Raptors film room: Jakob Poeltl returns in a blowout loss to Pistons

The Raptors got their starting big man back! Jakob Poeltl returned to the lineup for the first time in 24 games and played 20 minutes, scoring nine points and adding six rebounds. The Raptors still got absolutely destroyed by the Detroit Pistons in a non-competitive game.

I broke down Poeltl’s return, what it all means, and why the Raptors can’t beat good teams:

From Louis Zatzman:

The Raptors, so accustomed to teams not bothering to challenge their jumpers, found the Pistons flying towards them at all times. Shots that are usually open turned into rushed looks. What are usually straight up-and-down jumpers turned into side-steps, or deferred shots that ended up in reset offence. Drives turned to floaters, and floaters were erased. The Pistons’ defence was good. And the Raptors’ defence, which is pretty darn good itself, wasn’t able to keep pace. It wasn’t quite as snarling, as toothy, as gripping. 

Shead especially struggled with Detroit’s increased physicality and attention to details. Shead usually thrives with his home-run passing, but more of his passes resulted in turnovers than assists. He tied a season-high in turnovers with four. Everyone on Toronto’s bench struggled to score, but much of it flowed from Shead’s inability to create offence for his cohorts. Late in the third quarter, Shead ran a pick and roll and got off it far too early, which is unlike him. Perhaps we was fearing a turnover. But he found a well-guarded Dick above the break. Dick drove, but his handle is far too loose to survive against this defence, especially when it’s set and ready, and he promptly got stripped. 

The lead swelled to 20 with Barnes on the bench. He entered in the fourth, and Toronto promptly made a brief push. Ingram hit a post-up fadeaway. Quickley drove for a floater. Barnes bullied a mismatch in the paint for a deep catch and easy and-1. But the Pistons always had an answer, and the Raptors’ initiators always found their way to a turnover to drop a barrel on the toes of their own momentum.

Yes, the Raptors were outshot. Yes, fouls took their star out of the game for significant stretches. But mostly, they were outplayed. The Raptors just haven’t been good enough against the league’s best, and the Pistons are only one more mark in a pattern of such domination. The Raptors have firmly settled into the confines of the league’s middle class. Comfortable. But there is a ceiling to their success this season. And with Toronto’s schedule turning yet more difficult after the All-Star break, Barnes and company will need to find a way to punch through that ceiling if they’re going to compete with teams like the Pistons.

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