Morning Coffee - Jan. 21, 2025
Calling all defenders | Gradey still needs work | Brown probably getting bought-out
The Raptors’ ‘Most Important Guy’ on defense is failing - Raptors Republic
But there is a reason: their best ‘MIG,’ Davion Mitchell, was present. Mitchell has been in and out of the rotation for the last couple of weeks until recently, when he stepped back into a starting role for the injured Immanuel Quickley. It’s no surprise that the Raptors allow nearly four points less on defense when Mitchell is on the floor — the second-best mark on the team behind Scottie Barnes (we’ll get to him in a second) — according to Cleaning The Glass.
He’s one of the only players on the team that can successfully embody the ‘MIG’ approach the Raptors are deploying on the ball. And even so, it’s resulted in inconsistent efforts when Mitchell is playing, as seen by their latest loss to the Milwaukee Bucks, where they gave up 130 points… again.
Otherwise, the Raptors consistently struggle to keep the ball in front of them. And there’s a trickle-down effect to this that can be seen in one specific defensive stat:
Opponent 3-point shooting.
The Raptors’ inability to stay with their man on-ball leads to a more scramble-heavy defense that is forced to help on drives, leading to conceding dubious amounts of threes.
Toronto gives up the 23rd most threes in the league. They concede the sixth-most ‘open’ threes, which, by the NBA’s definition, is a defender being 4-6 feet away from the shooter. Digging even deeper, they give up the 3rd-most corner threes in the NBA, and opposing teams shoot 40% on those looks, 23rd in the league. As far as ‘shot quality’ goes, opponents get the fourth-most quality looks across the league against the Raptors.
This defensive shot profile is comparable to the Oklahoma City Thunder, who are right next to the Raptors in terms of the amount of corner threes they give up. But the Thunder, who boast the best defense in the NBA this season (and perhaps in the history of the league), do this by design. Their on-ball defense applies relentless and calculated pressure meant to suffocate offenses, and their off-ball rotations are on a string, making even the easiest corner three difficult. OKC leads the entire league in deflections by a healthy amount, and while the Raptors are in the top ten, they fall incredibly short of being calculated and connected on defense like their counterpart, the Thunder.
It’s become a vicious cycle. An on-ball defender gets beat at the point-of-attack, off-ball defenders will pinch in to provide help and they concede open threes because of it.
They’re stuck in no man’s land.
Terrible on defence, Raptors should study aggressive Orlando Magic closely - Toronto Sun
Only two teams have been worse defensively than the Toronto Raptors this season, so it would be a good idea to study Tuesday’s opponent closely.
The Orlando Magic arrive ranked No. 3 in the NBA in defensive efficiency, surrendering only 107.7 points per 100 possessions, compared to Toronto’s 117.5 (which actually is a tiny bit better than the 118.1 points last year’s team gave up).
Orlando does it by searching far and wide for extremely long-armed players who also have dogged mentalities and a desire to get after the ball defensively. There are exceptions on the roster of course, you don’t turn down an offensive talent like Paolo Banchero, taken first-overall in 2022 and now an all-star averaging 25.2 points per game, but the general blueprint is there.
Veteran grinder Kentavious Caldwell-Pope was the latest addition to a group that also includes standout defenders Jalen Suggs (currently injured) and Jonathan Isaac, while offensive wizard Franz Wagner was averaging a whopping 1.7 steals per game before he got hurt.
“They have personnel that’s very good on-ball defenders. Guys that are disruptive, guys that use their hands really well to create deflections and steals,” Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic said of the Magic. “Scheme-wise, they’re not doing anything different than the majority of the teams in the league. It really is their attention to the way how they got the ball, how aggressive they’re on the ball and how they use their hands.”
Gradey Dick said the team’s energetic style also goes a long way.
“I think it’s just the energy, you know, it’s contagious. And you can see guys flying around as some teams, you know, being a little more hesitant, or the next action type stuff, where you get past their defence,” Dick said.
The sophomore wing said that unlike some opponents, when you break down an Orlando defender and feel like you’re in the clear, “they got two more guys cracking in on you.”
So, how do you solve the riddle when facing Orlando (Toronto lost the first of four meetings this season earlier this month, 106-97 at home, but managed to shoot 48% from the field)?
“Pass the ball, pass the ball, cut, move,” RJ Barrett said after practice on Monday.
“It’s the same kind of way, like how you attack a Boston or like an OKC. You know they’re going to be in there, they’re going to be active with their hands in there, trying to get steals and stuff, so trying to make sure that we’re moving and finding those windows and passing the ball,” he added.
