Right now, the Raptors are not just the most robustly loved team in the city. They may be the most romantic club in the town’s modern history – certainly more than the title-winning Jays (too mercenary) or the Pat Burns-era Leafs (too in love with themselves). Seriously, who isn’t swooning over these guys? It’s not just the winning. It’s the quiet swagger. It’s the way players such as DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry have sold an entire country on the idea they’ve switched sides – “Nous sommes tout Canadiens maintenant.” The really weird thing? There may actually be some Stockholm in their syndrome. For most of three years, coach Dwane Casey said “Toronto” like every American – hard consonants and three distinct syllables. Over the past few weeks, he’s slipped into local argot – “T’ronna.”
Played My Toe Nail Off For My Raptainans Last Night .. #WeTheNorth!!! pic.twitter.com/69qRITTTbZ
— Amir Johnson (@IamAmirJohnson) January 31, 2015
Toronto Raptors Game Preview: Raptors vs. Bucks | Tip of the Tower
Even though Toronto came out on the winning end of the previous two ball games, the team cannot make a habit of letting opposing teams back in games. That style of play is not sustainable, and if they keep it up, it’s only a matter of time before a team snatches the win away from right under their chin. Milwaukee ranks in the bottom third of the NBA in terms of first-quarter scoring while the Raptors sit in the top 10. If the home team can run out to a quick lead, it will be paramount for them to finish off their visitors as quickly as possible. Bring on the “Bruno” chants.
Preview: Bucks at Raptors | Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
The Bucks lead, 45-28, but have lost six in a row to the Raptors, including both matchups this season. Milwaukee’s worst loss of the season came on Nov. 21 at the Air Canada Centre in a 124-82 decision and the Raptors prevailed, 92-89, on Jan. 19 at the BMO Harris Bradley Center. This is the third and final meeting.
Milwaukee Bucks at Toronto Raptors: Monday NBA game preview | Toronto Star
The Bucks are one of the surprises of the East this season, firmly in sixth place with a 25-22 record after winning at home over Portland on Saturday night. . . . Starting centre Zaza Pachulia missed Saturday’s game with a shoulder injury and is listed as questionable. . . . Three Bucks starters — Jennings, Middleton and Dudley — shoot better than 40 per cent from three-point range. . . . Milwaukee’s been one of the top defensive teams in the league of late and has held 16 opponents to less than 90 points in a game. Not surprisingly, they are 16-0 in those games.
A New Rotation Is Helping The Raptors Find Their Identity Again | Pro Bball Report
The Raptors started the season playing reasonably solid defense to go with an outstanding offense, but after DeMar DeRozan was injured, Toronto became noticeably more focused on offense and their defense slipped badly. Maybe it was the more controlled pace DeRozan brought to the offense that permitted the team to keep their opponents in half court sets where Coach Casey’s defense is decidedly more effective and now that DeRozan is back, that defense is starting to reappear. Over the past six games, Toronto is holding opponents to 95 points per game, 43.9 percent shooting from the field and 33.3 percent from three-point range. They have also got their turnovers back under control at just 12.8 per game. Somewhat surprisingly, the team hasn’t appeared to miss James Johnson’s defense with DeRozan playing small forward and starting Vasquez over Ross is working out pretty well too.
Tyler Hansbrough Loves Playing With The Raptors | Pro Bball Report
“There are a couple of things that go into it,” Hansbrough said. “You have to study what they do best and try to take that away. You have to figure out what you can do – quickness, make them run the floor. The toughest thing is just being able to box them out.” It has helped that the league has fewer true 7’ physical centers and Hansbrough can play against similarly sized players in the post at least some of the time. “It helps me that teams are going smaller, but I would still say that if there is a good big man out there that has some post moves most teams are going to want that,” Hansbrough said. “With teams going smaller, the league going smaller, it has its advantages and it’s not every night that a team has a Roy Hibbert (center) in size.”
I can haz yo linkz??! rapsfan@raptorsrepublic.com
