Raptors drop down standings after awful loss in New Orleans

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All season long, the Toronto Raptors had been able to balance constant losses to good teams with victories over bad ones.

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On Wednesday in New Orleans, that scenario didn’t play out.

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The Pelicans, entrenched near the bottom of the NBA standings for months, toyed with the visitors in a dominant third quarter and turned it up again in the fourth, sending Toronto to its seventh loss in 11 games and sixth in eight outings.

New Orleans won 122-111, shot above 50% and nearly hit that mark on three-pointers, while the punchless Raptors couldn’t crack 30% from three or 42% from the field, ruining Brandon Ingram’s return to New Orleans. Ingram had 22 points but also didn’t shoot well. Trey Murphy had 28, Dejounte Murray 27, Zion Williamson 19 for the Pelicans. Immanuel Quickley had 25 to lead the Raptors.

With no reason to tank, having traded this year’s first-round pick before the season, New Orleans is still trying and recently got back star guard Murray. The team had only 13 wins through 53 games, but has now won nine of 14. With Orlando shocking Cleveland, the Magic leapt past Toronto and Miami did the same despite not playing.

The Raptors sank to seventh in the Eastern Conference standings for the first time in months and is now just a game in front of Philadelphia for eighth, two ahead of streaking Atlanta for ninth. Not great.

More thoughts on a dud for the Raptors:

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BI’S BIG HOMECOMING

The game was the first for Ingram at New Orleans since he was traded to Toronto 13 months ago. Originally the key piece the Pelicans received from the Los Angeles Lakers for Anthony Davis, Ingram spent six seasons in the Bayou. He trails only Williamson and Davis atop the franchise’s points per game leaderboard and is ninth in rebounds per game. Only Ingram and Chris Paul have won a major award (most improved player for Ingram, rookie of the year for Paul) while playing for New Orleans.

Few teams have had less success or big-name stars than the Pelicans (they have won only two playoff series), so Ingram is one of their most notable former players. He was spectacular in a six-game loss to Phoenix in 2022, averaging 27 points per game, dominated in multiple play-in games just to get the Pelicans into the post-season, but was banged up when the team was swept by Oklahoma City in 2024.

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With the team unwilling to give him the big contact extension he sought, it made sense for a new start and Toronto has been a strong fit for Ingram, who made his second all-star game appearance last month.

The Pelicans gave Ingram a video tribute in the first quarter, and the crowd responded warmly.

“It was the start of something new. The place where I got my first All-Star. It kind of opened up my game a little bit,” Ingram said on the Sportsnet broadcast.

“I’ve failed and succeeded in a lot of ways in New Orleans. It prepared for my time here.”

BURNED BY ROCKETS

A night earlier, the Raptors had fallen 113-99 in Houston, getting nearly doubled on the boards minus most of the team’s big men.

Down nine at the half, the Raptors rallied to within one late in the third before missing a flurry of shots, a familiar refrain this season, especially against good opponents. A 9-0 Rockets run in the fourth snuffed out any Toronto comeback hopes. The teams combined to go 2-for-18 on three-pointers in the fourth, but five Raptors turnovers to one by Houston were key and the Rockets had 14 points in the paint in the quarter.

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It was a winnable game, even without Jakob Poeltl, Collin Murray-Boyles and third-string big man Trayce Jackson-Davis (Poeltl and Jackson-Davis returned against the Pelicans), but Ingram arguably had his worst performance of the season and good work from Barnes and Barrett wasn’t enough. A silver lining was Barnes eclipsing 20 points for the first time in more than a month. Barnes shot 0-for-7 from the field in the second half against the Pelicans and finished with only nine points.

OLD DUKIES GO AT IT

Barrett spent much of his teenage years considered the best prospect in his draft class, but once he got to Duke, teammate Zion Williamson eclipsed him because he was such an athletic freak of nature. Eventually, Ja Morant did the same, and they went 1-2, before the New York Knicks selected Barrett.

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While Barrett is fourth in points per game from the 2019 draft crop, availability, as some say, is the best ability and he has been far more durable than most of his colleagues. That’s why he’s well ahead of anybody else in total points and minutes played. Barrett has played 100 more games than Morant and 164 more than Williamson.

Memphis and Morant need a change of scenery for multiple reasons, but while it seemed for a while Williamson and the Pelicans did as well, he has been healthy for once and productive, and remains the face of the franchise.

Williamson, when he plays, remains the best in his class, but Barrett hasn’t been too shabby either.

The pair memorably played an exhibition game in Toronto just before starting their year at Duke.

Williamson had a big night in this one, while Barrett finally cooled off after a run of good games.

NEXT UP: The Raptors return home for two tough games, first against Phoenix on Friday and then Sunday against conference-leading Detroit, before five more on the road.

@WolstatSun

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