The JJ Effect: How James Johnson Helps The Raptors on Both Sides of the Ball

Raise your hand if you thought the Raptors would win that Clippers game by 16? If your hand is raised, you're either an incredible optimist, or a liar.

Even with my optimistic approach when I watch this team, I never would've thought that they would turn it around as quickly as they did. In the first quarter, it looked like they had hit rock bottom, even lower then they have been recently. However, in the next three quarters, they easily played their best basketball that they have played since they were first in the East. And this surge came with the help of two new guys. One of those new guys was Lou Williams, but we have come to expect that from him. When he is on, he can single-handedly carry even the most stagnant offence.

However, the second was James Johnson. Thought to be in Dwane Casey's doghouse, JJ had rarely gotten into games even before his hamstring injury, prompting ridiculous conspiracy theories, serious or not, as to why he wasn't playing. But the answer was simple. With T Ross coming off the bench, there were simply so minutes left for him. But in the Raps latest drubbing of the Clippers, JJ proved why he is such a valuable piece to this team.

Of course, you can't ignore his defence. With a LeBron-esque combination of size, strength and athleticism, the black belt can defend any position, yes he an even defend some centres. But what makes him such a great defender is his willingness to defend and take on any challenge. In one game, James defended Blake Griffin, J-Crossover and CP3 and and was a positive against all of them. This defensive attitude is one that not many Raptors have, even Kyle Lowry has lost his edge recently, but is contagious when you watch a guy like Johnson do his thing.

His offensive impact is much more subtle, but still incredible. With his athleticism and warrior mentality, he can get into the paint and is an incredibly efficient finisher when he gets there. He is a safe bet to give the ball to because of this and his post-up ability, arguably the best post-up player on the team not named Jonas Valanciunas. But what really impresses me about JJ offensively is the calm he brings to the team. He never rushes, he's patient and looks for the best shot without turning the ball over, the Achilles heel of the Raps recently. When Johnson is on the floor, the number of turnovers go way down, which helps defensively because you can set up. Also, the more shots you can get up, the better because Patterson, Amir, JJ or JV are always there to get offensive rebounds if you miss.

With T Ross starting the second half with the starters, I'm hoping this means that Casey understands how little the Vasquez-starting lineup experiment has worked. With Ross starting, it brings us back to the lineup we started the year with, the incredibly efficient lineup, with JJ getting his minutes off the bench. GV can come off the bench and take his YOLO threes, and everything is back to normal. And by normal, I mean winning games.

Recapping A Strange Win For Toronto

However they come, you gotta take a win.

That was the mentality the Raps had after their 92-89 victory over the Milwaukee Bucks. The high octane offence wasn't there whatsoever, as DeRozan failed to score a point and Lowry shot 8-25, but the Raptors managed to get a great effort from everyone's favorite scapegoat, Terrence Ross. The rim was sealed at both ends, as both teams missed easy oppertunities to score but hey, a win is a win, and the Raptors will take any win they can get right now.

Why the Raps Shouldn't Rush for a Ross Replacement

These past couple of weeks have not been kind to Terrence Ross, and fans have been quick to point the finger at him for the team's recent struggles. To be honest,  I can't remember the last time TRoss had a good game and, with the DeRozan injury, he had the best chance he could ask for. Instead of showcasing his incredible talent, he was nothing short of terrible, forcing Kyle Lowry to carry an incredible burden on his shoulders.

Many fans have been calling for a trade, encouraging Masai Ujiri to dump Ross while he still has value and get a piece in return. While I am 100% open to Masai listening to offers and working his magic, it's way too early to give up on a guy we were praising a couple of months ago. This is a rare guy who could win a 3pt shootout and a slam dunk contest if given the chance. This is a guy who has shown glimpses, albeit almost exclusively last year, of being an athletic wing defender who can get into passing lanes.

However, one thing we all know about Terrence is that he is unbelievably streaky. He can go two weeks looking like an all star, then two weeks looking like he belongs back in college. As of right now, he looks like a guy who isn't even ready for college yet, but that's ok. Get Ross' struggles over with now, along with the team's, but don't give up hope. The coaching staff or maybe the players just need to find a way to get through to him and get him to start being aggressive.

It's possible for the Raps to win now AND keep Ross in the starting lineup. All we need is patience, and things have a way of working themselves out.

Positives to Take From a Brutal Game

Well,  you've been hearing all game about the negatives. How everyone is in a slump, how the Raps can't compete with the Hawks right now, but I am going to do the unthinkable and actually find postives from this game and the rough patch in general that the Raps have hit.

1. DeMar is back, and boy it couldn't come soon enough. However, not only has he come back,  but he is looking better than he ever has. He is playing with an incredible calm that should help him avoid going into shooting droughts which have plagued him over his career. His presence will be key for this team,  especially in the fourth quarter when they need someone who can draw fouls.

