Toronto Raptors Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Atlantic Notes: Milton, Raptors, Williams, Smart

December 4th, 2022 at 4:11pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The recent performance of Sixers reserve guard Shake Milton has convinced head coach Doc Rivers that Milton deserves regular rotation minutes even when the team’s starting backcourt of James Harden and Tyrese Maxey returns to the floor, writes Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer.

“We’re deep,” Rivers said of his backcourt. “There’s always a competition going on, a competition for minutes… and Shake has proven that he should play. Hopefully that continues, you know? Can he play this role with shorter minutes? That’s what happens. “Guys get a lot of minutes and they can play. They get shorter minutes and sometimes they can’t. But he will be able to. Shake is just another guard. We know we can use him, so that’s really good.”

In his recent eight-game stint as a fill-in starter, the 26-year-old guard out of SMU has averaged 21.3 PPG on a .547/.455/.964 slash line. He is also notching 6.0 APG and 5.3 RPG.

There’s more out of the Atlantic Division:

The Raptors rebounded from a lackluster Friday loss to the Nets with a 121-108 Saturday victory over the Magic thanks in large part to a postgame team meeting in Brooklyn, per Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca. The Brooklyn game was the second consecutive time the Raptors allowed an opponent to score 40 or more points on at least 70% shooing in the first quarter. “Nobody really likes to be harping, yelling, cussing or fussing around here so I think some things just go unsaid [sometimes],” Toronto starting point guard Fred VanVleet told Lewenberg. “And there are times when you need to say it out loud, let people know what our standards are around here and just tighten the ship a little bit. We’re not going to win all the games, we know that, but there’s certain ways that you want to [play] every night and those two games were just unacceptable.”
Celtics starting center Robert Williams III is inching toward a return from his offseason knee surgery. Jared Weiss of The Athletic recently took an in-depth look at the All-Defensive Teamer’s rehabilitation. “He’s getting his legs back under him,” reserve big man Noah Vonleh said. “He’s running the floor hard. He’s a presence at the rim… I’m pretty sure you’ve seen in previous years what he’s capable of, and he’s just getting back accustomed to that. So he should be ready whenever the medical staff clears him.”
Celtics starting point guard Marcus Smart will be sidelined this evening against the Nets due to a left hip contusion, incurred in Friday night’s 120-116 overtime loss to the Heat, reports Tim Bontemps of ESPN (Twitter link).

VanVleet Not Panicking After Bad Road Trip

December 3rd, 2022 at 7:32pm CST by Arthur Hill

Raptors guard Fred VanVleet isn’t overreacting to two bad road games, per Doug Smith of the Toronto Star. VanVleet said the losses at New Orleans and Brooklyn can be part of a growing experience. “I think we’ve got to learn how to be a team,” he said. “We have to learn to play together a little bit more, be professional, be a little bit more ready to go. You can find excuses in this league every night — there are a million of them — or you can show up and play the game the way it is supposed to be played.”

Barnes Says "I Feel Like I Can Do Way Better"

December 2nd, 2022 at 5:37pm CST by Rory Maher

Raptors forward Scottie Barnes has had an up-and-down sophomore season after winning Rookie of the Year in ’21/22. He says he knows he’s capable of more. “I feel like I can do way better than what I’m doing,” Barnes told Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca. “I can contribute better in different ways. We’re trying to get more Ws in the win column and focus on team success, we’re trying to win basketball games, but of course I feel like I can be way better, yeah.”

Gary Trent Jr. Breaking Out Of Slump

December 1st, 2022 at 11:30am CST by Luke Adams

With a potentially huge payday looming during the 2023 offseason, it’s a big year for Raptors wing Gary Trent Jr., who put in extra work in an effort to break out of a recent slump, as Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca details. Challenged by head coach Nick Nurse to be more disruptive on defense, Trent has 11 steals in his last four games and poured in a season-high 35 points on 12-of-20 shooting off the bench on Wednesday in New Orleans.

Raptors Notes: Achiuwa, Young, Hernangomez, Barnes, Trent

November 29th, 2022 at 7:31am CST by Luke Adams

Raptors big man Precious Achiuwa has been sidelined since November 9 after sustaining partial ligament tears in his right ankle and will remain on the shelf for the foreseeable future. Head coach Nick Nurse told reporters on Monday that it will be another two or three weeks before the team even has a clearer sense of a timeline for Achiuwa’s return, tweets Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca.

