Raptors look for magic formula

Little room for error with Lowry out

Regroup. That is about the extent of the answer to what the Toronto Raptors can do now.

A tough road trip that finished with two wins and three losses is in the rearview mirror.

Kyle Lowry remains unavailable and will be presumably for at least another 16 days or so if one takes the shortest projection (from his own camp, not the Raptors) — four weeks — for how long Lowry would need to get his surgically repaired wrist back in game shape.

Chances are, and based on the conservative nature this team takes with injuries, Lowry won’t hit that four-week return.

Six weeks would have him back April 11, the day before the final game of the regular season.

Five weeks from surgery and he would have four games left to re-acclimate himself to the lineup.

If this is all sounding a little too desperate, consider what we have learned.

Without Lowry this team is capable of playing winning basketball but the margin for error is just about nil.

They just went 2-3 on their recent road swing, but the last two games were losses to Atlanta Friday and Miami on Saturday. Against the Hawks, DeMar DeRozan had 28 points.

But it wasn’t enough in the 105-99 setback.

Saturday’s 104-89 loss to the Miami Heat was off the rails from the beginning.

For starters the Heat barely missed a shot in the first quarter.

Toronto stayed with them shooting 50 per cent themselves but there was no let up in the Heat.

There was in Toronto’s game which fell off in the second quarter and never rallied again until coach Dwane Casey found a mix of five bench and lesser used players who brought some fight back to the game.

One of those lesser lights, Dion Waiters, led the way with 20 points.

Those guys are not the ones who will be counted on to keep Toronto in the top half of the Eastern Conference playoff bracket.

It’s up the starting five, starting with DeRozan.

Patrick Patterson cannot attempt just four three’s as he did over the three losses on this road trip.

He is obviously playing through injury or discomfort.

But he has to be a threat from behind the arc.

DeMarre Carroll has to get past his ankle sprain and get back on the floor. His three-point shooting has also gone AWOL as well with just one three in 12 attempts over four games in March.

Again, without Lowry’s threat from behind the arc someone else has to step up and Patterson and Carroll along with Powell would seem to be the most likely candidates.