The Toronto Raptors made their first and only pre-season appearance at the Scotiabank Arena last night. The result was a foregone conclusion. Even while a bunch of the Raptors rotation sat and watched, the opponent, Australia’s Melbourne United, wasn’t capable of providing an interesting match. The final score was 120 – 82.
I’ve long held the belief that pre-season games don’t help the team, but they can help individuals. In that sense, the game was highly beneficial to Norman Powell (at least until he tweaked his thigh muscle and could barely hobble off the floor). Norman, who has stepped into Terrence Ross’s old job as the most inconsistent player on the squad, looked like the man who so impressed us a few seasons ago.