Sunday night’s 102-87 win in Sacramento marked the sixth straight for the Toronto Raptors.
They’re averaging 117 points per contest during that stretch, and have quickly solidified themselves among the top-three teams in the Eastern Conference.
Yet following the game, coach Dwane Casey wasn’t content or reveling in their ninth win over the last 11 games. He was once again harping on consistency — an issue he has been trying to correct since the beginning of the season.
“I don’t think our coach is ever happy, honestly,” Kyle Lowry said. “But that’s the good thing about our coach. He’s hard on us and he’s tough on us, but we know that he wants us to be a championship caliber team and that’s what we push for and that’s why we respond to him so well. That’s what we’ve got to do. If he wants us to be more consistent, we’re going to continue to work hard and try to be more consistent.”
Lowry, Casey said, was one of the biggest things that pulled the Raptors through their “lull” on Sunday against the Kings.
The point guard wasn’t scoring at the clip he normally does. While he finished with 15 points, Lowry went just 4-of-17 from the field — 3-of-12 from behind the arc.
But it was how he was playing even when his shot wasn’t falling that made the difference.
“I thought his scrap — he knew he wasn’t making shots, but I thought his rebounds, charges, digging out steals and that type of thing was huge,” Casey said. “That type of energy that he brings to the table, you just can’t put a number on it. Even when he’s missing shots, he came in and did some things and got us energized and got us going.”
They didn’t shoot incredibly well as a team, either. They collectively shot less than 45 percent, only three players scored in double figures, and the team scored nearly 15 points fewer than they have been averaging over the past week.
Yet they still found a way to win.
DeMar DeRozan, who finished with 25 points on Sunday, credits that in part to Lowry.
“One thing about Kyle, if his shots not falling, he’ll effect the game in so many other ways that don’t even show up on the stat sheet,” DeRozan said. “That always keeps us going. Our energy feeds off him and we got it going tonight and guys stepped up big. We played extremely hard, and it came through for us in the end.”
The Raptors will be back in action on Monday, when they take on the Los Angeles Clippers at the Staples Center.
The Clippers, who have lost four of their last five, barely escaped Saturday’s matchup against the Wizards, beating Washington 113-112.
But even though it’s such a short turnaround, DeRozan said he feels their offense is rolling right now. They’re much more familiar with it now than they were a month ago, and he doesn’t expect that to change on Monday night when they go for their seventh-straight win.
“We’re getting more and more comfortable,” DeRozan said. “Ball movement is getting much better. Guys are getting more comfortable handling the ball, pushing the ball in transition. Everybody is getting a feel for the offense. That’s a good thing, and we still have a long way to go.”