Written By: Cameron Schoffro
Edited By: Nabil Haider
The Toronto Raptors entered this season knowing they were playing 72 road games, as their home base was relocated to Tampa Bay due to COVID restrictions. Nevertheless, when evaluating a team’s performance, one must see the good in the bad and the bad in the good. This year, they’ve experienced the most regular season adversity in recent memory; Kyle Lowry summarized the start to the season succinctly when he said, “this sucks.”
The Good:
Numbers Don’t Match Results:
Why have they been so bad to start the season? The short answer is: they haven’t. Sure, Toronto doesn’t appear to be the championship contender they once were, although they have a positive point differential of +1.3, contrary to their negative record of 10-13, and currently reside on the brink of the playoffs. They stand a fighting chance in every game, even when they lose. Moreover, they are in the top half of the league in both offensive and defensive rating; all of which favours a turnaround for the Raptors. They’ve been beaten by a single basket three times, and if they had successfully closed out those games, they would be standing at a 13-10 record and 4th in the conference. Ignoring the first ten games of the season, their record is 8-5, which would be a fantastic pace. So before anyone thinks about jumping off the bandwagon, it’s important to remember that perhaps this is all just an overreaction to an uncharacteristically cold start.
Kawhi 0.5?
Raptors fans have been anticipating a breakout season for OG Anunoby, especially due to his striking resemblance to Kawhi, in both his demeanour and his play style on the court. Finally, he seems to be taking that coveted next step which every raptors fan has envisioned. His scoring is better than it ever has been, and he’s making a case for an All-Defensive selection, leading the league in steals. He has expanded his offensive repertoire; both his ballhandling and shooting have significantly improved. OG’s performance is crucial to the success of Toronto, he is the perfect 3-and-D player to complement the rest of their roster.
The Block Quebecois:
Chris Boucher, hailing from Montreal, has emerged as a star on both ends of the floor, thus kickstarting his campaign for Sixth Man of The Year; he’s averaging an impressive 2 blocks per game, while also stretching the floor, shooting 44% from behind the arc. After an off-season that largely depleted Toronto’s frontcourt contingent, Boucher has partially filled the ever so evident vacancy at centre. If he can continue to improve, Toronto could very well have found their long-term solution. Additionally, Boucher’s ability to stretch the floor and protect the rim mirrors the traits that make Pascal Siakam so effective. Having Pascal around should help Boucher take his game to the next level.
Good Guard!
VanVleet has been exceptional this year; Fred continues to improve each season. With his 54-point performance against the Magic on February 2nd, he set the franchise record for most points in a game and the NBA record for most points in a game by an undrafted player. Freddy got paid in the offseason, and it appears Masai is getting every penny’s worth out of that investment. Of course, Kyle Lowry provides stability as the true leader of the team. You know what you’re going to get out of Kyle “King of the Little Things” Lowry on a nightly basis, he directly contributes to winning basketball. Kyle is ageing like fine wine, at 34; his play has yet to deteriorate in his 14th season.
The Bad:
Where are the Bigs?
What makes this team different from last year? Masai Ujiri let both Serge Ibaka, an All-Defensive talent, and Marc Gasol, a former Defensive Player of the Year, walk in free agency, leaving a void to be filled at the centre position. In past years, the Raptors prided themselves on their team defence, but that begins with accomplished rim protectors, like Ibaka and Gasol. Masai recruited Aron Baynes, who then proceeded to be the 2nd least efficient scoring centre in the NBA, min. 100 attempts. Nick Nurse has resorted to small ball in crunch time because they need every player on the court to be a scoring threat. Ujiri believed in the next-man-up mentality of the Raptors to fill the centre position by committee, but they have failed to do so. They require some significant frontcourt upgrades if they want to return to being contenders.
Next-Man-Up:
Toronto isn’t as deep as they were in years past, and an indication of this deficiency is Stanley Johnson. He hardly played outside of garbage time last year, but now he’s become a legitimate rotational player. Norman Powell continues to carry the scoring load from the bench, but there should be some more production from the rest of the team. The depth was bound to regress when you replace Ibaka and Gasol with Aron Baynes and Alex Len, but there is an undesirable burden is on the stars to perform at an elite level on a nightly basis. The emergences of Yuta Watanabe and Deandre Bembry could be promising for a team lacking in depth on the wing. Additionally, regular minutes on the Raptors 905 for Malachi Flynn and Paul Watson could very likely give them the platform to grow and develop into regular rotation pieces in the NBA.
Spicy Gone Cold?
Pascal Siakam has struggled to carry the burden of being the #1 scoring option, demonstrated by his scoring and eFG% taking a step back from last season when he was voted an All-Star Starter. Siakam is consistently impressive on the defensive end due to his combination of speed and length. He was vocal about the mental health hardships he endured during the playoffs in the bubble, which consequently affected his play and love of basketball. Pascal hasn’t been awful by any means; he’s merely failed to reach the bar he set during last year’s regular season.
Embrace the Tank?
The Raptors were the first NBA Champions to not have a lottery pick on the roster; Masai has filled the team with several studs through the latter portion of the draft and undrafted free agents. Toronto is trending towards the playoffs, so this is far-fetched; however, looking on the bright-side of a potentially failed season would be acquiring a premier prospect in the draft. Masai could stock the shelves and avoid rebuilding if he can draft the next star in Toronto since they missed out on the Giannis sweepstakes.
It’s far too early to hit the panic button on the Raptors. Hopefully, they’ve gotten comfortable in their new home in Tampa Bay and can continue their recent success. They must persist through adversity and use it as an opportunity to band together; as long as they sneak into the playoffs, their championship pedigree will pose a difficult matchup for any team.
References:
- Basketball Reference. (2021, February 07). 2020-21 Toronto Raptors Roster and Stats. Retrieved February 07, 2021, from https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/TOR/2021.html
- Bolle, K. (2021, January 01). Kyle Lowry: "We're in a must win situation. This sucks." Retrieved February 07, 2021, from https://twitter.com/karljbolle/status/1344809849792520192?s=10
- ESPN. (2021, February 07). 2020-21 NBA Standings. Retrieved February 07, 2021, from https://www.espn.com/nba/standings/_/sort/gamesbehind/dir/asc
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