Note: This is the sixth of 10 previews of Toronto Raptor players as we head into the 2012-13 NBA season.
Birthplace: Rome, Italy
Born: October 26, 1985 (age 27)
College: None
Height: 7’0″
Weight: 256 lb.
How he became a Raptor: 2006 NBA Draft, 1st overall
| By the numbers | ||||||
| PPG | RPG | APG | SPG | FG% | FT% | |
| 2011-12 season | 19.5 | 5.5 | 2.0 | 0.6 | .432 | .873 |
| Career (Six seasons) |
15.4 | 4.9 | 1.3 | 0.4 | .440 | .824 |
| Andrea Bargnani | ||||||
At the tender age of 27, Andrea Bargnani is already entering his seventh year as member of the Toronto Raptors.
It seems like just yesterday he was arriving as an unknown entity from Europe after being selected first overall by Toronto Raptors president and general manager Bryan Colangelo.
After six years, it looks as though the Raptors organization is starting to wonder if Bargnani is a piece the team wants to build around.
“I’m going to push him and pull him as much as I can,” Raptors coach Dwane Casey told the National Post. “But it’s up to Andrea. The talent is there. He’s the only guy that can pull it out from himself. I think every method in the world, every scenario has been played for him for this organization.”
The Raptors made a playoff run in each of Bargnani’s first two seasons in Toronto but have yet to return. He has only one thing on his mind these days.
“The only thing I can think about right now is the playoffs,” Bargnani said. “I want it so bad.”
Of course he knows it will not be easy as the Raptors share a division which saw three teams, the Miami Heat New York Knicks and Philadelphia 76ers, make the playoffs last year while the fourth, the Brooklyn Nets, has been adding pieces for a playoff push quickly.
“It’s going to be tough. It’s going to be hard. The Eastern Conference got so much better,” he explained.
Listen now:Andrea Bargnani with Eric Smith
Bargnani shares much in common with Jonas Valancunias who is set to join the Raptors this fall.
Both are athletic seven footers who arrive in Toronto with lofty expectations after being selected high in their respective NBA drafts. Like Bargnani, Valancunias will likely need time to adjust to the vast differences between the professional game in Europe and the one in North America.
But Bargnani, who would have likely been an NBA all-star had he stayed healthy last season, believes that Valanciunas will be helpful to the Raptors cause this season.
“I think Valanciunas is going to help us a lot because he’s a very smart guy so he’s going to learn quickly how to stay on the floor,” Bargnani said.
Given that Bargnani has blazed a similar path en route to NBA stardom, he believes he can aid Valancunias with his adjustment to the NBA game.
He recently told sportsnet.ca’s Paul Jones that he needs to, “help Jonas adjust to the NBA game because he’s in the same situation I was. Coming in at 20-years old, as a seven-footer from Europe so it’s going to be hard but he’s a really smart guy so I think he’s going to adjust quickly.”
Valanciunas isn’t the only new face that Bargnani will have to adjust to playing with as Kyle Lowry is also expected to be in the first unit once the season gets underway. Bargnani had an excellent rapport with last year’s starter, Jose Calderon, and although he hasn’t played much with Lowry yet, what little time the two have shared on the floor has created a positive impression.
“I haven’t played much with Kyle as there hasn’t been much time but I can already tell he is a very good player,” Bargnani said. “He can score, he can drive and he always makes the extra pass when he draws the defence. It’s going to be easy to play with him.”
Last season, Bargnani led the team in scoring (19.5 PPG) but more importantly, had stepped up his game on the defensive end before a calf injury struck, limiting him to 35 games on the season. He spent the summer at home in Italy, working to recover from injury and says that he feels great as he looks to build on his individual success from a year ago.
“I feel good. I had the whole summer to recover from the injury,” Bargnani declared. “I put some work in individually, lifting weights. I feel good. I can’t wait to start.
“We just have the talent. Kyle (Lowry), Landry (Fields), Jonas, all those guys. We just have the depth and we just have all of the pieces to win in the NBA.”
Twitter handle: @AndreaBargnani
Sample tweet:
Comunque Grandi Azzurri. Spagna fortissima, niente da dire.
— Andrea Bargnani (@AndreaBargnani) July 1, 2012
