Throughout the 2016-17 NBA season we’ll take a look back at the week that was and set up the week to come in Raptorland
For the Toronto Raptors, life is good right now.
They’ve won eight of their last nine, boast an offensive rating of 114.2 points per 100 possessions — tied for tops in the league with the Golden State Warriors — and a net rating of 9.8 — good for second in the league along with the Los Angeles Clippers. The Raptors are comfortably sitting in second place in the Eastern Conference with a 16-7 record.
There can be no doubt, the Raptors are damn good. The questions around the team that remain however, is are they good enough? And if not, how can they improve?
Context is required to answer both queries. If you’re simply looking at the team based off where they are in the standings and what their record is, then it should definitely be considered strong enough to make it back to the conference final and maybe reach the championship round itself.
However, after seeing the Raptors lose to the Cleveland Cavaliers again last Monday (their third loss to Cleveland this season and fifth straight if you include last season’s playoffs), it clearly looks as if there’s something missing for this team to compete and ultimately win an NBA title.
But what is it?
Could it be another star? The DeMarcus Cousins rumours just won’t seem to go away. Is he really the answer? If he is, how would they even make a deal for him?
The Raptors still have an extra first-round pick they can deal, so that’s a trade chip they can potentially use. Jonas Valanciunas would also be interesting as his skill set is very similar to that of Cousins’, although he’s locked under contract for much longer than the Sacramento Kings centre is. Then there’s a guy like Patrick Patterson whose deal is expiring at the end of the season or Delon Wright, who will likely be back from injury in the new year but still probably won’t be able to get any burn playing behind Kyle Lowry and Cory Joseph.
Long story short, the Raptors have pieces that could be used in a trade without sacrificing their depth too much. What’s more important to try to figure out is if Cousins, or anyone else would even work for them and actually make them better.
The NBA’s Feb. 23 trade deadline is just a little over two months away. Now is the time to begin thinking about it with the landscape beginning to take shape. Where the Raptors should make a move will obviously depend on that, but as it stands now, if their goal is to win an NBA title, the Raptors need something to take them over the top.
Should Norm start every game?
Norman Powell has been the main beneficiary of DeMarre Carroll’s rest program this season, starting the games Carroll has sat out (usually the second end of back-to-backs) as the team continues to be cautious with his knee.
In the five games Powell has started this season, the second-year wing out of UCLA has flourished, averaging 15.6 points per game on 52 per cent shooting from the floor and 50 per cent from three-point range in addition to the lockdown defence he plays, particularly in crunch time. By comparison, Carroll is averaging 10.1 points per game on 44.2 per cent shooting from the field and 36.8 per cent shooting from deep this season in all 18 games he’s both played and started.
Although the sample size is much smaller it’s worth asking: should Powell be the permanent starter in place of Carroll? At the moment he provides much of the same that Carroll does with better shooting, but minus the very smart off-ball movement and cutting the veteran swingman provides.
It would also be beneficial to both Carroll and the Raptors. The team clearly wants to limit the amount he plays, fearful of his injury history, so having him come off the bench more consistently would allow them to monitor his minutes while also keeping him happy by still having him play almost every game.
This is something worth keeping an eye on as the season progresses, particularly in the new year when, supposedly, Carroll’s playing-time restrictions will be lifted and he’ll be given the green light to play in back-to-backs again.
