Raptors fall to Kings | Toronto Star
He started slowly, but made a couple of three-pointers in the fourth quarter — his first two field-goal attempts — and finished with six points and no rebounds; he picked up two fouls, blocked a shot that the stats crew did not give him credit for, and just got his feet wet against full-speed NBA competition. His second stint — with about nine minutes left in the fourth quarter — was eventful. And painful.
Game Recap: Raptors Fall 113-106 In Sacramento | Raptors HQ
Tyler Hansbrough hit another three-pointer, so it seems like resisting the #PSYCHO3 movement is futile at this point. The Raptors allowed 32 points in the second quarter and 33 points in the third, so the defense needs some brushing up.
Raptors fall to 1-1 in pre-season with loss to Kings | Toronto Sun
A rare pre-season trip to Sacramento confirmed one thing: Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan could start the season tomorrow. But there were a few less positive signs as well in the Raptors’ 113-106 loss to the Kings on Tuesday night. Lowry and DeRozan managed to score 48 points between them, 25 by the point guard, but that was the end of the good news.
Too early to judge at least a couple of things about the Raptors | Toronto Star
Bruno makes his NBA debut, goes six minutes, doesn’t score, doesn’t hurt ‘em, doesn’t look totally lost, I put it out there and not a minute later some person sends a note that says: “So, NBDL is what the future holds.” That’s the kind of quick, senseless over-reaction that we live with. Anyway, the kid wasn’t bad, he wasn’t great, he was a 19-year-playing at full NBA speed for the first time in his life and Dwane was quite complimentary after the game. The coach was impressed with his quickness, the fact he didn’t get lost too often on defence, and, of course, his length. I like the fact he bounced right back up after a tough hard fall in the fourth quarter and stayed in the game. Casey told us after the Bruno mostly had the wind knocked out of him and there was no way he was coming out if at all possible. “The young man came in and played well,” was how Casey put it. “His length. The kid is going to be a heck of a player once he gets some time in this league.”
Press Box Report: Kings 113, Raptors 106 | Cowbell Kingdom
After a foul plagued first half, DeMarcus Cousins got hot in after the break. Toronto had no answer for the Sacramento Kings center who scored 13 of his 19 points in the third quarter before sitting out the fourth. Cousins finished with only four rebounds and picked up a questionable technical foul, but he gave a solid, if not spectacular 18-minute performance for coach Malone.
Kings 113, Raptors 106: Kings push the pace and spread the wealth in preseason win | Sactown Royalty
Despite the offensive outburst, Coach Michael Malone probably wasn’t too thrilled with Sacramento’s defense. Toronto shot 48.8% from the field and 41.7% from three. Sacramento also didn’t have any answer for Kyle Lowry or DeMar DeRozan, who finished with 25 and 23 points respectively. When they came out of the game for good in the 3rd quarter, they had been responsible for 48 of Toronto’s 66 points (72.7%).
Instant Replay: Cousins, Casspi lead Kings past Raptors | CSN Bay Area
With 1:07 to go in the half, Nik Stauskas gave Sacramento the 52-48 lead with a four-point play and a Rudy Gay bucket at the first half buzzer extended Sacramento’s lead to 56-50. Kyle Lowry exploded for 20 points for the Raptors in the first half and Sacramento was paced by Omri Casspi’s 10 off the bench in the first 24 minutes.
DeRozan, a first-time all-star last season who also played for the USA’s gold medal-winning team at September’s World Cup, probably won’t rest until he can crank out a letter-perfect alphabet as easily as he drops in a left-handed layup. After posting career highs of 22.7 points, 4.3 rebounds and 4.0 assists for Toronto’s first playoff team in six seasons, he isn’t about to rest on his laurels. “I’m never going to get comfortable with the accomplishments I’ve made,” DeRozan said. “There’s always going to be something.” Besides trying to become ambidextrous, DeRozan has also worked to develop his voice, establishing himself as a leader in Toronto’s locker room. “He’s getting older, he’s getting mature,” point guard Kyle Lowry said. “He’s understanding what he has to do and he knows he’s a franchise player.”
DeMar DeRozan 2014-2015 Season Outlook | Fantasy Basketball Talk – Rotoworld.com Forums
Agreed. Role is solidified, franchise player, better and better Anything passed 40-45th pick I’m cool with
Resting On The Raptors | The Sports Quotient
Ujiri did his job by putting a lot of good players on the team and now it is up to Dwayne Casey to determine which players should play the most and which rotations work. For my money, Casey has proven himself to be a good coach this far, primarily due to his ability to build a top-10 defense last season. They had a good defensive roster, but scheme is primary to defensive performance. Casey will, obviously, be vital to the Raptors taking that next step as a team, especially with all the new faces.
