The Toronto Raptors defeat the New Orleans Pelicans 113-104 for their 4th straight win.
Raptors improved defense continues
The Raptors continue to defend at a high level. They were solid in the first-half only allowing 40 points to the Pelicans. The Pelicans used a huge third quarter to get back into the game but the Raptors got back on track to close out the fourth. The Raptors defensive turnaround has been remarkable.Toronto has the second best defense in the NBA over the last 7 games. They are allowing 105 points per 100 possessions. This defensive charge has been led by Scottie Barnes who is playing like an All-Star and Davion Mitchell has done an outstanding job replacing Immanuel Quickley in the starting lineup.
Chris Boucher on fire
Boucher has been rolling since receiving garbage time minutes against the New York Knicks. The 32-year-old has been virtually automatic and has been the team’s most valuable bench player. Boucher gave Toronto another spark from off the bench in this one scoring 14 points in 18 minutes. Boucher is shooting 53.2 percent from three in January, which is currently 4th best in the NBA on a minimum of 40 three-point attempts, per Keerthika Uthayakumar. From falling out of the rotation to now being an important bench piece, it’s been quite the bounce back for Boucher.
Raptors might be too good to tank
The Raptors can’t stop winning. The team has won 4 games in a row for the first time since 2023 and they have won 6 of their last 7. The Raptors are now 7-6 in the month of January. When the Raptors were on a 5-game losing streak and had lost Quickley to injury once again, the team seemed destined to bottom out. But they have done the exact opposite. The Raptors have been enjoying their best stretch of basketball of the season and as a result they have fallen to 6th in the reverse standings. If the Raptors want to focus on the draft lottery, they need to break up this team by making some trades at the deadline. Offloading players like Boucher, Bruce Brown and Kelly Olynyk will help deplete their depth. But even then, the Raptors might be too hungry to stay down.
Next on tap
The Raptors will look for their 5th win in a row when they take on the worst team in the league in the Washington Wizards.
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