The Raptors team faces the Orlando Magic at home in the first of a two-game series.
The Toronto Raptors return home tonight to play the first of a two-game series against the Orlando Magic.
In the first matchup of the season, back in November, Orlando was victorious, but between then and now, the only Raptors who appeared in that game that are still on the roster and could play tonight are Garrett Temple, Gradey Dick, and Jalen McDaniels.
Growing Injury List
As Toronto continues to battle a rather long list of injuries, this will continue to be the case for games moving forward. Despite home court advantage, and the fact that neither team has a rest advantage, it still isn’t a fair fight. Credit to the Raptors though, because despite the mounting losses and depleted roster, they’ve still showed up and fought in every game.
The Raptors are currently on a five-game losing skid, including their recent four game road trip. The injury report continues to grow and social media is full of comparisons to the Tampa season. But, just like the silver lining that is Scottie Barnes, the result of the Tampa season, this injury bug is providing the perfect opportunity for the bench to show up and perform.
Next Man Up
We’re already seeing leaps and bounds of improvement from Gradey Dick this season, who is now leading rookies in 3 pt% league-wide.
Bruce Brown, who has become watchable after a rough stretch to begin his tenure as a Raptor is stepping up, and even Kelly Olynyk is solidifying his role on the team. Regardless of the outcome, the goal for this game is to continue to provide growth and development opportunities for the guys who will be our bench next year and beyond.
For Orlando, currently ranked 5th in the East, this an opportunity for them to continue a streak of success and mount a challenge for the 4 spot. They’ve won 7 of their last 10, and first time all-star Banchero has been leading the team in points, rebounds, and assists. They have a significant amount of size on their roster as well, with 6 players on their roster at or above 6’10”. Expect them to use this size advantage tonight on actions down low and in the paint to try and overcome the Raptors.
For the Raptors to be successful, we’ll need continued effort on defence. During their most recent matchup against Detroit, they found success during the second quarter when they weren’t allowing anything easy.
Orlando’s defence is tough, allowing the third fewest points in the league, so overcoming any lead by the Magic will be a challenge, especially if they let them get easy looks at the other end.
We’ll need an improvement from beyond the arc as well, since the Raptors are undersized in this matchup. Against the Pistons they shot 25% from beyond the arc, but that’s uncharacteristically low, so hopefully guys like Gradey, Ochai, and IQ can get more of their long range shots to fall.
Game Info
How to Watch:
TSN, at 7:30 pm ET
Likely Lineups:
Toronto: Immanuel Quickley, Ochai Agbaji, Kelly Olynyk, Gradey Dick, Bruce Brown
Orlando: Jalen Suggs, Paolo Banchero, Wendell Carter Jr., Franz Wagner, Gary Harris
Injuries:
Toronto: Scottie Barnes (Out; Left hand fracture), RJ Barrett (Out; Personal reasons), Chris Boucher (Out; Right MCL tear), D.J. Carton (Out; Right ankle sprain), Mouhamadou Gueye (Out; G-league two-way), Jakob Poeltl (Out; Left hand torn ligament), Gary Trent Jr. (Questionable; Right groin strain)
Orlando: Kevon Harris (Out; G-league two-way), Jett Howard (Out; G-league on-assignment), Trevelin Queen (Out; G-league two-way)