After Sunday’s loss to the Chicago Bulls, DeMarre Carroll sat dejected at his locker as a few media members settled in around him. Leaning back in an all-green sweat suit, Carroll trailed off multiple times talking about the physical issues that were not only holding him to a minutes restriction but were also clearly holding him back in the minutes he could play.
He seemed angry that Jimmy Butler had gone off for 40 points in a half and he could do little to help stop it, unfairly putting the blame on his own shoulders. Multiple times, he caught himself from saying something he shouldn’t have. Here’s a chunk of my recap from that night, as it pertains to Carroll:
Carroll was open if not forthright about still being less than 100 percent after the game.
“He got in a nice groove. He had it going. I’m going to be quiet with what I really want to say. I take it on myself but I know I’m not all the way there,” Carroll said. “I don’t want to speak too much but I’m not all the way there. And he did what he’s supposed to do against a guy who’s not all the way there.”
Taking the blame when he played just 10:46 of the final 24 minutes is perhaps asking too much of himself. (His health is a discussion for another post.) Ross gave a good effort and navigated screens well, and DeRozan spotted in when called on, but neither is a great matchup for Butler, who has few great matchups. Carroll is supposed to be that guy, and at less than 100 percent, he wasn’t able to be.
The context was clear, and the five or six listening all got the same message: Something wasn’t right, and nobody would be surprised if Carroll had to sit Monday on the second night of a difficult Butler-LeBron James back-to-back. Here’s what I wrote in the game preview for Monday’s meeting with the Cleveland Cavaliers:
Despite the great Lowry-Irving matchup being a must-see one every time out and a battle for the starting point guard spot in the East for the All-Star Game, the biggest story to me is DeMarre Carroll. He’s been painfully open that he’s not 100 percent, and guarding James at anything less than 100 percent is a terrifying thought. Carroll did a fine job back in November and looked like he had found his footing earlier this week, but if he can’t do the things he wants to do on defense, it might be worth considering sitting him down again.
I know, I’m not a doctor. Maybe he’s fine playing through it and there isn’t risk of further injury. We can never really assume to know the best course of action for a player’s health. But in Carroll’s case, with the amount of time he’s had off, to still not be at 100 percent…he’s too important to what this team hopes to do in April to force him to fight through this now. After Saturday, the Raptors play just once in eight days, so he’s set for a bit of (physical) rest anyway, but on the second night of a back-to-back, going Butler-to-James, I’d consider maybe sitting him down Monday.
It’s probably a loss, anyway, so it’s not a bad night for it.
It was not surprising, then, when the team announced before the game that Carroll would sit with swelling in his right knee, head coach Dwane Casey admitting it swelled up more than usual Sunday. It was concerning, though, and it’s even more concerning now that Carroll’s full comments on the matter are out there.
The excellent Chris O’Leary of the Toronto Star provides a few:
It’s one of those things where I could play, but me playing at 65 per cent is not…I don’t think everybody looks at it as beneficial. (That) kind of makes me sound selfish, but I’m not. It’s just that Alex (McKechnie), he wanted to hold me out. He said he felt like I’m putting myself at risk more out there playing and the way I play. We’re going to go through a couple of procedures and see. I’ll see what the next step is.
…
I’m frustrated right now…What can I do? I don’t want to say too much, because you know how the Raptors do, we keep our stuff hush. I don’t want to say too much, but at the same time man, only if you knew, you know what I mean? Only if you knew. It’s one of those things.
No time frame has been provided for Carroll’s return – this is how they do, after all – but Carroll’s comments and other comments from Casey about the potential opportunity at hand for non-rotation players seem to suggest Carroll will miss at least a few games.
“A couple of procedures,” “We want him to get healthy,” “Only if you knew.” Yikes.
For what it’s worth Carroll said the plantar fasciitis that cost him three games earlier in the season isn’t much of a bother anymore. While an injury like that can certainly linger and lead to compensation issues, it’s important to remember that Carroll banged knees with DeAndre Jordan chasing J.J. Redick around a screen back on Nov. 22, and his subsequent absence was deemed as due to a knee contusion.
This is a tough situation to evaluate, really. I understand that many will rush to say the Raptors mishandled his injuries and his returns, or that they were playing him too many minutes (not the case since his latest return), but as outsides, we really don’t have the kind of information necessary to judge the process.
Personally, I’m extremely risk-averse when it comes to player injuries, and I would have given him all of the time necessary to get him to 100 percent. Maybe the team actually did that and it flared back up. Maybe the team thought with a minutes restriction, he could work his way back to 100 percent while playing some. Maybe Carroll, somewhat notorious for playing banged up and toughing out injuries without being forthright about them, overstated his own readiness out of a desire to get back and help the team. We really have no idea, but you’re certainly welcome to theorize.
There’s a small bright side about the timing of Carroll’s latest setback. The Raptors have Brooklyn, Washington, and Philadelphia coming up in a three-in-four road set. After that, they play just once in eight days thanks to the England trip. In other words, even if the team wanted to give Carroll two full weeks off, he’d only miss four games, one of them against the league’s dregs, two against mid-level East teams, and one against the future NBA champion, Ish Smith-led 76ers. That’s a good a time as any for a key player to need some rest.
In 23 games, Carroll’s averaging 11.7 points on 38.8-percent shooting in 32 minutes. Were it not for his 37.8-percent mark from outside, his offense would grade out quite poorly, as his effectiveness off the ball and on cuts has waned quite dramatically. Defensively, he’s still come mostly as advertised, but he’s labored a great deal. The Raptors are 5.5 points per-100 possessions better without him on the floor this year; they need him at 100 percent, and sitting him down for a little bit may be the prudent move.
If that’s the case, everyone needs to be patient. Carroll’s two months into a four-year deal, one that was signed primarily with an eye toward the playoffs. The Raptors can’t reach their ceiling without him on top of his game, and there’s really no evaluating his deal this early (seriously, I can’t believe I have to write that, but I do). There’s an opportunity here for James Johnson, T.J. Ross, Norman Powell, and maybe even Anthony Bennett, and if there are struggles while Carroll’s out, so be it. He needs to be 100 percent, however long it takes to get there.
