Raptors head into break with future in mind

TORONTO – The first half of the Toronto Raptors’ season ended the same way it started — with a blowout loss at home against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Donovan Mitchell scored 21 points to lead the Eastern Conference-leading Cavaliers to a 131-108 drubbing of the Raptors on Wednesday at Scotiabank Arena.

It mirrored the 136-106 win Cleveland kicked off the campaign with back in October.

Toronto (17-38) now sits 13th in the Eastern Conference as it heads into all-star weekend at the Golden State Warriors’ Chase Center in San Francisco, while Cleveland (44-10) is comfortably first.

Gradey Dick will be the lone Raptors’ representative in California when he participates in Friday’s rrising stars game.

Cleveland’s Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland and Evan Mobley were all selected to the all-star game with head coach Kenny Atkinson.

The rest of the Raptors will take an eight-day break before returning for the final 27 games of the season.

“I think it’s gonna be important, our mentality and our approach,” head coach Darko Rajakovic said. “We gotta continue developing. We have a lot of young guys that are getting very valuable minutes.

“We need to understand and see the big picture of how those guys need to develop and what it’s gonna mean for us in the future.”

Earlier Wednesday, Toronto announced it had signed a multi-year extension with newcomer Brandon Ingram. The deal is reportedly for three years and worth US$120 million.

The Raptors acquired the one-time all-star forward from the New Orleans Pelicans at last Thursday’s trade deadline in exchange for Kelly Olynyk, Bruce Brown, and first- and second-round picks.

The 27-year-old Ingram is nursing a sprained left ankle and said he isn’t sure when he’ll be ready to make his Raptors debut.

When he does, the first order of business will be establishing chemistry with the Raptors’ core players.

“I want to just get out there and play basketball,” Ingram said in a pre-game press conference Wednesday. “It’s been a while since I’ve been back on the floor. And I think the adrenalin, I’m gonna be excited to play. I think I’ll be able to just fit in anywhere.

“Of course I like to have the basketball in my hands, but also, I like to pass too. Going on the floor with high-IQ guys, it always helps. And I think our team has a lot of high-IQ guys.”

Canada’s RJ Barrett, who led the Raptors with 27 points against the Cavs, smiled when asked about the addition of Ingram.

“It’s big time, you get a player like that coming here. It’s huge for us, huge for the organization,” said Barrett, who returned after missing four games due to concussion protocols.

“We’re happy to have him here and once he’s able to play and we get to see what it’s like with all of us out there, I’m sure it’ll be a fun time.”

The final stretch of the season will likely see increased playing time for Toronto’s five rookies — Ja’Kobe Walter, Jonathan Mogbo, Jamal Shead, Ulrich Chomche and Jamison Battle.

Battle, who recently signed his own three-year contract with the team, led the freshmen with 11 points against the Cavaliers.

Chomche battled against Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers in Toronto’s 106-103 victory on Tuesday. He then turned around and played for Raptors 905 of the NBA’s G League on Wednesday morning in Mississauga, Ont.

“He’s learning what it takes to be professional and how to approach every day with the same desire and mentality,” Rajakovic said.

With the game against the Cavaliers well out of hand and the shot clock turned off in the dying seconds, Canadian Cavaliers forward Tristan Thompson scored a garbage-time layup that caught the ire of the Raptors.

After the final buzzer, Shead met Thompson at midcourt while fans loudly booed.

“I think what Tristan did there was no class and disrespectful. I’m not gonna stand for that for sure and I’m really glad that our guys, our players, from Jamal — who was on the court and Scottie and everybody else — that they stood up for themselves,” Rajakovic said.

“I love when my team stands up for themselves.”

It’s that type of spirit the coach hopes will set in daily over the rest of the year — and into next season, too.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 12, 2025.

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