DeRozan on SI ranking: They’ve lost all credibility with me – Video – TSN
DeMar DeRozan joins SportsCentre to discuss his amazing start to the season and the pressure to keep it going, what motivated him to take his game to the next level, his relationship with Kyle Lowry and their goal to reach the NBA Finals together.
Vince Carter Should Be the First Raptor to Have His Number Retired | VICE Sports
True or false: The Raptors should make Carter’s number the first one to be retired in franchise history
On the same TSN radio segment referenced above, the host of the show suggested that the first number the Raptors retire should be DeMar DeRozan’s. His rationale: DeRozan is the complete opposite of Carter. He’s worked for everything, he wants to be a Raptor for life, he’s always loved it here, he’s an unassuming guy and he’s actually won, whereas Carter was only part of a team that won one five-game playoff series.
OK, first of all, we really need to pump the brakes about embracing athletes in Toronto because they want to be here. People want to be in Toronto not because of just the city, or because they want to wear the pride of playing in Canada as an emblem on their chest. They want to be here because they’re playing for a team that is contending and for a franchise willing to pay max money for their best players. Those things matter, and it matters just the same in Toronto as anywhere else.
DeRozan is well on his way to being one of the best Raptors of all time, but let’s not forget about the OG of this shit. Carter’s impact on putting the Raptors on the map cannot be stated enough. For that reason alone, it makes perfect sense for him to be the first number retired.
Verdict: True
Raptors still figuring out where Valanciunas fits – Article – TSN
It’s been a rough week for the slumping big man. Since turning his ankle late in last Monday’s win over Philadelphia, Valanciunas is averaging just 4.5 points, held under eight in four consecutive contests while shooting 32 per cent from the field.
Although the injury has almost certainly been a factor, there’s more to it than a sore ankle, evident in Monday’s loss to Cleveland. The Cavaliers are always a tough match-up for Valanciunas. In three meetings with the defending champs this season, Toronto has been outscored by 31 points with him on the floor, but have a 20-point advantage on the Cavs when he’s out of the game. A minus-16 in the most recent match-up, Valanciunas was limited to just seven second half minutes – none in the fourth quarter – as Dwane Casey opted to counter Cleveland with smaller, quicker units of his own.
That’s a dilemma Casey and his coaching staff have faced more and more over the years, not just against the Cavs but any team that plays small or features shooting bigs, and it’s not likely to go away anytime soon. In a changing league, one that is faster than ever before, how does Valanciunas fit into the way the Raptors want to play? Even in his fifth NBA season, they’re still working to figure it out and, naturally, that’s something that must weigh on the mind of a young player.
“I think a lot of it, and probably I’ll take the blame for it, is being in and out of the lineup because of the match-up situations,” Casey said. “It doesn’t garner a lot of confidence and that probably has jerked him around a little bit. Every player goes through a situation where they’re not shooting the ball well, not scoring the way they’d like to. He’s not going to forget how to score, he’ll bounce back. At the same time, we’ve got to continue to try and win games, that’s our mission, our goal as he fights through it.”
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Whats a mob to a King? – Raptors Republic
The bench unit isn’t enough to beat the Cavaliers, at least not consistently. We’ve seen that through this year and last, winning those minutes won’t be enough, even if Toronto does succeed there. Even though the regular season games have been close, and aren’t necessarily predictive(after all, the Raptors won the season series 3-1 last year before losing in the playoffs to Cleveland), it’s clear Toronto is the lesser of the two teams, leaving Toronto to either try to keep the window open long-term or make a move to try to win now, and either scenario has clear risks, with Kyle Lowry now on the wrong side of 30.
It might seem like a home run bringing in Paul Millsap or DeMarcus Cousins, and it’s easy to love the idea of both of those acquisitions. But that might not be enough, a big three of Lowry, DeRozan and one of those two still isn’t better than the trios of James, Love and Irving or Curry, Durant and Green, and you’d have to sacrifice significant parts of the supporting cast to get there, as well as injury protection which has been valuable for the Raptors in recent years. As I said in the opening paragraph, if those opportunities present themselves, it’d be silly to not at least have the conversation and make the trade if it’s there, but a home run that falls a few feet short is just a fly-out, and that’s the risk that has to be balanced. The things you’d lose are things that are hard to measure, in the value of chemistry and team unity, and it’s also hard to predict how long it would take to rebuild those same elements. So while we’d all love to see Masai at least take the swing, before we get there someone has to at least make that star available to be pursued, and in the meantime we should enjoy what we have, because regardless of the incoming player, there is no guarantee things change for the better.
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Second In The East, How Can The Raptors Bridge The Gap To First? | GiveMeSport
The Raptors do a good job with their player development, as the leaps made by Lowry and Derozan can attest to. Valanciunas’s slow yet steady improvements also speak to that, and Ross seems to be finally yielding the benefits. Yet even through the most rose-tinted of rose-tinted glasses, a look at their incumbent players does not likely find a superstar or third star coming from within. Not unless Terrence Ross keeps up this hot start and then gets even better later. [It’s not happening for Bruno Caboclo, sorry.]
