Media Day Pocket book: Sights set on playoff berth as Raptors gear up for camp

When requested in regards to the expectations for the Toronto Raptors‘ upcoming season on the crew’s media day on Monday, Darko Rajaković was in lockstep with Bobby Webster, explaining that they are going to have a measured, incremental strategy to success.

The third-year head coach voiced comparable variations of the “win each possession” and “enhance one per cent on daily basis” platitudes that Webster, the newly named head of basketball operations, did in his availability with media on Friday.

However whereas the management group was reticent to make any daring proclamations in regards to the Raptors’ objectives, the gamers’ underlying perception of their talents bubbled to the floor because the day went on.

“I believe our expectations for our crew is to positively make the playoffs and win some video games within the playoffs,” Scottie Barnes stated, within the first important departure from Rajaković and Webster’s extra tentative solutions on the topic.

“That is the usual,” Barnes continued. “That is the underside line, with how gifted we’re and what we must always have the ability to obtain for this crew. You understand we’re hungry, we have got quite a bit to show and we’ll go on the market and present it.”

Rajaković and his total projected beginning 5 (Barnes, Jakob Poeltl, Brandon Ingram, RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley) addressed media members on Monday, offering solutions on the state of the crew because it prepares to chart a brand new course firstly of coaching camp in Calgary on Tuesday.

Listed here are the important thing subjects that had been touched on all through the day.

Solutions concerning the crew’s expectations various, however the truth is that the Raptors are stuffed with younger starters coming into their respective primes and are fairly costly to not have eyes on the playoffs.

Mississauga native RJ Barrett did not hesitate to attract inspiration from the surprising success of his hometown Toronto Blue Jays.

“In a pair months from now it’ll be us. That is the mindset,” stated Barrett of the American League East division champions. “Positively, clearly completely satisfied for them, cheering for them, for certain. We’re attempting to get again to the playoffs as nicely. Attempting to get again to the playoffs, make some noise.”

With the addition of Brandon Ingram to the beginning lineup — one among solely 9 gamers to common higher than 23 factors, 5 rebounds and 5 assists during the last 5 seasons — and Barnes coming into the primary yr of his $224-million rookie scale extension, it seems that the Raptors’ transient, one-season rebuild is over and that every one focus might be directed in direction of taking a step ahead within the standings.

“This is without doubt one of the most enjoyable occasions, is when you may have a crew like this the place folks sort of do not know what to anticipate or do not anticipate a lot and also you sort of simply go and simply shock all people,” Barrett added. “And we put within the work so we’re very assured moving into.”

Whereas Rajaković did not decide to a playoff look being the aim the identical approach his gamers did, he additionally did not maintain again his want to succeed.

“I’ve excessive ambitions,” stated the Serbian bench boss. “I’m not shying away from that. So I’m prepared for the take a look at, I’m able to go on the market and compete.”

Beginning 5 making up for misplaced time

After important time missed as a result of damage prevented the Raptors’ prime unit from gelling totally final season, the projected beginning 5 have been making a concerted effort to construct chemistry within the lead-up to coaching camp.

“Deliberately, throughout the entire month of September when our guys had been in open fitness center, we had been placing our projected beginning 5 to play collectively as a lot as potential,” stated Rajaković. “To start out exposing these issues (overlapping skillsets) and for them to get to know one another and their strengths. And I’ve been actually impressed with the flexibility of these guys to grasp who’s scorching in the mean time and who to force-feed.”

Ingram did not step on the ground for Toronto in 2024-25 and the remaining quartet performed solely 140 minutes collectively over 9 video games final season. For context, they had been the Fifteenth-most used four-man unit on the Raptors, under teams resembling Barrett, Gradey Dick, Ochai Agbaji and Davion Mitchell. League-wide, 581 four-man teams performed extra minutes final season.

Ingram and Barrett did not get a possibility to play collectively final season, however they appear to already be on top of things on one another’s tendencies.

