The Toronto Raptors suffered one of their most frustrating losses of the season last night as they visited the lowly Orlando Magic and were thoroughly outplayed in a loss where the score line should rather flatter the Raptors based on their performance as they lose by just four points in the end. The defence was all over the places, individuals did not pull their weight and the half court offence continues to provide very little. Despite some higher expectations for this season and a seemingly strengthened roster with younger players that will continue in theory to improve, the Raptors are 13-13 and have had plenty of bad games like the one they had last night against the Orlando Magic. The good performances do not come often enough and when they come it does not feel like the exploits are sustainable. If the Raptors truly want to compete and win a playoff series this season then some things about the way they play need to change.
In this video there are three specific points that need to be highlighted about this team from they way game plans are drawn up to the specific players and individuals who need to be doing better at their job. This season is still in fine standing as the Raptors started last season with a 14-17 record and still managed 48 wins. This season they have yet to fall under .500 but also struggle to go out on a run to raise their stock in the NBA’s eastern conference. How can the Raptors find their feet? Is Fred VanVleet the problem? Why does Scottie Barnes look so disinterested in playing basketball?
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0:00 – Overview
1:14 The Raptors need to solve these issues
1:55 – Are the Raptors.. good?
2:47 – Game plan and schemes
5:34 – The Underperforming Star
8:33 – An Effortless Startlet
11:48 – How do we solve this?
This is Amateur Hour Sports. On this channel, Jacob Gramegna analyzes and breaks down the latest on the Toronto Raptors NBA team from trade rumors to post-game reactions, analysis and much more. By subscribing to this channel you will be there first to watch and enjoy 3-4 videos a week all focused on this team and on game days Jacob goes live on the channel for a watch party where he interacts with chat, answers your questions and analyses the game as it happens with play by play and commentary. Join the Amateur Hour Army today by subscribing and consider becoming a member to give the extra support to the channel and help create better content more often.
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46 Comments
Fred and young and picks to shai
We need to pair Siakam and Trae Young, give up Scottie if necessary. Imagine the 2021 hawks led by Trae with Siakam and Trae never getting hurt. They would have beat the Bucks easily
Wow nice shirt Dale Earnhardt
Fred on the hot seat
Yeah we look good on Paper but we are playing on Wood.
#TankForME
Bring in a real C and they'll be able to play guys who aren't defense first or defense only. Poeltl would be perfect.
That game was so bad it looked like both teams were tanking for Vic
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your frustration with Fred is so glaring. lol
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Ball movement player movement that's what we missing no more 22 seconds one man dribble and late or miss pass
Pass the ball
Fred is also a net negative on defense. It comes and goes on ball, but quick point guards blow by him (and everyone but OG too) so Fvv ends up on bigger players who shoot over him. This is especially obvious on 3 point close outs. He is a nonfactor for helping in the paint, except for the occasional slap on the ball that he gets called for a lot. So it is not just shooting that is a problem for Fred.
Birch Flynn noone mention them
I used to have that Dale Earnhardt shirt I think lol it looks very familiar
The team doesn't have chemistry, Nurse has lost the young players, and they're not enjoying playing with each other. That's a death knell. Put Earl Watson on the bench and deal Fred for backup guard depth. Let the OG, Scotty and Pascal experiment begin in earnest.
They are not one of the worst half court offenses in the NBA. They ARE THE worst half court offense by a good bit.
Shai whould be a upgrade in everycatagory and fits siakom/scottiestimeline better than fred
Scottie defense has been trash. He has to either improve his foot work or his ankle is bothering him so much that he can't defend. Pascal took 27 shots to get 36 points. That's bad. He took 9 threes just why? Feed OG the ball.
I really want Birch to play.
Fred's defense has been quite bad this season. He's been 30th percentile in defense.
Nurse hasn't run an offense since taking over 4 years ago. You really think he's gonna figure out an offense mid-season? Lowry was the offensive engine of this team. And since he left, it's been glaringly obvious that the no offense or to use a euphemism, the free wheeling read and react offense is what Nurse runs. Remember, this type of hero ball isolation offense is the last resort offense on top teams. Players like Tatum, Curry, Morant etc goto a isolation when all else fails. For Nurse, the last resort option om offense when all else fails is his all-encompassing plan on offense.
This was embarrassing. Can’t protect this coaching staff any longer. The coaches have to held accountable. This is a trend so far all year… giving up big leads, poor adjustments.
1. After the second Orlando 20 point lead the coaches should have benched Scottie and Fred…. Poor shooting, horrible defence.
2. NN has shown a inept ability make in-game adjustment this year. Lack of in game coaching. Late timeouts. Scared to bench SB, FFV. The massive leads we give up has been a trend all year. Maasai has to step up and put fire under this coaching staff to fix this.
3. Our offence is pathetic. Stagnant, slow no movement of cuts. Can’t deal with a zone. This is laughable. Poor coaching.
4. SB seems lost. He is not a NBA point guard yet. He can not beat other guards off the dribble. His 3 point shooting is not good enough for late shot clock. His footwork and shooting formis subpar. We need a real shooting coach for this team. Poor shooting shows across the Team.
NN had to use his bench players. Malachi is a better shooter against the zone., he is on the bench. Delano brings a change of pace. The coaching staff has to be held accountable.
