The offense also showcased what Jordan has been preaching since being named head coach, and that's the vast talents of newly appointed point guard Lou Williams.

The big men hit the open 15- to 18-footers - which is another design of the offense - and the defense created turnovers, 25 in all, that produced fastbreak points.

All well and good, indeed, even though the Raptors were playing without forward Chris Bosh and swingman Hedo Turkoglu. So to compare last night's preseason-opening, 107-98 win at the John LaBatt Centre, to passing a test with flying colors might be a stretch. Let's say it was a pop-quiz, and the team did well.

"I was happy with the way we moved the ball and I was happy that we seemed to know a little bit more of the offense than I even thought they did," Jordan said. "I thought the regular rotation of guys did a very good job, especially on the defensive end. They passed the ball around well and really got after it on the defensive end. Which is no surprise, being as they've been doing that since the first day."

When the regular rotation of players were on the floor, the offense really seemed to flow well. The Sixers' lead was as high as 18 in the third quarter and was at 85-72 at the end of three. With guys who are trying to make the team taking up the minutes late in the third and most of the fourth, the game got real sloppy and close. But that's preseason basketball.

"I thought we did a very good job running the offense," said forward Andre Iguodala, who finished with 15 points and eight assists. "As long as we share the ball and make the right passes, we're going to be OK and be able to score some points."

True enough. The Sixers scored 65 points in the first half and finished the game with 32 assists on 38 baskets. Many of the baskets that didn't receive an assist came from Lou Williams, who made a night of breaking down his defender and getting to the hoop. He finished with a team-high 17 points on 6-for-8 shooting.

"Lou did what we want him to do, and that's be Lou," Jordan said of his point guard, starting his first-ever NBA game, preseason or otherwise. "He has the capability to do that. And he hit the outside shots. When he does that, he's very difficult to defend."

Jordan also praised the play of Jason Smith, who was seeing his first live action in more than a year after sitting out last season with a torn ACL. Smith played 25 minutes, grabbed six rebounds, and scored five points.

"It was great to see Jason play so well," Jordan said. "He showed that he's healthy and capable to give us quality minutes."

A big sigh of relief for Smith.

"When I got out there, my heart was beating so fast," he said. "But I did feel good out there. My timing is still a little off, but my shooting touch seems to be there. It's just a matter of working hard in practice and trying to keep getting better and better."

Which is what Jordan expects from the defense, although it is at a higher point than where he thought it would be at this time of the year.

"We forced them into 25 turnovers and were able to score 31 points off of them," the coach said. "That is what we want to see. Don't forget, we want to get out and break as much as we can, and not have to get into an offense."

Though the Raptors didn't floor their full lineup, that didn't bother Jordan. He wanted his team to concentrate on themselves, not the opponent, or lack thereof.

"We want to perform ourselves, we're not really playing against them," he said. "We want to see if we can play at a high level, keep our concentration and keep focus. I'm not really concerned if we're playing a CYO team from the neighborhood."

The regulars had done what was expected, which is a scaled-down version of what is expected once the regular season begins at Orlando on Oct. 28.

Six shots

 

Eddie Jordan praised the play of rookie Jrue Holiday, who hit two big three-pointers after entering the game late in the third quarter . . . Neither Chris Bosh nor Hedo Turkoglu made the trip west for last night's game, and neither will play against the Sixers tonight in Toronto. Bosh has been bothered by a strained left hamstring and Turkoglu is getting some rest after competing in the NBA Finals in June and being a member of the Turkish national team in the world qualifying championships this summer . . . Jason Smith was the first off the bench, followed by Willie Green, Marreese Speights, Jason Kapono and Royal Ivey. Speights was very active in collecting 12 points and nine rebounds . . . Jason Kapono is wearing No. 72. His reason? "It's a rare number and I'm a rare person."