Scott Carefoot

scott carefoot

Scott Carefoot contributes to The Basketball Jones and edits RaptorBlog, which he launched in 2002. He's been a solider in the Score army since 2008 and is convinced that he enjoys coming to work every day more than almost anyone, ever. The majority of the movies in his personal Top 10 list were made by either Quentin Tarantino or the Coen brothers.

Recent Posts

How the Raptors can take advantage of the Lakers’ desperation and change the culture of this team

Posted by Scott Carefoot under Andrea Bargnani, Jose Calderon, Los Angeles Lakers on Nov 13, 2012

Now that the dust is starting to settle over the Lakers’ coaching crisis with their hiring of Mike D’Antoni, it behooves D’Antoni and Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak to examine their roster and determine how their personnel fits within D’Antoni’s spread pick-and-roll system. One of the keys to an effective pick-and-roll offense is having a big man who can step out and make three-pointers. Pau Gasol isn’t really that type of player, and Antawn Jamison appears to be essentially washed up. This means that Gasol could very well be available in a trade if the Lakers are able to acquire that shooting big man and bolster their weak bench.

You probably know what’s coming after the jump, but prepare to be outraged or delighted anyway by my proposal for a Lakers-Raptors trade that could benefit both teams.

Read the rest of this entry »

52 Comments

Game Thread: Jazz (3-4) vs. Raptors (1-5)

Posted by Scott Carefoot under Game thread, Utah Jazz on Nov 12, 2012

Start time: 7:00 PM ET
Channel: Sportsnet One
Probable starting lineups
Toronto: Jose Calderon, DeMar DeRozan, Linas Kleiza, Andrea Bargnani, Jonas Valanciunas
Utah: Mo Williams, Gordon Hayward, Marvin Williams, Paul Millsap, Al Jefferson

Injury report

Toronto: Kyle Lowry, Landry Fields and Alan Anderson will miss tonight’s game.

Utah: Mo Williams is probable, Earl Watson is questionable.

Random thoughts

  • Jamaal Tinsley finished with zero points and 14 assists for the Jazz against the Suns on Saturday. He was the fifth player since 1985 to dish out that many dimes in a game without scoring any points — the other four were Fat Lever, Greg Anthony, Anthony Carter and Rajon Rondo.
  • If the Raptors lose tonight, they’ll match their 1-6 start from the 2010-11 season when they finished with a 22-60 record.
  • The Raptors have a depressing 8-23 record all-time against the Jazz.
  • The Jazz and Raptors met just once last season, and the Raptors triumphed 111-106 in double overtime.
  • I don’t think my enthusiasm for watching, rooting for and writing about this team could be any lower than it is right now. I could really use a random, unexpected Raptors win tonight.
16 Comments

Game thread: 76ers (3-2) vs. Raptors (1-4)

Posted by Scott Carefoot under Game thread, Philadelphia 76ers on Nov 10, 2012

Start time: 7:00 PM ET
Channel: TSN
Probable starting lineups
Toronto: Jose Calderon, DeMar DeRozan, Alan Anderson, Andrea Bargnani, Jonas Valanciunas
Philadelphia: Jrue Holiday, Evan Turner, Dorell Wright, Thaddeus Young, Lavoy Allen

Injury report

Toronto: The bad news is that Kyle Lowry mill miss tonight’s game. The good news is that Landry Fields will also sit this one out.

Philadelphia: Andrew Bynum and Jason Richardson are questionable for tonight, Kwame Brown is out.

