It would take a while to list all the ways the Raptors have been snake-bitten this season. Playing in Tampa and dealing with the pandemic have been the two biggest issues, but that’s really just scratching the surface.
Thursday felt like a microcosm of the entire season, in that sense. Already down two starters in Kyle Lowry and Fred VanVleet, the Raptors learned early in the day that a scuffle between OG Anunoby and Dennis Schröder in their Tuesday game against the Lakers would result in suspensions — but not to those in the fracas. Both DeAndre’ Bembry and Fred VanVleet were given a one-game penalty for leaving the Raptors’ bench, a punishment well-known in the NBA but not often handed out.