“One factor that stunned me was RJ (Barrett). I assumed he was only a gunner, I assumed he simply shot the ball quite a bit,” stated Ingram. “However watching his recreation and seeing him work all through the summer season, I’ve seen what he works on and the way it transfers to the sport. And he is regular. Scoring the basketball, on the defensive aspect he is aggressive. And he is a man that does not complain about not having the basketball, it sort of simply attracts to him.”

Barrett’s response to Ingram’s revelations about his recreation: “See, I go the ball. I do!”

This is not the primary time the Canadian wing’s scoring proclivities have been the topic of jabs from his teammates. Nevertheless, Barrett did take a professional step as a facilitator final season. The six-foot-six wing’s assists per recreation jumped from 3.3 to five.4 and his possessions as a pick-and-roll ball handler with the Raptors doubled year-over-year, from 2.3 to 4.7.

Barrett additionally famous that Ingram “drives to the rim higher than he thought,” which the Raptors’ offence actually lacked final season after they ranked final within the NBA within the proportion of their factors that got here from drives.

“I believe what’s impressed me is how a lot all people has purchased into attempting to determine the place all people else likes to play, or desires the ball, or what they’re comfy in,” stated Poeltl. “No one to this point appears to be going on the market attempting to mark their very own territory. Be like ‘hey that is how I need to do it,’ virtually all people’s asking the query ‘Hey, what do you need to do on this state of affairs?’

“I believe that is been actually cool to see and it speaks to how all people’s purchased into attempting to determine it out collectively.”

Quickley is the purpose guard, however the Raptors have three different wings/forwards within the beginning lineup who can deal with the ball and create pictures for his or her teammates in Barnes, Barrett, and Ingram, making for a flexible beginning 5.

Defence will stay on the forefront

From the outset of final season (beginning with media day), the Raptors positioned a newfound emphasis on defence. Notably on the point-of-attack, with the on-ball defender being dubbed the “most vital man” or “MIG,” a title usually reserved for rim-protecting large males. It took a while for outcomes to trickle in, however over the again half of 2024-25, the Raptors boasted the second-best defensive score within the NBA.

The Toronto hoops sickos that had been tapped in for Summer season League this previous July will know nicely how the Raptors’ youthful contingent wreaked havoc towards opposing groups, forcing 136 turnovers over 5 video games — together with a Summer season League file 33 of their first recreation — with relentless ball stress.

Choosing up defensive assignments increased up the ground has develop into the in vogue fashion of defence, and it solely figures to realize steam after the Indiana Pacers and Oklahoma Metropolis Thunder steadily picked up the bring-up ball handler nicely into the backcourt in the course of the NBA Finals.

Making use of such aggressive stress rules takes a ton of power. So it is sensible that Rajaković stated one of many crew’s “primary objectives this summer season was to get into elite form,” citing the significance of conditioning in reaching their defensive objectives of being “extra aggressive on the ball” and “attempting to hurry up groups and make groups as uncomfortable as potential.” Much more aggression from a Raptors defence that was among the many league leaders in common pick-up level final season is a scary prospect.

“For us all the pieces begins on (the) defensive finish,” stated Rajaković. “We need to dominate on (the) defensive finish, we need to be disruptive on (the) defensive finish, we wish to have the ability to create a variety of steals and a variety of alternatives for us to run in transition. And after we do that it’s going to be a lot simpler for us to attain. It’s going to be a lot simpler for us to get in offence.”

The Raptors have relied on simple transition alternatives to complement a dreadful halfcourt offence for a half decade — they’ve ranked prime 5 in transition frequency for seven straight seasons. But, their effectivity tanked final yr to the fourth-worst mark within the NBA after being within the prime 10 the earlier two seasons.

Rajaković will nonetheless look so as to add to the crew’s fifth-ranked transition scoring mark from final season, led by Barnes’ “elite” play on the defensive finish.

“Now we have a variety of guys which might be very keen defensive gamers and we’re conserving the usual so excessive that everyone else is rising to the duty,” Rajaković stated. “To be sincere with you I don’t see a weak hyperlink for us defensively this yr and I’m not going to take a look at any participant on this crew to provide him a free go as a result of the defence just isn’t on the degree that we anticipate. I’m going to maintain all people accountable to the best requirements on the defensive finish.”