by Chuck Swirsky
--raptors.com
May 18, 2005

(TORONTO) -- The Raptors and other NBA teams are gearing up for a busy late May and June with the May 24 lottery setting the tone for the real deal on June 28.

Matt Bonner will represent the Raptors at the Draft Lottery Tuesday. (NBAE/Getty Images)

General manager Rob Babcock is back from a two week scouting trip that saw him visit the Euro Championships along with tournament play in Russia. There has been no down time for Babcock who understands the importance of this year's draft. He is not interested in quick fixes. He is looking long term and realizes the team needs to become more athletic and defensively oriented.

Babcock and his staff will be active participants in trade talks with other clubs, but will not deviate from the goal of building a winning, competitive team that can be a consistent playoff squad.

NBA teams are prevented from working out or even discussing underclassmen until this weekend when official papers are signed, sealed and delivered to the NBA office. With an age limit emerging as a possible deal maker or breaker in ongoing collective bargaining talks, look for talented high-school kids, college freshmen and sophomores to leave early.

In a make-believe world I would like to see every kid stay four years and earn his college degree, but we all know that is impossible. My take is this. If a young man receives solid advice from his parents or legal guardian and consults with a top-notch hoops advisor who has the best interest of the person, not the player, at heart then I feel an 18-year old should have the right to put his name in the draft.

It 's a huge risk if the player has either an inflated ego of his skills or receives bad advice from "friends" who have one interest at stake and that's to ride the coat tails of the player. There are some intriguing high schoolers out there including 6-8 Gerald Green from Texas and 6-7 Martell Webster from Seattle.

If I had the number one pick I would bring in Utah's Andrew Bogut and North Carolina's Marvin Williams and put them through every known drill dating back to Dr. James Naismith. I have seen these two players (not in person only on television) and am impressed. Chris Paul is a safe and solid third choice. After that, the draft becomes survival of the fittest and smartest.

I think Illinois' Deron Williams was a fantastic college point guard, but I am concerned whether he is athletic enough to defend at the NBA level. He is a true point and I appreciate his skills, but I must confess I do have some reservations about him.

Whether the Raptors pick first or 10th, their first of two first round choices must be a player that has the skills, heart and basketball IQ to be a rotation player. I will be a little more patient with the 16th pick.

Personally I hope New Mexico's Danny Granger is on the board when the Raptors make their second selection, but I think he'll be gone by then. Regardless, they should come away with a good player there.

The Raps have two second round picks and, as you know, I am a huge Nate Robinson fan. If the Raptors elect not to draft a point guard in the first round I would hope that they would take a serious look at Robinson or another point guard early in round number two. The Raptors also get the 58th pick (from Miami) and that might be a good time to select a player with upside who needs to develop and mature over in Europe until he's ready for life in the NBA.

Andrew Bogut is expected to be the top pick in the draft. (NBAE/Getty Images)

A better case scenario is for the NBA and the NBAPA to agree on using the NBDL as a farm system. It's a win-win for the league and the players so why not do it? Remember, I'm just the broadcaster but it's fun to speculate.

The threat of a July 1 lockout is real. What appeared to be optimism four to six weeks ago is now clouded with pessimism and uncertainty. Hopefully everyone can find common ground and settle this sooner rather than later. If there's a lockout , summer leagues will be cancelled and that hurts everyone involved, especially rookies and second year players who need experience. It's a blow to coaching staffs as well who want to learn more about their newly drafted players and gauge who's been in the weight room and who's been in the dining room!

Now let's go to the mail bag and clear out a ton of mail with more to come through the summer. Please be patient. I average about 300 e-mails a week in the offseason and do my best to respond to everyone one of them personally or through this column. Thanks for your understanding.

Grant from Richmond Hill: Chuck, how do I go about getting my name on TV when a Raptor scores a three-point basket? I think it's a great idea. How long have you been doing that and how did you come up with the idea?

Chuck: I get asked this question often. The night of my first Raptor broadcast January 26, 1999 at Skydome was the first time I used the phrase "Ring it up from downtown ______". A three ball is "long distance" hence the "ring it up". I figured that since it's commonly called "downtown" so why not incorporate a community in Ontario, etc? While walking in to Skydome I overheard someone say they were from Ajax so I said that's pretty cool. Sure enough, it caught on.

I started to dedicate threes the following game when I received e-mails about my delivery. Incidentally, that first broadcast was a blur. Jack Armstrong and I were two fish out of water and we had no idea what we were doing. Both of us were college guys and while we had been exposed to many NBA games and players it's another thing to call a pro game. Compared to the college game, the pace and speed of an NBA game is like night and day. Jack remains to this day a close personal and professional confidant. He is an outstanding man. On October 1, I begin taking names and hometowns for three balls. Good luck! Since I started doing TV, we have opened things up to everyone across Canada and other countries who get our games on the satellite dish.

Andrew from Sarnia: Would you take last year's and this season's Pistons team over the Bad Boys of the late 80s, early 90s?

