John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports
Offensive Woes Continue for Raptors & Other Takeaways from Toronto's Loss to Magic
It's not panic time yet, but it's getting close.
The Toronto Raptors can't seem to get anything going offensively these days. On the heels of an embarrassing loss Thursday night to the Detroit Pistons, the Raptors once again fell flat, this time in a 103-97 loss to the Orlando Magic on Friday night.
1. Offense Remains in Shambles Without VanVleet & Anunoby
The Raptors are taking a cautious approach with Fred VanVleet and OG Anunoby. They want the two to be as close to 100% healthy before they take the court again this season. It's understandable. But with the way Toronto's offense looks without them, it's getting tough to play it so cautiously.
The Raptors aren't going to dominate teams with elite isolation scorers, pull-up shooters, or post-up buckets, their whole offense is predicated on getting tiny advantages and making the most of them. But right now, the Raptors have hardly anyone to make opposing teams pay when the ball gets swung around to the perimeter. Defenses are paying extra attention to Gary Trent Jr. whose shooting funk continued Friday night with a 2-for-12 outing and 0-for-9 shooting from behind the arc. Even when the Raptors created an advantage with Pascal Siakam or Scottie Barnes getting deep in the paint, the forwards on the perimeter couldn't convert. Barnes, Precious Achiuwa, Chris Boucher, Thad Young, Yuta Watanabe, and Svi Mykhailiuk combined to shoot 5-for-17 from three-point range.
"Well, it was pretty tough tonight. We get some really good looks out there, I think Gary had some good looks, Malachi, there's 16 between guys that we think that can shoot and we've just got to produce a bit more, but it was tough spacing-wise out there for sure tonight," Raptors coach Nick Nurse said. "I thought we missed a ton of opportunities at the basket, too, and it wasn't like there wasn't shot opportunities out there. Like we were running deep in the shot clock and didn't have anywhere to go."
2. Siakam Trying to Carry Raptors
Siakam has been one of Toronto's few bright spots over the past couple of games. Even as the Raptors have struggled to provide him with any floor spacing, the 27-year-old has found a way to create for himself, getting deep in the paint and taking advantage of mismatches. He repeatedly got to his close-range floater, rising up over multiple Magic defenders to create something out of nothing for Toronto. His 34 points nearly outscored the rest of Toronto's starters combined.
"They were certainly living in the paint off of pretty much everybody. Right? And he still had to kind of maneuver his way through all that. Obviously shot a pretty decent percentage. I thought he showed some good composure," Nurse said of Siakam's 13-for-20 outing. "He played his guts out, man. I give him credit. He scored, he rebounded, thought he guarded pretty hard as well. Did a good job."
3. Flynn Continues to be Difference Maker
Malachi Flynn isn't going away any time soon. He's suddenly become one of Toronto's few reliable offensive options and their most reliable three-point shooter considering Trent's recent struggles. He nailed a pair of fourth-quarter three-pointers, scoring 12 of his 20 points in the final frame, to go with a pair of big assists to Siakam and Barnes that pulled seven with just over two minutes to go. His biggest mistake late was passing up an open three-pointer to make the extra pass to Barnes whose three-pointer couldn't find the bucket.
4. Birch Benched & Possibly Out of the Rotation
After a solid start to the season for Khem Birch, things have gone sideways in a hurry. Whether it's his ailing right knee or a lack of rhythm following surgery to fix his broken nose, the 29-year-old big hasn't looked good for quite a while now. He's missing his go-to floaters at a concerning rate and his lack of mobility is costing Toronto defensively where the Raptors are 5.1 points per 100 possessions better with him off the court.
His lack of any three-point shooting or even a willingness to take rhythm threes is now creating major problems for the Raptors. At one point in the first half, he passed up a late shot clock three-point attempt, passing it to Gary Trent Jr. who was forced to take an off-balance three as the shot clock expired.
After six straight starts, Nurse had seen enough. Birch was benched to start the second half in favor of Chris Boucher and didn't return. That three-year, $20 million contract looks about as bad as a three-year, $20 million contract can look.
Fun Fact: Barnes Singing O Canada
Barnes says it took him about 10 to 15 games to learn the words to O Canada.
Up Next: Cleveland Cavaliers
The Raptors will begin their six-game road trip Sunday night with a pitstop in Cleveland for a 7:30 p.m. ET tipoff against the Cavaliers. Both Fred VanVleet and OG Anunoby will travel with the team.
