The Raps have not had the start to the season many fans were hoping for. Many believed this would be the year Toronto broke its three-year playoff drought. A 1-4 start has left a sour taste in those fans' mouths. Let's take a look at the team’s first week.
What Jumped Out: Defense and Rebounding
The Raptors are built on length and athleticism. Teams like that usually have a defense-first mentality. However, through five games, Toronto has allowed the second-most points per game and holds the league-worst opponent field-goal percentage at 53.5%. Even when they get an initial stop, they often don’t finish the possession; they rank third-worst in defensive rebounds per game.
Coach Darko Rajakovic has a complex defensive system. Younger teams tend to struggle with positional defense, but if the Raptors want to turn this start around, they need to execute and finish possessions.
Best Part of the Week: Scottie Barnes’ Preseason Is in the Past
Through his first three preseason games, the Raptors’ franchise player averaged six points on 20% shooting. Many fans were concerned; however, five games into the season he’s averaging 22.2 points on 53.8% shooting from the floor. He’s been aggressive as a scorer and has made the right passes when initiating the offense. If he keeps this up, he’ll be in line for a second All-Star selection.
Raptor to Watch in the Upcoming Week: Jakob Poeltl
Jakob Poeltl hasn’t had the start he wanted this season after signing a four-year, $104 million extension in the offseason. He’s dealt with a broken nose and back issues and is taking time off to recover from those injuries.
Toronto faces a lot of challenging bigs this upcoming week: the Cavaliers (Evan Mobley), the Grizzlies (Jaren Jackson Jr.), and the Bucks (Giannis Antetokounmpo/Myles Turner). Having a healthy Poeltl who can be physical on defense, close possessions through rebounding, and produce in his role on offense will be critical to the Raptors’ success.
Final Thoughts
Toronto is the eighth-youngest team in the league (that includes 39-year-old Garrett Temple, who hasn’t played yet). Young teams sometimes need time to settle into a season. Integrating Brandon Ingram will also take time.
Individually, Ingram has added shot creation the team didn’t have last year, but the group is still figuring out how to function with him (he has a team-worst -26.9 on/off rating). Fans shouldn’t panic about the start. The team will soon start to gel, and we should see signs of improvement and something to cheer about.
All stats are courtesy of Basketball-Reference unless noted otherwise.