBron James. He does a little bit of everything, he's able to get out and score, and would be a very big part of the Raptors offensive attack if they were to deal for him.

Thabo Sefolosha

Behind Rose, Hinrich, Deng, Gordon, Hughes, and Nocioni, there may be enough players in Chicago to make Thabo attainable for the Raptors. He's a great athlete, and would be a good prospect for the future. However, this coming season, he would provide the Raptors with more than any of their current small forwards.

Chicago is very high on him, and rightfully so, but if they can get some immediate relief of a bad contract, they may be willing to throw Thabo into the deal. He can handle, has size at 6'7, and he has amazing quickness. He's explosive, and he would be the ideal wing prospect for this Raptors team.

Conclusion

Whatever Toronto does, they should do it soon. They don't have much depth as it is, but this might mean they need to take a guy who can play multiple positions. It makes it easier to go 8-deep if you have players like Miller who play many positions.

I have some faith in Graham, but even at his best he's barely a starter in this league. At this point, one can only hope that the Raptors can unload some of this quantity, and in return, perhaps gather a little quality. Unless you have the talent, depth won't truly help. Depth compensates for situations where talent is missing in spurts.

You play the season for a chance a championship. I'm sure Colangelo realizes that the Raptors don't have a very good shot at winning one this season, but to think that their season could end due to their inability to either create on the wing, or their failure to put offensive pressure on the elite wings on the other end is just inexcusable.

Act now Colangelo. Or Buy Jamario some new shoes.