The Toronto Raptors find themselves in unfamiliar territory approaching the 2021 trade deadline. Currently 17-26, 11th in the Eastern Conference and on a nine-game losing streak, the Raptors can no longer look themselves in the mirror and see a competitive team. Instead, for the first time in a very long time, they need to consider the future.
Not the future, future. The Raptors still have a relatively young core in Fred VanVleet, Pascal Siakam, and OG Anunoby — one good enough to be competitive again as soon as next season with the right supporting cast around them. Those three are signed for three more seasons, and in the always-changing modern NBA, that means the competitive window is the next three seasons, so Toronto would be smart to stay young while building a competitive roster that fits around that core.
Enter Lonzo Ball, the No. 2 pick in the 2017 draft who, despite all the gossip that follows him, is having a career season with the New Orleans Pelicans. Ball is averaging 14/4/6 on 43/39/77 shooting, efficient but not eye-popping numbers that mean more when you consider that he is doing everything asked of him a Pelicans team that plays slow, has bad spacing, and uses Ball primarily off-ball as a spot-up shooter.
Ball is a 6-foot-6 point guard who can defend multiple positions and shoot the three, yet the Pelicans and him did not agree to a contract extension ahead of the season, meaning he will hit restricted free agency this offseason. Plus, Ball’s (loud) father Lavar recently remarked that Lonzo “can’t stand New Orleans,” Marc Stein of the New York Times reported that the Los Angeles Clippers were inquiring about Lonzo ahead of the deadline, and Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer reported that the Pelicans are looking for “at least one good first-round pick or young player” for Ball. That is all to say: Ball could be had, for the right price. The Raptors could likely get there by sending Powell to a third team (like the Grizzlies, Hawks, Mavericks, or Hornets), who send their draft pick to New Orleans and Ball to Toronto. Or they could construct a deal around Chris Boucher (and Malachi Flynn), a potentially nice fit beside Zion Williamson in New Orleans.
While we don’t know what will happen with Kyle Lowry at the trade deadline or beyond this season, we know that the Raptors need a guard to grow beside VanVleet in the backcourt (Flynn does not project to be a starter anytime soon). Fortunately, VanVleet has proved that he can play either on or off-ball, opening up more possibilities for his backcourt partner. Maybe you think that partner should be Norman Powell, who is also having a career year and is already on the Raptors. But at only 23 years of age, Lonzo is a higher upside prospect who would fit in nicely beside VanVleet on both sides of the floor.
It starts with the defence. Ball is already a significantly better defender then Powell, and while he can defend on or off ball, his biggest strength on that end of the floor for the Raptors would be his off-ball defence, especially because VanVleet is one of the best point-of-attack defenders in the league.
Ball is a high-IQ player with quick enough instincts to make the right rotations, bumping the big man off his spot or jumping passing lanes to come up with 1.3 steals and 2.5 deflections per game, both among tops in the league for his position. Ball is also strong and agile enough to defend one-through-three, so he could switch on-ball actions with VanVleet similar to how Lowry does now. Crucially, Ball manages to keep his man in front of him consistently, not allowing dribble penetration so that the defence can stay set instead of entering a scramble situation, something the Raptors have done far too much this season. His block rate, steal rate, and foul rate all rank in the 70th percentile or better for his position this season.
The other thing Ball does extremely well on the defensive end is rebound from the guard position, which is increasingly important when playing beside a 6-foot-0 point guard in VanVleet. Anyone who has watched the Raptors this season knows how big of an issue rebounding has been, and Ball, who has a career defensive rebounding percentage of 15.4 (6.4 rebounds per game), would immediately alleviate the problem.
Plus, it’s not just that Ball would be a great fit beside VanVleet in the backcourt as an off-ball defender and rebounder — he would also be a great fit for Nick Nurse and the Raptors’ system. In fact, his style aligns perfectly with how Nurse and the Raptors like win: on the back of their defence, by forcing steals and playing in transition.
