The Wizards will win if… – CSN Washington
Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan keep taking first-side, contested shots. The starting backcourt for the Raptors accounted for 51 of 99 attempts in a 106-99 loss in Game 3 Friday. They only made 16. DeRozan said afterwards that he thinks they were mostly good shots.
Shot selection to blame for Raptors’ woes | Toronto Sun
You can point to that third-place ranking in regular-season offensive efficiency as a counter-argument to this assertion, but we’d say drawing a ton of fouls and shooting a massive amount of threes will skew the metrics positively — for example, those positive traits can cover up for a lot of this team’s most-troubling tendencies. Like horrific shot selection. Only a handful of teams had a lower assist rate than the Raptors and that’s because the roster is dotted with one-on-one scorers, players who eschew moving the ball, preferring to hoist up tough shots on their own. The majority of them don’t seem to recognize the issue either, and head coach Dwane Casey feeds into it by insisting they are “good shots” or “shots they would normally make.” While they might make some of them, they aren’t “good” shots. They are tough ones that leave the other three or four players on the court out and when they fail to fall, it leaves the Raptors exposed to fast-break points at the other end. There is a fundamental problem here and it dates back to when Rudy Gay was still a Raptor.
Otto Porter is DeMar DeRozan’s kryptonite when he’s shooting | Bullets Forever
Porter, however, has been able to keep DeRozan from getting on a hot streak. DeRozan was never able to make more than two consecutive shots with Porter defending him. I don’t know if Porter coming off the bench contributes to his better defensive performances against DeRozan since he would have fresh legs. Even if this plays a part toward that, it doesn’t fully explain why Porter has been much better defending DeRozan than Pierce. Therefore, this trend may make some wonder whether Porter should start. If he does, Porter can be on the floor from the beginning like DeRozan — and put a clamp on his early hot shooting performances. If Porter can do that, there is a good reason to believe that the Wizards could be off to a better start on Sunday’s game than they have in each of the last three in this series.
Wizards frustrating someone other than Randy Wittman | Comcast SportsNet Washington
Field-goal-percentage-itis wasn’t just a Lowry problem. The Raptors as a whole took 23 more shots than the Wizards did Friday, yet finished with only one more made field goal. Lowry’s face, at least the parts of it visible behind his hands, showed how acutely he understood the futility of his 15 points. He’d been sniffling and coughing off and on, prompting at least one Toronto reporter to opt out of the scrum in front of his locker (to paraphrase, everyone else could take their chances holding mics up to Lowry’s face, but this guy would rather wait for the transcribed quotes than risk getting sick). When asked whether the flu-like illness had affected his play, Lowry insisted it had not. “It’s nothing to worry about, I know that. At the end of the day, I still have to go out there and play. And yeah, I don’t worry about [being] snake bit or whatever it is, because it’s part of why we get paid to play.” The guard didn’t have as firm an answer when asked about the Raptors’ struggles on offense. “[Washington] did a good job of forcing us to take shots contested like they’ve been doing all series, but we got some open looks and we missed some shots. I had some open threes that I missed and DeMar [DeRozan] had some open looks, two-pointers, that he missed … But yeah, our offense hasn’t been on the same [level] as it was earlier in the year.”
The Wizards Are Figuring It Out, And The Raptors Aren’t Good Enough | Deadspin
The contradictory explanations make sense, as it is much harder for the Raptors to admit the real reason for the loss: they just aren’t a good enough basketball team. Not stylistically, but they remind me of the post-Carmelo Anthony Nuggets teams, in that they have a collection of good but not great players. Kyle Lowry is the closest thing they have to a superstar, but he isn’t, and DeRozan, Williams, Amir Johnson, Jonas Valanciunas, James Johnson and the rest are all good too, but none of them strike fear into opponents’s hearts. And with free agents as lukewarm about Toronto as they are about Denver, that’s going to be awfully hard to change. As for the Wizards, most of the pieces are already there. John Wall is a top five point guard and top 15 player, and they have no obvious weaknesses either. They lack another star player to slot alongside Wall—if you’re optimistic, Bradley Beal will still develop into that player—but not much else. The Wizards’s biggest barrier to success has been coach Randy Wittman’s tactics. But all of a sudden, in the playoffs, he’s a new man. Wittman has Paul Pierce playing at the four, he’s giving Otto Porter legitimate minutes, and he isn’t sitting Marcin Gortat for the entirety of fourth quarters anymore. At this point, you’ve got to think they have a shot against the Hawks in the next round, right?
