ATLANTA—Thursday night was a big one for DeMarre Carroll, but Friday morning is what will really matter.
The Raptors forward played for the first time on Thursday, against his former team the Atlanta Hawks, since having arthroscopic surgery on his right knee Jan. 6. He was a last-minute add-on to the roster, with Raptors coach Dwane Casey shifting him from out to questionable to available just a couple of hours before tipoff.
“DeMarre Carroll is going to be available. Go ahead and start tweeting it,” he told the small pack of reporters that circled him.
The Raptors played catch-up all night, falling behind by as much as 14 to a Hawks team fighting for the third seed in the Eastern Conference in a 95-87 loss.