 | Chicago | 101 | Final Box Score | 117 | Toronto |  |
 B | S. Ibaka24 MIN, 8 PTS, 4 REB, 0 AST, 0 STL, 3-8 FG, 2-4 3FG, 0-0 FT, 2 BLK, 0 TO, -4 +/- It was a rough night for the starting lineup for the Raptors, and a large part of that was on the defensive end, where Serge is supposed to be the centerpiece. He struggled there tonight, and needs to be better as the season goes on. | |
 A+ | N. Powell25 MIN, 15 PTS, 4 REB, 1 AST, 1 STL, 5-11 FG, 3-6 3FG, 2-2 FT, 0 BLK, 2 TO, 1 +/- Norm was rolling tonight, and was a huge part of keeping the starters’ heads afloat. He hit his threes and got to the basket with ease, looking comfortable out there with the starters. | |
 A+ | J. Valanciunas30 MIN, 23 PTS, 15 REB, 2 AST, 2 STL, 9-17 FG, 0-1 3FG, 5-6 FT, 0 BLK, 1 TO, -3 +/- If you really wanted to find faults in Jonas’ game tonight, I suppose you could. He had some rough moments defensively, especially guarding the pick and roll, but he looked dominant on the other end as an offensive focus. Controlled the boards and scored when his number was called, and that’s what the Raptors need from the big man. | |
 B | K. Lowry31 MIN, 12 PTS, 4 REB, 9 AST, 1 STL, 4-7 FG, 1-3 3FG, 3-3 FT, 0 BLK, 4 TO, 1 +/- When the starters struggle, it’ll always be easy to point to the stars, and Lowry didn’t have his best game in this one. He did, however, run the offense well and scored when he did shoot. There will be nights where the team needs him to provide more scoring, this wasn’t one of them. | |
 B | D. DeRozan32 MIN, 11 PTS, 6 REB, 5 AST, 3 STL, 2-9 FG, 0-0 3FG, 7-8 FT, 1 BLK, 5 TO, -3 +/- DeRozan showcased the unselfish passing that was a huge part of his preseason tonight, and maybe sometimes a little bit too much. It felt like he forced some passes at times when he could’ve got easy buckets for himself. Still, the passing is great to see and any change like this was bound to have some growing pains. | |
 A+ | D. Wright23 MIN, 13 PTS, 2 REB, 5 AST, 1 STL, 4-6 FG, 0-1 3FG, 5-5 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, 20 +/- Delon was a menace out there in this game, creating easy shots in the transition offense and playing tough defense. He’s going to need to be huge for the Raptors this year, and had a fantastic first game of the season. | |
 A+ | C. Miles20 MIN, 22 PTS, 5 REB, 0 AST, 0 STL, 7-12 FG, 6-9 3FG, 2-2 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, 25 +/- What more could you ask for from CJ? Absolutely killed it from downtown in this game, as well as looking confident off the dribble and playing solid defense. | |
 A+ | J. Poeltl18 MIN, 2 PTS, 5 REB, 0 AST, 1 STL, 1-2 FG, 0-0 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 3 TO, 19 +/- Jak didn’t really score in this one, with just two points, and did find himself in foul trouble which plagued him last year, but he also provided good defense and rebounding during the team’s big second quarter run. | |
 A+ | O. Anunoby17 MIN, 9 PTS, 3 REB, 2 AST, 0 STL, 3-6 FG, 1-3 3FG, 2-2 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, 26 +/- Great game in his regular season debut, as OG showcased the defense that the Raptors drafted him for, as well as scoring some big buckets and impressive passing instincts. He looked great, especially for a guy who wasn’t even projecting to be healthy at this point in the season. | |
 A+ | F. VanVleet13 MIN, 2 PTS, 1 REB, 2 AST, 1 STL, 1-5 FG, 0-2 3FG, 0-0 FT, 1 BLK, 2 TO, 11 +/- Fred was the only guy off the bench who struggled with his shot in this game, but his defense and passing were once again huge for the team. | |
 B | P. Siakam5 MIN, 0 PTS, 0 REB, 0 AST, 0 STL, 0-0 FG, 0-0 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, -8 +/- Played five minutes in garbage time, wasn’t really notable when he was out there. | |
 B | A. McKinnie1 MIN, 0 PTS, 0 REB, 0 AST, 0 STL, 0-0 FG, 0-0 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, -5 +/- Unfortunately, McKinnie wasn’t on the floor long enough to have an impact tonight. | |
 A | Dwane Casey The starters struggled, and that could be a concern going forward, especially with their defense. On the other hand, he trusted the all-bench unit that dominated the second quarter and the culture change he wanted for the team really seems to have taken hold. | |
Things We Saw
- The bench was supposed to be a concern this year, but they looked fantastic in this game. If they can continue to give the Raptors positive minutes with both DeMar and Kyle on the bench, that could be huge for reducing their minutes this season.
- There are still some growing pains left with this new offense, and the team appears to be still figuring out when the best moments for their All-Stars to create for themselves occur. Didn’t hurt them tonight, but will be something to watch for this season.
- Tough west coast road trip starts on monday, and getting wins in this game and against Philadelphia on Saturday were bound to be important for the Raptors to get off to a strong start to the season. Got the job done here, now they need to take care of business against a young Sixers squad.
