New Jersey at Toronto: Game 2 Recap
The Raptors get even.
By Vincent Thomas
So the series is tied up now, after the Rapts handled their biz on the day that coach Sam Mitchell snagged Coach of the Year honors. Interestingly, I was having a Gmail chat conversation with my man Tony during a third quarter timeout and Kidd already had about 11 points, 10 boards and 5 assists at the time. I was trying to convince Tony that Kidd (not Nash or Baron or whomever) is still the best point guard in the game, that even though his on the ball defense has waned considerably, he’s still active in the passing lanes, he’s always drawing charges and he probably grabs a good 5 to 6 defensive boards a game. My point was that when you combine that with the way he controls the game on the offensive end (despite his horrid shooting), he’s the illest cat doing it – still. And then the end of the fourth quarter descended upon us and no one on New Jersey could hit a shot. That’s when it dawned on me that Nash would have most definitely knocked down a three when the Nets were trying to tie things up. It made me rethink the conclusion to my hypothesis.
After the game a reporter asked Mitchell if the Nets gave up the game more than Toronto won it. Mitchell rightfully scoffed at this assertion, stating that the inverse question could have been asked about Game 1. The fact is, the young Rapts outplayed the veteran Nets down the stretch when one might have thought their inexperience would bite them and send ‘em to Jersey staring at a sweep. And it wasn’t on the shoulders of a 12-point fourth quarter from Bosh or something. Anthony Parker, Jose Calderon, TJ – they all stepped up. That 8-0 run to begin the fourth quarter (with Kidd on the bench) was a Bosh-Parker thing, but then it was Calderon that dropped two buckets in a row to halt the Nets comeback and TJ’s orchestration and clutch free throws later on. The Rapts looked more athletic and hungrier. They even had a bit of swag. Meanwhile, the Nets were shooting bricks at the rim and couldn’t overcome the Rapts pressure D. Makes you think that the Raptors might be able to take this series (even though I’m sticking with my Nets in 5 prediction).
The tight, up-n-down second half was a respite from the first half where the teams combined for 26 points in the first quarter and were largely inept. Seriously, they couldn’t do anything. TJ Ford was stuck guarding Vince in the post for about four possessions in a row and nothing came of it. In fact, I’m starting to wonder when the Nets will finally be able to exploit that obvious Raptors deficiency. They should be running the offense through Kidd in the post. It’s not like the Raptors can hit you with defensive rotation on some ’04 Pistons-type steez. When they double down, a squad like the Nets should be able to take advantage of it. But then you have big men like Mikki Moore and Collins that play hot potato with the rock no matter how perfect of a pass they’re hit with.
I’m interested to see how the young Rapts respond with their first playoff road trip. It’s not like Continental Airlines Arena is Arco arena or even Air Canada, but a road game is a road game.
Other random notes:
– LaDainian Tomlinson was in the building. Why? That’s the same question I’m asking.
– Fans need to think of something more witty and disrespectful to do after the player they’re booing makes a shot or free throw. Shutting up just doesn’t cut it. All night, Rapts fans chanted really clever things like “V-C-Sucks!” or booed loudly, but when he hit a shot they’d immediately shut up. It’s kinda embarrassing, actually. I’m not the illest heckler out there, so I don’t have much to offer here. I’d just like to see the fans, the 12th Man, be a little more gangsta about theirs.
– Remember when Kidd used to be able to grab a rebound and literally streak up the court like Drexler (or Barbosa, these days) for a lay-up? Word, he can’t do that anymore.
– Nachbar is a monster. The Rapts can’t handle him. Frank needs to exploit this.
– Five Canadian teenagers were out at midcourt, break dancing to what sounded like circus music. And by circus music I mean the kind you hear at a Ringling Brothers show when they bring out the clown. They were BREAK DANCING to this. That is absolutely not hip hop.
38 Responses to “New Jersey at Toronto: Game 2 Recap”
Apr.25 at 5:47 pm
ALX8725 says:
I still can’t believe a Dallas/Warriors Game 1 recap hasn’t even been posted yet…. SLAM?
Apr.25 at 5:59 pm
a.train says:
It’s strange how someone can spit in the proverbial face of the entire ACC crowd, but then offer up nothing better at the same time… That’s not cool.
Apr.25 at 6:02 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
Jason Kidd is still mighty quick when he gets a rebound. Best player in the NYC area by FAR.
Apr.25 at 6:04 pm
a.train says:
PLUS, maybe the crowd isn’t very original, but my gorilla math says VC is a combined 13-43 from the floor and 7-12 from the stripe in the 2 games at the ACC…so you could at least make the argument that it’s boring, but effective.
