The Toronto Raptors lose to the Chicago Bulls 93 to 83 in NBA summer league action on Tuesday. Early in the the first quarter, the Raptors were dominating Chicago and jumped out to a quick lead. Also, the defense was stifling and the Raptors looked to be firing on all cylinders. However, after Christian Koloko was taken out, the Bulls proceeded to go on a 17 to 2 run and never looked back. The game got pretty ugly at some points with the Bulls extending their lead to 26 points after three quarters. A late run by the end of bench players brought it back to a respectable 10 point loss. But this game was not close. It was, to be frank, a pretty ugly loss.
Toronto Raptors Lose to Bulls 93 to 83 – Pros
To be honest, there weren’t too many pros but here are a couple I could scrounge up below.
Koloko is the Defensive Anchor for the Toronto Raptors: One thing that became abundantly clear in this game is that Christian Koloko is the defensive anchor of the Raptors. No if ands or buts about it! He protects the rim; he deters opposing players from entering the paint and alters shots. His length also impedes passing lanes. He only had a block and a steal in the first quarter but when he sat down, the defense completely fell apart. It was quite astonishing to see! But it shows how valuable Christian Koloko is to the Raptors and why he will have a role on th team this coming year.
Banton’s Hot First Quarter: Delano Banton got off to a hot start! He was 3 for 3 from deep and had 12 points in the quarter. He was attacking and looked confident and assertive. This is the way he needs to play. He still has to watch his turnovers, though, as he had two in this quarter but he played extremely well for most of the 1st quarter. A definite plus.
Jeff Dowtin’s Continued Steady Play: Another solid game by Jeff Dowtin. He scored 16 points, had three rebounds and was 2 of 4 from the three point line. Also, he was the only positive player in the starting line up in the plus/minus category. He can create his own shot, drive to the hoop, has a floater and can pump fake. He also played some good defense in parts of the game. He was by far the Raptors’ best player of the game.
Ryan Hawkins’ Deep, Deep Shooting: He only played about 4 minutes but boy did he make them exciting! The Division II player from Creighton is known for his three point shooting but wow, he has range. He shot 3 for 3 from the three point line and all of them were deep. Each three point shot he took was deeper then his last shot. His last shot was from the NBA logo and had me jumping out of my seat. I thought: “What!? Really!?” His shooting made the final score respectable. His shot is smooth and effortless. It’s like butter. Hawkins was showcasing his long range shooting for all to see. Hopefully, we will see more of that sweet stroke!
Toronto Raptors Lose to Bulls 93 to 83 – Cons
Raptors Defense Completely Falls Apart: As mentioned, above the Raptors defense fell to pieces when Koloko sat in the first quarter. Once he left, the Bulls started attacking the paint and no Raptor could keep their man in front of them. This got worse when the second unit came on. Brooks and Johnson (-16 and -24 respectively) were in particular pretty terrible. But in reality, the team as a whole seemed to quit on the defensive end, which was concerning because the Raptors’ whole identity is based on strong defense. Tonight it was just not there.
Another Off Game for DJ Wilson: Okay, to be fair he did score 10 points and had five rebounds. However, he had 6 turnovers and was pretty bad on defense. He looks to be pressing a bit too much and is still trying to do too much. DJ Wilson is a veteran and knows what his strengths and weaknesses are. He needs to keep things simple and just focus on protecting the ball when he has it and play good, solid defense. If he does that, the rest will come.
Armoni Brooks Comes Back Down to Earth: After such a good first game, Brooks came crashing back to earth. He only shot 2 for 6 from the field and his defense was quite bad. It seems like if his shots are not going in, he brings little else to the table. Every player has a forgettable game from time to time. Hopefully, he can shake it off and comes back stronger in the next match.
Another Rough Game by David Johnson: Johnson shot 2 for 8 from the field for four points. When he and Brooks came into the game, the Raptors’ defense fell apart. He was a team worst -24 in plus/minus. Not sure what is going on with him but he seems a bit lost out there. Maybe he doesn’t know what his role is when he is on the court. But he seems just to float around the court. He really needs to pick up his game as there are players who are leap frogging him. He will probably still be invited to training camp as he is a restricted free agent and was a two way player last year with Toronto. However, if he keeps playing like this, who knows?
Conclusion
Bad defense did them in and as a result the Toronto Raptors lost 93 to 83 to the Chicago Bulls. If they have any hope of being in the mix for the summer league championship, they will need to win their next two games for sure. For that to happen, they need to tighten up their defense in particular on the perimeter. If they can do that, they should bounce back nicely. On to the next game!
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