5 reasons Raptors fans might be pessimistic for the upcoming playoffs
By Graeme Klayh
4. Soft Whistle
Guess who leads the league in free throw attempts? It’s unsurprisingly the Houston Rockets (James Harden/Dwight Howard), but the Toronto Raptors rank third at 27.1 attempts per game. It is the staple of DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry’s attack. The refs seemingly will always bail out of the duo when they go in the lane and suffer any contact. They are elite at their position in doing so but when the whistles tighten up in the playoffs, there will be problems. In the 2015 playoffs, the team shot over 3 less free throw attempts per game, so what effect will the whistle have on this year?
The back court mates will either have to sell the contact better or do a better job knocking down their shots. When the OKC Thunder came to visit in late March, there was a playoff atmosphere leading up and into the game. The referees also called it like a post-season one. The Raptors got their can kicked when their forced drives to the hoop weren’t called for a foul, and a simple outlet pass allowed the Thunder run-outs for easy scores. The Raptors have to be conscious of this and tighten their defense in this instance. If not, it could be another short run in the playoffs.
Next: Which Carroll will it be?