Raptors film room: Has the team lost faith in their offensive process?

The Raptors lost an all-important game to the New Orleans Pelicans and fell to the 7th seed for the first time since November. Have they lost faith in their offensive process?

I analyze it here:

Here’s Louis Zatzman on the loss:

This, then, was Toronto’s era of humiliation. Frustrated with his team’s play, Ingram threw a wristband late in the third quarter and received a technical. 

The Raptors launched, then, their final era: the time of the fake comeback. Mamukelashvili hit a triple, but Ingram failed to corral a drive and fouled. He may have been frustrated, but he was unable to boost his team’s play. Shead and Ingram found some triples of their own, as Toronto’s defence finally found its footing and was able to maintain its integrity in the face of drives.

Toronto was down only 10 points entering the final quarter. Quickley immediately cut it to seven with a triple, and the Raptors turned to a zone defence, leading to a turnover. RJ Barrett scurried to a layup in the fourth. Barnes’ defence remained brilliant. Jamison Battle, Toronto’s mandated closer, hit a triple.

The Raptors made a game of it, at the very least. They cut it to two. But Murray poured in mid-rangers over Mamukelashvili, or drove past him and opened the glass for tip-ins. Meanwhile, Toronto created strong triples for Quickley and Mamukelashvili, who missed them. After Toronto’s manic flurry, the lead was once again 10, and Toronto’s comeback was once again proved fake. They never got close again.

At least the Raptors surprised us against the Pelicans? We know they are going to lose to better teams. Perhaps they’ll lose to worse teams, too? It’s hard to blame a single Raptor. None played well enough.

The Raptors are now positioned to try to reach the playoffs through the play-in tournament. They are falling in the standings. They have also been, compared to most other teams, quite healthy, so it’s not like they have an enormous influx of talent waiting on the horizon. Their schedule remains dastardly going forward. Things look bleak.

Murray hit a dagger over Shead after crossing him to the ground, then walked over and screamed in his face. Quickley walked over to say something calmly, but in truth no Raptor bothered to defend one of the team’s off-court leaders.

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