“Making sure we get easy ones, instead of just trying to get in there and force it against, obviously their good defence.”
Raptors' Gradey Dick making strides, but nowhere near a finished product - Sportsnet
But this season Dick’s offensive menu has broadened considerably. Far from relying on catch-and-shoot threes to generate offence, Dick has more than doubled his number of drives per game, up to 5.0 from 2.3 and is fourth among Raptors regulars in points scored from drives. More of his two-point opportunities are unassisted, compared to last season and his own assist percentage has increased (from seven per cent to 10 per cent) without a corresponding bump in turnovers, another positive.
Similarly, as a starter Dick has been thrown in the deep end defensively against an overall higher calibre of competition. At times he’s been found wanting and has occasionally been pulled by head coach Darko Rajakovic for defensive miscues, or subbed out when the Raptors wanted to emphasize defense.
“It’s been a huge learning experience,” said Dick. “For this early part of my career, to be going against starting fives in the NBA is what I need a player personally, as a shooting guard. It shows me how to move around the floor, stuff like that, and just different defences I see where some of the top defenders switch on me. So, I’m grateful for it. It’s growing me as a player.
"(And defensively) I mean, there's different things that I need to learn obviously, when it comes to offence and defence. And I've talked about it before what I want to get better at, defensively,” he said. “And that's a big point in my game that I want to grow. And going against offences like that, where it's the top five guys in their team, you know, it's only going to make me better. Yeah, there's possessions where, you know, I may not do as well, but (with the coaching) staff… I go in right away and learn from it… I mean, it's a great atmosphere, and a great, great situation to be in.”
Other than for a select few, the NBA is never easy, but the development curve is never steeper than at the stage that Dick is at. As a rookie, it was a struggle just to drink from a fire hose, but in year two, it’s not like he’s ready to fight fires by himself. It takes time.
“Every year is every year is pretty big (in terms of development) if you're trying to get better,” said RJ Barrett, who made significant improvements across the board in his second season but has made another nice jump in his sixth season. “ I look at even now from my second year from now, how different I am. So just every single summer you come in, you do your work. (But) coming into your second year, you definitely always feel like you have a lot more to prove. You know you didn't really know anything coming in. And now (Grady), he knows a little bit more, so I’ve just been happy with Grady’s development, and you can see it when he’s out there on the court.”
It helps that Dick has shown himself to be coachable as well. His demeanour or body language rarely varies, which has come in handy at times as he’s been held accountable for some of his growing pains in year two.
“As long as you're going hard, and that's what Darko tries to instill in us, you have a little more leash to make a mistake, because if you're just being hesitant, falling back, then you make the mistake, then you're not helping anyone,” Dick said. “So it's going hard. You can make some mistakes, so I think that's what I try to do. I try to play hard, and the way I move around offensively and try to tire out the defence, I got to remember, scoot out on defensively. And it takes a lot of conditioning, but it's my job.”
There is some relatively low-hanging fruit that he can pull on to keep inching up the development curve. Even as Dick has visited the paint more frequently, his finishing hasn’t improved — he’s finishing just 55.2 per cent of his shots inside three feet compared to 63.8 per cent last season.
Bruce Brown Jr. a buyout candidate if no trade materializes: report - Raptors Republic
Bruce Brown Jr.’s days might be numbered in a Toronto Raptors uniform as the team is “highly motivated” to trade Brown, and is even considered a buyout candidate if no transaction comes to fruition, per Jake Fischer.
With the Feb. 6 trade deadline fast approaching, Brown has been in trade rumours since the day he was acquired. A new wrinkle to the story is that the former NBA champion is a potential buyout candidate if the Raptors can’t unload his whopping $23-million salary.
Brown is in the final year of a two-year deal and is an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season.
After missing the first 31 games of the season recovering from arthroscopic surgery on his right knee in late September, Brown made his season debut for the Raptors during their Dec. 29 blowout 136-107 loss to the Atlanta Hawks.
Through nine games this season, the 28-year-old is averaging 7.2 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 0.9 assists, while shooting 43.3 percent from the floor and 31.3 percent from distance.
The veteran was acquired last season along with Jordan Nwora and three first-round picks from the Indiana Pacers in the Pascal Siakam trade, suiting up for 34 games for the club in 2023-2024. Brown averaged 9.6 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1.0 stocks while shooting 48.1 percent from the field and 31.7 percent from three last season as a Raptor.
