Listed here are 10 takeaways from the Toronto Raptors‘ 104-96 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
One — Raptors video games are painful in this day and age. Of their present situation with Fred VanVleet sidelined, there isn’t a unmarried staff within the league that has much less dependable guard manufacturing than what the Raptors be offering. Paradoxically, it is a characteristic quite than a failure in their staff design, because the entrance place of work obviously has a imaginative and prescient of taking part in positionless basketball which necessarily method having 5 forwards on without delay, all the time.
However, on this early level in their building, there isn’t sufficient playmaking or outdoor taking pictures to provide the offence, which leaves the Raptors best two tactics to win. One, they’d wish to nail each element, win the ownership struggle in turnovers and offensive rebounds, whilst being hermetic defensively. Two, they’d wish to run right into a backside feeder just like the Nets with out their megastar gamers.
Two — The loss of taking pictures in this roster negates the entirety else that works of their favour. VanVleet and OG Anunoby lacking without delay method they are brief 17 three-point makes an attempt and just about seven made threes from their lineup, and there’s no intensity at the back of them to select up the slack. The Raptors hit only one 3 within the first 1/2, and completed the sport with six general makes on 24 makes an attempt.
The one keen shooters from 3 this night had been Gary Trent Jr., who confirmed some indicators of lifestyles however remains to be caught in a terrible hunch, and Chris Boucher, whose mid-season turnaround was once authorized to his disciplined shot variety and stepped forward focal point at the defensive finish. Understand that, the Raptors may just now not generate sufficient offence to compete. You’ll want to dominate each different side of the sport however no staff within the league will persistently win within the trendy recreation whilst hitting unmarried digits in threes. The maths merely does not paintings.
3 — The Raptors of their present state additionally lack playmaking. Nick Nurse became to Pascal Siakam and Scottie Barnes as his de facto level guards, whilst Dalano Banton infrequently touched the ball in his 9 mins off the bench. There are benefits to be constructed from taking part in during the forwards, as Siakam and Barnes each used their measurement and contact to nice impact on drives to the rim.
However their potency drops with every further frame that the Cavaliers had been ready to stack within the lane, and it is not as though the kickout is a in particular helpful possibility when no person round them is making pictures. The Cavaliers went to a zone early on, but additionally simply nailed the fundamentals like going underneath monitors, serving to early and continuously, whilst additionally securing the defensive glass. Even if the Raptors’ forwards had been ready to overcome more than one defenders, they had been so exhausted from the hassle that their legs had been lacking on the free-throw line. Siakam and Barnes shot a blended 10-for-19 from the stripe.
4 — Trent Jr. is the Raptors’ perfect guess as a backcourt author, however he’s new to this function. For many of the 12 months, Trent Jr. has been an efficient outlet possibility the place Siakam, VanVleet, Anunoby and Barnes would cave in the paint sooner than discovering Trent Jr. open. That luxurious is now long past, and Trent Jr. is having to create which isn’t his energy. He does not search for the go just about sufficient for any person who takes such a lot of pictures, nor does he get downhill sufficient to drag additional defenders his approach to create the danger to go.
This factor turns into compounded when Trent Jr. is now seeing the most productive perimeter defenders that will ordinarily be assigned to VanVleet and even Siakam, because the Cavaliers did this night with Isaac Okoro face-guarding Trent Jr. and proscribing his makes an attempt. Trent Jr. controlled to create some half-decent possibilities for himself, in particular within the midrange, however the Raptors want much more than he is in a position to supply in this day and age.
5 — Barnes was once promising within the moments he selected to take over on offence. His talent to out-muscle gamers on drives, deal with his place whilst pivoting and hooking pictures over most sensible of the defence continuously catches groups by way of wonder. Even within the cases the place the shot does not drop, he has proven all season a capability to bump his defender at the rebound to win the tip-in.
Barnes at all times has the go in thoughts, the place he is ready to select cutters like Boucher darting during the center, or using in for the lay-off when the second one defender commits against him. The one ask can be for Barnes to stay competitive for longer stretches. Too continuously, he’s going to defer to Siakam and Trent Jr., and whilst he can sneak in for the occasional reduce, Barnes does not be offering a lot price taking part in off the ball.
