Morning Coffee – Tue, Dec 20

Raptors lose 6 in a row for the first time in a decade | Thank Jah for Pascal but the rest of the team stinks

Cover Photo by Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images

Koreen: Pascal Siakam is only player keeping the Raptors from true hopelessness – The Athletic

For the struggling Raptors, Siakam is basically the whole damn thing, the last guy separating them from generally competitive and a train wreck. His offensive output has dipped a bit from before his adductor injury, but he has done multiple things recently — holding Kevin Durant to 15 shot attempts, notably — to distinguish himself.

Monday, he was great. Full stop. He had 38 points, 15 rebounds and six assists, the first two stats being season highs. He also produced one of the greatest individual sequences in Raptors history. With the Raptors down two points at the end of regulation, he skied for a rebound in traffic, took the ball down the floor, slithered by P.J. Tucker and hit the score-tying layup high off the glass at an awkward angle. The 76ers still had some time on the clock, and Siakam switched on to Joel Embiid and guarded him physically without fouling, forcing a miss.

Siakam did it all, and it was only countless missed 3-pointers, several from VanVleet on clean looks, that kept the Raptors from breaking this slump. On consecutive possessions late in the third quarter, Siakam pushed the ball up the floor and got off the ball, only to get it back and drill a 3. Philadelphia took the ball down the court, and Siakam got an offensive foul called by having the energy to go over the screen. He got his rest soon after, only to be called back in for the last possession of the quarter, hitting just his fifth pull-up 3 of the year to tie the score. The Sixers dutifully started sending a double-team at Siakam to start the fourth quarter when VanVleet, Anunoby and Scottie Barnes were resting. Siakam adjusted. He played all but 84 seconds in the second half and overtime.

Early in the game, Siakam got the Raptors going with two baskets by going straight at Embiid, the first one a trademark spin move. In the NBA Finals run, Embiid’s defence flummoxed Siakam. Almost four years later, he knows how to counter it. When Embiid wasn’t guarding him, Tucker, one of the most physical perimeter defenders in the league, was. Siakam and Tucker exchanged trash talk in a game earlier in the year and exchanged technicals Monday. Siakam smiled widely as he was called for an offensive foul, probably one possession after he actually deserved one. Siakam never stopped sizing up the defence correctly, though, making the passes that needed to be made to get some necessary ball movement, with one exception.

Whether the Raptors should trade Siakam is yet to be determined. It depends on how, whether and when they can get themselves out of this hole they cannot stop digging. It depends on the offers that are on the table. It depends on the ancillary moves that might be available. If the Raptors continue to lose, there will be plenty of time to discuss that.

“At the end of the day, I don’t care about the schemes or this or that,” a frustrated Siakam said Sunday night. “We’ve just got to win. That’s the only thing. I don’t know the difference compared to (past) groups. I just know this group right now, we’re struggling. It’s really bad. We have to get out of it.”

Just know that without Siakam, they’d have no chance of doing that. Siakam is the type of player you move only when you’re sure every other possible route takes you nowhere worth going.

Raptors, Siakam fight hard vs. 76ers, but result remains the same – Sportsnet

The problem is the flailing Raptors just happened to arrive in Philadelphia as the Sixers are rolling: 4-0 in the midst of a seven-game homestand and beginning to make their move in the East, even without Tyrese Maxey – their high-scoring third star — who is expected to miss another month with a broken foot. The Sixers aren’t perfect, but Embiid is getting better and is poised to lead the NBA in scoring for the second consecutive year. He’s got a plethora of great shooters around him – the Sixers are third in the NBA in three-point percentage – and Embiid is figuring out how to leverage the attention he gets to benefit his teammates and vice-versa.

“He has great confidence now,” said Sixers head coach Doc Rivers. “You see it late in games, where you know, he’ll bait guys so he can make a pass. Joel never did that before, so that’s good for us … last year I thought he made big progress, and this year, the baiting and stuff, is this year, and that comes along with trust too.”

The Raptors were helped in their cause with the return of Anunoby who has missed the last three games with a hip injury, though Gary Trent Jr. remained out with tightness in his left thigh.