Raptors simply not built to win in playoffs | Toronto Sun
The Raptors thought they could pull that magical switch. This group is incapable, some would say delusional in believing their game would elevate come playoff time, because the Raptors aren’t built for the post-season. “I always felt we were a better team than our record showed,’’ said Pierce. “We could’ve easily been a 50-win team. “We’re showing our growth, we’re showing our potential here in the playoffs. Where people thought of us in the first half of the season, I think people see it right now. “We’re locked in, we’re more focused. Sometimes you’re going to have your mental lapses. The young guys are young. “A lot of them don’t have kids, so they have good times on the road. They go out, party sometimes. That’s the way it is. I was a young guy, did those things. Sometimes, you’re not locked in the whole 82.” Three games into the playoffs and the Wizards are locked in, matching shot for shot in the opening quarter on Friday, making all the big shots in the fourth. Toronto would take 10 more shots than Washington in the final period, but made three fewer baskets.
History not on side of Raptors | Toronto Sun
On the one hand, it’s discouraging that the best effort didn’t result in the Raps celebrating a win, but that hasn’t stopped the Raptors from taking whatever positives they can wring from the experience. For starters, the game-turning shots the Wizards hit in the final three minutes were more likely to miss than mark than hit it. “They made big shots,” Lou Williams said. “(Friday night) we were fighting. We played like a desperate team. Otto Porter makes two huge shots and Paul Pierce makes two huge shots and even still after all that happens we still cut it to three points at 40 seconds and then Paul Pierce makes another big three. You gotta tip your hat to them. They’re making big plays and we’re fighting like hell just trying to get a win.” All four of those threes were contested. Pierce, in particular, barely had a view of the basket with the hands in his face when he launched, but they went in. On the other end, the Raptors had a stellar quarter out of DeMar DeRozan in the first and then not much at all from any one guy in particular over the next three quarters. “That’s what’s keeping our hopes high,” DeRozan said. “We still haven’t played a complete perfect game like we normally had — not just myself getting hot, Kyle (Lowry) getting hot, Lou getting hot, other players running off a couple points, and just had that complete rhythm going. We haven’t had a complete rhythm.”
Win or lose, Raptors need to answer tough questions | Sportsnet.ca
The Raptors passed the ball less and with less efficiency than nearly every team in the NBA during the regular season and are last in the playoffs so far with just 255 passes a game and they rank 13th out of 16 teams with points from assists in the playoffs. That lack of passing means tougher shots for those expected to take them. In the regular season Kyle Lowry, DeRozan and Williams were the only trio of teammates in the NBA to take at least 11 shots a game while shooting less than 42 percent from the field. Only 12 players in the entire league took at least 11 shots at that rate while playing at least 2,000 minutes this season and three of them were on Toronto. The trend has continued against Washington as Lowry, DeRozan and Williams have taken 149 shots – compared to 122 for the rest of the team – and shot just 32.2 percent, compared to 51.6 for the remaining seven players. The playoffs may be about adjustments and the Raptors have talked about the need for their primary scorers to make plays for their teammates, but it hasn’t happened yet and might not.
The Toronto Raptors Are Trying. What Now? | Raptors HQ
In response to Washington’s strech 4 lineups, Dwane Casey has done very little. He’s stuck with lineups he deemed functional in March, all of which don’t include the team’s best individual defender and plus-minus hero James Johnson. Johnson wouldn’t be a cure-all in this series, but his playing just seven minutes in three games tells you all you need to know about Casey’s stubbornness on this issue. In the end, this lack of ability to make adjustments has taken “effort” out of the question. The Raptors can shove, smack, and scream all they want – if they’re in a system that doesn’t work for their personnel, there’s no chance at success. Other NBA teams have figured out that the Raptors are in a defensive system that gambles too much. As a guy whose pedigree was on that end of the court, the Game 3 loss could be the last straw for Casey as Toronto’s head coach. The Raptors are also truly lacking in veteran leadership. Lowry and DeRozan make a great bromance, but neither has the intangible swagger that comes with playoff experience.
