Starting lineup changes not "off the table" for Raptors
Currently on a four-game losing skid, not a lot is going right these days for the Toronto Raptors.
Sitting 9-14 and 11th in the Eastern Conference, it’s hard to be convinced a turnaround is coming anytime soon for this group.
The team has mostly been floundering in the lower echelon of the league for each of the last two seasons, and it’s not looking like the current roster makeup will be much of a threat as constructed.
But while fans are curious if a trade is coming, what if the change is a little more… internal?
Four of Toronto’s starters —Pascal Siakam, Jakob Poeltl, Scottie Barnes, and Dennis Schroder — have started all 23 games for the team this season. OG Anunoby, meanwhile, has started 19 of 23, while missing four games last month due to a finger laceration.
In other words, the team’s opening-day starting lineup has pretty much been the same all season as long as everyone’s healthy.
As per the NBA, the five-man unit has played the second-most minutes together this season league-wide. But it’s hardly without its flaws, with the group carrying a combined plus-minus of -20 while on the floor together, as well as shooting just 32.5% from three-point range, well below the league average of 36.5%.
At today’s practice, Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic suggested that lineup changes could be coming soon.
“We’re talking about it, it’s not something that’s completely off the table,” Rajakovic said of tinkering with his starting lineup. “I would like to give another game or two a chance for our guys to try to figure it out. Because they are committed to change things.”
The most experienced addition to the team’s starting lineup would be veteran guard Gary Trent Jr., who started 44 games for Toronto last season but has only started twice in Anunoby’s absence this year. And if the team’s looking for someone to pull out of the lineup, it could probably be Schroder, who’s come off the bench in 370 of his 710 career games in the NBA.
But while starting lineup changes for the Raptors might grab the headlines, the coaching staff is also looking at a few other tweaks to the team’s rotations.
“It’s not just who is starting the game. There are other things that I need to do during the course of the game,” Rajakovic added. “Different rotations if some guys coming out earlier ago getting back on the court sooner at the same time. It’s one of those things where you’re trying to build some chemistry with certain players in the court, which takes time.”
Either way, we should get a pretty clear picture soon of what exactly Toronto is planning to do with their starting five and the rest of their group.
Toronto hosts the Atlanta Hawks for a two-game stretch this week, with games on Wednesday and Friday at Scotiabank Arena. Tipoff for both contests are at 7:30 pm ET.