Toronto Raptors

Andrea Bargnani Italian pronunciation: [anˈdrɛa barˈɲani], nicknamed "Il Mago" , is an Italian professional basketball player with the Toronto Raptors of the National Basketball Association. He was selected first overall in the 2006 NBA Draft. He is a power forward/center... standing at 213 cm and weighing 113.4 kg . Prior to his NBA career, Bargnani played for Benetton Treviso in the Italian Lega A and the Euroleague. In his first two seasons with the Raptors, he helped the team reach the NBA Playoffs, including the Atlantic Division title in 2006–07. Bargnani began his career in 2002–03 with Stella Azzurra Roma in Italy's Serie B2 division, averaging 13.2 points and 4.5 rebounds in 23 games. He then signed with Lega A side Benetton Treviso for the 2003–04 season and played there until 2006. In 2003–04, he posted averages of 4.9 points and 2.0 rebounds in 10 games in his first Lega A season with Benetton. He made eight appearances in Euroleague action, recording 2.4 points and 1.5 rebounds an outing.
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Charlie Alexander Villanueva is an American basketball player who currently plays for the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association. The son of Dominican immigrants, Villanueva was raised in Elmhurst, Queens, New York. He was drafted at the age of 20, seventh overall pick, in the 2005... NBA Draft by the Toronto Raptors. He also holds Dominican citizenship and therefore he has represented the Dominican Republic national basketball team in international competition. During his freshman year, Villanueva attended Newtown High School in Queens, New York, where he was a teammate of future NBA player Smush Parker. He spent his next three years at Blair Academy in Blairstown, New Jersey, where he played with another future NBA player, Luol Deng. Villanueva received All-American honors as a senior and was named New Jersey Co-Player of the Year. He entered the 2003 NBA Draft, but withdrew his eligibility so he could play basketball at the University of Connecticut.
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Joseph "Joey" Graham is an American professional basketball player. Graham played at Central Florida from 2000 to 2002, and at Oklahoma State from 2003 to 2005. After a stellar senior year at Oklahoma State, Graham was drafted by the Toronto Raptors with the 16th overall pick of the 2005 NBA... Draft. Graham also earned a degree in aviation management while at Oklahoma State University. Graham was selected with the 16th overall pick by the Toronto Raptors in the 2005 draft. He was chosen with one of the two first round picks acquired from the New Jersey Nets in exchange for Vince Carter during the 2004–05 season. Joey started his rookie season as a Raptors starter, playing as small forward. After five games, he was moved out of the starting lineup and replaced by the 5-year Raptors veteran, Morris Peterson. For his entire rookie season, Graham averaged 6.5 points per game. On October 29, 2007, the Raptors extended Graham's contract which ran through 2008–09. During the 2008–09 season, Graham set career-highs in points and rebounds and tied a career-high in minutes.
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The Cleveland Cavaliers are a professional basketball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They began playing in the National Basketball Association in... 1970 as an expansion team. They play their home games at Quicken Loans Arena. The Cavaliers first began play in the NBA in 1970 as an expansion team under the ownership of Nick Mileti. The father of Major League Baseball pitcher Brett Tomko, Jerry Tomko, submitted the winning entry to name the team the "Cavaliers" through a competition sponsored by the The Plain Dealer, supporters preferred it to "Jays", "Foresters" and "Presidents". Playing their home games at Cleveland Arena under the direction of head coach Bill Fitch, they compiled a league-worst 15–67 record. The team hoped to build around the number one 1971 draft pick Austin Carr who had set numerous scoring records at Notre Dame, but Carr severely injured his leg shortly into his pro career and never was able to realize his potential. The following seasons saw the Cavaliers gradually improve their on-court performance, thanks to season-by-season additions of talented players such as Bingo Smith, Jim Chones, Jim Cleamons and Dick Snyder.
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The Indiana Pacers are a professional basketball team based in Indianapolis, Indiana. They are members of the Central Division of the Eastern... Conference of the National Basketball Association . The Pacers play their home games at Bankers Life Fieldhouse, which they share with their WNBA counterpart, the Indiana Fever, also owned by Herb Simon. The Indiana Pacers began play in 1967 as members of the American Basketball Association , in which they won three championships and created a dynasty. In 1976, the Pacers moved from the ABA to the NBA. The financial strains from the move led to the ending of the Indiana dynasty and the beginnings of many struggles for the Pacers organization in the subsequent decade. The acquisition of Reggie Miller in 1987 marked the start of a long resurgence for the franchise that peaked with its appearance in the 2000 NBA Finals. However, since then the Pacers have not seen much playoff success, and even experienced a four-season playoff drought from 2007 to 2010 before making the playoffs again in 2011 and 2012.
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The Orlando Magic is a professional basketball team based in Orlando, Florida. They play in the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the... National Basketball Association . The franchise was founded in 1989 as an expansion franchise and has had such notable NBA stars such as Shaquille O'Neal, Penny Hardaway, Grant Hill, Tracy McGrady, Steve Francis, Dwight Howard, Hedo Türkoğlu, Vince Carter, Nick Anderson, Gilbert Arenas and Rashard Lewis throughout its young history. The franchise has also been in the playoffs for more than half of their existence . Orlando has been the most successful of the four expansion teams brought into the league in 1988 and 1989 in terms of winning percentage. As of 2011, they are the only team in the "big four" sports leagues to play in the city of Orlando. The Orlando Magic went to the NBA as an expansion franchise in 1989. A contest sponsored by Orlando Magic team officials and the local Orlando Sentinel newspaper allowed the community to suggest names for their new franchise.
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The Charlotte Bobcats are a professional basketball team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. They play in the Southeast Division of the Eastern... Conference in the National Basketball Association. The Bobcats were established in 2004 as an expansion team, two seasons after Charlotte's previous NBA team, the Charlotte Hornets, relocated to New Orleans. The team is owned by former NBA player Michael Jordan, who acquired the team in 2010. The Bobcats play their home games at Time Warner Cable Arena in center city Charlotte. As of the end of the 2011–12 season, the Bobcats have compiled a record of 229–411. In their 8-year history they have qualified for the postseason just once, which was during the 2009–10 season when they achieved a record of 44–38. When the Charlotte Hornets relocated to New Orleans in 2002, the NBA promised Charlotte leaders that the city would be granted an NBA expansion team for the 2004–05 season. Several ownership groups, including one led by former Boston Celtics star Larry Bird, made bids for the team. On December 18, 2002, a group led by Black Entertainment Television founder Robert L.
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