Raptors vs. Hawks, Dec. 29 Takeaways: Turnover parade in embarrassing loss

Not the response Rajakovic was hoping for a game after conceding 155 points

Atlanta showed up in Toronto on the second night of a back-to-back and humiliated the Raptors 136-107 despite the home team having two days rest. The ping pong balls battle with Charlotte (7-24) and Washington (5-24) at the moment is very real.

The losing streak now stands at 10 and the defending champs are next. From Darko Rajakovic getting ejected in Memphis to Scottie Barnes saying losing by 30-plus points especially at home is inexcusable, frustration is brewing.

On the positive side, Jakob Poeltl returned to the lineup while Bruce Brown made his season debut. JaKobe Walter and Jamal Shead also played, though Davion Mitchell sat. It was the healthiest the Raptors had been in some time but it didn’t matter.

Immanuel Quickley was spotted getting up some shots pre-game in another encouraging sign. He has been doing strictly non-contact work in practice.

As a scheduling note, this will be my final post of 2024, owing to the Raptors’ next games being a back-to-back set on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day (that feels like it shouldn’t be allowed). You’ll hear from me next on Jan. 2, looking back on both those games against the Celtics and Nets.

Thanks for reading and supporting me during this first season of Raptors in 7! Please make sure to share with fellow Raptors fans if you’re enjoying it and let me know if there’s things you’re curious about that you’d like me to write about.

All the best to you and yours in 2025 :) Let’s get to the takeaways:

Turnovers reflective of team in need of purpose

SIX turnovers in the first two minutes and 17 turnovers in the first half. 31 turnovers for the entire game. A career-worst eight turnovers for Scottie Barnes. Dyson Daniels, the league-leader in steals, didn’t even play. Did the Raptors have too many unrecognizable, healthy bodies??

Jokes apart, between giving up 155 to Memphis last game and now all these turnovers, it’s among the worst pair of games I’ve ever seen the Raptors play consecutively. I think these phases and lulls definitely happen with any team over the course of an 82-game season and, in the case of the Raptors, it feels like they need the All-Star break a month-and-a-half early.

“We gotta take it much more seriously than this,” Rajakovic said after the game. “This has been an ongoing thing with our turnovers this year and we’ve gotta do a much better job of addressing it, I gotta do a better job of keeping guys accountable to the standard, and we’re definitely gonna watch a lot of film and find ways to get better.”

Rajakovic felt the team has hit a wall, looks tired, and drained. Bruce Brown agreed in his post-game interview and also alluded to some illness surrounding the team, though nothing has been disclosed to the media beyond R.J. Barrett and JaKobe Walter.

This is Barnes’ first season as the face of the franchise and we have seen opportunities for growth since Pascal Siakam was traded last season — especially from an effort standpoint. He said the right things after the game, it’s certainly a testing time when a very talented player has to absorb loss after loss, here’s a good test for him to show how he can lead the team out of this funk.

Jak returns, Cowboy Bruce makes season debut

Bruce Brown played for the first time this season and looked like someone who was purposeful in his rehab. When he pushed the ball up the court and slammed one home in the first quarter, that was a statement that he was ready to play his best basketball.

The vet didn’t get cheated, either, getting up 12 shots in 19 minutes and finishing with 12 points. He played in short bursts and was one of the few to show a high activity level on the defensive end while trying to be his usual, connector self on offence.

Is it a coincidence that he’s available to play just as trade season is kicking into gear? I doubt it.

Poeltl returned after nearly two weeks out with a groin strain and played 27 minutes. That’s a good sign fitness-wise considering the blowout nature of the game. He accounted for four of the 31 turnovers, the most he’s had in a game since playing 38 minutes against Indiana on Nov. 18.

Going into the next game against the Celtics, I’m very curious to see what Poeltl’s usage looks like. If you remember, the last time Toronto played Boston (Nov. 16), the Celtics defence was happy to encourage Barrett and Dick to be playmakers and force Poeltl to be a scorer. The Austrian finished with 35 points on 16-of-19 shooting in a game Boston won on an overtime buzzer-beater by Jayson Tatum and it’ll be interesting to see how Joe Mazzulla goes about setting his schemes with Barnes in the mix this time as well.

Rotation-wise, the Raptors started Barnes-Dick-Barrett-Agbaji-Poeltl with Shead, Walter, Brown, Boucher, and Olynyk the five reserves who primarily played. Garrett Temple, Jonathan Mogbo, and Jamison Battle checked in for fourth quarter garbage time.

Kansas duo struggles big time

When the Raptors played the Knicks on Dec. 9, I noted that it was Gradey Dick’s worst performance of the season. After tonight, I think it’s safe to say he’s in a funk. He was repeatedly out of place on the defensive end and has shown an increasing propensity to get caught ball watching. He was also just 3-of-12 from the field including zero 3-point makes.

Since and including that Dec. 9 game, he’s shooting 33.9% on his threes. Even more of a concern of late is that Dick has only averaged 3.8 three-point attempts over the last four games. He’s averaged 7.1 attempts per game on the season. There’s been a lot asked of him right from the start of the season because of the injuries, and this goes back to the point I made earlier about being flat because of overextended roles for too long.

Ochai Agbaji was hardly better in this one, and Rajakovic gave him just 17 minutes because of it. Toronto’s head coach has identified Agbaji as someone who can take tough love, and here’s hoping the 24-year-old bounces back soon. Agbaji himself is 11-for-43 (25.6%) from deep over the last 10 games. Defensively, he has yet to prove himself worthy of being a flat out stopper rather than a plus defender and of late he’s looked more like a net neutral defender at best.

Notes

• Chris Boucher nailed a fadeaway 3-pointer at the halftime buzzer and I don’t think I’ve ever seen him hit a fadeaway three before.

• Jamal Shead had a decent return from a bruised right knee with five points and six assists. Four of those came in fourth quarter garbage time.

• Trae Young looks back to his best with Dejounte Murray out of the pictureand his decision making in the pick-and-roll is second to none. It’s impossible to read when he’s going for a pass to a rolling big or when he’s rising up for a floater. Jalen Johnson is awesome (though he didn’t have a big night in this game) and De’Andre Hunter is looking a Sixth Man of the Year candidate. The team is fun, deep, and good.