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Raptors 905 fall to Sioux Falls despite Wright’s 33 points

Another tough day at Hershey Centre. At least there are free Reese Peanut Butter Cups for the guys.

Expectations are a strange thing. Our brains aren’t wired to separate results from expectation, and so it can be difficult to properly evaluate things unless we can somehow be absent expectations altogether.

Raptors 905, for example, entered their inaugural with relatively low expectations for wins and losses, the obvious focus of a fledgling affiliate franchise set to be on player and infrastructure development rather than any idea of contendership. They’ve opened the season 5-14, a surely disappointing mark that’s come with some frustration at familiar and continued issues, but through the lens of what this team is in Year One, it’s an entirely reasonable record. A 104-88 loss to the 14-3 Sioux Falls Skyforce on Saturday, one that saw the 905 commit 18 turnovers and allow 31 3-point attempts, 15 of them successful, is frustrating for the team because it’s the third loss to the same opponent since Dec. 22, but it also proved yet another learning opportunity, with the promise of a chance for correction when they meet again Thursday (seriously).

For Bruno Caboclo, the Face of the 5ive, expectations are such that any performance he puts forward is a step in the right direction. Caboclo is devoid of real-time expectations, his season to be measured only in imperceptible short-term improvements and substantial long-term ones. A day like Saturday, when he went 0-of-11 from the floor and turned in perhaps his worst offensive performance of the season, is discouraging only because he, himself, raised expectations slightly with better performances in the recent past. The preference is for success over struggle, advancement over stagnation, but most understand that development isn’t perfectly linear.

“From the beginning of the season until now, he’s a much improved player,” head coach Jesse Mermuys said. “He has a ways to go but he’s gotten a lot better.”

And for Lucas Nogueira, expectations have almost been put on pause, as he’s proven himself in a short time to be advanced for the D-League and maybe even ready for NBA duty. Had Nogueira scored eight points with six rebounds, six assists, three steals, and two blocks during his earlier D-League stint, it would have been affirming of his potential. Given he’s now contributed meaningful minutes against two very good teams in the Atlanta Hawks and Golden State Warriors, and considering he doesn’t seem to be in the D-League for much more than extended conditioning, it’s difficult to get too high or too low from his production. He defended the rim well Saturday, made a few passes that few bigs even think to make, and even fired up a 3-point attempt (it missed), but at the same time he was mostly a non-factor in 40 minutes, failing to bring the energy Mermuys was looking for from him.

“I think I had higher expectations for Lucas coming into the game,” Mermuys said. “It’s not that he was bad but I would have liked to see a little bit more out of him.”

Nogueira was happier with his outing than Mermuys, but there’s also the sense Bebe is just biding his time until there’s another opportunity for him with the big club, working only to stay fresh and ready and help the junior club get some wins under their belt for confidence.

“I thought I was gonna look worse but I feel great,” Nogueira said.

In the case of Delon Wright, expectations are so one-sided that it’s almost impossible for him to impress. While Caboclo gets a pass for hit shooting night, and Nogueira gets a pass because he’s affable and funny and maybe too advanced, and the team can take L’s like Wu Tang and still find the positives, Wright…well, he can do right, but the bar is set high enough that it’s probably tough for him to get a pat on the back.

On Saturday, Wright was dominant scoring the ball, putting up 33 points on 13-of-22 shooting. He attacked well, finished over rim-contests, and got to the line for 10 free throws. Were it not for a 1-of-6 3-point shooting night – a couple poorly advised, a couple the result of broken plays – Wright’s night would have been remarkably efficient. Even with the clear score-first edict – “Today I just tried to be aggressive and find some energy,” he said -he dished five assists, and he produced three steals at the other end.

But as the No. 20 pick and as a 23-year-old senior who was oxymoronically touted as being “NBA ready,” dominance in the D-League is expected of Wright. Instead of his forays to the rim standing out, it was the occasional poor decision in transition, an area the 905 struggled Saturday. Instead of his scoring jumping off the screen, it was his occasional pick-and-roll defensive lapses or the odd time he was blown by by Josh Richardson that were noticed. His zero defensive rebounds jump off the box score on a night the 905 really could have used their strong-rebounding guard to help crack down on bigs more, as the team was outrebounded heavily. If it sounds like a lot’s being asked of Wright, that’s because it is.

“I thought he had really good moments and then he had some not-so-good moments and we’ve just gotta try to extend,” Mermuys said. “It’s hard when I’m playing him big minutes, I’m expecting him to run the team, I’m expecting him to make a lot of the plays for everybody, and score, and defend a ton of pick-and-rolls. That’s a hard job, and you can see in the NBA, it’s hard for Kyle to do it, it’s hard for everybody to play that position because you’re getting involved in so much usage on both ends. That’s something he’s gotta learn.”

It might not be easy, but it’s a testament to Wright’s poise and maturity, and how he’s played when assigned so far this season, that even producing at a high level is simply satisfactory. When an efficient 33 points doesn’t come with a great deal of praise, it’s not that you haven’t done something wrong, it’s that there’s a hunger for even more right.

GAME NOTES
*Ronald Roberts wasn’t at his best despite a 20-point performance. Opposite Jarnell Stokes, a quality assignee from the Miami Heat, Roberts lost maybe his first rebounding battle ever. Roberts primarily drew the Stokes assignment – Nogueira got to wtch Byron Mullens miss threes – and Stokes’ offensive ability put Roberts in positions to defend rather than crash, and the Skyforce took advantage some. That’s not entirely on Roberts, as primary defenders are supposed to have help on the glass, but it’s probably disappointing given that Stokes was a nice chance to prove himself against a similarly styled NBA big. Stokes had 22 points and 11 rebounds to Roberts’ 20 and seven.

*Axel Toupane sat with a sore knee. Michale Kyser slid into his role as the versatile defensive-minded sixth man and turned in 16 quality minutes. Kyser has really taken a step forward of late.

*Don’t confuse the tone of the article as it’s framed around expectations: Caboclo was bad, Nogueira was fine if a bit disappointing, and Wright was mostly good. Just an exercise in how those outings are perceived or feel relative to the bars that have been set.

*Mermuys received his first technical of the season and wasn’t even aware of it: “If I knew I was gonna get a technical, I would have got my money’s worth.”

*Important life advice from Bebe, part one: “try to just take the positive things from every experience. If you just take the negative, it goes down, depressing, done.”

*Important life advice from Bebe, part two:

*James Johnson was in the house taking in the game from behind the bench.

*The 905 will practice Monday and then fly out to Santa Cruz for the D-League Showcase on Wednesday. We’re going to have a ton of D-League content this week because of the showcase, so look for that.