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Yahoo
3 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Raptors secure Summer League semifinal berth
The Toronto Raptors' fourth Summer League matchup had them toe-to-toe with the Golden State Warriors. With the Summer League Championship playoff on the line, the Raptors showed up and delivered. With a 81-69 win, they will now advance to the semifinals. This was a game of defence and grittiness, with both teams showing a high level of effort on that end of the floor. In the first half alone, there were 30 fouls, with the whistle sounding often to try and slow some of the physicality in this contest. The incentive for the defensive effort was clear, as both teams struggled shooting. Toronto finished with 32.5% from the field and 14.3% from long range while Golden State's numbers were 32.8% and 27.6% respectively. Transition scoring was vital for both teams, leading to a frenetic pace for much of the game when it wasn't paused by free throws. Despite Jonathan Mogbo being scratched from this game due to a right hand sprain, his presence on the bench was felt, often on his feet and encouraging the Raptors' aggressive defence and rim-rattling dunks. He captained the energy on the bench that continues to go all out to support their squad. There was plenty to celebrate. Collin Murray-Boyles really came alive tonight, doing everything the Raptors needed. Jamison Battle had a strong performance with 11 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists and 3 stocks. Alijah Martin bounced back as well to finish with 13 points, 7 rebounds, and 2 steals. A.J. Lawson, who has arguably been one of the best players in Summer League, once again did a little bit of everything: 12 points, 3 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 steals. For the Warriors, Alex Toohey had a strong and versatile performance, ending with 8 points and 4 rebounds. Chris Manon led Golden state, scoring 14 points to go along with 9 rebounds. They split their first four games, taking themselves out of contention but will still play a fifth game based on their position in the standings. Although it wasn't a pretty game, there are three big takeaways from this one: Collin Murray-Boyles had his best game so far as a Raptor as he continues to adjust to the NBA level. He was virtually single-handedly keeping the Raptors in the game at times. In the first half he was the only player to be able to consistently score. In the third quarter, he helped trigger a 8-point Raptors run through forced turnovers, offensive rebounding, and decisive scoring that helped build momentum. His former coach from South Carolina, Lamont Paris, joined the broadcast to reiterate everything that has been said about CMB since the draft. He spoke specifically about Collin's basketball IQ and defence, both of which were on full display tonight. At the buzzer, he led all scorers with 20 points. Along with that, he had 9 rebounds, 2 assists, and 4 steals. Now that the defensive system and identity seems to be working for the Raptors, it's time they start to hone their offensive skills. It's remarkable that they were kept in this game at all with their shooting struggles. They relied heavily on momentum swings and stretches where they were able to score off turnovers and in transition, but not reliably against a set defence. This has been the theme for a while now, often resorting to isolation plays that make the drought worse. They play their best when the ball is moving, guys are cutting, and they're finding the best shot. There were flashes, but I'd like to see this development continue. The Raptors have done it! They're heading to the semifinals on Saturday. Not only that, but their point differential has placed them as the #1 seed. Before Summer League even started it was almost consensus that the Raptors were sending a stacked roster with lots of previous NBA talent to Las Vegas. They really showed up, making things miserable for every team they faced. Tune in on Saturday to watch as the Raptors go to the semis, now one win away from the Summer League Championship. More from NBA Playoffs 2017: 5 keys as Raptors take on Cavaliers Raptors vs. Cavs, Game 1 Preview: The real season starts tonight NBA Playoffs: This is the best version of DeMar DeRozan HQ Playoff Roundtable: Here come the Cavaliers in Round 2 Odds Outlook: Raptors huge underdogs vs. LeBron and the Cavaliers NBA Playoffs: Q&A on the Cavaliers with Fear the Sword NBA Playoff Poll: Who wins Game 1 in Cleveland?


