The key stats are getting unsightly. This is a league in which three-point shooting is vital, and the Raptors rank 28th of 30 teams in three-point accuracy.
This is a team built on the notion that defensive effort is non-negotiable. And yet the Raptors rank 28th in opponents’ field-goal percentage.
This is a sport in which the best players on the floor so often decide games with individual moments of brilliance. Which tells you why the Raptors, so devoid of improvisational shot creation beyond the tireless Pascal Siakam, fell to 1-6 in games decided by three points or less with Monday’s 104-101 overtime loss in Philadelphia.