Motivated Raptors roll over 76ers | Toronto Sun
The Sixers had no answer for Kyle Lowry, who continued what has been perhaps the best offensive stretch of his career, hitting all six of his three-point attempts on the way to 24 points in 31 minutes. Lowry has now hit an even 20 of his past 40 outside attempts, a remarkable, Steph Curry-esque run. Meanwhile, Terrence Ross scored a season-best 22 points, DeMarre Carroll was strong again and Patrick Patterson stayed hot from beyond the arc, making an off shooting night from DeMar DeRozan basically meaningless as the club hit 13 threes, shooting 68% from deep.
Lowry is the first Raptor to make all six attempts. Five players had hit 5-of-5 over the years.
The only person in the building not overly surprised by Lowry’s breakout was probably Ross, who knows a thing or two about three-point shooting.
“Kyle’s been hitting everything,” Ross told the Toronto Sun, drawing out the ‘every’ in ‘everything’ to accentuate his point.
“I feel like all of his threes have been going in. That’s Kyle, we just expect him to make shots. I mean, it seems a little selfish, but I expect Kyle to hit 20-of-40. I’ve seen it, he’s a shooter to me, he can shoot, so that’s what you want shooters to do, you want them to shoot.”
Raptors avoided stumble against weaker team – Sportsnet.ca
The Toronto Raptors took their first game of their home stand in blow out fashion against the Sixers, continuing the momentum they set at the end of their road trip.
Raptors roll past overmatched Sixers: Griffin | Toronto Star
Casey, while happy with Monday’s victory can’t yet fully say that the Raptors’ defensive deficiencies have been addressed, considering the ragtag status of their opponent. The rest of the homestand will be a test of how far they’ve come.
“We’re not playing well defensively,” Casey repeated before the game. “Offensively, I think we’re clicking pretty well. Some guys are finding their form, their rhythm. But defensively, that may have taken us a step back a little bit.”
The Raptors have won 13 straight games against the Sixers, dating back to Jan. 12, 2013 in overtime. Overall, the Raps have won three in a row.
Bryan Colangelo receives warm welcome back to Air Canada Centre – Sportsnet.ca
“Bryan’s an excellent basketball man. His DNA is basketball. It’s great to have him back in the league,” said Casey. “He’ll do a good job – fortunately for him, unfortunately for the rest of us – of building his team the right way and getting the right players in there. His eye for talent is written all over our program here.”
With the tools he has to work with, it might not be long before Colangelo’s new team is setting the bar for his old team to reach for.
For the moment, Colangelo and the 76ers are no threat. They’re too young and their best player – the phenomenal Joel Embiid – is still on a minutes restriction after missing two seasons with foot injuries and didn’t travel to Toronto for the Raptors’ 122-95 win.
Maybe Colangelo did his old team a solid: The 76ers are a semi-respectable 3-4 in Embiid’s last seven starts and are 1-5 when he doesn’t dress this season.
Game Rap: Raptors 122, 76ers 95 | Toronto Raptors
UNDERRATED RAPTORS PLAYER OF THE GAME
Terrence Ross continues to provide a spark on both ends of the floor for the Raptors this season. Ross came off the bench against the Sixers to score 22 points in 23 minutes of game time, shooting 8-for-11 from the floor, 3-for-5 from deep and 3-for-3 from the free throw line. He scored in a dizzying array of ways, making them all look effortless. The team was a +20 when Ross was in the game.
Raptors cruise to 122-95 win over Sixers – Raptors HQ
Tonight was not exactly DeMar DeRozan’s finest hour, as he struggled to hit shots (4-of-13, but a perfect 6-of-6 from the line) for a total of 14 points. But DeRozan, at long last, has begun settling into a distributor role when needed, one that has him noticing the newly paid defensive attention and finding the open man. DeRozan had five assists on the night; he’s now had four or more in his last nine games (including outings with seven and nine). If he’s going to move the ball — to a cutting DeMarre Carroll (10 points, five rebounds, three assists), or a rolling JV — it opens the game up for DeRozan, and demonstrates another facet of his game.
As for the rest, it was just for fun; Norman Powell running the floor, Lucas Nogueira finding his feet again, and Jakob Poeltl, Fred VanVleet and yes, Bruno Caboclo all getting some minutes. We still wait for Fred’s first legit NBA points, and Bruno’s first of this season, but you can’t have everything.
Before the game, coach Dwane Casey talked about the Raptors defense, and said he was concerned it was not where it was supposed to be. That’s fair. Unfortunately for Casey, this is the kind of game that, while encouraging and offering something of a reprieve, does not suggest a whole lot as to the Raptors defensive acuity. The team held the Sixers to 41.9 percent shooting (though 41.2 percent from three), and largely kept them from what they wanted to do. Only Jahlil Okafor’s 15 points and inspired post moves, and Robert Covington’s shooting (20 points on 7-of-11) could made much of a dent in Toronto’s sharp onslaught. But the caveat still applies: it’s the Sixers.
