In the midst of a soft stretch in their schedule, the Toronto Raptors, while still winning, aren’t inspiring the same level of confidence that was seen and felt during the club’s remarkable 13-2 start to the season.
It’s indisputable that wins—no matter how ugly or lucky—are good, but given Toronto’s potential (even with DeMar DeRozan sidelined) it’s a little concerning to see the team struggle to close out the likes of the Denver Nuggets and New York Knicks this past week.
The Raptors have historically played to the level of their competition, and that was the case in both those contests.
Hats off to both opponents for bringing it hard, and Toronto should also be congratulated for pulling out clutch wins in overtime.
With that said, those games should never have made it to OT. The Raptors should’ve had full control throughout, as was the case against the Indiana Pacers on Friday.
Simply put, the Nuggets and Knicks aren’t in the same class as the Raptors, and Toronto needs to let opponents that are beneath them know that.
Record
18-6 (1st in Atlantic Division, 1st in Eastern Conference)
What happened?
Dwane Casey gives his team a “B” grade at quarter mark
What was learned?
The defence is improving: Defence has been a real concern for the Raptors this season, but it looks like the team is making serious strides in the area. Over the Raptors’ last four games, they’re giving up just 100.4 points per 100 possessions (three points per 100 possessions below their season average) and only allowing opponents to shoot 42.2 percent from the field.
The Drake Night T-shirt design was released: Drake Night is back, scheduled for Wednesday’s tilt against the Brooklyn Nets. Just like last season, every ticket holder will get a special T-shirt to commemorate the event. Check out the design here.
Upcoming slate
- Monday 7:30 pm – TOR vs ORL
- Wednesday 8:00 pm – TOR vs BKN
- Friday 7:30 pm – TOR at DET
- Sunday 3:30 pm – TOR vs NY
Storylines to follow
Calm before the storm: As mentioned earlier, the Raptors are in the middle of one of the lighter portions of their schedule (facing sub-.500 teams for six straight games) and must take full advantage of it. After this week, the team will embark on a six-game road trip to allow the World Junior Hockey Championship to take over the Air Canada Centre.
The roadie will start in Chicago on the second leg of a back-to-back and get tougher from there as the following five games will all be out West. So it would be in the Raptors’ best interest to bank wins now, while the going is easier.
Good Lou or bad Lou? Lou Williams is one of the most dynamic forces off the bench in the NBA and a definite contender for sixth-man of the year because of his ability to light it up. However, as awesome a scorer as he can be—just look at what he did to the Nuggets and Pacers—when he’s off, he’s really off and the team suffers. Case-in-point, against the Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks, Williams went a combined 7-for-23.
The Raptors’ offence can be explosive and big a part of that is whether or not Williams is feeling it. It’s worth keeping an eye on whether or not “Sweet Lou” has got the sweet stroke working on a night-to-night basis.