Game Day: Raptors (7-1) @ Suns (1-6), Fri 11/2/18

[In2ition]

After having great pgs the first 50 years, the league changes to where pgs are the most important position and now they finally get a center and we can't find a pg.

[da_suns_fan]

Definitely better effort tonight. How sad is it that we're happy that it looked like our guys at least TRIED.

There's an old Cotton quote I think about: "Read my lips. We need better players".

This team is Kyrie Irving AND Jimmie Butler away from making the playoffs. Nice effort by some of the bench guys like Okobo and Holmes but they dont belong in this league. Jury is still out on Bridges and Jackson.

[In2ition]

Definitely better effort tonight. How sad is it that we're happy that it looked like our guys at least TRIED.

There's an old Cotton quote I think about: "Read my lips. We need better players".

This team is Kyrie Irving AND Jimmie Butler away from making the playoffs. Nice effort by some of the bench guys like Okobo and Holmes but they dont belong in this league. Jury is still out on Bridges and Jackson.

Jackson played better tonight in a more limited role. I really like what I've seen from Bridges. Both of these guys need to get stronger though.

[Democritus]

I had a real bad stomach tonight so could not follow what happened. But a 9 point loss to Toronto. Man, that feels special after what we had to endure during October.
And Ayton should never average below 15 rebounds. He is that good.

[Mori Chu]

This was one of our best games of the season, though I know that is not saying much. I liked their effort for the most part, other than a bad stretch in the 3rd quarter where we gave away the game. A lot of guys had good games tonight. All 5 of our starters scored in double-figures, along with Jackson. The assists were also pretty well distributed, too; all five of our starters had at least 2 assists, with Ariza getting 4 and Booker getting 6.

Jackson in general had a really solid game. He took better shots (only one 3, which went in). He was only credited with 1 assist, but I thought he made several good passes and plays in general. Ariza didn't shoot very well but I thought he had a good overall game, too. And of course there's Ayton with his monster rebounding night, 18 in total. I enjoyed seeing Holmes get Chandler's minutes. Holmes is a little hit-and-miss; he seems out of control and bobbles the ball and makes other clumsy mistakes. But he has good energy and overall is probably better out there than the creaky Tyson. And Canaan had a really great game. Good on him, making 8-12 of his shots and scoring 19. I also liked how he would go congratulate guys who hit big shots, or encourage Ayton after a block, etc. That's good floor leadership.

I hope Okobo can find a way to improve his shooting percentage. I feel like if he would make more of his shots I'd really like him, but right now when he pulls up I expect it to miss. Same for Ryan Anderson; we are getting him some open 3s and he just isn't hitting them. He needs to make those. I didn't mind not seeing Melton tonight; he doesn't seem ready to me.

I know moral victories don't show up in the box score, but I thought we played a pretty solid game. We held one of the league's very best teams to a tight margin for most of the game and actually looked like an NBA team for most of this one. We look much, much better with Booker out there. I still think this team has potential and is going to improve and win some games if we show a little patience as these young guys figure out how to win together. There are frustrations in every game I watch, but there are also a lot of pieces I like and in which I see potential.

http://www.espn.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=401070804

[In2ition]

I was pretty disappointed that Igor said the guys ran out of gas in the 3rd. Why aren't they in shape? Shouldn't they be able to go hard for 48 minutes if they have to? What happened to our best training staff? I don't get why they aren't in tip top shape.

[ShelC]

The Raps were really honed in defensively which may have woken our guys up a bit to match that intensity. I like that we hung in there and played with an urgency all game. Maybe Booker's presence helped a bit with their overall confidence. Again, I hope we see more of Okobo, Bridges, Jackson and Holmes. Not sure why Anderson is still getting significant minutes unless it's just a depth issue at PF. I don't hate Ariza but I'd rather see Bridges get more time sooner than later. It's also disappointing seeing Ayton only get 10 shots. The shot distribution was pretty even all around - Ariza and Canaan got 12 shots, TJ got 9 - but Ayton should be getting more.

[Indy]

I was pretty disappointed that Igor said the guys ran out of gas in the 3rd. Why aren't they in shape? Shouldn't they be able to go hard for 48 minutes if they have to? What happened to our best training staff? I don't get why they aren't in tip top shape.

Practice shape doesn't equal game shape. Devin & Canaan coming back after sitting out, and then Igor playing guys more minutes last night than they have seen all season. He also screwed with the substitutions for the first time. I am not knocking him for that, because for the most part I really liked them. But the team has to adjust to it.

Also, he couldn't do the usual thing of calling out their effort. It has certainly been lacking, and was for stretches last night too, but you need to give them a different excuse for last night.

