![]() It’s a long season and, even in the best-case scenario, this won’t be the last set of injuries that they face. Flynn, who has been out after undergoing surgery on a fractured cheekbone last week, should be ready to go by then but will have to play catchup once he's cleared to return, and wear a protective face shield. Neither injury is believed to be “super serious,” according to Nurse, but they’re expected to be out for a “little while.” With the opener just 10 days away, there’s a reasonable chance the Raptors will begin the season without one or both of them. After taking a hard fall late in Friday’s loss to Houston, Boucher missed Sunday’s contest, also with a hamstring strain. ![]() Porter, the team’s biggest addition over the summer, has missed all of preseason with a hamstring issue he sustained in one of the team’s first practices. It appears that the plan was to use a nine-man rotation without a traditional backup point guard. ![]() making up the second unit.īanton and Flynn are the only other point guards on the roster once again, but Nurse has shown he's more than comfortable using Siakam or Barnes as the primary ball handler when VanVleet rests. Anunoby and Pascal Siakam – seem likely to open games, with Precious Achiuwa, Chris Boucher, Thaddeus Young and Otto Porter Jr. When healthy, last year’s starters – VanVleet, Gary Trent Jr., Scottie Barnes, O.G. With so little turnover on the roster – the Raptors have a league-most 13 players returning from last season – Nurse came into camp with a pretty good idea of what his rotation could look like. #Play running fred 3 for free crack#He’s getting more comfortable with the jump shot, so it looks like a guy who has taken that step and feels like a guy that is ready to crack the rotation.” “Obviously it’s going to be hard for a 6-foot-9 point guard not to have success in the NBA just with the size and the lanes that are available to him, being able to finish around the rim. “He just seems to be more comfortable with the reads, with the speed of the game,” said VanVleet. He's really noticeable, getting his hands on the basketball and poking it away or reaching in from the weak side or stripping one away. But he's really been good at the defensive end. “I think he's playing in transition, he's running the team pretty, and he's executing the sets. ![]() “He’s playing at the tempo he wants to play at and I think he's doing a little bit of everything, not only at the offensive end,” Nurse said. Now, thanks to his strong play and injuries to a couple veterans on the roster, he’s making a push to earn regular rotation minutes once this season tips off on Oct. It’s one of the reasons he was able to beat out the smaller Malachi Flynn for the backup point guard gig out of camp a year ago. With his physical tools and skill set, he checks off a lot of boxes for the ever-versatile and position-less Raptors. When he’s at his best, Banton comes into the game and uses his elite combination of length and speed to push the tempo and make an immediate impact on both ends of the floor. ![]() And, by all accounts, he’s been every bit as impressive behind closed doors – during practice and in team scrimmages. In four games, the 22-year-old sophomore is averaging 10.5 points on an efficient 62 per cent. “It’s preseason.”īut if you’re looking for bright spots look no further than Banton. “Nothing,” VanVleet said, somewhat tongue in cheek, when asked what he’s liked so far. Admittedly, Fred VanVleet, who hit just three of his 12 three-point attempts, is working his way back into game shape, and the same could be said for a few of the team's other regular rotation players. Their offensive struggles continued into the weekend, as they shot just 35 per cent against the Bulls, including 8-for-37 from long range. The preseason has been a mixed bag for the Raptors, who fell to 2-2 in exhibition. “I think the big thing is he just looks so comfortable out there,” Nurse said of Banton, who had another big night in Sunday’s 115-98 loss to Chicago, recording 11 points, five rebounds and two assists in 17 high-energy minutes off the bench. TORONTO – Dalano Banton entered training camp as one of seven Raptors players on a partially guaranteed contract, fighting for his spot on the team, but he might come out of it as one of the eight-to-10 guys in Nick Nurse’s early-season circle of trust.įrom the first day of camp, when Nurse credited him as the best player on the floor, the second-year guard and Rexdale, Ont., native has been a preseason standout for Toronto. ![]()
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