Without the proper size to throw at the 7-1, 300-pound Embiid, Nurse opted to start four forwards and a guard, VanVleet, with Scottie Barnes tasked with being the first defender on Embiid. But Toronto sent help to Embiid quickly and aggressively and generally stuck to their long-held principles of showing him extra bodies every time he faced the basket, and for the most part, it worked.

Even with the size advantage going against Barnes or later, backup centre Khem Birch, Embiid didn’t get rolling in the first half, though he still bullied his way to 12 points thanks to seven free throws. But his teammates benefitted from the attention. Tobias Harris had 10 points on just three shots and Harden counted five first half assists.

The Raptors’ defence was sound and fast-moving in the first quarter as Toronto managed to eke out a 23-22 lead while holding the Sixers to 31.6 per cent shooting, while forcing five turnovers.

But the Raptors’ problems came in the opening minutes of the second quarter when Nurse when to his increasingly problematic second unit that featured starters Anunoby, Barnes and Hernangomez, along with Malachi Flynn and Chris Boucher. With VanVleet and Siakam sitting – and Embiid also resting – the Sixers reserves opened the period on a 22-8 run in the first five-plus minutes that put Philadelphia up 13 by the time the starters filtered back in. The Raptors’ defence immediately improved when Siakam and VanVleet came in for Flynn and Hernangomez, but their offense continued to misfire. Philadelphia outscored Toronto 35-23 in the quarter and led 57-46 at the half.

The Sixers show they can win ugly while Tobias Harris proves he can be counted on for the big shots – The Athletic

Can the most memorable bucket of a game be one that never actually happened?

This is not a question that often gets asked, but it was during Monday’s Sixers game against the Toronto Raptors. The non-basket in question happened when De’Anthony Melton scooped up a loose ball and fired a cross-court bullet to Tobias Harris in the weak-side corner. Harris drilled a rhythm catch-and-shoot jumper and landed directly on Scottie Barnes, who was rolling on the floor like a car that had just spun out. 4-point play opportunity.

The Sixers were a Harris free throw away from extending their lead to seven with 90 seconds left in overtime. The game was, for all practical purposes, over.

Except, it wasn’t. Raptors coach Nick Nurse challenged the foul call, and after review, the officials ruled that P.J. Tucker had set an illegal screen on Barnes’ closeout. The officials not only took away the foul but also wiped away Harris’ points. And after the game, the Sixers were miffed.

“You can’t go back two plays in a play,” Doc Rivers said. “The foul was on P.J. under the basket, right? The guy ran out and fouled Tobias. That should have nothing to do with the play. That’s the second action. They missed the first one, you can’t call that one, that’s not what the call was. The call was on the second action. So, unless you can tie those together, maybe you can, I just need that explained to me.”

Essentially, Rivers was confused as to why Tucker’s screen was reviewable at all. In his real-time explanation on the public address system, official Pat Fraher called it “an offensive foul that occurred proximate to the play right before the defensive foul.” Even if that high-leverage reversal was the correct interpretation, the Sixers had already been visibly frustrated by the officiating for most of the game.

“That was probably the most ridiculous game I’ve ever been part of,” Joel Embiid said. And when asked to expand on what he found so ridiculous, Embiid said with a smile, “You can figure it.”

While the basket didn’t technically happen, the sequence and immediate aftermath displayed the prominent reason the Sixers ultimately hung on in such a “ridiculous game.” Harris was picked up off the ground by Embiid and Tucker. Harris’ teammates then pounded his chest, celebrating not just one dagger shot that got the Sixers an ugly but important win.

Yet, it also felt like an acknowledgment of a player who is making the best of adjusting to a role that does not come naturally to him.

“He was great. He’s a star in his role,” Embiid said of Harris. “That’s what he’s been doing all season, knocking down big shots, even the ones that got taken away for whatever reason. I mean, he’s been great.”

