Rockets' guard Rafer Alston was shocked to hear that the Raptors fired coach Sam Mitchell on Wednesday.

Alston played under Mitchell for one season in Toronto.

"We had our issues, but we allowed other things to seep into our relationship, and that's where the problems got out of hand," Alston said. "We were never unhappy with each other. We were unhappy with how we were dealing with others that we had to work with.

"I know (the Raptors) haven't been happy with the way they have played this year, but this shocked me," Alston said.