3 adjustments the Raptors must make to save their season
By KC Jordan
2. Be less aggressive on defense.
As appalling as the Raptors’ offense has looked, their defense has arguably been even worse.
They’re allowing their opponents some of the most efficient shots in basketball, surrendering the most corner threes in the league and the ninth-most shots in the paint. Overall, Raptors opponents enjoy a 56.4 eFG% on the season, a second-worst mark in the NBA.
It all starts at the point of attack, where the Raptors have provided minimal resistance. Opposing ballhandlers are getting into the teeth of the defense with ease, with little rim protection deterring them from doing so.
Once the offense penetrates, the Raptors’ defensive rotations begin to break down. Players make the wrong rotations or miss them entirely, leading to wide-open shots for their opponents.
The Toronto Raptors must switch things up on defense.
Nick Nurse wants his team to play an aggressive, switch-heavy style of defense, but the fact is that the Raptors simply don’t have enough skilled one-on-one defenders to make these schemes viable. Be it due to lack of effort, lack of comprehension, or lack of personnel, the players haven’t been able to enact the vision.
The Raptors might lead the league in steals, but don’t let the counting stats fool you; the Raptors are not a good defensive team. The advantage gained from getting out in transition doesn’t mean anything if you’re gifting your opponent easy offense on the other end.
Nick Nurse needs to find a way to stem the bleeding, which might require scaling back some defensive aggressiveness. This decision will have its tradeoffs, to be sure, like sacrificing some of their advantages in transition.
The Raptors can’t afford to give their opponents easy buckets, especially when they themselves struggle to score the ball. Let’s see if Nurse dials back the defense. It could put them straight back into the playoff picture.