Sixers Bell Ringer: Hot shooting night from Tobias Harris helps give Philly fifth straight win – Liberty Ballers

Tobias Harris: 21 points, four rebounds, one assist, one steal

After missing Friday’s win over the Golden State Warriors due to back pain, Tobias Harris returned and provided a necessary lift amid an offensive slog for the Sixers. He canned five triples, one of which served as Philadelphia’s lone bucket of overtime. Late in the fourth, with the Sixers trailing by seven, Harris bailed out a clunky possession via a corner three. That triple ignited a 10-0 run that saw Philadelphia go from trailing 96-89 to leading 99-96. Toronto loves to brazenly load the paint and help from the strongside, so Harris’ snappy release beyond the arc was crucial and he delivered repeatedly.

He also authored a handful of stout defensive sequences on and off the ball, as the Sixers held the Raptors to an 80.6 offensive rating in the half-court. Not many Sixers turned in memorable outings, but Harris was surely quite good.

Joel Embiid: 28 points, 11 rebounds, four assists, two steals

For the first time all month, Embiid failed to record at least 30 points. Twenty-eight will have to suffice, I reckon. Toronto packed the paint and soundly contested a lot of his midrange jumpers, but he still unlocked ways to contribute and went to the line 15 times. He scored or assisted on 15 of Philadelphia’s final 23 points and generated a flurry of quality shots with his playmaking, especially in the first half. While P.J. Tucker assumed the primary assignment on Pascal Siakam, Embiid took the reins at times in the second half, and occasionally gave the star forward some problems. This game will not headline Embiid’s All-Star candidacy, but the big fella was pretty good nonetheless.

Sixers outlast Toronto Raptors in overtime to win fifth consecutive game – Inquirer

Joel Embiid knew that Pascal Siakam, who had already dropped 38 points, would hunt for the final shot of overtime. But the All-NBA center also exuded confidence that his 76ers teammates would execute the defensive stop by guarding straight-up.

So P.J. Tucker switched with De’Anthony Melton, who then stuck with Siakam as the Toronto Raptors All-Star dribbled to his left. Melton extended his long arm as Siakam pulled up from behind the arc, the ball clanged off the back of the rim, and the Sixers could finally exhale.

Siakam’s misfire just before the buzzer — combined with a go-ahead three-pointer by Harris about two minutes prior — secured the 76ers’ 104-101 high-drama victory Monday night at the Wells Fargo Center in an outing that featured resilience, complacency, and postgame confusion about the officiating.

“I wasn’t going to complain, but that was probably the most ridiculous game I’ve ever been a part of,” said Embiid, who finished with 28 points, 11 rebounds and four assists. “That’s all I’ll say about that game. … You can figure it [out], but I thought we did a good job of staying composed and keeping our cool, with everything going on.”

Though Embiid did not elaborate on what exactly defined as “ridiculous,” at least one call also left coach Doc Rivers bewildered.

After Harris’ long ball gave the Sixers a 104-101 lead with 2:12 to play in the extra period, it appeared he had all but put the game out of reach when he buried another three through contact by Scottie Barnes. Harris screamed from a seated position in front of the Raptors’ bench and prepared to try to complete a four-point play. But after a video review, the officials instead called P.J. Tucker for an offensive foul away from the shot and wiped away the bucket.

“Going by the rule book that I read, I don’t get that call,” Rivers said. “Someone’s going to have to explain that. Maybe they’re right. You can’t go back two plays. The foul was on P.J. under the basket. The guy [Barnes] ran out and fouled Tobias. That should have nothing to do with the play.”

Added Harris: “I just thought it was a big shot, so I liked that moment. And for that moment to be taken away, it was like, ‘Dang’ … When the points were taken off, we knew, like, all right, now we definitely have to get a stop here. It was just that grit that we needed.”

Toronto Raptors lose in OT to Philadelphia 76ers, 104-101 – Raptors HQ

The Raptors looked pretty sloppy early on, and Anunoby appeared understandably rusty, turning the ball over a couple times. But after going down 19-8, Siakam put his foot down and led the Raptors to an 11-0 run. Embiid’s presence was a clear rim deterrent, which is unfortunate for a team that can’t hit threes. But Siakam drew some fouls, VanVleet hit a three, and Malachi Flynn hit a floater over the outstretched arm of Joel Embiid(!!) – and the Raptors won the first quarter 23-22.

