This failed 360 dunk attempt by DeMar DeRozan last night could very well be viewed as a microcosm of the Raptors most recent, yet uncharacteristic, woes.
After Friday night’s 113-89 home loss to the Golden State Warriors, a game in which they were losing by as many as 41, and in a game they never once held a lead of their own, it seemed as though that would’ve been the wake up call for the Toronto Raptors. The loss marked their fourth in a row, and many times such a lopsided loss by a GOOD team like Toronto usually results in the team pulling up their boot straps and bringing a big effort in the next game.
Unfortunately for the Raptors, that was not the case. They lost to the New York Knicks, 103-98, the NBA’s worst team (record wise), giving the Knicks just their 12th win of the season; compared to Toronto who has 37 wins. The Raptors have now been stuck at 37 for the past five games.
On February 20th, Toronto’s first game after the All-Star break, the Raptors came out flying. They put together a fantastic game resulting in a huge road win over the Eastern Conference leading Atlanta Hawks, 105-80, extending their winning streak at the time to four games. All four wins were against impressive competition: Clippers, Spurs, Wizards, and the Hawks. The Raptors faced the first three opponents at home, but regardless, they got the job done.
Conversely, this five game skid, including four road losses, now marks their longest stretch of consecutive losses this season. Prior to this they had another four game skid, December 30 – January 8th, including three losses to Western Conference teams (That also included the Raptors first match-up against the Warriors this season, in a 126-105 road loss).
February 21, 2015: Toronto 76 @ Houston 98
February 23, 2015: Toronto 97 @ New Orleans 100
February 24, 2015: Toronto 92 @ Dallas 99
February 27, 2015: Golden State 113 @ Toronto 89
February 28, 2015: Toronto 98 @ New York 103
The Raptors have failed to score 100 points or more in any of these past five games.
The Raptors and Raptors fans alike, knew that having a stretch of three straight sets of back-to-back games coming out of the All-Star break would be difficult. No one expected that the Raptors would have only won one of those six games, but that is the reality.
The Raptors now have a record of 37-22, fifteen games above .500 and currently sitting in third place in the Eastern Conference. That record should be commended, especially fighting through DeRozan’s injury earlier in the season which held him out of 21 games (Toronto went 12-9 in that stretch). The issue is, this is the time of year you need your level of play trending upwards with the postseason right around the corner.
Without sounding like Chicken Little, but simultaneously not wanting to ignore the fact that the Raptors must find a way to get back on track, let’s take a closer look at the Raptors’ current situation, and the schedule ahead.
The Raptors now have 23 regular season games remaining. Thirteen of these games are on the road, and 10 of the 23 games are against teams who are currently in a playoff spot in their respective conferences. So, that means 13 of Toronto’s remaining games will be against teams who currently have a winning percentage under .500. That said, as last night’s game against the Knicks proved, a team’s record is no guarantee of what the final outcome will be.
The Raptors had a short month with the extended All-Star break mixed in, and as we mentioned earlier, they had put together some big wins immediately before and after the break, but the Raptors only went 4-7 overall in February.
Earlier in the week, both Lowry & DeRozan self-described their games as ‘trash’ based on their recent play. Self-deprecation aside, let’s attempt to put that into context. Kyle Lowry has averaged just 11.9 points, 5.3 assists, 0.9 steals and 1.2 three-point makes on 34.2 percent from the field for the month of February. Similarly, over his last 5 games, DeMar DeRozan is averaging just 13.8 points, 3.2 boards, 2.0 assists, 1.4 steals, 0 three-point makes and 2.4 turnovers on 29.6 percent from the field.
These averages are a far cry from what the Raptors and Raptors fans have come to expect from their two All-Stars over the past two seasons.
Kyle Lowry missed last night’s game vs. the New York Knicks due to an injury he suffered in the first quarter vs. the Golden State Warriors on Friday night. He is also expected to miss the upcoming road game vs. the Philadelphia 76ers as well. Raptors’ Head Coach Dwane Casey is giving his All-Star point guard some rest to help aid in getting back to 100%.
On a positive note, James Johnson has been consistent, and has been their best player through this rough stretch. In his last five games Johnson is averaging 13.2 points, 4.4 boards 1.2 assists, 2.2 blocks and 1.6 steals on 63.3 percent shooting from the field.
These are solid numbers for the Raptors’ forward, but certainly not numbers that are going to carry a team, and despite J.J.’s strong efforts it hasn’t resulted in wins. Toronto must have multiple players bringing a strong effort and being effective statistically in order to to get the results they are looking for, and have grown accustomed to getting this season.
49 wins would set a new Raptors franchise record for regular season wins. Being able to set a new standard with 50+ regular season wins would be a fantastic achievement. That would require the team going at least 13-10 over the final 23 games to reach that mark. With minimal days to practice, the team must push through this, as Coach Casey has said. With a month and a half left in the regular season the Toronto Raptors need to regain their identity, and get back to what has worked for them for the majority of the season. Sharing the ball, commitment to defense, second efforts on the offensive glass, and taking care of the basketball (reducing turnovers). The Toronto Raptors want to be playing with a high level of confidence in their game heading into the post season. The level of confidence, mentality, and attitude are many times underrated aspects in a team’s success.
The end of the season is fast approaching, just 23 regular season games remain, but the Toronto Raptors still have more than enough time to attain their goals and get back to the style of play that has brought them to 37 wins thus far.
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