Signs of hope start with free-agent steals in off-season haul
The Raptors have been a team that has historically flown under the radar. Even when their record has been good, appearances on TNT broadcasts are few and far between, as are non-playoff ESPN visits to the Air Canada Centre.
Raptors GM Masai Ujiri likely wasn’t trying to stick with this theme last summer in free agency, but his moves fit the bill.
When he signed DeMarre Carroll, Cory Joseph, Luis Scola and Bismack Biyombo, the basketball world didn’t come to a complete stop. There was no talk of the landscape of the NBA’s Eastern Conference changing or how by tinkering with the underbelly of the team — he let Sixth Man Award winner Lou Williams walk in free agency, and traded Greivis Vasquez on draft day to get Norman Powell — he’d given it the facelift it needed.
Fifty-six regular-season wins later and two games into the playoffs, the results are evident. The Raptors became known for their defensive ability this season, jumping from 24th in efficiency a year ago to 11th. The newest members of the team played a big part in the team assuming its defence-first identity, even if they don’t want to admit it.
“I’m not trying to reshape anything,” Joseph, who has played his best basketball of the season over the last two games, said of the improved defence this year. “I guess that’s Masai’s job, to figure out the pieces to the puzzle.
“He went out there and he felt like the team needed defence. He got the players that he has right now, with us out there working hard and doing the things that coach Casey says and trying to (bring) them onto the court.
“In terms of trying to reshape the whole thing, I just go out there and play my game.”
Casey said that the priority was — or always should have been — defence, even last year when the Raptors were swept out in the first round by Washington.
“We have the same defensive philosophy we have (now), same approach, same emphasis, but it’s a personnel-driven league and those (signings) came in and helped change the culture,” he said.
“Masai and Jeff (Weltman, executive VP of basketball operations) went out and did a good job of finding players that fit our identity and what we’re trying to do, whereas Lou and Greivis were good offensively but they didn’t fit what we were trying to do defensively,” Casey said. “No disrespect, they’re both scorers, excellent offensive players, but we had that in Kyle (Lowry) and DeMar (DeRozan). So to compliment them they did a good job of going out and finding guys like Cory and Bismack and DeMarre.”
While Carroll, Joseph and Biyombo are defence-first players, Scola’s value is felt off the court. The 35-yearold has won Olympic gold with his native Argentina and played on four teams now in a nine-year NBA career. He’s been a calming voice with the team and delivered that message in the days that followed the Raptors’ troubling Game 1 loss to the Pacers.
“Scola has been great,” Ujiri said at his pre-playoff press conference last week. “He grinds and gives us experience, but many people don’t know that he gives us that leadership off the court.”
“The team didn’t win the last two years in the first round, it makes a little anxious feeling,” Scola said at the end of the regular-season, “but we do have a lot of reasons to believe this year is different.
“That doesn’t guarantee anything, but there are a lot of signs that this year is different than the two years before. I think everybody on this team agrees on that.”
As the Raptors head to Indianapolis knotted 1-1 in their matchup with the Pacers, they’re relying on those sign- ings (and eventually some offensive contributions from DeRozan) to take them into the second round for the first time in 15 years.
Terrence Ross found a fit on this facelifted team, giving the Raptors the best season of his four-year career. He said the arrival of the freeagent signees helped everyone get on the same page.
“Cory’s a good penetrator and he sees the court very well. (Biyombo) rebounds and protects the rim well, and D.C. shoots and protects the perimeter,” he said. “Just the things that we all needed to get better at, we got guys that are good at that. They all came here and bought into what we were being taught and it’s working out.”