With this in mind, the hunt for the third star must come from elsewhere. This is particularly to be the case up front, where Jonas Valanciunas somewhat stands alone. Pascal Siakam is doing an admirable job of keeping his head above water as a regular rookie starting power forward, yet he is somewhat overmatched, and while Jared Sullinger was supposed to be the capable veteran help behind him (which feels weird to say of a 24 year old), he has been injured and will be for a while longer. Even if healthy, Sullinger is only a rental on a one year deal, and with his unrestricted free agency also coming up, Patrick Patterson might not be around for much longer either. The Raptors are playing a lot of small ball with Carroll and Ross bumped down a position from their usual spots, but while this is a nice tool to have, it would be very beneficial to have it be available as an option rather than required as a necessity.
There is somewhat of a comparison to be found between the make-up of this Raptors team and the current Blazers team. Both featuring dynamic scoring backcourts, and not a lot else. However, whereas the Blazers have Miles Plumlee and Meyers Leonard, the Raptors have Jonas Valanciunas. Val is not a star player and, given his speed limitations, never will be. But as much as his own coach likes to bench him late in games, Jonas is nonetheless incredibly solid, a presence around the basket on offense, a very good rebounder, and a load of strength if not agility defensively. That is an asset Portland does not have. Valanciunas betters any team he is on.
Valanciunas, however, is not the third best player on a contender. He is a tier below that. Instead, he is the compliment to the fringe-star forward who does not exist yet (Danilo Gallinari or Paul Millsap, for example).
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Listen to The HeadQuarters: Episode 49, brought to you by Chauncey Billups – Raptors HQ
This week Sean Woodley is joined by Russell Peddle and Dan Grant of Raptors HQ to assess the very existence of the Raptors in a world dominated by LeBron James, fantasize over a Paul Millsap trade and grade Toronto’s players through the first quarter of the season. This episode is brought to you by Chauncey Billups.
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Raptors’ DeRozan can relate to Timberwolves’ growing pains | Toronto Star
“It’s tough,” DeRozan said Wednesday before the Timberwolves make their only appearance of the season at the Air Canada Centre on Thursday night. “You gotta go through the tough times to really understand how to win.
“That’s the toughest part that people don’t understand. Every night you are going out there and giving your all and some kind of doubt or question comes in when you are doing everything that you are supposed to do (but) you just don’t have that experience of knowing how to win a game or win in the last three or four minutes of a game.”
A team with last season’s rookie of the year Karl-Anthony Towns, the 2014-15 rookie of the year Andrew Wiggins, the highly athletic Zach LaVine and a creative point guard in Ricky Rubio is undeniably talented. But Rubio’s the elder statesmen at 26 years old with Towns, Wiggins and LaVine all just 21 and regardless of how good they are, they simply don’t know how to win consistently in the NBA because that only comes with time, and the pain of losing.
“You have to be creative in the ways you structure practice, creative in your ways of presenting game plans when you go in knowing the odds are against you,” Toronto coach Dwane Casey said. “Guys learn, they pick it up, they develop and it takes time. I wish there was a magic wand where you could wave it over a young player and just say “shazam, you’re … a solid NBA player.’ It doesn’t happen over night.”
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Raptors bracing for improved Wiggins Thursday – Video – TSN
The Raptors are preparing to face Andrew Wiggins and the Timberwolves on Thursday, and although Wiggins averaged just over 20 points in his previous two meetings against Toronto, the Canadian has already hit the 29-point plateau seven times this season.
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Game Preview: Huskies vs. Timberwolves | Toronto Raptors
DeRozan, Casey see Wolves growth curve
Minnesota’s roster is filled with talented young players. Head coach Tom Thibodeau is in his first year with the Timberwolves and he’s implementing his system while trying to get players to learn and buy in as they continue to develop their games. Raptors head coach Dwane Casey and All-Star DeMar DeRozan both remember going through the same process during Casey’s first couple of seasons in Toronto. The Wolves own a 6-15 record on the season, having gone 2-8 in their last 10 games.
“You’ve got to go through the tough times to really understand how to win,” DeRozan said.
“That’s the toughest part that people don’t understand,” he continued. “When every night you’re going out there giving your all, [and] some type of doubt or question comes in when you know you’re doing everything you’re supposed to do, but you just don’t have that experience of knowing how to win a game, win the last three or four minutes of a game. Times like this, you do your best to really take heed, watch a lot of film and learn what it takes to win.”
Casey especially can relate to the unique challenge of trying to teach a new system while also helping young players develop into professionals.
“It’s tough to do with a young team but they’re on the right track,” he said. “[Thibodeau’s] doing an excellent job with that young team. With any young team it’s hard to institute overnight. They have a lot of firepower offensively and they’ll get there defensively.”
