I Tried to Vote for Kobe...

The Raptors’ western road trip is over. They return home with little success, but much to remember.

We’ll start in Denver, where they wrapped up. Just one night after a monumental one, they look good in the first half, only to buckle in the 4th.

Nuggets 107, Raptors 101

Carmelo Anthony shot a sublime 81%, connecting on 13-of-16 from the field. But most of Denver’s comeback run actually came with Melo on the bench. With the Nuggets’ lead at only 4 points heading into the final frame, which ballooned to 12, before settling at 6 for the final buzzer. The fast-break absolutely killed the Raptors. Some say it was the altitude, others say it was fatigue. Some say both. Me, well, I’ll just put out the number and let you decide. It was 36-15 in favour of Denver, who just won their 6th straight. Andre Miller was throwing so many deep bombs, he would have been a suitable replacement for Jake Plummer the day before.

…Speaking of the day before…

Kob-I mean the Lakers 122, Raptors 104

You’ll remember last time the Lakers were in town, the Raptors held Kobe Bryant in check: 5-12 shooting, and a season-low 11 points. Maybe he was storing it all up, because my GOODNESS did he explode. The Raptors were running away in the first half up by as many as 18. They even had control for the first few minutes of the 3rd, but then Kobe decided to go crazy… and make history. After scoring 26 points in the opening half, Mr.Laker then scored 27 in the 3rd alone, and another 28 in the 4th – single-handedly outscoring the Raptors 55-41 in the 2nd half, en route to 81 points.

81 points.

81 points!!

The boo’s at the break, turned into chants of “M-V-P” by the end of the game…

That’s the second best individual effort ever in the NBA - and the first was never caught on tape. The mark to beat is a whopping 100, scored by Wilt Chamberlain back in 1962 against the Knicks. Sure, that may have been before the 3-point line (from where Kobe connected on 7-of-13), but keep in mind as well, back then there was no one who could physically contain “the Stilt.” Not even the best defender in the history of the game – Bill Russell. People just weren’t the athletic freaks that they are today.

Kobe got absolutely everything he wanted. Every time he touched the ball, you knew something good was going to happen. Despite the fact that it was against the Raptors, I wanted Kobe to keep scoring. So did the rest of the Lakers. He got the ball every single time down the court, and threw up flawless stroke after flawless stroke. If it weren’t against the Raptors, I probably would not have been able to see it. Sunday night… how many other games do they air on TV? Be thankful. I know I am. I got to watch NBA history.

Taking a look at some of the numbers:
Of the Lakers 88 shots, Kobe took 46 of them; he also hit 28 of those 46, for 61% shooting. He made 18 of his 20 free-throws, snapping his consecutive streak at 60 – I believe. Lost in the mayhem of all this was an incredible streak that no one cares about anymore.

The Raptors tried everything on defense, but none of it was working. Sure, they could have tried quadruple-teaming him, but that’s a little crazy – and I’m glad the Raptors didn’t. But the fact is, they’ve got no intimidating force. They need someone who can instill fear in someone in just one glare.

How about our new PM? Mr. Stephen Harper, please stand up – you frightening, frightening, man.

Mike James played well, hitting 6-of-8 from behind the arc, and 10-of-15 overall, for a team high 26 points and 10 helpers.

As much as I don’t want to… let’s move on.

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The Raptors’ lone win on this 5-game swing came in Seattle, where it was two of the league’s worst defensive teams going against each other.
Like smooth sandpaper trying to create friction with smooth sandpaper.

Raptors 121, Sonics 113

Chris Bosh had 29 points and 13 boards – both team-highs, while Jalen Rose made 9-of-12 shots, to finish with 28 points and 7 assists. Rafael Araujo was injured, and did not start (in what has carried over into the last 2 games, as well). Granted, his shoulder is really injured – but how convenient is the timing, after Coach Sam Mitchell and GM Rob Babcock had different views with the call-up of Pape Sow.

No Minutes for Pape? We’ll see about that… I’ll just hire a shoulder hitman, and make minutes for him.

That’s what Babcock just said in my mind.

The win also happened to snap the Raptors’ 13-game slide against opponents two time-zones away (And no, that doesn’t include the pre-season loss to Maccabi – that was at the ACC).
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So we’re back-tracking now to the beautiful city of Portland, where the thoughts of blossoming flowers and green acres come to mind. After all, they do play in the Rose Garden.

Zach Randolph had his way – not like Kobe did, but in way that the ninja turtle’s not used to – by passing the ball. Randolph averages 2.1 assists per game (after this contest), and dished out a whopping 7 against Toronto.

Blazers 96, Raptors 94

After storming back from an awful 3rd quarter, in which the Raptors got outscored 27-17, the lead interchanged a few times, but not when it mattered most… Chris Bosh missed a potential game-winning 3 pointer at the buzzer, leading to Portland’s season-high 4th straight win.

Bosh had 22 points and 9 rebounds, while Jalen scored a team-high 23 points. This performance, would eventually lead to his promotion, and inclusion into the starting line-up. Finally.

Zach “Leonardo” Randolph, capped off the night with 22 points, 8 rebounds, and 7 assists (one-shy of his career high).

==
The road-trip started in Utah, against a Jazz team that always seems to find a way to beat the Raptors. Of Course, along with Jerry Sloan, Andre Kirilenko is the man to blame/thank for that (depending on your viewpoint)

Jazz 111, Raptors 98

AK47 registered the Jazz’s first triple-double since John Stockton’s playoff outburst back in 2001. Kirilenko had 18 points, tying a career-high with 16 rebounds, and establishing a new personal-best with 11 assists. He also had 4 blocks and 3 steals. Mehmet Okur scored a game-high 29 points.

The loss was just the Raptors’ 3rd, in their last 10 games.

Chris Bosh had 27 points, and only 6 rebounds. In fact, the Raptors had only 7 boards in the entire 2nd half, which is a franchise-low.

==
So the Raptors are back home, for a game against the Bulls, before flying off to Milwaukee. We’ll probably speak after Sunday’s game against the Kings.

By the way, I tried to vote for Kobe, but his name wasn’t on the Ballot. Apparently minority governments have an average life-span of 18 months. See you at the ballot box in July 2007.