New York Times
5 days ago
- Sport
- New York Times
Inside the Raptors' defensive blueprint: What fuels them and who they look up to
LAS VEGAS — If the Toronto Raptors are going to make a move up the Eastern Conference standings next year, their defence will give them the biggest nudge. While there are plenty of questions about the Raptors' offence, as the team is short on 3-point shooters, there are reasons to be optimistic about the defence. From Jan. 1 through the end of the season, the Raptors finished as the seventh-best defence. If you only consider their 27 games after the All-Star break, they ranked second, behind only the Detroit Pistons. Advertisement Now, the Raptors played a notably weaker schedule late in the season, and several key players were missing in the final month-plus. However, Scottie Barnes seemed to be playing at an All-Defense level, while several younger players helped make the Raptors difficult to play against. That was on display again to start the Las Vegas Summer League, as the Raptors turned their opponents over regularly. With that in mind, The Athletic caught up with four Raptors who also have played in summer league: sophomores Jonathan Mogbo, Jamal Shead and Ja'Kobe Walter, as well as rookie Collin Murray-Boyles. If defence is going to be the Raptors' foundation, it seems reasonable to wonder what the players think matters most on that end, what types of plays they love to make, which opponents they admire and how good they think they can be when the real games start. Mogbo: His instincts, his reactions. I feel like if you can see the ball, see the hips, read the defender well and if you have good hands, not just out there just reaching and not out there playing (randomly), your instinct is really important. Murray-Boyles: The willingness to do it. Wanting to defend is the first step in being a defender and wanting to make an impact on that side of the ball. … I think just trying to find where I could stand out (allowed him to strive to be a good defender). That was the biggest thing for me. I was never the one to have highlight tapes. I was never one to wow people with my offensive game. I'm just gonna do the right thing, try to make the right plays. I was just trying to stick out as much as possible. And I put a lot of that on my defence. Shead: I'd say his ability to stay in front of the ball. A good defender on ball is just not needing any help. A good defender off ball is just keeping his eyes on a swivel and seeing where there's help needed and being in the right position. So I think there's two really big parts to that, on and off the ball. Advertisement Walter: I'd say active hands. Active hands, always mirroring the ball, always trying to make the offensive player worry about you. Length lets you dictate when he's doing that, not letting him dictate you, just getting to him, making him move the ball around, just pressure him. Mogbo: Probably a passing lane steal, and now it's just fast break, showtime. You see your teammates jump on the bench and be like, 'Yeah, he's about to tear the rim off.' That's the best. Murray-Boyles: Probably just getting a stop. I feel like that's the biggest thing that is attributed to play defence, getting a stop and being able to make a play on offence. Steal, block, (forcing a) bad shot, (forcing a) shot-clock violation. All of the above is good for me. Shead: If I get a tipped pass or something on the floor and I get the loose ball and it leads to a bucket for us, that turns me up. I think that's that Houston Cougar in me. That turns me up. Walter: When the opposing player, they turn their head, and I get to come behind and steal the ball. I love that. Just always seeing when they don't really realize that you're still locked in and guarding them, too, even though you're off the ball. Mogbo: I think I had two of them: against Philly at home and Brooklyn, where I blocked the shot and I ended up either getting the ball off the blocked shot and throw a dunk or my teammate got it and passed to me. I think one was Kelly Oubre and the other was (Maxwell) Lewis. Murray-Boyles: I think my freshman year I had probably the best block of my career against Vandy. That was probably the best chase-down (block) I've had in my life. Shead: We were at Xavier (in college). I was having a terrible game. I subbed back in. It wasn't really a defensive play. It was off an offensive rebound. Ball was on the floor. I dive, get it, we get the ball and dunk and I'm slamming my hands on the floor. I literally hurt both of my hands. Hardwood is hard. Walter: I had a couple during the end of the year where I got an open-court steal. There was one against Dennis Schröder on the Pistons, just 'cause we were on a comeback and it was flowing with the game. We were all turned up, and that just kept it going. Mogbo: There are a