Lenny Wilkens had mentioned earlier this month that, if the Raptors were going to snap out of a see-saw funk that saw them lose to Memphis, get past Chicago with a late surge, need overtime to beat Atlanta, then score 72 points in a home-court loss to the Clippers, it would take a greater commitment to defence.
That message obviously did not fall on deaf ears.
Even though it's taken the better part of a month — if not the entire season — for the Raptors to show signs of latching on to their coach's defensive schemes and becoming comfortable with playing zone defence at times, it's clear they've finally turned a corner.
"It's hard to say for sure when five guys or even 10 guys are clicking at the same time but, as of late, we've played pretty well on defence," said Keon Clark, who'll start in place of the injured Hakeem Olajuwon at the ACC tonight, when the Raptors put their two-game win streak on the line against Boston (8 p.m., TSN).
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Former Toronto Raptor Alvin Robertson is off to prison.
The two-time NBA all-star, who has a lengthy record of altercations with women, was sentenced yesterday in San Antonio, Texas, to serve three years in prison for a probation violation despite a long-time girlfriend recanting her original report to police that Robertson raped her.
Although Robertson testified in court, "I absolutely did not rape anybody. I never committed a sexual assault. I'm screaming in the wilderness," the judge was unmoved.
In imposing the sentence, Judge Sid Harle said he found it "more likely than not" that Robertson raped the woman during a Nov. 17 visit to her San Antonio residence. The woman testified that she accused Robertson of rape to get even with him after he was disrespectful of her during a sexual encounter that was consensual.
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The Raptors are missing two starters but the Junk Yard Dog has found a bright side.
"It actually makes it easier for the coaches," Raptors forward Jerome (Junk Yard Dog) Williams said with a smile. "It's more minutes for the guys who are left."
The Raptors learned on Tuesday that starting centre Hakeem Olajuwon will be out of the lineup for the next four to six weeks because of an injury to his right quadriceps. The team also is missing starting forward Morris Peterson, who fractured his right index finger on Jan. 2 and won't be available till mid-February.
Williams has been starting for Peterson and Keon Clark will join the starting lineup in place of Olajuwon tonight when the Raptors play host to the Boston Celtics at the Air Canada Centre.
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Raptors Jan 2002 Archive
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| Jan 31, 2002
The Toronto Raptors have signed guard Jermaine Jackson to a contract through the remainder of this season.
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| Jan 30, 2002
Toronto Raptors centre Hakeem Olajuwon will miss the next four-to-six weeks with strained right thigh, the NBA club announced Tuesday.
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| Jan 29, 2002
The first quarter often provides the first telling sign of whether the Raptors have come to play or simply are content to just show up on the court.
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| Jan 29, 2002
All season long, Toronto Raptors fans have been waiting for the sleeping giant to awaken.
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| Jan 28, 2002
Tracy McGrady and his teammates tried hard not to get caught up in the hype and hoopla surrounding his second return to Toronto.
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| Jan 28, 2002
Vince Carter took pleasure in beating Tracy McGrady.
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| Jan 28, 2002
Today, Vince Carter can have his cake and eat it too.
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| Jan 28, 2002
On all too many nights this season, the Raptors have been left to bemoan the fact they didn't play a full 48 minutes with enough intensity or energy.
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| Jan 28, 2002
The first touch was a silky-smooth jumper, the second a delightful pass to Jerome Williams for an easy basket.
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| Jan 28, 2002
There is no textbook for this leadership thing.
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| Jan 28, 2002
The Toronto fans definitely affected Tracy McGrady yesterday, but not in the way you might think.
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| Jan 28, 2002
For the second game in a row the Raptors played well at both ends of the floor.
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| Jan 27, 2002
Jerry Brewer of the Orlando Sentinel reports: There's no way Tracy McGrady would miss this game, sore back and all.
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| Jan 27, 2002
Who: Orlando Magic (23-21) vs.
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| Jan 27, 2002
The Raptors either have turned the corner or soon will hit a speed bump in a road that has been paved with inconsistency.
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| Jan 27, 2002
No one likes to be targeted, but Eric Montross was a man about it.
