"Ginger Baker was a brilliant drummer and, if reports are to be believed, something of a mess of a man. He blended rhythms like a fusion restaurant and was one of the best drummers in the world in the 1960s, even joining former bandmate Jack Bruce and Eric Clapton in supergroup Cream. He once slashed at Bruce with a knife during a show. He was a brilliant drummer and a troubled man."
"The Toronto Raptors have built a fragile ecosystem on the offensive end of a basketball court. Creating a good shot is, at times, like cooking Beef Wellington. There needs to be the right ingredient cooked and added, at precisely the right time. Temperature must be just so. Cuts must be precise. Screens must make contact at the correct angle. Timing, above all, determines the dish. Every possession is something of a ballet performance on the edge of a knife."
"And against the Charlotte Hornets, Ingram was sloppy. His jumper was off, his drives stopped short, and sometimes he simply turned the ball over with no cause. He wasn't seeing the help in advance of its approach, which meant he multiple times started shooting, saw he was surrounded by bodies, and had to fling the ball to the perimeter to reset the play."
Ginger Baker exemplified brilliance paired with volatility, showing that reliance on tempo can be risky. The Toronto Raptors have constructed a fragile offensive ecosystem that requires precise timing, contact on screens, and exact sequencing to create quality shots. When Brandon Ingram plays poorly—missing jumpers, stalling drives, and turning the ball over—the offense loses foresight and pace, forcing rushed perimeter resets. A lack of other capable ball-dribblers makes the team overly dependent on tempo. Against the Charlotte Hornets the first half featured stagnant offense, neutralized off-ball screens, few drives, unthreatening passes, and Scottie Barnes leaning heavily on his jumper.
Read at Raptors Republic
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