STILL PLENTY OF MOVING PARTS
RAPTORS LOOKING TO SOLIDIFY ROSTER AFTER SHAKY START TO NEW SEASON
The losing skid to start the NBA season is over and now it’s on to The Big Easy for the Toronto Raptors.
But it’s becoming apparent there is going to be nothing easy about the Raptors’ season going forward. If four games is a decent sample size, and it’s at least close to one, the 1- 3 Raptors are going to be a team that struggles to score in the half court and will rely on finding the hot hands on a game- togame basis if they hope to be a consistent winner.
“We’re not going to go out there and out-talent anybody this year, we’ve got to do the little things,” Fred Vanvleet said following the closest to a complete performance the Raptors have had this year in the 100-83 win over the visiting New York Knicks Thursday.
It was still a ragged performance with l ong droughts of scoring, a hallmark of their early season struggles. There are plenty of factors leading to that, of course.
The lack of defined roles is one of the larger ones and this really is a product of the roster turnover more than anything.
For the first time in a few years, both the starting five and the bench unit remain unsettled as the Raptors head to New Orleans for a second game with an upand- coming Pelicans team that has already taken one game from them.
In the starting five, the centre position is very much a question mark despite what was initially thought to be the answer with the acquisition of Aron Baynes.
He could still turn out to be the answer, but through four games the position has been one of constant change. Baynes has started all four games, but if you dig a little into the box scores you will see that his second-half minutes are dwindling by the day.
Again, there is a learning curve to be expected for the only new face in the Raptors’ early season starting five, but those dwindling minutes in the second half suggest a level of uncertainty about his future in that starting five.
“I think it’s going to be a game-to-game type of thing,” head coach Nick Nurse said. “I think Aron’s had two good games and two not- so- good games, so he’s batting about .500, Chris ( Boucher) has had a couple of real good games, but Alex ( Len) has had a couple of good ones, too. I don’t know, I think we’re going to feel it out, feel it through and just keep evaluating.”
Were that Nurse’s only real dilemma, things might not be so worrisome, but after that there is the entire question of a second unit that seems to have a lot of usable parts but not one real reliable unit just yet.
Norman Powell, who the team would love to see assert himself as the lead dog in that second unit, put together his most impactful performance of the season thus far in the win over the Knicks. That he did it in the starting five with the team disciplining Pascal Siakam for an indiscretion they prefer to keep internal, is the problem.
With everyone healthy and playing, Powell does not move any of Kyle Lowry, Fred Vanvleet, OG Anunoby or Siakam out of the starting five. They need him to produce coming off the bench. Beyond Powell there is that glut of potential contributors in that second unit, all with something to offer but none who have really established themselves, in Terence Davis, Matt Thomas, Deandre Bembry, Stanley Johnson, Paul Watson and rookie Malachi Flynn.
The latter two are really still awaiting their opportunity while the rest have had varying shots in those minutes with varying degrees of success.
Bottom line is it’s still a toss- up as to who comes out with a defined role from that group.
But yes, it remains just four games into the season. The uncertainty of who plays what minutes is relatively new to this group who have had things pretty defined over the last few years, but that was bound to happen with the departures they have weathered these past two seasons. But the sooner those defined roles can be established the sooner we will get a real read on how good this team can be. It’s just not there yet.
“We’re still a ways away,” Vanvleet said.
“I think it’s something that we continue to talk about, try to figure out and guys finding their role and finding their niche on the team, finding the minutes in the rotation.
“But again I think the more we play better, the easier it is for Nick and the coaching staff to not have to search every game just to try to pull a win out.
“I think once all five ( starters) have fallen into our natural roles and our positions, things will flow a little bit better, and that way we can lock a rotation down. But when you’re searching, anything is on the table, so it’s hard to get a rhythm that way,” Vanvleet said.