One Step Forward; Two Steps Back

Make no mistake about it, we let that one get away. And no offense to Sacramento, but that was a game we should have won. Unfortunately, in the world of sports, you don't win games you should win, you win games you do win. And on a Wednesday night in Sacramento, the Toronto Raptors didn't even come close to getting to that W.

This was a tough one to swallow. Especially after the game against the Lakers. You show all that courage, heart, and determination one night, only to follow it up with disgusting performance the next night? That's unacceptable - and downright anti-climatic. It was like watching Jerry Stackhouse dunk after Vince in the dunk-off all over again.

And talk about embarrassing...

This was a Kings team that had only won 21 games before their dismantling of Toronto. And this was a Raptors squad that was fighting for their playoff lives, and coming off a very gritty performance against the defending champions. How did this happen?

My shot in the dark guess? Overconfidence.

Yes, I'm still talking about the same Toronto Raptors team who's reeling right now. But perhaps their showing against L.A. caused them to maybe overlook Sacramento as an easy win. Case in point - When a fan asked Bosh if he was coming to Sacramento next year, CB4 replied with a resounding "Hell No!" Later that game, Jack went on to tell the fan "Ain't nobody coming here...nobody even knows it's in California."

Clearly, our Raptors squad felt like they were above Sacramento; you don't say stuff like that if you weren't confident about it. But in all honesty, we're in no position to be feeling that way. No - I'm not echoing Lamar Odom's words, because I have no problem with the Raptors showing confidence. In fact, every night, I think the Raptors should play like they know they can hang with every single team. What I don't think we can do right now is something that only elite teams do, and that's act like they're above anybody. We can't take anyone lightly nor can we feel like there's absolutely no way we can lose, especially with our defense regressing again. The Raptors can play on anyone's level if they don't ease up on the pedal, and when they realize that, this team will easily get back their 5th seed.

But at least for one night, that Sacramento Kings fan was the one that felt good after watching the game - and he didn't even have to switch time zones.