And do we really know how well Toronto matches the rest of the top contenders? They haven’t played the Cavaliers in months (who made a major deal), and won’t again this season. Then every other team above them (and a few below them) made at least marginal upgrades to their roster, while the Raptors are banking on Poeltl’s return to act as their trade deadline acquisition. With all the shakeup in the conference, it begs the question:
Does the trade deadline change things for Toronto?
Well, yes, but also no. I know that’s kind of a cop out, and borderlines on not being an actual answer, but let me explain. My expectations in the short term for the Raptors have already been exceeded, and while winning a first round matchup would be fantastic, I don’t think losing in the first round changes the overall outlook of this group. What I mean by that is we have a pretty firm understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of this roster, and I think a playoff series will only amplify what we already know. The defense will hold up, and maybe even be better, but the offense will struggle. It will especially struggle in a playoff setting where the defensive intensity is higher and teams will limit the Raptors’ transition opportunities.
So no, in the short term I think it’s irrelevant what happened at the deadline, I think Toronto can still beat the teams they would have beat before, and will lose to the teams they would have lost to anyways (New York, Boston). Save for the Cavaliers, who I think the Raptors could have won a hard-fought series against before, but with the addition of James Harden, I feel far less confident given his surgical destruction of the Raptors down the stretch of the last Clippers game.
The long term implications of this trade deadline in my mind are far more worrisome. Primarily because both the teams at the top and bottom improved: The Boston Celtics added Nikola Vucevic and Jayson Tatum will return eventually, the Cavaliers added Harden, the Charlotte Hornets are surging and added Coby White, the Indiana Pacers picked up their big man of the future in Ivica Zubac as they anticipate Tyrese Haliburton’s return, and even the Washington Wizards are gearing up for competition with Trae Young and Anthony Davis. The competition is only going to get tougher, and the Raptors have clear needs to address. The summer is a good place to address those needs, and I expect that there will be some bigger moves that come then, the Raptors will have more assets and options available to them.
For now, just enjoy the ride, see what the team looks like with a healthy Poeltl, and continue to evaluate who can contribute in a playoff setting. The East is stronger, but the Raptors still have a lot of juice left to squeeze.
Game Recaps
Barnes and Raptors follow the script in textbook loss before trade deadline | Final: 126-128
There is a pattern to Toronto losses. Controlling the game is not enough. When the offence runs dry, such issues last longer for the Raptors than they seem to for other teams. The Raptors couldn’t find a sustainable source of points for too long a stretch in the fourth quarter. Was it the lineup without Barnes and Ingram? Was it the turnovers from Barrett and Shead? Was it the inability of the team to create enough attempts from behind the arc? No matter the answer (and surely all of the above are valid answers), the Raptors have written a script over the last month that dictates the flow of losses. And against the Timberwolves, the Raptors followed it perfectly.
Top Performers:
Scottie Barnes – 22 PTS, 10 REB, 8 AST, 1 STL, 1 BLK, 8-11 FG, 1-3 3FG, 6-6 FT, +9 +/-
Immanuel Quickley – 23 PTS, 5 REB, 8 AST, 1 STL, 8-12 FG, 6-8 3FG, 1-2 FT, +2 +/-
Brandon Ingram – 25 PTS, 6 REB, 4 AST, 1 BLK, 10-22 FG, 3-6 3FG, 2-3 FT +2 +/-
Raptors surpass last season’s record in win over Chicago | Final: 123-107
At 31 wins, the Raptors are now better than they were last season. And we haven’t hit All-Star Weekend yet.
Expectations have changed and yesterday was a must-win against a depleted Chicago Bulls roster that acquired seven new players before the trade deadline. Chicago was the near-equivalent of their G League affiliate, Windy City Bulls.
For the Raptors, this allowed experimentation – for Barnes, playing more of a facilitator role; for BI, relying less on the mid-range; for IQ, the freedom to hoist up 3s (the threat and volume of his 3-point shooting helped a free-flowing offence).
Top Performers:
Brandon Ingram – 33 PTS, 6 REB, 6 AST, 1 BLK, 12-20 FG, 5-9 3FG, 4-4 FT, +7 +/-
Collin Murray-Boyles – 17 PTS, 5 REB, 4 AST, 1 STL, 3 BLK, 8-9 FG, 1-2 FT, +20 +/-
Sandro Mamukelashvili – 17 PTS, 5 REB, 1 AST, 3 STL, 1 BLK, 5-9 FG, 4-6 3FG, 3-4 FT +3 +/-
Barnes and Siakam battle as Raptors topple Pacers | Final: 122-104
With yesterday’s performance, Scottie Barnes passed Pascal Siakam for the fifth most double-doubles in Raptors’ history. And I have an inkling Barnes knew that was a possibility. Every time these two match up they seem to turn it up a notch or two. Or in Barnes’ case throughout this one, turning it up five notches as he propelled the Raptors to the win behind a monstrous third quarter. His dominance throughout the frame was the sole separator between victory and defeat.
Top Performers:
Scottie Barnes – 25 PTS, 14 REB, 6 AST 2 STL, 4 BLK, 12-20 FG, 1-1 FT, +22 +/-
Sandro Mamukelashvili – 17 PTS, 4 REB, 1 AST, 1 STL, 6-9 FG, 3-5 3FG, 2-2 FT, +17 +/-
Trayce Jackson-Davis – 10 PTS, 10 REB, 1 AST, 1 BLK, 2-4 FG, 6-10 FT +10 +/-
Quick Reaction Roundup
Take a peek at this week’s Quick Reaction grades throughout the week.