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Prodigal son Andrew Wiggins returns to Toronto – The Globe and Mail
“I’m finding myself, finding things I’m good at and things I need to work on,” Wiggins said after the Laker game. “The game has kind of slowed down for me a little bit. I’m able to read defences better now and see how the defence is set.”
On the opposite end of the spectrum was this week’s loss to the San Antonio Spurs, when the Timberwolves’ growing pains were glaring next to a veteran opponent. Wiggins had just 11 points that night on 5-of-12 shooting as he was blanketed by Kawhi Leonard, who himself rolled for 31 points on just 15 shots.
From DeRozan’s early years in Toronto, he can relate to what a raw talent like Wiggins is experiencing during tough early years with a losing franchise.
“You gotta go through the tough times to really understand how to win,” DeRozan said.
Minnesota ranks 10th in offensive efficiency, yet 25th among the league’s 30 teams in defensive efficiency – which helps to explain the losing. Many are watching eagerly to see how Thibodeau guides Wiggins and the other youngsters.
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Game preview: Toronto Raptors vs. Minnesota Timberwolves | Toronto Star
Key matchup: Towns vs. Valanciunas.
Simply put, the second-year Minnesota big man is a stud and already touted as having all-star potential. Valanciunas, meanwhile, hasn’t had a string of outstanding games as of late.
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Delon Wright hoping to be cleared for contact next week – Raptors Republic
It’s not immediately obvious what a clearance for contact would mean for his timeline to return to the Raptors, but it would be encouraging nonetheless. If the Raptors can pencil Wright in for January, they find themselves with an embarrassment of guard depth, with Wright likely to be waiting for an opportunity behind Kyle Lowry, DeMar DeRozan, Cory Joseph, Terrence Ross, and Norman Powell, right alongside Fred VanVleet. Wright and VanVleet may seem like superfluous pieces, but considering the defensive acumen of all four point guards, the ability of each to knock down threes spotting up (Wright took strides in that area last year and has looked really good in pre-game workouts, VanVleet and Lowry have deep range, and Joseph’s stroke is finding some consistency), and Wright’s size, it’s possible he could find a way to minutes in multi-guard lineups.
“Last year, I didn’t play the whole year and then toward the end of the year I started to play when they rested games,” Wright said. “I feel like I did pretty solid. I think I can’t look at what’s going on right now. I’m just looking at how to get better and focus on what I can control.”
Some will jump to suggest the Raptors balance the roster better by sending out a point guard and bringing in another forward, but making a move just for the sake of it would be short-sighted. The Raptors are high on both Wright and VanVleet, and both would likely be capable of playing back-up minutes for an NBA team with lesser depth. Roster balance is great, but things can change quickly, and amassing the most talent is never a bad idea, especially at the end of the roster. The Raptors also have some options if they feel a push to get the young guards more time (they probably won’t, to be clear – Powell can’t even get regular run right now) – as the idea of them continuing to experiment with smaller, fluid, athletic, and quick multi-guard lineups is really intriguing in general.
Should the Raptors decide they do want to better balance the roster, it’s worth noting that VanVleet’s deal doesn’t become guaranteed until Jan. 10.
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What’s your favourite random Raptors moment? – Raptors HQ
Vince Carter’s game-winner vs. the Los Angeles Clippers
There are plenty of iconic moments during Vince’s run in Toronto, but this one seems a bit underrated. For a two week stretch there, I felt like Vince was just dominating the league, hitting game-winning jumpers and throwing down dunks on everyone. When the Raptors went on the West Coast and Vince hit this three, I just remember how beautiful his footwork was on positioning himself for the perfect shot. There was a particular grace to the way he set up and just swished in a three to give Toronto the win. There was plenty of euphoria in my living room at 1 am. It was a beautiful time.
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Raptors’ Carroll — aka ‘Senior Swag Daddy’ — always dresses to impress | Toronto Sun
“I told these guys one day, ‘My swag is too high for you guys. You all are making me feel like I shouldn’t even come in here,’” he said about walking into the Raptors’ locker room. “I mean you see DeMar (DeRozan) with his sweats on and Kyle (Lowry) with sweats. But that’s who I am. I have to stay true to who I am.”
Carroll is not averse to wearing designer stuff. Earlier this week he had on an outfit that he purchased in Vegas when he was out there taking in some summer league action. It was a Dolce and Gabbana outfit, although he made some alterations to make it his own.
But the labels and names don’t interest Carroll. He’s just as comfortable mixing and matching as he puts together his own ensembles, but there are definite priorities.
“My shoes have always been big,” Carroll said. “Great shoes, great belts. The jeans and stuff, it don’t matter. I could go and get Wranglers and put them together with something and you wouldn’t know they were Wranglers. I will get them slim cut. It’s not all about the name. I mean I spend on the shoes, and the belt and the accessories and then the jeans are whatever and the shirt might just be a T-shirt I got at Marshalls.”
But the end product is always distinctly DeMarre. Russell Westbrook might be the league’s poster boy for his own unique tastes in clothes, but Carroll doesn’t view fashion as a competition.
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