Raptors opt for rotation continuity despite rookie additions – Raptors Republic
At shooraround Wednesday, Casey teased that the starter “won’t surprise you,” which was a safe claim – either he was being earnest with the Patterson suggestion earlier, or none of us should have been surprised at him holding the status quo with Siakam starting and, more notably, Patrick Patterson coming off the bench. The team loves Patterson in his sixth-man role, and while Patterson doesn’t express a preference either way, there are good arguments to be made for him starting (he’s the better player and a great two-way fit with the starters) or coming off the bench (it balances the units and prevents Siakam and Poeltl from playing together). Bringing Patterson off the bench also gives the Raptors a sort of safety valve, in that if Siakam struggles, they could quickly shift to Patterson, where the opposite might be more difficult to put off (it didn’t matter in this one, as Siakam more than held his own).
“He was active. He played his role to the T,” Carroll said of the rookie. “He was getting rebounds. Was out there helping us defending, getting the ball in loose balls. That’s what you’ve got to do. You’ve got to play your role. You’ve got to understand who you are. And I think he understands that at an early age.”
Perhaps the best argument in favor of starting Siakam is that, though he’s new to the team, doing so provides another form of continuity: Rotation continuity.
Casey went forward with what amount to a nearly identical rotation to the one the team used in 2015-16, save for a slightly early first-quarter hook for DeMarre Carroll on account of foul trouble. The starters played the bulk of the first before the bench was slowly staggered in, DeRozan and Lowry swapped rest periods around the quarter break, and the starters more or less closed the half.
“We have a good look at our rotation and a good feel for it,” Casey said before the game. “A lot of things go into that, whether it’s foul trouble, missing shots, making a multitude of mistakes, and that’ll change some of that, but right now we have a pretty clear plan of how we wanna do it. There’s a lot made out of DeMar and Kyle, watching their minutes, we want to do that but not at the expense of losing games.”
Rookie watch: Looking at Pascal Siakam and Jakob Poeltl’s first NBA game – Raptors Republic
What immediately jumps out is his ability to move on the court. We had seen it in summer league and preseason, but there is always a question of whether a guy can do when the games mean something. It didn’t take long for Siakam to impress.
This sequence is a good start. Siakam closes out a little too hard but reads the slip screen well. Marcus Morris goes middle, but Siakam’s quickness forces an awkward and tough shot.
You can work with this stuff. Quickness can mask a lot of mistakes, and Siakam has that in bunches.
Siakam also looks to be one of those guys that wants every single d-board. He had three in the opening five minutes. They were not really contested — Detroit seemed to be abandoning the offensive glass — but Siakam still pulled them down with authority.
The team has praised his energy and work ethic, and it showed in this game.
Sullinger Giving High Praise For Siakam’s Efforts From Sidelines | Toronto Raptors
After Siakam’s first game, he credited the veterans on the team with helping him to prepare, but singled out Sullinger specifically for his encouragement.
“I think the veterans, they have been awesome to me, especially Sullinger,” Siakam said. “He’s been really helpful to me, just talking to me, helping me through this transition. I feel really bad that he’s hurt right now. I know he’s going to come back stronger and everything. I’m just wishing him a speedy recovery.”
At 24 years old, Sullinger is still a young player in the league, but with four seasons of experience under his belt, he’s taken to playing the role of savvy vet. Drafted by the Boston Celtics in 2012, Sullinger has had his share of lessons passed down by veteran teammates.
“One [mentor] retired this year in Kevin Garnett; one’s retiring next year in Paul Pierce,” Sullinger said. “Jason Terry, Courtney Lee, Gerald Green, Chris Wilcox, I could keep going. [Rajon] Rondo, I still talk to Rondo to this day. Those guys, they really took me and understood that this is how you play the game of basketball, this is the NBA life, this is what you’ve got to watch out for, this is what you need to do. Those guys really took me under their wing.
Although Wednesday’s victory was just the beginning of a long journey for this Raptors squad, Sullinger had high praise for Siakam’s efforts. Particularly in his NBA debut where he also had to manage nerves and excitement.
“The way he played yesterday, he may take my shoes,” Sullinger said. “Honestly, being a rookie, you’re just thinking, you’re constantly thinking, constantly trying to please the coach and I tell him all the time, just play your game. Nobody’s going to get mad about a shot, nobody’s going to get mad about if you have turnovers. As long as you’re playing hard and everybody knows it’s for the good of the team and it’s not a selfish play, we’ll understand.
“What you always want to do is help guys like Pascal, a guy that’s still learning the game of basketball, honestly. You just want to see him do his best.”