This is what the team is. We have to decide now if we want to compete this year
If NN doesn't bench Fred, and keeps playing him big minutes, he has to go too
Stop overrating the team. Bunch of average players maybe one above average in pascal.
hes not underperforming this is him
Lol he blamed Gleason
Bro … I see Fred get at least 2 corner threes a games …. He missed every one … he is a liability on offence and defence
i know the issue and its obvious and i know from the inside. this nonsense of creating an equal player team isnt working for Scotty, tghe team clearly needs one leader.. if he goes elsewhere he will clean house. Take my advice, make Scott the lead not 3 leaders. im not wrong….this Candian mentality kills superstars
Who is there offensive coordinator?
Fred has not been willing to move to a shooting guard position…and even if he did his shooting is garbage this season. He's had his chance and it's so obvious he's not a good point guard. NN has allowed this BS to continue and it's sapping the joy out this team. So sad to watch and if humility and common sense doesn't prevail it's only going to get worse.
Everyone has his up & down, Fred is always trying his best efforts. As a loyal Raptors fans, please support him and give him more encouragement rather!
Fred playing for a contract
Trade washed Fred. couldn't care less who we get in return. just get him off this team.
nobody is talking about Nurse…and how he's not holding players accountable for not playing to their strengths… it's like Scottie has no idea that he has an advantage working out of post in every game … yet i don't even remember him posting up one time vs Orlando last night… and that principal goes to the majority of our players at this point ..Nurse needs to restructure the squad
This is who Fred is. If he ain’t hot shooting he hot garbage
Let’s tear the whole thing down trade Scotty, Gary and Fred. Build around OG and Spicy.
Raptors need hockey style physicallity, while the other team needs small testicular balls to get to the free throw line, small ball EXPERTS!!!
29 other teams HATE the Raptors!!! Thats why the other team BRINGS IT every game!!!
Bring back vince carter he was deadly from downtown lol
The problem with the raptors is they are not built to be an offensive juggernaut. They score by steals, turnovers, blocks and playing good defence. when the team isnt getting the steals and turnovers and fast break points this team isnt very good when the other teams defence is set up, we saw that last year also. In addition this year the team isnt playing defence well and missing assignments or slow to switch.
also although fred gets 6 assists, he is a shoot first guard, and really doesnt have the playmaking ability and vision that a true pg has.
fred is also in a contract year and he is going to continue to take his shots because he knows its the best way for him to get paid.
another problem is there is too many shooters on the raptors team that are really not consistent, so you get alot of brickfests. In addition raptors dont really have scorers other than siakam who consisstently attacks the rim, but when they double him you are dependent on raptors 3's which is streaky.
another problem is koloko when he starts, he is a rookie and decent defensively, but he gives you zero offence. so it means when all the other teams starters are getting 10-20 pts, someone else on the raptors has to get 10-20 pts more than they usually do to make up for it to win. so the raptors are in a hole when that happens and usually lose by 10-20 pts.
scottie barnes is playing passive sitting on the 3 pt line trying to make 3's when he should be aggressive and attacking the rim.
and the last issue is nick nurse plays every game like a playoff game with a short rotation playing starters heavy minutes which will come to bite him at playoffs again. some of the bench problems could have been alleviated if the raptors gave young players playing time to develop in the past but because nurse doesnt trust them, they basically sitting on the bench til their contracts run out.
is this team playing bad, nope they are playing where they are at with players they have. raptors only had 15 wins 1st half of season last year. i think in hindsight they overachievedd beating up on teams last year that were covid ridden to get as high as they did in the standings.
This team doesnt have good 3 pt shooting so the only way they get past 1st round in playoffs is if they are on a hot streak, and hitting 3's while getting fast break points on turnovers. if they have to bring the ball up the court into a set up defence, they wont win. they just dont have the scorers or the playmaking to beat teams like that. the only scorer raptors have is siakam who attacks the rim, when they double him, the raptors hopes lie upon if they are hitting or missing 3's and thats streaky at best. too many shooters on raptors team and not enough rim attacking scorers.
Fred and Scottie BOTH have something happening to them outside of the game. Fred did say that but Scottie hasn't. I wonder if they are connected
The Raptors are 9th seed and regress a lot this season. You know with all the issues the Raptors facing, ironically the root of the problem is Nick Nurse because he overplayed his starters and they all got injured. Also, he does not adapt when things not working out or the team faces challenges or adversities. You can tell Nick Nurse sticks with VV even if he is liable and inconsistent. Also, Siakam and Barnes playing at the same time are not going to work because they are both forwards. Another issue is GTJ is not a starter, he is good as a sixth man and plus the Raptors do not have a true Centre that is good both offensively and defensively. The way the team is constructed and looking at the full roster this team is flawed. The team construction looks awkward and lacks a lot of spacing and ball movement. It is a lot of isolation games and standing around. The defence is flawed as well because giving up too many open threes and no rim protection because opponents get to the basket with ease. I see no effort both in offence and defence a lot of times, that is why you see many games with the Raptors trailing or falling behind in 1st quarter. Well, that is been a trend and consistent with the Raptors. Right now I question the work ethic, dedication or commitment of the players except Siakam. It seems the team is not focused or maybe overthinking. They need to fix these issues ASAP or could get even worst. They got 10 to 12 games to fix these or the season will go south really fast. I expect big changes if everything fails or goes downhill from here. It is getting close to 40 games because 26 games were played and another 14 games and that is 40 games of the season or half of the season. The time is ticking! Get it together or start thinking about the future of the team.
FVV had the game winning ball against Orlando was a disaster 9 second left driving into the paint
Barnes playing like both ankles are injured
We should have traded Barnes for KD.
I think the raptors are in need of a coaching change