Ball is at his best when playing fast. He grew up in a basketball ecosystem in Chino Hills where he and his brothers learned the art of the outlet pass and how to make good decisions with a head of steam. In fact, Ball’s best skill is his ability to play in transition, and he is like Lowry in that he can turn steals and defensive rebounds into transition opportunities with go-ahead passes or by taking the ball the length of the court himself. Unfortunately, the Pelicans prefer to play slow and don’t use Ball to the best of his abilities, with only 18.7 percent of his offence coming in transition for 0.93 points per possession. Still, they are more effective in transition with Ball on the floor due to his rebounding and playmaking.
In the half court, Ball would present another creator to play alongside VanVleet, taking turns with VanVleet and Siakam to run the offence. Ball has already taken strides as a playmaker in the half court, with 22.2 percent of his offence coming as a pick-and-roll ball-handler this season, scoring 0.98 points per possession, which ranks in the 76th percentile league-wide. He also has a career-low turnover percentage of 13.7 on career-high usage of 19.6 percent (and 24.1 assist percentage), but he still has room to grow when it comes to creating good looks for his teammates. Put him in Toronto’s development system alongside good shooters (the Raptors prefer to play five-out at all times), and he could reach a new level as a half-court facilitator.
Ball would also immediately make an impact in the half-court as a catch-and-shoot operator. This season, 37.7 percent of Ball’s offence is coming in spot-up situations, scoring 1.19 points per possession, which ranks in the 85th percentile league-wide. Plus, if his defender closes out too aggressively, Ball is smart enough to attack the paint or make the right read consistently, moving the ball quickly to find an open shooter.
It’s no wonder the Pelicans are +10.9 points per 100 possessions better with Ball on the floor this season: He is an extremely smart player who doesn’t get in the way of things and plays to his strengths. A very Masai Ujiri player, if you will.
The biggest problem with a VanVleet/Ball backcourt would be that neither player is good at applying pressure to the rim, especially in comparison to Powell. Ball is somewhat hesitant to attack the rim, with just 21 percent of his shots coming there, but part of that is due to bad spacing and his improvement from behind the arc, as 36 percent of his shots came at the rim in 2018-19. He is shooting 60 percent at the rim this season, which is a career-high, and if he continues to add weight to his frame and learn how to use his size better, he should have an easier time finishing through the trees in the future.
In the short term, the Raptors offence could become even more reliant on the three-point shot, leading to even more high-variance games where the winner is decided by who hits the most threes. But Ball has never had as much space as he would have in Toronto to attack the rim, and at just 23 years of age, he has a lot of room to grow as a finisher.
Still, the Raptors would not be replacing Powell with Ball. They still would lack the type of player who can put pressure on the rim and finish there with consistency, and they would need to address that in free agency or through the draft and internal development.
But by adding a savvy defender, excellent rebounder, transition playmaker, and spot-up shooter in Ball, the Raptors would have a nicely fitting backcourt for many years to come. One with high enough upside that it’s hard to find a reason not to go out and get Lonzo Ball at the trade deadline.
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Lamar Jackson threw for 281 yards and five touchdowns, helping the Baltimore Ravens overcome an early double-digit deficit and extend their National Football League winning streak to five games with a 41-31 victory Monday night over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who lost their top two receivers to injuries.
The two-time NFL MVP improved to 23-1 against NFC teams, the best mark by a quarterback against an opposing conference in NFL history. He’s 3-0 against the Bucs (4-3), who faded after taking a 10-0 lead with help from the 100th TD reception of Mike Evans’ career.
Evans departed with a hamstring injury after Baker Mayfield tried to connect with him in the end zone again, and late in the fourth quarter with the game out of reach, leading Bucs receiver Chris Godwin was carted off the field with a left ankle injury. ESPN declined to show replays of Godwin’s injury, which appeared to be severe.