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| Jan 26, 2002
Antonio Davis took home Wednesday's game tape hoping to salvage something positive out of a disappointing loss to a bitter rival.
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| Jan 26, 2002
The Toronto Raptors aren't only a disappointment on the court this season; they're not quite living up to expectations on television, either.
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| Jan 26, 2002
When his shot wouldn't drop or when he got beat defensively, Antonio Davis decided to take a step back and begin the painful process of self-evaluation.
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| Jan 25, 2002
T-Mac may skip exhibition
Bothered by recurring back spasms, Magic guard Tracy McGrady said Thursday night he may not play in the NBA All-Star Game on Feb.
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| Jan 24, 2002
Marc Berman of the New York Post writes that Raptors center Hakeem Olajuwon revealed yesterday he was closer than anyone realized to becoming a Knick last summer.
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| Jan 24, 2002
Toronto: The Lourdes of the NBA.
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| Jan 24, 2002
New York Knicks coach Don Chaney issued a blunt and bold challenge to forward Latrell Sprewell.
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| Jan 24, 2002
For the New York Knicks, humiliation was replaced with redemption.
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| Jan 23, 2002
Having wrestled with their own demons for stretches this season, the Toronto Raptors are not about to gloat about the misfortunes of others.
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| Jan 23, 2002
With memories of their Christmas Day debacle fresh in their minds, the Raptors are in the mood for some vindication.
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| Jan 22, 2002
The play was certainly intense enough when the Celtics met the Raptors last night, and the locals can only hope it was a preview of coming attractions.
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| Jan 22, 2002
ith the blessing of coach Jim O'Brien, Antoine Walker took over the Celtics huddles in the fourth quarter last night.
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| Jan 22, 2002
It was a night when the defence was good but not great; the intensity high but not ferocious.
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| Jan 22, 2002
Like movie character Austin Powers, the Raptors lost their mojo last night.
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| Jan 22, 2002
Hakeem Olajuwon would have preferred to celebrate his 39th birthday with a win.
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| Jan 21, 2002
Jerome Williams is challenging the cliche that every dog has his day.
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| Jan 20, 2002
A strange and unfamiliar scene unfolded here last night.
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| Jan 20, 2002
For all the discussions of strategy and substitution patterns and low post play versus three-point shooting, the one thing the Toronto Raptors must dramatically improve in the second half of the NBA season is their work ethic.
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| Jan 20, 2002
Four games in five nights? Make that four wins in five nights.
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| Jan 20, 2002
Dell Curry, one of the original Charlotte Hornets, isn't surprised that the team seems close to moving to New Orleans.
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| Jan 20, 2002
It wasn't a game Todd MacCulloch was particularly proud of.
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| Jan 20, 2002
It's way too early for a team to make any emphatic statements or anything like that but a little subtle message can be delivered any old time.
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| Jan 20, 2002
They've talked about the urgency of playing with greater defensive intensity.
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| Jan 20, 2002
There were 24 seconds remaining in the first half when Alvin Williams stole the ball and slipped it to Vince Carter.
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| Jan 20, 2002
The daggers, two of them, came from old familiar hands.
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| Jan 19, 2002
SCOUTING REPORT
• Hornets forward George Lynch hopes to resume his comeback from foot surgery tonight or, at the latest, on Monday at New York.
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| Jan 18, 2002
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| Jan 18, 2002
Antonio Davis went on the offensive yesterday by blasting the Raptors' porous defence.
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| Jan 18, 2002
Chris Childs knows that two consecutive wins won't erase the memory of an NBA season that has failed to live up to expectations for the Toronto Raptors.
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| Jan 17, 2002
The Rockets tightened up their defense and used a barrage of three-pointers to whittle down an 18-point fourth quarter deficit to just one with under 2 minutes to go, but they couldn't overtake the Raptors, who held on for the 109-103 win in the Air Canada Centre Wednesday night.
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| Jan 17, 2002
Having had such an easy time for most of the game, the Toronto Raptors decided to test their poise in the waning minutes last night.
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| Jan 17, 2002
You look at him now, after all he has done, and hope your eyes are hiding the truth.
