Well, the Raptors were up against it. Not only are the Cleveland Cavaliers one of the best teams in the NBA and the unquestioned top dawgs of the East, but they are a team that is uniquely suited to punish the Raptors on both ends of the floor.
With stalwart bigs to take away the rim — the Cavs allow the lowest rim field goal percentage in the NBA — not only was the returning RJ Barrett put in a much more difficult spot to try and access his driving success. But, one game removed from asserting himself as a driving force, Scottie Barnes would have to try and prove Matt Bonner wrong once again – only this time against a gargantuan frontcourt.
On the other side of things, Donovan Mitchell & Darius Garland are one of the more potent backcourts ever put together and their ability to penetrate with a live dribble, make reads against a moving defense or hit shots over the top of it? The Raptors don’t have the defensive goods to keep them at bay for a full 48.
The Raptors had all of that to worry about, and it was the slick shooting of Max Strus that provided the first overwhelming punch. It didn’t matter that Strus went 1-8 over the last 44 minutes of the game, because he punched in 9 points on 3 makes in the first 4 minutes. That, plus the garbage-manning around of the Cavaliers frontcourt to finish possessions was a really strong combination. On the other side of things, Barrett popped out to a great start and had a hand in every single one of the Raptors first 13 points – the bad part being: when the Raptors were at 13, the Cavaliers were at 33.
It was a disastrous opening sequence of play, and ultimately the Raptors were down by 27 points (41-17) by the time the first quarter closed. The Raptors played the Cavaliers fairly even over the rest of the game — but, you know how it is, teams let up — and the Cavaliers never pushed the gas to pull away, nor did they fall asleep at the wheel to ever let the game get interesting. They kept their minutes played low, they vaulted 8 players into double figures, and they steamrolled the Raptors. Very 2025 Cavaliers. At least prior to the game, we got a somewhat interesting introduction to Brandon Ingram.
The game waxed and waned, as blowouts do, and unfortunately the Raptors couldn’t even muster up a fun performance from anyone outside of Barrett. Gradey Dick? He had a horribly tough time trying to shake loose for shots, and you just have to hope he keeps his spirits high as he rolls into the Rising Stars Challenge. Barnes? The Cavaliers have the personnel, and they even endorsed a switching scheme to keep Barnes away from the bucket and force him to try and go over the top. To Barnes’ credit he was more aggressive than a lot of games lately, but ultimately he had a very underwhelming game on offense. 16 points on 15 shots, 49% true-shooting. No good. Ja’Kobe Walter was quiet, Immanuel Quickley was pedestrian. No fun. No good. Ochai Agbaji was okay, and his cutting helped him get into the teeth of the Cavs defense, but there was no saving this game.
It was a leisurely stroll towards the All-Star break.
What is most interesting, is what the Raptors plans are going to be once the team comes back from the break. With 27 games left on the schedule (and one of the easiest schedules in the NBA, as far as measuring those things goes) and Ingram without a timetable for return – how many games will Ingram play? How does he factor into the tank? These are the burning questions that will dictate the end of the Raptors season.
You just have to hope, for the most part, that the Raptors games become proving grounds for their younger players. If they want a better shot at that though, it would behoove the Raptors to start playing at a faster pace. Despite Davion Mitchell’s limitations as a scorer, he had the Raptors offense moving very fast, and with things slowing down, so too, does the Raptors efficiency. It’s 6 games in a row now where the Raptors posted an offensive rating that lands in the bottom third of all games played this season. Their transition offense has been extremely poor as well.
The more I think about it, the more I write about it – this team just needs a break. Health problems, a changing roster, and tired legs. We’ll revisit this later. For now, rest up fellas.
Have a blessed day.
