If the Raptors have managed to climb the slope lately and thus show a better face after a very average start to the season, it is thanks to their defense. Except that the offensive problems remain, month after month.
The two games in a row against the Celtics this week proved it well: only 97.5 points scored on average and a very ugly 15/64 at 3-pts, or 23% success… The first quarter of the second game was very complicated with 16 points and a low 7/24 to shoot.
“We made bad choices in attack and it is for this season that it has become complicated”, analyzes Nick Nurse for SportsNet. “We were dominated in transition too. We weren’t coming back, or not fast enough. Our rotations were not good. Our defense must be very solid when we are in difficulty with our shot. There, that was not the case. »
The Raptors’ offensive numbers this season, and in many areas – penetrations, outside shots or 3-pointers with or without dribbling – are among the worst in the league. But Fred VanVleet believes that the essential is done. “I evaluate things in relation to what we do. If we take good shots, which is most often the case, we have to deal with it.explained the playmaker after the first duel against the 2022 finalists.
If the defense wins important matches, an attack that is too weak is also a very (sometimes too) heavy burden to bear. The Raptors have a very aggressive, very efficient and very demanding defense, which weighs on the bodies. When the baskets do not follow, then the gap is not made and as the energy then decreases, the Canadians find themselves in bad shape.
“There is nothing to add to that”, assures VanVleet for The Athletic. “If I had an answer to give, it would be on the pitch. Our defense is exhausting, yes, of course. But if we don’t do that, we don’t have a chance. At the beginning, we lacked precision in the details, in our execution and it’s exhausting. We can’t do the right thing. Some matches, you don’t score for six minutes and you lose energy. There are matches where nothing is put in and it drains our energy. »
| Shots | Bounces | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Players | GM | Minimum | Shots | 3 points | LF | Off | Def | Early | pd | bp | Int | CT | party | Points |
| Pascal Siakam | 70 | 37.5 | 47.9 | 32.4 | 77.3 | 1.9 | 6.0 | 7.9 | 5.9 | 2.4 | 0.9 | 0.5 | 3.2 | 24.3 |
| Fred Vanvleet | 68 | 36.8 | 39.4 | 34.2 | 89.6 | 0.4 | 3.7 | 4.1 | 7.2 | 2.0 | 1.8 | 0.6 | 2.8 | 19.5 |
| Gary Trent, Jr. | 64 | 32.3 | 43.2 | 36.9 | 83.8 | 0.5 | 2.2 | 2.6 | 1.6 | 0.8 | 1.6 | 0.2 | 1.6 | 17.4 |
| Og Anunoby | 66 | 35.7 | 47.8 | 38.8 | 83.8 | 1.4 | 3.6 | 5.0 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 1.9 | 0.8 | 3.0 | 16.9 |
| Scottie Barnes | 75 | 35.0 | 45.7 | 28.6 | 77.4 | 2.4 | 4.4 | 6.8 | 4.8 | 2.0 | 1.1 | 0.8 | 2.2 | 15.5 |
| Jakob Poeltl | 24 | 28.1 | 66.1 | 0.0 | 57.1 | 3.4 | 6.0 | 9.4 | 2.3 | 1.2 | 1.2 | 1.4 | 3.0 | 13.8 |
| chris butcher | 74 | 20.1 | 49.3 | 32.6 | 75.9 | 2.1 | 3.5 | 5.6 | 0.4 | 0.5 | 0.6 | 0.8 | 1.9 | 9.4 |
| Precious Achiuwa | 53 | 20.5 | 48.0 | 26.0 | 69.4 | 1.8 | 4.0 | 5.8 | 0.9 | 1.1 | 0.5 | 0.6 | 1.8 | 9.0 |
| Otto Porter | 8 | 18.3 | 50.0 | 35.3 | 100.0 | 0.8 | 1.6 | 2.4 | 1.0 | 0.5 | 1.4 | 0.0 | 0.9 | 5.5 |
| Thaddeus Young | 54 | 14.7 | 54.5 | 17.6 | 69.2 | 1.3 | 1.8 | 3.1 | 1.4 | 0.8 | 1.0 | 0.1 | 1.6 | 4.4 |
| Malachi Flynn | 51 | 12.7 | 34.5 | 34.9 | 72.4 | 0.3 | 1.1 | 1.4 | 1.3 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 1.2 | 4.4 |
| Dalano Banton | 29 | 8.8 | 40.4 | 28.3 | 76.2 | 0.3 | 1.0 | 1.3 | 1.0 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 1.1 | 4.2 |
| Will Barton | 14 | 12.9 | 32.8 | 31.4 | 100.0 | 0.2 | 1.2 | 1.4 | 1.1 | 0.2 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 1.1 | 3.8 |
| Christian Koloko | 56 | 13.8 | 46.9 | 9.1 | 63.2 | 1.5 | 1.5 | 3.0 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 1.0 | 2.3 | 3.1 |
| Juancho Hernangomez | 42 | 14.6 | 42.1 | 25.4 | 56.3 | 0.6 | 2.3 | 2.9 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 1.0 | 2.9 |
| Jeff Dowtin | 25 | 10.3 | 43.9 | 31.3 | 66.7 | 0.2 | 0.7 | 0.9 | 1.2 | 0.2 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 0.5 | 2.4 |
| Khem Birsh | 20 | 8.1 | 59.4 | 50.0 | 80.0 | 0.4 | 0.9 | 1.3 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 1.2 | 2.2 |
| Justin Champagnie | 3 | 3.6 | 100.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 1.0 | 1.3 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 2.0 |
| Ron Harper | 7 | 3.1 | 44.4 | 40.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 1.4 |
| Joe Wieskamp | 7 | 4.8 | 37.5 | 42.9 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 1.3 |
