NBA 30 Teams/30 Days Preview: Toronto Raptors
Editor's note: This is the 16th of Sam Amico's 30 NBA team previews entering the 2014-15 season.
Projected Starters
C Jonas Valanciunas; PF Amir Johnson; SF Terrence Ross; SG DeMar DeRozan; PG Kyle Lowry.
Key Reserves
PF Patrick Patterson; PF-C Tyler Hansbrough; SG Lou Williams; PG Greivis Vasquez; SF James Johnson; SG Landry Fields; C-F Chuck Hayes; F-G Jordan Hamilton; C Greg Stiemsma.
Coach
Dwane Casey, seventh year (fifth with Raptors). No one will mistake Casey for Phil Jackson or Doc Rivers, but the man is on to something. His teams defend and value the idea of moving the ball. Casey takes a laid-back approach, and the Raptors almost always play a disciplined brand of basketball, forcing little. The Raptors overachieved last season and you have to give at least part of the credit to the man in charge.
Strengths
The Raptors are one of the few teams that possess a nice balance of fundamentally sound and raw athleticism. There's youth, experience, specialists who defend and others who score. And they showed what they could do last season when they put it all together via team basketball. ... Lowry adapted well to Casey's philosophy by running the point like a coach. He's not a great passer or a great scorer, but he does both well enough and is a highly underrated defender. ... Ross and DeRozan form one of the league's most athletic and interchangeable wing duos. ... Amir Johnson is always hustling and can destroy opponents who don't give him enough credit. ... Valanciunas is coming along as a nice post presence. He could probably afford to be a little tougher.
Sam Amico goes around the league to preview all 30 of the NBA's teams in 30 days
Weaknesses
Bench scoring can be an issue, as the Raptors often had to leave in at least one starter at all times. ... For all the passing, the Raptors finished 21st in the NBA in assists last season. That says something about their inability to finish on the first try. ... Rebounding isn't a major concern (the Raptors were 17th in the league), but it'll need to be better if they hope to get anywhere beyond the first round of the playoffs. ... Questions remain about who's the best man to turn to in the clutch.
Outlook
Was last year an aberration, or are the Raptors truly a team on the rise? It's hard to tell, because this is a team that truly only overachieved for one season. On the bright side, the Raps play hard, they play smart, and they're willing to defend. All of that can take you places when you have this kind of balance. Read: A sleeper role when it means the most certainly seems doable.