He didn't compete with the Italian national team; instead he went to Pete Newell's BigMan Camp.

I thought he should've went after his 1st season.  Good to see him working on getting better.

 Like most of the international players, Bargnani needs to learn to play at least a little bit like an NBA big man.

BC was on Primetime Sports on The Fan today and he talked about Bargnani a fair bit.  Among other things he said that Bargnani has put on a fair bit of muscle in the off-season and greatly improved his conditioning, he has worked out with a few different big man coaches including currently working with one of the Raptors new coaches in Italy right now and working out for 2 weeks with JO in Vegas.  He also had an unspecified injury dealt with over the summer, I think he said he had some kind of minor surgery but he didn't say what the injury was and he also mentioned that he had a deviated septum fixed.  He said that Bargnani trully looks like a new man and that he expects great things from him this season.

He also mentioned that Bargnani might start at SF depending on how things shake out at training camp and the preseason. 

Other highlights of the conversation were;

-  Bosh was apparently one of the best players on team USA this summer though we had already heard that in other articles.

-  Bargnani is apparently the guy who is most asked about by other GMs looking at trade options

-  They had 5 deals for TJ that BC sat down with the rest of the basketball staff and decided between before chosing the JO deal.

-  BC expects Moon to have a much bigger impact on the break and at the offensive end with JO on the team.  He said last year they needed Moon to stay in to rebound more than they would have liked and with JO at C he should be able to run the break a lot more and open up the offense.

None of this is too shocking coming from the GM but listening to it just reinforced my belief that we can expect good things this year from Bargnani and the team as a whole.

It will be a good thing if Bargs adds muscle and gets in better conditon for sure.

However I don't think much of him as a SF.

1. No way can he gaurd SFs. I don't care how much weight he loses or muscle or whatever. He can't move laterally or get in a deep stance to stay in front of guys or chase people through screens. Its not his fault it just is the way it is.

2. His big advatage is that he's a 7 footer who can shoot 3s and has a quick enough first step to get by big guys if they check him. That quickness advantage is negated if he plays SF as the guy checking him will be quicker. His only advanatge os size but since he sucks in the post and isn't comfotable there he can't take advantage of it.

Its good to hear people are asking about him in trades although it may be becuase they think they can get him cheap. I hope he comes out and plays well to start so his value goes up and he can be moved for a real SF or SG who is a creator.

I mentioned that he lost some quickness this past season because of bulking up.  Good to hear that he's adapting to his new bulk.   Bosh/JO/Bargnani could be the best PF/C trio we've seen in the NBA for a while.  48 x 2 = 96, Bosh = 32 mpg, JO 28 mpg, Bargnani 28 mpg and Humphries / Jawai for 8 mpg.

Toolatecrew:

It will be a good thing if Bargs adds muscle and gets in better conditon for sure.

However I don't think much of him as a SF.

1. No way can he gaurd SFs. I don't care how much weight he loses or muscle or whatever. He can't move laterally or get in a deep stance to stay in front of guys or chase people through screens. Its not his fault it just is the way it is.

2. His big advatage is that he's a 7 footer who can shoot 3s and has a quick enough first step to get by big guys if they check him. That quickness advantage is negated if he plays SF as the guy checking him will be quicker. His only advanatge os size but since he sucks in the post and isn't comfotable there he can't take advantage of it.

Its good to hear people are asking about him in trades although it may be becuase they think they can get him cheap. I hope he comes out and plays well to start so his value goes up and he can be moved for a real SF or SG who is a creator.

Though I am not a big fan of the idea either, BC bassically said they would be more open to it because with JO and Bosh  backing him up in the paint they would be able to cover for his defensive weakness.  I would much prefer to see Bargnani backing up both JO and Bosh at PF and C but having him be able to play some SF when the matchup is beneficial to the Raptors wouldn't be a bad thing.

Ya I agree and do not see Bargs as a SF... As a big line-up for periods of a game sure why not but starting SF???  I don't buy it...   Backing up both PF & C as that is where his skills can be used the most...  But who knows, maybe Bargs has gotten super quick feet over the summer with some sick new handles???

Would also be interesting to know what other deals were on the table for TJ....

Dellwell:

Ya I agree and do not see Bargs as a SF... As a big line-up for periods of a game sure why not but starting SF???  I don't buy it...   Backing up both PF & C as that is where his skills can be used the most...  But who knows, maybe Bargs has gotten super quick feet over the summer with some sick new handles???

 

Would also be interesting to know what other deals were on the table for TJ....

Rumor had there was a deal for Gerald Wallace on the table but BC didn't say what other deals were out there, just that he took the best 5 and discussed it with the rest of the basketball staff.

Really can't see Bargnani at SF... defensively .. he barely has enough quickness to stay with quicker PFs. But having both Bosh and O'Neal behind him would definately make the perimeter players think twice about taking it to the basket. I don't really see it happening ..although I'm sure they'll try it out once they're in camp.   Offensively, I could see Bargnani blossom as the 3rd forward on the floor ... he'd have more room to operate on the perimeter, whether it be his shooting stroke or even his passing.  

 I wonder if Andrea will give up #7 to Jermaine O'Neal .. and go back to the number he wanted all along #11 (Italian team number).  I actually didn't know he selected that number and gave it to Ford when Ford was acquired from  Milwaukee .....

 I don't really get why Bargs would play extended minutes at the SF position. If that's the case, I guess we'll see Kapono or Moon get quite a few minutes at the SG spot seeing how both players are primarily SF's.

 Maybe BC just wants to bring up his trade value before the trade deadline?? Bargnani gets the chance to step on the court for mainly offensive reasons, with JO/Bosh there to sort of mask some of his defensive weaknesses at the SF spot. As long as he shows he can score more consistently and efficiently, I'm sure someone will offer something decent via trade.

The thing is, we should be limiting the minutes of JO and Bosh a bit so that we can increase our chances at keeping them both healthy and fresh. We FINALLY have a front court rotation that will let us rest Bosh more often, and we should take advantage of that. There's more than enough minutes available to ensure that JO, Bosh, and Bargs all get real good playing time.