2. The Raps had a players meeting hosted by Kyle Lowry after tonights epic nightmare, according to Eric Koreen. No info from the meeting was released,  but James Johnson claims that the players were becoming overconfident and weren't paying attention to detail. This is another exaple of what makes Kyle such a great leader (And an All-Star #NBABallot). We can only hope that the message got through, with some people more than others (I'm looking at you Terrence Ross).

3. As bad as it's been over the past week and a bit, every team goes through a rough stretch at some point in the season. As long as they can get back to the basics and be fundamentally sound, they can dig themselves out of it. It's better to get this stretch out of them now, rather than in the playoffs.

Looking at the New Look DeRozan

It's about time.

After 21 games of mediocrity and defensive ineptitude,  DeMar DeRozan has returned to bring the Raptors back to being a powerhouse in the East. In his first game back, albeit against the 76ers, DD paced the Raps with 20 EFFICIENT points,  4 rebounds and 3 assists, while that last number could've been much higher if the team was making shots. As mentioned before,  this was against the 76ers, who have about as much D as the Knicks if they all had broken legs, but you will always take a 20-4-3 game coming off of an injury and playing only 25 minutes. However, what impressed me about DeRozan's game even more than the numbers is the calmness he played with.  Everything he did seemed to be smooth and under control,  forcing absolutely none of his shots. This was a problem that has plagued DD over his career,  occasionally he would try to play hero-ball and it would lead to some inefficient games. However,  new-DeRozan was calm, poised and really promising. If this is truly how DeMar will play from now on, I have to say that maybe this injury, the adversity he faced and the extra time with the coaches was the best thing that could've happened to him. It wasn't a pretty couple of weeks,  but this experience,  not only for DeMar but also for the team will pay huge dividends in the end. The next game against the Hawks will be a great indication as to which DeRozan we will be getting from now on, or if this efficient game was just a product of playing against a bad team.

Potential Trade Targets the Raptors Should Consider

With the Grizzlies, Celtics, Cavs, Suns, Thunder and Knicks all making deals recently, we are officially in trading season in the NBA. At this point, we know alot about which teams are sellers and which are buyers. With that in mind, I began thinking of players I would like to see in a Raptors uniform and are obtainable. Heres a couple of ESPN Trade Machine accepted trades that I believe would benefit both sides.

Landry Fields, 2nd Rd Pick to Denver for Wilson Chandler
Despite having a goldmine of solid role players and a star point guard in Ty Lawson, the Denver Nuggets are a team that is clearly a seller this year. While Wilson Chandler isn't much more than a 3 and D guy, he is a clear improvement in the starting lineup over Terrence Ross and on a relatively good deal over two years. He is an unselfish player that I believe could have a huge benefit from playing in Toronto, a team quickly becoming one of the best player environments in the league. If you're Denver, you would love to get an expiring deal and a pick for Chandler, as he is simply a role player that isn't gonna push Denver over the top. Masai also has a great relationship with Denver, and could use that to persuade them into giving up Chandler.

Landry Fields, Tyler Hansbrough, 1st Rd Pick to Indiana for David West
This trade depends completely on Indiana. If they decide that they want to tank the rest of the season to get a star to get another star to put next to Paul George and Roy Hibbert, than Indiana would take this in a heartbeat. Two expiring deals and a first rounder for West would be great value and would allow them to even sign someone else in the offseason. Meanwhile for Toronto, they would get a battle-tested starting power forward over the next two years who has loads of playoff experience. He is a great mid range shooter, strong defender and a leader on the floor. He is very similar to Amir Johnson, except he is much better offensively. Amir and 2Pat would still get their minutes, mostly at center for Amir, and the Raptors would definitely improve overall. However, if Indiana refuses to tank, there is no way they give up their emotional leader.

Of course there are many other options the Raptors could explore, and I'm sure Masai is exploring right now, but these are a few options that I think would really help us. And to everyone overreacting about the recent losing streak, claiming that that Ross needs to go, Jonas needs to go, Dwane Casey can't coach and Lou Williams is terrible, you guys need to calm down. This is almost 100% the worst it's going to get over the rest of the season, and most of our issues, especially defensively, will correct themselves now that DeRozan is back. However, in order to compete, we need to add a couple more complementary pieces to fit our team needs. In the meantime, don't be mad about what we have and appreciate what is, quite possible, the best Raptors team to ever take the court.

Should We Be Concerned With Greivis Vasquez Struggles

With all the positives the Raps have had so far, there have been very few weak spots this season. However, if we had to point to one thing, it would be the play of backup point guard Greivis Vasquez. Despite still putting up decent numbers, he has been incredibly inefficient this year. His ridiculous turnovers and missing wide open shots have left Raps fans shaking our heads at times. But, to be honest, what did we expect? GV has never been a consistent player, and he'll have stretches during the game where you love him, but overall has been a negative. If history repeats itself, General Greivis will have a big time run that reminds us why he can be a starter in this league. We just have to hope that this run comes in the playoffs, where he was so effective last year.