Things got ugly in the second. The defense looked unfocused as they gave up open three after open three after easy layup, allowing 10 points in the first 90 seconds. Normal defensive rebounds by the Sixers turned into fast-breaks and easy Montrezl Harrell layups, which is the mark of unacceptable defensive positioning and communication. Because of the roster’s dearth of scorers, Gary Trent’s absence was quite noticeable as the offense sputtered.

The Raptors just looked out of sync in the second quarter, and few plays encapsulate that better than this squandered two-on-one fastbreak opportunity:

Yikes.

By the time Siakam checked back in, there was a lot of cleaning up to do. The Sixers’ bench just got whatever they wanted, and won the first-half non-Embiid minutes by 11. Meanwhile, the Raptors shot 3/17 from beyond the arc in the half, which meant Boucher had no shortage of offensive rebounding opportunities!

Siakam finished the half with 15 points, three boards, and three assists, and kept the team afloat. Toronto lost the half 57-46, but that deficit could’ve easily been larger.

Khem Birch started the second half in place of Juancho Hernangomez because, you know, Joel Embiid is large. Of course, Embiid started the half with a three and a thunderous dunk, but the Raptors responded with a really strong quarter. Siakam very much carried the offense, hitting threes, getting mid-range jumpers over PJ Tucker (including an and-one), and firing nice passes. At one point, he hit a three, then drew a moving screen by Embiid as he fought over the pick. Anunoby seemed to find his rhythm in this quarter, hitting a corner three and later drawing a foul attacking the basket. But this really was Pascal Siakam’s quarter. Fittingly, Nurse subbed Siakam in for the final seven seconds, and the forward nailed a three to tie the game at 78. Siakam scored 16 points to help dig the Raptors out of their deficit, and the team was 6/12 on threes for the quarter. Shooting!

Nurse kept Siakam in to start the fourth quarter, which makes sense because the team looks lost without him. The Sixers responded by sending hard double teams, but Siakam navigated them beautifully, registering a couple hockey assists. Nurse rolled with a lineup of VanVleet, Anunoby, Siakam, Chris Boucher, and Thad Young for a good chunk, and the Raptors looked nothing like they did in the second. Boucher hit a step-back three over James Harden, because why not, and later attacked a closeout before flipping it to Young for a layup. The lineup played some stifling defense. On one possession, three guys swarmed PJ Tucker under the basket and forced a three-second violation, or as Alvin Williams called it on the broadcast, “an eighteen, nineteen, twenty-second violation.”

But the Raptors wore down a bit, and after some poor decisions and defensive breakdowns, found themselves trailing 99-97 with a couple possessions left. The Sixers had a chance to ice it, but Anunoby defended forced a miss by Harden. Siakam took the rebound full-court for a beautiful, game-tying scoop shot against Tucker. Then on the final possession, Siakam defended Embiid and forced him into a long, contested two. Siakam ended regulation with 38 points, 14 rebounds, and five assists.

The Raptors slipped up in overtime, giving up a handful of open threes and missing all of theirs. Down 104-101, the Raptors had multiple chances to claw back. Nick Nurse bought them an extra possession when he made potentially the best challenge call of his career, wiping out a potential four-point play by Tobias Harris due to an illegal screen by Tucker. But the offense looked stagnant and played some ugly possessions as Embiid took his defense to another level. Siakam attempted a game-tying three at the buzzer – no dice.

Raptors waste Siakam’s big night in Philly, skid hits six | The Star

Wasting one of Pascal Siakam’s greatest individual performances because so few of his teammates were even average, the Raptors saw their losing streak reach six games with a 104-101 overtime loss to the Philadelphia 76ers that will sting as badly as any they will suffer this season.

Siakam was, in a word, brilliant. He finished with a season-high 38 points, a season-high 15 rebounds, tied the game with five seconds left in the fourth quarter and defended Joel Embiid on Philadelphia’s final possession of regulation time.

He was everywhere. And few others were.

Fred VanVleet and Scottie Barnes were a combined 6-for-24 from the floor; VanVleet went 2-for-11 from three-point range, and Barnes missed all three three-pointers he took.

