The Toronto Raptors enter Monday night with more than just a road game against the Los Angeles Clippers on the board. They’re also trying to stop a slide that has already started to drag them down in the eyes of the league.
After opening the season 3-1, Toronto has hit a rough patch and now sits on a two-game skid. The Raptors were No. 8 in last week’s power rankings, but that standing is expected to take a hit as Week 3 begins, no matter what happens against the Clippers.
The timing isn’t ideal. Toronto dropped its game against the Orlando Magic on Friday night after a 30-point win in the previous matchup, then slipped back to .500 on Sunday night against the Los Angeles Lakers. Now Darko Rajakovic’s group gets the second night of a back-to-back as it tries to steady itself.
A win in Los Angeles would at least give Toronto a chance to limit the damage. Some Eastern Conference teams could move ahead of the Raptors in the next set of rankings, but a victory Monday night would help the team stay in the top-12 range.
The competition around Toronto has also tightened. The Cleveland Cavaliers, Portland Trail Blazers and Memephis Grizzlies have all moved ahead of the Raptors in win percentage and are strong candidates to pass them in the rankings after sitting behind them in Week 2.
Toronto does have a useful chance in front of it. The Clippers have only one win through their first six games, and the Raptors enter as a 5.5-point favorite. This is also the second stop on a four-game road trip, and Toronto will lean on Scottie Barnes, RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley to try to get back above .500.
That trio put up 64 points in the teams’ last meeting, but Toronto still came up short in a 131-125 loss. The Raptors’ top-five defense should give them a foundation to work with again Monday, but they’ll need cleaner perimeter shooting to avoid another costly result during this skid.
In Other News...
Gradey Dick Is Still Feeling The Raptors Trade Reality
Gradey Dick is still getting used to the strange rhythm of seeing the Raptors on the other side of the floor. In his second game against Toronto since being traded to the Los Angeles Clippers, Dick handled the matchup like a player who knows the business side of the league but still feels the personal side of it, talking afterward about adjusting to the change while keeping things cordial with his former teammates. He also had a solid night on the court, finishing with 12 points in 28 minutes.
The matchup carried a little extra weight because Brandon Ingram, another piece of the trade, was on the Clippers bench while recovering from injury. For Toronto fans, it was another reminder that the deal is still unfolding in real time, with former faces now scattered and the emotional residue of the move lingering even as both sides move on. Dick may be settling into his new uniform, but the first few meetings with his old team have made clear this one is going to take some getting used to. [Read more 🡒]
Raptors And Cavs Are Headed For A Pressure-Test Debate
The Raptors recent stretch has only sharpened the old reminder of how much Kawhi Leonard once steadied the group in big moments, and it has also made for an interesting comparison with Cleveland. Both teams can look polished when things are going their way, but the conversation around them has shifted toward how they respond when the game gets messy, when a lead starts to shrink and the pressure rises.
For Toronto, that lens matters because the franchise has lived through the difference between regular-season competence and playoff readiness. Cleveland is dealing with its own version of that test, with questions about blown leads, toughness and whether Evan Mobleys growth can help anchor a team that still has to prove it can absorb adversity. The Cavaliers may keep stacking wins over the long haul, but the real debate is whether they can survive the kind of heat the postseason tends to bring. [Read more 🡒]
Raptors Road Comeback Solved One Problem But Exposed Another
The Raptors win over the Clippers offered a useful snapshot of where this group is right now: resilient enough to rally from a double-digit hole in the fourth quarter, but still uneven enough to put itself in that position in the first place. Toronto finished off a 125-118 road victory without Kawhi Leonard and Jakob Poeltl, leaning on Collin Murray-Boyles in a small-ball role at center and getting key defensive work from Scottie Barnes when the game tightened.
Still, the comeback did not erase the issue that created the pressure to begin with. Toronto has made it clear it wants cleaner starts in the games ahead, and that concern will be tested quickly with Denver next on the schedule. The Raptors can take plenty from the way they closed against the Clippers, but they also know they cannot keep asking for late-game rescue acts and expect the same result every night. [Read more 🡒]