They Can’t All Be Winners, Part 21: Toronto Raptors | The Classical
The disappointing thing about the Raptors is that, for all their bravado—the Fuck Brooklyn incident, the self-congratulatorily rabid fandom, the Drake endorsement—when you flip on their games, you are as likely to happen upon a boring, pseudo-competent basketball team as one that lives up to the noise it makes. DeMar DeRozan is the sort of player who isn’t a star, but believes himself to be in a way that occasionally bends reality to his will, and when Kyle Lowry is in the mood, he’s unguardable. Terrence Ross and Jonas Valanciunas just barely continue to exist as glimpses of potential, shining gonna-bes that, as they enter their mid-20s are about to hit the point at which the dreams about what they could be dissipate and sighing observers decide to slap them with the serviceable veteran tag. Amir Johnson has been swapped out for DeMarre Carroll, one intrepid defender replacing another. There’s nothing wrong with any of this, but there’s also not much that’s distinctive about it. The Raps are a quintessential Eastern Conference four-seed, interchangeable with many other okay teams that have come before them. Dwane Casey is Replacement-Level Coach No. 2573; in another era, he’d be Brian Hill. In a broad sense, the Raptors have to be this way. The NBA has only so many stars, and as mightily as the Sixers are trying to prove the truism wrong, a franchise can’t rebuild forever. A gaggle of middle-class teams headed nowhere in particular is built into the league’s structure.
Cory Joseph making smooth transition with Raptors | Toronto Star
Through four exhibition games, Joseph is settling in as the team’s backup point man and showing what he learned playing under Popovich the last four years. He’s brought a steady, calming presence to the Raptors in relief of Lowry and averaged 10.8 points and 2.5 assists in 21 minutes in the pre-season. He had 14 points and four assists against Minnesota on Monday and played a key part in closing out the Lakers in a win out west last week. Coming to a new team and asserting yourself at a leadership position isn’t an easy thing, Raptors coach Dwane Casey said. “(It’s a challenge to) understand what’s going on and to be able to verbalize it, to be able to tell everyone else what to do and have the confidence to do it and he’s done that,” Casey said. “You need that type of leadership from your point guard.”
Dwane Casey hands out expectation cards to Raptors | Toronto Sun
The team gives each player three laminated cards — one for their agent, one to take home to give to their significant other or best friend and one to keep in the locker room. That way, they can never say they lost it, or aren’t sure what their role is. Backup point guard Cory Joseph said Tuesday that while he might have a concern or two about the practice, overall he sees the benefits. “It’s a balance. You don’t want to limit guys, but at the same time guys need to know what their strengths are on the court so it’s not like a rec league,” Joseph said. “It creates some structure. Obviously during the year players can break out of their role a little bit and show that they’ve been working on their game and show the coach that they’ve been getting better.”
Casey carries on his ‘role card’ tradition with Raptors | TSN
“What’s your job?,” said Casey, who is going into his fifth season at the helm of the Raptors. “Your job is to defend, rebound. If you’re a three-point shooter, shoot three-pointers. If you’re a passer, you’re a passer. If you’re a screener, you’re a screener.” The 58-year-old has been using role cards for over three decades, going back to his days coaching at the University of Kentucky, where he picked up the idea. He’s carried it over to the NBA, implementing them at every stop, whether he was the lead man or an assistant. He spares no expense, either. Three cards are printed up for each player – one to take home, one to post in their locker and, wisely, one for their agent. Yes, they are laminated. “And if they need extra, we can print ’em pretty quick,” Casey said. “Free of charge.”
Who’s the Raptors backup small forward, anyway? | Raptors HQ
So, let’s take a step back. One would expect that Toronto’s eight man bench (seven active, one inactive) on opening day would absolutely include Cory Joseph, Luis Scola, Terrence Ross, James Johnson and Bismack Biyombo. Whether it’s their contract or their talent level, that much seems inarguable. That leaves Powell, Caboclo, and Anthony Bennett as the most likely names to fill the last spot on the active roster. If the coaches prefer a rotation with Powell or Bruno as a backup three, it would come at the cost of Bennett, who would either spend a lot of time in a suit or be sent down to the D-League. As you can see, the rotation goes into flux once Casey commits to James Johnson playing exclusively at power forward. Many of us expected that Raptors905 was created on short notice to benefit the development of players like Bruno and Powell, but plans may have changed with their preseason performances and this baffling James Johnson decision, all of which throws the future of other players into question. The decision will be something to watch for as we see Casey’s opening day roster and rotation for the first couple weeks of the season.