“Fred obviously was getting some good looks and didn’t hit ’em, for sure,” Nurse said. “Scottie didn’t have a ton of attempts. Scottie turned down a few that were rhythm plays that he probably could have taken. But again, not maybe feeling it, trying to get to the next play … we created a lot of great shot opportunities for the other guys and they just weren’t quite there.”

It was nice that O.G. Anunoby returned from injury to log 40 tough minutes, make three threes and finish with 13 points. It was cool that Chris Boucher had a 13-point, 10-rebound night.

Nice. Cool. Not enough to save the Raptors from their longest slump since a seven-game slide in the Tampa Tank year.

For the Raptors, it was another in a long list of tight games. There have been stinkers — Sunday’s loss to Golden State comes quickly to mind — but what’s kept them sane is the knowledge they’ve been in games.

“You’ve gotta be careful not to overreact, and that goes for all us sitting in here,” Nurse told the media before the game. “Other than (Sunday) night in this slump, we had our chance to beat another team: Brooklyn, that is rolling with two superstar machines that are rolling; (the Sacramento) game went to the buzzer; first Orlando game went to the buzzer. (Sunday) night wasn’t very good or very much fun, I admit it.”

The Raptors managed to keep Embiid in check most of the night by not doing anything special to limit him: no quick double-teams, only the occasional help defender on the low post. They let a series of players — Barnes, Khem Birch, Thad Young and Anunoby — guard him the best they could. There was a little zone defence, but not a ton; they went straight up most of the night.

Given how dominant the seven-foot Embiid has been all season, 28 points and 11 rebounds is something the Raptors can live with. Embiid began the game as the NBA’s leading scorer, averaging 33.3 points per game while also dishing out a career-high 4.7 assists. His play has evolved considerably.

“No. 1, (it’s) the quality of shooting around Joel; No. 2, Joel’s become a better passer,” Philadelphia coach Doc Rivers said before the game. “And both of those things have to happen, and I think they both have happened. He has great confidence now. You see it late in games, where he’ll bait guys so he can make a pass. Joel never did that before, so that’s good for us.”

Pascal Siakam’s Heroics Not Enough as Raptors Fall to 76ers – Sports Illustrated Toronto Raptors

Nearly every time Toronto called on Siakam for a big play, the 28-year-old stepped up. He couldn’t even sub out for his regular third-quarter rest without needing to be rushed over back to the scorer’s table for the final seven seconds of the quarter. Having rested for less than 90 seconds, Toronto needed him again, drawing up an isolation possession for the All-NBA forward who delivered with a pull-up three-pointer that he swished easily.

A quarter later, he delivered again. First going at Joel Embiid and drawing a foul to pull Toronto to within two late in the fourth. When James Harden missed the would-be game-winner on the ensuing possession, Siakam did it again. He went right at P.J. Tucker, blowing by the aging forward and kissing a scoop shot off the glass to tie things up.

Want to guess who locked down Embiid to force overtime when the 76ers’ superstar took the final shot of regulation? Yup. Siakam was there too, forcing an ill-fated heavily contested jumper from the MVP candidate.

In overtime, the task was just too much. Toronto was 1-for-9 and Siakam couldn’t quite push the Raptors over the edge. Contested shots against Tucker capped his incredible night at 38 points and 15 rebounds, unable to score in overtime.

The problem, though, was everyone else. Scottie Barnes had a mere six points and was benched for 10 minutes in the second half due to a lackluster game at both ends of the court. O.G. Anunoby was OK in his return from injury, but 13 points from your second-highest scorer isn’t nearly enough. VanVleet, meanwhile, fell back into his shooting funk, shooting 2-for-11 from behind the arc and missing three pivotal wide-open three-pointers in the fourth quarter and overtime.

Now reality is sinking in. Toronto has come close plenty of times lately. The loss to Brooklyn could have gone either way, same with the Sacramento Kings game. But the losing won’t stop and at 13-18, changes are needed one way or another. 

Pascal Siakam not enough as Raptors lose sixth straight vs. 76ers | Toronto Sun

In overtime, Embiid scored the first points after he converted both of his free throws.

Simply put, Toronto couldn’t make shots, even when open looks were yielded.

