Raptors look to avoid funk
DETROIT• Dwane Casey thought his team had turned a corner Monday night with a defensively powered win over the Dallas Mavericks. Casey was wrong. So wrong that he found himself apologizing for a display of basketball by his team that was just not up to his standards.
The Russell Westbrookled Oklahoma City Thunder are capable of beating any team when they play the way they did Thursday in Toronto. As Westbrook would say after the game it was a full team effort.
Unfortunately for the Raptors they also were in lock step, just the other way.
The push back and resolve they showed Monday against Dallas was no where to be seen. Instead, they meekly capitulated to whatever anyone in a Thunder uniform wanted.
It was completely unexpected given the two good days of practice the team had hot on the heels of that solid win over Dallas.
Casey was as caught off guard as anyone by the sudden collective drain of effort and competitive spirit in his team.
“Somehow, some way, myself and the staff we’ve got to find a competitive edge,” Casey said putting the onus on himself and his coaches rather than the players. “We don’t wait until the playoffs start, it starts now.
“I thought we turned the corner a little bit with Dallas but we didn’t,” Casey said. “We had two days of excellent practice and there’s no excuse for it. We’re going to set out to find six or seven, eight guys who are going to compete.”
Those last words, more than any other should have the attention of everyone in the Raptors’ locker- room. Casey doesn’t make idle threats.
He is an old- school coach who knows the only card he can play with today’s players is playing time.
With just 13 games left on the schedule, now is not the time for this team to go into a funk of any length.