BEST. DEFENCE. EVER. MAYBE

Dwane Casey would have loved this.

The man who cut his teeth on defence in the NBA and the head coach here for five years in which the team continually got better is not going to be around for perhaps the best defence this city has ever seen.

Versatility is the name of the game when it comes to good NBA defence these days and the Raptors have that in spades.

Two-time defensive player of the year Kawhi Leonard heads that list of versatile defenders. He is joined by OG Anunoby, Pascal Siakam, Norm Powell and another newcomer, Danny Green. All are athletic enough and defensively savvy enough to switch onto just about any other opponent on the floor.

It’s that area — that ability to defend at an elite level — that president Masai Ujiri identified last week as the thing that has him most excited heading into this year.

“I think we’ve got some exploring to do on how we’re going to do it, what lineups look like, etc.,” head coach Nick Nurse said. “I think on paper, we do have a more versatile team on both sides of the floor.”

Powell took it a even a step further.

“I think we can be a toptwo, top team defensively,” Powell said.

“We got a lot of guys who are hitting on defence who know where the ball is and have a great defensive awareness, we’re long and athletic and guys that get after it, so I think we have many different looks and lineups that can give teams problems defensively for sure.”