BROOKLYN, N.Y.—There is no question the Toronto Raptors are ailing mightily with eight losses in their last 10 games, a freefall that’s moved them precariously close to falling out of the top four in the Eastern Conference.
There are nagging injuries that just won’t heal, with a trickle-down effect on the lineup and rotation that’s troubling and troublesome — and very much at the heart of their problems.
But even the healthy ones aren’t playing particularly well, regardless of who they are on the court with. The inconsistencies have more to do with basketball acumen and game-specific instructions than with rotations and playing combinations.
They are sick, and the logical question is this: Do they need reconstructive surgery, or are there medicinal ways to fix what is broken?
Team president Masai Ujiri is not one to make rash moves, but he’s also not one to abide losing and is no doubt thinking more about possible deals today than he was a month ago. But to think there is some quick trade fix that can happen overnight is the stuff fantasy-league players dream of. It is not the reality of the NBA, as much as so many fans would like it to be.
There is no doubt Ujiri is more seriously considering spending some of the assets he’s gathered to plug holes in his roster, but it’s hard to make trades — especially when the perception is that someone’s dealing from a position of weakness. One of Ujiri’s strengths, and constant traits, has been his patience. The chance of some blockbuster between now and the Feb. 23 deadline is likely greater today than it’s ever been, but it’s still remote.
That would take surgery off the table, replaced by a dose of roster antibiotics.
Coach Dwane Casey has already started the latter process, swapping out struggling backup point guard Cory Joseph for rookie Fred VanVleet in Friday’s loss to the Orlando Magic, although he reverted to his norm down the stretch by using Joseph next to Kyle Lowry in the dying minutes of a close game.
But he’s hinted at more recently.
“We have to find five men who want to defend,” he said after one of the mounting losses.
DeMarre Carroll is giving the Raptors little on a consistent basis — he was scoreless on Friday night — and they need more production from that spot. Perhaps using him in the same way the Raptors used Luis Scola last season, as a minutes-eater who plays seven or eight minutes to start the game and the third quarter, before others fill the remaining time, would work.
It’s not like Terrence Ross has been consistently excellent, but limiting Carroll’s minutes might allow Casey to use Norm Powell at times, even DeMar DeRozan when he’s active. Powell would be an undersized three, and the Raptors like to shield DeRozan from guarding bigger wings because they need his energy on offence, but it would get more out of Powell’s ability to take the ball to the basket — even if DeRozan and Lowry are on the court at the same time. A Lowry/DeRozan/Powell grouping would be small, but has the potential to at least energize a team that looks far too listless for far too long in each game.
The front-court is, in some ways, a mess.
Jonas Valanciunas is good and bad — 6-for-11 in the first half Friday, 1-for-6 in the second — but he gets little help. With Patrick Patterson out, it’s been a revolving door of power forwards next to him, and until Patterson is back and somewhere near full health it’s hard to see what Casey can do.
Lucas Nogueira is solid, but Jared Sullinger is woefully out of basketball shape and can’t be counted on for more than spot duty at this point. Pascal Siakam is still a rookie other teams don’t have to guard.
It is the one spot where Ujiri may have to intercede to give his coach another shooter, or a bulky rebounder who can help. It may not have to be a gargantuan, roster-altering move, but the front-court has been an issue all year.
Of course, the answer could be as simple as getting DeRozan and Patterson back, finding a way to utilize Powell more often and having everyone in his place.
Some shooter’s luck would help. Stealing a game on a lucky bounce wouldn’t hurt, either.
There are 31 games left in the regular season, and it’s not like the Raptors are scratching and clawing for a playoff spot. But as Casey has said repeatedly, if they want to play for something bigger than regular-season wins, they have to be better across the board.
And maybe a subtle change or two can hasten that improvement.
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