Raptors not worried about Valanciunas skid

Coach expects struggling centre to bounce back

TORONTO • Jonas Valanciunas is struggling. Part of it is matchup driven, like Monday’s game against the Cleveland Cavaliers, where Tristan Thompson and Channing Frye tend to give the Raptors centre problems.

Part of it might also be health as he comes back from an ankle injury.

But it’s not just the Cavs that Valanciunas is struggling against.

In the past four games, the normally productive centre is averaging just 4.5 points a game, is shooting just under 32 per cent and is collecting 6.5 rebounds per night.

All numbers are well below his season averages. He’s also playing about five minutes less a night.

The numbers are a little concerning, but not to head coach Dwane Casey.

“Jonas is fine, it’s a matchup league,” Casey said after the loss to Cleveland on Monday in which Valanciunas played 25 minutes, his longest outing in five games and had just four points, chipping in with 10 rebounds.

“I thought Lucas (Nogueira) did a little bit better job of guarding Frye, which is a hard matchup for any (centre) in the league, not just Jonas and Lucas. He’s really a four playing the five and that’s why we decided to go small; that kind of got us going a little bit toward the end but again, you give up something.”

At the same time as Valanciunas appears to be struggling, Nogueira’s stock seems to be on the rise.

He and Kyle Lowry have developed a nice chemistry and his ability to get out to the three-point line and recover is a little quicker than Valanciunas.

Earlier this year, Valanciunas had another dip in his production. At the time Casey blamed that one, too, on Valanciunas just finding his legs after a short injury layoff. This could be more of the same.

Seeing DeMar DeRozan lead the league in scoring earlier in the season was good for everyone in the Raptors organization, but what is better is what is going on right now.

That’s a balanced scoring attack, meaning opponents can no longer load up on DeRozan only. They have to account for all five Raptors on the court.