Raptors drop another game in San Antonio. Without Jonas Valanciunas’ rebounding and a cold night from three, Toronto needed their stars to play well and they fell apart.
 | Toronto | 97 | Final Box Score | 101 | San Antonio |  |
 D+ | S. Ibaka25 MIN, 13 PTS, 4 REB, 0 AST, 0 STL, 5-10 FG, 2-6 3FG, 1-2 FT, 0 BLK, 1 TO, -4 +/- Serge carried his strong second half against Philly into this game, at least on offence. He picked up three fouls in the first half (though the third was bogus) and down our best rebounder, we need Ibaka to step up. He had four boards. | |
 B- | N. Powell22 MIN, 6 PTS, 2 REB, 4 AST, 3 STL, 2-7 FG, 0-3 3FG, 2-2 FT, 0 BLK, 1 TO, 6 +/- Nondescript first half before a flurry of activity in the last three minutes. Wouldn’t mind seeing him get a bit more opportunity with the ball in his hands this game as he was creating well for others. | |
 D | L. Nogueira19 MIN, 4 PTS, 6 REB, 0 AST, 2 STL, 1-4 FG, 0-1 3FG, 2-2 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, -10 +/- Bebe needs to set screens and rebound, and the latter is significantly more important than the former. He was better at that in the second half, but still not enough. Bebe gets bullied because he’s thin and lets others initiative contact, pushing him under the rim. | |
 D | K. Lowry35 MIN, 8 PTS, 2 REB, 3 AST, 0 STL, 3-11 FG, 2-8 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 1 TO, -8 +/- Can’t say he wasn’t aggressive tonight. He got inside, but the defence was ready for him and it’s tough to beat a set defence. Shooters shoot, he did that tonight, just didn’t make them. What’s more concerning: on-ball defence. Three games now where it just hasn’t been there. | |
 C | D. DeRozan36 MIN, 28 PTS, 2 REB, 4 AST, 3 STL, 10-20 FG, 2-5 3FG, 6-9 FT, 0 BLK, 3 TO, -1 +/- In the second quarter, Raptors were teetering as the Spurs crowd got into it. He got to the rim for some easy buckets, settling the team in. Fell apart in the last five minutes of the fourth, undoing a decent offensive effort. His defence continues to be an issue, getting beat on ball and falling asleep in help. He’ll bounce back. | |
 A+ | J. Poeltl26 MIN, 10 PTS, 13 REB, 0 AST, 1 STL, 4-6 FG, 0-0 3FG, 2-3 FT, 2 BLK, 2 TO, 13 +/- Jak is an early season star. His hands are such an underrated gift – he can catch everything, deflects passes, bothers shot attempts without fouling. Poeltl is fluid enough to get a peek at the “new age 5” group, but he doesn’t have the outside game to break in. Probably the best game of his young career and deserves more run during Jonas Valanciunas’ absence. | |
 B | D. Wright25 MIN, 4 PTS, 3 REB, 3 AST, 1 STL, 1-4 FG, 0-3 3FG, 2-2 FT, 1 BLK, 3 TO, -9 +/- All the respect for Delon Wright. He was great in pick and roll tonight, made passes that were either incredible, smart, or a combination of the two. Has to limit his reaching defensively. | |
 D+ | C. Miles25 MIN, 13 PTS, 2 REB, 1 AST, 0 STL, 4-9 FG, 3-7 3FG, 2-2 FT, 0 BLK, 2 TO, -7 +/- Raptors got hammered on the glass in the second, and C.J. is in the middle of that. He’s got to rebound better if he’s going to be a small-ball four. Happy to see him continue shooting through struggles though. | |
 B- | O. Anunoby15 MIN, 4 PTS, 1 REB, 2 AST, 0 STL, 2-5 FG, 0-2 3FG, 0-0 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, 3 +/- Solid night. He used his length defensively, moves the ball on offence and can make the right play. Still thinks the game vs. feels it, but that’ll come. | |
 C | F. VanVleet11 MIN, 7 PTS, 0 REB, 0 AST, 1 STL, 2-5 FG, 1-2 3FG, 2-2 FT, 0 BLK, 0 TO, -3 +/- Decent and brief showing FVV. Played tough on D, hit open shots. | |
Things We Saw
- Raptors got outrebounded 56-33 and shot 10-38 from three. When you get outrebounded that badly, it’s on everyone. Shooting, of course, has to improve.
- The bench unit is legit. I think Casey leaves their shifts a little long, but I support that. This team isn’t playing for October wins, and letting them play through mistakes will pay playoff dividends.
- Defence went especially haywire when we rolled bench guys through. We were a little too eager to switch, and got punished by skilled bigs in LaMarcus Aldridge and Pau Gasol schooling undersized young guys.
- Effort is among the easiest things for fans to criticize because you can take a couple bad plays and make it representative of the whole game. But Serge Ibaka’s motor changes so much during in a game, its glaring. He was brutal in the second half and you need veterans to be steady. Yes, two of those fouls were bogus, but you have to battle through it.