[Indy]

I hope Okobo can find a way to improve his shooting percentage. I feel like if he would make more of his shots I'd really like him, but right now when he pulls up I expect it to miss. Same for Ryan Anderson; we are getting him some open 3s and he just isn't hitting them.

Ryan would need to make his next 6 threes in a row to reach 40% for the season. That is bad.

Okobo would need to hit his next 3. And if he hit just one of his missed 3s so far this season, he would be 3rd on the team behind TJ and Book for best 3p%. I am not worried about his shot.

He also has pretty good splits--great at the rim, one of the top guys from mid-range. His long two FG% isn't good, but he has only taken 3 all season.

[Cap]

His long two FG% isn't good

He’s in good company; neither is most of the league’s. That’s why it’s called “the worst shot in basketball.”

[Indy]

His long two FG% isn't good

He’s in good company; neither is most of the league’s. That’s why it’s called “the worst shot in basketball.”

Good thing only 8% of his shots come from there.

[djy2j]

Better effort tonight but we still suck.

Ayton needs more than 10 shots on this roster. He is already a tremendous rebounder.

Stupid turnovers and defensive lapses still plague this team. I don't see any light at the end of the tunnel yet.

I don't think Holmes played all that well but he deserves all of Chandler's minutes. At least this guy can jump. That has to count for something.

I don't know where Ariza went. He can't hit an open shot and I noticed him getting scorched on D a few times. He's still our best defender but that is also like being the skinniest kid at fat camp.

This team needs alot of direction which leaves no margin of error for Igor. I'll still give him some time but we have to start playing better consistently.

Can't believe Sarver thought this should be a playoff team.

[djy2j]

I was pretty disappointed that Igor said the guys ran out of gas in the 3rd. Why aren't they in shape? Shouldn't they be able to go hard for 48 minutes if they have to? What happened to our best training staff? I don't get why they aren't in tip top shape.

Exactly. WTH? No excuse for this.

Also, have been wondering what happened to our highly touted training staff over the past few years. Hasn't been mentioned. Is Aaron Nelson still with the team? Did Sarver ruin this also?

[JeremyG]

I was pretty disappointed that Igor said the guys ran out of gas in the 3rd. Why aren't they in shape? Shouldn't they be able to go hard for 48 minutes if they have to? What happened to our best training staff? I don't get why they aren't in tip top shape.

Exactly. WTH? No excuse for this.

Also, have been wondering what happened to our highly touted training staff over the past few years. Hasn't been mentioned. Is Aaron Nelson still with the team? Did Sarver ruin this also?

This is from August of this year:

[Superbone]

You can see him sitting on the bench every game.

[Drewsprocket]

One point guard who makes his teammates better is what we need. Maybe not even an all star. After watching Van Fleet, I was just sick. We need that guy.

[O_Gardino]

Overall, I was pleased with the game. That's about as good as you can expect from this roster.

Ayton is so good. I'd like to see him start demanding the ball more. He's the 2nd best scorer on the team, and the best passer. It wouldn't be wrong for him to draw some fouls. Also, the aggression on D was nice.

You guys can hate Canaan all you want, but he's getting the most out of his talent.

Jackson doesn't need muscle or fire or any of that crap. He needs to be mentally focused and engaged. He's good when his mind is in the game.

Tonight, Ayton, Canaan, and Jackson shot well. The rest of the team was a combined 32%.

Booker isn't in sync with the team yet. He and Ayton have no chemistry on the pick and role, and Book doesn't know where to expect the shooters to be. And nobody has figured out where he likes his picks set yet.

Holmes is not a good defender, but his energy is contagious.

I still think Bridges is going to be our next Majerle.

I really like Okobo. He makes a rookie mistake on almost every play, but I like him anyway.

Warren had a bad game, you guys. I hope he doesn't struggle in the starting lineup, but the Raptors forced him to miss several shots he normally hits, then he just got passive.

Ryan Anderson consistently out rebounds TJ Warren. And he's got better hair.

The offense is starting to look better. We are getting better looks and better driving opportunities. It still has a way to go.

This team will be the worst defending team in the league again this season.

[O_Gardino]

The odd stat of the game is that Ayton is one of very few big rookies to average 30 minutes per game. Wow, Shaq averaged 38 and Duncan 39.

http://bkref.com/tiny/XTo38

[Cap]

The odd stat of the game is that Ayton is one of very few big rookies to average 30 minutes per game. Wow, Shaq averaged 38 and Duncan 39.

http://bkref.com/tiny/XTo38

Here’s a slightly prettier form of the table: http://bkref.com/tiny/NRXAg

[Indy]

Ryan Anderson consistently out rebounds TJ Warren. And he's got better hair.

TJ is averaging more per game than anderson