GM Ujiri has Raptors positioned for renovations | Toronto Sun
Ujiri hedged his bets, left his options open. Instead of adding some desperately needed veteran help up front — Indiana’s David West would have been exactly what the doctor ordered in this series — Ujiri declined to move a first-round pick or Terrence Ross at the trade deadline. A year earlier, the Wizards moved a first to Phoenix to get Marcin Gortat and he has been a destroyer against the Raptors and is about to be a key factor in a second-straight playoff series win for lower-seeded Washington. Ujiri wasn’t interested in doing the same. Even in the summer, with the buzz of the team’s stirring, seven-game battle with Brooklyn still lingering in the air, Ujiri hedged. Sure, Kyle Lowry was re-signed, but that was a no-brainer. Greivis Vasquez and Patrick Patterson were given short, moveable contracts instead of long commitments. Bruno Caboclo, who looks every bit of ESPN’s “two years away from being two years away” prediction, was selected 20th overall, instead of more NBA-ready help Even Dwane Casey only got two guaranteed years, plus a team option, whereas most coaches who had helped turn around a program like Casey had would have received an extra guaranteed year. Keep your options open, because in the NBA, things can go sideways. Fast.
Raptors coach Dwane Casey was right all along: Feschuk | Toronto Star
The best player? Ujiri was poised to trade Kyle Lowry only a season ago. And now, in Lowry’s first all-star campaign, it’s obvious enough why. A little too short and a little too slow, Lowry is looking like a D-League stumbler in the matchup with uber-fast Wizards counterpart John Wall. Give Lowry a pass for being racked with late-season injuries if you like, but ask yourself this: Is he going to be a better, more durable player next year, when, at the tail end of a checkered run of dubious body care, he’ll turn 30? And as for the coach: It’s true that Casey is a fine man who just led the team to consecutive franchise-record seasons of 48 and 49 wins. But all of that means little when you remember that Ujiri, back when he was GM in Denver, fired head coach George Karl less than a month after Karl won the NBA coach of the year award on the heels of a 57-win campaign. Karl’s sin? He couldn’t win in the playoffs.
Are Dwane Casey’s Days in Toronto Numbered? | Raptors Republic
The problem is that Casey is a stubborn in-game tactician, usually electing to leave his team’s strategy unaltered, regardless of what their opposition is doing. For example, in game two, Casey left Greivis Vasquez on the court even though he was getting destroyed by John Wall. Wall was able to blow-by Vasquez, so he could pretty much score from wherever he wanted. Propelled by Wall’s efficient scoring, the Wizards took control of the game and never looked back. Wittman, who is often criticized for his questionable decisions, has looked like a genius in this series. He has found mismatches that Casey has not been able to address. Casey may simply be the wrong guy to help the Raptors continue to develop into an elite team. If the Raps lose tomorrow, expect Ujiri to quickly fire Casey to renew some faith in the fans, players and front-office staff.
Simmons says: What to do with Dwane Casey? | Raptors | Sports | Toronto Sun
Casey’s game is all about defence and the Raptors are among the NBA’s weakest defenders. The roster doesn’t help. And general manager Masai Ujiri is in a strong economic position over the next two seasons to remake the team as he invisions it. But eill asey be part of that remake? He has at least one year guaranteed remaining on his contract and close to $4-million owing. Around the team you have to wonder: If the Raptors are swept out of the playoffs, will Casey be swept out with them?
Double Dribble: Is this the end for Casey in Toronto? | TSN
Watson: While the series isn’t officially over, and no, they won’t be the 1st team in NBA to come back down 0-3, there’s a chance to salvage some decency. Ultimately, I don’t think his team did him any favors, but the Raptors inability to play and reflect the style and philosophy of their head coach is telling. Read: Defence. Strickland: Pretty much. While he’s been a great coach to get this team to the level of potentially being a perennial playoff contender, a change in voice and philosophy in the Raptors locker room seems necessary to take the next step in in GM Masai Ujiri’s master plan. With seven players coming off the books, including the longest standing Dino in Amir Johnson, Toronto will look drastically different in 2015-2016 from athletes to bench boss.