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| Jan 17, 2002
Rudy Tomjanovich peered down the hallway in the bowels of the Air Canada Centre before game time on Wednesday, hoping to spy Hakeem Olajuwon, the man who used to be synonymous with basketball in Houston.
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| Jan 17, 2002
Toronto Raptors assistant coach Stan Albeck, who had a serious stroke last month, was discharged from the hospital and admitted to a rehab center on Wednesday.
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| Jan 16, 2002
Vince Carter takes a lot of flak for his infrequent forays to the free throw line, so he sure wasn't going to blow four straight foul shots with a game on the line.
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| Jan 16, 2002
The Raptors aren't sure what the moral of this story is.
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| Jan 15, 2002
Vince Carter was asked yesterday whether the needle on the Raptors' frustration meter was about to fly off the charts.
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| Jan 15, 2002
THE RAPTORS' explanation for retaining Lenny Wilkens at the helm of this confused, backward-moving team, apparently is that they cannot afford to fire him right now.
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| Jan 15, 2002
The Raptors spent most of the day breaking down game film from Sunday's loss to the Los Angeles Clippers.
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| Jan 15, 2002
How's this for the new math? The Raptors are about to waste the efforts of a $53-million US payroll to avoid eating this year's $2.
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| Jan 14, 2002
WITH THIS most high-rent of Raptors sides, the gap between coach and players is growing as wide as the Niagara Gorge.
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| Jan 14, 2002
The excuses, like the games themselves, all seem to run together now in a dreary sameness.
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| Jan 14, 2002
The play came midway through the final quarter when a cutting Earl Boykins scored on a back-door layup.
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| Jan 14, 2002
The play came midway through the final quarter when a cutting Earl Boykins scored on a back-door layup.
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| Jan 14, 2002
Antonio Davis had issued a warning after Toronto's close call against Atlanta on Friday night that the Raptors would need to go back to the drawing board to work on beating the zone defence the Hawks had used so successfully against them.
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| Jan 14, 2002
Jury selection began Monday in the trial of former Vince Carter agent William (Tank) Black, accused of stealing millions of dollars from players he represented.
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| Jan 13, 2002
As a career gunslinger who has flirted with shooting 50 per cent from the floor in three different seasons over of his career, it's almost unfathomable to think of Wendell Stephen Curry putting up an 0-fer when he gets regular minutes.
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| Jan 12, 2002
IN SPORTS, perspective is everything.
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| Jan 12, 2002
Lon Kruger and his Atlanta Hawks have seen just about enough of Hakeem Olajuwon for one season.
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| Jan 12, 2002
Alvin Williams is a hero once again.
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| Jan 12, 2002
One of these nights the Raptors actually are going to play well for an entire game and win.
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| Jan 12, 2002
Kruger blames officials for confusion in final seconds of overtime loss to Raptors.
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| Jan 11, 2002
It is a continual process of personal growth that Antonio Davis says he's undertaking, a move from the shadows to the spotlight, and it won't be complete until he takes the Toronto Raptors by the scruff of the neck and shakes some sense into them.
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| Jan 11, 2002
Invariably, late March and early April rolls around in the NBA and teams either barely in the playoffs or on the cusp of reaching the post-season lament the games that got away back in December and January.
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| Jan 11, 2002
Lenny Wilkens offered a response to his critics yesterday.
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| Jan 10, 2002
TOP, BOTTOM or in the middle, it doesn't matter to the Toronto Raptors.
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| Jan 10, 2002
Someone ought to bottle up whatever possesses these Chicago Bulls and sell it as magical slump-busting medicine.
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| Jan 10, 2002
Forward Morris Peterson, who is sidelined with a broken right index finger, has been named to the sophomore team for the NBA all-star rookie challenge, the Toronto Raptors said Wednesday.
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| Jan 10, 2002
They began the game missing their first four shots.
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| Jan 10, 2002
The Toronto Raptors signed guard Jermaine Jackson to a 10-day contract Thursday and placed Mamadou N'diaye on the injured list because of left quadriceps tendinitis.
