The Raptors are struggling to cope with a slow start, according to Tim Bontemps of ESPN. Fred VanVleet, who opted to re-sign with the club, admits that the 1-5 start has been tough to take.
“This is probably uncharted territory for most of us,” VanVleet said. “Just speaking for myself, I’ve never been a part of something like this. … There’s a boatload of problems and we’ve got to find ways to solve them.”
Pascal Siakam and free agent signee Aron Baynes have performed poorly in the early going.
“I think [Siakam] is gonna work himself back into it a little bit more, and I think we don’t worry about it,” Kyle Lowry said. “We can’t worry about him too much. We’ve got to figure it out and all of us come together.”
We have more from the Atlantic Division:
- Stanley Johnson has displaced Matt Thomas in the Raptors’ rotation, Bontemps tweets. Coach Nick Nurse wants more size on the wing and has been disappointed in the play of both Thomas and Terence Davis. Johnson, noted for his defense, played 11 scoreless minutes but contributed two assists and three steals in 11 minutes against Boston on Monday. Davis held his rotation spot, scoring 13 points in 17 minutes. Johnson exercised a $3.8MM player option prior to the season and will be an unrestricted free agent next summer.
- Julius Randle has been the Knicks’ top player in their 4-3 start, and he gives plenty of credit to new coach Tom Thibodeau, according to Steve Popper of Newsday. Randle said Thibodeau’s attention to detail has created a greater focus. “Thibs every day is on us,” he said. “He’s a great leader for us and given us a game plan we believe in every day and we’re coming into every game focused and locked into the game plan of what we need to do.”
- The Nets are below .500 and won’t have Kevin Durant for as many as four games. But coach Steve Nash sees a silver lining, Brian Lewis of the New York Post writes. “Plenty to clean up,” Nash said. “It’s early. We can’t lose our minds over it, and we can’t get overly frustrated. … And you know what? It’s good for us. It’s good to get a little tension. We’ve got to get comfortable being uncomfortable, so here we are.”
Anyone else think Lowry will be traded before they can figure it out?
No. Siakam will be traded. You don’t trade your heart & soul of the team..
I would’ve already traded him. He’s been a fine player for Toronto but it’s time to give the keys to Freddy. They need to do a mini rebuild there
Keys can be given to Fred but you don’t need to trade Lowry..
According to standing
There is a reason that Knicks are better than Nets and Cavs are better than Bucks
Hmmmm…Can it be that it’s still early?
If Nash likes tension he will love when Collaborative Coach Kyrie starts creating it.
Sixers should go for Lowry. Forget all the Harden stuff. He’s from Philly and I’m sure would want to bring a title home. Be cheaper too, wouldn’t have to gut team. And VanVleet is ready to lead team. Raptors can get players and a pick.
Biggest difference with Knicks this yr is coaching. Thibs has changed the culture here. Has the you guys believing in the system. They are are playing system ball. And much better team D. Knicks are young so plenty of room for growth. Randle is in much better shape. He is playing smarter and team ball. I guess he understood the drafting of Toppin. Thibs was a great pickup. Now it’s about the rebuild, building a good young core. This is a good article about Randle plaything yr. Really puts his changes in perspective.
link to cbssports.com
You have to post the link without the http because it won’t let me click on your link to the article
You guys got a baller with Randle. He basically single handedly beat my Cavs. The turnovers are high, but I assume it’s because his usage is so high. Everyone’s been talking about trading him to make room for Toppin, but he shutdown that talk quickly
Really …. well you can just go cbssports.com. It’s today’s article it’s really good.
It is a good one, with clips, but one took over my bluetooth.
He’s the Randle I thought he would be last year, as a free agent the Knicks were interested in. He just needs the right HC. I recall he was divisive on Walton’s Lakers, and me saying he would be good for MSG.
If not Harden , Derozen-Raptors reunion makes more sense. Lowry is the longest raptor and the motor of this team, he will retire a raptor, nobody is trading Kyle!
Any talk of them trading anyone is premature,it’s to early for that.But if they continue to struggle,Lowry would be more likely to go than Siakam,like you said in the previous comment.Lowrys 34,will be 35 in March,and they have a younger pg in Van Fleet in place to replace him.And Lowry is on a expiring contract.
