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USA Today via Reuters

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USA Today via Reuters

The Toronto Raptors engaged in a hard-fought battle that ended in heartbreak against the Utah Jazz. The Raptors, who have lost a lot of their touch and players from their championship era are somewhat in their rebuilding phase, with new players coming in and even a new head coach.

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After the loss to the Utah Jazz, Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic had a few things to say about the team. Trying to find the silver lining in the loss, Rajakovic amusingly takes a Stephen Curry jab at his team.

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Raptors coach uses Stephen Curry’s dominance to justify team’s struggles

The Raptors fell short to the Utah Jazz, losing the game 126-119. An evenly fought game for the first three quarters quickly changed pace in the fourth when Utah put their foot on the pedal and outscored Toronto in the final quarter.

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USA Today via Reuters

After the game, Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic had the opportunity to talk to the media. Amid all the questions and where the Raptors are heading this year, he went on to talk about the performance of the team in the second half.

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According to Raptors analyst Blake Murphy, when asked about switching up lineups, Rajakovic had this to say. Change lineups? “What? How? Why? Who? We can mix up rotations…it’s not like we have Steph Curry on the bench (and not playing him).”

Going into the half, the Raptors had a substantial 16-point lead over the Jazz. If played right, the Raptors could’ve just kept some of that pressure on Utah and run away with the win after the final buzzer.

Read More – Stephen Curry Embraces 2X NBA Champ After Spoiling Jordan Poole’s Warriors Return

But instead, due to Toronto’s negligence, the Jazz were able to make a huge comeback and turn the game around, winning it by a seven-point margin in the end.

Raptors’ head coach tries unorthodox methods to improve team

The Toronto Raptors seemed confident going into the locker room at halftime. But their head coach had a feeling that he needed to do a few things in a better manner to keep the game in their favor.

Darko Rajakovic also had that same feeling while the team was going into the break ahead of Christmas time. As per Blake Murphy, “Heading into break, Darko told team he’s going to look in the mirror to see what he can do better, and he thinks every coach and player needs to do the same.”

This loss marks the third straight game that the Raptors have lost, making their season record 11-18. If lineup changes cannot make much of a difference, should the Raptors look to trade and acquire a few pieces?

Let us know what you think in the comments section below.

Watch This Story – Stephen Curry Reminisces Last Season’s Warriors’ Woes That Also Ended vs. the Rockets

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Abhishek Dhariwal

1,425 Articles

“Good, better, best. Never let it rest. Until your good is better and your better is best” - Tim Duncan said this once, and I took it as a sign to keep working on myself, without fail! Being a basketball player all my life, it was natural for me to eventually become an NBA writer at EssentiallySports. Being a Spurs fan, I fell in love with Duncan and McGrady for making me the fan I am today. Their dedication to their field inspired me to never give up, despite my knee surgeries. Today, as an NBA writer, I get to share my unique perspectives with the world. The fact that I actually get to write about the things that I love, especially while getting to watch them live, it something I love about my job. With San Antonio landing a cornerstone for their franchise in Wembanyama, make sure you are paying close attention to Spurs-based pieces. When I am not knee-deep into all things basketball, I am gaming. I love PUBG, NBA2K and Forza Horizon. Want to have a spirited debate on my articles? Hit me up on the links below.

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