All good things must come to an end, as did the Toronto Raptors’ winning streak on Wednesday night following a 101-91 loss to the Brooklyn Nets.
All good things must come to an end, and so here we are, at the end of a Toronto Raptors’ franchise-best 15-game winning streak. Toronto fell 101-91 to the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday night, turning in a lacklustre offensive performance. It there is truly such a thing as a forgivable loss, this one definitely qualifies. The Raptors’ offence — which has been great all season but was especially impressive over the 15-game win streak — sputtered to a halt in Brooklyn, as they ended with a paltry 91 points on 37.8 percent shooting from the field.
The loss was a humbling one for the reigning NBA Champions, as the Nets simply played harder down the stretch and were the more physical team throughout. As head coach Kenny Atkinson said postgame, “The execution wasn’t perfect, but our will to win was at a super-high level.”
The Nets outpaced the Raptors in free throws, rebounds, and points in the paint, imposing their will and generating easy buckets on a night where the shots weren’t falling for them either (40.9 percent from the field).
The Raptors, of course, had to fall at some point and the All-Star break couldn’t be coming at a more perfect time, as winning 15-straight games is no easy task and a little rest and relaxation —as much rest as the busy All-Star Weekend can provide — will do them well in the long run. So with the Raptors having plenty of time off to recoup before a February 21 matchup with the Phoenix Suns, let’s take a look at how the Raptors graded out in the 101-91 loss at Barclays Center.