5 lessons Raptors can learn from Warriors and Spurs

With the Toronto Raptors continued growth there are 5 specific areas they should seek to emulate from the top 2 teams in the NBA.

It’s been an extremely active few days in the NBA between All-Star starters being named and the firing of David Blatt. Yet arguably the most anticipated event occurred last night in a clash of the Associations best teams.

In what was billed as the Warriors top ranked offense vs. the Spurs top ranked defense it was the Dubs who prevailed with an easy victory. In truth, simply painting the Dubs as an offensive juggernaut is unfair as it over looks the fact they rank third behind the Spurs defensively. As for the Spurs, the absence of Tim Duncan punctuates his role is no less important in 2016 then it was in his prime (he’ll turn 40 on April 25). A fact best demonstrated by the Spurs inability to take advantage of two Warrior weaknesses: dominate the paint (rank 29th in opponent PIP) and maintain control of the ball (rank 25th in turnovers per game).

While the result of the game gives the Warriors the initial edge in the battle of supremacy I couldn’t help ponder the copious lessons the rest of the league and the Raptors specifically could adopt from these two titans. Unquestionably the Raptors have already begun implementing and emulating certain traits of these two franchises, but I felt it merited some additional digging.

With that, in no particular order here are 5 specific areas the Toronto Raptors should seek to emulate the Spurs and Warriors :

Consistency:

Forming consistent habits leads to success:

Spurs: For the past 18 seasons the Spurs franchise has been the picture of consistency. While the Raptors strive to record their first 50-win season in franchise history it’s a baseline for San Antonio. Tim Duncan has experienced that marker in 17 of his 18 seasons with the 98-99 strike shortened season being the lone exception (notably they won 37 of 50 games that year). San Antonio’s win percentage over this period ranges from a high of 76.8% to a low of 61%. This season the Spurs are currently on a 84.4% winning clip and need just 12 more victories in their final 37 games to hit the 50 win mark again.

Warriors: Winning is the obvious benchmark to measure consistency and with last night’s victory the Warriors hit an impressive milestone –  extending their unbeaten streak at home to a full calendar year. The other major criterion the Warriors utilize effectively to achieve consistency is they developed a core group of youth to grow together as a unit. Golden State drafted extremely well selecting Stephen Curry,  Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Harrison Barnes.  Then surrounded them with key role players like Andre Iguodala, Andrew Bogut and Shaun Livingston. With the title in hand the franchise is now ironically looking to emulate San Antonio as the players added to the squad will be selected to fill specific roles of the core group in front of them (example Festus Ezeli will eventually replace Andrew Bogut).

Raptors: This is an area the Raptors have begun to make strides. One such example is they are one of 3 teams (Golden State Warriors and Chicago Bulls are the other 2) who have remained above .500 consecutively through the past 2 years. Toronto has also committed to growing their core assets via contract extensions to Kyle Lowry, Jonas Valanciunas and Terrence Ross with very good odds they’ll extend DeMar DeRozan‘s contract to join this group especially if they meet their goal of getting past the first round.

I believe the Raptors sit second in the East because of this factor as they have consistently ranked in the top ten of the major categories and on a whole bring the same effort regardless of opponent, home vs road venue and who is healthy/available to suit up.

 

Mum’s the word:

Keep your business in house:

Spurs:More than any other franchise San Antonio do the best job of keeping their business to themselves. You never hear of players only meetings (though I’m sure they’ve probably occurred). The party line is team first which is demonstrated most prominently via coach Popovich and team leader Tim Duncan. When a player can’t abide by those standards (Stephen Jackson) they are released or traded.

It sounds like a simple thing, but basketball while a team game is comprised of many alpha dogs who want to see personal success in order to maintain their confidence. Yet in the Tim Duncan era we’ve never heard him say he deserved MVP (even when he was long over due to win it), never heard players whining about making the All-Star team and certainly never heard Duncan or any other Spur call themselves the best player, best team or best franchise (yeah I’m looking at you Mr. James). In fact upon learning he’d been selected to be an All-Star starter Kawhi Leonard said his only goals are team based i.e. winning the title.

Warriors: Though the Warriors aren’t quite as pristine in this regard (hey they are younger) what they are good at is backing up what they do say out loud. Curry’s recent comments about wondering if the Cavaliers’ visiting lockers still smelled like champagne wasn’t necessarily meant as a slight. Or maybe his cherubic face makes him appear more angelic, so we view him with less judgement.

In contrast LeBron James stating how annoyed he was by the comment and response that “they would show them on the court how it smelled” ended up making him look like a bully (not to mention – wrong). This is the same guy overtly stating he is the best player in the world (though he very well may be, many don’t want to hear it), calling out his own players publicly and takes every opportunity to brag/rub in winning efforts versus opposing teams.

It ends up making James and his team look like poor sports because they are sending the message it’s only okay for them to show bravado.

 

Raptors: As a franchise the Raptors operate exceptionally well at keeping their business internally. We seldom, if ever hear of any issues or negativity. Even a minor blip by free spirit James Johnson regarding playing time was swiftly dealt with when he apologized and it wasn’t really that bad of a comment. I’d be shocked to ever hear a Raptor take to the press like LeBron James and Kevin Love have to deal with a team issue. It simply wouldn’t be tolerated.

In my opinion that standard is set as mentioned above from the top down. Perhaps the overriding principle here is respect and the Spurs truly are the best role models. From their management, coaching staff, team leaders, right down to the smallest position on the team, everyone who contributes is respected and treated as integral to the success of the franchise.

