NBA.com Preview | Game Notes

Probable Starters

TOR – Jose Calderon (G), DeMar DeRozan (G), James Johnson (F), Amir Johnson (F), Aaron Gray (C).
DET– Brandon Knight (G), Rodney Stuckey (G), Tayshaun Prince (F), Jason Maxiell (F), Greg Monroe (C)

Key Injuries

TOR – Andrea Bargnani (left calf strain) – out, Linas Kleiza (sore left knee) – game-time decision
DET – Charlie Villanueva (sore right ankle) – out

After a breakneck pace to start this condensed season, the Raptors were back at practice Tuesday for a third time in four straight non-game days.

The long layoff has made it increasingly difficult for head coach Dwane Casey to get his team ready for actual game conditions, but on the plus side, it has also afforded him an opportunity to work on some key areas of concern such as slow starts and late-game execution.

More from coach Casey on matching up with a healthy Pistons team beginning to fire on all ...

Friday was nothing short of a letdown effort for the Raptors, who found themselves in another close game, but they failed to bring the same level of intensity — especially early — that kept them so competitive against some strong opponents in their previous four home games.

Our Tweet of the Night asks a question the Raptors now have days to figure out before closing out the first half of the regular season Wednesday against the Pistons. Based on Dwane Casey’s post-game reaction above, it’s probably no surprise that they get ...

Akil, Kat, John (aka Marcin) and I look ahead to a Fan Night matchup against the Bobcats at ACC tonight…

Probable Starters
TOR – Jose Calderon (G), DeMar DeRozan (G/F), James Johnson (F),  Amir Johnson (F/C), Aaron Gray (C).
CHA – Kemba Walker (G), Reggie Williams (G), Corey Maggette (F), Boris Diaw (F), Bismack Biyombo (C).

Key Injuries
TOR – Andrea Bargnani (left calf strain) – out, Jerryd Bayless (sore left ankle) – day-to-day
CHA –Gerald Henderson (right hamstring strain) – out

Not going to lie, I’ve been digging up old Naughty By Nature and getting ...

In the face of a growing list of injuries and fresh off three straight intense matchups, the Raptors endured perhaps their most enlightening wire-to-wire loss of the season on Wednesday.

With no Andrea Bargnani, Linas Kleiza or Jerryd Bayless in the lineup, the Raptors’ already slim margin of error got even leaner, but to their credit, they chose fight over flight for a fourth straight game and cut the Spurs’ advantage to 97-96 with four minutes to play.

It was a familiar lack of late-game execution that handed the Raptors a 113-106 ...

Our #RTZ Tweet of the Night from @Iminfantasyland pretty much nailed it, huh?

Love was in the air on Valentine’s Day at Air Canada Centre on Tuesday — with a large (and loud) portion of that affection directed at Knicks point guard sensation Jeremy Lin.

We’ll leave it to other corners to remark on the latest chapter of an admittedly fantastic story in Lin. But there were other reasons to feel the love at ACC last night.

How about some for head coach Dwane Casey, who received his 2010-11 championship ring from his ...

Akil Augustine and I take a seat on the Raptors bench to discuss bouncing back against the Knicks after a tough loss, the return of Amar’e Stoudemire and of course, the growing legend of Jeremy Lin.

Probable Starters
TOR – Jose Calderon (G), DeMar DeRozan (G), James Johnson (F),  Amir Johnson (F), Aaron Gray (C).
NYK–  Jeremy Lin (G), Landry Fields (G/F), Bill Walker (G/F), Amar’e Stoudemire (F/C), Tyson Chandler (C)

Key Injuries
TOR – Andrea Bargnani (left calf strain) – out, Jerryd Bayless (sore left ankle) – day-to-day
NYK – Carmelo Anthony (strained right groin) ...

The honours continue to pile up for Raptors 2011 first-round pick Jonas Valanciunas, who was named the 2011 FIBA Europe Young Men’s Player of the Year by FIBA Europe on Monday.

Valanciunas, 20,  came out on top in votes amongst an expert panel of voters to earn the award for the best European player aged 22 and under and finished second in a fan vote to earn the distinction.

It’s hard to disagree based on a calendar year that saw Valanciunas earn MVP honours and help propel Lithuania to gold at the ...

It was an absolute roller coaster of an afternoon at ACC on Sunday, which featured another awful start from the home side, an unlikely spark from Jamaal Magloire, Jose Calderon going supernova for a career-high 30 points, quiet Kobe, airball Kobe, a Raptors fourth-quarter comeback, killer Kobe, a devastating five-second violation, another last shot opportunity for a win, but ultimately a 94-92 loss.

I leave it to @jaypresident with our #RTZ Tweet of the Night to sum it more effectively in less than 140 characters:

Top 20 #RTZ  Tweets – Raptors vs. ...