Post by doc on Oct 15, 2008 7:48:57 GMT -5
Mitchell warns Raptors: Play right, or sit
Mitchell would never single out players by name but it's not hard to figure out who he was upset with. Solomon didn't play a minute of the second half – Jose Calderon played the entire third and fourth quarters – while Kris Humphries played just 13 minutes. Jamario Moon played only 20 and sat while Andrea Bargnani played small forward for the entire fourth quarter.
Sam sends message
The game also saw the debut of Bargnani at the small forward position in the fourth quarter, although Mitchell admitted it was not something he was planning to do.
"We thought Joey (Graham) was going to play tonight so once we found out he wasn't, I didn't want to go to that lineup right away. I wasn't happy with some of the way the other guys were playing. As coach, you do what you have to do to win a basketball game, and I thought Andrea responded well."
"We thought Joey (Graham) was going to play tonight so once we found out he wasn't, I didn't want to go to that lineup right away. I wasn't happy with some of the way the other guys were playing. As coach, you do what you have to do to win a basketball game, and I thought Andrea responded well."
Raptors emerge unscathed
When Jermaine O'Neal began to show some signs of life after a slow start to his preseason, Mitchell didn't take him out, other than for a brief moment in the third quarter. Chris Bosh got only the briefest of rests as well, and the Raptors started the fourth quarter with 7-foot Andrea Bargnani as their small forward.
Given that the Russian club's players had been overwhelmed by the Orlando Magic's Dwight Howard in the first game of their NBA swing — Messina called Howard "Godzilla," roughly echoing most NBA scouting reports — why not give them more size to manage?
Given that the Russian club's players had been overwhelmed by the Orlando Magic's Dwight Howard in the first game of their NBA swing — Messina called Howard "Godzilla," roughly echoing most NBA scouting reports — why not give them more size to manage?
Mitchell keeps shuffling deck as Raptors beat CSKA Moscow
"I was a little disappointed with the way some of our guys played," Mitchell added. "Andrea played great, Jason [Kapono]. But some of the other guys didn't play as well. I left Jose out there for a reason."
Mitchell also did something he wanted to avoid because of the reserves' struggles: He put Bosh, O'Neal and Bargnani, the team's three prominent big men, on the floor at the same time.
Mitchell also did something he wanted to avoid because of the reserves' struggles: He put Bosh, O'Neal and Bargnani, the team's three prominent big men, on the floor at the same time.
Bosh Scores 24 as Raptors Beat CSKA Moscow
The Raptors have hosted a European club team the past six season and have played eight games against international clubs during the pre-season, more than any other NBA team. They're 6-2 in those games, losing to Real Madrid last year in Spain and Maccabi Tel-Aviv in 2006 at the Air Canada Centre.
UMM.ca Girl of the Day
