It’s safe to say the sky is no longer falling in Toronto.
After a miserable start to 2020-21 — mired with trade ideas and whispers of tanking — the Raptors are slowly coming around and finally, thankfully, played a complete game on both ends of the floor tonight.
With a 116-93 drubbing of the Mavericks, Toronto showed their best selves on the defensive end of the floor. They held Dallas to just 37.8% shooting from the field and 25% from three, won the turnover battle 16-14, and tallied nine steals. While the Mavericks were admittedly under-staffed thanks to COVID-19 health and safety protocols — with four rotation pieces sitting out — they still had Luka Doncic.