Raptors are leading the NBA in one stat you don't want to be
When the Toronto Raptors had a chance to set expectations for the 2024-25 season, they made sure to keep things modest for their fans.
In preseason and on the team’s media day, all the talk from those involved in the franchise was about long-term development, rather than focusing on individual wins and losses.
With a rebuild in full swing, some growing pains are expected with this year’s edition of the Raptors, who currently sit with a record of 6-15.
And Toronto has been tied for dead last in the league in one unfortunate category: personal fouls committed.
With an average of 22.7 fouls per game, or 476 on the year, Toronto is tied with the Brooklyn Nets for the team that commits the most infractions per game.
There are a few fairly reasonable explanations that would explain Toronto’s discipline issues.
One: it’s a young team. Of Toronto’s top 10 players who have played the most minutes this season, seven of them are 24 or younger, including five rookies. Players of a certain age may not have the best rapport with referees, and they might also still be learning the tricks and trades of the NBA.
Two: the Raptors have been losing a lot but in plenty of close games. Late-game fouling is as much a part of basketball as shooting and dribbling, with the Raptors picking up 31.6% (149) of their fouls in the fourth quarter this season.
And then there’s Jakob Poeltl. Poeltl’s 78 fouls are both 25 above the next highest player on the team, Ochai Agbaji, and the highest of any player in the league. If there’s any saving grace, his apparent aggressive nature is paying off a little, as he’s also tops in the league in offensive rebounds, with 90.
That’s not to say that playing disciplined always correlates to success, however. The top four of the league’s least-penalized teams all have a .500 or better record, but the 4-17 New Orleans Pelicans sit in fifth place with 17.3 fouls per game. Meanwhile, the 15-5 Oklahoma City Thunder carry the NBA’s third-best record and are the league’s sixth-most penalized team.
In any case, Toronto head coach Darko Rajakovic is likely hopeful that his team can clean things up over the remainder of the year.
“I love all our guys. They know that I deeply care for them on and on the court,” Rajakovic said before Sunday’s Raptors win over the Miami Heat. “My job as a coach is to push them, to coach them, to teach them, to love them, and to show them in areas that they can improve on.”
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