Greatest of all time? Still Jordan. (NBAE/Getty Images)

Chuck: No. I love the beauty of the current edition Pistons. They play team ball, but the Bad Boys flat out took no prisoners and played with a swagger only matched by the Chicago Bulls and Michael Jordan. Dennis Rodman was the Ron Artest of his generation. Isiah Thomas is the best "small" guard to ever play in the NBA. Joe Dumars will be a Hall of Famer and Bill Laimbeer kicked your bum for 48 minutes. Did we mention Mark Auguirre, Vinnie Johnson, Rick Mahorn and others? Great stuff, Andrew. Thanks.

Darius from Toronto: Come clean on this one Chucky Baby. Dwyane Wade or LeBron James?

Chuck: You are killing me Darius. Where's the love, but about that Chucky Baby? How about the Swirsk. I want to say Dwyane Wade, but I can't. I remain a King James man. Wade is incredible, ridiculous ... all of the above, but I can't overthrow the King.

Janet from Calgary: Was I the only one who noticed you tossed in a quick one liner about pancakes in last week's column? Where did that come from?

Chuck: Janet, I have to come clean. You caught me big time. I tossed it in just to make sure people were still paying attention to our weekly basketball news and notes. Actually, and yes this is a true story, my 11-year old daughter Kara happened to be in my study while I was writing my weekly column and told me to include that item. So there! Honesty after all is the best policy.

Thomas from Chatham: Who is the best player ever ?

Chuck: Again it's tough to compare eras so it's all subjective. Michael Jordan if I had to pick one player. The best college player I ever saw was Bill Walton. The best high-school player I ever saw personally was Clark Kellogg who was magnificent at Cleveland's St. Joe's.

Raja from Brampton: How important is it for the Raptors to re-sign Chris Bosh:

Chuck: It's not even a question Raja. He must be re-signed. Building a team around Chris is vital. Chris is everything you want and more to represent your franchise on and off the court.

Bill from Columbia, South Carolina: Is it hard for Toronto to attract free agents?

Chuck: Players want to win. Players like money. Toronto has everything you want in a city and more. I will go through a brick wall for the city, the people and this country. It's a fantastic place. But players don't just want to compete. They want to win. Look at Atlanta. Great city. Great weather. Are they winning? No. So they can't get a serious look at a free agent unless they overpay them which they might have to do to get that puppy up and running again. After Chicago lost MJ and Scottie they couldn't get a front-line free agent to sign on the dotted line. No T-Mac. Even Tim Thomas stayed in Milwaukee. The Bulls spent millions for Eddie Robinson. What happened? They bought him out because it wasn't the right fit.

Matthew from Hamilton: Chuck, don't get me wrong. I love your passion for the game but do you have a life outside hoops?

Chuck: Yes. In fact my family is my top priority. I have a loving wife and three outstanding children that I am very proud of. I am consumed by my love for the game, the Raps franchise and the fan base, but my family is tops. They are terrific in understanding what I do and what I'm all about. However at the end of my run, my legacy will not be connected with sports it will hopefully be remembered as a caring, loving husband and father. I appreciate the question.

Sam from London: Do you think Jalen Rose will be a Raptor next year?

Chuck sees Chris Paul of Wake Forest being drafted in the top three. (NBAE/Getty Images)

Chuck: Yes. I think Rose had a solid season and he's also earning $16 million for 2005-2006, in fact for the next two years. But Rose is in his prime and one never knows what's around the corner.

News and notes from the Swirsk:
• Congrats to the "Red Rocket" Matt Bonner. He'll represent the Raptors at the lottery table. He's a class act all the way. There's no pressure Matt. A top three pick would be nice however. Bring some syrup, bark or granite from New Hampshire for some luck!
• The NY tabloids are having a field day regarding the Knicks coaching situation. On any given day it could range from Herb Williams to Red Auerbach! Sooner of later the scribes will get it together.
• Same in Orlando.
• The important thing ... get it right
• Once you get past Phil Jackson and Flip Saunders, my take is that Nate McMillian will be in demand. The way he has conducted himself has been nothing but first class. The same with Seattle GM Rick Sund. Both are in the final year of their contracts and are free to leave after Seattle is eliminated. Sund may have a contract through July 1 so he can take care of business in the draft.
• The Steve Nash charity game in Toronto is going to be HUGE. Book it. Unlike his predecessor, Nash will bring in big-time players to Toronto.
• According to published reports Chuck Daly is about to return to the NBA coaching ranks in Cleveland. If that's the case, one has to ask is he doing this because he loves the joy, agony, stress and heartache of the business or the first and 15 when Ben Franklin arrives? No one can question the man's credentials, however.
• Jerry West gets a ton of pub and he should, but don't underestimate the skills of Pacers President Donnie Walsh.
• Who will make the call on Minnesota's hiring of a new head coach? Owner Glen Taylor is becoming more visible and he should. The T-Wolves were underachievers and a disaster this year.
• Has Portland made a trade yet?
• One of the greatest feelings in the world is driving by the park and seeing kids playing basketball instead of video games.
• The weather here in Toronto is about as raw as a Shaq Daddy free throw.
• Am I the only person on the planet that never saw an episode of "Everybody Loves Raymond"?

E-mail me your take on NBA ball and your comments on the Raptors at cswirsky@torontoraptors.com or call me at 416-815-6189.

Until next week, it's always a pleasure!







Chuck Swirsky

Don't forget to catch the Chuck Swirsky Show weekdays from 1 until 4 p.m. on the Fan 590.