Six — Barnes’ inexperience confirmed extra on defence, the place he’s overeager. The facility is unquestionably there for him to make tough performs, equivalent to on his chase-down block in opposition to Cedi Osman on what seemed to be a assured layup had it now not been for Barnes’ period and explosiveness. Alternatively, for each spotlight prevent, there are two or 3 mistakes that wish to be corrected.
For instance, Siakam was once visibly puzzled by way of Barnes’ resolution to desert the weakside shooter, lend a hand all of the means around the lane on a publish up the place Khem Birch had excellent place in opposition to Evan Mobley, who merely threw it to Barnes’ guy for the 3 to power a timeout. On every other collection within the fourth, Barnes pressed up means too aggressively on Dean Wade, to the purpose the place a median ahead with moderate quickness was once ready to get by way of Barnes sooner than dunking over Birch who was once understandably stuck off guard.
For now, the Raptors must stay Barnes on non-shooters so his tendency to wander is not as impactful, and instruct him to go away an opening on defence in order that he is not simply giving up dribble penetration.
Seven — Mobley and Barnes had been each very good at the entire. Mobley confirmed the similar tenacity at the offensive glass, tired a deep 3 to overcome the clock, and performed very efficient defence in opposition to Siakam all over portions of the second one 1/2.
The place he struggled was once developing from the publish, the place the Raptors had been ready to bump him and stay him from taking a gentle strive. Barnes additionally scored over Mobley on two cases, the usage of his energy to muscle to get to his spot forward of Mobley who was once compelled to take the foul. However on the other hand, Mobley additionally swatted Barnes’ strive at a midrange jumper with out even wanting to go away the bottom. Paradoxically, the 2 inexperienced persons who’re so continuously pitted in opposition to every different can be informed so much from how the opposite performs.
8 — Boucher is at all times productive as a place starter. Nurse known the will for extra measurement in opposition to a Cavaliers facet that began 3 7-footers, and Boucher delivered. He was once sturdy defensively in opposition to Mobley excluding preserving him off the glass, ran the ground onerous which were given him simple dunks in transition, and he hit 1/2 of the Raptors’ threes.
There don’t seem to be many gamers who can tackle extra pictures to make up for the wounds, however Boucher has a robust case for extra mins and extra pictures, particularly on nights the place he is trying to find his possibilities. He turns out to pair smartly with Barnes, who at all times reveals him in transition.
9 — Whether or not the Raptors use Khem Birch or Treasured Achiuwa within the center, the result’s that there is not sufficient manufacturing at centre. Birch began off poorly, appearing no willingness to assault whilst additionally now not having the ability to comprise the pick-and-roll the place Darius Garland was once ready to many times serve up dunks to his bigs. Achiuwa got here in and was once a lot better within the first 1/2, the place he confirmed his doable as a motive force getting downhill and scoring within the paint. However in the second one 1/2, Birch was once a lot more energetic on defence, and was once extra keen to make use of show off his athleticism on each ends, so he were given extra of the mins. Without reference to how Nurse mixes and suits his centres, the secret is that he’s going to infrequently get 48 mins of constant play.
Ten — Nurse’s defensive recreation plan all for neutralizing Garland. The Raptors coated him in a box-and-one early within the first 1/2, the place Banton or Trent Jr. would stick tightly with Garland and refuse to lend a hand off without reference to the place he was once situated at the flooring. Within the 3rd quarter, the Raptors shifted to trapping Garland, even out to halfcourt, in an try to power different gamers to overcome them quite than permitting Cleveland’s all-star guard to perform. Garland by no means moderately were given right into a rhythm and recorded seven turnovers. However in contrast to the Raptors, the Cavaliers had extra intensity across the roster to attain, equivalent to Kevin Love and Cedi Osman combining for 32 issues which is 4 occasions as many issues because the Raptors’ bench mustered in general.
