The Toronto Raptors have traded two off their players to rope in one of the best forwards in the NBA and six time All Star player Jermaine O’Neal from the Indiana Pacers. Jermaine O’Neal said that he was very happy that he will be representing the Toronto Raptors and will be playing to the best of his ability to take his new side to glory in the forthcoming season. O’Neal wants to shrug off the poor form that he is recently been in and is looking forward to playing with the Raptors teammates. The Raptors fans will also be buying tickets to watch the games and to see how O’Neal fits into the team.

It was announced last Tuesday by Toronto Raptors that their rookie forward Jamario Moon has been named to the 2008 NBA ALL Rookie Second team and is the ninth player in the Raptors history to receive this prestigious opportunity. He was signed into the Toronto team during the 2007 free agent tryout summer camp. He had 75 record starts as a rookie in 2007 and was ranked first in the steals among all the NBA rookies. He also got the opportunity to showcase his basketball skills in the 2008 Rookie Challenge and Slam Dunk competitions. Moon also received the NBA Eastern Conference Rookie of the month for his performance in the month of January.

It was a tragic case of the giant stomping on the ant when the almighty Orlando Magic dragged the Toronto Raptors into submission with a 114-100 score during last Sunday’s NBA playoffs.

Things went from bad to worse for the helpless Raptors, culminating in a shameful defeat against the Orlando Magic. It must be said that their star players did not stand out like they should on the court. Most notably under-performing player was Rasho Nesterovic, who was the Raptors’ centre. He admitted that they were not ready for the onslaught dished out by Magic. Additionally, Sam Mitchell who was the Raptors’ coach, might have made the biggest mistake this season by rolling out a dusty starting lineup that was hardly used since last season. Andrea Bargnani was placed at small forward, but the Italian player only managed to score a measly five points in the game.

Things started looking up when the Raptors trailed only five points behind the Orlando Magic with ten minutes remaining in the fourth quarter but the opposing team scored ten consecutive points, finally crushing the Raptors’ spirit and determination.