Apr.25 at 6:04 pm
Bryant Reeves says:
Tomlinson has been thinking about becoming a pothead, getting kicked out of the NFL and heading north to the CFL a la Ricky. He was just in town evaluating his future options.
Apr.25 at 6:14 pm
Mike_Is_A_Douche says:
Nachbar is really clutch. But our biggest problem is that we dont have a SF who can effectively guard Richard Jefferson. What is in reality happening is that between Bosh, Rasho, Anthony Parker, TJ/Jose and whoever is playing SF, we really only have 3.5 defenders. This causes problems like when Vince blows past Anthony Parker and Bosh steps in to take the charge. Anthony Parker rotates on defence, but the SF? Where is he? He is nowhere to be found. I think that BC is really going to be looking to move Joey and look for someone to fill that SF position this offseason.
Nachbar was the best player on that court no question. Maybe A-Park.
As for your entire Jason Kidd obsession Vincent, he is a good point guard that is tall enough to grab rebounds and is able to find open guys on offence. But like I said, when you’re playing against a 3.5 man defensive squad, its not that hard. Please, for the sake of good commentary stop praising Jason Kidd for his amazing job losing and instead talk about something all the fans on SLAM want to hear about.
Apr.25 at 6:26 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
Jason Kidd is a “good” point guard? That’s like saying Kobe Bryant is a good scorer.
Apr.25 at 6:27 pm
Chris says:
I’m just glad Charles Oakley isn’t on the Nets to tell Vince to take the ball to the basket, his performance so far is reminicent of his first playoff series against the knicks. Dude is shooting 30% so far in the series, thanks mostly to fadeaway jumpers. He’s averaging 16 points in Toronto this season (reg. season + playoffs), well under his 25.2 scoring average. Somebody please tell me how clutch he is and that the boos don’t affect him. The crowd at the ACC has been fantastic, I’d like them to add an “O-VER RATED clap-clap, clap-clap-clap” chant when Vince is at the line. I know it’s kinda college but it’d be fitting. I still say Raptors in 7. They haven’t played well offensively yet.
Apr.25 at 6:29 pm
Chris says:
Jason Kidd’s still a great point, no question. an interesting question you raised is what would happen if you switch JKidd and Nash, I actually think both teams would be worse off.
Apr.25 at 6:35 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
Probably. Kidd isn’t fast enough to run the Suns (and he’s not a good enough shooter to keep the defense honest), and Nash isn’t rugged enough to do what Kidd does for the Nets (like lead the team in rebounding).
Apr.25 at 7:15 pm
Dennard C says:
Snackbar is the X-factor in this series.
Apr.25 at 8:08 pm
hollywud says:
this fool that writes these is crazy.
the raps fans r the reason vc suked both games and rj sucked in game 2
stop hatin foo
Apr.25 at 8:44 pm
Vince Thomas says:
Judging from the comments I’ve been getting, it’s clear that Toronto fans rep hard and would appreciate it if I did nothing but denigrate the Nets and extol the virtuous Rapts. We’ll see, I might cave in. And, Douche, Kidd has been great for years and it has had nothing to do with Joey Graham.
Apr.25 at 9:37 pm
joey says:
where do i fill out a nickname for elton brand? it has still ben josh howard for two weeks.
Apr.25 at 9:49 pm
JB21 says:
hollywud. That makes no sense. Why would RJ play so well in game 1? But VC bad in both?
Apr.25 at 10:02 pm
Will Lee says:
I watched the game, I think Toronto is going to take the series, and Lawrence should be fired after it ends.
Nets basically has no set play, its always the 3 star guards playing 1 on 1 ball, then jack up 3’s when they are unable to go all the way up. I don’t think a team can win 4 games with this type of offense.
At the end, Jkidd was posting up TJ Ford with no double coming. Still, he couldn’t overpower him like GP did in his early days.
should be Raptors in 6.
