Toronto Raptors 2009 Season Update
Posted 12/29/2009
The Toronto Raptors are taking an advantage of a weak division and sitting in second place in the Atlantic despite a sub .500 record.
The good news is that the Raptors still have Chris Bosh on the roster.
The guy is a monster. He is averaging a double-double per game, and doing it easily at that. Bosh is putting up over 23 points and 12 boards, making him one of the top players in the conference.
The Raptors' problem isn't Bosh, but rather what's around him. The second and third leading scorers are essentially versatile big men who spend most of their time bombing in three-pointers.
Hedo Turgolu is one of those guys, and he has been a major disappointment after the Raptors inked him to a big contract in the offseason. He is averaging just 14 points per game, which simply isn't enough from someone who is a defensive liability.
They also have problems at point guard, where Jose Calderon hasn't been quite as good as they had hoped. Calderon seemed to play better when T.J. Ford was around battling him for the starting point guard position.
The team traded Ford instead of Calderon in the middle of last season to give him the reigns, but he hasn't done much with it.
Jarret Jack is even starting to push Calderon a little bit, so many his level of play will rise the rest of the season now that he has someone making a run at his job.
DeMar DeRozan is averaging over seven points per game and looks like a player who has some promise. I'd expect the Raptors to hold onto him and possibly build around him in the future.
The rest of the team is a collection of young players that could easily be free agents. Guys like Sonny Weems and Amir Johnson are a dime a dozen out on the waiver wire.
The Raptors could make the playoffs thanks to their terrible division, but Bosh desperately needs players to step up and help him out. If the team doesn't start playing better, it's very possible that Bosh could be dealt before the trade deadline.