DeMar DeRozan Did the Damn Thing in Raptors’ Season Opener | VICE Sports
DeRozan’s shot chart isn’t exactly what those in analytics departments are looking for, devoid of triples and with few free-throw attempts by DeRozan’s lofty standards. But the Compton native has long thrived by taking exactly what modern defenses want to give an opponent, firing more long twos than just about anyone in the NBA. That he pushed his scoring efficiency past league-average markers last year is an enormous development given his near-30-percent usage rate, as being able to score with moderate efficiency at a vast volume is exceptionally difficult. And valuable.
The degree of difficulty on the shots DeRozan made Wednesday is astounding, too. The strength, footwork, and body control DeRozan exhibits to free himself from a defender on the block or driving baseline are unique skills, and while there’s an argument for taking better shots, it’s tough to deny Wednesday’s results, especially given how the Pistons sold out to try to keep DeRozan from the rim.
That DeRozan was 0-of-5 on easier catch-and-shoot attempts is equal parts shocking, given his final line, and fitting. There are players who score more efficiently but few who do so more dynamically, creating a sort of DeMar DiSsonance with a lot of his shot attempts. On days those only-in-2K shots aren’t falling, it can be frustrating. On days like Wednesday when they are, it’s, in the words of Raptors rookie Pascal Siakam, poetry.
Ironically, Wednesday’s game also presented one of the best arguments to decrease DeRozan’s occasional dominion over the offence: Valanciunas’ own statement game, in which he made Frikadėlės of Andre Drummond, Aron Baynes, Jon Leuer, and Boban Marjanovic. On a night when Kyle Lowry’s shot wasn’t falling, Valanciunas came up big in support of DeRozan’s efforts, with the pair becoming the first teammates in NBA history to go for 40 and 30 on an opening night.
Why DeMar DeRozan’s defense is key to Raptors | USA Today
DeRozan’s defensive improvements didn’t happen overnight. He put in extra work during the Olympics, admitting he was aware Team USA didn’t need him to score big points. So instead, he dedicated his time to fixing his shortcomings.
“You just find a new passion, and I found it during the Olympics,” DeRozan told USA TODAY Sports. “(Team USA) didn’t need me for scoring or none of that so you learn to do other things that make me a better player and try to carry that over to my team.”
The true test of DeRozan’s defensive ability will come when he faces stiffer competition and is forced to go toe-to-toe with the league’s star players. The first opportunity comes on Friday when the Raptors host the Cleveland Cavaliers for an Eastern Conference Finals rematch.
The Cavaliers eliminated the Raptors in six games on their way to winning the NBA title, and one of the issues as the team dropped four of six games to the LeBron James-led group was an inability to shut down the team’s high-powered offensive firing squad.
If DeRozan truly has improved, though, his backcourt All-Star running mate envisions the Raptors being a much more difficult team to beat.
T&S: Can Valanciunas average 20 points per game? – Sportsnet.ca
Tim and Sid discuss the Raptors opening night win over the Pistons & if Jonas Valanciunas can evolve into a dominate third element to the team’s roster.
James, Cavaliers provide early-season test for Carroll, Raptors | Toronto Star
Yeah, I would not advise others to try,” Carroll said of guarding James while not at full speed. “I just want to be healthy one of those times we go to the playoffs and we play those guys. That’s the NBA, life in the NBA. That’s what we get paid the big bucks to do, to go out there and put our bodies on the line and try to win games. There are no complaints here.”
The juicy storyline would be that Friday’s game is a chance for Toronto to extract a modicum of revenge on the Cavs for the Eastern Conference final. It’s also dead wrong and trite; it is Game 2 of 82 and more a litmus test than a statement.
“It’s a good opportunity to go against the best team, in my mind, in the league,” Casey said. “They have every weapon that you could look for. The best player in the world, one of the best rosters put together in the world, so it’s a good test for us.
“I would rather have it now, early in the season to let us know where we are.”
Guarding LeBron James not a one-man job for Raptors | Toronto Sun
Carroll has some obvious advice for would-be defenders taking on James at anything less than 100%.
“It’s tough,” Carroll said. “Yeah, I would not advise others to try. I just want to be healthy one of those times we go to the playoffs and we play those guys. That’s the NBA, life in the NBA. That’s what we get paid the big bucks to do, to go out there and put our bodies on the line and try to win games. There are no complaints here.”
Again, Carroll isn’t all the way back to full strength, but he’s closer than he has been and looks forward to the challenge.
“I feel like it’s a great test for me,” Carroll said. “It’s a great test for me physically to see where we’re at, to see where my body is at, try to guard this guy, to see how much I can sustain with the knee.”
It’s also a test for the entire Raptors defence, which was rather spotty through the pre-season, but looked to be in better shape in the opener. Casey cautioned taht Carroll is going to need help, as anyone would, guarding James.
