Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports
Raptors Have No Answers for Trae Young & Other Takeaways from Toronto's Loss to Atlanta
The Toronto Raptors appear stuck in the All-Star break.
If Friday's blowout loss to the Charlotte Hornets wasn't concerning enough, Toronto followed it up with another no-show Saturday night, falling 127-100 to the Atlanta Hawks.
1. Ailing VanVleet Leaves Raptors With No Answers for Young
Offensively, Fred VanVleet was solid Saturday night. He burned the Hawks in the first quarter with four three-pointers, making Atlanta pay for their unusual willingness to sag off Toronto's sharpshooter. While he did throw a couple of ill-advised outlet passes that led to turnovers for Toronto, his 24 points led all Raptors.
The problem, however, was on the defensive end where VanVleet's ailing right knee clearly hampered him against the ultra-quick Young. Toronto simply had no answers for Young who VanVleet couldn't stay in front of early before the Raptors opted to let Gary Trent Jr. give it a go against the offensive superstar who lit up Toronto for 41 points on 17-for-24 shooting.
"Combination of him being really hot and our defensive execution wasn't very crisp either," Raptors coach Nick Nurse said.
The Raptors have all the pieces to be a feisty defensive team, but when VanVleet is a step slow with a bad leg, Pascal Siakam is battling through flu-like symptoms, and OG Anunoby is out with a fractured finger, things fall apart quickly. Unfortunately for Toronto, it doesn't sound like Anunoby will be back any time soon and VanVleet's knee injury seems to be lingering longer than anyone had expected.
2. Achiuwa Continues to Fight Birch for Starting Spot
The lone bright spot for Toronto came from Precious Achiuwa who is making a very strong case to replace Khem Birch as the team's top center either in the starting lineup or off the bench. His defense was once again superb Saturday night, using his quick feet to stay in front of Atlanta's pesky guards including Young on a few possessions. While his interior defense has been solid all season, it's that footwork that makes him so integral to Toronto's defense. He's willing to switch screens and comfortable stepping out to defend guards behind the perimeter where opposing shooters are shooting 2.6% worse than their season average when Achiuwa is the nearest defender, per NBA Stats.
More impressive than Achiuwa's defense Saturday, however, was what he did on the offensive end, leading Toronto with a season-high 21 points. He opened the game with his first of two corner three-pointers, then he got to work cutting to the rim and finishing at the bucket, a skill he'd struggled so mightily with early in the season.
"He's got athletic ability and can rebound and impact the game in a lot of ways if he continues playing with that kind of energy. So that is it is a good positive," Nurse said.
The highlight of Achiuwa's night came in the second quarter when he blew past Onyeka Okongwu for a ferocious slam dunk off the dribble.
Birch was the steadier and more reliable option early in the season, but the 29-year-old hasn't looked the same since he'd returned from a knee injury he expects to linger all season. If he can't get back to that level of play, the Raptors would be wise to make the switch and let Achiuwa lead the way either filling in for Anunoby or as the top big off the bench.
As for the possibility of making a chance, Nurse said he'd consider it.
3. Problematic Play-In Losses
It's one thing to get blown out on back to back nights, but getting blown out by the Hornets and Hawks, ninth and 10th teams in the Eastern Conference, is far more problematic. Toronto has seen its small lead for the seventh spot in the conference almost disappear and with the Brooklyn Nets lurking, the Raptors are perilously close to opening their post-season with a do-or-die road game come April.
“It's disappointing," Nurse said. "We know we have a capability of playing a heck of a lot better. We've got to start digging in. It feels a bit like early season, we're mis-executing a lot of the game plan, which we've kind of taken care of months ago, right? Those kinds of things you work out early. Okay, you're making some mistakes and you can't do it, and we get all those things figured out. Because we've got to."
Up Next: Brooklyn Nets
The Raptors will open two straight games against the Brooklyn Nets on Monday night when they head to Brooklyn for a date with former Raptors guard Goran Dragic.
