Raptors

Toronto Raptors star point guard Fred VanVleet has reportedly exited Tuesday night's game against the Los Angeles Clippers...

He hasn’t been shooting the ball well so far in the 2022-23 NBA season, but he will always be among the most reliable players on the team together with Pascal Siakam, who both have championship experience. He would play in the second half but for only four minutes. The Raptors guard started the game but did not move very well in the first half.

Paul George scored 23 points and the Clippers won for the seventh time in nine games , beating the Toronto Raptors 124-113 on Tuesday.

Ahead 60-56 at halftime, the Clippers extended their lead to 18 in the third behind 11 points from Powell. Toronto went one for nine from long range in the second half. He finished with four points in 23 minutes and shot two for six, going 0 for three from three-point range. “I’d rather give the fans in Toronto the chance to see me play again. 23, the Clippers were on the second night of a back-to-back and didn’t reach their Toronto hotel until after 3 a.m., arriving after rallying for an overtime victory over the Pistons. While the Raptors hadn’t played since Dec.

Norm Powell and Kawhi Leonard scored 22 points and 15 points, respectively, to lead the Los Angeles Clippers to a 124-113 win over their former team, ...

To come full circle, to be where it all started and play in front of the fans was amazing.” “I’d rather give the fans in Toronto the chance to see me play again. Meanwhile, the Clippers shot 15-for-38 in their three-point attempts. to the Raptors. “You start to think about all the moments and memories you had here,” he said. “Just all the ups and downs and the fans and the organization.

Norm Powell and Kawhi Leonard scored 22 points and 15 points, respectively, to lead the Los Angeles Clippers to a 124-113 win over their former team, ...

"I'd rather give the fans in Toronto the chance to see me play again. To come full circle, to be where it all started and play in front of the fans was amazing." Meanwhile, the Clippers shot 15-for-38 in their three-point attempts. to the Raptors. "Just all the ups and downs and the fans and the organization. "You start to think about all the moments and memories you had here," he said.

After the game, head coach Nick Nurse told reporters VanVleet tweaked his back in the first quarter and added he did not believe his star point guard was having ...

VanVleet had four points and seven assists in 22:44 before exiting as the Raps went on to lose 124-113. Toronto Raptors point guard Fred VanVleet left Tuesday's game against the Los Angeles Clippers with lower back stiffness and did not return. After the game, head coach Nick Nurse told reporters VanVleet tweaked his back in the first quarter and added he did not believe his star point guard was having back issues leading up to Tuesday's game.

The Toronto Raptors may have stopped Kawhi Leonard but it was Norman Powell and the rest of the Los Angeles Clippers they had no defensive answers for.

Powell stood up, waiving his arms to thank the Raptors faithful. After almost three years apart, Toronto finally had its chance to thank Powell for six incredible seasons with the Raptors. A quarter later, the Clippers created another easy three for Powell when an over-aggressive closeout by Pascal Siakam allowed the former Raptor to side-step in the corner and nail the open bucket. But the Raptors haven't been able to connect defensively and pick up for one another when their gambles don't pay off. It's now been two stellar games in a row for Scottie Barnes who was once again attacking the rim without much hesitation Tuesday night. A pass or two to the weak side, a kick-out from the paint, or a simple pass out of pressure creates easy buckets for opposing teams almost on a nightly basis.

The Los Angeles Clippers may not have the league's attention just yet, but that could change very soon.

“We know when everyone plays we are a good offensive team and we have shown that,” Lue said. It’s been a long wait for Lue and he’s not going to force anything. “He’s gone in and got some really tough boards that we needed from him. “I think the rebounding has probably been … “He’s done a really good job of just being complementary guy,” Nurse said. into the game, which he did in this one. Hernangomez, like many of the Spanish players who have made their way through Toronto at one point or another, (we’re thinking Marc Gasol, Jose Calderon and Jorge Garbajosa specifically) is a consummate team player. That’s two games in a row since Gary Trent Jr. An engaged Scottie Barnes had 17 and Anunoby contributed 16, but Toronto’s starting five just couldn’t match the damage the Clippers starters were doing. He wasn’t effective from that point on and played just 23 minutes. “They just really outclassed us from both behind the line and on the backboards tonight.” “This is as deep a team as you are going to see in this league,” Raptors’ head coach Nick Nurse said of the Clippers.

