RAPTORS-BULLS: BIRTH OF A RIVALRY?

Quick thoughts in the aftermath of the Toronto Raptors' one-point win, 112-111 over the Chicago Bulls (which Deadspin cheerfully cknowledged this a.m.):

• The big thing is that the Raptors won after Chris Bosh made a pair of freebies with 2.1 ticks left after a loose ball foul on the Bulls and the Toronto made a defensive stop at the final horn. In the big picture, this game may have planted some big-time seeds for a rivalry.
  
  The Bulls and Raptors are the only two good young teams in the Eastern Conference, so one has to wonder if this was an early, early sneak peek at the East final in say, 2009 or '10. The way it ended -- with the Bulls making a spirited comeback to erase a 12-point Toronto lead and the Raptors bouncing back to take it with the help of two calls the Chicago crowd loudly disagreed with (the foul that put Bosh on the line and the lack of a call on the final play) was the stuff of rivalry. As well, the Raptors ended a long losing streak to Chicago.
  
  When the Raptors came into being in 1995, the Bulls seemed like a natural rival, since there was a Toronto-Chicago rivalry in hockey (Leafs-Blackhawks, so the emphasis is on was) and the Michael Jordan-Scottie Pippen Bulls were at the peak of their powers. Every Toronto fan recalls that Sunday afternoon game in late March in front of 36,131 at Skydome, when the first-year Raptors -- using just seven players --beat the '95-96 Bulls, perhaps the best team in NBA history.
  
  The rivalry never developed, though, since by the time the Raptors became half-decent in the Vince Carter era (and we all know what a hazy chimera that turned out to be) the Bulls had been broken up. So essentially, this is the first year both teams have been competitive at the same time, plus the NBA now has them in different divisions, since it uses the same screwy three divisions to a conference setup the NHL has. However, nights like last night could go a long way to reviving the rivalry that never developed.
  
• Not sure how to feel about the Raptors pulling out a last-minute win after letting a double-digit lead slip away late, just like they did last Friday against Kobe Bryant and the L.A. Lakers. On the other hand, the feeling here was they needed to split those games against Central powers Detroit and Chicago, and they did it.
• Who said Bosh was having a hard time making foul shots?
• It probably won't make the highlight reels but without Jose Calderon's night -- 16 points and nine dimes while spelling T.J. Ford, who battled foul trouble -- the Raptors don't win.
• Andrea Bargnani's line: 22 points on 39 minutes on 7-for-12 shooting, including 4-for-8 from three-point range. Not bad for a guy who plays "25 up and down minutes a game," eh Bill Simmons?
• Ben Gordon (26 points, including a late three-point play that put Chicago up one with 12.8 ticks left) not being selected to the Eastern Conference all-star squad while the crappy Nets will send both Jason Kidd and Vin Weasel (as Neil Acharya calls him) is a joke. Of course, with Kidd's back acting up, the East may need a guard on Sunday in Las Vegas. (UPDATE: Kidd won't go to Vegas, but the Hawks' Joe Johnson is taking his place.)
• Have to agree with Scott Carefoot of RaptorBlog: If the Raptors win the Atlantic and get the No. 4 playoff seed, they better hope they draw the Downy-soft Washington Wizards in the opening round of the playoffs. Carefoot notes "it's probably going to be one of either Miami, Chicago or Washington in that (fifth) spot and I think the Raptors have almost no chance to beat either of the first two teams in a seven-game series."

That's all for now. Hey, no Kidd and no Jefferson for the Nets' visit to Toronto on Valentine's Day? What a shame. That's all for now. Send your thoughts to neatesager@yahoo.ca.