Bargnani closing in on return

The Toronto Raptors once again took the floor without Andrea Bargnani and Jerryd Bayless on Friday night in their 94-84 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers but both players appear to be on the cusp of returning to the lineup.

The Raptors flew out of Toronto to Los Angeles after the game and will hold a practice there on Saturday in preparation for their matchup with the Clippers on Sunday.

Raptors coach Dwane Casey said that Bargnani would likely take part. The Raptors leading scorer is expected to see some game action by early next week however.

"If he doesn't go today, he will go this weekend or in Phoenix (on Tuesday)," Casey said.

The Raptors coach admitted that Bayless was closer to hitting the court than Bargnani after having had a couple of full practices with the team but that they were in no rush to bring either of them back.

"As an organization we are going to (err) on the side of caution," Casey said. "We're going to make sure that they are fully ready to go."

Bargnani wants to get back to the lineup ASAP according to his coach.

"Andrea's more chomping at the bit than we are. We want to make sure that we go slowly and he's fully ready to go."