The OTHER number 15, just as blameworthy. (Lucas Oleniuk/Toronto Star)

Yes, I blame Jorge Garbajosa for the rock-bottominess of the Toronto Raptors. Why? Follow this trail of bread crumbs:

2005-06 — the Raptors are on their way to finishing a craptacular 27-55 season. That summer, Bryan Colangelo brings in nine new faces, including TJ Ford, Anthony Parker, Rashoooo, and Garbajosa. Expectations are low.

2006-07 — the Raptors have a HUGE, HUGE turnaround, matching the franchise-best mark of 47-35 and getting back to the playoffs for the first time since 2002 (which was during the Lenny Wilkens era. Lenny. Wilkens.); hopes are high. And Garbajosa breaks his leg in a really gross way; off to surgery and rehab and … the Olympics qualifier???

2007-08 — Garbo plays seven games during which he pretends to be healthy. He gets bought out, the Raptors fall apart. The Raps limp to a disappointing 41-41 finish and are booted out in the first round of the playoffs again.

2008-09 — BC tries to patch up this roster by swapping malcontent TJ for former all-star big Jermaine O’Neal. The team stumbles out of the gate; fans and media talk about the future and rock bottom.

What was the turning point from winning club to losing? Yes, Garbo. Though out of position, he covered the now-weak 3 spot. He came up with key plays time and again. He gave the Raptors defensive smarts. And worst of all, he helped a mediocre squad overachieve and its fans overexpect. Yeah, that’s right. I said “overexpect.”

How did all this happen? You could blame Garbo for playing injured for those seven games. You could blame him for playing in the Olympics qualifier in Spain. I, however, blame him for having Alvinwilliamsitis. That’s a disorder in which a player works unnecessarily hard and while seriously injured.

So, Jorge Garbajosa, if that is your real name, have fun in Russia. Say hi to Carlos Delfino for us. We want him to come back … but not you.

A familiar name resurfaces: Robert Archibald, former Raptors centre and Grizzlies’ second-round pick. Raul Jimenez is praising his defensive work(!) for Unicaja Malaga, Jorge Garbajosa’s old stomping grounds.

Archibald has a special place in my heart because he’s Scottish (like my wife), “the only Scot to make it in the NBA.” Nice to see him finding success in basketball, showing some veteran wiliness against Sofoklis “Baby Shaq” Schortsianitis and other Euroleague stars.

The following is the aforementioned remainder of a quick Q&A with Raul Jimenez.

Pete: Everybody is talking about Ricky Rubio. Is he as good as people think he is? What makes him so special?

Raul: Yes he is. He played for the first time in ACB league against professional players when he was 14 years old. Now he’s 18 and has a silver medal and some Spanish and European titles. He has played in Euroleague [since he was] 16 years old.

He’s a very intelligent player. He knows the game as if he was 30 years old. A hard worker, his coaches love him, his teammates love him. He’s a great defender, and is getting better every day. Not only he can steal the ball, he can make good helps, force offensive fouls, grab rebounds, block shots. His [wingspan] is 6′7″ and his hands are really quick. He can pass, he can drive, he can shoot (he’s improving his mid and long range shooting).

The thing I like most is that he can play a final with a smile on his face. He enjoys the game. And his mind is clear: He’s staying in Europe for some years, he knows he has time before going to America and he will not force that trip. So you’ll have to wait a little bit my friends…

Pete: Who else in Spain should NBA fans be excited about?

Raul: There already are NBA scouts watching Victor Claver, a forward from Pamesa Valencia [Pete's note: Check out the Antawn Jamison/Jorge Garbajosa comparison on NBADraft.net]. He will probably be on the National Team next summer. He’s a good 3PT shooter and has a great ability to play in open court. For his size – 6′9″ – he should be a force in the low post against forwards, but he still has to develop this area of his game (he has the skills, but he needs the strength and, more important, the will). In Spain he can also play power forward without problems but in USA he would be a “3″. He’s got great potential, but a long way to be an NBA player.