Former Raptors Kawhi Leonard and Norman Powell enjoyed their return to Toronto as the Los Angeles Clippers claimed a 124-113 win at Scotiabank Arena on ...

Anytime old teammates return in opposition colours, it's natural to want to remind them of how good they once had it. Unfortunately for Toronto, after ...

It’s a deep roster, everyone can shoot, create plays for themselves so we all have to go out there with a focus and mindset of winning the game and making plays for each other. Raptors fans can reasonably lament that he left after one season – and who knows maybe part of Leonard does too after failing to make a Finals appearance since he left Canada for California - but the championship banner he was so essential to winning will hang forever, as they say. Toronto was trailing by five when VanVleet left the game and was never really in the game once the Clippers got rolling in his absence. “I just wanted to come out and get a win, whatever it took,” said Powell, who had 11 points in the first half, as the Clippers led 60-56, and then 11 points in the final four minutes of the third quarter as Los Angeles blew the game open. “When we landed here and we were driving to the city down to the hotel, you start to think about all the moments and the memories you had here,” said Powell who was the 46th pick of the 2015 draft. Every time Leonard returns to Toronto – and this was his first time here since he got his championship ring in December of 2019 – it’s a moment. He got the role he wanted, the contract he wanted – the Trail Blazers gave him a five-year deal for $90 million – and last season he got traded to the Clippers with a chance to earn his second ring. [Pascal Siakam](/basketball/nba/players/pascal-siakam/853408)’s 36 points as he shook off a slow start to try and single-handily keep Toronto in it during the second half where he scored 27 points. So yeah, I was happy about the shots and I’m happy they feel better.” “All the ups and downs and the fans and organization sticking with me through all of it. Leonard is exactly where he wanted to be when he left Toronto before the championship parade had even been fully cleaned up in the summer of 2019. And while Powell was never in a rush to leave Toronto, he wasn’t opposed to the trade that sent him to Portland in exchange for Gary Trent Jr.

Paul George and Ivica Zubac scored 23 points each to lead the visitors who stopped the Raptors' (15-19) win streak at two games.

Toronto Raptors coach Nick Nurse cost them a win against the Los Angeles Clippers by favoring Juancho Hernangomez over Chris Boucher.

The Raptors are paying Hernangomez to shoot, and he’s making just 29% of his 3-pointers. In an ideal situation, Hernangomez will go back to the bench, playing just a few minutes per game. Some of them don’t seem to be helping the team win, yet Nurse continues to hammer them home and force them to work. In nine minutes, Hernangomez was scoreless, further questioning his inclusion in the starting lineup. However, they proceeded to make just two of their next 15. The first big mistake that Nurse made was not only starting Hernangomez, but giving him the green light to shoot from deep to open up the third quarter.

The Toronto Raptors didn't even give themselves a chance in Thursday's 124-113 loss as they never locked in defensively against the Los Angeles Clippers.

two seasons back, but it hardly moved the needle for the team and they face a similar scenario in having to make a decision on Trent Jr. Fred VanVleet distributed the ball nicely but he couldn't get the threes to drop, before checking out early in the third quarter due to back tightness. The difference with the two is that Powell has more explosiveness and length to get all the way to the rim, whereas Trent Jr. His approach became much more direct coming out of halftime, where he was getting downhill against every defender the Clippers threw at him and challenging Zubac at the rim. The Clippers knew exactly what was coming and consistently countered Toronto's traps by either moving the ball to Ivica Zubac in the middle, or by swinging it around the perimeter into the corner for open threes. Anunoby to counter Leonard, the Raptors still consistently brought a hard double team against Leonard, who felt no pressure and made all the right passes even when Toronto swarmed him with four defenders.

The Toronto Raptors have seen Pascal Siakam reach superstar status as he draws a Greek Freak comparison from Los Angeles Clippers coach Ty Lue.

"He’s tough to stop." He hasn’t even scratched the surface of how good he can be." With all the criticism that he was facing, especially in the bubble, coming out of that, in the last two seasons, his game has taken strides, tremendously," said Siakam's former Raptors teammate Norman Powell. "I just told him after the game, keep your confidence, keep going. He's become borderline unstoppable, beating teams in the paint or using his refined playmaking skills to create great looks for teammates on a nightly basis. Like I said, I want to continue to turn up, and I feel like I'm not at my best."

