It’s an obvious but undeniable truth that teams want—and need—to be playing their best by the time the post-season rolls around. Simply put, Toronto has not played consistently at a high level for more than a month. However, Monday’s win over Houston may have been a turning point.
Without Kyle Lowry (back) for the third-straight game (and fifth in the last six), Dwane Casey’s crew held James Harden and the Rockets to less than 42 percent shooting from the floor, neutralizing the MVP candidate in the final frame behind a remarkable performance from DeMar DeRozan.
“He knows my competitive spirit and I know his,” said DeRozan of Harden. “Every time we go out there and play against each other we are going to go at each other and have fun.
“I’m close with his family and he’s close with my family, so it’s always cool, knowing we can cherish this 20 years, 30 years from now.”
DeRozan finished the game with a career-high 42 points and tied a career high with 11 rebounds, as well. But his coach was as impressed with what he saw from the 2013-14 All Star on the other end of the floor.
“The way he played defence set the tone for everyone else,” said Casey. “Guys dug in.”
That’s the approach and attitude Casey knows the Raptors must have when the playoffs begin in just over three weeks. Toronto has proven many times this season that they can hang with the best offensive clubs in the league. But steady defence continues to elude them. And if Casey wants to see his guys advance and achieve any kind of success in the second season, Toronto will have to find a way to stop people.
“Our whole theme from here on out, not only [Monday] but Wednesday night and the rest of the way is going to be defence,” Casey said. “We’re going to find ways to score. So we’re going to have to have a defensive focus.”
The game against Houston marked the final time this year that Toronto will face an opponent that is above .500. The Raptors had lost 10 in a row against winning teams, but they now face a closing schedule that will seem them match up against Minnesota, Brooklyn, Boston (twice), Charlotte (also, twice), Orlando and Miami—not exactly a threatening stretch. Yet the defensive woes the Raps have struggled with all season mean that none of these contests is a cakewalk.
“I’m just concerned about our team,” said Casey. “Who we play—what their record is—is irrelevant. I don’t care who it is, whether it’s Houston or Minnesota, we’ve got to worry about us.”
After the win over the Rockets, Casey stressed that Toronto will be approaching all of the final games with the same defensive mindset the team had on Monday. But they may have to continue to battle without Lowry’s services.
The team has not put a timetable on the point guard’s return but it sounds like his absence could, in theory, last another couple of games at the very least. In fact, Casey said that even if Toronto were playing post-season games right now, Lowry would likely still be sidelined.
“I wish we had a magic wand to erase the injury or whatever it is, but we’ve got to make sure we go ahead and try to get a rhythm without him until he’s ready to come back. The point guard sets the tone for your team defensively, and in our situation, our offence also starts with Kyle a little bit too.”