Apr.25 at 10:37 pm
Bimbo Coles says:
With the Raps 3:42 away from staring at the swamp down 0-2, Texas products CB and TJ Ford came up successful in consecutive trips down the floor. In a game reminiscent of late 90’s “I love defence” Knicks/Heat battles, defence was ultimately the deciding factor down the stretch. While VC was non-existent in the clutch, it was up to RJ and Snackbar to propel the Nets to a two games to none advantage. RJ missed a questionable midrange j, and another virtuoso performance by the Snackbar was capped off with a WIDE-OPEN brick of a shot at a chance to tie the game. I’m not stressing he was wide open because he should have hit it, but because it was just confusing seeing the Raps collapse on a VC drive inside only to leave Boki open for a three for the 2nd straight game. Freebies sealed the deal from there on out, and the Raps squared the series. What I’ve noticed about Jkidd (who is arguably the second best PG in the league), is that although he facilitates opportunities for his teammates, he gives it back, constantly allowing TJ Ford to go right, and giving Calderon clean looks on the perimeter. Calderon was relegated to bench duty for the last frame because he just wasn’t hitting from those looks. TJ however, has shown that by the late games of the series, JKidd will be left in the dust of Ford. Both teams were laying brick from the tip-off, which is obvious considering the two teams somehow managed to put 26pts on the board COMBINED, while the Suns did the same last night with 3 minutes still to play in the 1stQ of their game in the Sweep Series. Why Vince Carter settles for fadeaway j’s over the behemoth of a man TJ Ford is but elects to drive on midget Chris Bosh is unknown. VC could easily back down TJ until all he has to do is throw it down. If VC snaps for games 3 and/or 4, and offers up another Keyon Dooling performance for game 5, we will know for a fact that the assholian crowd at the ACC gets into Mr.Carter’s head, big time. I don’t see the crowd in Toronto letting up for game 5 or even game 7*** for that matter. Hampered by the flu, Chris Bosh simply abused the real BIG 3 of Moore/Collins/Boone in the 4th quarter scoring 11 of his 25pts with a few free throws, and a couple of nice takes to the cup. Anthony Parker was all over the duo of RJ and VC all game long, and made them work on defence as well racking up a game-high 26pts on an efficient 8-13fg night. It’s safe to say that Anthony Parker has out played VC in 96 minutes of playoff basketball. The Nets transition game was non-existent in Game 2. The Nets could possibly end the series by next week if they get out and run like they did in Game 1. But it all starts on the shot selection of the Raptors, and especially Bargnani who seems to just occupy space on the perimeter. Many times during the game Lawrence Frank has either Kidd or Carter backing down TJ Ford on the low block. Kidd’s post ups are exclusively for passing purposes and the Raptors did a good job not surrendering immediately to double down in the post to leave Splashworks Nachbar open beyond the arc, which would play right into the genius hands of Lawrence Frank. Other notes: -This series will be over if Vince Carter goes Rambo on the Raps. Then again, it’s Vince Carter.
-Even if he isn’t known as a shooter, JKidd should NOT be open as much as he was.
-Even if he isn’t known as a shooter, TJ Ford should NOT be open to take the lead with a pocket ball with 3 to go.
-Through 2 games the Nets bench has an advantage over the Raps second stringers, for one reason, BOSTJAN. Statisticians are penciling in 3pts for Nachbar, before he even lets go of the rock.
-After the shellacking of Richard Jefferson by Chris Bosh, I think I can offcially say I’ve witnessed the precise moment when a man’s spirit is snapped in half.
-LaDainian Tomlinson wanted to take in a real playoff game atmosphere.
-The Stern Bot was clapping synchro with the Raptor fans in the waining moments of the game. The most powerful Raptor fan ever.
-I’ll be at Game 3 on Friday, and i’ll likely be able to recline my legs, use the seat to my left as table for my hot dog, and speak in my indoor voice from row S to catch any players attention. Nets in 7, if not Raptors in 6. It should be the other way around, but if VC and the Nets win, it will be in heart shattering fashion.
Apr.26 at 12:55 am
Bimbo Coles says:
THE MAN & gloria velez
http://youtube.com/watch?v=JjZrsvJEU7M
this vid has probably been up here before, any everyone’s probably already seen it. but yep, thats vince alright, showing his Post-Dunk celebrations off the court.
Apr.26 at 4:25 am
Drolfe says:
Vying for a writing gig much?
Apr.26 at 5:55 am
Boing Dynasty says:
Dont hate Drolfe, hes doing a better job than dude whos supposed to be covering the series.
Apr.26 at 5:59 am
Boing Dynasty says:
This dude seems to think that Snackbar is some upstopable force, being held back only by the coachs lack of taking advantage of mismatches. Hes a very nice player who will hit open jumpers and drive to the hoop on occasion, if his pump fake works. Hes putting up close to 20 for the series, and thats about what youll get. most likely less.
Apr.26 at 8:09 am
J says:
LT was at the game cause they’re filming a commercial for Campbells Soup in T-Dot. I peeped LT, Damarcus Ware, Todd Heap, Matt Hasselback, Larry Johnson and a couple other dudes in a park last night.
Apr.26 at 9:07 am
Pais says:
thanks Bimbo for an indepth analysis (can we get a switch please)
Apr.26 at 9:21 am
data187 says:
i don’t understand how jkidd didn’t win the mvp during those 2 nets finals years.
i mean nash wins 2 mvps and his teams haven’t even been in the finals.
nash is a better offensive player, but kidd is a better defensive player by far.
and yes, jkidd is the best point guard in the east, period.
