The questions get harder with clock ticking
Maxing out moving parts with regular season looming tricky task for coach Casey
HONOLULU— With just two games left in the abbreviated pre-season, there remains plenty of work to be done by the Raptors. Here’s a look at some points to address before the Oct. 19 start to the regular season against the Chicago Bulls:
DECIDE A ROTATION
Having already rested Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan, and with Norm Powell out for one of the remaining games as part of the preseason game plan, there’s precious little time to figure out who plays with whom and for how long.
Facing the prospect of one of the most inexperienced backup units in the league, coach Dwane Casey might want to find a way to stagger minutes so that at least one and maybe two starters are on the floor at all times.
He can do it in his mind, but putting it in place on the court is a key item to deal with in the final two pretend games.
FIND GOOD SHOTS
Yes, the Raptors have taken a lot of three-pointers (a shocking 123 in three games) and they are almost of the mind that no shot is a bad shot unless it’s a non-paint two-pointer. But they need to find shots that are a bit better for both Serge Ibaka and C.J. Miles, who have taken a lot of three-pointers, some of which were a bit out of control.
Quick shots are one thing and the team can live with misses — although shooting 27.6 per cent over three games is a bit worrisome — but getting into some kind of rhythm and learning where players can find openings to get off jumpers is going to be a work in progress.
FILL OUT THE BENCH
No one is giving any indication of who is ahead or who is behind in a race for the14th and15th spots on the roster. For that matter, team sources aren’t even sure they’ll fill them both before the start of the year.
The “competition” is impossible to handicap and will likely come down to a perceived “fit” of any specific player.
And that determination is not going to come in any of the final two preseason games. It’s going to be in practice since players on the bubble get scant time in games.
THE FIFTH MAN
The only question is whether the Raptors go with Miles or Powell along with Lowry, DeRozan, Ibaka and Jonas Valanciunas.
There are arguments to be made for both, in either a starting or backup role — either can be the focal point of the second unit, and each will provide an offensive respite for DeRozan and Lowry as starters — and Casey and his staff have a decision to make.
But, really, the issue is who finishes rather than who starts, so no one’s going to lose much sleep over the fifth guy.
DON’T FORGET DEFENCE
In three games, the Raptors haven’t been horrible on defence by any means, and they’ve had stretches of games where they’ve been quite effective.
There is some work to be done. It goes hand-in-hand with who is on the floor with which group, and the two remaining games and a handful of practices have to include more emphasis on getting stops and defending as a team.