lot. Davion (Mitchell) was pretty crazy in practice. We didn't match up often. But when I had the chance to, I was trying to get off the ball a little bit. He's a good defender, and his energy is contagious. Murray-Boyles: Oh, he played in Alabama last year. Transferred to Kentucky. He was just an overall good defender, probably one of the best defenders in the SEC. I don't even think he was on the (All-Defense team). Mo — Mo Dioubate. He was the guy that shut me down. He was really good, very physical, almost a similar style to me. Physical, knows how to use his hands. He did a really good job. Advertisement Shead: Marcus Sasser. Playing three years (in practices in college) against Marcus, he learned every move. I learned every one of his moves. We were just freaking destroying each other in practice until we got on the same team. I think my freshman year and sophomore year, the beginning of my sophomore year before we were both starters, man, we used to just terrorize each other. And it led to a lot of fights in practice. Marcus doesn't talk (trash). And then he just kind of will give you a 'Get out my way' or 'You suck.' A little something here and there. He doesn't really talk much, but when he does, it's annoying. Walter: Jamal Shead. Jamal is strong and he has a low centre of gravity. He slides very well. He meets you with physicality. And then, he has active hands. People don't even know that he's fouling, it's that simple, because you can't call everything. Mogbo: I'd probably say Herb Jones before he got hurt. His length, his ability to get (in) passing lanes, on-ball steals. Also, a little Dyson Daniels. I like the way he reads his opponent well. He gets a lot of pluck steals. I remember he got one in Memphis in clutch time and then he got a game-winning layup, too. Just seeing his eyes and just seeing how he reads his opponent very well, I kind of want to add it to my game. Murray-Boyles: I watch a lot of basketball, so I like a lot of different players. I like Draymond (Green), how he hustles, how hard he plays. I feel that's something I want to get to, that level of intensity all the time, the intensity he plays at. That's something I want to get at. Toumani Camara, his hands. His IQ is through the roof. … Lu Dort. If I watch anybody (the most), it's Lu Dort. He's the best, I feel like, perimeter defender in the league. He can guard any position. He's probably the main guy I try to take cues from. Shead: I wouldn't say just defensively, but defensively too: T.J. McConnell. That was my first (NBA) game where I was lost. He stopped everything. He is in the right place at every point in time. And on offence, even though he doesn't shoot 3s, he's still super hard to guard. I think everybody in the (NBA) Finals got a little bit of a taste of what I felt the entire time that I was guarding him. Walter: I like Tony Allen. Avery Bradley. I studied them, watching their highlights, like I was saying, how they have active hands all the time, getting deflections (on the) help side, on ball, it didn't really matter. Those two players. Kawhi (Leonard) locks up. Y'all know that, Toronto. Kawhi locks up — especially when he was on the Spurs. That's when I really saw it. Those three are mainly my favourite to watch. Mogbo: We've got a high ceiling. I feel like everyone can be very versatile, switch one through five, one through four. I feel like our talk and our (wingspans) definitely help a lot. It kind of crowds the paint a little bit. The offensive guys, they can't really see too much. They can't see over our defence because we got a lot of length and athleticism. Just bringing that to the table every game with our high motor and our talk, it is going to be a killer for us. Advertisement Murray-Boyles: Top-three defensive team in the league, easily. What we did (against the Bulls in Summer League, causing 33 turnovers in a 40-minute game) is a really good taste of what we could be. With the guys that we already have, our vets, it's going to be very good to see. Very excited — especially for this franchise, really getting back to winning and getting back to the postseason. Shead: Best defensive team in the league. I think you combine me, Scottie, Ja'Kobe, RJ (Barrett) can guard, Jak (Poeltl) is super smart. And if you get guys like (Immanuel Quickley), you get guys like Gradey (Dick), you get guys like (Brandon Ingram) to buy in — because everybody that's at this level can guard. It's just about if you want to. If we just follow Scottie's lead, because he's going to be super intense all the time, I think we got a good shot. Walter: Number one in the NBA. You saw after the All-Star break last year, we were No. 1 in the NBA. I say now that we all know that mentality and how we all play together, the chemistry of what we are trying to do, I'm not (going to be) surprised if we're No. 1.