Jackson completed 17 of 22 passes without an interception, including TD throws of nine and four yards to Mark Andrews. He also tossed scoring passes of 49 yards to Rashod Bateman, 18 yards to Justice Hill and 11 yards to Derrick Henry, who rushed for 169 yards on 15 carries. Bateman had four catches for 121 yards.
The Ravens (5-2) rebounded from a slow start on defence, with cornerback Marlon Humphrey turning the game around with a pair of second-quarter interceptions — one of them in the Baltimore end zone. Jackson led a four-play, 80-yard TD drive after the first pick, and the second interception set up Justin Tucker’s 28-yard field goal for a 17-10 halftime lead.
Elsewhere in the NFL:
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CARDINALS 17 CHARGERS 15
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Kyler Murray ran for a 44-yard touchdown and led the Cardinals on a drive that set up Chad Ryland’s 32-yard field goal as time expired, and Arizona rallied for a win over Los Angeles.
Cameron Dicker kicked his fifth field goal of the night — this one from 40 yards — to give the Chargers a 15-14 lead with 1:54 left. But the Cardinals (3-4) quickly moved into field goal range, aided by an unnecessary roughness call on Cam Hart that cost Los Angeles (3-3) 15 yards.
Arizona followed that with a bruising 33-yard run by James Conner, who finished with 101 yards on the ground. That eventually set up Ryland’s short field goal and a Cardinals celebration.
It was a frustrating night for the Chargers’ offence, which gained 395 yards but couldn’t find the end zone. Justin Herbert completed 27 of 39 passes for 349 yards.
Dicker booted field goals of 59, 50, 28, 47 and 40 yards, the first of which tied a franchise record for distance.
Murray ran for a spectacular touchdown early in the fourth quarter, rolling to his left before turning on the jets, beating safety Junior Colston to the sideline and then coasting into the end zone for a 14-9 lead.
It was Murray’s second long touchdown run in three weeks after he scored on a 50-yard sprint against San Francisco. It was also Murray’s 20th career game with a touchdown pass and run.
Murray completed 14 of 26 passes for 145 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
VANCOUVER – The Vancouver Whitecaps have been here before — literally and figuratively.
With the season hanging in the balance, the ‘Caps were dealt a blow last week when the club learned it wouldn’t be able to play a post-season wild-card game in its home stadium, B.C. Place, due to a scheduling conflict.
The Whitecaps ceded home field advantage to their regional rival, the Portland Timbers. The two clubs will battle for the final playoff spot in Major League Soccer’s Western Conference in Oregon on Wednesday.
The winner will face No. 1-seed Los Angeles FC in a best-of-three first-round series, starting Sunday.
An unforeseen hurdle like a change of venues is nothing new for the ‘Caps, said defender Ranko Veselinovic, who was part of the team that was forced to relocate first to Portland, then Utah during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It feels that always something happens for us, but it is what it is. So far, we’ve managed to always find solutions for those situations,” said the Serbian centre back. “But I hope this team can find it one more time, because we need it this time. And it will be a really nice feeling in those circumstances to go in, win and go face L.A. in the next round.”
Vancouver (13-13-8) heads into the post-season winless in its last seven MLS games and with losses in four straight after dropping a 2-1 road decision to Real Salt Lake on Saturday.
The skid followed a run that saw the club go 4-1-3 across all competitions between late August and late September.
There’s just one way to return to that level, said Whitecaps head coach Vanni Sartini.
“The work is the only way to do it. Try to put the work in and try to put the team in a way that they’re going to regain the form and the way that they were in the past,” he said.
Despite the final score, Sartini has seen positives in the way his team played in its two most recent losses.
“I think already we turned the corner,” he said. “And we start from there to build and build and build.”
Facing challenges together can help a team build, whether it’s a winless skid or an unexpected hurdle, said Vancouver’s captain Ryan Gauld.