Playoff Stat Hits: Where It All Went Wrong | Raptors HQ
This team relied heavily on its guard rotation and their ability to make shots this season and it worked well enough to get them to a franchise-best 49 wins. In the playoffs, however, that strategy just isn’t getting it done. Player FGA FG% 3PA 3P% DeMar DeRozan 22.3 38.8% 2.7 37.5% Kyle Lowry 14.0 23.8% 5.3 18.8% Lou Williams 13.3 30.0% 5.0 13.3% Terrence Ross 8.7 38.5% 5.0 33.3% Greivis Vasquez 6.0 38.9% 3.0 44.4% It’s hard to fault DeMar DeRozan’s effort, considering how much he’s been trying to will his team to victory with a line of 22.3 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 6.3 assists in a whopping 41.7 minutes per game, but it gets shady after that. Kyle Lowry, Lou Williams, and Terrence Ross, by comparison, have all been from bad to abysmal. Terrence Ross gets a bit of a pass for at least being better than last year (yay?), but the Raps would have needed their All-Star and this year’s Sixth Man of the Year to shoot over 30 percent from the field and 20 percent from long range to have stood a chance in this series (groundbreaking theory, I know). Vasquez has been halfway decent on offence, but he’s been a sieve on defence, as the Raptors have allowed a robust 8.2 more points per 100 possessions when he’s been on the floor than when he’s been on the bench.
Casey, DeRozan search for answers as Raptors prepare for Game 4 – The Globe and Mail
This was supposed to be the year they went further and improved upon that first-round exit last year versus the Brooklyn Nets. But now they sit after just three playoff games with their series on “life support,” as Coach Dwane Casey called it after Friday’s game. But maybe, that takes off all the pressure. “There’s a freedom and also added pressure on their part,” said Casey, putting it back on the opponent. “One of the hardest things to do in the NBA and all the series I’ve been involved in is to close out a series. That’s going to be the pressure they have on them.”
Win Or Go Home For Raptors In Game Four | Toronto Raptors
Casey said the second-year player looks like a different person than the one the Raptors saw in the regular season. “He’s the guy who has made big plays,” Casey said. “Not only shots, but big plays, winning plays, rebounding, defending.” Although the final minute was deflating, the Raptors went through Saturday’s practice focused on how they can steal a win in Game 4 and move the series back to Toronto. “We’ve just got to go out there and try to get one game,” Lowry said. “Whatever it takes. Try to get one game. We know close out games to win the series is always the toughest game to win for the other team. We’ve got to go out there and make it as tough as possible.”
Wizards vs. Raptors Game 4 preview: Can the Wizards sweep the North? | Bullets Forever
The Wizards have outrebounded the Raptors in this series 151 to 117 throughout the first three games, but they allowed 22 second chance points from the Raptors in game 3. They also turned the ball over 17 times and that, coupled with 10 offensive rebounds, gave the Raptors 23 more shots than the Wizards in game 3. It’s great that the Wizards were able to withstand losing the possession battle and still win the game, but that isn’t traditionally how things work in the NBA. The Raptors bailed the Wizards out with some awful shots and they also allowed seven offensive rebounds themselves, but the Wizards can’t allow them to generate extra possessions like they did and win the game.
NBA Preview – Toronto Raptors at Washington Wizards | CBSSports.com
“Regular season is a completely different animal than the playoffs. That’s one thing,” Lowry said. “Two, these guys are playing extremely well. Their guards are playing well, their bigs are playing defense well and their game-planning has been on point.” Teammate Lou Williams has been off as well. Named Sixth Man of the Year during this series, Williams has shot 30.0 percent from the field and 2 of 15 from beyond the arc. Perhaps the biggest difference maker for Washington has been Paul Pierce. In his 12th postseason appearance, Pierce has scored 16.0 points per game, up from 11.9 during the regular season, and has twice come through in crucial late-game situations.
Raptors-Wizards: Game 4 preview | Toronto Star
In NBA history, there have been 110 instances where a team fell behind 3-0 in a playoff series. In those 110 times, no team trailing has rallied to win the series … Washington has taken Lou Williams entirely out of Toronto’s offence, as the current NBA Sixth Man of the Year is just 12-for-40 from the field and 2-for-15 from three-point range … With 17 assists in Game 2 and 15 assists in Game 3, John Wall is the first player to have at least 15 assists in back-to-back playoff games since Steve Nash did it in 2010 … The Raptors have won to extend a playoff series five times in their history … DeMar DeRozan has scored 20 or more points in 10 playoff games; Vince Carter holds the franchise record with 11 games of 20-plus points.
