The Toronto Raptors appeared to show a few more cracks than intended in their worst week of the season so far. Whose stock rose and who fell this week?
Well, I, for one, am glad that week is done and in the books now. I imagine the Toronto Raptors are pretty happy this one is over with too. Boy, it was an unremarkable week. In fact, it was pretty remarkable for all the wrong reasons. The Raptors finished 1-2 with a sole – and unconvincing – win against the Chicago Bulls sandwiched in between losses against the LA Clippers and the Houston Rockets.
The big moment of the week, of course, was Kawhi Leonard’s return to Toronto. The first time he has set foot on the Scotiabank Arena since leaving the Raptors to join the Clippers back in July. No matter the result, it was destined to be an emotional night.
Unfortunately, the game pulled on the heartstrings for different reasons, purely because it was, well, a dismantling from Leonard and the Clippers. This game was a contest for all but one quarter, after that, the Clippers asserted their dominance.
It’s not like the Raptors were coming into this game on a high, anyway. Their prior fixture was a game that even the most ardent basketball fan would struggle to watch: a 93-92 win over the Chicago Bulls. The less said about that game, the better.
And before it all, the Philadelphia 76ers exacted their revenge over the Toronto Raptors on Sunday night. The Raptors should have been out of this game, but a fourth-quarter comeback inspired a bit of hope.
Still, it was a disappointing week with some disappointing performances. Something had to give at some point, and in fairness, the Raptors have dropped three of the last four games, but all of those losses have come against credible opponents.
Bad performances are bad performances, though. And there are a few to pick out this week. As always, we’ll find some light at the end of the tunnel. But first, the not so fun stuff.