The Toronto Raptors dropped their second game in three days, losing 131-125 to the Los Angeles Lakers. In the first contest of their four-game road trip, the Raptors had no answer for six-time First-Team All-NBA selection Luka Doncic, who contributed 45 points, 15 rebounds, six assists, and five steals. 

As they continue to find a rhythm without seven-time All-Star Kawhi Leonard, Toronto has struggled with offensive consistency. Although he recorded the second scoreless game of his career earlier this season, franchise cornerstone Scottie Barnes has been on another level in terms of scoring, averaging 32.7 points per game on 57.7% shooting over the last three games.

Unfortunately for the Raptors, they face a quick turnaround, as all 30 NBA teams play Monday night. The second night of a back-to-back comes against the Los Angeles Clippers at 10:00 PM EST. The official NBA injury report confirms that Leonard will miss the reunion with the franchise he played with for the last seven seasons, as he continues to recover from some swelling in his left knee. 

He’s joined by the two-way players, Nate Bittle and Malachi Smith, along with starting center Jakob Poeltl, who’s questionable with left shoulder bursitis. He was ruled out for last night’s game just before the tip, and there may be a similar situation for Barnes, who was given a late questionable tag due to left hip tightness. For LA, the majority of their key players are out with injuries, including Bradley Beal (knee), Rui Hachimura (quad), Brandon Ingram (heel), Derrick Jones Jr. (knee), Jordan Miller (rotator cuff), and Yanic Konan Niederhauser (Lisfranc). 

It’s early in the season, but the Raptors need to stop from sliding until Leonard returns. They have been fortunate that the Eastern Conference, which was expected to be highly competitive this season, has underwhelmed to this point. Only four teams sit above .500, while the West has 10 teams with a winning record. Given Toronto’s disastrous record last season against the league’s top-10 teams, they can’t afford to drop games like tonight against one of the teams destined for the relegation zone.

Simply put, the Clippers lack the defenders to keep up with Barnes if he continues his recent dominance. His ability to get to the rim at will opens up the floor for him to get to his spots in the midrange. From there, his teammates have their defenders sagging to help whenever he’s attacking the paint, opening up more outside shots and offensive rebounding opportunities. If the former No. 4 pick in the 2021 NBA draft is forced to sit out, RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley should be expected to share the ball-handling duties for the most part.

Defensively, Toronto needs to make a statement. The Raptors have allowed 252 points in the last two games, and for a team that expects to be one of, if not the top defense in the league, that cannot become the new normal. They can do so by overwhelming Darius Garland with the basketball. He’s had issues with turning the ball over so far this season (averaging 5.2 per game), so Toronto’s tenacious perimeter defense (averaging 21.8 forced turnovers per game, No. 1 in NBA) should have a field day if they can push him into uncomfortable spots.