Raptors crushed as losing streak hits nine games

The Raptors walked into the FedEx Forum and mailed it in against the Grizzlies.

The Toronto Raptors might still be in holiday mode, as they walked into the FedEx Forum looking unprepared and summarily obliterated by the Grizzlies, 126-155. Despite promising moments, the Raptors could not overcome whatever the Grizzlies tried to do on the floor tonight.

RJ Barrett led the Raptors with a near triple-double with 27 points, nine boards, and ten dimes. Scottie Barnes continued to trend up, putting up 26 points, six boards, and eight dimes.

Jaren Jackson Jr. had a light work against the Raptors with 21 points, 11 boards, six dimes, and three blocks. Ja Morant was operating in lower gears for most of the game but still managed to chip in 15 points and nine dimes. The Canadian Grizzlies showed up, with Zach Edey’s dominant 21 points, 16 boards, and two blocks, while Brandon Clarke added 11 points and nine boards.

It was a total team effort for the Grizzlies. It didn’t matter whether coach Taylor Jenkins subbed in their 9th or 10th player on their roster. The players responded well, with minimal performance dip, regardless of who was on the floor for the Grizzlies. The Grizzlies ended up with eight players in double figures, dominating in the paint (+23 in rebounding) and transition (+12 fastbreak points).

The Raptors didn’t do too bad offensively, as the Grizzlies were content letting them score unimpeded at times, despite being fourth in defensive ratings before this game. Their starters all hit double figures, and the bench put up 35 points, which is rich by Nick Nurse’s standards. The highest-scoring team puts up 122.7 points per game, so the Raptors’ 126 points are still relatively good. Unfortunately, the highest-scoring team in the league didn’t put up 122 points. Instead, they decimated the Raptors with 155 points, which is a franchise record for all the wrong reasons. Unfortunately, these defensive stands were far and few in between.

While it was a big ask for this team to go to the 2nd best home record’s pace and steal a win, it’s not a big ask to expect Coach Darko Rajakovic and the Raptors to make it a competitive game. For a coach tasked to set culture and a developmental environment, what they’ve shown over the past two games is a step in the wrong direction, and it starts from the top.

It hasn’t been a one-off, and it’s alarming to see the team come out of the gate looking like they were not prepared defensively against their opponent. The defensive game plan is non-existent, or the starters don’t buy into what the coaching staff is preaching. It can’t be both, right? The Raptors allowed the Grizzlies to set the tone to start the game. They got what they wanted, as they routinely walked onto a red carpet with their paint touches and, more embarrassingly, got backdoored several times.

That lack of focus and attention to detail may be par for the course based on Coach Darko’s Year 1, but Year 2 has shown some growth where several fun games qualify into the “ethical tanking” category. The Raptors did manage to make it a game to some extent, as a solid 6-7 minute stretch in the second quarter allowed them to tie the game at 66 points before the Grizzlies switched gears and finished the first half with a 12-4 run.

Perhaps what’s more frustrating is to see the team’s effort, especially in the second half. The Raptors started the 2nd half flat, allowing the Grizzlies to blow this game wide open. The Raptors alternated from the poor defense for the entire possession and playing decent defence for 90% of the possession, only for someone to not do their part defensively and give up a nice look. Even more infuriating is the body language that you can see after surrendering baskets and on missed attempts.

It got to the point where it was unbearable for Coach Darko, who blew his top early in the fourth on a no-call on Scottie Barnes’ layup, which had some contact but not major enough unless your jersey says Lebron James or Austin Reeves. It’s hard to blame the refs for letting this game just take its course rather than prolonging the agony, and while Coach Darko may have a point, what he was contesting doesn’t warrant that type of reaction.

That Coach Darko episode got me thinking about a recent movie I watched with the kids (Inside Out 2), as it felt like three of his four new emotions (Anxiety, Envy, Embarrassment) connived with Anger to hijack Coach Darko’s “control” and “respond accordingly” based on what’s happening. Kidding aside, usually, a coach getting tossed would make the team band together and put up some rally, but the Raptors weren’t having any of it. I can’t blame them for wanting to finish the game right away so that they can catch some last-minute online Boxing Day deals.

Coach Darko must return to the drawing board and his coaches to correct this ship, which is drifting in the wrong direction. While losses are cool if you are in the “Team Tank,” we shouldn’t sacrifice the development the key players can get out of this season. He could call coach Kevin O’Neal and hire him as a defensive consultant, as whatever defensive game plan they had might not even work against the inaugural Vancouver Grizzlies roster back in ‘95. At the very least, try to bring the score closer to 73-56 than 155-126. This team’s got some positive and a few neutral defenders, and while we’ve seen pretty good individual defense from time to time, the team has been underwhelming at best defensively.