Sixers-Raptors recap: Philadelphia scorched by Toronto offense – Liberty Ballers
The paint was another area Toronto tried to exploit on offense. Without Embiid serving as a hawk around the rim, the Raptors’ slashing wings and bigs had little difficulty converting near the basket. Okafor’s rim protection looked improved and he contested multiple shots, but Toronto regularly got what they wanted down low.
Raptors’ Carroll is trusting his process – Article – TSN
t was around this time last year – less than a month into his first season with Toronto – that Carroll initially hurt his knee, an injury that has tested and continues to challenge his mental resolve. However, after undergoing surgery in January, suffering a series of setbacks, getting second opinions, putting in countless hours of rehab and, yes, trusting in the people charged with monitoring his recovery, Carroll is finally seeing the results of his hard work and patience.
“It feels great just to be healthy,” said the eight-year NBA vet, who has scored 10 or more points in five straight games for the first time since joining the Raptors. “When I’m healthy I can be who I am, I can play the way I want to play. But when I’m not healthy I can’t do those things because I’m more of an energy guy, defensive guy. I need my legs to knock down my threes. It just feels good to be healthy and be able to go out there and help my team win.”
For Carroll, a self-made NBA player, it’s been a long and frustrating road back to this point. As he notes, his game is predicated on lateral quickness and physical play – cutting, diving for loose balls, defending the opposition’s best perimeter player – and, up until recently, his body hasn’t allowed him to do the things he’s accustomed to doing.
The results may vary from night to night, which is only natural after spending so much time away from the game – he didn’t pick up a basketball until the week before training camp opened in September. It won’t be from a lack of effort. Carroll is routinely one of the last players in the gym after practices, working on his conditioning and getting shots up. He’ll come in on scheduled days off and show up early before games. The work has paid off. Over this recent five-game stretch, he’s averaging 14.4 points on 55 per cent shooting, including 46 per cent from beyond the arc. He’s totalled five steals and five blocks over the last three contests – a glimpse at what the Raptors envisioned when they signed him to a four-year, $60 million deal in the summer of 2015.
DeMarre Carroll ramping up for Raptors at right time – Sportsnet.ca
“Personally, I can play back-to-back. I can. But it’s not my problem. I walk in, they say, ‘You’re not playing.’ What am I supposed to do? I think I can play back-to-back but we’re not rushing it … they’ve been doing it longer than me.”
Until then, Casey will take more of these games from Carroll. And he’d love a repeat every night of the defensive focus and intensity his team showed, after a road trip in which their defensive attentiveness came under scrutiny.
“We’ve got to have that type of defensive effort and focus every night,” said Casey, citing Ross in particular for his defensive focus, adding: “I like the way he moved his feet. We had some base goes, base traps a few times and he got out and cut the baseline off. We can score 122 points, we’re going to make shots, but my thing is to get where we want to go. We have to make sure we have focus and attention on the defensive end.”
Casey spent the past two days fretting publicly about his team’s state of mind after back-to-back wins helped them to a 3-2 record on a five-game road trip that ended Friday in Milwaukee. He admitted he’s always concerned about what he referred to as “the bear around the corner” – hell, he’s a coach, right? – especially with his team settling in for a long homestand. The road can be a beast when it comes to practices and travel fatigue, but it also engenders a kind of edginess that Casey believes can get lost when a team sleeps in its own beds and falls back into other cozy routines.
Five thoughts on Capela, Powell and more – Article – TSN
NORMAN POWELL (Raptors): I’m really impressed how he’s handled his role this season. Sometimes he’s in and sometimes he’s not. Playing behind DeMar DeRozan, DeMarre Carroll and Terrence Ross as the fourth wing, he has still been dependable with his defence, effort, toughness and improved offence. He’s relentless and professional. He’ll get his chances on many nights and he’s always prepared to play. Really respect his approach. Great attitude. Winner.
Toronto’s 50 Most Influential: #10, Masai Ujiri – Toronto Life
Last season, under Ujiri’s leadership, the Raptors posted their best record in franchise history and exorcised the demons of first-round exits by making it to the conference finals, where they lost to the eventual champions, the Cleveland Cavaliers.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BNYcOMCgipY/
Toronto’s 50 Most Influential: #34, Cory Joseph, Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan – Toronto Life
They’re doing what Vince Carter did more than a decade ago: inspiring a generation of young ballers and reminding the league that Toronto is for real.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BNYctONBJRp/
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