Darko Rajakovic is still donating money for every assist the Raptors record. It is his third year doing this, and the total has climbed past 100,000 dollars for children's hospitals. This is a lot of money to give away because people passed a ball to each other.
Whenever I see the team make a bad pass that goes out of bounds, I think about the money. Most people just see a turnover, but in this context, it is basically a missed opportunity to help someone feel better. It makes the game feel much more serious than a simple competition of putting an orange sphere into a net.
The Problem with Trading RJ
People are talking about trading for Domantas Sabonis because that is what happens when the trade deadline exists. It makes people want to change everything they have for something they do not. Some fans are suggesting we should keep RJ Barrett and trade Immanuel Quickley or Jakob Poeltl instead.
The Raptors are 15 and 5 in the last twenty games that RJ Barrett has played. He has a positive net rating of 5.4, which means the team is generally better when he is on the hardwood than when he is sitting on the bench. Statistics are mostly just numbers until they start looking like 15 wins and 5 losses.
Finding Things at Home
There is a common saying about having things at home so you do not have to buy them at the store. Some fans believe we already have a starting center at home. It is a nice thought, like finding a twenty dollar bill in a winter coat you forgot you owned.
Whether it is Jamal Shead taking over point guard duties or someone else stepping up, the roster feels like a puzzle with several missing pieces. Sometimes you just have to look under the couch cushions. Maybe the center we need was the friends we made along the way, though that usually does not help with rebounding.
Modern Basketball Logistics
The Raptors play the Timberwolves tonight at 7:30 on TSN. It is a basketball game that will happen while most of us are thinking about what to have for a late snack. Anthony Edwards will probably do something athletic that makes me feel like I should have gone for a walk today.
I wonder if Darko thinks about the donations during the fourth quarter of a blowout. If the team is up by twenty, every assist is still worth the same amount of money. It is a strange way to view a sports broadcast, but the world is a strange place, especially in February.