Toronto Raptors superfan and homegrown hip-hop superstar Drake was spotted at Scotiabank Arena on Tuesday watching the Raps take on former teammate...

[philanthropist](https://www.blogto.com/music/2022/03/drake-surprises-toronto-mom-100k-winning-roulette/), [fashion icon](https://www.blogto.com/fashion_style/2022/11/drake-teddy-bear-coat-toronto-raptors-game/), and basketball ambassador, and a reminder that even with all his titles, his son just knows him as "Dad." The— NBA Canada (@NBACanada) [just a few weeks ago](https://twitter.com/UNCanada/status/1600672676351463430?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1600672676351463430%7Ctwgr%5E9dda18869a82bf7e17eefe40d61900b13637804b%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.blogto.com%2Fmusic%2F2022%2F12%2Fdrake-adonis-raptors-courtside%2F), when the 36-year-old entertainment mogul had to [publicly shut down a woman](https://www.blogto.com/music/2022/12/drake-adonis-raptors-courtside/) showering his five-year-old progeny with bags of candy, including Skittles and Sour Patch Kids. The Raptor showers the youngster with a selection of Starburst, Skittles, and Twizzlers (which I've taken the liberty of listing in descending order of deliciousness) but, this time, Drake seems more welcoming of the sweet (in both the literal and figurative sense) gesture, laughing and smiling as the mascot doles out goodies. [taking centre stage](https://www.blogto.com/sports_play/2022/02/drakes-adorable-four-year-old-son-just-stole-show-toronto-raptors-game/). [hip-hop superstar Drake](https://www.blogto.com/music/2022/11/drake-pickering-casino/) was spotted at Scotiabank Arena on Tuesday watching the Raps take on former teammate [Kawhi Leonard](https://www.blogto.com/sports_play/2020/12/kawhi-leonard-left-toronto-gloves-fit-hands/) and the Los Angeles Clippers.

TSN hockey analyst Mike Johnson joins First Up to chat about Canada's Boxing Day loss to Czechia, tonight's contest against Germany, why players like Connor ...

Hour one of First Up with Aaron Korolnek and Matthew Cauz kicks off with the guys looking back on the Raptors' 124-113 loss to the Clippers on Sunday night. The boys finish off with a conversation about the FIFA World Cup Award Winners. TSN hockey analyst Dave Poulin joins First Up to recap the Leafs’ 5-4 OT win against the Blues on Tuesday night. Aaron and Matt then bring yo a piping hot plate or Bet and Breakfast before welcoming TSN Hockey Analyst Dave Poulin to look back on the Leafs' 5-4 OT win against the Blues last night. Hour three of First Up with Aaron Korlonek and Matthew Cauz starts off by looking back at Kawahi's return to Toronto last night where the Raptors came up short 124-113 against the Clippers. Rose shares his thoughts on a hypothetical proposition of whether he would take Kawhi Leonard or Pascal Siakam in a must-win playoff game and more.

Former Toronto Raptors guard Norman Powell spent Tuesday reflecting on his time with the organization and the 2019 championship season.

It was a mature group from VanVleet and Siakam to Delon Wright and Jakob Poeltl who'd been through the ups and downs and battled through multiple years of college before breaking through. "It was just a great full-circle moment for me to be where it all started." While DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry were doing their thing at the highest level, there was a group of young and talented players fomenting just below the surface. He recalled his early days, training and going at a young Fred VanVleet until the competitive juices became too much. He'd circled the game on the calendar, he said, aware, of course, that it would not only be an emotional night but also another opportunity to keep his perfect 2-0 record against the Toronto Raptors clean. The emotions were certainly there, but Powell's upper lip stayed firm, only cracking a smile as highlights of his most impressive dunks played one after another on the jumbotron.

"It's always great memories coming in this arena," Kawhi Leonard told reporters postgame about playing against the Raptors.

Just somebody that wants to get better and put the work in. You could just see it out there,” Leonard said. “He really didn’t want me to play [well]. “I’d rather give the fans in Toronto a chance to see me play again. “He sent guys on every possession, isos, post-ups, pick-and-rolls,” Leonard said. He wants to win.