Don't Hit The Panic Button...

November 24, 1:45 p.m. Take a deep breath. Now is not the time to do anything rash. Is Sam Mitchell happy with the 6-7 record? No. Is Bryan Colangelo thrilled? No. Wayne Embry? Richard Peddie? Larry Tannenbaum? Chris Bosh? Jose Calderon? No. You? Me? No. But let's try to be real about this thing ... While the team has underachieved to this point, we're only 13 games into the regular season. Heck, the season isn't even a month old yet! The firings in Washington and Oklahoma City maybe made sense; 1-10 and 1-12 records are much nastier than 6-7. One game below .500 is not a time to declare the famous words of Tracy McGrady: "The ship is sinking." It's not. The ship may be taking on some water right now, but it's not about to be capsized. The Raptors have held double-digit leads in six of their first 13 games. They won only three of those games though. That has to change. Had Toronto been able to put their foot on the throat of their opponent in the three they lost, think how different the record - and the outlook - would be right now. If Toronto were 9-4 at this point, I'm sure nobody would be making a peep. But the Raps blew a 16-point lead in Boston and lost to the Celtics by seven. They gave up a 10-point lead in Orlando and fell to the Magic by 13. And last Friday, Toronto frittered away an 18-point lead against the Nets... eventually seeing New Jersey win by two in overtime. The focus, attention to detail, and overall intensity must improve. That "killer instinct" has to grow. But which is the "real" Raptors team? The one that builds up those double-digit leads, or the one that coughs-up those double-digit leads? You can't be a bad team if you're having that kind of short-term success, but you can't be a great team until you learn to keep those leads and put opponents away. And at the risk of being accused of making excuses, I'd argue that this team is still searching for an identity in many ways. Plus, the team chemistry isn't where it needs to be. There are still questions about who the primary back-up PG may be and Mitchell is still waiting for Jamario Moon, Joey Graham, and even Jason Kapono to develop the kind of consistency that he needs from his wings on a nightly basis. Now add to the mix a banged-up Jermaine O'Neal (who was just starting to find his groove with his new team) and it's easy to see why Toronto may be having some issues right now. All that said, things need to be cleaned up and cleared up in a hurry. The 2-4 home record must improve. Toronto has got to take care of business this week against the Bobcats and Hawks. While it would be too early to declare those games "must wins," getting back-to-back wins would be huge for the confidence of a team that is about to enter a nasty month of December. If the Raptors can beat Charlotte and Atlanta, they'll head to Los Angeles on Saturday over .500; ready for a tough three-game trip against the Lakers, Nuggets, and Jazz. But if the Raps falter this week - in one or both games - the home record will take an even greater hit, and the team may be reeling as they hit the road. With three West Coast trips in the month of December, and 10 road games overall, it's easy to see why this week is so important for Toronto. It's time to right the ship. E. Smith ericsmithfan590@yahoo.com