3 things Toronto Raptors must fix to catch Celtics in playoff race
By Mike Luciano
2. Fix the defensive rebounding issues
The best way to counteract players like Williams is for Toronto’s glass-cleaners to play their best basketball. Unfortunately, due to a lack of both great height and amazing depth, it’s been hard for anyone outside of Siakam to be a major threat in that area consistently.
Khem Birch could be a solid option, but he is a liability on the floor on the offensive end at times. Achiuwa and the Chris Boucher both have nights with one or two boards mixed in with every double-digit outing. No wonder this team ranks last in the league in defensive rebounds, behind bottom-feeders like Detroit and Houston.
The Toronto Raptors remain a poor rebounding team.
On one hand, Toronto seems more than comfortable accepting this deficiency as a result of their style of basketball given how Ujiri has not added a traditional center to this roster. On the other, it’s not a good idea to have such a huge, critically exposed weakness during playoff preparation.
There is some hope here, as Toronto remains one of the best offensive rebounding teams in the league due to their length and energy. If Nick Nurse can concoct some way to exhibit that same skill on the defensive end, the Raptors should feel much more comfortable with regards to their ability to close games.