Rajaković explains why he finally made changes to Raptors' starting lineup

Of all the games that the Toronto Raptors have played this season, Thursday night’s contest was the first one the team committed to a new path.

Sure, beating a Washington Wizards side with five wins through 30 games isn’t all that impressive, but it was more so the process of how they did it en route to a 132-102 win that stood out.

After alluding to possible starting lineup changes earlier this month, Raptors head coach Darko Rajaković finally sent point guard Dennis Schroder to the bench in favour of bringing in Gary Trent Jr. into the starting lineup. It was just Trent Jr.’s second start of the season, and his first since October 28 when OG Anunoby was out of the lineup with a finger injury.

“It was a change that we were looking for, for some time. It was an opportunity to put Scottie Barnes on as more of a ball-handler, but also we wanted Dennis to help more with the second unit,” Rajaković said.

The change seemed to work well for all parties: Schroder managed nine points, 10 assists, and was a team-high +29, while Trent dropped in a trio of three-pointers on the way to 12 points to go along with his four assists and two steals. Meanwhile, Barnes added eight assists while also picking up 20 points and 12 rebounds, earning a double-double stat line that’s becoming increasingly common for him.

Toronto totalled 43 assists on the evening, the second-highest total league-wide all year after Toronto’s 44 in a 142-113 win over the Detroit Pistons on November 19.

“Dennis is a big part of what we do, and you could see today he embraced the role. He came off the bench, he played great defence, he dished 10 assists, and really helped our second unit,” Rajakovic added. “Just stabilizing those minutes and having more continuity there is something that we’re looking at. Obviously, it’s one game, we’re going to continue looking at it and learning as we go.”

Up next for Toronto are two more road games to close out 2023, as it takes on the Boston Celtics on Friday night before visiting the Detroit Pistons on Saturday.

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