Coming into the brand new season the Toronto Raptors emphasised that they have been going to play onerous, quick, aggressive basketball.
9 video games in, that model of play has turn into a double-edged sword for Toronto. Regardless of their 2-7 file, the Raptors lead the NBA with 30.6 assists per sport and have the eighth-best offence with 118 factors per sport.
Toronto can also be permitting a league-worst 124.7 factors per sport, however has misplaced 5 of its previous six video games by six or fewer factors.
Their suffocating transition defence has an NBA-best 19.5 turnover frequency proportion, however the Raptors are third worst within the league with their offence giving up 16.8 turnovers per sport.
“We’ve just got to continue to play hard and figure it out,” swingman RJ Barrett of Mississauga informed reporters, noting that the Raptors led after three quarters of their 122-107 loss in Sacramento on Wednesday and led by as a lot as 15 in a 121-119 loss in Denver on Monday.
“We’re doing the right things, we’ve just got to learn how to sustain those over the course of 48 minutes. When you have a new team, a lot of young guys, it’s a learning process for all of us.”
Toronto has needed to lean closely on its rookies or second-year gamers with all-star ahead Scottie Barnes (damaged orbital) and level guard Immanuel Quickley (proper pelvic contusion) out. Veteran reserves Kelly Olynyk (lumbar pressure) of Kamloops, B.C., and Bruce Brown (arthroscopic knee surgical procedure) have additionally been unavailable.
“The guys that are playing are getting used to playing with each other and that way we can hit the ground running when we get Scottie and Quick and everyone back,” sophomore swingman Gradey Dick informed reporters after the loss in Denver. “[Head coach Darko Rajakovic] came in and talked about how he’s not big on moral victories so I think we take that mentality that going into this with we can’t just be happy that we made it close.
“But with the team that we have we need to know that we’re playing good but ultimately we need to know how to finish out games.”
Drilling down into the Raptors’ numbers paints a sophisticated image of who they’re this season.
Toronto is fourth within the NBA in offensive rebounds with 13.8 per sport, however is seventeenth in total boards with a mean of 44.2.
Maybe most complicated is how usually Toronto will get referees to blow the whistle.
The Raptors are averaging 26.2 fouls per sport – second worst within the league – however are tied with the Washington Wizards for tenth most drawn at 20.8.
That second determine would make extra sense if Toronto’s forwards have been struggling, however they’re not. The Raptors are scoring 60 factors within the paint per sport, second most within the NBA.
A staff that’s doing a lot across the rim – each scoring and grabbing offensive rebounds – ought to be capable of draw extra fouls, however they haven’t been in a position to get the good thing about calls to date this season.
“It’s every night we’re fouling a lot,” Barrett informed reporters in Sacramento after Toronto had 15 free throw makes an attempt to the Kings’ 32. “We just have to try to figure that out, figure out how to play defence without fouling.
“Then on the offensive end just going to the paint strong and making the right plays.”
The Raptors proceed their west-coast swing with a Los Angeles back-to-back, dealing with the Clippers on Saturday and the Lakers on Sunday.