I don’t think the 6ers would be a team to make that deal.They’d have to give up too much to match salaries.
bruh. have u been watching their games? literlally lowry and van vleet have been both single handley trying to keep da raptors from plummeting on both ends of da court. siakam , baynes, anunoby, and powell are both struggling badly. their rebounding and shot blocking are gradually disintegrating and ofc their shooters, davis and matt thomas are bad at defense. bembry is nowhere to be found in da rotation. and da biggest problem is that lowry and fred r both playing immense amounts of workloads.
Before he was traded, DeRozan was the longest serving Raptor and the motor of the team (co-motor if you prefer). The organization must make trades that make the future better. Not every trade offer that comes in, but you can’t say one won’t ever move one from sentimentality.
nice.
cbssports.com/nba/news/knicks-julius-randle-making-unorthodox-but-compelling-case-for-most-improved-player-behind-selfless-approach/
This article really shows an amazing statistical improvement for Randle. He’s making more passes a game then Simmons? Getting more points off of passes than LeBron or Doncic? That’s a recipe for individual and team success.
Well, a lot of the per game data is skewed bc he’s playing 38 mpg while LeBron Steph & Luka all play ~32-33 mpg.
Also it’s 7 games into the season. Promising, yes. But I’d prob wanna see another 10-15 games before taking any of it too seriously.
Teammates rebelling against him sunk him last year, but Thibs doubled down on him and the team turned over somewhat. I would call last year the anomaly, though he does need support.
Not even a big Randle fan. Just showing difference a yr makes. A coach makes. Those are impressive stats. And it shows on team success. I root for any player who wants to get better and does it. I still take Toppin over Randle right now. He’s more a system 4 to me. Knicks have had no direction since Randle signed. I can understand why he played like he did. Having Thibs here. Proves to me there’s a new sheriff in town. And they are all looking in the mirror. Time to wake up and step up. I’ve been saying it since we signed Thibs. Trust in Thibs. Give him the yr to build a young core. And weed the weak out. It’s a long season but so far so good. Knicks are rebuilding and I am looking forward to next yrs draft. This yr is about establishing RJ, Mitch, Toppin. It’s great to see others stepping up. Like I’ve said it before. Smith, Nttilikina, Knox, Randle better be ready. Seems Randle got the message . So too Knox. Knicks have 60 mill that can come off books. Plus 4 picks in the draft. Quickly looks like a steal right now. I’m just enjoying the rebuild, like a true fan should. “Trust in Thibs”
While I def think theyre better than 1-5 I wouldnt be surprised to see Toronto miss the playoffs this year
Think people really underestimated how much talent these guys lost over the last few years. Also not sure how high the ceilings are for FVV and Siakam
They need to make a move. Either trade for Harden or a trade for a Derozen-Raptors reunion…
Siakam & Stanley Johnson with picks for Harden!!!
they could rebuild by trading davis and siakam for levert, allen, and prince. really need that bench shooting, shot blocking, and perimter defense. its almost like trading offense for defense. baynes is geting destroyed on da boards so why not take a chance on jarret allen. there wus a rumor bout it and also one bout them trading siakam and picks for harden but still levert and prince can easily power da bench. as a raptors fan i think dis is a good solution to their early struggles.
Would the nets do that though??? If so, I’d also do the Powell, Stanley Johnson & McCaw with a pick for a Derozen-Raptors reunion… Deadly lineup.
they would if they wanted to form their own big three of siakam, KD, and kyrie now that dinwiddie is gunna be out for da rest of da season. hmmmm lowry, fred, derozan, og anunoby, and allen. thats quite deadly i agree. a combination of shooting, playmaking, veteran leadership, and rim protecting. and lets not forget levert might energize da bench to perform more. those r quite great trades to make if da raptors wanna contend again for a ring since mccaw is injury prone and johnson is just too mediocre on offense and ofc powell… has been struggling lately
Yup I’m all for it…
Lowry, Vanvleet,Derozen,OG,Allen/bench-Flynn,Levert,Bembry,Prince,Boucher,Baynes,Len….
Definitely would compete with Philly, Milwaukee,BK,Boston,Indy….
Let’s hope Masai actually makes those deals….
derozan is da piece da raptors need. replacing their struggling benchwarmers with more vets and promising young soon to be stars is great choice if they wanna match up with da 76ers, nets, celtics, or bucks
Lowry,Vanvleet,Derozen,OG,Allen/Flynn,
Levert,Bembry,Prince,Boucher,Baynes,
Len,Thomas…
They would definitely compete with anyone. Masai must do it…