3 hot takeaways as Raptors choke away golden opportunity vs. Kings
By Mike Luciano
2. The “Vision 6-9” defense is categorically failing.
The Raptors have given up at least 108 points in each of the last eight games. The whole “Vision 6-9” philosophy is based around eschewing tons of centers in the rotation and going all-in on versatile forwards. That is exactly the holes that teams like the Kings have been able to exploit with such ease.
Sabonis recorded 21 points and 20 rebounds in Sacramento’s win, showing that a rookie in Christian Koloko and the undersized Thad Young is not enough depth to slow down some of the best bigs in the league. At least the perimeter defense is dominant, right? Oh, what wishful thinking that is.
The Toronto Raptors are struggling defensively.
The Raptors let Sacramento make 17 3-pointers, and Orlando was sniping them to death from 3-point range in their two victories. While Toronto’s overly aggressive style was created with the goal of forcing turnovers, they’re not causing enough to make up for all the open looks on the perimeter and at the basket.
The Raptors need to make some sort of change to how they operate in order to turn their fortunes around. The construction of their roster makes this very difficult to accomplish with a few quick schematic tweaks. Perhaps the explosive trade that has been hinted at by insiders may actually come to reality.