Jay Triano - The Teacher

When Jay Triano took over the coaching duties for the Toronto Raptors on December 4, there was a sense of optimism that perhaps he could turn the team around. After going 10-19 since, it’s apparent that the Raptors season is done. At 18-28 they still have a chance at postseason play, but little to no chance of making it past the first round. Realistically it’s a three dog race in the East. But something has happened since Mitchell was let go, and it’s something that could prove to be a turning point in the franchise: Triano has not emerged as the coach the Raptors wanted him to be; he’s emerged as the teacher the Raptors needed him to be.

When he took over the team, Andrea Bargnani was a quasi starter with the team. Andrea (I refuse to type out his last name again) would have a great game and follow it with two or three duds. Remember when I wrote on Halloween that he’d arrived? Well he followed that performance up with a goose-egg in Milwaukee the next night. He’s been hot and cold since he got here and we’ve been waiting for him to at least MEET our expectations on a regular basis. I remember talking with my buddy Phil back in November and asking if he’d rather have Andrea with all his potential or a player like Josh Boone. Based on salaries, we both picked Boone. But then something happened. While Triano isn’t winning games, he has turned this potential bust into an emerging superpower. Is it too early to start getting giddy? Yes probably, but consider the numbers:

In the first eleven games after Triano took over, Andrea averaged 6.9/3.8 while playing an average of 23.5 minutes a game. Since January 1^st, he’s up it to (this will kill you) 20.8/6.7 over 37.0 minutes a game. Sure, his minutes are up thirteen per game these days, but his rebounding is up almost 80% and his scoring is up over 300%! Think about that number for a second. Three Hundred. When was the last time ANYTHING was up three hundred percent? Even a pack of smokes hasn’t gone up 300% since the great cigarette price drop of 1993.

Triano might not have the credentials that a lot of NBA coaches, but he does have experience trying to get the most out of players who might not be on par with some of the others around. Case in point: He was the coach of the Canadian Olympic Basketball team in Sydney. That team, if you recall, came the closet any team has ever come to reaching the semi-finals and thus, getting a shot at a medal. He guided them as best he could and served as a teacher and mentor to a lot of them. Steve Nash was on that team and while a lot of what he did in Phoenix is attributed to Mike D’Antoni, perhaps Jay Triano had a helping hand in turning him into the player who won back to back MVP’s as well.

Andrea will probably not win any awards of that calibre. He still has a lot of maturing to do. He’s only 23 years old. However, his strong play of late is because of the work Jay Triano has done. The man simply knows how to get inside a young player’s head and make him the best he can be. After years of coaches, the Raptors put their future into the hands of a teacher; it might turn out to be the best move they ever made.

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