“It takes a whole team,” Casey said. “One guy is not going to stop (LeBron). It has got to be five guys tied together, understanding timing, when to come, when to rotate, when to get there. It’s going to be huge and it won’t be just the guy guarding him. It’s going to be the guy coming off Tristan Thompson and the guy coming from the elbow to help, from the weak side. And then the rotations out on the weak side are going to be huge. So it is a timing, more of a zoned up situation to guard him.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BMEJHhOgGVA/
Carroll preparing for King James as Cavs return to Toronto – Article – TSN
To Casey’s point, win or lose, there’s no sense in overreacting to anything that comes out of the second game of the year, regardless of opponent. Both teams have a long road ahead of them and Oct. 28 will be a distant memory when and if they face off again in the spring. It’s nothing more than a good early-season test for the Raptors and their personnel. “I would rather have it now,” said Toronto’s head coach. “Early in the season, to let us know where we are.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/BMF7yxegdiu/
Game Preview: Raptors vs. Cavaliers | Toronto Raptors
Getting a win in the season opener was good, but the Raptors made sure to keep perspective. One win is a start, but there are still 81 games remaining on the schedule. When dealing with the early weeks of the season, results can sometimes be deceiving as teams and players get adjusted to new systems and conditioning. Still, the opportunity to take on the Cavaliers this early in the season is one that the Raptors welcome.
“They’re the NBA champions,” Carroll said. “This is a great test for us to kind of see where we’re at and see where we need to go. They’re going to come in, play their type of basketball. LeBron’s the leader of their crew. We’ve got to come in, play our type of basketball, that physicality, and we’ve got to try to help each out on the defensive end. If we can sustain that first run, which is usually in the first quarter, we can win the basketball game.”
Facing James isn’t anything new for Carroll, but it is for rookie Siakam. From the moment the ball goes up, it’s crucial to forget who your opponent is and remember to play your own game. Facing off against the World Champions in just your second NBA game is still a moment to remember.
“It’s exciting,” Siakam said. “I mean I always get excited, especially if I’m going to play against one of the guys that I watch on TV and looked up to. It’s always good. It gets you pumped and you always like those moments, where you go out there and see how you matchup with those guys. He’s one of the best players in the world so it’s going to be a battle.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/BMEPrPADelK/
Cleveland Cavaliers get early road test in Toronto | News-Herald
“They have a good team. They beat us twice (in the Eastern Conference finals). Coach (Dwane) Casey is a great coach,” Lue said. “We know we’ll have our hands full. We expect that. It will be a great crowd, a great atmosphere. But we’ll be prepared for that.”
Toronto has its version of a Big Three in 7-foot center Jonas Valanciunas and veteran guards DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry.
DeRozan matched his career high with 40 points in the Raptors’ season-opening, 109-98 victory over Detroit on Oct. 28. Valanciunas finished with a career-high 32 points and 11 rebounds. Lowry added 13 points and eight assists.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BMFtvecgNSP/
Game Day: Cleveland Cavaliers at Toronto Raptors | Toronto Star
Need to know: The early start time is to help out ESPN, which will show the game in the United States . . . James had a triple-double when Cleveland opened the season by beating New York on Tuesday night . . . There’s a chance the injured Lucas Nogueira will be available for the Raptors; he’ll be a game-time decision . . . This is the first of four meetings between the teams this season; is it too early to start thinking about tie-breaker scenarios?
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Bringing Up Bebe Week 1: Off to a Slow Start – Raptors HQ
For most of last season, Bebe leaned on the descriptor “high level” to explain the goodness of something. Bruno’s skills? High level. The Toronto fans? High level. The hopes of Bebe? High level.
For Bringing Up Bebe, I hope to assign some numeric value to this High Level assessment. Sometimes the scale will make sense, sometimes it won’t. And then we’ll open the floor to everyone else in the comments to provide their own thoughts — on Bebe, on the Raptors, and on life. This whole thing is a work in progress, but I’m hoping the result will be, you guessed it, high level.
High Level Result: 5 out of 10 — the NBA is back, but we’re all not quite at 100 percent. Here’s hoping for better things next week.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BMFHmmBFRr7/
Here’s what it’s like to DJ a Raptors game | Toronto Life
“I’ve been DJing on a software called Serato Scratch Live for about six or seven years. I have about 500 gigabytes of music on my laptop. I pull up a song on my virtual deck, and manipulate it like a record on the two digital turntables in front of me. It used to be that if you didn’t have the record, you couldn’t play the song. Now? I get word that Drake put out a new song, I go on iTunes, buy it and I can play it 10 minutes later. When he releases a track at midnight, people know the lyrics by 9 in the morning”
https://www.instagram.com/p/BMFIWmalVHt/
Raptors DeMar DeRozan’s SI ranking a sore subject | SI.com
DeRozan shot back with a pithy, but biting tweet—and, even better, put his money where his mouth is with a monster season debut. All throughout DeRozan’s 40-point performance, Raptors announcer Leo Rautins kept hammering the No. 46 ranking.
