INDIANAPOLIS—The catchphrase that often comes up when coach Dwane Casey talks about his Toronto Raptors is work in progress.
The coach and the organization have been thinking long-term from the time training camp opened, eying a journey that Casey hopes, at least, culminates with the Raptors peaking as they head into the playoffs.
Some nights, the progress is clear and NBA heavyweights like San Antonio and Cleveland fall in front of them.
Then there are nights like Monday, where the good and the bad are so overpoweringly evident, bedroom-lights-on-at-3-a.m. bright for a moment before the circuit blows, giving late-night, mid-December darkness the next instant.