TORONTO (AP) Vince Carter isn't the only scoring threat in Toronto anymore. Suddenly, the Raptors have several other offensive options to chose from thanks to their big trade with the Chicago Bulls.

And it shows. They won their first five games after acquiring Jalen Rose, Donyell Marshall and Lonny Baxter, averaging 100 points after scoring an NBA-worst 78 before the trade.

``It's amazing how things have changed,'' said coach Kevin O'Neill, whose team is no longer on pace to break the record-low set by the post-Jordan Bulls of 1999, who averaged only 81.9 points.

``We don't just have good scoring, we have good shooting. By that I mean, guys that can penetrate and kick and make plays for each other.''

It's quite a turnaround for a franchise that started this season 8-8 and went 24-58 last year.

Rose, Toronto's new starting point guard, and Carter are attracting double teams, leading to open shots for Marshall, Alvin Williams, Morris Peterson and rookie Chris Bosh.

With more space to operate, Bosh has flourished as the starting center, averaging 14.6 points, 9.8 rebounds and 37 minutes despite being undersized at 6-foot-10 and 228 pounds.

He's even being mentioned with LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony for rookie of the year.

``It's pretty early, but I'd love to be in that race,'' said the 19-year-old Bosh, who against Seattle had 22 points and tied the club's rookie rebound record with 16 grabs.

``The trade has gone better than expected,'' he said. ``I'm thinking when trades happen, you have to kind of start over, and find your team again, find what kind of style of team you are, but we've looked pretty good. We have an identity now.''

But it's Williams and Peterson who appear to have benefited the most from the Dec. 1 trade that sent Antonio Davis, Jerome Williams and Chris Jefferies to Chicago.

Alvin Williams, who moved from point guard to shooting guard, is averaging 11 points and can now focus on making open jumpers. And Peterson doesn't have to create his own shot.

``I think everybody now gets to play their role, and be who they are,'' Carter said. ``Mo Pete is a flat-out 3-point shooter.''

Peterson made four open 3-pointers to help the Raptors pull away in the fourth quarter of their victory over Seattle on Dec. 7. A driving Carter assisted on three of them.

In the revamped Raptors' first win over Philadelphia on Dec. 2, Carter recorded a career-high 12 assists and 21 points. Marshall scored 27 points and Rose added eight assists, despite not practicing with their new team yet.

``I don't think we could have asked for much better,'' Toronto general manager Glen Grunwald said. ``It's been good from the won-loss perspective, but also from the perspective of putting points on the board. It's a little easier on the eye to watch.''

The next night against Boston, Carter collected 10 assists and 21 points while Marshall scored 21 in the victory that gave Toronto a franchise record of 17 3-pointers.

``Glen Grunwald has really put together a team that's very, very difficult to guard,'' Celtics coach Jim O'Brien said. ``I thought our team really competed their guts out. I don't know if anybody could have beaten them shooting the way they did.''

Two nights later in Atlanta, and then again Tuesday against Cleveland, Carter, Marshall and Rose each scored at least 20 points to help push the Raptors to 13-8, the fourth best record in the Eastern Conference.

Grunwald admits his team is undersized without Davis and Jerome Williams. Marshall is 6-foot-9 and is more of a perimeter threat, and Baxter is just 6-foot-8.

``It's certainly a concern, but at the same time hopefully we can deal with it,'' Grunwald said. ``There's been a lot of teams that have been successful without a true center.''

Not everyone is convinced, though, that the new Raptors will be able to sustain their momentum.

Among them, two former Raptors, whose new team has gone 1-3 since the deal. Davis, who had been a strong defensive presence in Toronto, questions whether his former team will play defense after the honeymoon period ends. Williams believes Toronto's lack of size might become an issue in the playoffs.

``When they beat the Lakers, then I'll take notice,'' he said. ``You can be hot for one, two possibly three games. But when you talk about playing seven games with one day in between, jump shots get old. They don't always fall.''

Rose, on the other hand, is optimistic and feels rejuvenated with his new team. He raves about Carter's unselfishness and how it took two months to get four wins with Chicago, but just a week to do that in Toronto.

``Not only are we good players, but we all get along well,'' Rose said. ``We're humble guys in this locker room. We understand that we're playing well right now, but we have a long way to go.''