Raptors lose ugly as New York Knicks continue dominance

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After a stellar road trip, reality bit the Toronto Raptors hard at home on Wednesday night. Once again, it was familiar foe New York being a thorn in their side.

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Leading for much of the night, Toronto gave up a 13-0 run late in the third quarter (11 of the points were scored by Mikal Bridges) and then got drilled in the fourth on the way to a 119-92 loss.

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It was the 11th straight defeat to New York for the Raptors, including a blowout that knocked them out of the NBA Cup tournament earlier this season.

Bridges led the way with 30 points, while former Raptor OG Anunoby was great on both ends of the floor with a season-best 26, along with five steals and two blocks.

The Raptors led 51-47 at the half despite shooting only 31% from the field.

Toronto had an 18-6 free throw attempt advantage though and New York only shot 4-for-19 on three-pointers in the half. But once Bridges heated up and most of the Raptors continued to struggle from the field, the eventual result became obvious and inevitable.

Karl-Anthony Towns missed eight of his 11 shot attempts, but hauled in 22 rebounds.

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REVISITING THE TRADE

It has been two years plus a month since the Raptors and Knicks pulled off a blockbuster, headlined around Anunoby heading to New York in exchange for Quickley and Barrett. New York has gone 8-0 against Toronto since the deal. The consensus has been that Anunoby was the best player involved and he has been an ideal fit and become a fan favourite in New York, but Quickley’s excellent play lately — before Wednesday — has changed the narrative slightly.

Quickley was just named Eastern Conference player of the week for the first time and was playing his best basketball as a Raptor, while Barrett led the Raptors in scoring two straight seasons and this year has been a big reason why the team had gone 18-7, before Wednesday, with him in the lineup.

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At one point early in the game, Anunoby swatted away a Barrett attempt, but was called for a foul. No matter, the former Indiana star drilled a three-pointer the next trip down the floor and then scored a layup and was fouled by Barrett.

In 2024-25, Anunoby matched his a career-high of 74 games played and set a new mark, averaging 18 points a game. This year, under a new head coach, Anunoby’s minutes and scoring numbers are down, but some of his advanced stats (like how often he gets to the free throw line and his rebound rate) are up. He nearly equalled his season average of 15 points with 14 points in the first half alone, leading all players. He took over in the third quarter, dominating at both ends. Meanwhile, Quickley had his worst game in a while and Barrett struggled as well.

Anunoby is a key for the Knicks, but if New York revisits trade talks with Milwaukee for Giannis Antetokounmpo, Anunoby might have to be part of its offer.

There also is the question of Barrett’s future in Toronto, as he has been mentioned heavily in trade rumours.

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ROAD WARRIORS

Not a lot has separated the Knicks and Raptors so far this season. Both have won about 60% of the time, but interestingly, each has had trouble against quality opponents. New York is 13-14 vs. teams .500 or above, while Toronto moved to 11-13.

One difference: New York is 18-6 at home, but just 10-12 on the road, while Toronto has an excellent 16-9 record away from Canada, but fell to just 13-11 at Scotiabank Arena.

What has gone right in unfriendly surroundings for the Raptors?

“I think the group, when we go on the road, takes advantage of spending more time together and Scottie organized a dinner when we were in OKC,” head coach Darko Rajakovic said.

“We really spend a lot of time around each other and talk basketball. When we also win games and play to our standard, it brings the group even closer. Any time when we have those opportunities to connect off the court more, it’s very beneficial for us,” he said.

Toronto has defied expectations so far this season, but two things need to change if they want to take another step forward: They have to beat good opponents more often, and have to perform a lot better in front of their loyal fans.

@WolstatSun

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