The AltRaps Blog

No, I don’t think Richard Jefferson allegedly getting into a scrap in a Minneapolis bar last January makes him any less desireable to the Raptors, who will probably have him on the list of players they’d think about trading for.

Hey, when you’re bouncing names around to fill the Swirsky void, remember this: You’re looking for a play-by-play guy, not an analyst. That’s an entirely different, and some would say more difficult, job than the one Jack and Leo do on TV and Eric Smith does on the radio.

Best possible name I’ve heard out there is Seattle’s Kevin Calabro, who would be in any discussion of best play-by-play guys in the league. He’s said he’s not going to Oklahoma City – which shows me he’s smart – but maybe Toronto’s got some more allure?

Assistant coach Jay Triano will take part in Basketball Without Borders clinics in Istanbul, Turkey in early June and director of global scouting Masai Ujuri and assistant trainer for strength and conditioning Keith D’Amelia will be in Johannesburg for clinics in September.

- Toronto Star

Man, I am going to miss him. To think that there won’t ever be another call to “get out the salami and cheese” is heartbreaking. Quite. I think this hurts even more than the severe rapeage playoff ouster at the hands of Dwight Howard and the Orlando Magic.

Chuck was a rudey. Still is. Was hands down the best play-by-play announcer in this city. Joe Bowen is up there but I think Chuck’s, well, Chuckisms put him over the top.

- Bleacher Report

Two things led to Swirsky’s decline. Vince and TV. Fans did not like the fact that the TV guys never called out Vince Carter. It bugged us to no end, watching Vince smile away at the end of 20 point losses while the announcers completely ignored this sacrilege was too much to bear. Excusing Carter’s behavior when he was on the Raptors and then heavily criticizing him once he was on the Nets was something no Raptor fan can forget or forgive. It’s understandable on the part of Swirsky/Rautins but its also unforgivable on the part of the fans. Here was a superstar that nobody had the balls to say wasn’t pulling his weight but the second he moved to a different team, you suddenly grew nuts to say what you saw? Fans like me couldn’t get a grip on this and lost a large amount of respect for the people we rely on to bring us games.

- Arsenalist

What I do find hard to swallow is the loss of Chuck Swirsky, the Raptors’ color commentator. This is a devastating loss to the Toronto Raptors, the organization, the city and the fans. It is one thing to have a person who comments on the games, it is another to have the type of class-act that Chuck Swirsky is, as a man, as an ambassador to the game, as a fan. Chuck was often criticized for being a homer, someone who said things about the Raptors that a professional like himself should never say. He voted Andrea Bargnani as rookie of the year, even though every single voter voted for Brandon Roy. He was the only man to vote for Bargnani.

- In The Blink Of An Eye

The sudden departure of Swirsky has been almost like a death in the Raptor Family. But Chuck is alive and well and doing what is best for his family. I personally don’t need to know exactly what that is to say good for him. There is a lot of people that throw around moralistic terms like family values. But this is a living breathing example of them in action. I have had my differences with what Chuck did from a broadcasting point of view. But I have always said that he is a first rate human being and based on that I respect him. A job no matter how great, does not replace a family. I work from home based on my own family matters and I am fine with doing so. It is the right thing for me to do and how I can look myself in the mirror each morning. I have no doubt the choice Chuck has made is along the same lines as that. Most Raptor Fans are sad to see him go. But I hope after the shock wears off they can all wish Chuck Swirsky well and thank him for 10 years of great service. He will always be a part of Raptor History through his fine work over the past 10 years. Salami and Cheese may now just be something heard on a classic Raptor game. But it will not be forgotten. I respect Chuck Swirsky for having the Onions to do the right thing for his family and SO SHOULD YOU.

- Dino Nation Blog

Thinking back, Swirsky has managed to give us his take on the Raptors when a young phenom by the name of Vince Carter took the franchise to great heights. Swirsky called the first playoff games and the first series wins. He called the Chris Child miscue and the first CB4 game. Swirsky was there when Charlie Villanueva made 48, and was there when Kobe made 81. In the years that he called Raptors ball, he gave us his take on the Carter trade and the rebirth of a franchise looking for a new identity. Some might say that he was a bit over the top, but no one could doubt his own passion for our local hardcourt heroes and he always gave it his all even in the darkest days of the franchise.

- Hoops Addict