Legends66NBA7
01-23-2015, 07:26 PM
Game Preview: http://www.nba.com/games/20150123/TORPHI/gameinfo.html?ls=slt
The Toronto Raptors haven't strung together wins in their last 11 games, and if that doesn't change over the course of their next five, their struggles will have descended to new depths.
The Raptors open a stretch of five games against teams under .500 Friday night in Philadelphia seeking a seventh straight victory over the 76ers.
Toronto (27-15) is 3-8 since last winning consecutive games Dec. 27 and 28. The top-scoring team in the Eastern Conference at 105.9 points per game has fallen on hard times with an average of 90.0 points in a 1/3 span.
Wednesday's 92-86 loss in Memphis was the worst of those efforts as the Raptors shot 31.8 percent. It was easily a season low and tied for their worst mark since a 29.1-percent effort Feb. 7, 2009 -- also against Memphis.
"We can't hesitate," coach Dwane Casey said. "We have to walk into our shots -- shots we normally make -- and knock them down. The shots will fall."
That was the case for DeMar DeRozan for in his first three games back from a torn left abductor. He averaged 22.3 points and 54.0 percent shooting, but in the last two he's totaled six points on 2 of 20.
A rare positive during the rough stretch has been Toronto's play in the paint. The Raptors have produced 41 offensive rebounds and 41 second-chance points in the last two games.
"What wins in this league is that type of physicality in the paint, that type of rebounding effort and focus, that type of interior play will get it done," Casey told the team's official website.
The Raptors have made 39.2 percent from the field in the past four games -- about where the 76ers (8-34) are for the season. Philadelphia is making a league-low 40.9, though the club has dipped to 34.8 over the past two contests.
Wednesday's 98-91 home loss to New York was the Sixers' 19th straight game without reaching 100 points. Falling short of that benchmark against the Raptors would mark its longest streak since going 25 in a row during the 2003-04 season.
Rookie big man Nerlens Noel missed the game due to an upper-respiratory infection, though he remains a topic of interest after stating the offense had become stagnant and the 76ers have "to be able to reward our big guys" in the wake of Monday's 111-76 loss in Washington.
Coach Brett Brown downplayed any issues that Noel might have implied exist between he and point guard Michael Carter-Williams.
"It's two friends trying to figure it out. It's healthy," Brown said. "These guys, they amazingly get along and co-exist on buses and locker rooms and all that. Just sometimes, they don't pass to each other. They're so tunnel visioned, it's not that they're selfish."
Guard Tony Wroten missed a fifth straight game with a sprained right knee and forward Luc Mbah a Moute was out for a second with a left knee contusion. That left Carter-Williams to handle more of the load and he scored 27 points.
Toronto has won six straight in the series with the two this season coming by an average of 24.0 points.
DeRozan returned from his 21-game absence Jan. 14 in a 100-84 home win over Philadelphia, scoring 20 points. He's averaging 25.8 during the series winning streak.
Carter-Williams had a game-high 29 in the latest loss to the Raptors while the rest of the 76ers shot 34.5 percent.
The Toronto Raptors haven't strung together wins in their last 11 games, and if that doesn't change over the course of their next five, their struggles will have descended to new depths.
The Raptors open a stretch of five games against teams under .500 Friday night in Philadelphia seeking a seventh straight victory over the 76ers.
Toronto (27-15) is 3-8 since last winning consecutive games Dec. 27 and 28. The top-scoring team in the Eastern Conference at 105.9 points per game has fallen on hard times with an average of 90.0 points in a 1/3 span.
Wednesday's 92-86 loss in Memphis was the worst of those efforts as the Raptors shot 31.8 percent. It was easily a season low and tied for their worst mark since a 29.1-percent effort Feb. 7, 2009 -- also against Memphis.
"We can't hesitate," coach Dwane Casey said. "We have to walk into our shots -- shots we normally make -- and knock them down. The shots will fall."
That was the case for DeMar DeRozan for in his first three games back from a torn left abductor. He averaged 22.3 points and 54.0 percent shooting, but in the last two he's totaled six points on 2 of 20.
A rare positive during the rough stretch has been Toronto's play in the paint. The Raptors have produced 41 offensive rebounds and 41 second-chance points in the last two games.
"What wins in this league is that type of physicality in the paint, that type of rebounding effort and focus, that type of interior play will get it done," Casey told the team's official website.
The Raptors have made 39.2 percent from the field in the past four games -- about where the 76ers (8-34) are for the season. Philadelphia is making a league-low 40.9, though the club has dipped to 34.8 over the past two contests.
Wednesday's 98-91 home loss to New York was the Sixers' 19th straight game without reaching 100 points. Falling short of that benchmark against the Raptors would mark its longest streak since going 25 in a row during the 2003-04 season.
Rookie big man Nerlens Noel missed the game due to an upper-respiratory infection, though he remains a topic of interest after stating the offense had become stagnant and the 76ers have "to be able to reward our big guys" in the wake of Monday's 111-76 loss in Washington.
Coach Brett Brown downplayed any issues that Noel might have implied exist between he and point guard Michael Carter-Williams.
"It's two friends trying to figure it out. It's healthy," Brown said. "These guys, they amazingly get along and co-exist on buses and locker rooms and all that. Just sometimes, they don't pass to each other. They're so tunnel visioned, it's not that they're selfish."
Guard Tony Wroten missed a fifth straight game with a sprained right knee and forward Luc Mbah a Moute was out for a second with a left knee contusion. That left Carter-Williams to handle more of the load and he scored 27 points.
Toronto has won six straight in the series with the two this season coming by an average of 24.0 points.
DeRozan returned from his 21-game absence Jan. 14 in a 100-84 home win over Philadelphia, scoring 20 points. He's averaging 25.8 during the series winning streak.
Carter-Williams had a game-high 29 in the latest loss to the Raptors while the rest of the 76ers shot 34.5 percent.