With the regular season fast approaching, Sportsnet’s panel of Raptors & NBA experts will be answering the burning questions heading into the 2015-16 campaign. In this edition of the Raptors Roundtable:
There have been plenty of personnel changes to the roster yet the nucleus (Kyle Lowry, DeMar DeRozan, and Jonas Valanciunas) remains the same. Realistically, how much do you expect the new players to affect the team’s style and outcome?
Eric Smith, voice of the Raptors on SN590 The Fan: Quite a bit actually. I think Demarre Carroll’s defensive prowess could (read: should) have a positive impact on not only the starting five, but the rest of the team as well. Plus, the 2nd unit is bolstered with some defence and gritty guys like Cory Joseph and Bismack Biyombo as well. Toronto had — and still has — enough offence. It’s the defence that needed to improve. And, at least on paper, it has.
Craig Battle, senior editor: It’s not so much the effect of the incoming players as the after effects of losing some players from last year’s team. As often as Lou Williams and Greivis Vasquez hit big shots and single-handedly ignited the offence, they hiked bad ones early in the clock and reduced the rest of the team to mere onlookers. Without those guys—who could at least ostensibly create their own shots—the team as a whole will have to move the ball more often to get good looks. They might even pass it into the post occasionally.
Paul Jones, analyst and radio voice: The new personnel will have an impact as Casey attempts to restore a defensive identity. Your defensive identity is tied to your offensive style— a fast-breaking up-tempo team plays at a pace that is incongruent with staying in a defensive stance for 18-20 seconds. DeMarre Carroll, Cory Joseph and Bismack Biyombo will help establish a defensive mindset. Joseph and Carroll are also both descendants of the San Antonio system where ball movement is a key, which will also help Casey in his quest to have the ball and players move more on offense.
Dave Zarum, NBA editor: Yes, obviously the new group—Carroll, Joseph, Biyombo, Powell, Wright, and to a lesser degree Scola— will help the Raptors make significant strides defensively and should help the team’s chances in the post-season when the game slows down and the importance of each possession is magnified. But the fact remains that the fortunes of the Raptors will still live and die off the performances of the teams stars. A down year from either Lowry or DeRozan could sink the Raps’ chances of avoiding another first-round sweep. Conversely, an all-star-type campaign from both, or a true breakout season from Valanciunas would likely make a bigger difference than, say, Joseph’s reliability off the bench. The new pieces are nice, and should complement the core well, but they won’t be enough to rescue Toronto if the stars don’t shine.
Evan Rosser, senior editor: That stretch last season where Lou Williams hit three buzzer-beaters in two games was a great time to be alive, but I’m looking forward to an end-of-quarter play that isn’t just: “Give the ball to Lou, clear out and pray he beats his man in iso.” Pretty confident that’ll happen this year.
https://youtu.be/TjWRC6nuBXI?t=2m38s
Steven Loung, associate editor: The new faces will drastically affect the way this team plays. It’s pretty clear that Casey was in Ujiri’s ear all off-season, as everyone that was brought in is known to be a defender. Not to mention, the guys who departed, with the exception of Amir Johnson, were known more for their offensive capabilities. So this team’s identity will shift back to that of a defensive one, for better or worse.
Michael Hoad: In addition to the improved defence, I expect this group to rely more on ball movement than the isolation-happy 2014-15 installment. The Raptors should qualify for the playoffs for a third consecutive season, but I think they are primed for another first-round exit in an improved Eastern Conference, especially without the luxury of a guaranteed top-four seed for winning the Atlantic Division.