“When you’re going through adversity, that’s when people start to raise their voice a little bit. You get good when the problems arise, you get a lot of people coming together to make sure we get out of it,” said the Scottish attacking midfielder.
“And we’ve had a tough time the last few games, but everyone’s aware of the fact that we’re a much better team than we’ve shown, and we need to find a way to get back to doing what we’re good at.”
The ‘Caps face a familiar foe in the Timbers (12-11-11).
The two sides have already met three times this season, with each coming out of the series with a win, a loss and a draw.
Portland has also struggled in recent weeks and are winless in their last five MLS outings (0-1-4).
The Timbers boast one of the league’s top offensive units, though, with threats such as Evander. The Brazilian midfielder notched 15 goals and 19 assists during the regular season.
To earn a win on Wednesday, the Whitecaps must be solid defensively, Gauld said.
“They must be one of the best attacks in the league. They have a lot of good players, and they can hurt you if you switch off,” he said. “So just being concentrated from the first whistle, and just being hard to beat, being stuffy. Just being on it for the full 90 minutes.”
A victory in the wild-card match would guarantee Vancouver at least one home playoff game, a factor that Sartini said would be a big reward for his group.
The entire team relished the experience of playing post-season soccer in front of more than 30,000 fans last year, the coach said, and the desire to repeat the feat is high as the club heads to Portland.
“Everyone is happy to be in the playoffs. So we don’t have to be moody to be in the playoff. And we go in there, we’re play one of our rivals. So it’s gonna be a nice game to show up and to play our best game possible.”
VANCOUVER WHITECAPS (13-13-8) AT PORTLAND TIMBERS (12-11-11)
Wednesday, Providence Park
HISTORY BOOKS: This will mark the seventh all-time post-season meeting between the Timbers and ‘Caps, dating back to 1975. The last time the two clubs squared off in a playoff game was during the Western Conference semifinal in 2015. Portland won the two-game aggregate series and went on to hoist the MLS Cup.
ROAD WARRIORS: The ‘Caps boasted a 7-6-4 record on the road during regular-season play — better than the 6-7-4 showing they posted at B.C. Place.
POST-SEASON PARTY: Wednesday will mark the first time the Timbers have hosted a post-season game since 2021.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 22, 2024.
GLASGOW, Scotland (AP) — Scotland conceived rugby sevens in the 1880s yet it will not feature in the scaled-back 2026 Commonwealth Games hosted by Glasgow.
Other sports that have also been dropped include field hockey, triathlon, badminton, Twenty20 cricket, squash, and diving.
The Games will have a 10-sport program in four venues. Athletics and swimming are compulsory while there will also be track cycling, gymnastics, netball, weightlifting, boxing, judo, bowls and 3×3 basketball.
There will also be integrated para events in six of those sports: Athletics, swimming, track cycling, weightlifting, bowls and basketball.
The Games will take place from July 23-Aug. 2 after Glasgow stepped in when the Australian state of Victoria withdrew last year because of rising costs.
It was not easy to decide which sports to include, Commonwealth Games Scotland chairman Ian Reid told the BBC on Tuesday.
“I think everybody recognises that these events need to be more affordable, lighter and we would have loved to have all of our sports and all of our athletes competing but unfortunately it’s just not deliverable or affordable for this time frame,” Reid said.
Athletes and support staff will be housed in hotels. Around 3,000 athletes are expected to compete from up to 74 Commonwealth nations and territories representing a combined total of 2.5 billion people, a third of the world’s entire population.
More than 500,000 tickets made available for spectators.
The Commonwealth Games Federation chief executive Katie Sadleir said: “The 2026 Games will be a bridge to the Commonwealth Games of tomorrow, an exciting first step in our journey to reset and redefine the Games as a truly collaborative, flexible and sustainable model for the future that minimises costs, reduces the environmental footprint, and enhances social impact. In doing so, increasing the scope of countries capable of hosting.”
Glasgow hosted the event in 2014 at a cost of more than 540 million pounds.