Siakam needed help and no one was able to emerge as a legitimate and consistent scorer. When the ball needed to be in his hands, the Raptors couldn’t free him up, even as the Sixers were called for two offensive fouls on back-to-back possessions.

Toronto fought and scrapped all night to the point where it led 86-79 four minutes into the fourth quarter.

Toronto then watched as the Sixers made it a one-point game with the game turning much more competitive and dramatic in the final two minutes of regulation.

An 8-0 Philly run gave the home side a one-point lead, but it would get extended to three.

It was then Toronto’s turn to respond.

OG Anunoby was back following a four-game injury absence. To the surprise of no one, he lacked rhythm with his offence.

When he drew a foul, Anunoby missed both of his free throws midway through the game’s opening quarter.

His first make arrived with 5:37 left in the second quarter when he buried a three-pointer. Once he rediscovered his stroke, his shots were pure.

Clearly, his presence was a key reason why the Raptors looked better and played better.

With Gary Trent Jr. sidelined for the third straight game, the Raptors turned to Malachi Flynn when a floor spacer was needed.

The guard tandem of Flynn and Fred VanVleet is serviceable, but it’s far from ideal.

With the Raptors trailing by nine points with 4:24 left in the opening period, VanVleet picked up his second foul.

Philly converted from the line to extend its run as the home side forged a double-digit advantage.

Toronto’s under-sized backcourt did help fuel an 11-0 run as the game’s opening 12 minutes ended with the visitors leading 23-22.

Toronto was very active and aggressive on the defensive end, while overcoming a scoring drought that lasted more than three minutes.

Overall, the Raptors were a far cry from the Sunday side that seemed to throw in the towel in a blowout loss to the Warriors, who scored 36 first-quarter points.

Draymond Green Shares Advice for Struggling Raptors – Sports Illustrated Toronto Raptors

The Toronto Raptors are not oblivious to their situation. It’s bad. Five straight losses, four to teams they were favored against, and things are unraveling quickly. The offense remains among the league’s worst, the defense hasn’t been able to stop anyone lately, and there’s a growing sense of frustration.

“I don’t think that we haven’t shown that this group of guys can play the way we want to play,” said Raptors coach Nick Nurse after watching his team give up 126 points in a blowout loss to the Golden State Warriors.

The drumbeat for changes is getting louder. At 13-17, this team is closer to the bottom of the league than the top and the reverse standings have become as relevant as the actual standings. While four games separate the Raptors from the fifth-seeded Philadelphia 76ers, there are just 3.5 games between Toronto and the NBA’s third-worst teams Houston and San Antonio who have about a 52% chance to land a top-four pick and a 14% chance at the No. 1 pick in a loaded 2023 NBA Draft class.

But Toronto need not look any further than across the hall Sunday night for an example of a team that’s been exactly where the Raptors are right now. It was just over a month ago that the Warriors lost five straight games, only to respond with 12-9 record over the past 21 games and re-enter the conversation in the Western Conference. Heck, it wasn’t all that long ago that Golden State was among the league’s very worst teams, en route to a 15-50 season in 2019-20, before bouncing back for an NBA championship last year.

Yes, it helps to have Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green, but one losing streak doesn’t mean turning the ship and blowing everything up.

“You’ve just got to stay committed to each other. You start hearing noise about trades and this guy shouldn’t be here and that guy shouldn’t be here but you have to stay committed to each other. You can’t let the outside noise dictate how you act or essentially your attitude towards the same or more importantly towards your teammates,” said Draymond Green. “I think for us, you just always want to re-center yourself and re-center your focus to the game and if you do that, the game rewards you … the talk stops, and you’re allowed to do what you set out to do which is enjoy playing basketball.”

But each passing game has made that tougher to do. If winning is a cure-all, losing does the opposite. It’s killed Toronto’s swagger, joy, and optimism.

“The reality is we’re not playing well,” said Pascal Siakam. “We gotta play better, that’s the main thing. We[‘ve] got to get wins and we[‘ve] got to figure out a way to get a win and then kind of build on it. Yeah, it’s hard for me to try to analyze everybody but just us, we have to get a win.”

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