Raptors’ Ross remains an enigma
TORONTO • Before every NBA game, each player gets a short stint, maybe 15 minutes, to shoot on the court. These routines are usually very regimented, focusing on the shots that might come up that evening.
About two hours before tip on Sunday afternoon, Terrence Ross was getting up his shots. He swished in more than 10 straight three- pointers from the top of the arc, and then moved over to the elbow. He then banked in three shots in a row, off of the glass and through the hoop. NBA players are very, very talented. Even by those standards, these shots were bordering on ridiculous. Not many players have the touch and coordination to make them.
Ross’s display said whatever an observer wanted it to say. Do you believe in Ross’s combination of athleticism and sweet shooting stroke? Well, this was just proof that Ross’s raw skills were still there, and he is worth continuing to entrust with regular minutes. Are you frustrated by Ross’s inconsistency, and how he tends to disappear from games when his shot is not falling? Then, this was evidence that Ross does not focus on the things that require focus. The next purposely banked- i n three- pointer made this year will be the first one.
The latter perception of Ross is beating the former in a runaway so far this season. Ross is scoring, shooting and getting to the free- throw line at the worst rates of his career.
( Ross has failed to shoot a free throw in 14 of his 19 appearances this year, which is amazing.) As usual, our knowledge of how salaries work is complicating matters. In the second and third games of the year, Ross had big fourth quarters. The day after, he signed a three- year contract extension worth more than US$ 30- million. Since then, with a few exceptions, he has been inexplicably invisible. There has been some chatter than the comfort provided by the forthcoming cash influx caused Ross’s production to drop, but trying to figure out causation with Ross has always been a silly gambit. Ross never quite fell out of Dwane Casey’s rotation, but it was getting close there for a minute.
He is starting now, the product of DeMarre Carroll’s knee contusion. He has started four games in a row, including Sunday’s 96-76 win over Philadelphia. And he has looked intermittently alive.
“Playing time. Playing time. That’s one thing that guys want, need,” Raptors coach Dwane Casey said of the difference recently for Ross. “To his credit, he’s stepped up. I don’t know when DeMarre’s coming back, so it’s got to continue for the next few weeks to hold that spot.”
Ross went scoreless against Philadelphia, but he filled in the gaps nicely. After failing to step over into the paint to cover for the helping Bismack Biyombo early — he and Casey had a quick conversation about that — Ross was moving into passing lanes and getting involved on the glass, tipping the ball to keep it alive. These are exactly the plays that Ross’s athleticism should help him make with some consistency.
That has never been the case, part of the reason Ross has taken the mantle from Andrea Bargnani as the biggest enigma on the roster. The best version of Ross is an essential piece in today’s NBA. He can stretch the floor and defend with his lateral quickness. It would be nice if he could add some off- the- dribble creativity to his game, but those two things on a regular basis would be plenty.
Ross began this starting stretch with a 22- point effort against the Lakers, his best scoring game of the year.
“It should give him more bounce. Any time guys shoot the ball (well), it usually carries over to their defence, gives them a little more pep in their step and that type of thing,” Casey said. “That’s important on his part to continue to play on both ends of the floor. … He’s going to have a big challenge every night to guard different people.”
Well, maybe every night except for Sunday — the Sixers are awful. Regardless, in a world where the Warriors are the league’s best team by a mile, and more and more teams are going with perimeter- heavy lineups, the Raptors need Ross. That it remains a scary proposition i s worr ying. The Raptors have tried everything with Ross: starting him, having him come off of the bench, giving him prime defensive assignments, keeping him away from the opposition’s best scorers. And they are no closer to unlocking Ross’ potential, if it can even be unlocked in this setting.
For now, the Raptors do not have much of a choice except to believe. They have already made their bet.