Apr.26 at 9:47 am
Mike says:
Judging from the comments I’ve been getting, it’s clear that Toronto fans rep hard…” Yeah, Toronto fans rep hard. Somebody gave all the 9 year old kiddies too much sugar. They’re just hyper. “Five Canadian teenagers were out at midcourt, break dancing to what sounded like circus music.” The Raptors “hype” maching is completely clueless. They’re a bush league organization. Bush.
Apr.26 at 9:48 am
Mike says:
*machine*
Apr.26 at 10:33 am
Adrian from Qnz says:
What’s clear in this matchup is that: Kidd and Jefferson are the nets. Vince is showing that he still has no heart. He acts like he doesn’t even wanna play. That kid Bosh is a problem. He reminds me of a young KG.
Apr.26 at 11:12 am
JAMS says:
the 5 kids break dancing were definitely dancing to circus music, but the reason for this was to get the crowd going crazy during a 4th quarter time out…..and they raptor most likely tossed shit into the crowd causing bodily harm….good times at the ACC
Apr.26 at 11:21 am
Bimbo Coles says:
Snackbar is definitely not unstoppable. He’s just picking up the slack VC is leaving all over the place. its just he’s burned the raps in 2 games so far this series. but for the raps to win im sure they would rather have snackbar go off than VC. he’s been a problem but it isnt anything to fret about for the raps.
Apr.26 at 12:14 pm
benny says:
Bimbo, that was an akward attempt to replace SLAM’s game 2 coverage. Seriously. Actually, V.T.’s version was decent. Anyone remember when carter was first traded to N.J.? l.frank basically stated that ‘they’ knew what they were getting w/carter (shot selection) &, still, they were happy to have him. No doubt. But, this is a great example of the dilemma w/carter. Dude is undoubtedly talented & can turn it on whenever he wants. No doubt. But, it’s always been up to carter to decide his team’s success. He might wake up this morning & decide to change the outcome of the series. l.frank, jefferson & kidd know this better than anyone. question for NJ fans: have their comments about carter been this delicate all season? It’s true, the rapts are lucky oakley isn’t around. gentle prodding doesn’t work with carter. F*** his fealings.
Apr.26 at 12:32 pm
Bimbo Coles says:
hey, somebody has to recap the series?!
Apr.26 at 4:57 pm
maddskizzle says:
these recaps suck, where clement at!
Apr.26 at 5:23 pm
bear says:
Russ, I say this with a high regard of your writing personally, but please, please, please don’t ever compare ‘07 Kobe to the ‘07 Jason Kidd in any way; it’s irresponsible journalism.
James Brown-type appeals side, it may be hard for a Toronto resident to be objective about this but the people, especially those in the media, really have to start to use an evolving view towards Kidd’s abilities as he starts on the down slide of his career. He plays a role no one else can fulfill on the Nets roster, and the gamesmanship he provides is invaluble: that being said, there’s alot of liability to him being on the court - in close games the negatives can’t help but be a factor.
If Jersey loses this series, everyone will go straight for Vince’s throat: realize Kidd will be a huge factor either way, and an early playoff exit for the Nets will weigh heavily on him as well. Because at the end of the day, anybody thinkng the Nets will make it past the 2nd round is just plain lying to themselves: a lottery pick in this year’s draft sure would have helped this roster down the road. For the Nets fans, at least this series may facilitate the banishment of VC for good and Shawn can get on the phone with LB to talk about future plans…
Apr.26 at 7:19 pm
Aidan says:
Obviously this matchup does have a bit of a throwback feel to it - think can we refer to it as the “Mitchell and Nets” series? Tough crowd – Is this thing on? – Don’t forget to try the veal.
Apr.26 at 9:04 pm
hollywud says:
it does make sense JB21 because the fans didnt boo rj till game 2 because he acted like a smart ass after game 1 thanking the raps fans for wearin red. jeeez and Mike is gay
Apr.27 at 12:24 am
8-Ball says:
yu guys think that either teams will actually advance into semis? na hell no they wont.seriously.its t.dots series anyway,i can read the future……….
Apr.27 at 12:26 am
8-Ball says:
no offense to the swamp yu dudes are cool,but its all karma now,im getting deep like nas now,i really dig that sh*t nowadays serious.BankheaD!!!!!!!!!
Apr.27 at 3:02 pm
Willebrant says:
V.T. touching some nerves creating some insecurities bimbo & yes men??? Good writing “New Dude” I LIKE IT!!!!!!