Year One A.B: A New Franchise Player

Photo Credit: http://static.sky.it/static/images/sezioni/sport/Nba/bargnani_toronto_raptors_nba.jpg

Hate it or love it Raptor fans, we have just entered the age of Andrea. The success of the 2010-2011 season (and very well of future seasons as well) now lies on the shoulders of Andrea Bargnani. The first overall pick in 2007 had underwhelming rookie and sophomore seasons in the NBA, however in '09 and '10 Andrea really came into his own. The Raptors have seen Andrea gain confidence, weight, and a better grasp for NBA style basketball, providing the Raptors with a solid second option to the now departed Chris Bosh. Now it is Andrea's team to lead. How will he fare as the primary scoring option for the 2010-2011 Raptors?

Coming into the Association as a rookie, Andrea had a solid face-up game and a three-point shot that could scare any defender. The obvious comparison between Bargnani and Mavs forward Dirk Nowitzki were made. I will take this comparison a little further because, best case scenario, we hope that Bargnani will do everything Dirk does and more.

Dirk became the franchise player of the Mavs in 2004 when his good friend Steve Nash left Dallas to play in cactus country. As a 26 year old, Dirk rose to the challenge and saw a per game point increase of 5 in his first season without Stevey (from 21 ppg to 26 ppg). He disproved many of his critics who said he could not play with another star. Since '04, Dirk has recorded career numbers in almost every category. His name is now synonymous with the Dallas organization.

Now let's look at our 7'0, 250 lb international forward. Playing second fiddle to CB4, Andrea's best season was his '09-'10 campaign, as he posted 17 ppg and 6 ppg, while shooting a career best 47%. The 25 year old Italian is about to become the focal point of the Raptor offense. I am hopeful because every season has seen Andrea's numbers increase, and there is no reason to suggest that he will slow down this season. His post game has improved significantly to the point where he can now be considered an "inside-outside" player. To keep his success going this season as the primary option, Andrea needs to not be flustered when he is counted on to put up 20 shot attempts per game this season. Furthermore, he needs to not force shots and not be afraid to kick the ball out for a re-post. Perhaps foul trouble, Andrea's old foe, is now his biggest threat. However, there is reason for hope even on this front. While Drea's foul numbers did increase with increased playing time (24 mpg to 32) in his third season (from about 2.7 fpg to 3.2), in his fourth season he showed a much improved ability to avoid fouls. His playing time increased to about 35 mpg but his fouls decreased to his early numbers - back to 2.7 fpg. For comparison's sake, Dirk averaged about 2.6 fpg in 2009-10, and Carlos Boozer averaged 3.2 in the same season. All this improvement came despite a sizable improvement in Andrea's intimidation on defense. In his second season, his blocks per game were an unimpressive .5 bpg. However, as with all his stats, he made a large stride in his third season, bringing his blocks up to 1.2 per game, and another improvement in his fourth to 1.4.

These all signify good things to come. This season could very easily be a beautiful thing for Andrea, we could see the birth of a new superstar. However, he needs to keep in mind that he needs to play within his own game and play with his teammates. Otherwise we could see a struggling Italian jump shooter for the first part of the season.