After a tough matchup in Dallas last night, the Toronto Raptors continued their tour of Texas against the San Antonio Spurs. Playing on the second night of a back-to-back on the road this early in the season
was evident throughout much of the game. The Raptors trailed throughout and any opportunity they had to get within striking distance was thwarted by the Spurs who are placing themselves as contenders this year. Ultimately, the Raptors fell in San Antonio 103-121.
RJ Barrett was a bright spot in this game, finding ways to score from long range, and somehow even over the outstretched hands of the Spurs’ defence. Finishing with 25 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists and a steal, this was another solid performance from him this year. He continues to show his work over the summer paying off.
CMB had another good outing as well, continuing to impress, especially in his efforts defending a variety of the Spurs, including the most challenging matchup of Wemby. He was able to use his length on both ends of the court to end with 19 points, 3 rebounds, an assist, 3 steals and a block, leading the bench in scoring. This was a solid performance from the rookie as he continues to exceed expectations.
In the first quarter, one thing became evident: in case you haven’t been paying attention, Victor Wembayama is an absolute freak of nature. The Raptors struggled against him on both ends. Defensively, he placed himself as a constant rim protector, threatening to block any close shots and taking away lanes to the basket. Offensively, they didn’t have an answer as he dribbled, spun, and stepped his way to the basket or drew fouls in the process. The Raps tried to do what they could, but floundered until he was subbed out part of the way through the first. Then Toronto was able to go on a scoring run, but it was late enough already that they ended the first quarter behind 29-41.
It was really nice to see the Spurs show a welcome back to Mamu who spent some time in San Antonio before coming to Toronto.
The second continued in similar fashion. In reality, this game has exposed how much the Raptors rely on transition and paint scoring and with the hustle of the Spurs and the presence of Wemby, both were a challenge. As a result, they took a lot of outside shots that weren’t falling.
Toronto tried some different looks in the second half, but their shot selection, especially the forced ones in the paint continued to lead to turnovers. A lack of defensive rebounding prevented second chance opportunities, and the pace of the Spurs certainly tired them out. By the end of the third, the deficit continued to hover around 20.
At times in this matchup, the Raptors had excellent ball movement and offense, getting them good looks like this:
The one improvement for the Raptors in the second half was their defence, and although they weren’t initially able to draw even, the fourth gave them an opportunity to capitalize on careless turnovers by the Spurs. A 9-0 run by Toronto was their final push, but it forced San Antonio to call a timeout. They regrouped and rebuilt their lead and Toronto was unable to recover.
The Raptors fall to 1-3, now able to return home to host the Houston Rockets on Wednesday, October 29 at 6:30. Tune in as they try to use the rest and homecourt advantage to return to the win column.