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| Jan 9, 2002
The Toronto Raptors took a step back in time here last night, a step back to an era when they were not a very good basketball team, when they were a squad trying to find a style of play to suit the personnel, a franchise looking for an identity.
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| Jan 9, 2002
For the Raptors, crunch time turned into panic time last night in the team's first visit to the Pyramid.
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| Jan 8, 2002
Besides ranking in the NBA's lower echelon in field-goal percentage and defensive rebounding, the Raptors also seem to be suffering these days from an acute identity crisis.
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| Jan 8, 2002
Vince Carter of the Toronto Raptors and Shaquille O'Neal of the Los Angeles Lakers held their leads in NBA All-Star balloting Tuesday.
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| Jan 8, 2002
The Raptors suddenly have a roster spot with which to play.
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| Jan 8, 2002
In a perfect world, do the Raptors fire Lenny Wilkens, who has more wins than any coach in NBA history, after just one full season and half of another?
Yup.
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| Jan 8, 2002
The Toronto Raptors activated centre Hakeem Olajuwon from the injured list Tuesday.
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| Jan 7, 2002
Sneaky devil, that Kobe Bryant.
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| Jan 7, 2002
Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant helped, but in the end, it was some lesser-known names that ultimately led to the demise of the Raptors.
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| Jan 7, 2002
YOU CAN call it anything you like.
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| Jan 7, 2002
Shaquille O'Neal can add "The Fonz" to his lengthy list of nicknames.
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| Jan 7, 2002
If the Los Angeles Lakers are the NBA's gold standard -- and who could possibly argue that? -- then, on this day at least, the Raptors were somewhere down there with Argentina's peso.
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| Jan 6, 2002
Some players might be stronger, many are quicker and some play with at least as much ferocity.
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| Jan 6, 2002
Raptor Eric Montross has been in the NBA long enough to know what kind of player Shaquille O'Neal is.
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| Jan 6, 2002
Teams have hacked him, whacked him, zoned him and even intentionally sent him to the foul line to neutralize him.
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| Jan 5, 2002
As they enter what could be a crucial phase of their season, the TorontoRaptors took it easy on themselves last night.
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| Jan 5, 2002
It's been a long, long time since Morris Peterson has suffered a serious injury and he's going to have a long, long time to get used to the feeling.
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| Jan 5, 2002
T HIS WAS always going to be a season of high expectations for the Raptors.
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| Jan 5, 2002
The Raptors didn't have to worry about any ill effects coming back from a West Coast trip.
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| Jan 5, 2002
Toronto
- Cleveland Cavaliers rookie Jeff Trepagnier received a breath of fresh air when he was activated from the injured list prior to last night's game.
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| Jan 5, 2002
Toronto - OK, so Vince Carter did his thing and scorched the Cleveland Cavaliers for 34 points last night.
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| Jan 4, 2002
The Toronto Raptors announced Friday they have placed forward Morris Peterson on the injured list and centre Mamadou N'diaye on the active roster.
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| Jan 4, 2002
It's amazing how much good a little bit of aggression can do on a basketball court.
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| Jan 4, 2002
The Raptors only can hope it isn't going to be one of "those years.
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| Jan 4, 2002
Tip-off: 7 p.
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| Jan 3, 2002
After hammering home the need to put away a team once they had it down, the Toronto Raptors proved they could.
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| Jan 3, 2002
Having assumed for now a spot in the Toronto Raptor starting lineup, Keon Clark has delivered some of his most inspired play of the last season and a half.
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| Jan 3, 2002
There is really no reason for anyone to celebrate the passing of Jan.
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| Jan 3, 2002
It's amazing what the Raptors can accomplish when they're rested, reasonably healthy and playing a team in disarray.
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| Jan 2, 2002
The banged up Toronto Raptors will be closer to full strength tonight when they tangle with the Blazers in Portland.
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| Jan 2, 2002
And now for something completely different: A schedule break for the Toronto Raptors.
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| Jan 2, 2002
Keon Clark, NBA most improved player for 2001-02.
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| Jan 1, 2002
The calendar year 2001 undoubtedly was the most significant in Raptors history.
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