 

Game Balance:

Applying an equal balance of excellence on both ends of the floor:

Spurs:
Again in the Duncan era (or perhaps more accurately we should call it the Popovich era) San Antonio has always found a way to balance offense and defense. Under Pop’s tutelage their offensive schemes have ranged from:

  • Twin Towers
  • Spurs big 3 (Timmy, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili)
  • Quickened pace with floor spacing/3 point dominance
  • Symphonic passing
  • Current strategy utilizing a variety of the above methods.

The one constant however is the Spurs are always a top rated defensive team. This season they are taking this to a whole new level or perhaps I should say taking it back to an old school level as they flirt with defensive stats similar to numbers not replicated for decades.

Warriors:

Obviously pace, 3-point shooting and length allow the Dubs to dominate as the top ranked offense. But, it was their defense that propelled them to the top and allowed them to win a title. Sure teams are looking to emulate the Dubs position-less methods, but unless they also employ a solid defense they won’t get the same results.

Raptors:

While obviously a work in progress the Raptors have been among the few teams who have consistently ranked in the top ten in offense (6th), defense (10th), net differential (6th) and rebound percentage (7th) all season. There is definitely room for growth especially on defense specifically on the perimeter.

What is encouraging is this season even throughout injury to key players Toronto haven’t slipped significantly on that end of the court. Plus there is room for optimism because when DeMarre Carroll returns it’s reasonable to assume the team will improve. After being swept by Washington it does seem the team is well aware defense has to be their focus, regardless of how well they play offensively.

 

Continual Growth:

Always aim to increase growth – never allow winning to stop that desire:

Spurs:
Despite the fact the Spurs big 3 are the most successful (from a title perspective) their mandate has always been to function as a team with no one player more valuable than another. Popovich is the best at utilizing his entire roster and knowing when to rest his stars. Perhaps his absolute commitment to the reserves is why they continue to win when he does insert them. Hey, I doubt any coach except Popovich would rest his top 3 players when the team was on a 20 game winning streak, but that’s the beauty of Pop.

Actions like that result in the team always growing as the reserve players gain valuable experience and feel confident they can contribute when called upon.

As per individual growth Kawhi Leonard is posting career highs in many categories, but most significantly (and unbelievably) has improved his free throw percentage by 8.2% and his three point field goal percent by 13.2%.

Warriors:

For a young team the most impressive thing they did following their title win was choosing to get better individually. Too often once a team rises to the top they take for granted how they got there. A perfect example is the growth of Stephen Curry and Draymond Green this year. Conversely players on the Houston Rockets for example assumed just because they made the Western Conference Finals they would automatically be favorites to return this season and subsequently spent more time this summer celebrating their playoff success.

Raptors:

The fan base should be most proud of the Raptors in this specific area. From Masai Ujiri’s free agency and draft selection, to the coaching staff’s overall schematic improvements to each returning player who  improved elements of their games this off season.  Across the board the Raptors have improved and their results are proof of that commitment.

Leadership:

Who a franchise selects to lead be it coach or player is the identity the team will emulate:

Spurs

Is there a better example of a coach – player leadership base in all of sports? Tim Duncan allows Gregg Popovich to yell at him and listens which sets the standard for how the rest of the team interact with him.

Warriors:

The firing of Mark Jackson had nothing to do with the players it was a management issue, but the leaders (Curry/Green) handled the new hiring adeptly especially Iguodala who was moved to the bench and could have sulked and caused issues in team chemistry.

At the end of the day the top player on a team isn’t always the leader, but in this case they are. As touched on above both Curry and Green spent their summer acting as if they had been the team who lost the title. They are a great leadership tandem who are another perfect example for teams wishing to rise up the ladder.

What occurred in Cleveland over the weekend is (in my opinion) the best example of how leadership can adversely effect an organization. While James camp maintains he had no knowledge or involvement in the Blatt firing and Lue hiring I doubt anyone is that gullible.

And, while I recognize the immense pressure James must feel to bring a championship to Cleveland I will say I’m glad the Raptors have seemingly chosen to emulate the Spurs example over the Cavaliers.

Raptors:

Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan are undeniably the Raptors co-leaders and again it appears they are choosing to adapt a similar style to both the Spurs and Warriors. Duane Casey has often said he thinks of DeMar like a son and the working relationship of Lowry and Casey is a testament to how both have grown.

But, perhaps the greatest example of the Raptors backcourt leadership was the off season work they both put in to improve their bodies and their games.

Closing Thought:

What occurred in Cleveland on the weekend may offer an opportunity for the Raptors to seize the moment as there is likely to still be growing pains. The fact Lue is saying the team needs to get in better shape to be able to play with an increased pace I found telling. The more accurate statement was the Cavaliers aren’t in tip top condition which falls on the players and specifically the leader. Whether LeBron liked or respected Blatt shouldn’t have mattered, he’s still a professional who the rest of the team will follow as an example.

Moving forward the Raptors consistency has earned respect and separated them from the pack that was constantly referred to as “the group vying for second”.  To wit, NBA writer and stat master John Schuhmann  ranks Toronto ahead of Cleveland this week and fourth overall in his power rankings.

Schuhmann Toronto

 

 

As fans we should all be thrilled it appears for the most part our franchise (from GM to coach to leaders) have chosen to follow the Warrior and Spurs example.

And, if Cleveland dips at all in the standings offering further opportunities for the Raptors  I’ll keep my eye on the Hornets as per Blake’s excellent trade possibilities article.

To that end, I felt the most under rated summer addition was the addition of Nicolas Batum to the Hornets, Suffice to say I’ve been praying for them to continue to struggle as I’ve had visions of a Lowry, Joseph, DeRozan, Carroll,  Batum (who Ujiri could then trade for at the deadline) small ball line-up actually being competitive with the Warriors, but alas that’s an article for another day.

In the interim, let’s hope the Toronto Raptors continue to grow and utilize these 5 traits to improve as a team.

 

 

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