One silver lining of Achiuwa’s injury is that it has given two other Raptors bigs an opportunity to prove their mettle as regular contributors.

Veteran forward/center Thaddeus Young has averaged 10.1 PPG, 6.4 RPG, 3.1 APG, and 1.6 SPG in eight games (26.7 MPG) since Achiuwa went down, while forward Juancho Hernangomez has averaged 6.6 PPG and 6.5 RPG in the same eight games (24.2 MPG). Neither player was a rotation mainstay during the early part of the season.

Here’s more on the Raptors:

Young and Hernangomez were in the Raptors’ starting five on Monday vs. Cleveland, even with forward Pascal Siakam back in the lineup for the first time in 10 games. As Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca writes, Gary Trent Jr. came off the bench for the first time this season and just the fourth time as a Raptor, while Scottie Barnes was a reserve for the first time in his NBA career.
Nurse didn’t say whether the new-look lineup would stick beyond Monday’s game, but explained to reporters that he wanted to maintain some continuity and not have so many players who were coming off absences (Siakam, Barnes) or struggling (Trent) in his starting five.
While both Barnes and Trent said on Monday that they were fine with the change, Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca suggests that Barnes “didn’t seem thrilled about his demotion” to the bench. When he received some push-back on his interpretation, Lewenberg posted the video clip of Barnes addressing the move, tweeting that the reigning Rookie of the Year “didn’t sound like somebody who was psyched about his (temporary) move to the bench.” Lewenberg expects Barnes to be back in the starting five in short order if he shows he’s healthy and can be more consistent.

Raptors’ Siakam To Play Monday After 10-Game Absence

November 28th, 2022 at 5:01pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Raptors star forward Pascal Siakam will return to action on Monday, Chris Fedor of the Cleveland Plain Dealer tweets.

Siakam was sidelined early this month with a right adductor strain. Siakam was off to a powerful start prior to suffering the injury on Nov. 4 in Dallas. In his first nine games (35.7 MPG), the 28-year-old was averaging 24.8 points, 9.3 rebounds, and 7.7 assists.

Siakam was cleared for contact last week and fully participated in a team practice on Friday, He missed 10 games and the Raptors went 5-5 during that span.

The star forward will be under a minutes restriction, according to coach Nick Nurse (Twitter link via Michael Grange of Sportsnet).

There’s more good news for the Raptors, according to Fedor. Scottie Barnes will also play after a two-game absence due to a left knee sprain.

Anunoby's Defense Impresses Doncic

November 27th, 2022 at 5:33pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Mavericks star Luka Doncic is impressed with the hounding defense that Raptors forward OG Anunoby plays, according to Doug Smith of the Toronto Star. Doncic had to work hard to score 26 points in 43 minutes with Anunoby shadowing him. “He’s an amazing player, and I would say on both ends,” Doncic said. “I think he is the steals leader in the NBA, but offensively he got so much better. I’m impressed with his game; he’s an amazing player.”

Atlantic Notes: Siakam, Milton, Niang, Toppin, Harris

November 27th, 2022 at 1:47pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Raptors star big man Pascal Siakam, who has been sidelined with a right adductor strain since November 4, was cleared for contact and fully participated in a team practice on Friday, per Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports (via Twitter).

Lewenberg tweets that Siakam feels that he is improving daily, and remains deferential to Toronto’s medical staff when it comes to managing his ailment.

Toronto has upgraded Siakam’s status to questionable ahead of the team’s game against the Cavaliers on Monday night, reports Marc Stein (Twitter link). If Siakam is determined to be not quite ready for Monday’s game, he could return to the floor against the Pelicans on Wednesday, Lewenberg adds.

There’s more out of the Atlantic Division:

