Patterson was a reliable defensive presence for the Raptors during this most successful four-year run. Who will take his place?
Patrick Patterson would probably have been happy to return to the The Toronto Raptors, but he wasn’t offered a contract. As a consequence, and by dint of being a Unrestricted Free Agent, he’s signed with the OKC Thunder.
Patterson’s loss might be felt more deeply by coach Dwane Casey than any of the others who have moved, or been moved, since season’s end. Patrick was Casey’s most trusted end of game big man.
A glance at the statistics gives clear reason why. 2-Pat “won” 62.5% of his Clutch games, as defined by 82games. He’s always been a factor in plus_minus rankings, and last year finished second on the Raptors with plus_347. Kyle Lowry was tops on our team at plus_356, which ranked eighteenth in the NBA, according to Sporting Charts.
Since becoming a Raptor as a part of the quartet which moved from Sacramento for Rudy Gay and fillers, Patterson has played about 25 minutes a game. Who is going to fill his shoes?
Who are the contenders?
Boss-man Masai Ujiri is trying to ride two horses at once. He’s got one leg on Playoff Contender, and the other on Developing Youngsters. Those two beasts often snap at each other, and Masai will be at pains to prevent them doing so in the 2-Pat Replacement stakes.
Dwane Casey has to figure out his closing lineup. The Raptors have won a lot of games over the last four seasons, and aren’t known for blowing leads. Last season, Jonas Valanciunas found himself on the bench a great deal in fourth quarters, and the presence of Serge Ibaka strongly suggests that won’t change.
Although Serge is a significant paint presence, he’s not the rebounder JV is. I suggest Pascal Siakam is the candidate most likely to become the new 2-Pat. Siakam has the size, speed and hops to complement Serge, and can pull down defensive rebounds as well as any. Like 2-Pat, Pascal doesn’t care all that much about scoring, and can be relied upon not to take ill-advised shots in a 2-point game.
Jakob Poeltl will surely get a chance at the opening, but I’m not confident in him yet. I don’t believe his body has fully stabilized (he’s only 21, while Pascal is 23) and he isn’t the high-energy force Pascal promises to be.
That brings us to a last-5-minutes-up-6 lineup of Serge, Pascal, Kyle, DeMar DeRozan (we still have to score points, guys – this isn’t hockey), and someone else. I hope it’s Delon Wright, who is long, can handle the rock and looks capable of becoming a solid defender given the necessary minutes.
I’m cautiously optimistic that the departure of 2-Pat won’t result in a frustrating string of close losses next year.
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