Raptors leading the way, while young Celtics on the rise | NBA.com
Welcome to the Atlantic Division, a.k.a. the Atlantis Division, a.k.a. the main reason that winning a division no longer means an automatic top-four playoff seed. Sure, Toronto nearly won 50 games last season, but the Celtics managed to finish second and still were two games under .500. The good news? The Atlantic Division has nowhere to go but up!
Toronto Raptors 2015-16 Season Preview | Blazer’s Edge
The Raptors play in the weakest division in the NBA and should win it by default, barring massive improvement from the Boston Celtics. But it may be tough for the Raptors to improve over last season; they have holes in their roster and despite some roster continuity lack a clear identity. Their biggest addition, Carroll, is a complementary player and will not be able to help them improve significantly if DeRozan, Lowry, and Valanciunas fail to gel on offense and Patterson fails to prove himself as an effective power forward. To make matters worse for the Raptors several teams competing for middle playoff seeds (e.g. the Milwaukee Bucks, Miami Heat, Celtics, and Wizards) have all improved. It will be difficult for Toronto to finish in the top four of the Eastern Conference again this season.
Kyle Lowry is the preseason MVP | SBNation.com
So far, the new body has done wonders for Lowry’s game. After his 40-point explosion, the 29-year-old is now averaging 30.3 points in preseason while shooting a ridiculous 68.3 percent overall and 64.7 percent from three. He’s also gotten to the line nearly nine times per contest. Granted, it’s only preseason and those numbers obviously aren’t sustainable, but this is a great sign for Toronto.
Faster, more athletic Raptors hope to change playoff mojo | NBA.com
After years of feeling undervalued and overlooked, last season Lowry finally began getting his due. After signing a four-year extension in the summer of 2014, Lowry made his All-Star debut in NYC in 2015. But after carrying a heavy load through the first half of the season with DeRozan out injured, Lowry struggled post All-Star, averaging just 15.1 ppg after the break and missing 11 games to recuperate from nagging injuries. By the time the postseason rolled around, Lowry was mostly ineffective, averaging 12.3 ppg and 4.8 apg during the first-round sweep by the Wizards. The Raptors will only go as far as Lowry can carry them.
5Qs: Washington Wizards, on Wall, playoff success, and maybe Durant | Raptors HQ
A lot of turnover for the Raptors this offseason (I think I counted seven players out and eight new ones in?) but that’s not a bad thing. DeMarre Carroll was my favorite pickup that the Raptors made and he will help tremendously on the defensive end. Biyombo and Joseph provide solid depth and I really liked the Anthony Bennett pickup just simply because there isn’t a ton of risk there and he’s a young player who has a chance to turn it around. If Lowry keeps playing at a high level, if DeRozan keeps improving, if Jonas Valančiūnas can take a step forward (and I think all of those are very realistic things) then the Raptors should be a playoff team again in the East this year.
5 Final Bold Predictions for the Toronto Raptors’ 2015-16 Season | RantSports
Patrick Patterson as a starter will take some getting used to. Hey may not even be the starter at PF come playoff time. The loss of Amir Johnson will be bigger than they expect. I think Boston wins the division and Toronto struggles to find the right fit for Carroll. Perhaps Casey is fired at the end of the season.
Toronto Raptors bank on potential for improved 2015–16 campaign | The Gauntlet
New acquisitions like DeMarre Carroll, Cory Joseph and Bizmack Biyombo promise a new focus on defense for the Raptors. Carroll was the prize of the Raptors’ offseason and promises to add two-way punch to what became an inconsistent lineup last year. And veteran Luis Scola might be 35 years old — a senior citizen by NBA standards — but he is coming off of a great performance for his native Argentina at the 2015 FIBA Americas Championship tournament, where he was named MVP. This team also has notable potential in rookies Delon Wright and summer league star Norman Powell. Lastly, there’s newcomer and Toronto native Anthony Bennett. In two years, the 2013 draft’s first-overall pick has been traded twice and bought out once, all while posting the lowest points-per-game of any first-overall pick since 1966. But Bennett is only 22 and still has time to develop into a decent player. While he may never be a superstar, Raptors fans can expect an athletic big man who can get up and down the floor, grab some rebounds and bring some energy off the bench.