Toronto Sun
12-07-2025
- Sport
- Toronto Sun
Raptors Summer League takeaways: The kids are alright
Forgotten man Jonathan Mogbo kept momentum up from strong regular season finish. Get the latest from Ryan Wolstat straight to your inbox Florida guard Alijah Martin celebrates after scoring against Auburn during the second half in the national semifinals at the Final Four of the NCAA college basketball tournament, Saturday, April 5, 2025, in San Antonio. Photo by Brynn Anderson / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS It's possible the 'Toronto Raptors' just played the best game a Raptors team will turn in all season. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Yes, it came at Las Vegas Summer League Friday night and, sure, only two locks to be in head coach Darko Rajakovic's rotation (Jamal Shead and Ja'Kobe Walter) suited up and it needs to be noted that opponent Chicago was nowhere close to a real NBA outfit, but that was one heck of a start. Even the news just prior to tip-off that prized rookie Collin Murray-Boyles would be held out due to a left adductor strain couldn't spoil the day for the summer Raptors. The group looked hungry, aggressive but still measured enough to keep the fouling under control and simply overwhelmed the hapless Bulls, who turned the ball over 33 times. Here are some takeaways: • Maybe hold off on assuming Jonathan Mogbo's minutes will be replaced by Murray-Boyles and others. The 31st pick a year ago was arguably the best player on the court. Not only did he hit all but one of his eight shot attempts (though none were of the three-point variety, something Mogbo needs to change), but he also was as good as anyone defensively. When Chicago's most talented player, Matas Buzelis, tried to make things happen, Mogbo was there to say absolutely not repeatedly. It was impressive stuff. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The real Raptors are stacked with long, big men who do many things well, with shooting being the exception. Mogbo is one of them, but if he keeps playing like this, Rajakovic might have to find a spot for him. Keep in mind that Mogbo flashed his potential late in the season with one triple-double in April, another game where he was a point shy of a triple double, another where he had eight points, rebounds and assists and one where he was three assists short. Meaningless games or not, it isn't easy to consistently fill the boxscore like that and offence isn't even what will get Mogbo on an NBA court. • Despite only being around for 31 years, the Raptors arguably boast the most impressive history of elite slam dunkers in league history. Vince Carter is widely regarded as the best dunker of all-time, Tracy McGrady, Terrence Ross and DeMar DeRozan were also nearly as good as it gets and Norman Powell and Kawhi Leonard had some historic jams too with the team in the playoffs. Hardcore Raptors fans remember the likes of Keon Clark, Sonny Weems, Fred Jones and Jamario Moon as well. We feel confident adding Alijah Martin to the list after one appearance. This year's 39th pick threw down an absolutely silly one-handed cradle jam in the second quarter that probably will be the best dunk of Summer League this year. Taking only two power dribbles after crossing half-court, the former NCAA champion with Florida gathered and rose for a tomahawk. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Martin later tried even to one-up himself though he couldn't complete that dunk attempt. It cannot be fun for opposing guards to have to go up against both Martin and Shead, a pair of take-no-prisoners defenders who live to take their targets off their game. • Canadian A.J. Lawson can get buckets. He had some huge games for the Raptors down the stretch and led the team Friday with 22, hitting 4-of-8 three-point attempts. On a team lacking shooters and scorers will there be a role for Lawson? His contract isn't guaranteed but surely an NBA team could use him. • Ulrich Chomche is still raw, but his first game in five months showcased that he's taken some steps forward, despite the knee injury he suffered with Raptors 905. He's a defensive menace near the rim with ridiculous length and a quick second jump and things seemed to have slowed down at least a little bit for him on offence, but he's much better at making the right reads defensively than offensively at this point. We'll be tracking him closely the rest of the Vegas slate. • Walter is being asked to do a bit more offensively in Vegas. Handle the ball, try to create for himself and others, things that should benefit him as his career progresses. It wasn't the best night for him, aside from a few interesting flashes, but right now it's all about more in-game repetitions for the promising Baylor product. • Toronto returns to the court Sunday against Orlando. Columnists World Editorial Cartoons World Relationships


CBS News
27-03-2025
- Sport
- CBS News
Orlando Robinson scores 23 points in Raptors' 116-86 victory over Nets
Orlando Robinson had 23 points on 10-of-14 shooting and added 12 rebounds to help the Toronto Raptors rout the Brooklyn Nets 116-86 on Wednesday night. Eleventh in the Eastern Conference, the Raptors won their second straight game and handed the 12th-place Nets their fifth straight loss. Jonathan Mogbo added 15 points and RJ Barrett and Scottie Barnes each had 15. The Raptors won at Washington on Monday night to snap a four-game losing streak. Nic Claxton led Brooklyn with 22 points and 11 rebounds. Ziaire Williams added 13 points. Raptors: Toronto is 18-16 in its last 34 games. Nets: Brooklyn is 1-8 in its last nine and 2-15 in its last 17. Toronto took control early, leading 32-18 after the first quarter. Robinson had 10 first-quarter points, making four attempts from the field and two free throws without a miss. Both teams play Friday night. The Raptors host Charlotte, and the Nets host the Los Angeles Clippers.