Random thoughts

  • Both teams are entering their sixth game of this season, and each team is missing two of their five starters due to injury.
  • As many predicted, Jrue Holiday is “making the leap” in his contract season, averaging 18.6 points, 10.4 assists, 4.0 rebounds and 1.6 steals while shooting over 40 percent from long range. He was drafted 17th overall in the 2009 draft — DeMar DeRozan went ninth.
  • The 76ers are doing it with defense — they’re third in defensive efficiency but just 28th in offensive efficiency.
  • Philly’s starting center tonight, Lavoy Allen, is listed at six-foot-nine and 255 pounds, so this is a rare opportunity to see what Jonas Valanciunas can do with a significant height advantage.
  • Andrea Bargnani likes playing against this team — he’s averaged 23.2 points per game in his last six matchups with the Sixers
  • Sixers coach Doug Collins is 40th all-time with 411 NBA coaching wins — five wins behind interim Lakers coach Bernie Bickerstaff and 23 wins ahead of Lakers coaching candidate Mike D’Antoni
4 Comments

Game Thread: Raptors vs. Mavericks

Posted by Scott Carefoot under Dallas Mavericks, Game thread on Nov 07, 2012

Start time: 8:30 PM ET
Channel: TSN
Probable starting lineups
Toronto: Jose Calderon, DeMar DeRozan, Landry Fields, Andrea Bargnani, Jonas Valanciunas
Dallas: Darren Collison, O.J. Mayo, Jae Crowder, Brandan Wright, Chris Kaman

Injury report

Toronto: Kyle Lowry suffered a right ankle sprain last night and will sit out tonight’s game.

Dallas: Dirk Nowitzki and Shawn Marion are out tonight, Roddy Beaubois is questionable. UPDATE: Elton Brand is also out because his wife is giving birth. (Hat tip: @mikeclothier)

Random thoughts

  • At 3-1 with wins over the Lakers, Bobcats and Blazers, the Mavericks are the surprise team of the NBA so far. Most shockingly, they have the third-best offense (114.2 points scored per 100 possessions) even though Dirk Nowitzki hasn’t been in the lineup.
  • The Mavericks are first in the league in three-point shooting percentage (.512) and second in three-pointers made (42).
  • O.J. Mayo has been the Mavs’ surprise star after four games, averaging 21.5 points per game with an incredible .695 True Shooting Percentage. He’s been a long-range menace, making 18 of his 27 three-point attempts.
  • In place of Kyle Lowry, Jose Calderon will make his 294th career start in a Raptors uniform. He’s eighth all-time in games started for this franchise, behind Chris Bosh (497), Vince Carter (401), Morris Peterson (363), Alvin Williams (324), Antonio Davis (307), Doug Christie (299) and Andrea Bargnani (295).
  • The Raptors’ last win over the Mavericks was an 84-76 victory in Dallas on December 28, 2010. Only eight Raptors saw the floor that game: Jerryd Bayless, DeMar DeRozan, Linas Kleiza, Joey Dorsey, Amir Johnson, Ed Davis, Leandro Barbosa and Julian Wright.
8 Comments

Game Thread: Raptors vs. Thunder

Posted by Scott Carefoot under Game thread, Oklahoma City Thunder on Nov 06, 2012

Start time: 8:00 PM ET
Channel: TSN
Probable starting lineups
Toronto: Kyle Lowry, DeMar DeRozan, Landry Fields, Andrea Bargnani, Jonas Valanciunas
Oklahoma City: Russell Westbrook, Thabo Sefolosha, Kevin Durant, Serge Ibaka, Kendrick Perkins

Injury report

Toronto: No injuries reported.

Oklahoma City: No injuries reported.

Random thoughts

  • Surely I’m not alone in being relieved because I have a legitimate excuse to not watch American political pundits punditing about tonight’s presidential election when the outcome is pretty much locked in. Regardless of how the election turns out… Don’t blame me, I voted for Kodos.
  • For what it’s worth, if there was an election night show like this, I’d definitely PVR this game to watch it.
  • I can’t remember the last time I was more pumped about a positional matchup in a Raptors game than this Lowry-Westbrook matchup.
  • The Raptors and Thunder only faced each other once last season and the Thunder won 91-75.
  • I’d completely forgotten about this, but the Raptors weirdly won both games against the Thunder in the 2010-11 season, even though the Raptors finished with a 22-60 record and the Thunder finished 55-27.
  • I’m trying very hard not to get too excited about Kyle Lowry, but it’s already evident that he’s probably, at worst, the third-best player in this franchise’s history. Bold statement after three games, I know, but… do any of you want to disagree with me on this?
4 Comments
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