Raptors Took an Admirable Shot at Celtics in Measuring-Stick Game vs Boston

Darko Rajaković was completely honest about this season.

Yes, it sucks to lose. Nobody has enjoyed the way this Toronto Raptors season has gone so far. Pascal Siakam would be the first to say it: Losing is miserable. But for Toronto, this year isn’t really about whatever the record says.

“It is hard because all of us are so competitive and we want to win and we're preparing for every single game to give us the best chance to win. But at the same time, we got to know what are the priorities,” Rajaković said Sunday. “That's understanding the big picture of this team and the transition that we're going through and how we need to continue to build.”

The Raptors are in a transition phase and at some point in the not-too-distant future this team will be led by Scottie Barnes, Immanuel Quickley, and some other group of young role players. The goal one day is to be where the Boston Celtics are today, leading the Eastern Conference, having built a formidable core around their two similarly aged stars.

For now, though, a 105-96 loss to those Celtics, though admirable, proved Toronto is still a few years away.

“We just really want to continue to learn what works and what doesn’t work,” Rajaković said pre-game. “With a championship contender, how to compete against them.”

The Raptors did give Boston their best shot. Even without Jakob Poeltl and Gary Trent Jr., Toronto hung around for most of the night. A driving layup from Barnes pulled the Raptors to within four in the final two minutes, but that was as close as Toronto would come.

"Us playing close games three out of four times... I think it says a lot about the resiliency of our group and the potential that we have on this team," Rajaković said post-game. "I think it’s gonna help us next time we see them."

Toronto’s defense is just not at Boston’s level. The loss of Poeltl has certainly hurt the Raptors, but still, the Celtics have All-Defense level players across the board. The one guy to pick on would seemingly be Kristaps Porzingis who is 7-foot-2 and seemingly impossible to shoot over.

If there’s anyone who looks like maybe he can join Toronto’s future core, it’s been RJ Barrett. After a disastrous game in Utah, the 23-year-old Canadian looked at home back home. He kept Toronto close in the first half with 14 of his 24 points and stuck the Raptors to a second-half lead early in the third quarter when Thad Young found him on a savvy cut to the hoop for two. He followed that up moments later with an and-1 finish through contact from Porzingis to put Toronto up five.

Barnes had another quiet game, but he did a respectable job against Jayson Tatum and even took on Boston’s superstar one-on-one, beating him in isolation with a spin move for a layup. It was the kind of play that required impressive ball-handling skills, the type of skills Barnes didn’t seem to have last season.

Quickley has continued to find his groove in a bigger role with the Raptors. He racked up 21 points and connected on a pair of three-pointers but missed a pair of open attempts in the fourth that proved dire for Toronto. The Raptors as a team nailed just four of 32 three-point attempts, getting outscored by 36 points from three-point range.

The Raptors climbed ahead by as many as seven in the third quarter, but Boston just proved too much. Tatum shook loose for a driving layup then found Payton Pritchard in the corner for three and the Celtics quickly found themselves back up nine heading into the fourth.

Toronto’s offense just stalled out and Boston’s depth had enough firepower to put the Raptors away. Pritchard found Hauser for a three above the break and the Celtics jumped ahead by 14. That hole proved too much for the Raptors to claw out of.

Up Next: Miami Heat

The Raptors will be back at it Wednesday night when Kyle Lowry and the Miami Heat come to town for a 7:30 p.m. ET tipoff at Scotiabank Arena.