Raptors should end Carroll’s season now
There’s no need for team to rush injured player back into lineup
With not much left to do in the regular season — get to 50 wins for the first time in franchise history and develop a rhythm going into the playoffs — there is one thing the Toronto Raptors should seriously consider.
Which is to decide it’s best for everyone concerned to shut down injured forward DeMarre Carroll for the rest of the season.
It would be a bold move, and a preemptive one, but one that is necessary when all things are considered.
Carroll has not played since Jan. 3 and he had knee surgery on Jan. 6 — a surprise operation there was no hint of even a day before. He hasn’t played since and hasn’t even been through a full five-onfive practice.
To expect him to come back and contribute immediately is both folly and wishful thinking. He’s played in just 23 of 70 games and battled plantar fasciitis even before the knee issues popped up necessitating the surgery. To imagine he’d get fully healthy and in game shape in the 16 days left in the regular season defies logic.
With just10 games left in the season, the Raptors have to wonder what they’ll be getting if Carroll suddenly appears in uniform again and whether it’s worth the disruption it might cause.
Conditioning would be an issue, as there are at most five days left in the season for full practice. And with the paramount concern of not wearing down the players too much, the chance of any of them being held at full speed and with full five-on-five contact is remote at best. The chance of getting Carroll back to full speed is remote indeed.
But it would be a blow, no doubt. Carroll and his four-year, $60 million (U.S.) free agent contract were the centrepiece of general manager Masai Ujiri’s summer makeover to turn the Raptors into a defence-oriented team better prepared for the post-season.
But is half a Carroll worth the disruption his return would cause? Even when he was playing, there were nights when his transition into the rotation was far from seamless.
The race to face the Toronto Raptors in the first round of the NBA playoffs is quickly becoming a battle between two teams, as the shocking collapse of the team most feared by fans continues.
The Chicago Bulls have just completed an atrocious week and now have to be seen as long-shots to just sneak into the post-season, let alone climb to seventh to set up a firstround date with the Raptors.
Once thought to be legitimate contenders for the Eastern Conference championship, the Bulls lost back-to-back games to the lowly New York Knicks and then were drilled Saturday in Orlando by a Magic team missing two starters, a key rotation player and playing on the end of a back-to-back.
The 111-89 loss was stunning in its scope.
“We look like a team that’s lost in terms of doing the things you need to do,” the Bulls’ Mike Dunleavy said. “It’s a lot of stuff. We have to find our way. We’ve had success in the past, but it’s going to be tough right now.”
Chicago’s demise has created some separation between them and the two most probable Toronto opponents — the Indiana Pacers and Detroit Pistons — who began play Sunday in virtual tie for seventh and eighth.
The Bulls and Washington are still on the periphery of the race and have time to catch the Pacers and Pistons, but Chicago scuffles along and a difficult schedule will test the Wizards.
Raptors fans undoubtedly will rejoice at the prospect of Toronto not having to face Chicago in the first round and likely will be OK with Washington — last year’s playoff nemesis — falling by the wayside.
However, Toronto coach Dwane Casey said earlier this week he’s not casting a furtive eye at the race, nor does he have a preferred opponent in mind.
“I’m one of those guys that you have to take whoever comes to you,” he said. “The basketball gods will always get you if you start saying ‘We want to play this team’ because you’ll get what you ask for.
“I’m a firm believer in let the game, the possessions, the quarters and everything else take care of itself.”
The Bulls do have a chance this week to restore some hope and get back in the hunt. They play Indiana and Detroit, along with Atlanta and Houston, and a couple of wins will vault them right back into it.
But given their play of late, and questions about their mental toughness, there would seem to be little room for optimism. There is open dialogue about whether or not the Bulls are still listening to the message of first-year head coach Fred Hoiberg.
“Obviously, what I’m saying right now, my message isn’t getting across,” Hoiberg told reporters on Saturday.
“We’re going to sit in a room and hopefully get it figured out tomorrow.”
Bulls had an atrocious week and now seem like long-shots to face Raptors in first round