The Raptors, as a whole, bounced back well from their blowout loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves. They beat the short-handed Orlando Magic 129-99. RJ Barrett continued his 20-point streak, Scottie Barnes scored 28 points, and Jamal Shead and Trayce Jackson-Davis came up big off the bench. It was by far the Raptors’ most efficient 3-point shooting game of the season. They converted 15 of their 35 attempts.
For Jakob Poeltl, however, it was another rough game. He played only ten minutes because of foul trouble and finished the game with 2 points and 2 rebounds. That’s not what you want to see from your starting center, especially on the boards. Poeltl, the only true center in the Raptors’ primary rotation, now grabbed just three total rebounds over the last two games. Even if he’s not getting a lot of shots up, Poeltl should be able to contribute more on the boards—even in limited minutes.
The Raptors needed a bounce-back season from Poeltl after he played just 46 games last season and didn’t look like himself. So far, he has not inspired much confidence that he will be much better. But it is still early in the season, and head coach Darko Rajakovic, for one, isn’t panicking yet—or at least not publicly.
“We’re going to take a look at film,” Rajakovic said in the postgame media availability. “We’re not going to pass any judgments. We know what he does for us, how much he can contribute, and all we’re going to do is go back to film and analyze it and address it in practice, and he’s going to be ready. I’m a big Jak believer.”
The Raptors desperately need Rajakovic to be right about Poeltl. If his season continues this way, the Raptors will struggle to make up for his shortcomings—and it will make it even more difficult to move his contract. Teams already don’t want Poeltl’s deal. They certainly won’t want it if he’s in the middle of a bad season.
Trayce Jackson-Davis provided a silver lining
Poeltl was not alone with his foul trouble against the Magic. Collin Murray-Boyles also picked up five fouls in just 15 minutes on the court. He ultimately finished the game with 10 points, 2 rebounds, and 1 assist.
Getting just four rebounds out of the two primary bigs is rough, but Trayce Jackson-Davis stepped up big in that department. Jackson-Davis got an opportunity to play 20 minutes—the most of his Raptors tenure since joining the team in February. He responded with 6 points, 11 rebounds, 2 assists, and 3 blocks.
The short-handed Magic are not the toughest opponent out there, but it was still nice to see Jackson-Davis be ready when his number was called.
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