Sixers reserves Shake Milton and Georges Niang, both of whom will be unrestricted free agents in 2023, have been playing well in the absence of injured Philadelphia stars James Harden, Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid, writes Kyle Neubeck of PhillyVoice.com. Neubeck notes that Milton, who hadn’t received much playing time of late, has exhibited an enticing display of scoring, ball-handling, and off-ball defense as a fill-in starter that could earn him more minutes long-term. Neubeck adds that Niang’s reliable three-point shot has opened up the team’s offense when he plays.
Knicks backup power forward Obi Toppin is hoping to return to his early-season long-range shooting form, per Peter Botte of The New York Post. “I feel like I’m still taking the right shots, it’s just not falling,” Toppin told Botte following a practice on Saturday. “I’m just in a little lull right now, and I’m gonna break out of that real soon. Have to start hitting shots again, and continue making the right plays. But I know I don’t have to shoot good to play good.” Toppin has shot just 16.7% from deep in his last five games. The 6’9″ big man had made 42.4% of his triples during New York’s first 14 contests.
Nets sharpshooter Joe Harris has seen his minutes reduced as his three-point shooting takes a dip, according to Mark W. Sanchez of The New York Post. Harris has shot just 2-of-16 from the floor across his last three Brooklyn games. “We really shortened the rotation,” head coach Jacque Vaughn said. Only eight Nets players logged for 10 minutes or more in a 128-117 Friday loss to the Pacers. At 12:02, Harris played the fewest minutes among that top eight.

And-Ones: Frazier, Offseason Moves, 2023 Draft, Rookies

November 25th, 2022 at 8:49am CST by Luke Adams

Former Rockets guard Michael Frazier has signed with the Illawara Hawks of Australia’s National Basketball League, the team announced in a press release. Frazier will serve as an injury replacement for another former NBA player, George King.

Frazier, 28, went undrafted out of Florida in 2015 and spent several seasons in the G League, plus one in Italy, before getting an opportunity to make his NBA debut in 2020 for Houston. He appeared in 13 games during the 2019/20 season as a Rocket, then returned to the G League before spending last season in Australia with the Perth Wildcats.

Having seen Frazier play for Perth last season, Illawara Hawks head coach Jacob Jackomas believes his team is getting a quality player: “He is a willing defender with great size and strength, and be it at the 3-point line or getting downhill and attacking the basket, we feel like he will make an immediate impact on the group.”

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

The Kings, Trail Blazers, and Pacers look like some of the under-the-radar winners of the 2022 offseason, writes ESPN’s Bobby Marks (subscription required). Marks also highlights Magic big man Bol Bol, Bucks guard Jevon Carter, and Suns wing Damion Lee as some of the best value signings of the summer.
Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report has updated his 2023 mock draft, projecting all 58 picks and providing analysis for each one. Next year’s draft will only be 58 picks instead of 60 because the Sixers and Bulls have forfeited their second-rounders due to free agency gun-jumping violations.
Sam Vecenie of The Athletic ranks this season’s top 15 rookie performers to date, with Magic forward Paolo Banchero and Pacers guard Bennedict Mathurin leading the way. The only second-round pick to crack the top 15 is Raptors big man Christian Koloko, who was selected 33rd overall but ranks eighth on Vecenie’s list.

Atlantic Notes: Harris, Grimes, Tatum, Brown, Raptors

November 24th, 2022 at 3:38pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Though Sixers starting power forward Tobias Harris may be a trade candidate down the line, Philadelphia needs his two-way contributions while weathering injuries to the team’s three leading scorers, writes Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer.

Harris, the Sixers’ fourth-leading scorer, has two years and $76.9MM remaining on his current maximum-salary contract with the club. In his last two contests – with James Harden, Joel Embiid, and Tyrese Maxey out – Harris is averaging 21.5 PPG while taking 20.5 field goals a night. For the 2022/23 season, the 6’8″ vet is averaging 15.6 PPG, on 13.1 field goal tries.

There’s more out of the Atlantic Division:

Knicks guard Quentin Grimes has been logging significant minutes of late, having been promoted to a starting role in the absence of injured wing Cam Reddish, per Peter Botte of The New York Post. “I feel great,” Grimes said of the opportunity. “I feel like I’m kind of back to my old game shape, really.” Zach Braziller of The New York Post scouts how Grimes can help New York though his shooting, perimeter defense, and passing.
Ahead of his Mavericks’ 125-112 loss to the Celtics on Wednesday, All-Star guard Luka Doncic praised Boston as “probably” the league’s best team, adding that All-Star swingmen Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum could be the team’s best tandem, per Tim Bontemps of ESPN. Tatum and Brown combined for 68 points in Boston’s win over the Mavs.
The Raptors front office does not yet have enough information about the team’s roster to have made a determination about how best it can approach this season’s trade deadline, writes Doug Smith of The Toronto Star. Injuries and illnesses have affected several key players, including forward Pascal Siakam and shooting guard Gary Trent Jr. have impeded the team’s appraisals.